The war between Yumegakure no Kai and the Pure Lands rages on. Each night, countless dreamers clash against horrors of the past. And each day, they awaken tempered by those dreams—and nightmares. Hour by hour, day by day, month by month, the world shifts.
Nearly three months of unending conflict have passed in the sanctuary once known simply as Yumegakure. Through cunning and the might of its unique defenders, the civilian sectors have remained untouched by the terrors the Pure Lands attempted to unleash. Yet those who fought in these dream-forged battles emerged transformed. And the legend of the Silver Lady echoed from friend to foe alike.
That day, Hinata Gin returned weary from battle. Her aura was sharper, refined. Her senses honed, her power sustained through an almost unbroken Silver Stage—granted by Yumegakure's constant aid. Her presence inspired allies and struck fear into enemies. But after so long bearing the mantle of the Silver Lady, she finally heeded the pleas of Kuro and Mitsue. For a few brief hours, she would put down her sword, shinsei.
At the Crystal Tower's summit, she reached the silver tree. There, she let go of the Silver Stage—its glow fading gently from her body. Her form shifted, reverting to the young Iron Princess: Hinata Gin. The change didn't go unnoticed. Kuro, now in her small dog form, launched herself at Hinata's chest, licking her face with frantic joy. Hinata, smiling despite herself, allowed it. Her mind saw the movement clearly—but her heart welcomed the impact.
They crashed onto the ground. Mitsue, watching, swept a bed of leaves with her tail beneath them—an act Yumegakure subtly encouraged with a gentle breeze. The two landed safely, laughing. Mitsue soon joined, wrapping Hinata in a warm, drawn-out embrace. For a moment, all was still.
Hinata drifted into true sleep again.
And time flowed once more, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour... in peace and tranquility.
She awoke to warmth.
Kuro slept beside her, and above and below her coiled Mitsue, this time in a form far larger than she normally used. Her body radiated soothing heat, and her tail pulsed gentle revitalizing chakra into Hinata's spine.
"I must be in worse shape than I thought if you're healing me in my sleep," Hinata murmured.
Mitsue's voice was soft and slow. "You break your limitsss again and again. You held the Sssilver Ssstage for monthsss without ressst. Your body growsss... your limitsss too. Yumegakure helpsss, but it doesss not know how it hurtsss helping. You know thiss. You musst ressst to grow."
Kuro stirred. "How long were we out?"
"Hoursss," Mitsue said. "All isss well. Takama and Kaito know."
Kuro stretched, then perked up. "Right! I had news from the real world. I got sleepy before, but now I'm awake! Since you're always out fighting, I'm the one helping Kaito everywhere. I hear everything—but we never get time to talk!"
Hinata smiled gently. "Well, I'm here now. I want to hear it. Mitsue and I are listening."
Kuro puffed up with pride. "Okay, okay! First news—you won't like this one. The Silver Lady's bingo book status changed. Takigakure removed the bounty... but kept her as an S-ranked threat. Too dangerous to confront—standard orders are to run and report, this is rated by the bingo books of Konoha, Suna, Iwa y Kumo... a little later Kiri too."
Hinata opened her mouth, closed it, and opened it again. Nothing came out.
Mitsue purred, amused. "Ssseemsss your actionsss haven't gone unnoticed."
"Yeah," Kuro added, tail wagging. "Takama wasn't happy. When he's mad, he smells kinda like burnt wood."
Hinata, slightly red, sighed. "...Okay. Next news?"
Kuro bounced. "Let's see… Oh! I memorized this one. Lord Raiken, Daimyō of the Land of Lightning? He got his mates pregnant. He sent a letter thanking you—and Mitsue too!"
Hinata blinked, then chuckled. She remembered the sacred water she'd brought him from the Land of Hot Water. "Guess he won't need my help anymore."
Kuro's voice turned serious. "One more thing. I heard it in Yumegakure just now. It's fresh. Something happened in Sunagakure. Akatsuki moved. They captured Gaara. Took the Bijuu. But he survived. Because of your amulet. Konoha shinobi rescued him. The rumor is that one of them is Gaara's personal friend."
Hinata closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. "It has begun," she whispered. And still, she remained locked in a war she could not leave.
Mitsue gently stopped the healing jutsu and placed her tail softly on Hinata's shoulder. "Do not worry... this war will end sssoon. Kaito hasss plansss. I heard Michel hasss an unlikely ally... and I heard you defeated one of their leadersss."
Kuro's eyes lit up. She leaned forward with excitement, tail swaying like a metronome of anticipation. "Tell us! How did that fight go?"
Hinata nodded, her tone somber. "There's not much to tell. They set a trap for me, one aimed to disrupt my ability to alter Yumegakure's environment. I fell from the sky, cut off from that power. Then came the attack—Ryusei with his Susanoo, flanked by two Uchiha. I tried diplomacy, but Uchiha don't back down once they've decided something... their stubbornness might be genetic." She paused, her expression thoughtful. "Still… their ambush was well planned. If they had studied my combat style more thoroughly, maybe they would have stood a chance. But they didn't account for Yumegakure still empowering me, or for the Silver Stage—nor for the changes awakened in me by my bloodline. It was… almost easy. And that felt strange."
Kuro huffed, half-proud. "About time you had one of those fights go in your favor. We get so worried when you're always on the edge of death. Especially now that you're fighting their top elites."
Hinata, cheeks flushed, tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. "You mentioned Kaito. I've heard whispers of how well he's organized everything. He always sent me to new portals, new fronts... it's impressive."
Mitsue added with a purr. "Yesss. He tamed the Nara of Konoha. Gave them the chairsss Michel built. The sssame ones you gave the old Tsuchikage. With their help, everything runsss ssso well. Everyone isss pleasssed."
And for the first time in weeks, Hinata allowed herself a smile not born from duty, but from warmth.
<<<< o >>>>
Here, Michel, Takama, Mifune, and Kaito stood gathered in one of the Crystal Tower's upper meeting chambers, its high windows filtering in the dreamlike shimmer of Yumegakure's silver light. A massive map of the realm stretched before them, silver nodes marked with glowing runes.
Kaito spoke first, his voice sharp with resolve. "It's confirmed. The enemy is preparing their next move. Their information-gathering phase is over. They're going to try invading one of the silver nodes. If it were me, I'd strike near the water."
Mifune raised an eyebrow. "Near the water?"
Kaito nodded. "We lack strong water-style shinobi. It's an obvious gap. I've also noticed more water-affiliated enemies cropping up lately. They've tried to hide the pattern by spreading them out, but with central command oversight, we spotted it. I estimate a broad assault to overwhelm our response time—followed by an elite strike force, combatants on par with Kage. They outnumber us in raw numbers, but their limits here are clear about equal to ours. They'll try to use a silver node's power to push past those limits."
He glanced across the table. "They've already shown they can interfere with Yumegakure's rules—limiting the Silver Lady's scale and suppressing regeneration near their portals. This is dangerous."
Michel, calm and confident, interjected. "Our plan to end this war is nearly ready. Research is complete. And thankfully, Kuro and Mitsue convinced Hinata to rest. When they move... so will we. The outcome lies in her hands."
Takama looked at the intelligence with deep seriousness. After a long silence, he nodded. "If what your team deciphered is true... then she is the only one who can do this. She's the only one with a chance to turn the tide."