"What are you spacing out for?"
Karin leaned in, a teasing smile on her lips. "I finally managed to talk Kurotsuchi into it. Hurry up and take the chance."
Kurotsuchi's face turned slightly red. "Karin, shut it already!"
Kimimaro's curiosity was piqued. With his usual composure and faint amusement, he pulled the two girls closer. "I think you've secretly wanted to get your hands on Kurotsuchi's legs for a while now, Karin."
"Huh? Karin, seriously?" Kurotsuchi raised an eyebrow. "You're into that?"
"Who told her to have those smooth, toned legs?" Karin said with a wink.
"Don't touch me randomly—don't go higher than you should, mm~"
For the next three days, the three of them enjoyed rare moments of peace — eating together, sparring lightly, and occasionally teasing one another.
During this time, Kimimaro extracted three samples of Kurotsuchi's bloodline material.
Yes — three. Thanks to the mysterious system embedded within him, he had already stored two pre-generated tubes, and now he used 5,000 units of life energy to create a third.
This was all done at Kurotsuchi's request.
After hearing from Kimimaro that Guren hoped to obtain the Scorch Release kekkei genkai — and that she would be the second candidate alongside him — Kurotsuchi had insisted he prepare more samples.
However, the system had limits. From each individual, it could only extract a maximum of three unique samples depending on their chakra reserves and physical resilience. With Kurotsuchi's current strength, three was the cap.
To make up for the blood loss, Kimimaro had gone out of his way to support her recovery, even exchanging ten of his own refined chakra units for every drop taken from her.
[Raw materials for Scorch Release Bloodline Agent detected. Activation possible at the cost of 15,000 life energy. Estimated production cycle: 60 days. Accelerate production by spending 150 life energy per day.]
The cost was on par with the Crystal Release agent he'd developed previously, and significantly cheaper than Magnet Release, which consumed an outrageous amount of resources due to the ancient and unstable nature of the chakra involved. Kimimaro had deemed that one not worth accelerating.
Unlike Karin — a true Uzumaki whose chakra and life energy were nearly bottomless — Kurotsuchi's reserves were only above average. Thus, Kimimaro limited the use of her life energy in the agent's activation to just ten percent. The remaining activation was supplemented using his own accumulated energy.
As he cradled a tired but content Kurotsuchi in his lap, Kimimaro gently brushed her hair aside and said, "By the way… is there any specific kekkei genkai or bloodline limit you want? Tell me, and I'll find a way to get it for you."
Kurotsuchi shook her head. "I don't need it for now. I'll focus on mastering Scorch Release first. Of all the Kekkei Genkai you showed me, I'm actually most interested in Ice Release… but the Land of Earth's environment isn't exactly suited for it. I'll think about it."
She rolled onto her back lazily, her voice carrying a teasing lilt. "This way, you'll have something to look forward to—and maybe you'll come back to the Land of Earth just to see me."
"I'd come even if you didn't say anything," Kimimaro replied calmly.
"Hmph. With all the girls around you, who knows when you'll remember me?—Ah! Karin, what are you doing!? Stop touching me! That tickles~"
With that, Kimimaro and Karin took their leave, once again scaling the snowy mountain pass that separated the Land of Earth from the northern territories.
After crossing the border, Fubo and the other four operatives—who had been trailing them in secret—no longer bothered to conceal their presence. Their steady footfalls echoed faintly in the cold air.
As they stepped into the Land of Snow, the change in atmosphere was stark. The air was crisp, the landscape pristine, and the infrastructure notably more centralized.
Kazuma, taking it all in, spoke with an odd mix of admiration and envy. "So the Snow Ninja directly serve the Snow Country's Queen? This is exactly the kind of model I've been trying to build. I didn't expect them to get there first."
Kimimaro gave a faint smile and shook his head. "You're mistaken. The Snow Ninja follow the Queen, yes—but they also revere a Guardian Deity. He's the true cornerstone of this nation's power."
"I've heard of him," Kazuma replied, frowning slightly. "They say he rarely appears in public, and the Queen handles most of the governance. Besides, the two of them are married, right? Whether it's her or him, it doesn't really matter who they answer to. Honestly, if the Fifth Hokage had just married the Fire Daimyō, I wouldn't be thinking about killing her."
Kimimaro couldn't help but chuckle. The idea that this man thought he could kill Tsunade—one of the Legendary Sannin, a direct disciple of the Third Hokage, and a woman with monstrous strength—was amusing.
Over the past few days, Kimimaro had gained a general understanding of Kazuma's so-called plan. It sounded ambitious, even noble on the surface.
But in reality, it was riddled with flaws.
Visit patreon.com/ShiroTL to gain access to 40+ chapters