Amaru had been chosen by Shinno as the jinchuriki for the Zero-Tails, so her physical constitution was undoubtedly excellent. Her talent, however, was another question. In her later battles, she hadn't displayed even the strength of a genin. It was possible that Shinno had never taught her any real skills, just some rudimentary medical ninjutsu. That was also a possibility. After all, she was a jinchuriki; teaching her too many skills would make her harder to control later on.
But, as fate would have it, she was on the operating table in the Sky Fortress, about to have the jinchuriki transferred to her, when Nagi happened to stumble upon her. Since that was the case, he decided to take her with him.
The primary function of this Sky Fortress was transportation—transporting a massive ninja army to launch a surprise attack on the enemy's rear. Its offensive power was also impressive. A single blast from its chakra cannon was comparable to a small Tailed Beast Bomb, capable of blowing the top off a mountain. If all ten-plus cannons on board were fired at full power... as long as there was enough chakra, leveling Konoha would not be difficult. It was truly an ultimate war machine, this Sky Fortress.
But where to put it? Flying it to the Land of Iron didn't seem safe. With the ninja world's number one paparazzi king, White Zetsu, lurking about, destruction was easy, but construction was hard. If he were to sneak in and plant some explosive tags, Nagi's heart would break. It was better to take it to the summoning beast island and park it there, ready to be piloted whenever needed.
The poor Three-Tails. First, it was captured to be used as a furnace, and now it was still being used as a furnace, only this time for the Sky Fortress. It was thrown inside to have its chakra extracted to power the flying war citadel. Only a chakra aggregate like a Tailed Beast had enough volume to power the Sky Fortress. It was impossible for a human. Once or twice might be fine, but having your chakra drawn every day... you'd die of a stroke in no time.
The Sky Fortress flew high in the sky. There was no need to even dodge. It simply crossed over the borders of other countries. Occasionally, someone would look up and wonder what that high-flying black dot was. There weren't many ninja in the world who could fly, and since the fortress was flying at an altitude of ten thousand meters, it just looked like a black dot from the ground. If you didn't look closely, you would just think it was a bird.
Halfway through the journey, a flash of inspiration struck Nagi. He changed course and headed for the Land of Grass. For no other reason than to do what Orochimaru did: kidnap a child.
In the Land of Grass...
The ninja of the village were going about their day as usual, some on missions, some training.
Karin was sitting bored in her room, reading a book. She didn't remember much of her early childhood, only that she had wandered with her mother before being taken in by the Land of Grass. Her mother hadn't been a strong fighter; her only use to the Land of Grass was to serve as a living blood bag for the injured ninja, healing them with her body. After the Great Ninja War, Karin's mother, suffering from chronic anemia, had soon died of illness.
Her mother had not held much resentment for dying as a blood bag. She had only gently admonished Karin not to hate the ninja of the Land of Grass. After all, they had taken them in when they were homeless. Otherwise, they would have already died in the chaos of war.
Later, Karin had used the few books her mother had left her to study sealing jutsu. But she had never been able to get over her mother's death. This was why, after the Chunin Exams, she had so easily defected and followed Orochimaru. Fortunately, the Great Ninja War had been over for a long time. Karin had grown up in an era of peace, and with her mother's protection, she hadn't been used as a blood bag and died prematurely.
The Land of Grass was undoubtedly not very strong. Otherwise, their team wouldn't have been wiped out in the Chunin Exams. Karin was considered one of the more outstanding children of her age group, which was why she had been chosen to participate.
On this day, Karin was reading in her room when she suddenly heard a loud commotion outside. Many people were running around in a panic, shouting in fear.
BOOM!
A earth-shattering explosion shattered all the glass in the Village Hidden in the Grass. Karin rushed outside to look and saw a behemoth floating a thousand meters above their village. And a large mountain not far from the village was now gone, blown away by a single shot from the behemoth above.
Gulp.
Fear spread through the village. Everyone stared in terror at the war fortress in the sky. They couldn't understand how something as massive as a small mountain could fly. And a single shot could level a mountain... its power was comparable to the ninja world's nuclear weapon, the Tailed Beast Bomb.
A short while later, a handsome, sharp-featured young man with black hair appeared high in the sky. A pair of iron sand wings grew from his back, and he slowly descended.
The people of the Hidden Grass held their breath. The village leader, who usually didn't even dare to call himself a Kage for fear of angering the Five Great Nations, was now facing a warrior of such immense power. He didn't dare to offend him, afraid that he would fire a cannon into his village. He didn't have the power to withstand a chakra cannon that could level a mountain. So, as Nagi slowly descended, he stood respectfully to the side, waiting, not even daring to set up an ambush. He even ordered his men to clear the area, afraid some hothead would anger their visitor. He who dared to descend into the village alone... the leader of the Hidden Grass did not think he would be weak.
"Greetings, Your Excellency. I wonder if there is anything the Village Hidden in the Grass can do for you?" the leader said with a fawning, apologetic smile.
"I know that your village has a child who is a remnant of the Uzumaki clan." Nagi looked at the leader of the Hidden Grass, the pressure from his Mangekyo and the threat of the Sky Fortress above causing cold sweat to pour down the man's back.
"Yes, yes! You want the Uzumaki remnant, my lord?"
"Just tell me if you're willing to give her up or not."
"Yes! Of course, we are willing! That little girl has a huge appetite. To be honest, we couldn't afford to keep feeding her anyway. It's her good fortune to be able to follow you, my lord!"
The leader of the Hidden Grass turned to his subordinate, his expression grim. "Go, bring Karin here."
After the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, most of its clansmen, resentful of the Third Hokage for not coming to their aid, had scattered to countries other than the Land of Fire. The men had all died fighting the Land of Water; only the old, the weak, women, and children had escaped, with little combat power. As a result, many who did not inherit the Uzumaki clan's massive chakra reserves were abandoned. Karin's mother had been relatively lucky; the ninja of the Hidden Grass had recognized their special constitution and talent and had taken them in.
Soon, two subordinates brought a red-haired girl before Nagi. Perhaps because she read so often, she was already wearing glasses at a young age.
Karin looked at Nagi timidly. This person wants to see me? He's not going to take me back and use me as a blood bag like my mother, is he? Or... is he going to eat me? The thought of being eaten made Karin's face turn pale, and she began to tremble with fear.
Nagi looked at her. Red hair, correct. Her appearance and the feel of her chakra were also somewhat similar to Honoka's. Of course, she was still young now, and her chakra reserves were not particularly large. When she reached the same age as Naruto, around twelve, and began to develop, her chakra would probably grow explosively.
"What is your name?" Nagi asked, opening his Sharingan and casting a light genjutsu on Karin.
"My... my name is Uzumaki Karin," Karin saw his eyes turn red and was startled, but she still answered subconsciously.
"It is you. You're coming with me." Nagi nodded. Without giving Karin any room to think, he simply grabbed her, opened his magnetic wings, and flew into the sky.
A short while later, the Sky Fortress slowly ascended and flew away. The leader of the Hidden Grass had been startled by Nagi's Sharingan. It was only after the Sky Fortress had flown away that he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He muttered to himself, "The Sharingan... could he be the one who's been making a name for himself lately, Uchiha Nagi? The Konoha rogue with a bounty of over one hundred million? His strength is truly not to be underestimated. With just that flying fortress, he could go head-to-head with a hidden village."
Nagi, of course, couldn't hear his words. If he had, he would have scoffed. A single Sky Fortress against a great hidden village? Dream on. A structure that large was hard to even hide. Flying in the sky, a single Tailed Beast Bomb from a jinchuriki would instantly turn it into rubble. And if he tried to attack the Village Hidden in the Rain, it would be an even bigger joke. Nagato could just use a single Almighty Push and pull the entire fortress down from the sky. Attacking the Land of Earth? They wouldn't even need to use their jinchuriki. Onoki could fly up and use his Dust Release, and the fortress would fall right out of the sky. The only one he could really bully was Konoha, which was currently suffering from a severe talent drain, had no flying ninja, and no perfect jinchuriki. The Sky Fortress wasn't completely defenseless. Its massive body and thick walls were a form of defense in themselves. But while it could block an A-rank ninjutsu, a Tailed Beast Bomb was another story.
"Um, where are we going?"
After entering the Sky Fortress, Karin discovered there was another girl inside, about her age. The other girl looked just as timid as she did, as if she had also been forcibly taken. Could this person be a demon? A demon who eats little girls?
"We're going to the Land of Iron. There, I will establish my own village and school. You will be the first students," Nagi said flatly.
"Establish your own village? And a school?" Karin asked curiously.
"That's right. A school for samurai-ninja, with a focus on swordsmanship and ninjutsu as a supplement. As for funding... I believe the Daimyo of the Land of Iron will not disagree." Nagi had already made up his mind. He would imitate Orochimaru and establish his own village. Whether the Daimyo of the Land of Iron agreed or not, it would not change the outcome.
"Then why did you have to specifically capture... bring us here?" Karin said, quickly correcting herself halfway through. Since he wasn't going to eat her, she slowly began to relax. Karin had always been surprisingly resilient.
"Because you are both very talented. Is that reason enough?"
Karin: "..."
Uh... is that a compliment? I guess it's enough.