The Land of Hot Water.
Ryoma had just stepped across the border when the familiar system prompt echoed in his mind.
[Ding! Based on the host's current situation, three choices are available!]
[Option 1: Secretly bring Kushina Uzumaki to the most famous mixed hot spring in Yu no Kuni.
Reward: Kushina's Affection +10, S-rank Ninjutsu – Living Corpse Reincarnation.]
[Option 2: Secretly bring Mikoto Uchiha to the most famous mixed hot spring in Yu no Kuni. Reward: Mikoto's Affection +10, S-rank Ninjutsu – Rebirth by Self-Sacrifice.]
[Option 3: Publicly invite everyone to visit the most famous mixed hot spring in Yu no Kuni. Reward:S-rank Summoning Contract – Mount Myōboku, Kushina's Affection +10, Mikoto's Affection +10.]
All three rewards were top-tier.
But for Ryoma, the most tempting was clearly the Mount Myōboku Summoning Contract.
After all, he already had the contract with Ryūchi Cave.
Wouldn't it be fascinating to inherit all three of the great summoning lineages?
Ryoma's eyes burned with curiosity.
Compared to that, the other two rewards didn't appeal to him.
Living Corpse Reincarnation was Orochimaru's infamous body-snatching jutsu for immortality. Ryoma didn't need it.
Rebirth by Self-Sacrifice was a forbidden technique that traded one's life to surpass death. He didn't need that either.
Decision made, Ryoma smiled.
"Alright, everyone. Let's go to the mixed hot spring."
The giant signboard read boldly: Mixed Bath!
Kushina's face flushed crimson. She glared at Ryoma, fists twitching.
She thought he was joking… but he actually brought her here?!
If it were just the two of them, maybe she could have dealt with the embarrassment.
But he brought everyone?
What on earth was Ryoma thinking?
Mikoto's cheeks turned pink as well. She risked a sidelong glance at Ryoma, her mind spinning. He really called me too?
Unbidden, an image surfaced in her head—Kushina tugging her hand shyly.
"Mikoto, Ryoma and I are going to the bath… do you want to come with us?"
Her blush deepened. Kushina wouldn't actually… ask that, right? If she did, should I say yes? Or yes?
Kakashi shot Ryoma a deadpan look. …Sensei, what are you planning?
Rin fidgeted nervously, face tinged pink. If Sensei invited me… could I even refuse?
Obito stammered, "T-Teacher, this… this isn't right, is it?"
He sneaked a glance at Rin, ears red.
They might still be kids, but shinobi matured fast.
The word "mixed bath" alone made them squirm with embarrassment.
Ryoma grinned. "Obito, do you want to check it out?"
Obito shuffled. "Ah… it's not like I can't…"
"That's the spirit! Boss, we'll go in. Here's the payment."
The moment Ryoma handed over the money, Obito's nerves turned into excitement.
Bathing with Rin… in the same hot spring?!
But then his stomach twisted. Wait… Ryoma-sensei's here. Minato-sensei's here. Kakashi's here too… this is torture!
Ten minutes later, Obito staggered out with a dazed look.
Ryoma clapped him on the shoulder, smiling.
"Obito, now that our 'tour' is done, let's head to the meeting hall."
Kushina, Mikoto, and Rin all burst into laughter.
Obito slumped, miserable. I changed clothes for this… just to leave?
"I-I…"
"No excuses. Go study properly with Minato-sensei."
Ryoma's hand landed firmly on his shoulder.
Obito trudged off, sulking.
Even Minato Namikaze, the ever-gentlemanly "Watergate-sensei," felt a pang of envy.
He'd watched Ryoma disappear into the baths with both Kushina and Mikoto, and couldn't help wondering… Why Mikoto too?
He forced the thoughts down with a sigh. Still, a flicker of resentment remained.
Inside the steamy hot spring, Kushina and Mikoto entered, each wrapped in a towel.
One with fiery red hair, the other with glossy black. Both with cheeks flushed from heat and nerves.
Kushina shyly grabbed Mikoto's hand, her own heart pounding.
Mikoto was just as nervous—she hadn't expected Kushina to actually drag her in!
Originally, Ryoma had only planned to invite Kushina.
But perhaps from embarrassment, Kushina had pulled Mikoto along too.
Thus, what should have been an intimate moment between two became an awkward but oddly delightful three.
Ryoma, who had rented out the entire bath, dipped his hand into the milky, sulfur-scented water.
The heat was just right.
He smiled to himself. So this is the Land of Hot Water… not bad at all.
"Come on, get in," he urged.
Both Kushina and Mikoto nodded, faces still red.
Ryoma thought to himself… maybe this wasn't such a bad reward after all.
Meanwhile, at the meeting hall…
The joint conference between Konoha and Kumogakure was underway.
Minato led Team 7 to meet the Cloud delegation.
The envoys included none other than the Third Raikage's son A, and his sworn brother Killer B.
They were accompanied by a female secretary—not Mabui, but clearly a precursor to the habit A would develop later in life.
As expected, the young Raikage-in-training already knew how to "act important."
A slammed a hand on the table, glaring at Minato
"What is this supposed to mean, Konoha?! Sending a blond kid and three brats to negotiate?"
Minato replied calmly, "Our leader has not yet arrived."
The air grew tense.
Rin shrank back nervously from the Raikage's towering presence.
He's so scary…
Obito puffed out his chest and glared right back.
Silence filled the room as the minutes dragged on, the weight of unspoken words pressing down on both sides.
Obito leaned toward Minato and whispered,
"Minato-sensei… Ryoma-sensei hasn't arrived yet?"
Minato glanced at him calmly.
"The time hasn't come."
At that moment, the Fourth Raikage, A, sneered.
"Hmph. Ryoma still hasn't arrived? Seems Konoha doesn't take this meeting seriously at all. What's the meaning of this?"
Just as Minato was about to respond, the doors swung open.
A froze when he saw Ryoma enter—flanked by Kushina Uzumaki and Mikoto Uchiha, both still flushed from the hot springs.
What the hell…? A's expression darkened. I brought one secretary… and this guy walks in with two?!
Ryoma smiled faintly, guiding the two women to their seats before speaking with deliberate ease.
"We're not late, are we?"
Obito's jaw nearly dropped. He glanced at Ryoma, then at Kushina and Mikoto, who sat blushing shyly. His thoughts spiraled.
If I could become as strong as Ryoma-sensei… maybe I could have Rin on my left and someone else on my right too…
The once pure-hearted Obito was slowly being corrupted by Ryoma's "bad influence."
A sneered.
"So, you're Ryoma. They say you're strong… but right now, you don't look like much."
Still, in his mind, A was assessing.
This meeting wasn't about negotiations. Kumogakure's goal wasn't to retrieve the Two-Tails and the Amber Purifying Pot peacefully—it was to take them by force.
Drawing out Konoha's strongest young shinobi, Ryoma and Minato, was just part of the plan.
Orochimaru had been holed up in his laboratory and wasn't in the village.
Tsunade, still scarred by her hemophobia after the Second Great Ninja War, wasn't a threat.
Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang, was absent.
That left only the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, to defend the village if Ryoma and Minato were drawn out.
Meanwhile, outside Konoha, the real strike force was already in motion: the Third Raikage, the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki, Killer B, and nearly a thousand elite Kumogakure shinobi.
Kumogakure's style was overwhelming—combining lightning release with brutal taijutsu. Their bodies were honed by forcing their cells to endure constant electrical stimulation, pushing speed and durability to terrifying levels.
With such a force, they could easily storm Konoha, reclaim the Two-Tails and the Amber Purifying Pot, and leave nothing but ashes.
The Fourth Raikage's lips curled into a smile.
But then Ryoma casually rapped his knuckles on the table. His gaze locked onto A.
"Kumogakure… so you're planning a sneak attack, hm? Planning to strike Konoha while you keep us busy here?"
A's grin stiffened.
"W-What did you just say?!" Killer B's eyes went wide, fury flashing.
The Cloud envoys behind them exchanged panicked looks.
Even Konoha's side turned toward Ryoma in shock.
A sneak attack?!
Meanwhile, in the Forest of Death, not far from Konoha…
Thousands of Kumogakure shinobi had already gathered. On their march, they had slaughtered every Konoha patrol along the way.
But now, their advance was halted—by a single figure.
Ryoma's shadow clone stood alone before the invading army.
Towering in front of him was the Third Raikage, broad and unshakable like a mountain. At his side was the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki, Killer B, his half-black, half-white hair stark under the forest's gloom.
Ryoma's clone smiled faintly.
"So… you've arrived."
The words were soft, but they rippled through the entire army of Kumogakure.
A single man against thousands—yet his calm presence chilled them to the bone.
Had Konoha already known?
Was this all a trap to lure them in?
Doubt spread like wildfire through the Cloud ranks.
...
TN:
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