Mei looked at me strangely, as if she were torn between saying something or yelling at me for being the only one sent to help. She sighed, eventually giving in and started to speak.
"Yagura happened. He was reported inside the village, but we were deceived... He appeared on the battlefield and sank an entire island," she said, withholding details but at least providing some information.
"Three hundred of our people died in an instant, then his forces showed up, and the battle began in earnest. A battle we lost," she admitted freely. I nodded, not too surprised; seeing an island being wiped out in a flash wouldn't leave most people in the best condition to fight.
"Alright then... what will be my role here?" I asked her, unsure if she even had a plan.
She narrowed her eyes, as if trying to peer into my very soul.
"First, I need to know how capable you are. No embellishments from your Hokage, and no guesses from other villages that might you might have pissed off along the way," she declared, still staring intently. She likely thought I had earned my bounty by a some kind of a fluke.
"What do you want to know? Or do you want to test me?" I asked, feeling a bit uneasy about being tested. My most powerful jutsu were becoming too destructive to use in a camp, or even on a small island.
"I—We practically begged for help... and the only one sent is a young boy. Excuse my apprehension, but I need to be sure I wasn't sent just a normal chunin," she said, her expression softening slightly. It seemed she was more upset about her losses than about me personally.
"Stating your skills would be fine... I'm not in the best condition to test anyone anyway," she sighed, giving me the floor.
"Well... you can actually see many of my abilities in my Bingo Book profile, even though it is quite outdated," I began, simply pointing to it so they could read the entry instead of me repeating the basics of my abilities.
"But the most significant improvement would likely be my Crystallization jutsu; a reverse-engineered Hydrification technique from the Hozuki clan that I applied to my Crystal Release." I mentioned, jumping right to one of the most powerful tools in my repertoire.
"I should also point out Hiramekarei. The fact that it was sent to you is because I battled and killed its previous wielder," I continued, unsure if Hiruzen had told them about who killed Mangetsu.
Even though it was delivered by my summons, I never got to read the missive.
"I'm not saying it was easy, but had it not been for Orochimaru's cursed seal taking over, I would have had the advantage throughout the fight against him," I added calmly, recalling that Mangetsu and I had been evenly matched until he fully succumbed to the Curse Mark.
That gave them pause; Mangetsu was in the upper tier of A-Rank, likely reaching S-Rank with the boost from the Curse Mark.
"You... killed Mangetsu?" Mei asked, her tone revealing a weird mixture of slight friendliness and clear distaste for my actions.
"He didn't give me much of a choice. He completely lost himself to Orochimaru's Curse Mark and became stronger the longer we fought," I explained. "Even hitting him with an attack that cut an island in half didn't keep him down for long..." I trailed off, recalling the level of regeneration Mangetsu showed, which was on par with a perfect jinchuriki.
They looked at me in disbelief, clearly not believing my claim about cutting the island in half.
"It was a rather small i-"
"Oh, shut it, Kurama," I interrupted the fox, who was clearly having too much fun. Was my life some kind of weird telenovela for him?
"What? There was a ton of chakra stored in Hiramekarei that I used to do it," I shrugged, explaining how I accomplished that feat.
"Young ones these days, always exaggerating," I heard Ao grumble, prompting a sigh from me. The urge to stick a Rasengan up his ass was growing by the minute.
"Well, it's not like you have an island you can afford to lose to a test..." I said, confident that I could replicate the feat without Hiramekarei this time.
I was right; Ao just narrowed his eyes but said nothing. Mei seemed to believe me a little more than he did, but she clearly still had her reservations.
"Let's just... talk about something else; this is clearly not going anywhere," I said after a brief pause, trying to ignore Kurama's snicker at my expense.
"Just you wait, Kurama..." I grumbled internally, already plotting revenge.
"I'll make sure your skills are assessed tomorrow," Mei decided, too exhausted to do anything else that day, and she gestured for Ao to show me where I could set up my tent.
—
Whoever invented the very concept of Fuinjutsu deserves to be honored just as much as Hagoromo himself. While the seals may not be the solution to everything, as many fans of the anime in my past life believed, they are incredibly practical for a multitude of situations.
For instance, the tent that seemed barely big enough for two people was many times larger on the inside, featuring dedicated rooms and even a functional bathroom. Truly, it is a work of art.
As long as I keep feeding chakra to those seals overnight, I'll be living as comfortably as I did at home.
It actually reminded me of a tent from another famous work, the title of which escapes me at the moment. If I recall correctly, it involved magic and a suspiciously Orochimaru-like villain.
I shook my head, focusing on the matters at hand. Kurama was still laughing at my expense, his voice filled with what almost sounded like giddy anticipation. He found it way too funny how my allies underestimated me.
"But kid... just imagine their faces when they realize you actually CAN cut a small island in half." I could feel the grin on his face as he spoke.
"Still not enough to clash with a proper biju bomb," I reminded the fox, but Kurama waved it off.
"Of course it's not. Even Shukaku can blast away multiple mountains with a single biju bomb. But you don't need to be as destructive as Isobu to beat his jinchuriki, do you?" He trailed off, echoing my earlier words and making me smile in return. He was learning that raw power is not the only factor in winning fights.
After taking a bath, I went to bed, determined to get as much rest as possible. I was certain that Mei would send me out to test my abilities soon, so being well-rested was a top priority.
"Kurama, if I fight Yagura, what should I be careful about regarding Isobu's abilities?" I asked, curious about his insights. I remembered very little about Isobu apart from his powerful defenses that even surpassed those of stronger biju.
"Watch out for his corals... they grow by being in contact with chakra, almost like your Crystals. However, they don't siphon chakra; they grow when chakra runs through them," he explained after a brief pause, surprising me quite a bit.
"What? Did you not expect me to help? Hn... I want to see what you are made of, kid. That would be hard with you dead," Kurama said. Despite his slight scoff, I could sense that he actually cared, even if just a little.
"I'll make sure to give you a good show, then," I promised, determined to show Kurama how much I had grown.
If Yagura transformed fully, my knockoff version of the Uzumaki sealing chains should easily subdue him; the real issue was the jinchuriki cloak. A small target with the same level of power as a full Isobu would be much harder to catch.
—
Morning came quickly, faster than I would have liked. Mei still looked like she had walked through a field of razor blades, but she appeared slightly more well-rested than before.
"You said you fought Mangetsu. Then help me find a new wielder for Hiramekarei," she said, making me blink in surprise several times.
"You... didn't give it to anyone?" I asked, unsure of what to think. "It worked fine for me, so finding someone shouldn't be too hard," I expressed my surprise, but Mei shook her head.
"The sword is stubborn. Just like Samehada, it's very picky," she sighed dramatically and led me to her tent.
She handed the sword to me, looking exactly as I remembered it. I took the sword and swung it; the chakra inside easily linked to mine, almost as if it were greeting an old friend.
The soft, bluish glow of Hiramekarei's chakra quickly faded, and the sword transformed into a more manageable longsword shape under the bandages. It still had a prominent leaf blade, but it wasn't the oversized hunk of metal it once was.
"It actually let you use it, not just hold it..." Mei said quietly, likely reevaluating what I had told her the day before.
I just shrugged and focused, hoping to find someone who could potentially wield this sword based purely on chakra capacity.
"Well, yeah. I told you I used Hiramekarei before," I reminded her, now with some form of proof. "I wouldn't exchange my Senbonzakura for anything, but if I had to choose one of the seven swords of the Mist, it would be Hiramekarei," I revealed casually and sealed Hiramekarei into my right arm.
"Really, not Samehada?" Mei asked, slightly surprised that I wouldn't choose the obviously most powerful sword.
"Not my style. I can already drain chakra with my Crystal Release, and Samehada is too big and cumbersome for my fighting style," I explained, pleased that we could finally have a somewhat friendly conversation.
"Actually, why not give it to one of the swordsman apprentices? There are bound to be at least a few of them in your camp, right?" I suggested, vaguely recalling that Chojuro received Hiramekarei this way in the original timeline.
"That was one of the first things I tried. It didn't react to anyone who was supposed to be in line for a sword," Mei sighed, clearly displeased.
It seemed that this version of Hiramekarei was pickier than its counterpart from the original timeline. After all, Chojuro was only supposed to get it about a year from now when the original timeline's civil war had ended.
"Only around three thousand... are these all of your forces?" I asked, mentally counting the ninjas present on this island.
At least there were a few strong ones; one even had chakra reserves comparable to Kakashi's. That was not a normal occurrence. Kakashi's chakra reserves were massive, but his problem was that the borrowed Sharingan consumed an ungodly amount of chakra when in use.
"Of course not. But this is the largest and most secure of our camps," she said, much to my relief. I knew for a fact that Yagura still had around ten thousand combat-ready ninjas on his side, probably more. "Overall, our force is around eight thousand strong. Still less than Yagura's forces, but we're not hopelessly outnumbered," she continued after doing a mental calculation.
Those numbers sounded like what I would expect from a major village if put together; even Konoha couldn't have more than twenty thousand ready for war at this time. Iwa likely had more forces than Konoha, and Suna had the fewest among the five great nations. Depending on how many die in this war, that may change.
"That's actually better than I expected," I commented quietly, looking at her again, still covered in bruises from her last fight. "Do you not have medics?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "If not, I can try to heal people... I can only handle minor injuries, but that's still better than nothing." I let her know that anything more complicated than a shallow cut or clean break was beyond my abilities.
"Is there something you can't do?" Mei asked with a teasing tone.
"I'm not great at talking to people... It's too complicated; just give me a new jutsu to master or something," I replied, pouting playfully. "And funnily enough, learning more Medical Ninjutsu seems to be impossible. Sage knows I tried..." I trailed off with a little grin.
"I'd much rather save lives than take them, but I'm uniquely equipped to slaughter armies. Funny how that works," I sighed.
When I was choosing my talents for rebirth, I thought good chakra control was all I needed to learn Medical Ninjutsu at a decently high level. Clearly, I was mistaken; some degree of talent was clearly necessary.
"At least you know your weaknesses. That's quite rare among ninjas, especially the young ones," she said, sounding pleased with my answer, though her voice still held a teasing edge.
"You'll be quite the catch in a few years..." she hinted.
I realized where this was going, not falling for her teasing. She was just trying to see if I'd blush and sputter.
"Do I need an adult?" I replied with a grin.
"I am an adult," she shot back immediately, her own smile widening.
It felt as though I had passed some kind of test that separated hopelessly awkward virgins from mostly normal people.
Thank the Sage. I was worried I would have to look her up in the Orochimaru files for a second.
"What? Are people really that scared of you here?" I asked, hoping I was guessing her intentions correctly.
"Most of them are... Mostly because I can melt them into goo if they try to hit on me too much," she admitted with a shrug.
"That sounds like there's a story behind that..." I muttered, earning a wicked smirk in return. There definitely was a story behind that.
"But returning to your question, we do have medics, though there are only very few of them," Mei revealed, steering the conversation back on track. "So if you have free time, I wouldn't mind you taking care of the minor injuries around here so they can focus on the more severe ones."
I nodded; it would be stupid of her to refuse a medic, no matter how inexperienced.
—
The next few days went by smoothly; the rebels were regrouping and licking their wounds, so there were very few, if any, people being sent out near the territory occupied by Yagura's forces.
Many individuals rushed through the camp seeking treatment for minor injuries, mostly from training accidents or small scratches. These were handled easily by me and the actually competent medics in no time.
It took almost an entire week before I finally met the person with the immense chakra signature, second only to Mei in the entire camp. To my surprise, it was someone I had expected to be a solitary missing-nin. This world keeps throwing surprises at me.
He was a tall man with short black hair, dressed with bandages wrapped around his mouth. What set him apart from other ninjas the most, though, was the massive cleaver strapped to his back. It could only be Zabuza Momochi; someone I never thought I would encounter here.
It seemed that Haku was with him too. If Haku's history was as I remembered, it made sense for him to want to fight. Perhaps Zabuza caved due to Haku's insistence.
I thought that I might be able to train with Haku since we both utilized very similar ninjutsu styles. Both of us had bloodline limits that utilized crystals, even if they weren't the same.
I decided to at least try to push the responsibility of finding a new wielder for Hiramekarei onto Zabuza. Being part of the Seven Swordsmen, he was a logical choice.
"So, you're the only brat Konoha sent us?" Zabuza asked with a scoff, clearly unhappy about it, much like Mei was in the beginning.
"A brat who needs you to take this sword and find a new wielder for it," I replied, shrugging as I unsealed Hiramekarei and extended it towards him. The sword was still in its semi-realistic longsword form; it seemed to remember my preferred shape even while sealed.
Zabuza paused upon seeing me casually hold Hiramekarei, seemingly reevaluating my standing in his eyes.
"You can actually hold it..." he muttered under his breath. "Just holding the sword... you must be quite a ninja for a brat." The animosity in his voice hadn't vanished, but it definitely lost a lot of its bite.
"It's a great sword. I would definitely keep it if I didn't have my own," I said earnestly. There was no point in lying to him. "The last wielder was hard to put down for good... Mangetsu was a monster." I grinned at the older swordsman. "Not my brightest idea to fight him on water, let me tell you," I added with a chuckle, causing Zabuza's eyes to narrow slightly.
"I'm heading out, so keep it with you for now. When I return from my mission, I'll see if Haku can use it. If she can't, you'll have to look for someone on your own," he said after a brief pause, his mind already made up. It seemed I couldn't afford to be lazy—what a shame.
Wait a minute... she? Wasn't Haku supposed to be a guy? I quickly pushed those thoughts aside. Given the changes I had already encountered, this one wasn't all that weird.
"Fine then. I'll see you in camp after you return. How long will you be away?" I asked, letting him have his way. Some help was better than no help.
"A week, maybe two. Don't die in the meantime, Bloody Blossom," he said, a glint of recognition in his eyes.
"Why does everyone use that damn moniker?" I grumbled under my breath, annoyed by the somewhat edgy title Kumo had burdened me with.
"Well, it's not like I know your name... and you don't look like someone from Konoha's major clan. I'm just working with what I have," the older swordsman grinned, clearly enjoying my annoyance with the name.
"Eh, sure... Name's Ryuuzaki, by the way. See you around, Demon of the Mist." I returned the favor by calling him by his edgy moniker, but he didn't seem to mind at all. In fact, the bastard actually liked that name for some reason.