The Konoha shinobi departed in the morning. Several Kusagakure shinobi followed protocol, maintaining a moderate distance as they tailed them. After confirming the guests had truly left the village's sphere of influence, they returned.
Kusagakure knew Shuji was a jōnin. Konoha's standard jōnin were generally stronger than those from other shinobi villages, especially smaller ones. This was acknowledged throughout the shinobi world.
After all, Konoha had many ninja clans. Competition for jōnin rank was fierce.
As hosts, Kusagakure had no issue escorting them partway. Following too long risked Shuji detecting them and becoming suspicious.
Upon receiving news of the Konoha shinobi's departure, Kusagakure's leadership waited an additional period. Only after confirming no Konoha shinobi remained in Kusagakure's vicinity did they begin their operation.
Squad after squad of Kusagakure shinobi rapidly assembled upon receiving orders, continuously departing the village.
This commotion was witnessed by the mother and daughter in the wooden house at the village outskirts.
Uzumaki Hagi leaned by the window. Her already bloodless face had grown even paler, nearly transparent. Though she struggled to control her emotions, her eyes grew increasingly hollow.
As someone long used as a medical tool, she understood clearly what such large-scale mobilization meant.
It meant that soon, far more wounded than usual would return. And waiting for her would be more frequent, endless gnawing and draining.
Hagi's gaze involuntarily drifted toward the corner where her daughter sat. Karin hugged her knees, curled up there, her small body trying desperately to hide itself.
Could she endure this time? If she could not endure and died prematurely, what would happen to Karin?
Her daughter would become the new "medicine."
Escape? Her daughter's plea seemed to echo in her ears.
But how could they escape? This was Kusagakure, surrounded by Kusagakure shinobi.
If they did not flee, those Kusagakure shinobi would at least maintain basic courtesy, not abuse them, still provide food and shelter. They could survive.
Even in such hardship, if they could remain alive, if Karin could become a shinobi, her daughter might still have hope of escaping this cage, shedding the fate of being "medicine."
So she could not yet give up.
She had to endure a bit longer.
For Karin's sake, at least let her bear this burden a little later, just a little later.
Hagi drew a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the sob in her throat, and walked to her daughter's side, gently embracing that thin body.
"It will be all right, Karin. Everything will be fine."
"Do not be afraid. Mother is here. Mother will protect you."
Karin's small face buried itself in her mother's embrace. She responded with a muffled sound, still clutching that wooden piece in her hand.
"If you wish to leave, work hard to survive."
"This is merely a chance act of kindness. If you truly wish to seize this opportunity, hide it well and survive."
That strange man's words echoed clearly in her ears.
Karin quietly struggled free from her mother's warm embrace, bit by bit moving to the window, carefully observing those Kusagakure shinobi. She opened her eyes wide, working hard to identify every figure, sensing every flow of chakra.
None.
That unfamiliar face was not there.
Neither was that calm, unique chakra.
The person who had given her the wooden piece was not among them.
Could it have been merely an overly realistic dream? A hallucination born from excessive longing?
The slight pain from her palm and the wooden piece's solid texture denied this notion.
Not a dream.
Hope perhaps truly existed.
It just required waiting.
Meanwhile, outside Kusagakure, Shuji's figure quietly appeared in the dense canopy of a tall tree. His calm eyes reflected yet another squad of Kusagakure shinobi rapidly departing.
This was already the fifth departing squad he had observed in a short time. Such frequent mobilization meant Kusagakure urgently needed to complete their plan quickly.
Time to take another look inside.
Using the Flying Thunder God formula he had left at the village quarters, he once again silently infiltrated Kusagakure's interior.
The village now appeared noticeably emptier due to the large personnel deployment. Shuji again employed Transformation Technique, assuming an ordinary Kusagakure shinobi's appearance, retracing familiar routes toward the conference room where he had previously met Hayami.
This time, he seemed to have come to the right place.
At the conference room entrance, Hayami, the jōnin who had received them during the day, was quietly conversing with an elderly man dressed in elder's robes with a stern expression.
Shuji concealed himself behind a corridor pillar's shadow, capturing fragments of conversation.
"Storage progress must accelerate. We must hurry..." the elderly man instructed.
"Yes, we have already dispatched additional personnel. However, Elder, capture difficulty far exceeds killing. The time consumed..."
"That is no excuse!" The elder sharply interrupted him. "For the village's future, this is a mission that must be completed! At any cost!"
"Yes, Elder."
Then, hesitating, he added, "Also, regarding that woman's condition, her recent state has declined severely..."
The one called Elder frowned. "How so?"
"Recent missions have been frequent. Wounded have increased. Her consumption has been excessive. Recovery speed cannot keep pace."
"Fool!" The elder berated Hayami. "Right now we must capture a powerful shinobi. This is not the time for that woman to break down."
"Issue orders immediately. From now on, ordinary wounded are absolutely forbidden from seeking her treatment!"
"Also, provide her with the finest food and medicinal herbs. Have her recover as quickly as possible. Understood?"
"We must ensure her quality. Absolutely no mistakes at this stage!"
Hayami quickly bowed. "Yes! I will arrange it immediately."
"Furthermore..." The elder seemed to recall something. "That little one should also begin receiving basic shinobi training. Cultivate her properly. Do not let her be as fragile as her mother."
As the words fell, the two departed one after another toward the building's depths. Their conversation gradually blurred, finally vanishing at the corridor's end.
Shuji chose not to continue following. Going deeper would increase exposure risk. He could not alert them yet.
Meanwhile, in another desolate, remote border region of the Land of Grass.
A brief, intense battle neared its conclusion.
Kazuma, the former Guardian Shinobi of the Land of Fire, appeared extremely disheveled. He protected his son Sora, his body bearing multiple wounds, breathing labored.
With the daimyo placing a bounty on him and Konoha ANBU pursuing him, remaining in the Land of Fire was no longer realistic.
However, as someone who had attempted to initiate reform, Kazuma understood the Land of Fire's geography reasonably well. After barely escaping the Land of Fire, he planned to travel through the Land of Grass along the Land of Earth's border toward the west.
That region was a haven for rogue ninja, a corner Konoha could not reach. There, Kazuma could safely cultivate Sora, allowing him to fully merge with the Nine-Tails chakra. When that time came, he could return to the Land of Fire and launch reform once more.
The one thing Kazuma never anticipated was being intercepted by Kusagakure shinobi.
"Abandon futile resistance, villain Kazuma," Kusagakure's leader Tsurukawa said from a distance, voice cold. "Your crimes will be judged by Kusagakure. You will be sealed and imprisoned in Hozuki Castle."
Kusagakure's leader used words to lower Kazuma's will to resist.
Kazuma spat bloody saliva, his face full of defiance and unwillingness.
Imprisoned in Hozuki Castle? What a joke! So many like-minded comrades had paid with their lives. He himself had endured humiliation until now. All hope rested on Sora, all for overthrowing Konoha and reshaping the Land of Fire's future!
How could he be imprisoned in Hozuki Castle by Kusagakure shinobi?
Moreover, Konoha likely already knew Sora was a Nine-Tails chakra vessel. Once Kusagakure captured them and leaked information to Konoha, those people would certainly apply pressure, then seize Sora.
Losing Sora meant all sacrifices he had made, all pain he had endured became meaningless! Everything lost significance!
Gripping his weapon tightly, Kazuma's gaze swept across the Kusagakure shinobi led by Tsurukawa.
Their coordination was seamless. The sealing techniques they employed proved especially troublesome, severely restricting his movements and abilities.
Conventional Earth Release proved difficult to employ effectively under such siege.
Kazuma's gaze fell upon Sora behind him. A mad notion surged upward.
No retreat remained.
For ideals, for the future...
Sora, forgive me.
Kazuma suddenly turned, fingers becoming claws, pressing viciously onto Sora's thin abdomen!
The next moment, dark red chakra violently erupted from Sora's small body.
"This... what is this?!"
Tsurukawa first retreated a step in shock, instinctively assuming a defensive posture.
But immediately, the shock on his face was swiftly replaced by an incredulous, nearly manic joy!
So massive! So pure! So full of power!
He widened his eyes, staring fixedly at that small figure wrapped in ominous chakra, as though admiring a peerless treasure.
"Haha... hahahaha!!"
"Found it! This is it! This is the most perfect, the finest energy source!!"
This chakra surpassed the child they had previously prepared. Far more suitable.
Yes, surely even the Sage of Six Paths, weary of this shinobi world where great nations acted with impunity, had at this moment bestowed this ultimate gift upon Kusagakure!
With this child, with this power, they could certainly open the Box of Ultimate Bliss!
By making a wish to the entity within the box, Kusagakure could rise above the Five Great Shinobi Villages and rule the entire shinobi world.
This era was destined to belong to Kusagakure!
Fanatical delusion collapsed rationality. Killing intent flared in Tsurukawa's eyes. The next moment, fierce attacks struck Kazuma, already at his limit.
Accompanied by a brief, agonized cry, Kazuma's life signs abruptly ceased.
"Father!"
Witnessing his father's brutal death while tormented by the violent power within, Sora released a mournful wail.
That dark red chakra, as though responding to his emotions, became even more turbulent and ominous.
Chapters in advance there: patreon.com/Thaniel_a_goodchild