Kiyohara jumped down from the treetop while still holding Rin in his arms, his gaze sweeping over Orochimaru and Kakashi, who had gathered nearby along with the others.
"Put me… down, Kiyohara."
Rin lowered her head slightly. Being held like this by Kiyohara made her feel both awkward and shy.
Especially with Kakashi watching from the side—being carried in another man's arms like this felt embarrassing no matter how she thought about it.
Kiyohara looked down at Rin and couldn't help but chuckle softly.
Girls in this world, even though they were all shinobi, were far more conservative than many women he had seen in his previous life.
It was an unexpected contrast.
"Rin, are you feeling embarrassed?"
Kiyohara casually asked as he gently set her down.
He noticed that her cheeks were faintly flushed and that she didn't dare meet his gaze.
"Not at all."
Rin shook her head, flatly denying it.
Standing on the ground, she lifted a strand of brown hair that had fallen against her cheek and tucked it behind her ear.
Kiyohara noticed that it wasn't just her cheeks—her ears and even the back of her neck, covered in fine, soft hairs, were tinged red as well.
But now was clearly not the time to dwell on such things. The sounds of killing and the violent clashes of jutsus were still thunderous all around them.
The enemy forces were only holding back for the moment due to Orochimaru's intimidating presence—they hadn't rushed in immediately, that was all.
"Kiyohara, what was that technique you just used?"
Kakashi asked while remaining vigilant toward the surrounding enemies.
He was genuinely curious, because Kiyohara had never displayed such power in the past.
At first, Kakashi had thought it might be some ninjutsu Orochimaru had previously given him, but judging from Orochimaru's expression earlier, it was clear that even he hadn't known about this.
Orochimaru had even asked Kiyohara what kind of bloodline limit it was, leading Kakashi to speculate that it might be some kind of Kekkei Genkai that enhanced physical speed.
The shinobi world was vast and filled with all kinds of bloodline limits.
Most of them were triggered by mutations.
If such abilities could be stably inherited and passed down to descendants, they would gradually form shinobi clans—like the Uchiha clan or the Hyūga clan.
Kiyohara knew there was no way to hide it. He sheathed his shinobi blade and deliberately let a trace of heaviness show on his face, preparing to attribute everything to the all-purpose explanation of "bonds."
He spoke calmly, explaining, "I don't really know what happened either. I just saw Rin in danger, and in my panic, I suddenly found myself able to control this iron sand… Maybe some kind of bloodline limit awakened."
He attributed the awakening of his ability to a "strong desire to protect a companion" and "coincidence"—the kind of explanation least likely to arouse suspicion and most easily accepted under the values of the Will of Fire.
As he spoke, Kiyohara extended his hand. Thin wisps of iron sand were gradually drawn up from the ground, gathering into a visible mist of sand iron in his palm.
"?"
Rin's eyes suddenly widened in disbelief.
Just moments ago, she had been focused on the searing pain in her back, thinking about how to bandage the wound.
And now she was hearing that Kiyohara had awakened a Kekkei Genkai because of her.
Kakashi fell silent for a moment. His thoughts drifted to how Obito had awakened the true power of the Uchiha clan in order to protect him.
But he didn't know whether Kiyohara's Kekkei Genkai was the same kind of case.
He looked at Kiyohara and then thought of his father's story, as well as something Obito had once said when he was still alive:
"Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum."
Could it be—had Kiyohara really awakened new power for the sake of protecting a companion?
"Hehehe… how fascinating. This is—Magnet Release, isn't it, Kiyohara-kun?"
Orochimaru was extremely knowledgeable. He had seen Kumo's Toroi, and he had also seen Sunagakure's Rasa.
They were both shinobi who used magnetic force to attract iron sand or gold dust.
"But first, let me create an environment suitable for conversation."
Orochimaru formed hand seals.
Bang, bang, bang.
Several shadow clones of Orochimaru appeared and began dealing with the Mist shinobi who were attempting to approach.
As long as the number of Mist shinobi did not exceed Orochimaru's own level, they were effortlessly slaughtered by his shadow clones.
As for the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, they were still on their way.
After all, the former site of the Uzushiogakure was the size of an entire country.
It was just that the enemy forces converging on this particular area were somewhat excessive.
"That burst of acceleration just now should have been an instinctive application of magnetic force, wouldn't you say?"
Only then did Orochimaru turn his attention back to Kiyohara, his tone filled with speculation.
He found this extremely interesting.
After all, Konoha had never possessed a Magnet Release bloodline limit in the past.
After meeting Kiyohara in the command tent before, Orochimaru had investigated some of his background. Three generations of his family had lived in Konoha, having arrived back when the village was first founded.
Perhaps it was Kiyohara's more distant ancestors—before the founding of Konoha—who had lived outside the Land of Fire, in some other country, and thus carried bloodline factors capable of mutating and awakening Magnet Release.
It was even possible that Kiyohara could establish a Magnet Release–based clan within Konoha in the future.
If that happened, Konoha would become the third village, after Sunagakure and Kumogakure, to possess Magnet Release.
"Perhaps so, Lord Orochimaru,"
TN: I forgot whether I use Lord or sama.
Kiyohara nodded.
He was as orthodox as they came—his grandfather's generation had been among the very first to arrive in Konoha.
Pure Konoha blood flowed in his veins.
He wasn't like those Uchiha, who were politically incorrect from birth—
Magnet Release could only be considered rare, not outrageously overpowered.
Kurama Yakumo, who could alter reality just by drawing on paper, was still perfectly fine, wasn't she?
"Being able to awaken such an ability is truly fortunate. This way, I can also contribute some strength to you, Lord Orochimaru."
Kiyohara spoke with apparent sincerity.
Orochimaru was, after all, one of the Legendary Sannin. Establishing a connection like this could only be beneficial.
Especially since Orochimaru treated his subordinates rather well—at least for now, before his darkness fully took hold.
It was only after failing to compete for the position of Hokage that he truly stopped caring about everything.
A man as intelligent as Orochimaru—did he really not know he could conduct experiments elsewhere, instead of only targeting Konoha villagers?
These details alone showed that Orochimaru had already stopped caring whether he could remain in Konoha, or perhaps this was his silent rebellion against Hiruzen.
"Hehehe, having that intention is more than enough, Kiyohara-kun."
Orochimaru smiled faintly, his golden slit pupils fixed on Kiyohara without wavering.
After observing him for a while, Orochimaru finally tossed out a scroll from his sleeve and said, "There's no real meaning for you to stay here. Withdraw in the first group alongside the main house members of the Hyūga clan. This scroll contains my secret order."
In his heart, Orochimaru had reassessed Kiyohara's value.
Such a precious specimen—he couldn't bear to see it suffer any losses.
A living specimen was far more valuable than a dead one.
"This… understood, Lord Orochimaru."
Joy surged through Kiyohara's heart, but he quickly lowered his head and accepted the scroll.
He knew that trying to act in front of someone like Orochimaru was pointless, so he simply kept his head down, not allowing Orochimaru to see his expression.
While they were speaking, Orochimaru's shadow clones had already slaughtered more than forty Mist shinobi in the surrounding area.
"That way—go."
Orochimaru pointed toward the rear.
Continuing to retreat in that direction would lead them to the western coastline of the former Uzushiogakure.
Members of the Hyūga clan's main house were also heading there, and once they arrived, they could quickly evacuate by boat.
Abandoning the defensive line of the old Land of Whirlpools site and preserving their remaining strength was the correct choice.
(End of Chapter)