"Continue?"
Yubi's tone made it sound as though infiltrating enemy territory was nothing more than a game.
This wasn't child's play.
Araki glanced at Sasori again, recalling the scene of him slaughtering Rain ninja inside the Land of Rain. His expression shifted slightly, deeply stirred.
These were just two children not even ten years old. Sasori's cold-blooded arrogance when facing enemies, and Yubi's calm exhilaration after narrowly surviving death—both of them were clearly far from ordinary.
Was this starkly different temperament also part of what made geniuses shine?
Originally, Araki had no intention of agreeing. Missions like this were far too dangerous. He had only planned to bring them once. With repeated incursions, the Rain Village would inevitably grow more vigilant. Even if they switched routes and struck other outposts, the news would eventually spread.
Once the Rain Village prepared countermeasures and battle plans, even he wouldn't be able to protect Yubi and Sasori.
But suddenly, Araki realized that this very line of thinking was what made him ordinary.
Even though he was already an elite jonin, compared to the future awaiting Yubi and Sasori… he was merely a firefly beside the sun and moon.
"…Alright."
After a moment of silence, Araki nodded.
The other Sand shinobi nearby felt their hearts skip a beat.
Again?
That kid Yubi might be reckless, but why was Lord Araki joining the madness too?
"As if the last one counted… I'll beat you again."
Sasori stared at Yubi and spoke word by word.
Although he had killed more enemies, he understood that Araki's evaluation of the mission had been fair. This time, he would execute the mission Yubi's way—perfectly—and win without question.
"That's fine… but neither of you is allowed to do anything reckless. Especially you, Sasori—you must follow my instructions exactly." Araki raised a finger.
Sasori said nothing, but clearly agreed.
"Move out!"
After greeting the Sand shinobi, Araki immediately led the two toward another section of the border.
From the Rain Village's perspective, the earlier clash would likely be seen as just another harassment raid from the Sand.
Such minor skirmishes were common and rarely taken too seriously.
Still, the outposts along that route would surely strengthen their defenses. They could no longer infiltrate there. They would have to search for a new route.
Fortunately, the border was vast. Before news fully spread, Araki still had confidence in protecting the two children.
Watching the trio leave, the Sand shinobi exchanged glances. They didn't know Yubi, but it was obvious he was a prodigy like Sasori. Some people were simply born ahead of others—not because of background, but talent.
At eight years old, they themselves had only handled minor missions. Not this.
And certainly not during the chaos of the Second Shinobi World War.
Perhaps this era of war was the perfect soil to nurture geniuses like Yubi and Sasori.
---
Along the way, Yubi opened his system interface.
After the battles in the rear lines and treating the wounded, his current totals were:
[Positive Experience: 521]
[Negative Experience: 203]
The positive points included the 200 bonus for saving Sasori, a story-significant character.
His earlier points had already been spent on Mystical Palm Technique and Chakra Scalpel, leaving him nearly drained. Most of these new points came from the Sand–Rain war.
The two months of training and routine missions with Araki had yielded little in comparison. That was why he had considered the outbreak of war a rare opportunity.
The numbers spoke for themselves: as a medical ninja, positive experience grew far faster than negative experience. Saving lives simply rewarded more points than killing.
After all, this system revolved around being a medical ninja. Saving people was the main path.
Killing wasn't supposed to be.
Still, both types of experience revolved around one core concept: doctor.
Positive experience unlocked abilities and items for healing.
Negative experience unlocked medical abilities with harmful effects.
Poisons. Disease infliction. Hallucinations tied to psychological illness. Organ extraction or manipulation.
With negative experience, Yubi could become a black-market doctor with zero moral limits—someone evolving toward offense and destruction.
He began browsing purchasable abilities.
Stronger skills cost more points.
An A-rank ninjutsu like Mystical Palm or Chakra Scalpel cost around 150 points.
With 203 negative experience, he could afford something slightly better.
That was the real reason he had asked Araki to continue the mission—he needed more negative experience.
"Given the mission, I need assassination-focused abilities," Yubi thought. "They'll diversify my combat style and help me gain more negative experience. Most importantly, they must suit me."
After browsing for a long time, he finally found one.
[Possession Thread: Attach threads to a target and control flying knives for accurate strikes.]
[Death Waltz: Manipulate threads with the fingers to perform stealth assassinations. Knives can also be bound to threads for remote control.]
(Origin: Belphegor from Katekyo Hitman Reborn!)
"So the system considers throwing knives compatible with a doctor's profession…" Yubi mused.
The original user's knives were essentially equivalent to his surgical scalpels.
This ability was undeniably lethal.
To Yubi, it resembled chakra threads, except instead of controlling puppets, he would control blades. Even more deadly—he could kill remotely without revealing himself.
It was practically a simplified version of sword telekinesis from fantasy novels.
Perfect for ambush and assassination.
The price: 200 points.
More expensive than his previous A-rank ninjutsu.
[Congratulations, Host. The combined technique Possession Thread and Death Waltz has been assimilated into ninjutsu.]
Yubi exchanged it without hesitation.
What mattered most was its minimal chakra consumption. After assimilation, it would function more like advanced weapon control than a chakra-heavy technique.
Previously, he relied on taijutsu to fight at close range with his scalpel. His ninja academy throwing skills were barely passing. He had focused almost entirely on physical training and chakra reserves instead.
After all, no one could master everything at once.
Soon, he reached into his pouch and found a bundle of thin steel wire.
He glanced at Sasori.
Both of them controlled threads with their fingers. Sasori used chakra threads; Yubi used real ones.
He had no intention of becoming a puppeteer—but as a Sand shinobi, knowing a similar technique wouldn't be strange.
It could even pass as his own original ninjutsu.
"I'll use you as my excuse," Yubi smiled at Sasori.
Sasori noticed the look and returned a cold stare, unmoved.
Clearly, he was still fully immersed in their rivalry.