The River border was quiet before it wasn't.
Mist clung low across the marshland. The air tasted metallic, heavy with decay and wet soil. War had passed through here repeatedly, leaving the land wounded.
Four shinobi moved carefully through the trees.
Daichi in front. Kaito sensing. Reina guarding rear. Izumi in the center.
She had already decided.
Not if.
When.
The Ambush
The explosion split the formation.
Mud and fire swallowed the path.
Shuriken rained.
Two enemy shinobi rushed Daichi.
Another engaged Kaito.
Reina tried to maintain distance.
Izumi fought cleanly but conservatively. Enough skill to survive. Not enough to stand out.
The battle turned brutal quickly.
Daichi killed one.
Kaito took a deep stab through the side.
Reina screamed and ran to him.
The second explosion threw everyone apart.
Smoke engulfed the battlefield.
Perfect.
First Transfer
Kaito lay bleeding, vision fading.
Reina was pinned under debris a few meters away.
Daichi was locked in combat beyond the mist.
Izumi dropped beside Kaito.
He looked at her in panic.
"Izumi… I can't feel my legs…"
His chakra was collapsing.
Close to death.
Exactly the threshold she needed.
She cupped his face.
"I'll help you," she whispered.
He relaxed slightly.
Trust.
That was the key.
She leaned down.
From a distance, through smoke, it looked like she was checking his breathing.
But her lips pressed against his.
The ability ignited.
It wasn't violent.
It was pulling silk through water.
His fading life surged into her.
Warm. Dense. Intoxicating.
His eyes widened mid-contact.
He tried to move.
Too weak.
The transfer lasted seconds.
When she pulled back—
He exhaled one final time.
Gone.
Her chakra steadied instantly.
Wounds sealed faster. Vision sharpened.
Efficient.
She wiped the blood from her mouth with her sleeve.
Smoke still covered everything.
No one saw.
Second Opportunity
Daichi finished his opponent but took a deep blade wound across his abdomen.
The final enemy fled.
Daichi stumbled back toward the clearing.
Reina crawled free from debris.
She saw Kaito.
Frozen.
"No…"
She rushed to him.
Izumi stood still.
Measuring.
Daichi collapsed to one knee.
Reina tried to channel medical chakra into him but her hands were shaking too badly.
His breathing grew shallow.
"Reina… fall back… report…"
His strength was draining fast.
Izumi stepped forward.
"I'll stabilize him."
Reina looked up in relief.
"Yes—yes, please—"
Izumi knelt.
Blood coated Daichi's lips.
His eyes were unfocused.
He was close.
But not close enough.
She leaned close to his ear.
"You fought well."
Then she kissed him.
His body stiffened in confusion.
The transfer was stronger this time.
He had more life left.
It resisted.
His hand weakly gripped her arm.
She held the kiss longer.
Until resistance faded.
When she pulled away, he slumped.
Dead.
Reina stared.
"What— what are you—?"
Shock froze her.
Izumi turned slowly.
Reina scrambled backward.
"You—you killed him!"
Fear flooded the air.
Izumi moved calmly.
Reina tried to stand but exhaustion and injury slowed her.
"Why?" Reina whispered.
Izumi tilted her head slightly.
"Because this war doesn't remember names."
She stepped forward.
Reina tried to scream.
Izumi kissed her mid-breath.
The transfer was weaker—Reina was already drained—but still useful.
Reina's body fell limply into the mud.
The Cleanup
Silence returned to the marsh.
Only distant water movement.
Izumi stood alone.
Stronger.
War had provided the stage.
She provided the decision.
She burned the battlefield.
Explosive tags placed strategically.
Enemy bodies incinerated.
Her teammates placed near blast radius.
It would look like desperate combat.
Overwhelming numbers.
One survivor.
Common.
Believable.
Return to Konoha
When she passed through the gates two days later, mud-streaked and hollow-eyed, no one questioned her survival.
Losses were expected during the Second Shinobi World War.
Inside the Hokage Tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi would review another casualty report.
Three names removed.
One survivor commended for endurance.
War absorbed the anomaly.
As it always did.
That night, alone in her room in the Uchiha compound—
She touched her lips lightly.
No guilt.
No trembling.
Just realization.
This method required proximity. Trust. Timing.
Which meant—
Future growth would depend not just on combat…
But manipulation.