A few days later.
Outside Kusagakure in the Land of Grass, there stood a lonely grass hut far away from the village itself.
A red-haired woman with a pale face and exhausted expression slowly walked back toward the hut.
Beside her was a bald man wearing a Kusagakure ninja headband, his expression fierce and cold.
The woman looked extremely weak.
She staggered as she walked, as if she might collapse at any moment.
Yet she forced herself forward through sheer will.
What made the scene unsettling was—
her arms and neck were covered in horrifying bite marks.
Meanwhile, the bald man beside her remained completely indifferent.
He didn't even bother helping her walk.
To him, her life and death meant nothing.
"Mom!"
At that moment—
a red-haired girl about seven or eight years old ran out of the hut after hearing the noise.
The girl wore glasses.
Her eyes lit up as she rushed forward.
"Karin!"
A faint light appeared in the woman's tired eyes.
She embraced the girl tightly.
The bald man tossed two pieces of bread onto the ground.
"This is today's reward for your hard work."
"Rest well."
His tone was arrogant and emotionless.
"The frontline battle is getting more intense."
"Tomorrow your ability will be needed again to treat the wounded of Kusagakure."
"Wait!"
Karin clenched her fists angrily.
"Mom is already exhausted! Why won't you let her rest?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
But she still tried to argue.
"Karin… don't say that."
The red-haired woman gently comforted her daughter.
She picked up the bread and responded quietly:
"Yes… I understand, sir."
The bald ninja sneered.
"You and your daughter are refugees who lost your homeland."
"You were lower than beggars."
"If Kusagakure hadn't taken you in, you wouldn't even have the right to live."
"Since we accepted you—"
"you should repay the village with your work."
"I'll come get you tomorrow morning."
With that, he turned and left.
"Mom…"
Karin looked at her mother with tears.
"If this keeps going… you'll die!"
"It's okay."
The woman forced a gentle smile.
"Mom can endure."
"As long as I keep working for them…"
"One day we'll be allowed to live inside the village."
"Then we won't have to stay outside anymore."
She broke one piece of bread in half.
Keeping only a small portion for herself—
she gave the rest to Karin.
In the Forest Nearby
Several figures silently appeared among the trees.
They had been watching for quite some time.
"Is that the target?"
"Looks like it."
"That red hair… definitely from the Uzumaki Clan."
"And those bite marks… miserable."
"Members of the Uzumaki clan can heal themselves or others with their chakra."
"Kusagakure probably kept them because of that ability."
"They don't lack medical knowledge—"
"They just turned her into a living medical battery."
"The girl likely has the same constitution as her mother."
"Uzumaki vitality really is impressive…"
"She's been overusing chakra to heal their wounded soldiers and still survived this long."
"Enough talking."
"Danzō Shimura gave the order."
"Bring them back to Konohagakure."
After confirming that the Kusagakure ninja had left—
and no one else was watching—
the shadows moved.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several figures instantly appeared before Karin and her mother.
"You—!"
The woman's expression changed.
But before she could finish speaking—
both she and Karin collapsed.
The Root ninjas had already used genjutsu.
Without hesitation, they lifted the unconscious mother and daughter.
Then they silently disappeared into the forest—
moving away from Kusagakure.
Meanwhile — Inside the Land of Fire
Outside a small village in the Land of Fire.
Ren suddenly stopped walking while traveling with Tsunade and Shizune.
He looked toward the northwest.
"What's wrong, Ren?"
Tsunade asked.
Ren closed his eyes briefly to sense the chakra.
Then he pointed northwest.
"About twenty or thirty li away…"
"There's a very powerful chakra source."
"But it's unstable… and seems extremely weak."
"That direction…"
A passing villager overheard them.
His face suddenly changed.
"You're outsiders, aren't you?"
"Don't go there!"
Shizune asked curiously,
"What's wrong with that place, sir?"
The villager lowered his voice.
"About twenty li away is the ruin of Shusaki Castle."
"Decades ago the castle was destroyed when enemy forces invaded."
"The lord of the castle, Shusaki Gōzu, took his own life."
"Before dying he supposedly cursed the place."
"Now it's known as a ghost castle."
"Over the years many people tried to enter the castle to search for the treasure he left behind."
"But…"
"No one who went inside ever came back alive."
"Oh?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
"A cursed castle?"
Shizune hugged Tonton a little tighter.
Meanwhile Ren suddenly understood.
So they had accidentally arrived near Shusaki Castle.
No wonder he sensed such powerful chakra.
He remembered the story:
When defeat became inevitable,
the castle lord used a summoning technique.
He fused his summoned creature with the castle using a secret technique.
The creature devoured any living being that entered.
But after decades—
that summoned beast had remained trapped there by the contract.
It was now close to exhaustion.
Ren smiled slightly.
"Let's go check it out, Tsunade."
Although he had already signed a contract with Shikkotsu Forest,
that didn't mean he couldn't form other summoning contracts.
Besides—
that creature seemed to be a rare genjutsu-type summon.
If it belonged to a larger summoning clan,
it could be very valuable.
Even if he didn't need it—
it could be useful for others like Tenten or Ino.
"Alright."
Tsunade agreed without hesitation.
With their strength—
she wasn't afraid of any so-called curse.
Besides—
Ren had just sensed powerful chakra there.
Which likely explained the rumors of the "ghost castle."
"Let's go take a look."
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