Outside the borders of the Land of Fire, in the neighboring Land of Hot Water, within a small town, a dimly lit inn room hummed with strange energy. Inside, Orochimaru was tinkering with an array of delicate instruments and mysterious liquids, his focus intense.
Recently, Kirigakure had grown unusually restless. To ensure the safety of personnel stationed near the Fire Country's borders, Hiruzen Sarutobi had sent Orochimaru, accompanied by several Konoha shinobi and even some ANBU, to guard this region personally.
Any Mist ninja that dared to probe Konoha's defenses was met with merciless retaliation. No quarter was given. All were slain.
It was a firm display of Konoha's formidable strength.
With narrowed eyes and a slow lick of his lips, Orochimaru murmured, "Judging from the current situation, war could break out at any moment. All that's missing is a spark—and a fool willing to stand at the front."
Boom!
One of the glass containers on the table suddenly exploded, shattering half of the setup.
Orochimaru didn't even flinch.
That's science—always riddled with unpredictable variables. The process didn't matter, only the results. If he succeeded in the end, everything was worth it.
"Sensei is still too cautious," he muttered. "Now would be the perfect time to strike first. Crush a soft target with overwhelming force, make an example of them. That would shut the other villages up."
Given Konoha's near-peak power, they could wipe out a smaller village in one coordinated strike. But if someone made the first move and the other great nations followed suit, even Konoha would get pulled into a quagmire of war, where victory would become uncertain.
Still, Hiruzen's cautious nature was nothing new. If he weren't so reserved, he wouldn't be Orochimaru's teacher.
Choosing Orochimaru to garrison here was already a bold enough move. If it had been Jiraiya or Tsunade, they would've acted much less decisively.
Whoosh—
Just as Orochimaru was about to restart his experiment, an ANBU ninja silently appeared in the room.
"Orochimaru-sama, there's been a development on the Mist's side."
Orochimaru didn't look up. He kept fiddling with his instruments.
"Oh? Has that glutton Kisame Hoshigaki finally made a move?"
"No, not Kisame. According to our scouts, a jōnin from the Kaguya Clan broke through our perimeter and entered the restricted zone."
"Kaguya Clan? Those lunatics…"
Even Orochimaru referred to them as lunatics. That alone said plenty about the clan's reputation.
"Our corpse-recovery team might be in danger. For the sake of intel, should we—" the ANBU asked hesitantly.
Orochimaru finally lifted his head, his tongue flicking out instinctively.
"So Kirigakure is making a serious play. They want to probe how determined we are. Sending in a half-mad Kaguya? That's quite the double-edged move."
On the surface, it looked like they were just gathering intel. But Orochimaru saw the deeper layer.
The Mist wanted to test Konoha's attitude. If the Kaguya ninja made it back alive, it would signal that Konoha's attention remained focused westward—toward Sunagakure and Iwagakure. If he didn't return, then the Mist would lose a dissenter within their ranks, which suited their leadership just fine.
The ANBU stood silently, awaiting orders.
"Send in a squad," Orochimaru finally said with a wave of his hand.
He couldn't leave himself. That would expose Konoha's low manpower in the region. And Kisame wasn't exactly someone to take lightly. Given the chance, he'd pounce.
"Yes, sir."
With a blur, the ANBU vanished.
"Kaguya Clan… no Shikotsumyaku users left, yet they still hold influence in the Mist. If only one of them had awakened the bloodline limit… now that would be a fascinating specimen."
Just thinking of the legendary bone-manipulating bloodline stirred a thrill in Orochimaru's cells.
—
"I'm just a corpse handler. Just a corpse handler…"
Maruyama Shin ran through the forest with Imai Kuriyama in his arms, muttering like a mantra, trying to push away thoughts of Kakashi and the others behind him.
With Kakashi's skill, they should be fine.
Leaping from treetop to treetop, wind rushing past his ears, a half-hummed tune on his lips, girl in his arms—he really felt like life had peaked.
But life's ups and downs hit fast and hard. Before he could enjoy the moment, Shin stopped dead in his tracks.
His smile turned bitter.
"This… this shouldn't be happening."
All he wanted was to quietly collect corpses. Why did the universe keep throwing him trials?
A blurred figure stood on a tree ahead.
The man wore his hair in an outdated, hideous topknot. Two awkward red dots were painted on either side of his forehead. His lips curled into a mocking grin.
The moment Shin saw him, his headache worsened.
That look—definitely Kaguya Clan.
"I'm just a genin," he muttered.
Sure, none of the current Kaguya had awakened the Shikotsumyaku, but they were all physically monstrous and mentally unstable. Total lunatics.
If not for Obito Uchiha rebooting the Bloody Mist Era, which led to the Kaguya Clan's near extinction, the Mist might never have become the weakest Great Village during the Fourth Ninja War.
Carefully, Shin laid Kuriyama by the base of a nearby tree.
"You, Konoha brat—where are your real elites hiding?" asked Kaguya Chihaya, eyes gleaming with excitement, body visibly twitching with anticipation.
Shin put on his most honest, sincere smile and pointed in the direction of the town where Orochimaru and the others were stationed.
"No need to thank me. Just head that way. Should only take an hour."
"Good."
Chihaya nodded and began walking.
Shin didn't move. He just slowly turned to keep his eyes on him, ready for any sudden violence.
People said the Kaguya were brainless, but… what if?
When Chihaya finally passed by and was about to vanish into the woods, Shin silently exhaled.
His back was already drenched in sweat.
"That worked? I must be a damn genius," he muttered to himself, a little proud.
But then—Chihaya's footsteps stopped.
Shin's heart skipped a beat.
With a forced smile, he asked, "Is… is something wrong?"
Chihaya turned, grinning wide.
"Almost forgot. My mission is to eliminate all Konoha shinobi I encounter."
That smile… it was pure evil.
"I'm just a genin. Wasting time on me isn't worth it," Shin said, waving his hand.
"That's why… I'll make it quick."
With those words, the ground beneath Chihaya cracked. His body shot forward like a missile, barreling through the air.
So fast!
Shin's expression changed. He knew there was no dodging this. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and braced.
Bang!
A compact fist smashed into his forearms.
Shin had never been hit by a speeding car in his past life, but now he had a pretty good idea.
He was blown backward, feet leaving the ground, slamming into a tree with such force that the trunk snapped clean in half.
Splurt—
His face went pale as a mouthful of blood exploded from his lips. His arms swelled instantly, nearly breaking.
"Hm?" Chihaya was surprised.
Then he straightened, eyes lighting up. That punch should've crushed a genin. This guy had to be at least chūnin level.
Genin were boring. But a chūnin? That could be fun.
Shin shook his head and staggered to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Recovered already? Good. Let's go again!" Chihaya beckoned, taunting him.
Shin licked his teeth and spat a bloody glob of saliva.
He flipped his hand over, pulling out a card no one else could see.
Why was it so hard to just collect corpses in peace?
He glanced at the unconscious Imai Kuriyama nearby.
Damn human decency.
He really didn't want to do this.
But there was no choice.
Time to go all out!
[Activating Iwagakure Deputy Kage Akagi Tsukasa Experience Card (Rare). Calculating stat synchronization...]
[Activation successful! Synchronization level…]
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Hey everyone! I'll be dropping an extra 1 chapter once we hit 200, 400 power stones! If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to spend some power stones. I'd really appreciate the support. Thanks a bunch!