Where am I…
Temari slowly opened her eyes and saw a white ceiling. She propped herself up.
"Is this, Konoha?"
Just as Temari thought of this, a knock suddenly came from the door outside.
"I'm opening the door and coming in."
A voice sounded from outside, and then the door was opened.
A young girl wearing a forehead protector and a medical ninja's uniform walked in. Black hair, red eyes. How peculiar… she thought to herself, and then saw the other person walk up to her.
"I'm going to check your body. Don't be afraid, okay?"
"…"
Her mouth twitched. Then, Temari held out a hand.
"I'm not an idiot."
Shizune's face stiffened. She pouted, but still patiently helped with the examination. Afterwards, she stood up.
"There's no problem. It was just a coma caused by the spatial chaos during the space-time travel. You should be fine after some rest."
Shizune showed a professional fake smile, then walked towards the door. Temari, however, frowned. Space-time travel? That space ninjutsu called the "Flying Thunder God"? So… wait?
She suddenly looked up and looked at Shizune in shock.
"Is this already Konoha?"
"Yes."
Shizune nodded lightly.
Anyway, after Temari was discharged from the hospital, she would realize where she was, so there was no need to hide it. She smiled.
"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."
"Wait, then, then…"
Temari's heart panicked a little.
She realized that she had come to a foreign land, and might have to stay here for a long time in the future. Her heart was a little lost. She pursed her lips, then shook her head.
"It's nothing. Thank you."
"Mm."
Shizune nodded and turned to walk out the door.
After leaving the room, a moment later, she suddenly turned back. Temari was just shedding tears. Hearing the noise, she immediately wiped them away, then glared at her.
"Why did you come in without knocking?"
"Sorry, I forgot to tell you. Regarding your living arrangements in Konoha, the village has tentatively decided to have you be adopted by a jounin's family. She should be here to pick you up soon."
Shizune was all smiles.
Then, she closed the door with satisfaction. Mm! As expected. What child doesn't cry? Just pretending to be strong! She snorted coldly, her mood much more cheerful. Uzumaki Kushina happened to come over from the front. Seeing her, she immediately asked.
"Is she awake?"
"She's awake. She was just crying earlier!"
Shizune grinned.
Kushina's mouth twitched slightly.
"You… what's the situation?"
Shizune said.
"A difficult little brat. She might have just experienced some things, so she's emotionally closed off and needs a certain degree of stimulation. For now, let her stay alone for a while and have a good cry. You guys can go in a little later."
"Her room is just ahead."
Uzumaki Kushina smiled gently.
"Well then, you all go ahead and get busy. I'll wait here and just walk around."
A hint of hesitation appeared on Shizune's face.
Uzumaki Kushina said.
"It's alright. I'll wait here. It won't take long."
"Well then, we'll get busy first."
"Mm."
Uzumaki Kushina nodded. Then, she sat down on a chair opposite the door.
Inside her, Kurama, with only half his chakra left, pouted.
"Can't you just go in directly now?"
Uzumaki Kushina answered.
"No, you have to respect others."
Kurama replied.
"Tch! You sealed me up, you didn't respect me either!"
Uzumaki Kushina answered seriously.
"This is different. And, we don't restrict you much now, just supervise you to a certain extent. These are already very lenient conditions."
Kurama lay on the ground and said nothing. He knew that the outside world was indeed very chaotic right now. The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki had been captured, beast and all. Last time, if Konoha hadn't been so strong, his quarter-clone would have been taken away too. Although whether he was with Madara or with Konoha, theoretically he was going to be imprisoned, the nature was not quite the same. He still preferred Konoha a little bit.
"By the way, are you on good terms with Shukaku?"
"Good, so good we're like sworn brothers!"
The Nine-Tails rubbed its fists. "I only have one condition. After it moves in, you relax my seal control, so I can be more at ease. Hehehe!"
"It seems you're not on good terms."
Kushina understood. If they were really on good terms, he wouldn't have this kind of reaction.
"So? Just say if you agree or not."
"I can."
Uzumaki Kushina nodded.
Ever since she had felt the power of the Nine-Tails voluntarily cooperating last time, she had intended to carry out a deeper cooperation and alliance with it. She would definitely agree to such a condition.
"That's good, hehehe!"
The Nine-Tails sneered, as if it had already seen a gratifying scene.
Kushina, on the other hand, was pondering—I heard this was Tsunade-sama's decision. Could it be that this was also within her expectations?
She was thinking. Opposite, the door opened with a creak. Kushina immediately looked up. Seeing the small Temari, a smile appeared on her face.
"Hello, my name is Uzumaki Kushina. I'm in a similar situation to you, so the village has arranged for you to stay at my house."
Upon hearing this, Temari couldn't help but be taken aback. Uzumaki Kushina? She had never heard this name, but the other party said she was in a similar situation… Her expression turned cold.
"What's similar?"
Uzumaki Kushina explained.
"What's inside you."
Temari was stunned. Inside me, a Tailed Beast? Is the woman in front of me also a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki? The next moment, she felt the chakra in her body stir, and vaguely guessed that what the other party said might be true. If not for this, Shukaku, who had shown no reaction before, wouldn't have suddenly become agitated. Her hostility immediately dissipated by several degrees, and even…
Temari's heart was a little sad. Her vision instantly blurred, and tears were about to fall. Although she was still small, she understood the meaning behind it. In Sunagakure, apart from her mother, no one had ever cared about her thoughts—including her father, Rasa. But Konoha had actually considered her feelings and specially arranged for her to stay in such a family. It would be a lie to say she wasn't moved. But Temari still forced herself to hold it in, silently nodding without speaking.
Kushina sighed inwardly. She thought of her own situation when she had just arrived in Konoha. Like the other party, she had no relatives and was completely lost. At that time, she was covered in thorns like this, very afraid of others' opinions and evaluations, but in her heart, she longed to be approached and recognized. After knowing her mission, her heart was even more hesitant and afraid. Later, after becoming a Jinchuriki, she was even more terrified and sad, until Minato appeared and she was truly saved. The current Temari, in Kushina's view, was in a similar situation.
Before, she was helpless. Now, it was her turn to help others!
Uzumaki Kushina still had a smile on her face.
"I'll take you for a walk first, and by the way, buy some groceries, clothes, and daily necessities."
"I have no money."
Temari refused stiffly.
"Don't worry, I'll pay!"
Uzumaki Kushina's smile was gentle and very patient—this was thanks to the Nine-Tails not causing trouble, and her having been fully trained at the Konoha Ninja Academy. Her emotions were now very stable, and she basically wouldn't get angry at will. Otherwise, if it were the old her, she might already be accumulating anger.
As for the money, what did it matter if Temari had no money? This money would eventually be settled with Sunagakure. They definitely wouldn't lose a single bit.
After completing the procedures, Kushina took the receipt and walked around the street. As she had said, she bought some daily necessities and fresh vegetables, fruits, and meat. Minato was at home, just in time to cook a sumptuous dinner to welcome her.
Temari followed silently on the side. All the way home, she curiously looked around, but… soon, the chakra in her body showed signs of rioting. A full-throated anger overflowed from the seal, and she was unavoidably affected. What's going on? Temari was puzzled.
But the next second, a miniature Tailed Beast jumped up from the distant sofa, glanced at her, and then burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! You idiot Shukaku, I can't believe you were sealed in a little girl's body! You're so stupid!"
At this moment… Temari felt that the seal in her body was even more chaotic. The overflowing anger almost affected her sanity.
Uzumaki Kushina said seriously.
"Control yourself. Don't be affected by it."
"With the help of the Four Symbols Seal, Shukaku can at most use a small part of its chakra to affect you. As long as you have enough willpower, you can easily suppress it."
"I… will try my best!"
Temari gritted her teeth.
The Nine-Tails chuckled.
"Shukaku can only look and not speak. He must be furious. Why don't you let him out and let him chat with me for a while."
"Don't even think about it!"
Kushina immediately rejected the Nine-Tails' proposal.
Let him out? What a joke! Given Temari and Shukaku's state, to release a part of the seal on Temari now, wouldn't that be killing her?
The Nine-Tails went "Tch!" Boring!
However, thinking of Shukaku's helpless rage inside the seal, it became happy again. Although its own range of activity couldn't be too far, at least it could stroll around the house every day and even turn on the TV to watch programs. In comparison, its main body and Shukaku were really in prison. Happiness is often built on the pain of others. Thinking of the situation of its main body and Shukaku, it became happy and even hummed a nameless little tune.
Although Temari was young and didn't understand the specific situation, she could roughly guess from the emotions and the words of the small beast in front of her—the thing in front of her was probably the Nine-Tails? She observed carefully. This Nine-Tails… was so small!
Uzumaki Kushina said.
"You sit on the sofa and watch TV with Kurama for a while. I'm going to prepare the food."
The small Nine-Tails immediately became alert.
"You're going to cook?"
"No! I'm just preparing! Is that okay!"
Kushina questioned with her hands on her hips.
The small Nine-Tails nodded. Alright! As long as it's not Kushina cooking, it thinks it's alright!
Temari observed the relationship between them, feeling it was very strange. Is this the relationship between a human and a Tailed Beast? If she didn't know, she would even have thought it was Kushina's summoned beast. A human and a Tailed Beast could actually get along so harmoniously.
She sat down. The small Nine-Tails grinned.
"Hey! Shukaku, you're really useless. By the way, who was it that locked it up?"
"Uh, that person from your village… Kyohiko?"
Temari recalled, and then vaguely remembered that the pronunciation seemed to be like that.
The small Nine-Tails' face immediately stiffened. Kyohiko, huh… never mind then, I can't beat him either! But in front of Shukaku, it wouldn't show it. And it didn't continue to provoke, but instead began to introduce some good-looking programs to her. If one ignored the feelings of Shukaku inside Temari's body, it seemed quite harmonious.
At the Konoha Anbu.
Ryoho Kyohiko really wasn't making an excuse. After leaving Kakashi's side, he immediately sent a letter to the north, explaining his current situation, and then began to try making puppets again. After understanding the principles, puppet creation was not complicated. He just needed to pay attention to a few special mechanisms. Ryoho Kyohiko tried a few times and soon became proficient.
However, what he wanted to make was a puppet that could accommodate "Hashirama cells" or "White Zetsu cells." This required a special structure and materials. Ryoho Kyohiko's idea was—a tree formed by Hashirama's cells. Coincidentally, outside Orochimaru's laboratory, there was such a large tree. The large tree grown from Hashirama's cells was very tough. An ordinary person couldn't cut it down at all. This was also where Senju Hashirama's Wood Style ninjutsu was powerful back then. But Kyohiko was not in this category.
In one night, the rough prototype was completed. At this time, Orochimaru had also returned! He could come back so quickly, of course, thanks to the Flying Thunder God Formation. And in Ryoho Kyohiko's hand was a very small, snake-like puppet.
"Is this the new puppet you made?"
"Yes, this is a trial version, to see if it works. The technical manual for the Chakra Armor, please have a look."
Ryoho Kyohiko handed the booklet from Yazawa to Orochimaru.
Then, he flicked his finger and controlled the puppet snake with a chakra thread—although he didn't know the puppet manipulation technique, the basic chakra thread was actually very simple. With Kyohiko's means, it was not difficult to achieve. With a flick of his finger, it immediately drilled into the ground. Its presence was concealed by the Wood Style and merged with the surroundings, making it very difficult to detect.
The next second, Orochimaru looked down. At his feet, grass and trees were slowly growing.
"Are you using Wood Style's ability?"
"It's just the basics. If there's more chakra, then—"
Ryoho Kyohiko formed a hand seal with one hand.
Instantly, the snake shot out from below, its body rapidly expanding into a large, vine-like snake that quickly wrapped around Orochimaru. Then… it opened its mouth and bit down!
Orochimaru tried to break free, but this kind of puppet was made of special materials. It really wasn't that easy to break free with the strength of an ordinary ninja. It bit down. Orochimaru's body collapsed and turned into a pile of mud. Then, he emerged from the side.
"A good puppet. If Sunagakure could use such materials, it would be difficult for us to deal with."
Orochimaru commented while looking at the booklet in his hand.
"The Chakra Armor alone can only be considered passable. It will be more useful for chunin and genin. For the jounin level, the enhancement is limited."
"But, as you said, combining it with a puppet is indeed a good idea."
Orochimaru's eyes gradually brightened. According to Kyohiko's line of thought, this kind of puppet really had development potential! It was just Sunagakure's side… Forget it, let's not worry about them for now!
Orochimaru put it away.
"I will research it. But you should also find me an assistant."
"I'm on it! I'm on it!"