"Urgent—intelligence!"
"Hurry up and deliver it to Lord Raikage!"
A Cloud Shinobi, who had collapsed on the ground, mustered every last bit of strength and retrieved a scroll from beneath his tattered armguards.
"Limyuan?"
"Chuanfeng, hurry up and save someone."
"Yes."
"Rezii, confirm the authenticity of the information."
"If it's true, send someone to Lord Raikage immediately."
"Yes."
At the contact point, the Cloud Shinobi quickly and methodically handled the orders. "Ah," he murmured with a faint smile as he sensed movement around him.
Land of Earth – Rock Shadow Village
At a designated contact point in Rock Shadow Village, a Rock Shinobi transmitted the information received from Konoha spies to the top commander.
"This is the intelligence sent by our spies in Konoha," the Rock Shinobi announced.
"Oh?" The person in charge took the scroll and unrolled it carefully. After a moment of scrutiny, he barked, "Hurry up and send someone to deliver this information to Master Tsuchikage."
Not far away, the Rock Shinobi who had just arrived to deliver the message raised the corner of his mouth in a slight, knowing smile—a subtle sign of a conspiracy quietly taking shape among those shadowy figures behind the scenes.
Time passed in measured increments. In the blink of an eye, two days elapsed.
Training Ground – Konoha
That day, as usual, Saigoji Youmu was at the training ground, teaching swordsmanship to Uzumaki Kushina and Uchiha Mikoto. At sunset, he called out, "Mikoto, Kushina, that's all for today's training."
"Okay, Saigoji-sensei," the two girls responded as they put away their weapons and hurried over to him.
"Mr. Saigoji, what is this?" Uchiha Mikoto asked, pointing at two extra-long, narrow wooden boxes placed beside him.
"This is something I specially prepared for you," Youmu explained as he opened each box in turn. Inside, neatly packed, lay a weapon and its matching scabbard. The design of the weapon was identical to the Western sword used in Acedes' style, complete with the red tassel reminiscent of Lucia-Crimson Abyss's signature look.
"Kushina, this is yours," Youmu said, indicating the weapon named Hongying and its scabbard, Xiyangjian.
"Mikoto, this is yours."
"What a beautiful weapon," both girls breathed in unison. They held the arms gently, admiring the unique, exquisite craftsmanship.
"These two weapons were specially forged by someone I know—crafted exactly like the ones I used, though in different materials. With these, your sword skills will only grow
stronger."
"Hee hee, thank you, Master," Kushina cooed, wrapping her arms around Youmu's arm in a coquettish manner.
"Kushina, what are you doing?" Uchiha Mikoto scolded, her face reddening.
Even though Kushina's exuberance was endearing, her boldness often clashed with Mikoto's more reserved nature.
"But what's wrong with it?" Kushina asked.
"There's nothing wrong with it," Youmu interjected with a gentle smile.
"Anyway, I like you most, Saigoji-sensei," Kushina declared, clinging to him even tighter.
After a while of chatting, the group began to disperse. As Youmu was about to leave, Uchiha Mikoto stopped him, a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Is there anything else, Mikoto?" Youmu asked.
"Master, Patriarch asked me invite you to the Uchiha Clan," she whispered, biting her lip.
Mikoto had heard some unsettling rumors circulating in Konoha. As a proud member of the Uchiha clan, she was well aware of the Sharingan's significance. Once the Sharingan becomes entwined with a person's destiny, members of the clan can grow increasingly paranoid—even to the point of irrational actions. Mikoto feared that such a fixation might eventually lead to irreconcilable conflict between her clan and Saigoji Youmu.