Sorry for the delay, Guys. Actually, I got in motorcycle accident, get my right hand injured, though nothing was serious but it still take me this whole time to recover. It was just yesterday that I comes back here, and started writing again.
At first I thought, where 3 weeks absence has come, let's wait a week more and directly upload 3-4 chapters, but then again when I think, it's been 3 weeks of no new chapter.
So, I decided to complete chapter 63 and 64, which I was writing and were about to complete before I get in accident, and thought of uploading them for now, rather than a week later with two more.
And thanks for the patience, guys!
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A full week melted into the sun-baked sands of Sunagakure.
Today was the solemn occasion of a funeral for the five ninja lost during the recent Shukaku incident.
Meanwhile, in this time period, Kaiji had maintained his training regimen, dedicating hours daily to mastering the Chakra Scalpel and Blood Coagulation Technique.
His Iryō Ninjutsu training progressed steadily.
For the Blood Coagulation Technique, he had picked up a small desert cottontail, a common test subject in Sunagakure's Medical practices.
While fish can said a mythical beast in Sunagakure.
He had initially practiced on himself, making shallow cuts on his arm and directing his chakra to the bleeding points, observing its interaction with blood and tissue.
Yet, self-inflicted wounds proved cumbersome, and decided to switch to the desert cottontail.
This shift smoothed his progress, and he now focused on the second step—
Step of applying chakra to stimulate the blood's natural clotting factors.
However, the Chakra Scalpel Jutsu presented a greater challenge.
Despite his good chakra control, stabilizing and sharpening the concentrated, blade-like edge of chakra on his fingertip proven difficult.
While molding the chakra scalpel by focusing his chakra to a single point was easier for him.
But maintaining its stability and sharpness, thereby improving its form, proved exceptionally difficult.
He now fully understood why medical-nin surpassed even many Jonin and elite ninja in chakra control.
He felt confident in learning the Blood Coagulation Technique to usable level within the next week, same as his initial goal, but the Chakra Scalpel was a different matter entirely.
His fundamental Fuinjutsu training, however, proceeded without a hitch.
The day after beginning his practice, he had visited a calligraphy shop, spending 5,000 ryo in essential sealing supplies—paper, ink, and brushes.
The Fuinjutsu scroll, "Basic Fuinjutsu Primer" also detailed two techniques.
The first was, "Temporary adhesion seal", designed to bond two surfaces for a limited duration.
The second was a "short-range tracking tag", each with distinct yet simple symbols that Kaiji able to practice with ease.
Notably, the scroll lacked any information on primary sealing techniques such as storage seals or paper bombs.
While he had already and effortlessly learned those two E-rank Earth Release Jutsu, but he postponed D-rank ones.
Focusing mostly on Medical Ninjutsu.
Meanwhile, his consistent morning training and practice of the Seven Heavens Breathing Method have gradual but noticeable improvements.
The duration he could sustain the "First Activation" state slowly increased, though it still capped at just under a minute.
This technique's, "First Activation" dissipation left Kaiji momentarily but quite fatigued.
He understands that his physical conditioning still needs much dedicated training.
He then later even purchase new set of body weights, now training with 220 pounds strapped to each wrist and ankle.
In this week, he also gets one mission, close to Village, which was completed quickly, and he gets back to his grind once again.
...
Currently, he stood before Sunagakure's Memorial Stone, a gathering of nearly the entire village present.
Normal folks, civilians, and Shinobi's were present.
Men wore plain black robes and formal kimono, while women donned conservative, dark dresses and kimono, typically long-sleeved and reaching at least knee-length.
In front of the graves of the five deceased ninja stood the Third Kazekage, Satei.
Beside him were Elder Chiyo and Ebizo, with red-haired Sasori standing beside his grandmother.
To Satei's right stood his three students—
Rasa, whose auburn hair and dark eyes, but not the same sterm look he usually had in anime.
To Rasa's right stood Karura, her shoulder-length, sandy-brown hair framing a kind face, with indigo-colored eyes.
Yuta stood to Karura's right.
Jonin's were stood behind Satei, including Pakura and many others.
All bowed their heads in a moment of silence, a wordless tribute, an act of remembrance and sorrow for the fallen.
Kaiji, however, gazed skyward.
He blinked and thought, 'Man, without rain or dark clouds, it doesn't even feel like standing at a cemetery.'
The sun hung high above, winking at Sunagakure with its usual intense heat.
His gaze then drifted to Satei, observing him intently, trying to find which of the five deceased was the second Jinchuriki of the One-Tail, Ichibi.
Kaiji knew Satei would not have such a grand funeral for just any ninja, unless that ninja was indeed the Jinchuriki who dead in the recent incident.
He recalled that Satei has the idea for his Magnet Release Kekkai Genkai from the second Jinchūriki of Shukaku.
So, this funeral is mostly dedicated to that person, other four weren't matter here actually.
Satei sensed a gaze upon him and immediately shifted his eyes towards Kaiji, who also swiftly diverted his attention back to the sandy ground.
...
After a few moments of solemn silence, paying tribute to the deceased, everyone slowly began to disperse, returning to their respective residences.
Ren was walking with Kaiji and Hiroshi, nor with his team.
As they walked back, Ren questioned Kaiji, "Why were you looking so intensely towards Kazekage-sama?"
Kaiji raised a brow, "You noticed? Well, I was just wondering who the Jinchuriki was among those five."
"Yeah, I'm curious too," Hiroshi chimed in, "From what the village news says, the Jinchuriki sounded like quite a powerful ninjas to me."
"Hmm, you two are really that curious, shall I tell you?" Ren's voice was laced with an attempt at suspense, but he revealed the name anyway.
"Isago, that was his name."
"Who? And how do you even know?" Kaiji asked, his eyes narrowing slightly, disbelieving that Ren knows about such information.
"Is that even true, or are you just spouting bullshit?" Hiroshi also questioned, hesitant to believe.
"No, no, it's true, my sensei told me," Ren defended, shaking his head slightly.
"You remember that blue-haired, short man, who was Kazekage-sama's guard on the day our graduation exam began?"
"Oh, I recall him, so he was the one, huh," Hiroshi exclaimed.
Kaiji nodded, remembering the Dune Aegis who had been with Satei at that time.
Kaiji asked, "But how did your sensei know? Is he some big shot or something?"
He considering Ren's team's sensei, a Jounin from the Puppetry Brigade Department, and found nothing particularly noteworthy about him.
"Actually, Reeku-sensei, before my team, was also sensei to Sasori's team, Elder Chiyo's grandson," Ren explained.
He continued, "So Reeku-sensei was quite close with the Elders for years knows about these kinds of things.
And just like you two, when we asked him about this, he told us, thinking this information was not anything major."
Hiroshi nodded, a hand on his chin, but Kaiji's ears perked up immediately.
'Sasori's Jonin sensei?' he mused.
•••