It was actually Pakura from Sunagakure.
"You haven't left yet?"
Heiyan put away his Thunder God Sword, asking instinctively.
He had heard that the Sunagakure delegation had departed from Konoha early in the morning to return to the Land of Wind.
"Do you really want me to leave that badly..." Pakura replied with an unhappy gaze.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" Heiyan changed the subject.
Pakura had been lurking around his doorstep late into the night—it couldn't possibly be just for spying. There wouldn't be much point in that.
"Erm... I'm really sorry."
Pakura bit her lip and suddenly bowed straight down toward Heiyan. Her long bangs fell gently along both sides of her face as she lowered her head.
"What happened?" Heiyan asked. This woman sure did bow and apologize rather frequently.
"After returning to the hotel last night, I accidentally let it slip... Now many people know about your arranged duel at the Valley of the End with Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuga..."
Pakura mumbled softly.
"It doesn't matter," Heiyan said indifferently. The Valley of the End where the three of them had agreed to meet wasn't exactly a secret location anyway.
Of course, if either Fugaku Uchiha or Hiashi Hyuga got wind of this and wanted to temporarily change the date or location for their own reasons, that would still work.
Hearing Heiyan's reply, Pakura finally exhaled in relief.
"So you didn't leave with the Sunagakure group just to apologize to me?"
Heiyan questioned in surprise.
"Well, partly because of that..."
Pakura blushed slightly before continuing eagerly, "Also, I really want to witness firsthand the match between the three great Leaf prodigies."
In her eyes, the battle among Heiyan, Hiashi Hyuga, and Fugaku Uchiha would certainly draw widespread attention. Missing it would be such a shame.
"I won't keep you from resting any longer. I'll go first."
After apologizing, Pakura politely took her leave and walked alone toward the alley's exit.
However, she soon discovered something awkward.
Her room at the Four Seasons Hotel had already been canceled when the Sunagakure delegation checked out. She had rushed directly to Heiyan's residence and waited until midnight. After finishing her apology, she searched the area but found every hostel and hotel completely full—there wasn't a single room left.
What rotten luck.
Wandering aimlessly, she unconsciously returned once again to the unnamed street where Heiyan lived.
She looked up toward a second-floor window. The light had gone out long ago, meaning its owner had clearly been asleep for some time. Even if Heiyan hadn't been sleeping, she wouldn't have felt comfortable disturbing him.
"Just make do for one night," Pakura sighed to herself.
So, with no other options, she picked a relatively clean patch nearby and settled in for the night.
Pakura wasn't some delicate damsel in distress. Raised in Sunagakure, she had overcome various harsh living conditions while constantly undertaking missions over the years.
Just think about how scorching hot deserts could be during the day, freezing cold at night, with sandstorms swirling everywhere. Compared to that, sleeping on the streets of Konoha was actually quite pleasant.
Pakura curled up on her side, careful not to let her bare back press against the rough gravel beneath her.
Just as she closed her eyes and was about to drift off to sleep,
"If you have nowhere to stay, I still have a guest room at my place." A familiar voice spoke beside her.
Opening her eyes in delight, Pakura saw Heiyan standing at the door, handing her a coat to put on so she wouldn't catch a chill.
"Come in."
Heiyan said softly before turning around and walking inside.
Even in his sleep, his sensor abilities kept part of his mind alert to nearby chakra.
Pakura was Sunagakure's prodigy, yet she was sleeping on Konoha's street—right outside his doorstep. If someone spotted this and word got out, especially with a few dramatic embellishments, who knows what kind of story would start spreading.
"Mm."
She hummed softly in response, her heart swelling with warmth. She put on the jacket Heiyan gave her and followed closely behind him like a shy newlywed bride.
They quickly ascended upstairs.
"Woah…"
Just like anyone seeing Heiyan's place for the first time, Pakura couldn't help gasping as she stepped into the living room.
She took off her shoes and rushed to the floor-to-ceiling windows on the north side of the room, where she enjoyed a panoramic view of Ichiraku Avenue. Looking further in the distance, the Hokage Face Rock and the Kage's office were also visible.
Then she darted to the southern balcony, letting the gentle summer evening breeze caress her face, watching the Konoha River flow silently under the night sky along Hot Spring Alley.
"The guest room is this way." Heiyan pointed toward a nearby room.
"Ah… sorry about that."
Pakura blushed, realizing how embarrassing her behavior had looked, and hurried into the guest room.
Soon after, the sound of water splashing came from the bathroom, mixed with Pakura softly humming a tune, clearly delighted.
What a natural—already acting right at home.
Shaking his head, Heiyan went to his bedroom and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, very early.
As dawn began to break, Heiyan woke up, grabbed something to eat, and headed straight for the training ground.
To his surprise, Pakura followed him there as well.
Just like Tsunade, she too was amazed when seeing Heiyan train using Multi-Shadow Clones. But soon, she noticed something even more astonishing.
Heiyan was trying to merge Lightning Release chakra with Water Release chakra to create a new technique.
"Are you attempting… to develop a new Kekkei Genkai?"
She asked, beginning to understand, her expression full of shock and disbelief.
"Precisely."
Heiyan didn't see any reason to hide it.
"You're incredible."
Awe filled Pakura's expression involuntarily as she murmured in admiration, "I always thought Kekkei Genkai were something you're born with, just like my Scorch Release."
"When you use your Scorch Release, what does it feel like?"
Prompted by curiosity, Heiyan instinctively asked. People like Pakura—who inherited their Kekkei Genkai from their parents and could use its techniques instinctively—were rare, so her insights would be invaluable to him.
However, immediately after asking, Heiyan realized he had crossed a line.
To her own surprise, Pakura didn't mind at all. Instead, she generously shared everything with him.
Her Scorch Release was formed by the fusion of Fire Release and Wind Release. These two types of chakra natures were actually both mutually restraining and interdependent.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
[Scorch Release: Three fireballs] danced up and down around Pakura. The power of wind and fire fused together in a stable form, their combined strength far exceeding that of pure Wind Release or Fire Release alone.
When Heiyan sought her expertise, she answered all his questions without reservation.
Heiyan gained a massive boost from their exchanges.
At first glance, Scorch Release and Storm Release seemed like completely different Kekkei Genkai, but in reality, both were the result of mixing two different natures of chakra. They had many similarities, making it possible to achieve mastery in one field through understanding of another.
With Pakura's help, Heiyan's progress in developing his Storm Release quickened even further.
He, as always, created nine Shadow Clones and devoted himself entirely to training. Before long, he entered a meditative state of intense focus, so absorbed that he lost all sense of time, training from dawn until dusk.
"That kind of discipline is seriously scary," murmured Pakura when she saw this.
She'd always thought herself pretty diligent when it came to training—but next to Heiyan, she suddenly felt downright lazy.
Inspired by Heiyan, she joined him in his practice.
So, over the following days, both of them spent every day from dawn till dusk at the training ground, discussing techniques, practicing together, and developing their respective Kekkei Genkai—bloodline limits unique to their chakra natures.
Meanwhile, events were beginning to unfold elsewhere…
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