March 10th, Monday.
Yesterday was enrollment day for the Advanced Class.
After a full morning of live combat evaluations, four new students were accepted in the end:
Hyūga Hanabi, Sarutobi Konohamaru, Kazematsuri Moegi, and Ise Udon.
It wasn't many, but compared to previous years, it was already a lot.
The Advanced Class threshold was simply too high—only a handful of students could ever make it in.
Going an entire year without a single new admission wasn't unusual at all.
If Kitazawa didn't regularly "recruit" talented people from outside the village, the class would probably stay frozen at thirty students forever.
Mondays were theory lessons. Normally, Kitazawa wouldn't bother showing up—he'd stay home and train.
But since four freshmen joined this semester, he decided to drop by.
[Current Mission: A blood-boiling brotherly combo technique—teach Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke the Supreme Ultimate Rasengan.]
[Mission Reward: Lava Release.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
The moment Kitazawa arrived at the Ninja Academy, three lines of text appeared in front of him.
Right after that, he felt an intense chakra fluctuation.
He reflexively looked up—and saw the enormous Rasengan Naruto and Sasuke were holding up together on the field.
Blue and green chakra spiraled around each other, like an ouroboros, forming a Supreme Ultimate symbol.
Kitazawa gave a small nod.
Recently, Sasuke had been fighting Naruto every day. Over time, their coordination actually improved a lot.
That was probably what people meant by you don't really know someone until you've traded blows.
Kitazawa glanced once and didn't interfere.
After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen was right there—there was no way he'd let anything happen.
Kitazawa raised a hand.
He didn't know Lava Release techniques yet, but he could already draw on Lava Release chakra.
A molten, magma-like chakra surged into existence.
In the original story, Lava Release could broadly be split into two styles.
One was the magma-like form used by Rōshi and the Four-Tails.
The other was more like volcanic ash, used by Kurotsuchi and Toroi.
It was the same nature transformation expressed differently—but from what you could see, Rōshi's looked more destructive.
Especially since he could even enter a Lava Release chakra mode similar to Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
His whole body would become burning magma—both lethal and defensive.
In the original story, even Naruto's Rasengan couldn't injure it at all—Naruto only ended up scorching his own hand.
The only pity was: the system rewarded Lava Release, but not any corresponding Lava Release jutsu.
Kitazawa let out a soft, intrigued sound.
Rōshi—the Four-Tails jinchūriki—was an Iwagakure ninja, but he didn't get along with Ōnoki and left the village outright.
In the original story, he was defeated by Hoshigaki Kisame and Uchiha Itachi, had the Four-Tails extracted, and died.
Kitazawa could absolutely have Anbu search for him.
Once they found him, beat him up a little, and squeeze out a few Lava Release techniques from his mouth.
Kitazawa refocused. The Supreme Ultimate Rasengan had already been dispelled.
The Advanced Class students headed toward the classroom.
Seeing that, Kitazawa walked over to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Among the Advanced Class instructors, only the two of them—and Umino Iruka—had shown up, since it was Monday.
"Third Hokage-sama," Kitazawa greeted first.
"You came today too?" Hiruzen asked with a genial smile.
"Just taking a look," Kitazawa replied.
"I'm here with Konohamaru," Hiruzen nodded. "He's mischievous. I don't feel at ease otherwise."
"Konohamaru's fundamentals are solid," Kitazawa said casually. "He might make top ten in the Advanced Class someday."
"That'll only happen after Naruto and the others graduate," Hiruzen said. Even though it was his grandson, he wasn't about to show favoritism.
After all, Naruto and his group were terrifyingly gifted.
The two of them soon reached the classroom door, but neither stepped inside.
"This semester, our class will be welcoming four new classmates—let's give them a warm welcome!" Iruka led the applause.
Naruto and the others joined in.
Konohamaru, naturally fearless, raised a hand and waved like he belonged there.
"Next, introduce yourselves," Iruka said, stopping the clapping.
"I'm Sarutobi Konohamaru!" Konohamaru rushed forward first. "Naruto-nii is my idol, and my dream is to become Hokage!"
To the Advanced Class students, Konohamaru was already very familiar.
Between Kitazawa's birthday before, and last winter break, he'd basically half-joined ahead of time.
So his introduction didn't get much reaction.
"Konohamaru, pick a seat," Iruka said.
"Here!" Naruto sprang up immediately and shouted.
"Naruto-nii!" Konohamaru yelled back and ran over.
"My name is Hyūga Hanabi," Hanabi introduced herself. "I like training with my sister, I don't like celery, and I hope you'll take good care of me."
"Hinata, does your little sister have a bow?" Yamanaka Ino asked, turning to Hyūga Hinata.
Kiba and the others also looked curious.
After all, they'd personally experienced how terrifying "Byakugan + Bow" could be.
"No," Hinata shook her head.
"Thank goodness," Kiba breathed out instinctively.
"Kitazawa-sensei never plays favorites," Ino thought for a second. "I've got a feeling Hanabi will end up with a bow too."
Hinata froze for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
"So I can't protect my ranking anymore?" Kiba sighed.
"Hanabi's still new," Hinata comforted him. "She definitely can't beat you."
"And by the time she can beat you, you'll probably have graduated," Tenten laughed.
"What kind of comfort is that?" Kiba's mouth twitched.
"Hello, senpais," Hanabi said at that moment, stepping down from the platform and walking over to them.
"Hi there, Hanabi-chan," Ino said, reaching out to pat her head. "You're adorable."
"Thank you, Ino-senpai," Hanabi said, then sat beside Hinata.
"You two sisters really aren't alike," Sakura remarked, thinking back to how shy Hinata used to be.
Hinata talked more now, but she still leaned quiet.
Hanabi was different—much livelier.
After the four freshmen finished their introductions, the Advanced Class theory lesson officially began.
Of course, the newly joined students like Hanabi wouldn't understand most of it yet.
Iruka would provide extra tutoring for them separately.
"Looks like they're fitting in fine," Hiruzen said after watching for a bit, finally reassured.
As for the theory lesson, he'd personally keep an eye on Konohamaru and make sure he didn't cause trouble.
"With Konohamaru's personality, he'll adapt quickly," Kitazawa paused, then said, "Third Hokage-sama, introductions are over. I'll head out. See you tomorrow."
After speaking, he vanished on the spot.
"Flying Thunder God really is convenient," Hiruzen couldn't help but sigh.
Even though he was called the Professor and was said to have mastered all of Konoha's jutsu, he didn't know Flying Thunder God.
At the Anbu base entrance, Kitazawa appeared out of thin air and walked inside.
He quickly found Haru and told her to keep an eye out for Rōshi from Iwagakure.
Whether they could find him or not, he didn't know.
Rōshi was the Four-Tails jinchūriki—powerful.
Ordinary Anbu wouldn't find him easily unless they sent Uchiha Itachi, but Itachi still had the task of monitoring Orochimaru.
Fortunately, Kitazawa wasn't in a rush for Lava Release.
No matter what, it couldn't compare to Wood Release or Sage Mode.
His top priority was still learning Sage Mode first.
After finishing with Haru, Kitazawa went next door to his own office.
He opened the door and stepped in.
"Kitazawa," Konan immediately came to him.
He leaned in and gave her a brief kiss, then walked to the desk.
Konan blinked, then unconsciously touched the corner of her lips—feeling slightly unsatisfied.
Kitazawa casually picked up the documents on the desk.
The first report was about the war between Amegakure and Sunagakure.
No major changes—still a stalemate.
He put it down and opened the second.
When he reached the last file, his gaze sharpened.
This intel came from Hoshigakure.
It recorded that the Third Hoshikage had "unfortunately fallen," and Akahoshi had become the acting Hoshikage.
Under normal circumstances, there'd be nothing strange about it—just a leadership change.
But Kitazawa knew the original plot and understood there was something hidden inside.
Hoshigakure was a small village in the Land of Bears.
One day, a meteorite carrying a special energy fell from the sky.
A ninja discovered it could be used for cultivation, and the village was built around the spot.
Their secret art, developed through the meteorite, was called the Mysterious Peacock Method.
The Mysterious Peacock Method was powerful—but it had a side effect.
More precisely, the meteorite had a side effect: radiation.
Training with its energy over time would eventually cause the body to rupture and die.
The Third Hoshikage discovered the danger and decided the village should stop using it.
But Akahoshi believed that without the meteorite, Hoshigakure had no future and could never grow strong.
So he killed the Third Hoshikage and aggressively pushed the Mysterious Peacock Method throughout the village.
Those who followed the Third—Natsuhi and Hotarubi—stole the meteorite and became missing-nin.
Akahoshi then used their child as leverage and regained control over the Mysterious Peacock Method.
In the end, he was defeated by Naruto and the others.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
He was quite interested in that meteorite.
Special energy that could react with chakra in the shinobi world was very likely tied to the Ōtsutsuki clan.
He nodded, deciding to make Akahoshi the target for this semester's midterm practical mission.
It also happened that he planned to travel across the shinobi world anyway.
The reason was simple.
He wanted to leave Flying Thunder God marks in every country.
With his current chakra reserves, crossing the entire world in one leap was impossible—but impossible now didn't mean impossible forever.
And Flying Thunder God marks were permanent.
He could take advantage of missions to run a full loop across the world.
[Current Mission: Travel the shinobi world and leave Flying Thunder God marks in every country.]
[Mission Reward: Spiralling Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa froze.
This could trigger a system mission too?
It was unexpected, but at least the reward was decent.
Just from the name, you could tell whose technique it was: Namikaze Minato.
In simple terms: Flying Thunder God + a flashbang.
A blinding, golden flashbang.
That was also one of the reasons Minato was called the Yellow Flash.
Kitazawa set the documents down, stood up, and prepared to leave.
After taking two steps, he turned and met Konan's eyes.
He smiled and beckoned to her.
Konan walked over immediately.
Kitazawa pulled her close, shared a more lingering moment with her, then finally turned and left.
Konan breathed lightly, watching him with a dazed look.
After leaving the Anbu base, Kitazawa headed to Shikkotsu Forest to continue training Sage Mode.
The next day, Tuesday.
The first practical class of the new semester.
Kitazawa didn't pay much attention to the newly enrolled Hanabi, Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon.
Some of them had a bit of foundation, but overall they were still beginners at the start of the shinobi path.
And beginners needed to master the basics first: the three academy techniques and Konoha-style taijutsu fundamentals.
Iruka could handle that.
After they learned the basics, Kitazawa would create specialized training plans based on each of them.
He came today to teach Haku and Shion.
Haku had learned Water Release: Heavenly Weep. Now Kitazawa could teach him his fifth Water Release technique—Water Release: Hard Whirlpool Water Blade.
Once Haku learned it, the related system mission could be completed.
As for Shion, she could pause sealing arts for now and start learning medical ninjutsu instead.
That would make three medical ninjutsu students in the Advanced Class: Sakura, Shion, and Karin.
Kitazawa planned to have them study for a year first, then teach them monstrous strength next year so they could protect themselves.
After all, next year would be the final year.
After teaching Haku and Shion, Kitazawa went straight back to Shikkotsu Forest.
Time flowed quietly in training.
April 15th arrived, bringing the first monthly exam of the semester—effectively the term exam.
Because it was theory-based, Kitazawa didn't go to the Academy. Instead, he went to the Hokage's office.
"Where are you planning to go this time?" Tsunade asked, looking up when she saw him.
"How did you know what I was about to ask?" Kitazawa walked up, his gaze dropping briefly to her lips.
"I'm the Academy principal, for one," Tsunade said, eyes glinting as she smiled. "Besides—do you really think I don't know you?"
She tugged lightly at her collar in a teasing gesture.
Kitazawa's composure wavered for a beat, then he forced himself to focus.
"Business," Tsunade said, setting the file down.
"This time, the Land of Bears—Hoshigakure," Kitazawa answered.
"The one with the special meteorite?" Tsunade recalled.
"Yeah." Kitazawa nodded. "They recently installed an acting Hoshikage—Akahoshi."
"So Akahoshi is suspicious?" Tsunade leaned back in her chair.
"Mm." Kitazawa's eyelid twitched. He bent forward and briefly rested against her—then pulled back, clearing his throat and continuing.
He explained how Akahoshi murdered the Third Hoshikage.
"So that's what happened…" Tsunade was surprised.
She hadn't expected the meteorite's side effects to be so severe that it caused a schism and rebellion.
"What's your plan?" Tsunade sat up and adjusted her collar, her demeanor instantly turning formal again—an almost perfect contrast to the teasing moments before.
Kitazawa's heart stirred, but he didn't let it derail him.
"Help Natsuhi become the Fourth Hoshikage, and get Hoshigakure allied with Konoha," Kitazawa said, then added, "And if possible, bring the meteorite back for research."
"That does sound like you," Tsunade laughed.
Kitazawa had done plenty of similar missions before.
Every time he finished, Konoha gained another ally.
"Want to come with me?" Kitazawa blinked.
"The Land of Bears is far. Round trip takes six days, and with mission time, it's easily a week," Tsunade said, tempted for a split second—but her reason won. "I'm Hokage. I can't be away that long."
"Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa said with a grin, "I learned Flying Thunder God: Guided Thunder."
Tsunade's eyes lit up.
Guided Thunder could bring others along in the teleport.
In theory, a seven-day mission could be cut down dramatically.
And with the justification of securing an alliance, Shizune and the Hokage's staff wouldn't stop her.
"Then I'll go with you," Tsunade said, smiling.
Field missions were far less exhausting than office work.
And along the way, she could enjoy time alone with Kitazawa.
Even though they lived together now, it wasn't just the two of them—Kurenai and others were there too.
At night, Kitazawa prioritized Kurenai first and only came to Tsunade later.
For Tsunade—deep in the "honeymoon phase"—waiting felt like torture.
"Alright," Kitazawa nodded. "Tomorrow at nine, I'll come get you."
"I heard from Katsuyu," Tsunade said suddenly, "you've already managed to draw natural energy into your body?"
"I have," Kitazawa said with a light chuckle. "I was going to tell you after I fully mastered Sage Mode."
"So you wanted to surprise me?" Tsunade smiled. "Doesn't matter. I'm just as surprised now."
"But I'm still far from mastering it," Kitazawa said, tone shifting.
"Even getting that far is impressive," Tsunade said dismissively. "Even an incomplete Sage Mode would make your strength jump."
By "incomplete," she meant Jiraiya's—something that required Fukasaku and Shima's support to maintain.
"That's true," Kitazawa nodded.
"See you tonight," Tsunade said, her eyes turning playful again.
Kitazawa resisted the urge to push the moment further, and vanished.
Sunset came quickly.
Kitazawa ended his Sage Mode training and returned from Shikkotsu Forest to Konoha.
After thinking for a moment, he went straight to the Anbu base.
"Konan—did Iruka come by?" he asked as he entered.
"Two hours ago," Konan said, handing him a scroll. "This is for you."
Kitazawa opened it.
It was the theory exam rankings.
The top ranks were more or less unchanged, but the lower ranks were fiercely contested—because of the four freshmen.
Even so, Rock Lee still held firm at absolute last place.
Among the freshmen, Hanabi ranked the highest—she nearly broke into the top thirty.
For someone who'd only been training for a month, that was genuinely impressive.
Kitazawa thought about the Demon-Slaying Bow he planned to prepare for her.
But there was no need to give it yet.
He'd wait until Hanabi learned Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms.
For an archer, close-range combat mattered too.
"Konan, I'm going out on a mission tomorrow—about a week," Kitazawa said, rolling up the scroll and smiling at her. "You don't need to come with me. You can take the week for yourself."
"Thanks," Konan replied, understanding the implication.
A week off—enough time to return to Amegakure and check in with the Akatsuki.
"See you next week," Kitazawa said, leaving the office.
The next day, 9:00 a.m.
Kitazawa stood in front of the Advanced Class and announced the squads.
This time there were seven teams—since Yamato, Chino, Hotaru, and others had joined.
"I'll lead Team Seven," Kitazawa said. "Members: Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, and Shion."
After a pause, he continued, "Squads are set. If your name was called, go find your squad leader."
"Kitazawa-sensei." Hinata jogged up to him.
She looked up, eyes bright, clearly happy.
"Let's go," Kitazawa said, patting her head.
The practical exam that followed was Iruka's responsibility.
He would handle the remaining students' individual matches and rank them.
Kitazawa was only mildly curious how the four freshmen would perform.
Most likely, it wouldn't be great.
Even though the top twenty-one didn't participate, the remaining students were still nothing like ordinary academy trainees.
After all, they were being taught by seven jōnin.
Anyone with even a little talent wouldn't be stuck with only the three basic techniques.
Most of them had learned one or two elemental jutsu.
"Our mission target is Hoshigakure's acting leader, Akahoshi," Kitazawa said as they walked. "He seized power by murdering the Third Hoshikage. Our job is to defeat him and choose a new leader."
"Kitazawa-sensei," Shion asked curiously, "why is Hoshigakure's leader called 'Hoshikage'?"
Normally, only the Five Great Villages' leaders were recognized as "Kage."
Other villages—even Amegakure—used "leader" instead.
"That's called not knowing your place," Kitazawa said with a faint smile.
"I see," Shion nodded.
"Hoshikage" was basically just Hoshigakure's self-appointed title—unrecognized by the shinobi world.
And the Great Villages wouldn't bother wasting effort fighting them over a name.
"How strong is he?" Sasuke asked, the question he cared about most.
He'd been getting thrashed by Naruto lately and badly needed somewhere to vent. Akahoshi sounded perfect.
"Jōnin level," Kitazawa said. "If he uses the meteorite, he can become even stronger."
"A meteorite?" Sasuke frowned.
Kitazawa explained how Hoshigakure was founded.
"Sounds incredible," Sasuke said, anticipation rising. "Hope I get to see it."
"Kitazawa-sensei," Hinata asked after glancing around, "do we have an extra teammate this time?"
She'd noticed they weren't heading out of the village yet.
"We do," Kitazawa smiled. "My teacher—Tsunade."
"The Hokage?" Shion blurted, shocked.
Sasuke and Hinata were surprised too, but reacted more calmly.
A moment later, Kitazawa spotted Tsunade waiting at the Hokage Tower entrance.
As always, she wore the green haori with the character for "gamble" on the back.
"Hokage-sama," Sasuke and the others greeted in unison.
"Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa said as he approached. "We'll travel to Hoshigakure the normal way first. Once the mission's done, we'll use Flying Thunder God to return to Konoha."
"Alright," Tsunade nodded. "Let's go."
The five of them left Konoha and headed toward Hoshigakure.
The Land of Bears was far from the Land of Fire—located between the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind, bordering the Land of Demons where Shion served as Priestess.
With normal shinobi travel, it would take about three days.
That night, they reached the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers.
"We'll rest here for the night, then move on," Kitazawa said, forming seals and using Wood Release: Four-Pillar House.
A complex wooden home rose from the ground.
"Finally, some rest," Tsunade said, pushing the door open and walking into the living room.
"You three take a break too," Kitazawa said to Sasuke and the others. "I'll cook."
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei," Sasuke and Shion replied, heading inside.
Hinata stayed where she was.
She gripped the edge of her clothes, nervous.
"Hinata—did you need something else?" Kitazawa asked.
"Um… I… I can cook," Hinata said softly, head lowered.
"Sure," Kitazawa thought for a moment and didn't refuse. "Make one dish you're confident in."
"Okay!" Hinata's eyes lit up and she nodded hard.
"I didn't pack an apron for you—just make do," Kitazawa said, handing her a white apron.
Hinata took it, folded it neatly, and tied it on.
It didn't fit perfectly, but it did the job.
"What do you want to make?" Kitazawa asked, pinching her cheek lightly.
"Tempura," Hinata said after hesitating for two seconds.
She knew more than just tempura, but she worried the other dishes might go wrong.
Tempura was fried—no matter how you did it, it usually wouldn't taste terrible.
"Alright," Kitazawa said, pulling out a summoning storage scroll.
Whenever he went on missions, he prepared lots of ingredients.
He used to worry about spoilage, but ever since he gained Ice Release, it stopped being a problem.
He packed plenty of ice inside the storage scroll.
And to keep it from melting, he checked occasionally—if it started to melt, he refroze it with Ice Release.
Simple and convenient.
Time passed.
Soon, four dishes and a soup were on the table.
"This one's Hinata's," Kitazawa said with a smile. "Try it."
Hinata tightened her grip on her chopsticks without realizing.
"Not bad," Tsunade said, chewing a fried shrimp before giving her verdict.
"It's really good!" Shion praised.
Sasuke didn't speak, only nodded.
Hinata finally let out a breath.
After dinner, since they still had time, the three students went back to training.
Hinata practiced her archery technique, Shion studied medical ninjutsu, and Sasuke had no new training assigned.
Without Naruto there, he couldn't do sparring practice.
After thinking it over, he decided to reinforce his Hatake sword style instead.
Kitazawa watched for a bit, then realized Tsunade was nowhere to be seen.
He turned and went into the living room.
No one.
So he went upstairs to Tsunade's room.
He opened the door and found her resting comfortably, clearly relaxed.
"How long will they train?" Tsunade asked, looking at him, lips curved in amusement.
"Nine p.m.," Kitazawa said with a smile. "Two more hours."
"Then we've got plenty of time," Tsunade said, standing up.
Kitazawa closed the door behind him and set a privacy barrier.
Time passed quietly.
Later, he returned downstairs.
"Kitazawa-sensei," Sasuke, Hinata, and Shion said, stopping their training.
"Almost time," Kitazawa said. "Get to your rooms and rest well. We travel again tomorrow."
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei," they answered, filing inside.
Kitazawa closed the door—and returned upstairs.
A sleepless night ended.
Morning arrived.
"Is it light out?" Tsunade asked, leaning against Kitazawa, looking almost reluctant to move.
"Yeah," Kitazawa nodded, placing a hand on her forehead.
Chakra flowed in, easing the fatigue in her body.
"Thanks," Tsunade said, kissing him and lingering for a moment.
"We can't afford to delay. Let's move," she said, finally getting up.
"Wait," Kitazawa stopped her from dressing.
He raised a hand, changed his chakra nature, and water formed out of thin air.
With careful control, he washed both of them quickly.
"Your Water Release control is impressive," Tsunade laughed. "Your applications are… creative."
"If chakra is only used for fighting, that's a waste," Kitazawa said, shaking his head.
They got dressed and went downstairs.
Sasuke, Hinata, and Shion were already waiting in the living room.
After breakfast, they continued on.
They crossed the Land of Rivers and entered the Land of Wind.
By nightfall, they barely reached the northern edge of the Land of Wind.
After resting one night, they formally entered the Land of Bears.
"Are we going straight to Hoshigakure?" Tsunade asked Kitazawa.
Even though she was Hokage and her command should've been final, she'd been well-rested (and well-fed) these past two days and didn't feel like thinking too hard.
"First, we find Natsuhi and Hotarubi," Kitazawa replied. "Based on intel, after leaving Hoshigakure, they've been living at the bottom of a cliff nearby."
(That "intel" was really his knowledge of the original plot.)
The only question was whether Hotarubi was still alive.
In the original story's timeline, he'd already died from the Mysterious Peacock Method's side effects.
Natsuhi was his wife—and even more talented than he was.
She was Hoshigakure's strongest shinobi, stronger than Acting Hoshikage Akahoshi by a wide margin.
In the original story, Akahoshi only managed to fight evenly because the meteorite boosted him massively.
"Hinata," Kitazawa said, patting her head, "the search is yours."
Even though Kitazawa also had the Byakugan, this was a practical exam mission—its main purpose was to train the students.
"Got it!" Hinata answered, full of determination.
Kitazawa didn't know their exact location, but knowing they were near Hoshigakure was enough.
The group moved toward Hoshigakure.
Hinata activated the Byakugan to search.
Sasuke and Shion flanked the formation, keeping watch.
With Kitazawa and Tsunade present, nothing could really go wrong—but discipline was discipline.
"I found them!" Hinata suddenly perked up. "Northeast—there's a very strong shinobi at the bottom of a cliff!"
"Only one?" Shion asked, confused. "Didn't you say there were two?"
"Maybe the other one is out," Hinata guessed.
"Hinata, lead the way," Kitazawa ordered.
"Yes," Hinata said, moving to the front.
Under her lead, they soon reached a cliff edge.
Kitazawa looked down. It wasn't a clear drop—mist churned below, obscuring everything.
"There's heavy poison in that mist," Tsunade said after a quick scan.
"If we want to go down, we either disperse it or prepare antidotes," Sasuke frowned.
If Naruto were here, it'd be easy, but Sasuke didn't have Wind Release.
"I'll handle the antidote," Tsunade said, smiling slightly.
She'd been taking it easy for two days—if she didn't work now, she really would be coasting the whole mission.
"If Tsunade-sensei is handling it, there's no problem," Kitazawa nodded, praising her.
Shion watched Tsunade with curiosity.
She'd only just begun learning medical ninjutsu, but even back in the Land of Demons she'd heard Tsunade's name.
"As a good medical ninja, detox is essential," Tsunade told Shion. "But since you're just starting, you can't learn antidotes yet."
She extended a hand.
Chakra flowed from her palm, wrapping a small portion of the toxic mist.
Not long after, she opened her storage scroll and took out various bottles and containers.
Detox medicine couldn't be made with chakra alone—you needed the right herbs.
"All set. Drink this," Tsunade said ten minutes later, handing each of them a bottle.
"So it really is nasty," Kitazawa commented, judging by how long it took.
"I had enough time, so I made a proper matching antidote," Tsunade explained. "In battle, I'd make a short-acting emergency antidote first."
That explanation wasn't really for Kitazawa.
Shion nodded instinctively, committing it to memory.
"We go down," Tsunade said after drinking her antidote, stepping toward the edge.
"Wait," Kitazawa caught her wrist. "If we jump straight down, we could hit traps—or Natsuhi might ambush us."
He formed hand seals.
A seed dropped onto the ground, took root, and sprouted.
In an instant, thick vines spread down the cliff.
The vines branched; the branches intertwined, becoming a natural wooden ladder.
"So cool!" Shion blurted out.
She'd seen plenty of jutsu, but nothing as versatile as Wood Release.
"I'm going first," Tsunade said, starting down.
"You three go in the middle," Kitazawa instructed. "Shion first, then Hinata, then Sasuke."
They followed immediately.
Kitazawa took the rear.
Once they entered the mist, he caught the sharp, irritating odor.
But because they'd taken the antidote, it had no effect.
Halfway down, a sudden howl of wind cut through the air.
A massive hawk burst from the poisonous mist.
It wasn't a real hawk—it was formed from a strange energy.
"Yin Release: Rasengan!" Sasuke activated his three-tomoe Sharingan instantly.
He leapt up, slammed the spiraling chakra into the hawk—
Boom!
Two shockwaves burst outward, blasting the poison mist aside.
A figure appeared in the distance.
It was Natsuhi—a young adult kunoichi.
Right now, surprise was written across her face.
Her Mysterious Peacock Method had been broken by someone so young?
But she didn't have time to dwell on it.
Because Sasuke was already charging at her.
Brilliant lightning slanted down.
"Three-tomoe Sharingan?" Natsuhi's eyes locked onto Sasuke's red gaze.
"Mysterious Peacock Method: Wings!"
A pair of wings grew from her back as she dodged the lightning in a hurry.
"Stop!" Natsuhi shouted.
She'd assumed Kitazawa's group were Akahoshi's people—but only Konoha's Uchiha clan had a three-tomoe Sharingan.
~~~
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