The desert winds cut across the Jonin's face like blades. His lungs burned, every breath tasting of dust and panic. He had been running for hours, each step fueled not by discipline, but by sheer, primal fear. Behind his eyes, the memory replayed: a head tumbling across the cavern floor, the crimson glow of chains tearing through his comrades, and that boy—those eyes—Kaito.
They were supposed to be legends… no, nightmares from another time, the Jonin thought, legs trembling as he staggered over a dune. But I saw them. I saw them with my own eyes.
His sandals dragged through the shifting sand until, finally, the towering stone walls of Sunagakure rose before him. Lanterns burned faintly at the gates, and the guards stiffened as they saw a man stumble forward, bloodied and pale.
"Jōnin Kuroda?" one guard whispered, recognizing him. "What happened—?"
"Move aside!" Kuroda barked, voice hoarse. "I must see the Kazekage at once. It's… urgent."
The guards exchanged wary glances, but the look in the man's eyes silenced them. Fear that deep could only mean something extraordinary.
The Kazekage's Office
Two quick knocks echoed against the heavy wooden door.
"…Enter," came Rasa's calm but commanding voice from within.
The Jonin stepped inside, his uniform torn, his forehead protector smeared with dirt and dried blood. Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, lifted his gaze from a spread of mission reports. His golden hair shimmered faintly in the dim candlelight, and his sharp eyes immediately narrowed at the sight of his shaken subordinate.
"Well?" Rasa asked, voice flat but dangerous. "Speak."
Kuroda swallowed hard, his throat dry. "Kazekage-sama… they're alive."
Rasa's brow furrowed. "…Who?"
"The demon children. The Uzumaki. Kaito and Soka."
Silence fell, heavy and suffocating. The flames in the office seemed to flicker lower. Rasa leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled. His expression betrayed little, but inside, calculations began racing like wildfire.
"You're certain?"
"I saw them," Kuroda rasped. His hands trembled as he clutched his own knees. "We tracked residual chakra to a cave near the border of the Land of Fire. Inside… they slaughtered us. Two Jonin, three elite Chunin. I'm the only survivor."
He shuddered, the phantom sensation of Kaito's killing intent still clinging to his spine. "Chains of blood-red chakra… a storm of wind… He played with us, Kazekage-sama. He let me live. He wanted me to deliver the news."
The Kazekage's Decision
Rasa rose from his chair, his robes whispering against the stone floor. He walked slowly to the window, gazing out at the endless desert night. The moonlight gleamed across the iron sand gourd at his back.
"…So they survived even Sarutobi Hiruzen," Rasa murmured. "Children who should have died, walking curses given flesh."
He turned back, his eyes like molten gold.
"Then let it be known." His voice hardened, each word a decree of iron. "Spread the word across every border, every outpost, every spy network. The demon children live. Let the other villages taste this truth."
Kuroda blinked. "…You want the rumors to spread?"
"Yes," Rasa replied coldly. "Fear is a sharper weapon than silence. If the world believes those two walk among us again, they will act. They will prepare. And in that storm of fear… we will not stand alone."
Rumors Across the World
Days later, whispers bled from Sunagakure's borders like venom in water. Merchants carried them first, muttering in hushed tones at markets and roadside inns. Travelers repeated them at campfires. And soon, every village—great and small—was infected by the same chilling phrase:
"The demon children live."
In Konohagakure
At a crowded tea house near the academy, shinobi spoke in uneasy voices.
"They said Hiruzen himself fought them," one Chunin whispered, eyes darting. "And still they lived?"
"Impossible," another scoffed, though his voice quavered. "No child could survive a battle with the Professor, much less—"
"Then explain the bodies," the first cut in. "Suna shinobi torn apart, one survivor raving about chains of blood and storms of wind. I tell you, they're back."
In the Hokage's office, Sakumo Hatake stood silent, rereading the same intelligence report three times. The White Fang's hands clenched into fists.
If this is true… if they survived Hiruzen… then every shadow cast on Konoha grows longer.
In Kumogakure
The towering Third Raikage, A, listened to the messenger with a face carved from stone. His immense frame stood in the war council chamber, lightning crackling faintly around him with every exhale.
"Children who rival armies," he rumbled. "Chains that pierce through shinobi like paper… If such monsters draw breath, then Kumogakure will not cower."
But when the messenger left, the Raikage's gaze darkened. He thought of his own people, his son, the fragile balance of power.
If they grow unchecked, even I may not stop them.
In Iwagakure
Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage, shifted uncomfortably in his chair, old bones aching as he listened to the report.
"Hmph," he grunted, though his voice cracked slightly. "Children, they call them. But no child wields such power. If these rumors are true, then we face something beyond bloodlines—an abomination."
His hands trembled, though he quickly hid them in his robes. He remembered the days when Uzumaki seals had turned battlefields upside down. Now, new monsters bore that cursed name.
In Kirigakure
The Third Mizukage sat in the mist-shrouded council chamber, his face obscured but his voice sharp.
"Alive… after facing Hiruzen?" A faint hiss left his lips. "Then perhaps they are no mere humans at all. The Mist must tread carefully. Even demons can drown, but only if we are prepared."
In the Desert Once More
Back in Sunagakure, the streets buzzed with nervous talk. Mothers whispered warnings to their children. Shinobi sharpened blades late into the night, trying to quiet their dread.
Kuroda, the lone survivor, walked those streets like a ghost, eyes hollow. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw his comrades falling, one after another. He heard the sound of a neck snapping, the wet crunch of bones crushed by wind, the echo of laughter in the cave.
He let me live, Kuroda thought again, shivering under the desert sun. Not out of mercy. Out of cruelty.
A World on Edge
Though no formal words were spoken, though no scrolls were exchanged, an unspoken pact began to crystallize between the great nations.
Konoha, Sunagakure, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, Kirigakure—each had suffered from the shadows of the Uzumaki children. Each feared what their survival could mean.
And so, across the elemental nations, the same conclusion whispered through the halls of power:
They must be hunted. They must be erased.
And in their hidden cave, oblivious to the storm brewing outside, Kaito and Soka's training continued. Every chain, every jutsu, every breath was a step further toward the destiny the world now dreaded.
-------
I saw that most of the votes were for Kaito to be a villain and to explore the world or form his organization, so I'll do that. I'll see if he will form his organization or not depending on your votes.
If you review or give a Power Stone, I'll give you an extra chapter.
A Power Stone: an extra chapter.
A positive review: an extra chapter.
This would help me a lot and would also attract more people, so I'd make more chapters per day.