Sunagakure's camp. All the high-ranking officers had gathered inside Chiyo's earthen hut.
A Sunagakure Anbu knelt on one knee before Rasa.
Rasa spoke expressionlessly:
"So, you're saying that brat has already escaped to Konoha?"
The Sunagakure Anbu nodded.
"Yūhi Shinku blocked me. Otherwise, I definitely would have brought him back."
"Stop making excuses. That brat's bloodline is troublesome. Without a large-scale sealing technique, he can't be subdued." Rasa waved his hand dismissively.
Chiyo held a test tube mixed with red and green poisons. Her expression remained calm, as if last night's chaos didn't concern her in the slightest.
"That brat hid deep. He had a secret art of summoning explosive tags, yet he kept it hidden all this time—only erupting suddenly last night," Ebizō analyzed quietly.
Rasa reasoned:
"Could it be that Konoha deliberately let him be captured by us, then used him to launch a surprise attack on our camp?"
Ebizō shook his head.
"No. If it were truly Konoha's plan, the damage would not be this small."
Chiyo chuckled.
"We'll meet him again sooner or later. When the time comes, we'll capture him then."
Ebizō nodded.
"True! This time, we must prepare a sealing technique."
"Then use my Magnet Release! A sealing jutsu reinforced with gold sand can capture him in an instant."
"Good! We can also try controlling him with genjutsu. Though Sunagakure has few genjutsu users, we are not without them."
"Mm!"
...
Ninja Academy.
In Class 3-A, the so-called "Big Three" sat at the back, laughing and boasting.
Might Guy braced one hand on his desk, doing endless push-ups.
"We don't need to bother with Guy. He's bound to stay single forever!"
Kairen and Obito had their arms slung around each other, endlessly swapping techniques on how to chase girls.
Kairen said:
"Obito, your method won't work. Rin doesn't care about that. You should dress like Kakashi—cooler, handsomer, preferably covering your face!"
Obito pouted.
"That annoying Kakashi? No way I'm copying his style! I'll win Rin with my true feelings."
"Naïve! Who believes in true feelings these days?"
Obito said:
"Don't talk about me. What about you? Kurenai keeps ignoring you—how are you going to win her heart?"
Kairen smirked slightly.
"Of course with a love letter! I've studied countless romance guides and worked hard for days writing this one. I don't believe Kurenai won't be moved."
"A love letter? I didn't expect that move. I'll have to try it too!"
Suddenly, a paper ball flew from the front row and smacked Kairen on the head.
"Kairen!"
Yūhi Kurenai stormed over furiously, pointing at Kairen as she shouted:
"Stop harassing me, or I'll tell my father!"
Kairen gazed at her with deep affection.
"Kurenai, my feelings for you are true! Look at this love letter I wrote: Ah… the evening crimson clouds, I am like the drifting clouds at the horizon, endlessly chasing you…"
Kurenai slapped him hard across the face, instantly snapping Kairen awake.
He opened his eyes wide and realized—that was from his predecessor's past memories.
Just like Obito, this guy had only been five or six years old. Not even grown up yet, already chasing after girls in class.
"Doctor… come quickly!"
"Right!"
...
Kairen glanced around. He was inside a dark green tent, rows of white beds filling the space, the air thick with the smell of medicines.
This was the temporary hospital of Konoha's camp.
He observed the medical-nin moving back and forth, and the many shinobi completely wrapped in bandages.
About a hundred people were gathered here, noisy and restless.
Kairen lowered his head and noticed his torso covered in bandages, his clothes replaced with a patient's trousers.
"Kairen, you're awake!"
Shizune, dressed in black, walked over carrying a medical kit.
Kairen greeted her.
"Shizune!"
They had once been classmates, so naturally they recognized each other.
Shizune set her medical kit on Kairen's bed and began unwrapping his bandages, revealing long, crisscrossing wounds.
With a trace of pity, Shizune asked:
"You're so badly injured… how did you even survive?"
Kairen didn't answer. He let her treat his wounds silently.
The pain was intense. Right now, he really wanted to slit his throat with a blade. But with so many people around, such a shocking act would only terrify Shizune.
While applying medicine, Shizune explained:
"It was Kurenai's father who saved you. You were on the brink of death, but thanks to the medical-nin's timely efforts, you managed to survive."
"Then I truly owe that medical-nin my thanks."
Shizune smiled faintly.
"I heard your entire squad perished. Even our classmates thought you had died. None of us expected you to make it back alive."
"By the way, how did you survive?"
Kairen froze. Konoha still didn't know he had been captured. As a mere civilian genin, his value was almost nonexistent.
Suddenly, a figure cloaked in black, wearing an Anbu mask, appeared before Kairen.
Konoha Anbu!
The Anbu's voice was cold.
"Kairen, I need to know where you've been for the past month. Come with me."
Shizune finished applying the medicine, then stood in front of Kairen.
"He's still injured—he can't just be moved around!"
The Anbu ignored her. Grabbing Kairen's shoulder, he performed a Body Flicker and took him away instantly.
"Kairen—!"
Inside a green tent, the Anbu placed the heavily bandaged Kairen onto a chair, interrogating him as if he were a criminal.
Kairen told him the story: he had been captured by Sunagakure and imprisoned, then last night he heard the chaos in their camp and used the chance to escape.
The Anbu clearly didn't believe it. A genin couldn't possibly escape Sunagakure's heavily guarded camp.
Moreover, a genin wouldn't warrant pursuit by Sunagakure's Anbu.
The Anbu immediately cast genjutsu.
"Let's see what you're really hiding."
A surge of illusionary power invaded Kairen's mind. At once, the Infinite Resurrection System issued an alert.
"Warning!"
"Warning!"
"Unknown energy invading host's mind. Should host activate brain self-defense system?"
So the Infinite Resurrection System came with mental defenses. That made sense—it was, after all, hidden within his mind.
"Yes!"
Kairen put on an act, pretending to be caught by the genjutsu.
Seeing his vacant gaze, the Anbu nodded. Even jōnin couldn't break free of his illusions immediately.
The Anbu began interrogating.
"Where have you been this past month?"
"I was captured by Sunagakure and imprisoned in their dungeon."
"Did Sunagakure interrogate you?"
"They did, but I had no valuable information. They deemed me useless and ignored me."
The Anbu nodded. He had already looked into Kairen—just an ordinary civilian-born genin with no special skills. Such a person couldn't possibly carry important intel.
"Then what about last night? There were explosions of explosive tags in Sunagakure's camp—a large number of them."
Last night's disturbance in Sunagakure had naturally been noticed by Konoha's intelligence unit. But they had yet to figure out who was responsible for the attack.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo