Inside the wooden hut, the lamplight was dim.
Raindrops pattered against the roof like an endless whisper.
Beyond the wooden window, curtains of rain intertwined with the wind, occasional flashes of lightning illuminating the silhouettes of the figures inside.
Jiraiya sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, resting his mind.
The air in the room was so still that only the sound of falling rain and the occasional crackle of firewood could be heard.
Until the door was gently pushed open, and three familiar figures entered.
He slightly opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the three of them.
In that instant, he keenly sensed something different.
Although Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato had only been gone for a short while, Jiraiya felt a subtle change in them.
What caught his attention even more were the objects each of them held in their hands.
"This is...?"
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and slowly stood up.
The three exchanged glances, and finally, Yahiko spoke first: "We found a small Breeding House shop in the third civilian slum. The owner there gave us these."
He raised his hand, revealing the egg still faintly glowing with red patterns.
"Given for free?"
Jiraiya frowned, his tone carrying a hint of caution.
Yahiko nodded, his expression candid: "He said they were Ninja Beast Eggs and told us to take them back to hatch."
"Ninja Beast Eggs?" Jiraiya repeated softly, looking down.
He walked to the table and carefully examined the three eggs, each with a distinct appearance.
One bore fine fiery patterns and was slightly warm;
One shimmered with a pale blue glow, as if water rippled within;
The last was enveloped in a faint green mist, breathing like a living thing.
These were no ordinary objects.
He reached out his hand and immediately sensed a faint, flowing, and stable Chakra, devoid of any malice.
Chakra... and it wasn't chaotic but felt remarkably natural and peaceful.
Chakra without malice—this was Jiraiya's criterion for judgment.
Jiraiya murmured to himself, pondering inwardly.
Although the origin of these three eggs was unclear, they seemed to pose no danger.
He looked at the three: "Do you remember what the shop owner looked like?"
"Yes," Konan replied softly, "a boy wearing glasses, about our age."
"A young boy..." Jiraiya stroked his chin, his gaze deepening.
In the end, he simply shook his head: "Since the Chakra is stable, keep them for now. But don't trust outsiders lightly. If you encounter that person again, remember to let me know."
"Understood."
The atmosphere returned to calm.
Jiraiya told them to rest, while he sat leaning against the wall, lost in thought.
The night grew deeper, the rain continuing unabated.
The three returned to their respective tatami mats.
Before lying down, Konan saw Nagato sitting quietly by the bed, still holding the green Ninja Beast Egg in his arms.
A soft green light seeped through his fingers, casting a hazy glow on his face.
"You... are you going to sleep holding it?"
Konan couldn't help but ask, a hint of resignation in her tone.
Nagato looked up, his expression earnest to the point of awkwardness: "It's moving."
"Moving?" Konan blinked and sat up.
Nagato lowered his head slightly, the egg in his palm trembling gently, accompanied by a faint, thread-like pulse of life.
Its rhythm strangely synchronized with his heartbeat.
"Look," he whispered.
Konan approached and saw the emerald glow seemed to respond to Nagato's breath, brightening and dimming in sync with his breathing rhythm.
At that moment, the air stood still.
The sounds of rain and wind faded into the distance, leaving only the rhythmic pulse from the egg, like an unborn heart.
"How strange..." Konan whispered, "It seems... to be responding to you."
Nagato didn't answer, merely stroking the egg's surface gently with his hand, a slight curve forming at the corner of his mouth.
A faint ripple flashed through his pupils - the light of the Rinnegan.
He could sense a gentle yet powerful consciousness within the egg, as if softly calling to him, attempting to intertwine with his soul.
Konan watched him, words caught in her throat.
Finally, she just sighed and lay back down: "Don't get too absorbed. We have training tomorrow."
"Hmm." Nagato responded, still holding the egg close to his chest.
The firelight gradually dimmed, and the sound of rain enveloped everything once more.
In the boundless night, the green light slowly contracted, eventually transforming into tiny starlight that merged into Nagato's chest.
Yet Nagato had already fallen into deep sleep.
The egg against his chest, however, trembled slightly in the darkness.
At Shiroishi's place, the silence of the rainy night remained unbroken.
Outside, water poured from the eaves, winding down stone steps before converging into the small ditch at the street corner.
The air was heavy with the scent of damp cold and earth.
Inside, one lamp remained lit.
Shiroishi sat on the wooden chair behind the counter, complex light patterns flickering across his glasses.
He lifted his head and lightly touched his frames.
Immediately, a virtual interface appeared before his vision - the energy monitoring chart of the World Tree System.
Countless tiny light points flowed through the chart, weaving into threads connecting souls and Chakra.
At this moment, the three newly activated light threads shone particularly bright.
[Connected Hosts: Yahiko/Konan/Nagato]
[Compatibility Changing!]
The light points flickered, pulsing like heartbeats.
Then, new data continuously refreshed.
[Compatibility Rate: 65%...78%...92%...]
Shiroishi adjusted his glasses, his expression showing rare emotion.
The three's compatibility surge speed far exceeded any previous test subjects.
"Just as expected..."
He murmured softly, his voice drowned by the rain.
He extended a finger, lightly tracing through the air to isolate the trio's data.
"From the conclusion, ninjas are indeed more likely to hatch high-level life forms than ordinary people. Chakra... the resonance mechanism with the soul perfectly matches the Pokémon Gene structure."
His tone remained calm, yet couldn't conceal the surprise in his heart.
Then his gaze turned solemn.
"However."
Shiroishi looked up, gazing at the endless rain outside the window.
The lamplight reflected in his eyes, fracturing into fragmented glimmers.
There were thousands of Pokémon types. To unlock them all required sufficient ninja participation.
And each ninja's Chakra attributes, mental will, even emotional structures differed...
More diverse samples were needed.
He leaned back in his chair with a soft sigh.
The current Breeding House scale was too small, needed gradual expansion...
Outside, thunder rumbled across the sky, as if responding to his thoughts.
The next morning, the rain still hadn't stopped.
Faint light filtered through the thin mist into the room. Konan rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up from the tatami.
She was about to yawn when a faint glimmer caught her eye.
Nagato sat by the bedside, cradling the green Ninja Beast Egg in his arms.
The egg's surface now emitted a soft, gentle radiance, like the first light of dawn, shimmering quietly in the dim room.
"Konan."
Nagato's voice trembled slightly, his eyes sparkling with irrepressible excitement.
Konan approached, her eyes widening.
The patterns on the egg were gradually cracking, pale green light spilling through the fissures—warm yet dazzling.
"It's... hatching!"
With a faint crack, the fractures spread, and tiny fragments crumbled away.
The next moment, the shell shattered completely, and the newborn life within tumbled into his palm.
Just then, Jiraiya's door swung open.
"What's going on?"
He took a few steps closer, his gaze sweeping over Nagato before freezing in astonishment.
"Is this... what hatched from that egg?"
Jiraiya asked in a low voice.
Nagato nodded, his eyes filled with an indescribable emotion.
Meanwhile, in Shiroishi's Breeding House, a new prompt flashed across the lens interface.
[First Stage Incubation Complete]
[Host Compatibility Successful: Nagato]
[World Tree Energy Increased: +0.3%]