In Naruto: Reborn With Talent

by Little Merger

A soul was transmigrated into Narutoverse but was refused to be given any sort of insta-OP power, instead, he could choose from three talents. Follow him and his loved ones on their journey to become strong as they pave their own path through the battle-filled world of Naruto. Will they be villains? For some, surely. Will they be heroes? For others, maybe. But anything they do is d

3. 65

In Naruto: Reborn With Talent #Chapter 65 - Ch65. Gift for Tsunade - Read In Naruto: Reborn With Talent Chapter 65 - Ch65. Gift for Tsunade Online - All Page - NOVEL NEXT

Chapter 65 - Ch65. Gift for Tsunade

Rei appeared in his dimension and the first sight that greeted him was Tsunade and Konan in their underwear and apron kneeling in the front hall, both showing excitement. This excitement however quickly fell as they noticed his mangled, clearly quite injured form. He watched Tsunade's face morph from happy and teasing one into a worry-stricken horror-filled one as she noticed his expression twisted in pain. She instantly jumped towards him and started to go over his body with her diagnostic jutsu, her eyes teary. It was then that Rei remembered that in anime, she was a very 'unstable' woman due to the death of her clan, brother, and then lover. 'Maybe I should try to avoid being injured...' Rei thought as he felt Tsunade biting her lower lip while intently healing his ribs with her medical Jutsu. His eyes turned to Konan and... he rather turned back to Tsunade. He was too ashamed to face her right now after so many reassurances that it will be alright and he would face no danger...

"You underestimated them." Konan said in an exasperated tone to which Rei could only awkwardly chuckle. "Why did I expect this to go differently." Konan huffed, giving Rei a piercing look. "As of now, I forbid you to charge into danger without me by your side! At least one of us has to be the voice of reason!" Konan exclaimed. "Now, you will eat the food I and Tsunade painstakingly prepared. You will take a bath with us. You will then cuddle with us and you will go to sleep to recuperate your injuries. As much trust as I have in Tsunade's skills, I want you to get proper rest. You are a mess! I don't think I ever saw you quite so injured!" Seeing Rei's mouth open in protest, Konan strongly added, her hands on her h.i.p.s. "End of discussion."

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"Yes, dear." Rei lowered his head, making Konan's eyes soften. He then sighed and continued in a grumbling tone as he crossed his arms. "Never in my wildest dreams would I think that senjutsu would pack quite such a punch. It must have enhanced taijutsu at least by the factor of five! I felt as if a truck hit me." Rei said, making both Tsunade and Konan look at each other, neither knowing what 'truck' was but they both decided it had to be a fearsome monster if Rei thought it hit so hard. Rei then smiled. "But... I've got it." He took a stasis scroll out of his pocket, showing it to Tsunade. "Tsu, this is my gift for you and I am pretty sure it will help you to improve your Creation Rebirth. I really hope this will help you get rid of the need for burning your own life span." He said with a smile to her.

Tsunade didn't take it, her hands still busying themselves with Rei's wounds. For her, he was the priority right now. Whatever that scroll held could wait. Rei just chuckled as he saw the interest in her eyes despite her not taking it. She was a medic first and foremost so anything that could help her improve her craft was greatly intriguing for her. That's why Rei chose to get the Axolotl for her despite the danger. He thought his self-storage seal would be enough as insurance but he was apparently wrong. He was still quite weak when it came to more experienced 'legendary' fighters it seemed. An oversight he would definitely correct at a later date.

After he was healed, he listened to Konan's demands... she was right, he needed to recuperate and fast. They still had a mission to complete.

...

The next day, the trio was in the clearing in front of their house. Tsunade held the still sealed stasis scroll, expectantly looking at it while her expression was akin to a child during Christmas eve. She was almost glowing from curiosity and Rei enjoyed the sight very much. It was far from the bitter old hag in the anime and it brought his heart untold joy that he could transform... 'that' into the happy, excited, and carefree girl in front of him. Tsunade turned to him after she was done eyeing the scroll and while almost bouncing, she asked him. "What is it?"

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Rei chuckled. "Why don't you open it and see for yourself?" He said and held back after her lips turned into a small pout. Konan just sat next to Rei on the blanket and was preparing the picnic basket she brought with her. She knew what was in the scroll and knew it would probably be important to Tsunade but since she wasn't very medical savvy, it didn't matter to her.

Tsunade decided to open the scroll and instantly, a huge salamander popped out of it. She looked at it a bit skeptically and then turned to Rei with a deadpan look. "It's a... salamander? Really?" She eyed Rei, not amused at all.

"Don't give me that look." Rei calmly coaxed. "It is a salamander with an even bigger healing factor than you when using Creation Rebirth." He told her and she snapped her head back onto the unconscious beast, her eyes instantly started sparkling while morphing into... something Rei thought he would only see on Jiraya's face when perving on women or Orochimaru's when perving on boys. 'Damn... she is indeed one of the three Sannin!' Rei was inwardly freaking out at the gaze she was giving the beast. He decided to be far, far away when she plays with it. Just to be sure.

Konan chuckled and leaned closer to Rei. "You are hoping Tsunade will be too preoccupied with her new experiments to miss us jumping into that trap, aren't you?" She whispered knowingly, earning herself an admitting gaze from Rei as he shrugged. He had no intention of letting Tsunade butt in into their mission and definitely didn't want her to worry. He leaned even closer to Konan and tenderly claimed her lips. They kissed for a moment and when they separated Rei softly smiled.

"Will you keep that a secret for me?" He asked and Konan dazedly nodded with a bit of a blush on her cheeks as she bashfully turned around, busying herself with preparing the food. After that, they both watched Tsunade testing the healing factor of the beast with sparkling eyes as the blood squirted everywhere. "Damn..." Rei winced. "I am really glad I had the foresight to keep the beast in unconsciousness." He dryly stated, making Konan deadpan at him.

"Yeah... but these seals must have been quite something since even having its head open didn't wake it up." She said.

Before Rei could answer, Tsunade shouted at him. "Thank you!" She quickly approached them and embraced Rei tightly. "With this, I will be able to not only perfect my Creation Rebirth but also my strengthening technique!" She elatedly said. "Now... more tests!" She almost squealed, released Rei, and skipped back towards the salamander without even glancing at the food Konan prepared for her.

That afternoon was one of the most traumatizing experiences both Rei and Konan ever went through. They learned a lot! They learned that with a high regeneration factor, it is hard to die due to blood loss. They learned that regrowth of the salamander's limbs lasts approximately 1.66s when stimulated with nature energy. They learned that opening someone's head is indeed as disgusting as it sounds... To be honest, they decided to never again be present when Tsunade is having her 'fun'.

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Chapter 66 - Ch66. The objective of the mission 1

Pa treon - 38 chapters ahead.

If you want to support me or read ahead:

pa /kasicair

--

Rei and Konan were high in the sky on Konan's paper platform, watching a noble mansion that was supposed to be their target. Somewhere in there should be the daughter of the noble who requested them to 'save her'. At first glance, the mansion wasn't all that much protected. Some sub-par samurais here and there but that was all. For a ninja, this was a dream come true. An easy mission with high pay. At least, that was how it appeared.

"There are twenty jonin and thirty chunin." Konan grimaced as her scouts in the form of small bugs made from paper gave her the intel they gathered. Both her and Rei could fight multiple ninjas each but forty? The problem was, this was supposed to be a rescue mission so they can't just nuke it from the sky and be done with it. They would have to go there and actually search... which means getting attacked.

"The 'target'," Rei almost drowned in sarcasm. "is enjoying herself being massaged by very burly 'servants' who have quite a lot of chakra for 'civilians'... She sure doesn't look like someone kidnapped. Both of her eyes are covered with cuc.u.mber slices and her expression is more like someone who is having the time of their life." Rei informed Konan. Over time, his nature sensing became quite strong and he could now 'see' the surroundings through it. While he was somewhat limited and had to focus a lot to be able to do that, it was a nice skill to have for scouting. While Konan's papers could sense ninjas and their chakra, Rei got more visual output that told him much more than just general reserves, and if someone is or is not ninja, supposing the person was not restraining their chakra.

Their difference in the nature attunement showed. This kind of nature sensing was far above what Konan was capable of and that's why they both scouted the mansion with their respective techniques and decided to then compare the notes.

Hearing about the state of the supposedly kidnapped girl, Konan rolled her eyes. "So... what's the plan? This is obviously a trap." She asked.

"Hmm." Rei started pondering about it when his eyes trailed towards the right-wing of the mansion. "That," He pointed at it. "is empty, right?" He asked Konan who nodded in affirmation which made Rei widely smile. "I see, then we will..."

...

Barbo Reurenta was massaging the 'bait' while resisting the urge to groan at this kind of mission. The woman was a chore to be around. 'Barbo, I am hungry!' 'Barbo, I want a massage!' 'Barbo, I am horn-!' ... Barbo had enough. He was supposed to be a respected jonin of Iwa! And yet, here he was, satisfying every desire of a woman that was spoiled rotten. All because she would bait their target to this place.

The Downpour.

The mysterious Kiri duo of S-rank demolition specialists who surpassed even the Demolition Corps of Iwa in the seer destructibility. Quite frankly, the Tsuchikage was not amused by their existence. In the past, when someone needed a demolition expert, they knew to go to Iwa but that was no longer the truth. Now, Iwa had a competition and the old man Onoki didn't like the competition. Not at all. Not when they obviously were so much better than Iwa's top demolition experts. Hence, the current situation. He, the idiot, accepted the mission of 'hunting' The Downpour down without even asking about the specifics and now he was saddled with Kimiko Hugaru, the spoiled nuisance.

It wasn't that the woman wasn't pretty. She was gorgeous. Not a kunoichi kind of gorgeous but more of a sheltered kind. The problem was how demanding it was to be with her! He was a ninja and even he was starting to feel tired! Barbo hoped their target would pop up sometimes soon or he just might drop from the sheer exhaustion due to being ordered around by the woman!

'Oh, why! Why was I so stupid to take this undercover mission? I can't even complain now, can I? If I did, I would be an even bigger laughing stock for my subordinates!' He mentally wept. 'Not that I am not a laughing stock now! I was dragged against my will to Kimiko's chambers, after all! Me! One of the top assassins of Iwa! Sob...'

Needless to say, Barbo's subordinates had the laugh of their lives on his expense at that.

Suddenly, Kimiko arched her hand backward and raised her hand towards her head, taking one cuc.u.mber slice off of her face. Her eyes connected with Barbo's. 'Oh, shit. Here we go again.' He mentally groaned but gave her a sweet smile to which the woman beamed.

"Barboooo," Kimiko's whiny voice resounded through the room, "I am bored!" She pouted, pretending to be pitiful. It took every bit of Barbo's past experience and determination to not f.u.c.k this mission up to NOT scowl at the woman. The four subordinates of his who were massaging various parts of Kimiko's body were not-so-discreetly glancing at him with hidden snickers too! This was routine. She was 'bored' and they instantly knew it meant Barbo being made into entertainment! Last time, he had to do a geisha show for her! While his team members watched! The woman was ruining his reputation without even knowing it!

Barbo gulped. "Er... this... Kimi-" He didn't finish that sentence as a sudden booming sound resounded through the entire mansion, startling the occupants. Barbo's eyes sparkled in excitement, hoping that their enemies were finally here and he quickly jumped towards the window. His excitement turned into bewilderment as he saw the entire right wing of the mansion was almost leveled to the ground by massive tree trunks falling from the sky. "What the actual f.u.c.k? Since when does it rain trees?" Barbo quietly asked when he saw even MORE tree trunks falling onto the right-wing. It didn't take long for his eyes to widen. "F.u.c.k!" He snapped around towards his subordinates and shouted. "Out of the mansion, quick!"

...

Rei and Konan watched as the tree trunks they created were taken out of the dimension storage right above the empty part of the mansion through the MultiWLink on Konan's paper slice that was floating in the sky. Rei added his own twist into it and wove 'genjutsu' into the entire thing. His perfect chakra control allowed him to be quite creative but he decided on a simple approach this time. He didn't affect the people, rather the environment. Through light refraction he made it seem as if the trunks falling from the sky were slowly expanding their landing radius, therefore, it looked like the entire mansion was under the threat to be destroyed by them. For those in the central part, it looked like the left-wing was the next target and for those in the left-wing, it looked as if the next target was the central part of the mansion. It wasn't even that hard for Rei to do this and he really doubted this jutsu could be classified as genjutsu but it created an illusion so there! It was more of a wind and water manipulation in the sky. This actually made it impossible to 'kai' it since it wasn't created by influencing the chakra in their body. It was akin to a big henge on the entire sky.

"They are coming out." Konan said, making Rei smile. Their plan to get their targets outside of the mansion worked. The illusion made it seem the trunks started raining all around so they had no choice but to gather in one place and some of the previously seemingly harmless if a bit muscled servants instantly gained a dangerous atmosphere around them, spooking the civilians in the group.

Rei chuckled at that. "The chunins are going to blow their own cover. Just look at how they are projecting their battle readiness around. Civilians or not, the others started to notice." Rei commented, observing various jonin in the group curse. What made Rei surprised though, was that the samurai guards apparently were not informed about ninjas being present and started warily glaring at the chunins, their hands on the handles of their swords. This made Rei's lips widen into a nasty shit-eating grin. "Oh, well, let's start this party with a bang!" He shrugged and threw a kunai with an exploding tag into the sky.

The second the explosion loudly went off, three things happened.

First, both ninja and samurai drew their respective weapons. For samurai it was katanas and for the ninjas, it was mostly kunai with some taking out something different. Secondly, the civilians started to panic and run around like headless chickens, obstructing the visibility of the combatants and creating mayhem. There were around fifty ninjas and give or take a hundred samurai... but there were a hundred civilians too! And all of them were confined in a small clearing in front of the mansion due to the light refraction illusion! It was an unorganized mess. Thirdly, and this was very beneficial but incredibly surprising... due to the chaos created by the panicking civilians, the commanders of both, the group of ninjas and the group of samurais couldn't relay orders. As the samurais saw the ninja draw their weapons, they did what a good guard should do. They attacked unknown armed assailants. And ninjas reacted. The entire clearing started to become bloody and even more chaotic. The ninja might have been a lot stronger than the samurai but they had to avoid harming civilians so no strong jutsu were allowed, evening the odds slightly. Also, samurai were more experienced in moving in chaotic battlefields and in a direct clash. The ninjas certainly did start to take some casualties.

Both Konan and Rei used this situation to get inside the mayhem, henging into civilians while also lowering their chakra reserves to civilian-level. They ran straight towards Kimiko and saw Barbo deflecting the blows of three samurai while trying to talk them out of attacking. Nevertheless, he didn't have time to give orders to his subordinates. Rei resisted a chuckle and turned to their target, Kimiko who sat on the ground, utterly confused and frightened. The girl was a quivering mess by now as blood, gore, and guts flew through the sky whenever a samurai or a ninja scored a hit on the other. Rei gestured with his head towards Kimiko and Konan went off, with a nod. He approached one of Barbo's enemies and... stabbed him from behind. Killing one, the other two instinctively turned towards him but it was too late as two kunai impacted their abdomens, making them fall to the ground with groans. Rei looked at startled Iwa jonin clad in servant's clothes and quickly said, trying to sound distressed. "Come! Lady Kimiko is in danger!"

Barbo's eyes widened, his eyes snapping in the direction of the girl... and then his world went black.

Rei stood above the slumped form of the jonin, rolling his eyes. "Damn, man, a guy takes out three samurai in front of you and you get distracted? You must really like that Kimiko-girl." He snickered and put a tag with a restraining seal on Barbo's forehead, storing his unconscious body into a stasis storage seal. With that, he left the battlefield.

--

Author Note:

Okay, I've seen a lot of people ask why Rei had to use a jutsu that could wipe out Salamanders. The answer is simple, he was forced to. The salamander elders broke quite a few bones and tore a whole lot of muscles by his Senjutsu/Taijutsu Attacks, plus their ninjutsu powered by senjutsu chakra, and voila... you get utterly outclassed MC. As much as I've written, the self-transport seal is instantaneous, and there is still a quite short window to hit him hence it is not as good as Hiraishin, nor is it meant to be. The seal is not a combat-oriented seal, after all. That's why it's not as used in a fight as it could be otherwise. The next thing is, Rei needed that small window of time to activate it and didn't like his chances of not being attacked during it since the Taijutsu Salamander was fast enough to completely surprise him.

The big, fiery attack was in the end, only a way to get him that bit of time and since he used it, he wanted to see the result. Simple as that.

If someone doesn't like that... er, nothing I can do about that :D.

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Chapter 67 - Ch67. The objective of the mission 2

Both Rei and Konan rendezvoused five minutes after they entered the 'chaos' in the treetops near the mansion. Rei had a stasis scroll in his hand while Konan had a kicking and thrashing girl over her shoulders that made her show a very, very annoyed expression on her face. Her eyes were dangerously narrowed and set forward, Rei could actually see she was trying very hard not to slap some sense into the girl. The only reason the girl was not screaming was the ball of paper that found its new home in the girl's mouth and was apparently quite hard to get rid of, no matter how much the girl tried to spit it out.

The girl, Kimiko, suddenly slapped Konan's butt quite hard and Konan snapped. She 'gently' put the girl on the ground, making her stop thrashing around and for once, the only sound Kimiko let out was a muffled groan of pain. "That's it, I've had it with you." Konan said in a cold tone, making Kimiko send a glare her way. The glare didn't last long though. The second Kimiko's eyes met Konan's, she froze. Konan had a stoic expression on her face but something in her gaze was just incredibly chilly and threatening. Kimiko quickly balled into a ball and tried to make herself as small as possible when she saw the dangerous way Konan was looking at her. It was the first time the girl experienced such fear. Rei decided to intervene before Konan actually managed to make the girl die due to a heart attack from her frosty glare.

"Ma~, ma~, don't give her that look." He quipped towards Konna, making Kimiko look at him hopefully while Konan crossed her arms and huffed. He crouched down in front of Kimiko and smiled at her. "Don't worry. You won't be harmed. We were sent by your father to 'rescue' you." He snickered at the word 'rescue'.

"Papa?" Kimiko tilted her head. "But... why would papa..." That was as far as she got when Rei suddenly slapped her forehead, making her faint. Konan opened her mouth in speechlessness at the spectacle but when she saw the paper with a knock-out seal... she facepalmed.

"And that's how you deal with annoying people." Rei told Konan, highly amused, as he was sealing Kimiko's body into a stasis scroll.

In the end, Konan chuckled and kissed Rei while hugging him tightly. "Shouldn't we do something like that to Mizukage then?" She asked offhandedly to which Rei rolled his eyes but tightened his embrace. He loved how warm Konan usually was and refused to not enjoy it when he got the chance. He caressed her back as his head swirled with ideas.

"Maybe later, dear." He whispered to Konan. "For now, we gotta interrogate my captive."

"A captive?" Konan asked and stepped back as she felt Rei released her from the hug. Rei only raised his hand with a stasis scroll and she instantly understood. "Which one?" She asked.

"The captain." Rei said, grinning. "Now we can find out just 'why' was this trap set up for us." He said excitedly, happily noting the sadistic gleam in Konan's eyes. Unfortunately, he had to crash her fun. "Sorry, dear, I won't allow you to torture him. I've got a better plan. Much, much better." He said as his grin was widening into a menacing one.

...

Barbo groggily woke up, shaking his head to get out of the daze, and quickly found out he was in an unknown room and bound which made him completely awake pretty quickly. His eyes warily scanned the surroundings, trying to discern what was going on as he was mentally going through what happened before his blackout. His eyes suddenly widened as he remembered what happened to him, only for a colorful curse to leave his lips. He was careless and now he was going to pay for it. Nevertheless, he tried to squirm out of the bindings or use the rope-escaping Jutsu but as expected, it didn't work. As he was about to get out of options, the door suddenly opened and two people walked inside. A young man and a young woman. He quickly understood his mission failed and he somehow got kidnapped by The Downpour.

Konan and Rei saw the man lower his head in resignation as they entered the room. They came in front of him when he suddenly raised his head and spoke. "If you are trying to get information from me, you will be disappointed. I will not divulge anything no matter what kind of torture you put me through."

Rei smiled at that as he gazed into the man's eyes and saw he really believed that. "Let's start with something simple, then. Your name." He stated and peered into the man's eyes until the corner of the man's lips twitched. The man sighed and half-shrugged.

"Barbo."

It wasn't as if he was extremely famous and he doubted these two would get much from his name. Rei chuckled and nodded towards Konan. "She is Konan and I am Rei. But you probably already know that. Well, we don't really plan to torture you." Rei said while his hand found its way around Konan's waist to calm her down since she was pouting slightly. They had quite a debate about this. Konan wasn't happy about having someone trying to hunt them and wanted to send a proper 'message' to the world. As if they didn't do that already... Barbo's eyes warily observed Rei as he heard they don't intend to torture him while Rei continued. "As for your team, half of them are dead, due to samurai that guarded the mansion." He watched as Barbo flinched, his lips twisting into an amused smirk. "The good news is that they killed every samurai." He stopped for a second to let that sink. It wasn't something to be happy about. Barbo's team practically slaughtered samurai belonging to his country which would have at least reputational consequences and depending on the stance of the Daimyo, could be quite damaging to the village in itself. Barbo showed a difficult expression as he completely understood what it meant when Iwa shinobi killed Iwa samurai. Especially in that kind of situation. Rei nevertheless continued with a bemused and light tone. "The bad news is... the 'surviving' half is also dead because of Konan."

Konan watched Barbo's eyes widen at that and decided that maybe it was quite good that Rei didn't allow her to vent her frustration on him. She almost pitied him but the man would talk and it will be out of his own volition. She outstretched her hand and Barbo's body was quickly covered in paper, only his head was peeking out of them. "Let's go." She said and Rei shrugged. They had a plan on how to make the man talk and it seemed that Konan was quite impatient. Unfortunately for Barbo, he had a paper over his mouth so any and all protests were silenced.

The trio went outside, stopping only near Tsunade and her big slimy amphibian of a plaything. It was obvious the blonde didn't even register them as she busied herself with 'experimenting'. Konan sat Barbo in a spot where he will have a front seat to the show and leaned on Rei's back while putting her chin on his shoulder as her hands sn.a.k.e.d around his waist in a tight embrace.

Barbo couldn't get his eyes away from the spectacle in front of him, only barely registering Rei's voice. "You see... I am sure that as a ninja, you are used to gore but this is something different." Yes, Barbo could see 'that'. This was... he wanted to puke but he was too horrified to do so. Rei continued speaking. "I am sure you would rather tell us about your little mission than go through that, right?" Barbo flinched but his eyes still couldn't leave the amphibian as the blond busty woman was rummaging in its body. It wouldn't be such a disturbing sight if the summoning animal that must obviously be quite intelligent wasn't cut open in such a way that Barbo could see the contents of its guts and organs still inside of its body... its heart was still pumping, signifying that the beast was still alive as the muscles visibly constricted and loosened in a show of breathing.

Even if Barbo wanted, he wouldn't be able to avert his gaze. He could only grit his teeth to prevent the bile from rising from his mouth after he croaked out. "It's still alive."

Konan rolled her eyes but it was very hard to spot since she was nuzzling her nose into the crook of Rei's neck. "Of course it is," She playfully started. "and you will be too." At that, Barbo's eyes widened as he understood why they were showing him this scene.

Rei smiled to himself. Yes, just a bit more, and the man will talk by himself, no need for boorish torture. He just hoped the man wouldn't be too stubborn about it. "Yup, and I am not really inclined to put a seal that would keep you unconscious during the process. Instead, since you wanted to kill us, I will apply a seal that will keep you conscious as our little," He heard Konan snicker as he commented on Tsunade's height, "friend will look at what's inside of you. But don't you worry your little head over it, she is too experienced to make you die during it." Rei said flippantly and noticed that Barbo didn't really react to his threat which made him frown. He redirected his eyes towards Tsunade and instantly lowered them towards the ground with a groan. That was a mistake. He did not need to see Tsunade pulling the innards out of the beast as a goddamn rope. Rei audibly gulped and took a deep breath. "Okay, we will leave you here to consider your position." He said with a broken smile towards Barbo. "We will be back in a few hours."

And with that, Rei was dragged away by excited Konan who wouldn't let these hours go to waste while Barbo was about to experience three hours of what Orochimaru would dub a 'pleasant' afternoon, only two clones of Rei and Konan silently watching over him.

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Chapter 68 - Ch68. Interrogation?

When Konan and Rei returned to Barbo, they saw the man having closed eyes with a twisted expression while Tsunade giggled mischievously. Rei approached her and asked. "What did you do to the guy?" His eyebrow raised.

"Oh, nothing." She waved her hand covered with a bloodied glove. "I just showed him a bit of what it means to be a medic-nin." Tsunade again giggled. "Really, these big bad assassins and combat-experts... they never have enough 'guts' to stomach the realities of medic-nin." She rolled her eyes amusedly, patting her stomach to emphasize 'guts' while all around the amphibian were meters upon meters of guts strewn across the floor. Rei decided to not ask further... He rather left her to her devices and went to Barbo. Surprisingly or not, he didn't even need to open his mouth.

When he came closer, Rei was greeted with eyes similar to a dead fish. "I will talk." Barbo said in a defeated and exhausted tone and hung his head low. The sight of Tsunade's 'autopsy' of a still-breathing being must have been quite disturbing for the man.

"Okay then, we are listening." Rai said as he sat on the ground next to the still paper-bound man.

Barbo was quiet for a moment before he sighed and started. "The Tsuchikage doesn't like you being so good at large-scale destruction. But that's not all." Barbo mulled over his next words before starting to speak again. "Kiri was always a village shrouded in the shadows. It was the village of assassins. Quiet and unnoticeable. It had to be. Kiri might be one of the Great Five but it never had numbers or front-line fighters capable of matching other villages of the Great Four. In mist and on the sea, Kiri's forces are almost unbeatable but on land? Kiri is no threat when it comes to invasion. It has always been that way. Even Suna is a bigger threat than Kiri." Barbo said slowly, and Rei nodded. This much, he knew. Kiri might have got fewer casualties in the war against Kumo but it was felt. The village was smaller and more specialized towards kenjutsu and assassinations. Not many ninjas knew large-scale ninjutsu and definitely not on the level of future Hoshigaki Kisame or Mei Terumi. The Kiri-nin preferred silent killing rather than flashy Jutsu. Oddly enough, most often than not, it was those big flashy jutsu that could be seen for miles which showed the real strength of 'ninja' rather than a silent and unseen approach. From this bit Rei started to see the 'bigger' picture and why his and Konan's existence might have been so threatening in Tsuchikage's eyes. After all, the old small man was always the first to jump the gun. Rei didn't voice out his reasonings and rather let Barbo speak.

"And then, Kiri gained you. Two ninjas famous for their 'flashiness'." Barbo chuckled dryly. "Kiri was becoming a bigger and bigger threat due to the acquisition of Kekkei Genkai in the past but they never seemed to be able to use it all that well. The clans there still have a lot of freedom and the Mizukage has quite limited authority over them which stems from the joining agreements they had with the village upon becoming its members."

"And you know that just how exactly?" Konan butted in with a quite important question. Barbo just looked at her with a deadpan gaze.

"They took in whoever. Sure, their anti-spy policy is very good but they can't catch every single spy. Plus the offer of these 'deals' that would safeguard the joining clans was the first thing Kiri offered so many of our spies brought the information about them." He said, making Konan impassively nod but it only strengthened the belief that she and Rei would eventually have to leave Kiri. If the enemy knew about these things, there was bound to be some f.u.c.k-up later down the line that will threaten the village. Maybe even use some political pull or a spy inside to start a civil war... the laws of Kiri were very edgy so Konan could imagine something like that to happen. She would have to try to persuade Rei to get out of the village sooner than expected...

While Konan pondered about the revelations of just how easy it was to plant a spy into Kiri, Barbo continued. "Your presence in Kiri is a threat. If you raise pupils capable of performing your Jutsu, the Kiri could raise its strength to rival other villages of Great Five on land and become a real threat. It was also obvious the Mizukage wanted to do just that since not one of our spies managed to get any noteworthy intel about your identity or skills..."

"And the spies being...?" Rei butted in, stopping Barbo in his tracks.

Barbo opened his mouth but then closed it before saying. "I don't know."

"Are you sure?" Rei tilted his head and glanced towards Tsunade but knew it was pointless. He wouldn't really take Barbo's words at face value. Obviously, he drew a seal of 'truth' on the guy when he was unconscious. While the seal can't make the man spit out every secret he had, it was enough to make him completely truthful while not making him even realize it. It also had the effect of making the person actually subconsciously willing to speak. That's why Barbo divulged his name so easily and that's why it didn't take too long for him to spill.

"Yes." Barbo simply said, making Rei sigh. The man really had no idea who the spies were. While it didn't really matter to Rei as Kiri was just a momentary stop, he wouldn't mind giving the Mizukage a parting present. Worse yet, Rei didn't know when he would leave Kiri but it would be years yet. Living in the village while knowing it has spies in it? He hoped he wouldn't get paranoid...

"So tell me," Rei started. "was this only Tsuchikage's idea or someone else was involved?" Rei was really curious about this. If it was only Tsuchikage then good. It was expected but if someone else was involved? Rei wouldn't like to have an unknown third party after his life.

Barbo was quiet for a moment but then started talking. "It was an anonymous request. They paid three times the max amount for S-rank so it gave a good excuse for the Tsuchikage. Half up-front and the second half after the job is done." Rei nodded. So there was some bastard who wanted them dead, after all! Tsuchikage had to think about the good of the village and wouldn't pull a stunt like this without an enormous excuse.

"So... someone is trying to instigate a third ninja war, huh?" Rei distractedly stated with a frown, making Barbo exclaim.

"What!?" He gaped at Rei but from his expression it was clear the gears were turning in his head, thinking about how Rei came to such a conclusion. It didn't take long for Barbo to understand. Konan and Rei were quite important for Kiri's progress. At least, that was the conclusion from all the information embargo the Mizukage employed. Their death would surely sour the relations between Kiri and Iwa... add a few similar kinds of missions for other villages and voila, the conclusion is clear. It would lead to another war not ten years from the end of the previous one. The main point was the payment. Nobody pays three times the amount for S-rank. Not even nobles or the Daimyo. It's just not done so when someone offers it, the village should be helluva alerted that something was fishy! Not even the assassination of a Daimyo would be so costly, after all! But clearly, the villages would jump at the vision of money if the client seemed trustworthy. Considering the problems Iwa had with Rei and Konan's continuous existence and Onoki's stubborn hotheadedness... Yes, the anonymous person knew well who to approach for the job.

Rei was about to continue asking questions when Tsunade finally finished with the Salamander for the day and approached them after healing him up to health, her previously white coat now covered in innumerable bloodstains. Her face sported a wide Cheshire smile as she turned towards Rei. "So how does your little interrogation go?" She asked while looking at Barbo who instantly tried to scurry away but his body was tightly bound so he managed to only avert his gaze towards the ground while quivering.

'Huh? Guess Tsunade really inflicted trauma on the poor bastard.' Rei resisted the urge to snicker when Tsunade suddenly hugged him, making him go rigid. "Uh..." He bit out, his arms not reaching towards her back. "Tsu? You know you are from head to toe covered in blood?" Rei asked with indignation in his tone and Tsunade instantly stepped back with a sheepish look as she saw the entirety of Rei's shirt covered with one big red stain.

The awkward atmosphere was quickly interrupted by Barbo. "You people are insane." He said with wide eyes, staring at the blood-covered shirt of Rei. "How can you not react at all? She has more blood on herself than any torturer of Iwa could hope to see after a month of work! You people are insane." Barbo repeated, quivering at the sight of blood and Tsunade only tilted her head.

"Did my little show perhaps give him hemophobia!?" Both of her eyebrows rose in surprise at that and even Rei facepalmed.

'Oh, the irony...'

Chapter 69 - Ch69. Shocking Iwa 1

The interrogation continued and they got more information from Barbo... mostly about Iwa and its defenses but nothing too substantial as the man was fiercely loyal and would rather go through torture than give them the important details. The seal of truth was quite handy and the man probably blabbed way more than he wanted while not even noticing it but nevertheless, he wouldn't budge when Rei asked about sensitive things like the times of patrol changes and seal defenses...

It's not like they needed those anyway. And Barbo didn't need to be so secretive about it either! Who would they show the information to? The Mizukage? As if! The old coot didn't deserve to know their findings! No, Rei had something better in mind. Something immediate. The Tsuchikage wanted to hunt them down so he would need to be punished for it! Konan wouldn't have it any other way and Rei wasn't about to let bygones be bygones. After all, he wasn't the only target. Konna was one too and that made him mad. That's why they now stood not a half kilometer away from Iwagakure, observing it through their senses.

"Do you really think it is a smart idea?" Konan asked a bit worried about what they were gonna do. She wanted to do it even more than Rei as she wasn't the forgiving sort but for now, this appeared to be quite a risk. She didn't want Rei to be in danger so she had to at least try to be the voice of reason.

"Smart? Of course not!" Rei snorted. "It is batshit insane and that's why it will work." His lips spread into a Cheshire grin. "Especially since we are going to do it by our own rules." He said and took out two scrolls, making Konan widen her eyes at what that meant.

"You want to use 'that'!?" She asked in bewilderment. These scrolls were their last resort and only to be used when they needed to run! To use them here... Konan suddenly stopped in her tracks as her mind understood what this meant when she added into equation Rei's personality. "You... these are not your 'mayhem scrolls', these are different." She stated, smirking as she saw Rei shrug.

"I had a bit of time and decided to prepare a show for our rocky comrades. After all, someone has to show them what it means to have the will of rock!" Rei snickered. Indeed, these scrolls were not his 'mayhem scrolls' as Konan dubbed them. No, they were his 'mayhem scrolls' v2, specially made for this occasion!

"Should I use mine too though?" Konan asked with furrowed eyebrows. "You know, to make bigger numbers."

"Nah. It's good. I made sure to seal away enough. We will have a different job. We can't really kill the old goblin so the punishment would have to be something impactful yet delicate. I know exactly the thing!" Rei excitedly exclaimed, making Konan purse her lips in expectation.

...

Onoki sat in his office doing the paperwork as was his damned routine. The day he became the Tsuchikage will be forever etched into his memory as the most glorious day of his existence... but it will also be the most sorrowful day for him. The day he forsook his soul to the devil of the bureaucracy. The day when the strong, handsome, capable, and most importantly handsome guy he was... changed into a grumbling man who had to sit on a special chair for his head to be above the table when giving orders. But that wasn't his main problem. He thought being a Kage would be a bit more... interesting. But it is not! It's an almost painful existence where he has to balance the entire village, its clans, ninja, and civilians to coexist peacefully! This was a dictatorship and he was on the top but even then he had so much work! At least he has a free hand in how he does things.

As he was about to fill his last paper from an entire stash... the entire office shook, making the stash he had deposited on the edge of the table fall down and fly all around his office in the flurry of papers. Onoki watched with an expression like a deer in headlights as this happened, his mind refusing to process that the pile he spent the last two days perfecting to his utmost ability was now destroyed. Just like that. In but a second. As he watched his paper-covered office, Onoki genuinely thought that even his Dust style could cause so much damage to him as this sight. His spirit was literary in pieces!

Just then, his secretary barged inside of his office with a startled expression, desperately gasping for breath. Onoki turned to her with his gaze that resembled a dead fish and lifelessly asked. "What?"

The secretary tried to quickly calm down as she heaved up, her arms on her knees. Hearing Tsuchikage's question, she hurriedly exclaimed. "Tsuchikage-sama! We are being invaded!"

Onoki heard her and his mind stopped. His temper instantly flared but he forcefully calmed himself down and his expression turned to stoical seriousness. "Who is invading us?" He asked the secretary. Hurrying off to the battlefield would be idiocy. He first needed to know what exactly was going on and then organize his troops. No matter the situation, he was the Kage. Not a common ninja. His duties lied with leadership rather than fighting on the front-lines. He was the trump card of the village, after all! When he asked the question, he could see the secretary momentarily squirm and his temper flared again, this time on the woman. She said they were being invaded and he knew she would never dare to joke about such a matter so why was she now hesitating? "Speak woman! We are burning time!"

The secretary took a deep breath to calm herself and her professionalism took over. Only that made her able to say the next part with a straight face without cringing. "We are under attack by monkeys in Hokage robes." She said stoically, and even she was surprised she didn't actually blush.

As Onoki heard her, his mind stopped for a second, giving her a blank gaze. "Come again?" He asked unsurely, briefly glancing towards the calendar, wondering if it is 1st April already.

(Author: Yup, they have those there!)

"We are under attack by monkeys in Hokage robes." The secretary repeated in a deadpan tone.

"Are you sure it isn't a prank?" Onoki stated dryly. He was too old to deal with some snot-nosed brat vying for attention! That job was for his son! Why would they bother him with monkeys dressed like the Hokage? That could be the national joke!

The secretary nodded and started describing what was happening. "They trashed the marketplace, heavily graffitied the surrounding mountains and buildings, strewn the underwear of the villagers all across the village, many mothers complain they stole lollipops from their kids, the ninja are getting caught in some sticky traps that are making them glued to each other, the worst part is that when the ninja try to attack them, they are ganged upon by ten others. They cause all sorts of mischief but worse yet, we had reports of them in secret divisions where they mess up archives and libraries... The violent shaking of the Kage Tower was also caused by them." They both understood the danger they were facing if these monkeys got into restricted archives of various divisions and Onoki scowled as he now had the culprit for his wasted paperwork. The secretary wasn't finished though. With a grim face, she continued. "It all started an hour ago and by now, there must be at least a thousand of these monkeys. We call it an attack because..." The secretary gulped. "Because they change to rock upon defeat, not unlike Rock Clone Jutsu. It is definitely the work of some ninja. But surprisingly they don't aim to seriously cripple Iwagakure. If they did, they had many opportunities so far. Especially since they appeared in hundreds and our ninja's first reaction was to roll on the ground in laughter." Her lips slightly twitched upwards. "These monkeys are basically trolling us..."

Onoki opened his mouth but instantly closed it as he sprang up on his feet when he understood what he was just told, his vein pulsing. "Call for the leaders of each division asap! We gotta start counter-attacking these trolling monkeys! Nobody is going to troll my village!"

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Chapter 70 - Ch70. Shocking Iwa 2

Rei's adaptation of rock clone jutsu ravaged the Iwagakure, doing nasty pranks all around while using their numerical advantage to the fullest. Rei had actually prepared around fifteen hundred of these rock 'monkey' clones so some parts of the village were completely overrun. Rei was very careful when planning this little 'surprise' and spent the entire night going through every bit of knowledge he gained from Barbo's interrogation about the defenses and set-up of Iwagakure. These were pivotal in his quest for justice! That was the reason why the rock clones could rampage for an hour and still, no organized resistance was... well, organized. The places that were hit first had either insufficient personnel and were too preoccupied to send a message about their problems with a request of reinforcements or it was a place that was out of hand, and it would take time for such requests to reach the Kage Tower. And when they did... the tower would be buried in large quantities of them so it would be a pain in the ass to react.

These 'monkeys' were 'failed' attempts at rock clone jutsu. But even then, just because in the eyes of others this was a failure at creating a rock clone, it didn't mean that it didn't have its uses! After all, failures were a perfectly usable Jutsu too. They just didn't have the desired effect, hence were called failures. Just a bit of deformity through tweaking while creating a rock clone and voila, Rei had a fully functioning clone that did NOT look like him, therefore his identity was safeguarded. The best part? Henge could be seen through. The rock clones could not as there was literally nothing to be seen through. The rock monkeys were just that. Pile of rocks in the form of a monkey wearing Hokage attire that was held together and moved by chakra and initial intent of the user. Even the coloring on them was done through chakra. It was obvious they were clones but it would be next to impossible to discern who made them. But they functioned exactly as normal rock clones except Rei was quite good at earth release. He obviously added a bit of a bonus and made them all enhanced with earth chakra! They would be a terror to take down after that. That's why Rei spent an entire week prior to their mission making these clones and filling two whole scrolls with them to the brim. It was his small personal portable army, Sasori-style.

While various parts of Iwagakure started to have problems with Hokage monkeys, Rei and Konan used these exact parts to slip through the village. The monkeys always started rampaging and then, both Rei and Konan would henge to civilians while adjusting their chakra reserves to slip through. They were obviously seen by ninja and even other civilians but the people had more pressing matters than to look closer. Even if henge could be seen through, it would need a deeper look even if the person is experienced. It was all in the details. Details that nobody had time to look at.

Part by part, street by street, they advanced in the middle of the chaos until they reached their first objective. The headquarters of the Explosion Corps, quite nearby the Kage Tower. It actually took them thirty minutes to follow the monkey clones up here and it was just in time. The Iwa shinobi started to realize this was not just some common prank, nor anything that was meant well. Too much damage was caused by it to be anything but hostility and they started to react in kind. The ninja of Iwagakure started carefully fighting back, trying to prevent more damage from being caused to their village.

Rei and Konan entered the wide-open door to the building that was half-broken, clearly due to too much force applied as 'someone' banged on them. They casually walked through the hall, holding hands while noting the empty reception with the side of their eyes. They walked in without a care in the world as if they owned the place. All around them was a mess caused by the wild rock monkey clones. The shelves were overturned, the papers all over the floor, the furniture was broken, and the place had clear signs of struggle.

"They are quite effective." Konan stated. "The surroundings look like a warzone and yet, we both know the monkey clones would at most cause a few bruises. Tell me... why again did you order them to not kill people?" She frowned as she didn't understand Rei's reasons for that. Iwagakure sent fifty ninjas to kill them. If anything, they SHOULD be out for their blood!

"That's easy." Rei quipped. "I plan to use this in the future. Maybe not the exact same variant but close and people will eventually come to know the user is me. I don't need to be known as the man who massacred Iwa shinobi in their own village. That would paint an incredible target on me and it wouldn't be just Iwa shinobi vying for my blood." Rei said, trying to portray the situation to Konan. She might have been incredibly strong and very resourceful and innovative but she didn't really have the brain for thinking what her actions would cause in the future.

"But... won't they actually resent you anyway?" Konan asked with a frown. Rei was basically trashing the village so she didn't think not killing would actually save him from being hunted.

At her question, Rei smirked knowingly. "Oh, they will... but this would inspire respect at my ability to do it and a healthy amount of fear. I have no delusions that I won't be in the upper tiers of bingo book due to the reward Iwa would offer for my head for it but they would also not be out for blood. Merely butthurt like a sullen child. They may pout, rave and rake but they won't go too much out of their way to get me. That would be a waste of resources for such a 'small' matter, after all." Rei said but seeing Konan's furrowed brows he sighed, stopped for a moment, and as she turned to him, he patted her head. "Don't worry your little pretty head over it." Konan slowly nodded.

As they walked through the Explosion Corps headquarters, they suddenly were stopped by a battered man with a tired look. "Who are you!" He asked. Rei blinked at him in confusion for a second before promptly facepalming.

"Of course!" He turned to Konan who tilted her head. "We are still wearing civilian attire!" He told her, making her go 'oh'. "I knew I forgot something!" He then turned towards the man and gave him a thumbs-up. "Thanks, man!" Obviously, the man didn't know what to think but the display managed to make him put his guard up very quickly. Weird was not good. Weird was dangerous! But he didn't have the time to ponder further as from behind, one rock monkey suddenly ran into him, flinging his body forward. Both Konan and Rei flinched as they saw him roll on the floor, clearly breaking something. The man didn't wake up after that. Rei gulped as he turned to Konan. "That was an accident!" He told her. "That can't be taken as a kill!"

Konan showed him an unimpressed look. After such a lengthy lecture about no killing and then he goes and makes a man into a living ragdoll. "Sure... whatever suits you best." She dryly said, making Rei scowl. How should he know the man was so... fragile!?

"A-anyway," Rei averted his gaze. "Let's continue." He shamelessly exclaimed and started dragging chuckling Konan forward. It was time, to get what they came for. They finally reached the storage room with explosives and Rei grinned. "Now... let's see the stash of the best demolitionists!" He giddily hopped towards the first crate he saw and stored it in his dimensional storage. "Shooo many treasures!" He stated with a shit-eating grin. The explosives and gear in the storage room were something extremely important and expensive. Iwa guarded the knowledge about them almost as fiercely as Konoha guarded their bloodlines. And here they were, in a room full of them and Rei was pretty sure somewhere amongst the pile of books Konan just stored is a manual on how to create them. They didn't really have the time to look into what they were storing into the dimension as they were pressed for time.

Ten minutes later, it was finally done and Rei wiped imaginary sweat from his forehead. "Well..." He turned to Konan with a nasty smirk as he gestured towards one unstored crate. "Shall we give Iwa a greeting?" For the last ten minutes, the monkey clones were trying to chase people away from the building and now, it was empty bar Konan and Rei. Getting his meaning, Konan showed a slight but very telling smile.

Five minutes passed and the duo was safely waiting on the roof of a building two streets away from the headquarters of the Explosion Corps when the fireworks started. The entire building the Corps used since their establishment, disappeared with a booming sound, leaving behind only a wide crater and deafened, bewildered Iwa-nin around it. This marked an hour since the beginning of mayhem in Iwa and in the Kage Tower, a certain old midget was currently staring at the paperwork strewn all over the floor with a longing wistful look of utter horror.

So far... Rei was satisfied with his self-imposed mission.

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Chapter 71 - Ch71. Gathering Important Research Material

Onoki rammed into a rock monkey, crushing it with the impact. His face instantly turned into a frown as he realized that it would be him on the floor if he didn't harden his body with earth chakra. The hardness of these nuisances was really on a different level. He could now understand why his ninja had so many problems with dispatching them. They were hard, small, and nimble enough to weave through attacks. Hitting them was a chore and then one had to be sufficiently strong to break through the hardening. The most annoying part for Iwa forces was the inability of using destructive Jutsu since they were inside of their own village.

"Really, their only redeeming part is the likeness to the Hokage... They are all so hilarious." Onoki mumbled under his nose. The monkeys were actually really molded to look like a smaller, more furry version of old Hiruzen Sarutobi wearing the Hokage robes. Onoki kicked away another monkey, making it crumble into a pile of rock. His eyes narrowed as he noted twenty other monkeys turn to him, preparing to engage. This part, he was confused about it. Every time he defeated one, another would jump at him. Never two or three. Always only one. Always in one versus one in taijutsu. The other monkeys either prevented his ninja from intervening or plainly waited. He ordered most of his subordinates to go clean important spots so he didn't have many of them but it was still mind-boggling that the ones that were being suppressed enough to be unable to help.

By now, Onoki had quite a clear picture of what was happening. "They are stalling for time." He gruffly stated. "I don't like this... not one bit." Onoki gritted his teeth as he continued fighting. As he was about to finish his 15th monkey, he suddenly heard 'it'. The village shook with the deafening roar that reverberated through it. His eyes went wide. "Gobi!"

Steam suddenly burst out and covered the eastern part of the village.

...

A few moments earlier, Konan and Rei stood in front of a shabby house with a few holes in it. It was made out of wood and located in the eastern part of the village. The part that could be called slums and mostly used to house 'slaves' or those of low societal status. It was also a part that was completely undisturbed by the current commotion as there was just nothing of note there. This also conveniently meant that no ninja was as of now there as every stationed patrol went to help with the disturbance in the village.

"Are you sure this is it?" Konan asked skeptically. The house, if it could be called that, was something she would never imagine belonged to such a precious thing as a jinchuuriki. They were supposed to be quite valuable to their respective villages, no?

"Yes, I am positive." Rei nodded and opened the door. Walking inside, he saw the only room of the entire house. It was quite a clean and tidy place. Despite the shabby and battered furniture, it had kind of a cozy atmosphere signifying that someone clearly cared for it. In the corner of the room was an old bed and on it, a twelve-year-old boy was currently happily sleeping. "Well, wouldn't you look at that? Looks like we are quite lucky. Since he is sleeping, the next part will be quite peaceful." Rei quietly said and approached the snoring boy.

He was a big one for his age. Not due to fat since the boy was obviously under-fed. No, he was tall and wide... it was obvious he would grow up to be quite physically strong. Rei was quite baffled. This under-fed large boy who was most likely lacking any form of affection would grow up to be a terror on the battlefield. The strongest steam user. All due to the beast inside of him. The boy was Han. The jinchuuriki of the Gobi.

Rei approached his body and put his hand on the boy's belly all the while Konan vigilantly watched for any unnatural movement. Even now, she was making sure many of her paper slices were left behind for various purposes. Rei might be able to see more into what future reactions would people have if he did this or that. She didn't understand that but it was fine. What she understood was that being prepared was important and since she had an opportunity, she took it. After all, since she was in Iwa now, why not fill it to the brim with explosive tags?

Rei's hand reached towards the seal on the boy. Not unlike when he did this with Kushina, Rei put a paper with his chakra storage seal onto the boy's belly and pushed his chakra into it, making it reach the boy's seal. His eyes snapped open even though he didn't remember closing them and Rei found himself inside of the seal. He saw a cage... not. Rei blinked and groaned. "Don't you tell me this is some bull-shit willpower seal." He facepalmed only to freeze when he got an answer.

"Yes... human. This is exactly one of these." A calm voice resounded through the seal. Rei's shoulders sagged at that and he turned around with a peeved feeling inside of him. As his turn was finished, his eyes landed on the owner of the voice.

"Gobi..." His lips twitched. "Never thought a tailed beast would be willingly spending its time in its host." Rei amusedly stated, raising his eyebrow at the beast who was lazily lying in front of him with its eyes closed. The Gobi just raised his right eyelid up, boredly looking at Rei.

"You know what you just caused, don't you?" He asked, ignoring Rei's previous statement.

Rei sighed in exasperation. Of course, he did know... "Due to this being a freaking will-power seal, the second I leave, the boy will go on a rampage." He gruffed out. "I mean, how should I know the boy would have such a seal on himself?" Rei started ranting. "Which IDIOT actually puts this sort of seal on a KID?" Much to Kokuo's amusement, he wildly gestured with his hands in agitation. "How could anyone able making such a seal not understand the simple truth that a kid can't suppress a tailed beast with willpower?" Rei shook his head. "What kind of willpower could a kid have anyway!" He huffed.

Kokuo snorted. "Yes... I totally agree. If I wanted, I could be out this instant."

"But you don't. You know Han won't be always a kid, don't you? One of these days, his willpower actually will be enough to keep you sealed away." Rei told Kokuo who just shrugged uncaringly. The beast was clearly unhappy with the fact it was sealed but didn't mind being secluded and the sealing actually did help him with that.

"Well, this was a nice talk but I think your goal in coming here is fulfilled. It's time for you to go." Kokuo politely said, making Rei smile.

"Thank you for giving me your chakra." He slightly bowed towards the beast. He could feel that Kokuo clearly knew what was going on around its host and didn't mind sharing his chakra. Rei felt his chakra storage seal filling up too quickly for it to be forceful. After relaying his gratitude, he left the seal.

The second he was out, he grabbed the chakra storing paper, twisted on his heel, and jumped towards Konan, grabbing her around her waist and heaving her up on his shoulder. He then used Kawarimi to gain distance from the boy who was now almost bathing in red chakra.

He knew Han would go on a rampage but it was not his problem. Most importantly, it was not him who applied such a half-assed and stupid seal on the boy. Rei could have stopped Han. Sure. But why should he? He didn't owe Iwa nor its people anything. There just wasn't a benefit in it. But there definitely was a benefit in having the boy rampage!

Rei entered a side-alley and ran through the back streets until he was at least a few hundred meters away from the boy's position. It took him only a moment and after he deemed his distance sufficient, he jumped up onto the roof, still holding Konan like a sack of potatoes. Konan's face was impassive throughout the entire experience but it was obvious to Rei she didn't appreciate the way he carried her. He put her down on her own feet when he landed on the roof, just in time to see a huge cloud of superheated smoke go off in the distance.

"The boy will massacre the people." Konan stoically stated. It wasn't that she cared about Iwa people but she didn't like seeing kids killed. That, however, didn't mean she would not activate the numerous exploding tags and wipe the entire village off if it was needed. That only meant it would at best leave a sour taste in her mouth. She didn't even finish her sentence and Rei could already see her using her papers to evacuate many kids from the streets. Konan made sure to use small amounts despite it being slower. She prioritized being unseen but she nevertheless helped the people.

"Yes... I already mentally ordered the closest rock monkeys to come and help to drag the people away." Rei said while he intently stared towards the place with the rampaging boy. It wouldn't be bad to make Iwagakure remember his help during this 'sudden' rampage. It would probably win him some brownie points in the future when his identity comes to the light.

That's the reason why he dropped a paper with a seal that would create a small barrier when he was running away. This barrier wouldn't hold the boy. Not when he already sported three new tails and a red chakra cloak. But it would give the necessary time for someone strong to come. And that was what Rei was waiting for. He knew exactly who would be the best candidate to stop the rampage.

'Now wouldn't it be awesome if Yonbi jinchuuriki showed up and leaked some chakra for me to study?'

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Chapter 72 - Ch72. Onoki Versus Rampaging Han

Rei and Konan watched the boy clad in red chakra cloak ramming his three tails into the barrier Rei created. "This is insane..." Konan said. This was the first time she saw the strength of a rampaging jinchuuriki and she was not impressed at all. No, she was outright frowning as she realized she might be able to fight it but it would be a tough fight. She instantly resolved herself to get even stronger. The chance of herself or worse, Rei being attacked by a jinchuuriki wasn't that high but it was still there. No, she would have to get strong enough to face something like this with ease. It was all for protecting Rei, after all. "The chakra is so dense it can physically maul things." Konan continued. "The ground under him is charred... it must be quite hot too."

Konan was saying this out loud just because she was bored. She and Rei were doing this quite often. They talked about things and pointed out the things the other missed and in the end, they would reach a better conclusion.

Rei obviously knew some of its properties but even he found a few new things during the observation. "The chakra is uncontrolled. The Gobi doesn't have actual control over it." He pointed out, making Konan nod.

"So the chakra acts on 'instinct'. Is that what you want to say?" She asked and crossed her arms with a frown. "But that's an insane notion. Chakra is energy... it's not sentient."

"The tailed beasts are beings made of chakra." Rei hummed distractedly. As someone who knew his fair share in soul-based sealing, he had a clear idea of how that worked. It was the pivotal point in his 'tailed beast project' which was the reason why he

was gathering the chakra of other tailed beasts. But even then, he was still stumped on how Hagoromo actually created nine different and unique beings from ONE. It can't be that the ten-tails had a multiple personality disorder, can it?

Konan was about to reply when suddenly, the barrier was shattered and the boy roared. Two arms made of chakra stretched out of his back and started smashing the buildings around. For better or worse, the people in these buildings were long dead due to the steam the boy released at the start of his rampage which cooked them almost instantly. The barrier bought at best five minutes which both Rei and Konan used to evacuate most of the slums through either paper or rock monkeys so the rampaging boy could safely smash as much as he liked without mauling anyone who wasn't already dead.

"There goes this part of the city..." Rei muttered completely unbothered as he sat up, his feet dangling down the edge of the roof. Konan sat next to him, quietly sneaking her hand into his as they together watched the boy dismantle the street with his chakra hands while analyzing the situation and the chakra usage.

It was then that the new arrival appeared. From the sky, a small shadow descended right onto the back of the boy shrouded in dark red chakra, driving him into the ground before it quickly kicked off the back of the boy in order to jump away from him. This to be the right decision as not a second after he did so, hot chakra arms pierced the spot his chest was located. Rei narrowed his eyes in displeasure as he saw who was the man who arrived. Contrary to his expectations, it wasn't Yonbi's jinchuuriki but it was the Tsuchikage himself. "It appears the Yonbi won't be appearing," He frowned bitterly. The Yonbi Jinchuuriki would already appear if he was in the village...

The fight between Onoki and Han started anew when Han sprang his body at the middle-aged midget, leaping at him like a wild animal. Onoki didn't try to block and instead jumped to the side, letting Han sail past him. Han impacted the building behind Onoki and created a new opening in its wall while the dust rose all around. Onoki carefully observed the dust-filled hole, waiting for Han to make a move when his eyes widened as a searing pain sprang up to his spine from his ankles. He suddenly found his world spinning as the chakra arm that burst from the ground and took hold of it flung his body through the street at breakneck speed, right into an opposite building. Onoki's body also created a hole.

A moment later, both combatants could be seen exiting their respective holes. Han's rampaging form crouched on all four while growling and Onoki was floating a few centimeters above the ground while his ankles were badly burned. He gritted his teeth and glared at Han's form. It was useless trying to talk to 'it'. He knew he would have to punch the boy out of this stupor and right now, he nevertheless found it to be an incredible pain in the ass.

Onoki used his Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique to fly up while Han started filling the space around him in dense steam, wrapping himself in it. Rei and Konan wondered what he was doing but their question was answered shortly when the steam, in but a second, compressed even more and formed a small ball in front of the rampaging boy's mouth. Before Onoki could even widen his eyes, the ball was flung at insane speed in his direction. He barely managed to use Earth Release: Rock skin to shield himself. Both Rei and Konan could see a big explosion of superheated steam engulfing the sky.

Onoki's body rushed out of the steam in a straight line towards the ground, making a small part of it disperse due to his sheer speed. He landed on one knee, his hand instantly landing on the ground as he shouted. "Earth Release: Heaven-reaching Pillar!" From under Han's body, an earth pillar swiftly rose, pushing him into the sky before retreating back towards the ground. Han was now in the sky and that was exactly what Onoki wanted. He pushed his battered, slightly burned body, and flew at his airborne opponent at breakneck speed, his hand reaching towards him. Onoki was hopeful when he saw his hand 'almost' reach the boy, only for his hopes to be dashed when a 'fourth' tail sprung up from behind the boy and slapped him downwards. As he was barreled towards the ground, he twisted his body and landed on his feet into a crouch. The force transmitted through his body nevertheless put a sizable dent onto the ground. A moment later, a large fist made out of smoke impacted the area, sending a shockwave all around. The battlefield stilled.

The smoke started clearing and Rei smiled helplessly as he saw the rumble that was previously the slums of Iwagakure. "That was clever." He heard Konan calmly say and couldn't help but agree. Both were using their nature sensing to have a firm grasp on what was going on even inside the steam. The steam was now almost gone, only to be completely dispersed by a savage roar, revealing Onoki gasping for air as he stood above the boy who was still clad in chakra cloak, thrashing around but unable to lift himself from the ground.

"Yeah... he created a rock clone right during the first steam bomb attack, hid it, and now used it to land the Rock-Weight Technique onto the boy... This fight is over. With the amount of gravity on the boy, he would need to go into a five-tail state and Kokuo doesn't want to be released so he would prevent it. Onoki won." Rei stated.

"A pity Onoki decided not to use his Dust style though..." Konan stoically said as she peered towards the form of the old man. She wanted to see the fabled other Kekkei Tota in existence.

"Well, you can't really blame him for that. Deserted part it may be, but this is still a part of his village. His dust techniques would completely finish it off. This damage, "Rei pointed towards the destroyed buildings and cracked ground. "will be easily repaired with earth jutsu. But if he leveled the area with Dust Release? The reconstruction would take a lot of money." Rei finished in a Kakuzu-like voice. He momentarily let go of Konan's hand and snaked his arm around her waist. "Well, dear. It's time for us to leave. Looks like the second jinchuuriki of Iwa won't be joining the party so there is nothing more to be stolen here." He quipped, and Konan, with an amused smile, leaned towards him, pecking him on the cheek.

"You shouldn't be greedy." She weakly admonished him. They already gained a library-worth of jutsu, all copies so it wouldn't seem like the jutsu are missing. Then they stole quite a lot of valuables and money which will surely be noticed... and then the stash of the explosion corps and a few documents about missions that could prove to be useful blackmail material. If she took into consideration the sample of Gobi's chakra, wanting more was just plain being greedy.

Rei chuckled at that and shrugged. "I am only a human!" He said helplessly but then turned to Konan, looking into her eyes. "You are right." He stated and kissed her on the lips. They both pulled apart after a few moments and with the last look towards the still struggling boy and tired Tsuchikage, they disappeared into Rei's dimension. Rei no longer cared about the following events and Konan... she gave one last discreet but telling glance in Onoki's direction as her lips were twisted in an amused and playful smirk. Smirk, Rei rather not comment on as he knew when she was about to pull a prank...

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Chapter 73 - Ch73. Spy Network

After Rei and Konan left Iwa, Tsuchikage was grumbling about the timing of the boy's rampage. He looked at the still struggling form of the boy who was supposed to be his nephew and with a sigh, he chopped the boy's neck, making him fall unconscious. As Onoki was waving his hand around, to soothe the burn the contact with Gobi's chakra caused, he could with the corner of his eye see some Iwa shinobi approach him. He sighed again as he saw them look around with downcast gazes when they saw the destruction the boy caused. "And it started as such a nice and calm day..." He muttered to himself. Standing up, he decided it was time to give some orders to his subordinates to clean up this mess. While he was pondering about what should be done, and who would be the most suitable person for it, around two hundred ninjas gathered around him. These were the ones that already dealt with the monkeys in their assigned regions, the so-called elites of Iwa.

Onoki straightened himself to look presentable and was about to open his mouth when...

The ground under him burst into a flurry of paper, swirling around him. Before he could even widen his eyes, the papers started gluing themselves to his body. Onoki could see the Iwa elites slightly panic before they started reacting. It took him only a second but his mind went through his entire jutsu repertoire, looking for any jutsu that could save him! In the end, he went for a simple but quick solution and toughened his skin with Earth Release, awaiting an explosion. Inwardly, he was freaking out and praying the explosive tags are of low quality so he would not incur too much damage through his rock skin jutsu. Then, a loud boom resounded and the surroundings were covered in smoke... in pink smoke.

When the smoke cleared, all elites of Iwa could see old man Onoki, the most stubborn ninja out of all rock-headed Iwa ninjas, the feared dust release user, the fence-sitter... clad in a pink tutu covered in pink glitters while he sported a heavy amount of make-up on his face. To add salt into the injury, in front of him, on the ground, was a message.

'This is punishment for not showing me Kekkei Tota, midget!'

Onoki stared with dead eyes forward, as he realized the situation he was currently in. His lips slowly started twisting into a frown as the vein on his forehead started pulsing. The old man burst into loud shouts "Shut up!" He rubbed his arm on his face to get rid of the make-up, only to make a red smudge on his face from the lipstick. The surrounding ninja started laughing at his predicament which prompted Onoki to scream even louder in his fit of rage until his back suddenly experienced a sharp surge of pain, making his eyes go wide while he dropped on his knees.

"Am I perhaps too old for this shit?" He mumbled in bewilderment, leaning forward as he held his back. This was the start of Onoki's back problems.

...

Two days later, after Rei, Konan, and Tsunade went through their rightful loot, the trio was sitting in the Capital of the Land of Water, in Biri-Biri company's headquarters, served tea by Karubo who was requested by Rei for a meeting. Rei wasn't amused by his last mission. No, he was going in kind of blind and had no information he could use. That's why he was here now instead of reporting the 'success' to the Mizukage. Yesterday he threw a scroll containing the daughter of the noble who hired them to him, with words the mission is done. In hindsight, he probably should have unsealed her but... meh. The bastard plotted against Rei and Konan and if he succeeded, both would be dead so a bit of inconvenience is the least he could expect in return.

"You want me to do what again?" Karubo asked pointedly in disbelief after he heard what Rei just told him. He couldn't believe his ears.

"You heard right." Rei nodded. "I want you to pick trustworthy employees and make them gather intelligence for me. The company is almost in every country now. It is widespread with a good reach in high places. Our merchants usually know the right people to pull this off and I know you did what I asked and mostly recruited in slums. These people will be grateful enough to do this for us."

As Karubo heard Rei, he suddenly stilled, realization sneaking into his mind. "You planned this from the start." He declared, not an ounce of doubt in his voice. "That's why you made me employ the poor. We gave them 'home' when they needed it the most. There are a lot of people willing to go quite far for the company and those that became traders are the cream of the crop out of them. The most capable..." Karubo gulped with wide eyes. "I see. They were put for that two-month-long intelligence training regime not to safeguard the company's secrets but for this."

Rei nodded. He thought quite a lot about how to make a spy network. But he didn't want to inconvenience himself. Taking care of such a network can go only in two ways. Sasori-style or Jiraiya-style. Sasori used manipulations and held something important against his spies so they won't betray him and will continue doing the job for him. He went even as far as using mind-alteration in quite a clever way. Rei could do this. He was much better with seals than Sasori. The problem was, he would need a long time to find 'informants' and put seals on them or find good blackmail to keep them in their places. Jiraya on the other hand, spent or rather, is spending quite a lot of his time managing his network. He has to be constantly aware and visit his informants quite frequently. In short, he is extremely busy. That was a no-go for Rei as he would rather spend the time with Konan and Tsunade, rather than follow Jiraya's example.

It was only after reading a yearly report on Biri-Biri company that he found out he had a perfect candidate for the spy network right under his nose! No matter how much he now tries to say recruiting the poor was for this goal, he just ordered Karubo to do this because he believed this way, the employees will be more loyal! Never did he think it would end up with them becoming spies for him! But would he actually admit he was not planning it from the start to Karubo? Of course, he would not...

"Yes, I naturally planned it all ahead! Ahahaha!" Rei confidently stated with totally honest laughter that made Konan roll her eyes at him and Tsunade almost did spit-take as she drank tea when she heard how shameless he was currently being before starting to choke. Rei just ignored the two women sitting around him and focused on Karubo who was awkwardly trying not to avert his gaze from Rei. "Here," Rei pulled a few tags from his pocket. "the new clones of mine that I gave you to produce the energy source seals can also produce these. It's a special communication tag that can cover large distances..." Rei started only to be interrupted by Karubo who had a shrewd look on his face, instantly forming a plan on how to use this for trading.

Rei just gave him a helpless look but answered. "You can talk with somebody in Suna even from here. The Land of Water is actually in a very nice location. We are in the so-called center of the known world. How the country still didn't manage to become a trading superpower with this kind of advantage will be forever a mystery for me but at least we, the Biri-Biri company can use that. You will make the company branch out to become the leader in trading in the world. I expect this to be done in three years," Rei told Karubo who nodded seriously. Three years was a tight schedule for such a goal but it was doable. Especially with all the influence the company had right now. "and while doing so, you will slowly build up the spy network from the loyal people. Choose the most loyal and capable employee to manage it. Don't do it yourself. That would be too obvious. This tag," Rei gave him one special tag that was colored differently. "can reach only its pair tag that I have on me so it is something akin to a safe channel. This will be in the hands of the manager of the network."

Karubo nodded in understanding. While he wasn't overjoyed at the prospect of having to spy on people with his traders, he was indeed interested in the idea of making Biri-Biri the number one trading company in the world. Compromises had to be done, he guessed. After all, Rei was the owner so no matter that it was he who built the company up. There was only one reaction to that. "It will be done." Karubo said confidently.

The following hours were spent in discussion about how to exactly implement the network and how to make the Biri-Biri company the best in the world. Rei was really hoping he would one day become someone who could manipulate various villages from the shadows through the economy. After all, in this world, these supernatural fighters were still under the thumb of fat bald men called Daimyo who spent most of their time screwing this or that maid. Why? Because these men had money! Even though ninjas could easily take the money from them... it was plainly said, a different mentality. A mentality, that was quite easy to use if one knew what strings to pull.

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Chapter 74 - Ch74. After-Mission Debriefing 1

Rei and Mizukage silently stared at each other while the atmosphere in the room thickened by the second. The Mizukage's piercing stare didn't waver even for a second but Rei was not much different. Both had that impassive touch in their posture that made the ANBU in the room gulp and stay quiet while with great anticipation, wait for what happens next.

Suddenly Konan cutely sneezed. And the atmosphere was instantly broken, the four ANBU even forgot to keep the flow of their chakra and face faulted to the ground from the ceiling.

The Mizukage blinked at that and Rei smirked in a victory which made the man scoff before giving a pointed glare to his ANBU who quickly scurried away from the office. He then turned back to Rei and sighed before starting to talk. "So, let's start..." Somehow, without Rei nor Konan noticing, the man actually managed to draw his trusty pipe and started... de-stressing. "Let's see, you were on a mission to retrieve the daughter of Mr. Hasadawaramaka who by the way, gave you a five-star 'should be fired' review after you left him with a scroll that 'contained' his daughter." He puffed out a bit of smoke while narrowing his eyes at Rei. After a while, Mizukage continued. "Not that it matters."

"Yeah... that was an ingenious way to deliver a hostage, wasn't it?" Rei nodded happily.

The Mizukage wisely decided to ignore the remark and continued. "Moving on. You were away barely for two weeks..." He stopped for a moment and raised his head from the documents to give Rei an incredulous look of exasperated conflict. "You left in the direction of Iwagakure." He ever-so-slowly continued, emphasizing every word. As he again grew quiet and observed Rei, he saw him and Konan look at him in confusion and 'almost!' let out a long whine.

"Look." The Mizukage put his pipe on the table and tiredly rubbed the bridge of his nose. "During these two weeks of your absence from the village, 'someone'..." He looked from Rei to Konan and back before continuing. "almost leveled Amegakure with meteorites." As he said it, his eyes watched the duo as a hawk. Konan was her usual completely stoic self which... he had no idea what it meant. But Rei was confused. That was good! That meant they had nothing to do with it. The Mizukage released a sigh of relief and threw this incident behind, a bit happier that this wasn't the work of his notorious duo. He again looked at the documents on his table and his mood again soured. One resolved, two to go. His lips twitched as he saw the next 'incident'. "The mansion you were supposed to 'secretly' and 'discreetly' infiltrate, and secure the daughter of Mr. Hanasawarukaku..."

Rei interrupted him and tilted his head. "Wasn't it Hadasawamakara before?" He nevertheless politely quieted himself as the Mizukage decided to give him his pointed 'I am so disappointed' look that was a telling sign of a leader.

"Anyway," The Mizukage continued. "Mr. Ha..." The Mizukage stopped and blinked before his eyes again narrowed at sheepish Rei who realized his topic-change no Jutsu didn't work. "You were supposed to secure the daughter of the... noble who requested you. Could you explain why I got reports of trees unceasingly raining from the sky?" Mizukage asked calmly.

Rei didn't answer and just turned to Konan with mock-confusion on his face to which the Mizukage barely held himself from scowling. Konan just tilted her head, her face still in stoic cold and impassive expression. She nodded to Rei and turned to Mizukage before speaking. "The Ame experienced a meteor shower and Iwa tree rain. Seriously, the weather these two weeks was just so inscrutable." She uttered almost boredly.

The Mizukage had no idea how to interpret that. "So... you are... acknowledging it was you?" He asked with an incredulous look to which Konan shook her head.

"I just think you should probably think of countermeasures to unfathomable weather changes. Who knows when fishes decide to rain from the sky." Konan said with such seriousness on her face that Rei had to avert his gaze and grit his teeth to hold back his snicker. Even then, he was forced to put his hand in front of his lips to cover it.

At that, the Mizukage exasperatedly sighed. He long ago realized there is just no reading Konan's expressions or body language. She was just stoic and that was it. Was this her open threat to Kirigakure? To him? Or was she actually really serious in saying that? He was utterly lost and had no idea. The only thing he could do was give a stink-eye to Rei. 'Yes. Let's focus on Rei. Nobody is threatening to exterminate your village with fish rain. Happy thoughts.' He reminded himself.

"Look Rei. I know it was a trap, alright? But..." The Mizukage again lowered his head to the documents. "The facts... more than a hundred of samurai are dead. At least 30 shinobi died there too." He said with a conflicted expression. "To each other... no less. Iwa samurai and ninja slaughtered each other." His lips curled into a smirk which he instantly forced to disappear from his face. "And worst of all, you utterly frightened Kurowa noble household of Iwagakure while destroying the right-wing of their mansion." He raised his head to look at Rei. "Under different circumstances, I would be so proud of you right now. But the problem is that due to Mr. Hawarawhatshisname, the upper echelons of Iwa know it was the work of Kirigakure's ninjas." He finished, making Rei scratch his cheek

"Uh, and that should bother me why again?" Rei asked and Konan nodded stoically, neither having a clue what this was about.

Seeing that, Mizukage rubbed the bridge of his nose again. "For starters, the Iwa demands your head." He said, making Rei's eyes narrow. The Mizukage, to his eternal dismay, even now didn't have a clear picture of Rei's strength but he knew he wouldn't want to fight him. He didn't dare to stall and keep Rei on his toes. But it was actually Konan who was making him shit his pants as he noted her dangerously narrowed eyes on her still stoic but somewhat rigid face. That girl LOVED her explosives and watching her effortlessly dispatch the seven swordsmen with her exploding clones while her real body was snacking on some sweets in tree-tops was a real eye-opener for him. No, it would be better to come out clean right at once. "I, of course, declined." He reassured the duo quickly, happy that Konan's posture relaxed. And while it was utterly irritating for him, he was glad that Rei, as always, stayed relaxed through the entire time. "This will however strain the relations between our two villages and natio..."

"Just get to the point." Rei interrupted, not interested in these talks. He knew the man was just bullshitting and trying to guilt-trip them. Since when did one ninja village care what the other thought... the notion was ridiculous. If it was true, there would be no shinobi war in the past. What they did happened quite often. Sure, it's usually on a much smaller scale but it does happen. It's not like 'they' attacked Iwa or Iwagakure... He smirked.

"Riiiight..." The Mizukage suddenly felt quite unsure of continuing this meeting. "In short... Iwa's Daimyo is not amused with the Tsuchikage due to this incident. Fortunately for us, the man is ot the reasonable sort," He wisely ignored Rei's snort. "and decided to ignore the excuse of 'it was Kiri-nin'. While it is unlikely there to be some serious repercussions for Iwagakure but the relationship between the Earth Daimyo and Iwagakure is strained. Needless to say, this destroyed any and all hopes for future alliances between our villages." The Mizukage said uncaringly.

Rei just rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms. "Which basically happens at least once per two years between all the villages due to some mission."

The Mizukage shrugged and continued in his pace. "The last thing I want to ask you about is the attack on Iwagakure..."

(Well... cutting it short as I started with enthusiasm but in the end, I just kept dragging it to have a word count. Will continue in another chapter when I get again into the mood.)

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Chapter 75 - Ch75. After-Mission debriefing 2

The Mizukage shrugged and continued in his pace. "The last thing I want to ask you about is the attack on Iwagakure." As he finished that sentence, silence fell on the room, all of them just waited for someone to start with impassive faces. The more the silence went on, the more disgruntled the Mizukage became as he was slowly understanding the duo, by being quiet, was saying they had nothing to do with it. But somehow that was hard for him to believe. The stunt was... flashy. Too flashy to not be the work of Rei and Konan. They usually make such a blizzard that it can count as terraforming or some unforgettable spectacle. A hidden village being invaded by small monkey imitations of the Third Hokage... yeah, that was EXACTLY what he would expect from them, hence his narrowed and suspicious gaze.

When the silence still didn't cease even after a while, Mizukage's eye twitched and he decided to start the conversation. "So you have really nothing to say about that?" He asked suspiciously but both Rei and Konan just wordlessly shook their head in the exact same motion. A motion that SCREAMED it was prepared beforehand. "Right." He commented dryly. "I heard the Tsuchikage got quite embarrassed..." He tried another tactic. "Something about... being made a clown of?" He inwardly hoped this would get a reaction but to his relief, it was exactly the same as after he asked about Amegakure. 'Thank God! At least my ninjas are sensible enough to not invade an enemy village and go two versus thousands by themselves! Not to say about publicly humiliating the most stubborn old geezer with the ability to hold grudges even beyond the grave itself!' He thought as his shoulders slumped in relaxation. 'I am sorry for doubting you! Now I can rest assured that my ninjas are not that suicidal!' He sniffed and resisted a joyful tear that made Rei kinda awkward.

"Anyway," The Mizukage did a sudden turn in his mood. "what exactly was the scroll that stored the daughter of the noble? I am not aware that living things can be stored." His eyes narrowed at Rei. Hiding one's skills was natural for a ninja but there were exceptions. It was the village's law that any seal-maker had to register. The amount of people capable of creating even something as simple as explosive tags was alarmingly low so for the sake of enough supply during war-time, the registration was mandatory for them.

Rei inwardly frowned. He was aware of the law but didn't really care. 'Damn... Looks like from now on, I will have to order my clones to use henge when buying chakra ink.' He thought. While it was quite suspicious that the ink sales weren't managed by the village but after a bit of probing, he found out Kiri uses special octopuses to produce it and is one of the biggest sellers of chakra ink in the Elemental Nations so there is over-abundance of it. Nobody really cared for a thing they had a lot of.

He smiled disarmingly at the S-rank killer who earned his high ranking with his ability as an assassin. It was time to do some damage control so he beamingly answered. "It's ingenious, isn't it, Mizukage-sama!? Last time we," He gestured to Konan, "were in the capital, we found out that Biri-Biri company is selling those!" Rei inwardly chuckled at the sour look of the Kage as he said this.

Biri-Biri company. The Mizukage was aware of them. One of the more 'international' companies originating in the Land of Water. A company so perfect for covert operations in other lands... And yet, he was unable to make use of them which soured his mood every time he heard of them.

Rei knew the ninja in this world wasn't ONLY about the direct approach. No... they did plant spies in merchant companies and did various underhanded tactics through them. Even economic destabilization wasn't that far-fetched. Many skirmishes near the borders actually started because of those. And it was usually the companies that took the blame when it came to light. That's why not many 'international' ones actually existed in the world. There were caravans, there were trading companies but any production or innovation-oriented companies were usually focused on their own country to avoid these things. Hence, the big technological disparity of this world.

Rei surmised this will be the reason for the starvation of Suna later on as they would just have nobody to buy from despite actually having the money for buying. Once the Daimyo was against you, the merchants would not want to trade with you due to fear of attracting his ire... and just like that, the village was cut from their lifelines and food supply. For a village without many merchants and IN an infertile desert, that was a disaster.

To make his company avoid the fate of being forced away from the international scene due to some idiotic schemes of old senile men, Rei ordered the first big work was to 'introduce' the electronic appliances to various Daimyo's. That's why when the company entered the Mizukage's or any other Kage's ears, they were powerless as the company had 'protection' of the Daimyo. Rei wouldn't allow the company to fully enter a country in which they didn't have this proverbial shield. These old schemers were utterly unable to interfere with them. As time went on, the company became more and more important for various countries... bringing even more economical gains than entire hidden villages which made them even MORE untouchable by the Kages and invaluable to Daimyo's who usually cared mostly about their own pockets. By now, the company was an internationally acknowledged 'neutral' zone for the ninja world. That's why it was only now Rei wanted Karubo to push for becoming number one. They just had enough clout for it right now.

"Ugh... this... Biri-Biri company... is selling those?" The Mizukage scrunched his face in deep regret, not even attempting to hide it from Rei and Konan who barely held back smirks. Nobody was aware of their status as owners of the company and they knew why the man was so regretful. The company originated in his own country so him being unable to make them work for him... it was a deep cut in his own pride and it wouldn't be far from the truth to say he became a secret laughing stock of other Kages.

"Yes!" Rei beamed, gleeful at the expression of the man. "They have better storage seals with thrice the capacity of current seals of Kiri while being capable of storing and preserving even food!" He exclaimed, making the Mizukage's eyes go wide, only to pale a second later when he realized they were an 'international' company... Storing food was common but preserving it for a long time? Something like that was unheard of. The implications... Rei didn't care about Mizukage's internal struggle and continued. "Even their paper tags are cheaper but more effective than the standard ones!" He said. By now, he was basically giving a sales pitch without his target even knowing it. "I am sure the company will be an indispensable part of the next shinobi war..." Rei trailed off, his smirk widening as Mizukage's face plainly showed his shock. "Don't give me that look. It is obvious even now where the shinobi villages are heading. Ten years tops and we are in another war." Rei rolled his eyes at the sheepish leader in front of him.

It was subtle. But it was obvious once one started to look deeper into what was happening in the world. The villages were gearing up. Sure, they were gearing up even in peace-times since they were basically a militaristic force but right now, the recruitment and weaponry-making was in full swing. It started with Iwa and Kumo... but the others quickly caught onto them and also started doing it. Even without his foreknowledge, Rei knew it was coming. The death of the third Kazekage would be a trigger... but it was far from the real cause. Kumo and Iwa wanted revenge on Konoha. Suna wasn't yet in dispute with their Daimyo and wanted to get fertile lands for the Land of Wind. Konoha wanted to keep their wealth and pride of being the winner. And Kiri wanted to... whatever. Rei didn't really know what the Mizukage had in mind for the upcoming 'event' but he knew the man was basically preparing a stage for it. They were Kiri, so they would act like Kiri. Most likely some blitz attack of sorts. It was just so stupid. The Land of Water didn't need lands. They were an island nation and every island in its vicinity belonged to it. They didn't NEED to join the war on the mainland. Yet, Rei knew they would be joining and had no idea WHY.

But the Mizukage just stubbornly stared at Rei, letting him know this topic was not something he would open right now. Rei could only sigh in exasperation as the man wasn't really denying it but was utterly refusing to be forthcoming with information. Five years... That's how long it would take for the third war to take off. And Rei was already peeved he had to deal with that shitstorm right now.

'Looks like it's time to progress Mei's training and think about contingency plans.' He hummed to himself. "Well, since I am clever enough to see I am not gonna get anything out of you, are we excused?" Rei asked the man who nodded. He turned around, took Konan's hand, and was about to leave when he heard the last stern statement of 'his' Kage before he closed the door.

"Keep it to yourself. Some things are better to be kept secret."

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Chapter 76 - Ch76. Year time-skip 1

Right after the mission to Iwa, Rei and Konan filled in paperwork for a long break which didn't end even after a whole year. Apparently, long breaks were not only possible but even encouraged. Being a ninja was physically and mentally demanding, plus while the payroll wasn't extraordinarily high, it was enough to save up for a few months of not having to go to missions. People did take long 'training' breaks, 'recuperation' breaks, and so on... The village system was also accustomed to this, having a flexible call system. Being on break didn't really mean not being called upon in an emergency, special request, or a mission your team was best for. In Rei's and Konan's case, it was the demolition missions. During the year, they were out of the village for a week two times too when there was nobody specialized in the requested mission but other than that, they focused on training Mei.

After their first 'outing' on the request of some noble from the Land of Noodles... again, they even managed to bring Tsunade presents! As they were coming back, they encountered a village raid by the Kaguya clan which was quite an opportunity for them since they still needed to get one Kaguya specimen for Tsunade. These raids were not actually suppressed by Kirigakure at all. The Kiri shinobi were told to 'leave them be'. The Kaguya knew their limits and didn't push it so the raids were mostly once per year. But even then, losing one village per year must have been irritating at the very least for the governors of the Land of Water. And yet, nothing is done about it. Because they were a clan that migrated from faraway land to the Land of Water during the first shinobi war. Because of their 'loyalty' to Kirigakure. The loyalty that everybody knew meant shit as nobody EVER seen a Kaguya clansman in Kirigakure. But it was a signed agreement and going back on those by the Mizukage by attacking them would be alarming to other clans.

But Rei and Konan had no such worries. Let the Mizukage deal with the fallout, they thought as they rained death upon the Kaguyas who were happily massacring and raping the defenseless villagers. The 'specimen' they 'politely' asked to come with them, was a guy around fifty who they found forcing himself on a small girl. Rei instantly thought... 'Hey, if someone deserves the tortures of Tsunade, wouldn't it be this guy?' And so, the completely voluntary participant of human experimentation was chosen.

When the people in Rei's dimension needed to realize how good they have it, they often went to hear the music of the guy as Tsunade was 'playing' with him by researching his contents. It was mostly Mei though as she was having quite a bad time by being trained to the bone by Konan and most importantly, Rei.

Rei decided that it is important to make Mei prepared no matter how young she was. If Itachi could do it, so can she. While he wasn't too harsh on her... that was Konan... he didn't let her slack off and came up with various games to keep her entertained during the training.

They played hide and seek, the ninja-style. Rei hid and Mei had to find him thanks to the prepared tracks he left behind. Once she found him, she had to chase him by any and all means necessary which more often than not meant running vertically on trees or chasing and being chased on the water surface that made Mei quite competent when it came to chakra control.

Next Rei was playing catch with Mei. He ordered her to make an orb of lava and made her keep it hot for the entire game. During it, as he was catching it with his hands covered in suiton chakra to prevent himself from getting burnt, he was also injecting a minute amount of his own chakra into it which made it harder for Mei to keep it conjured. Considering the abrupt changes in the orb she had to control, at first, the ball dissolved more often than not. But at least it was getting more fun when she actually learned how to do it. Without even noticing, Mei learned how to control her Lava Release to quite a high degree.

Rei obviously made her do much more and mostly veiled it in the disguise of games but these weren't as important nor did they do them regularly. The last thing he had her doing was more of a chore. Mei was in the duty of providing steam for the hot springs and keeping the water warm with her boil release. Simultaneously at that.

Konan, Tsunade, and Mei were in the hot springs after a hard day of training, soaking up in the water. This was their daily routine. The girls bathed with Mei to keep her company and create a sisterly bond between themselves but it was also to make sure she was not slacking off during her chor-, ahem, training. Well, most of the time. Right now, Mei was sitting in Tsunade's lap as she slept, her face buried in the woman's bust.

"She seems somewhat tired." Tsunade worriedly said as she put the palm of her hand on the girl's forehead but then realized how foolish her statement sounded as she saw the deadpan look of Konan. "Well, more than usual, I mean." She awkwardly added.

During their time together, Konan could see that Tsunade created a deeper bond with the little redhead. At times, she even suspected the blonde is channeling her regrets by showing incredible sisterly affection for her but then came the day of Tsunade's training and all suspicions of Konan are blown away due to Mei coming half-dead out of it. Tsunade was... brutal, to say the least. At least she had the common courtesy to heal any and all broken bones afterward.

"Obviously," Konan said and smiled slightly. Tsunade was utterly unsure if the smile was due to the topic or the newly finished origami that was just deposited on the water surface though. "I've been putting her through my territory training for seven hours straight." She said, making Tsunade wince.

"Did she at least reach earth papers?" She asked, protectively hugging Mei's sleeping form closer. Konan's territory training... the one with three territories of water, earth, and outer territory of wind papers. Not to say that even the outer territory was brutal but to run her through it for seven hours straight...

"Nope." Konan popped the 'p'. "She barely reached the middle of the wind zone but even that's already commendable for her age." She distractedly continued but when she saw Tsunade's reproaching look, she frowned. "What... don't give me that look! You are by far the most brutal out of the three of us." She said lazily, making Tsunade lower her head in embarrassment.

"I do it for her own good." She muttered, her fingers distractedly playing with Mei's hair.

"Sorry for springing up on you like that." Konan sighed tiredly. "It was a long day for me too. The girl just doesn't quit." Konan smiled at the oblivious Mei but then she sniffed. "I raised her so well!" Both Tsunade and Konan started laughing at that. They were aware that Konan was guiding the girl to the personality she wanted her to have. While Tsunade felt she should be put off by such a thing, Konan's arguments were just too on point for her to disagree. Cue, the will of fire. That was enough to shut her up for good.

Despite Konan's attempt to look cheerful, it was obvious to Tsunade the woman was exhausted. While Mei was trying to breach the territory of wind, Konan had to constantly supply chakra to all three of her territories to keep up appearances. It must have been incredibly chakra draining. Tsunade smirked and nudged Konan. "Don't worry. Later we will take a bath with Rei... I am sure that will 'wake' you up." She wiggled her eyebrows at her, making Konan bump her shoulder into hers.

"Ah... you pervert." Konan quietly commented while blushing slightly. This was their routine too. When Mei fell asleep, it was time for their fun time that more often than not happened in the hot springs.

"And proud of it!" Tsunade smirked and raised her chin high to show her feelings about the matter but suddenly froze when her peripheral vision caught two green orbs intently peering at her with a curious gaze, making her go rigid. "Ah? M-m-m-m-mei!?" Tsunade shrieked.

The little girl just narrowed her gaze at Tsunade. "Tsu-chan, are you a pervert?" She asked, finishing Tsunade off. Mei then turned to Konan, her face sporting a huffy pout as she asked her. "Why aren't you letting me join your fun with Rei?" She asked in true and innocent curiosity and Konan had no answer for that kind of question. She was just opening and closing her mouth, completely speechless.

After a while, Konan recollected herself while inwardly cursing Tsunade's big mouth. Her face now sported a bit broken smile as she said. "Mei-chan, it is quite late. You should go to sleep. Tomorrow you have training with Tsu." She told the girl who wasn't really bluffed into changing the topic but was instantly scooped up from Tsunade's lap by Konan's clone that proceeded to carry the flailing and protesting girl out of the hot spring while Konan chuckled. "Konan: 1, Mei: 0." Konan whispered in amus.e.m.e.nt, only to hear Tsunade's snickers.

It was only later that day, both Konan and Tsunade were groaning, huffing, and puffing from irritation as Mei decided she would not go to sleep and join the 'fun'. She might not have known what Konan and Tsunade meant but the word fun, she knew. And she wanted to have fun. Rei only chuckled as he bathed alone for the first time in a while since both Konan and Tsunade had to show Mei what they meant by 'fun', or the girl gave an ultimatum that she won't go to sleep.

"Ah~, such peace..." He leaned his head back, half-asleep in the hot springs while enjoying the irritated sounds of his women he heard through his spy seal. Who said one needed a theater to enjoy a good show?

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Chapter 77 - Ch77. Year time-skip 2

It was early and the office was yet to brighten with the morning light when two men already sat opposite each other, discussing the deviation to their plan. It should have been smooth-sailing and no disturbance should have occurred. They even expended ANBU to make sure of that and yet... Two 'anomalies' slipped through and did... something.

"All five are dead..." Danzo said to Hiruzen with cold stoicism in his voice. It didn't really matter that they were dead as that was actually the expected outcome in the plan. No, the problem was WHO was the one to kill them.

"So we have no witness." Hiruzen nodded gravely which made Danzo's one remaining eye twitch.

"What about the boy or your butt-li-, ahem, apprentice?" He almost slipped his thoughts into that statement! Hiruzen of course shot him an unamused look which was almost as threatening as a squirrel whose nut he stole but whatever. Despite that, he made a show of cowering in front of the frightening Kage...

"Minato-kun," Hiruzen started which made Danzo raise his eyebrow at the way he called the boy, "and Jiraiya naturally saw the assailants but Jiraiya thinks they were under henge." Hiruzen sadly shook his head. "Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time to see through it."

"You want to tell me five of my ROOT initiatives died during their mission and you don't even know who killed them?" Danzo asked in disbelief at what his old friend was telling him. He might have told them it was a 'dangerous' mission despite it basically being a 'suicide' mission but his ROOT was loyal to a fault! That didn't mean he wasn't irked due to them dying without even providing information about who would be able to kill them! It took him a second to recollect himself, so he rather changed the topic. "What about the girl?"

"Kushina is fine." Hiruzen said lightly but then spotted the look in Danzo's eyes and smiled. That wasn't what his friend was apparently asking about. "Don't worry. The plan is still on the right track. Despite everything, it seems our resident jinchuuriki took a liking to Jiraiya's protege. Really, young love..." Hiruzen smiled wistfully. "The job of the older generation is guiding the youngsters." Danzo only rolled his eye at Hiruzen after he heard that. As if the old monkey cared for 'young love'.

They devised a plan. Kushina would be kidnapped by his ROOT clad in Kumo uniforms and the brat would save her, woo her and then marry her, making her pump out little Uzumaki and even be glad about it. Uzumaki were people who cherished their family over anything else so as long as the jinchuuriki gained that family in the loyal shinobi of Konoha, she would never betray the village. Not that the brat knew to what degree their relationship was pre-planned. They even prepared a few 'concessions' of not putting the girl in CRA if she birthed at least four children... It would surely strengthen her and Minato's loyalty once they are married.

In his eye, it was a win-win. Just in case the girl got into her hands some delicate information about the demise of her clan. This was a fail-safe that was long overdue since the Hokage just decided throwing her to slums without care would 'build her character' and make her 'humble'. Sometimes, he had no idea what Hiruzen was thinking. Danzo saw things realistically. He would either raise her into a loyalist of such a caliber that even Hokage would be in awe, or he would do what Hiruzen did, make her suffer but offer her people who would be there for her. But no... the monkey just had to decide the girl would make 'ties' to the village by herself!

Danzo was pulled out of his reverie when Hiruzen asked a question that was nagging on his conscience for quite a long time. "Danzo... did you exterminate the Senju clan?"

Both men stared at each other impassively until Danzo softly sighed. "You know why it had to be done." He said, making Hiruzen frown but Danzo continued without minding it. "You even took Tsunade as your apprentice because of 'that'." As he said that, Hiruzen's eyes widened and gained an understanding light. "Senju were too dangerous to exist." Danzo finished and Hiruzen had a conflicted face, not knowing what to say to his friend.

Danzo knew Hiruzen for a long time and knew the man had a distinct set of priorities. The village, his family, his pupils, and then his sensei, Tobirama Senju. Danzo always thought it was a weakness even though he also held a lot of respect for the Second Hokage. But if he learned one thing under the man's tutelage, it was that the village came always first. While the village was always the main motivator behind Hiruzen's actions, he also put a big emphasis on people that were close to him. The man would never be able to 'deal' with Senju if they decided to use 'that'. Danzo looked pointedly at Hiruzen. "Only Tsunade is left. Only she has the claim." He said, his meaning as obvious as the outcome. And as Danzo expected, Hiruzen actually stood up in rage when he heard what Danzo implied.

"I won't let you kill Tsunade!" He shouted. "She is no threat to the village! She has no idea about 'it'! I made sure about that when she was a small girl! Now that her clan is dead, she has no way to find out either!" He glared at Danzo who just stoically nodded, not even slightly perturbed by the killing intent in the surroundings.

"I understand." He said and Hiruzen finally calmed down and flopped back into his chair.

He took his pipe back into his mouth and mumbled. "Tsunade has many flaws but I raised her to be loyal to Konoha first and foremost. She would never betray us, much less use 'that'." Danzo saw the confidence with which his friend said it and decided to accept it... for now. But then Hiruzen added something that stopped his mind for a second. "Same as that boy, Minato." Hiruzen said with fondness Danzo saw only seldom on his face.

Danzo didn't like that fond look. It meant Hiruzen... His eye widened as a stray thought flashed through his mind. "Hiruzen, the boy... you aren't thinking of making him Hokage, are you?" He narrowed his eye on his old friend. Lately, there was a bit too much favoritism towards the blond orphan. Sure, the boy was Jiraiya's apprentice but to give him access to the sealing and Jutsu-creation scrolls above his rank? That was foolishness in Danzo's mind. And now, the entire mission could be viewed as a way for the boy to obtain a wife. If he took out their own scheme, it would be exactly that. Under normal circ.u.mstances, the boy would face serious repercussions for leaving the village alone. But that begets the question of 'why'.

And much to Danzo's una.d.u.l.terated surprise, Hiruzen averted his gaze by lowering the hem of his hat as he put his pipe into his mouth. Danzo knew Hiruzen well enough to know what this gesture meant. "Jiraiya made a request." Hiruzen slowly said, puffing a bit of smoke from his mouth. "That boy doesn't make many requests." Danzo blinked but was quiet, appearing stoic even though inwardly he was seething. "Of course, the boy would have to prove himself to be my successor. But for that, he has time. Saving our jinchuuriki, or as the public view it, a girl from our village from the villainous grasp of Kumo, is a nice start though. Especially since we spread out how Kumo is treating female Kekkei Genkai holders to the public." Hiruzen finished. He didn't state that Jiraiya thought the boy was the prophesied savior of the world. Saying that to Danzo would be idiocy. Hiruzen held the monkey contract so he knew prophecies weren't such a farfetched thing when it came to the summons. So if the boy really was some kind of savior... Hiruzen would make him Hokage so the boy would be the savior of Konoha!

Danzo was blankly staring at him. Both knew what the one-eyed man wanted to hear. He didn't give a shit about the blond boy. Nor the request of an older boy with a penchant for whoring. He wanted to hear what this meant for their promise!

Hiruzen knew that well too and in the end, he could only sigh. "You wouldn't make a good Hokage, Danzo." He started, his voice laced with deep regret but Danzo knew it was a facade. "It would be better for the village if you stayed in the darkness. In light, we need a hero, not a schemer." Hiruzen said, almost making Danzo blanch at the hypocrisy. His years-long friend was basically carelessly throwing away his promise to give the hat to him! Once Hiruzen had enough or was bored of it, Danzo was supposed to be the Hokage... and yet. Danzo quietly turned on his heel and said only one thing before marching towards the door.

"You've grown soft, Sarutobi."

Chapter 78 - Ch78. Ringo 1

Ringo entered the office of the Mizukage after her latest mission. She yawned to her palm but shook her head to wake herself up. Lately, she was feeling utterly exhausted but it was no excuse to appear unprofessional in front of her Kage. "Jonin Ameyuri reporting."

"Ah, Ringo..." The Mizukage nodded cheerfully in her direction, almost making her blanch at the amount of liveliness the man was showing while she was close to being dead on her feet. "I heard about your last mission..." The man said and this time, all cheer was gone from his face. "Care to explain... that?" He asked.

A staring match between him and Ringo ensued. They were glaring at each other with fervor, only to be separated by a fake cough coming from the corner. "Aren't you glad you put her up to this test, dear?" A voice laced in sarcasm resounded the office. They turned around only to see Himeno standing there which made the Mizukage instantly gain an embarrassed expression while Ringo furrowed her brows.

"Anyway... couldn't you use less force, Ringo?" The Mizukage tried to change the topic. "You completely crushed the man's balls."

Ringo just tilted her head and asked innocently. "I was trying to 'hit' on him, though?" It was said with such a clueless-sounding voice, Himeno actually started wheezing in laughter but to the Mizukage, it wasn't amusing at all. The man who Ringo was sent to seduce was one of their main informants. He was providing information for a 'special' service of a kunoichi. The man was kind of sick and often managed to make even the kunoichi sent to him need a month-long break afterward. But he was very good at providing intel. This time, the Mizukage sent Ringo to please the man but apparently, Ringo's idea of seduction is to take the man's ball into her hand and squeeze until the entire tavern could hear a loud 'pop' followed by an inhuman scream. Needless to say, the Mizukage wouldn't need to send another kunoichi to satisfy the man ever again. He wasn't amused at all! When he said f.u.c.k... he meant f.u.c.k! He was about to reprimand the woman who went against her orders when Himeno's voice interrupted his angry thoughts.

"Ringo... you are still a v.i.r.g.i.n?"

The Mizukage's mind halted at that as his eyes snapped to the wielder of Kiba.

"Yes." Ringo averted her gaze towards the ground, making both Himeno and the Mizukage speechless. How could that be possible when...

"But... what about the mandatory deflowering in the academy?" The Mizukage voiced out only for Ringo to show a sheepish look.

"I avoided it by not showing up." She said plainly and Himeno snorted. It was a barbaric tradition of Kiri but she had to agree that it had its merits. There was a reason why the academy instructors were usually handsome chunin. Before graduation, every girl is 'recommended' and assigned a night when she is supposed to show up in the house of the chunin instructor for her ... ugh. Many girls actually already had a crush on their instructors by that time so it wasn't that hard to have s.e.x with them. They were, after all, still naive girls. Himeno didn't like it but clans did something similar too.

"Ringo," Himeno started, pursing her lips. "I won't admonish you for avoiding it. A lot of girls do. While it is mandatory, nobody is going to enforce it." She carefully tried to find the correct words. "But..." Himeno gave Mizukage a sheepish look before she sighed and continued, words flowing from her despite her far-away look. "I lost my v.i.r.g.i.nity when I was ten to Yuki clansman. I wasn't asked about my opinion. I was just led to a room with other girls my age and we were told it was tradition. We were little girls and so, we did as we were told. It was painful but not as much as my daily training. Then it was pleasurable and we just went with it. I don't even remember the name of the man who took my v.i.r.g.i.nity. I am sure he is alive and living in the Yuki compound. Surely, we walk around each other on daily basis but I really don't remember him." Himeno said, refusing to look in the direction of her lover, the Mizukage. She took another deep breath before continuing. "But I don't regret giving it to him. My first jonin sensei wasn't very skillful and on my first mission, I was captured and r.a.p.ed." Hearing that, Ringo's eyes slowly widened. "I was an eleven-year-old and genin but my opponent was chunin, I somehow managed to be pulled away from my team. Long story short, it wasn't pleasant. But the chunin didn't kill me and I already knew how having s.e.x felt like. I waited for him to climax and then as he was mentally high on the pleasure I swept kunai from his pocket and slit his throat. I remember being showered in blood..." Himeno chuckled dryly. "There is a reason deflowering is a tradition of Kiri. It helps our kunoichi to react during these kinds of situations and makes seduction missions easier to digest." Himeno then looked Ringo straight into her eyes. "You are shinobi. A weapon. But you are also a woman and that means even your cunt is a weapon. Use it." She said straightforwardly but Ringo didn't nod or show any sort of agreement. She... couldn't.

In the end, it was the Mizukage who interrupted the women and decided to just get on with the reporting. It didn't take long for it to finish. "Ringo, Rei invited you to his house today." He said as Ringo was leaving the office. "You have three days off."

Three days off... She didn't have more than one free day she usually spent sleeping for a year now. Ringo smiled and decided to not think about it as she craved meeting Rei from the depth of her soul.

In the office, Himeno turned to Mizukage when the door closed. "I told you to NOT make Ringo go on seduction type of mission and yet you wanted to make her accept the request of Daimyo's third son?" She asked, peeved.

"But he requested her..." The Mizukage weakly tried to defend himself.

"You know well he wanted to only f.u.c.k her! How many of our kunoichi did you already send to satisfy that little pig! You didn't even want to give her a choice in the matter! What do you think would happen if I didn't talk you into testing her by sending her on a similar type of mission with a less important target?" Himeno said angrily and the Mizukage could only cower in his seat. "She would have killed the third pig of the Daimyo! That's what!"

The Mizukage reluctantly nodded. "I know... I know now." He whined. "But we need the money he would be willing to provide! You know as well as me that war is starting. Every single of the seven swordsmen is continuously sent on missions to get us rid of high-profile targets outside our country while the clans handle killing opposition inside of our country. I have to juggle so many doc.u.ments on a daily basis and then get funding and, and, and..." He looked dismayed.

Himeno stood up and hugged his head to her stomach as she coursed her fingers through his hair. "Don't worry. Maybe you should be more open though? If you admitted the war was coming, you could use more shinobi on these missions?" Himeno stated only for him to shake his head.

"That would be alerting our enemies and the targets would be more protected. We are making it seem erratic and as coincidental deaths for now but if I admitted us hunting the people down... I am sure there are enough spies in the village to actually pass the info to the other Kages. It would just accelerate the war which is not desired." He droned out, making Himeno frown.

"You want us to join the war due to Marika, right? Don't you think it's too much to do this out of personal grudge?" She tried but the Mizukage was too stubborn.

"No... my sister had to bite off her tongue to stop being humiliated by Konoha shinobi. I will have my revenge." His eyes burned as he said that and Himeno knew this was the prime motivator that made her man able to become Kage. He wanted to one-up Konoha in such a way, they would lick their wounds for years. He wanted them to suffer. Sadly, it often clouded his judgment.

Himeno sighed as she looked out of the window, into the mist. 'And again, it would be me who would have to run damage control.' She sighed again but then her lips twisted into a smile when she felt Mizukage's hands on her ass. She looked down, only to see his mischievous gaze peering at her. 'But what else can I do when I love this man so much? A pity my clan wants this war to go on and father forbid me to use my womanly charm to change your mind, dear. Bloodshed it is, then.' She lowered her head, her lips meeting the Mizukage's.

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Chapter 79 - Ch79. Ringo 2

Ringo was invited to Rei's house which didn't happen nearly as often as when she was under his tutelage as both were fairly busy. Her training to be the wielder of Kiba was long ago finished when she slit the throat of the previous wielder and took the blades for herself and she thought she would be freer but contrary to her expectations, her missions just pilled up and she was barely in the village. She had no idea what this invitation was about but she was sure the reason she was not on a mission right about now had something to do with it. After all, Mizukage really listened to Rei's requests. Nevertheless, it made her feel happy that Rei wanted to meet her.

She was in front of Rei's door when she knocked. They opened but nobody was behind them which made Ringo frown. She raised her guard but inwardly she was thinking this was just another of her sensei's poor attempts at joking. With a sigh, she advanced forward, coming to the living room that was completely dark. She furrowed her eyebrows and was about to use her lightning to light up the room a bit when suddenly, the lights went on and she was deafened by a shout.

"Happy birthday!" Rei exclaimed and had to instantly duck Ringo's shurikens. Ringo watched him laugh merrily as her cheeks went beep red when she realized why she was called here. The room was filled with various cakes and on the table were... presents. She actually forgot she was fifteen today! Her mind suddenly halted as she realized one important thing. Rei... remembered her birthday. A lone tear fell down her cheek, she quickly wiped it out, pretending to rub her eye.

"Thank you." Ringo said with a slight smile decorating her face as she came closer and sat next to Rei, biting her lower lip as their shoulders touched. Ringo was speechless. This was the first time she actually celebrated her birthday like this! Rei usually prepared a cake and a present but more often than not, it was in the middle of the mission and they didn't really have proper time for it. But now... She could see Konan smirking at her. The blond old woman sitting in the nearby armchair was for some reason frowning. Then there was the little girl who was sitting in the lap of the old blonde, she was for some reason intently staring at her with ... competitive... gaze. And Rei was smiling at her. But they all were here because they remembered her.

The evening went on as Ringo chatted with Rei and the women, exchanging their experiences during these past two years since she stopped being Rei's apprentice. Ringo really had a good time and it proved to be incredible relaxation from the unending stream of assassinations she was lately assigned.

"Are you okay?" Rei asked her. "You really look kind of tired." He put his hand on her cheek, making Ringo freeze for a moment before she leaned into the touch with a happy smile.

"Yes." She lowered her head in content. It didn't take long though as she could see Rei frown at her which made her stop pretending and release a tired sigh, her head lowering even more, this time in bitterness. "No. The number of people who have a meeting with shinigami is somehow picking up and up and up... I have barely time for sleeping." She bitterly laughed, dragging her hand across her eyes. She just came back from a mission when the Mizukage told her about Rei's invitation. Sadly, she didn't get even an hour of sleep before the agreed time.

Rei pursed his lips as he knew what this meant. The war was getting closer. Ringo is the best tracker in Kiri but due to his tutelage, she is also exceptional at hiding and sneaking around. No longer was she some kind of loudmouth who would just barge in swinging her swords. Rei heard she became a kind of a most sought-after assassin of Kiri. As he looked at his exhausted apprentice, he could do only one thing. He patted her head. "You should take better care of yourself." He told her but doubted she would listen. Kiri was too important for her and if Kiri wanted something... Rei could only sigh and shake his head. "Well, time for presents." He said cheerfully, making Ringo glad he changed the topic.

Ringo was given various presents from the people around but it was nothing extremely pricy or important. Pajamas, jutsu scroll, instant ramen from Tsunade... That's why Rei's last gift made her stop in her tracks. He took out... two swords. The swords were both shortswords, both were the same length as Kiba which made Ringo inwardly pleased as she spent a lot of her time practicing with swords of this length. But these swords were more katana-like, straight, with only one edge rather than being double-edged like Kiba. The craftsmanship was exquisite, making the swords appear elegant but Ringo knew they were crafted to kill and bisect. Not unlike Kiba, her lightning chakra was almost eager to enter the blade which made her gulp. The 'blunt' edge however wasn't harmless and contained a minuscule sharp saw-like jagged 'edge' that would be able to cleave through people with ease even though it would be a more brutal, bloody, and forceful way of killing.

Ringo blinked at him as she didn't expect receiving swords. She had her Kiba, after all. She took them into her hands with a weird look on her face only to then show an utter astonishment. The swords in her hands were... better. Better than her Kiba! Sharper, more durable, and more importantly, better at channeling lightning chakra! Ringo gulped again and looked shakily at Rei, her mouth opening but no sound came out of it.

Rei smiled at her, putting his finger on her chin as he gently closed her mouth. "I wanted you to have spare swords." His hand then went from her chin to her right wrist, pulling it closer to himself as he unrolled her sleeve. He nodded as he saw the storage seal he painted on her wrist years ago. Rei then deposited both swords into the seal, puffing them out of existence before looking back at Ringo's face. "Kiba... has a reputation. But it is a reputation brought out by its former wielders." He told the girl. "You can continue it, sure... but you would be forgotten as another wielder takes it into his hands. If..." Rei showed a hint of conflict on his face but it disappeared as soon as it came. "If you ever feel the need to create your own legend, independent of Kiba, use the swords I gave you, alright?"

"But... the price." She almost couldn't believe her eyes. Both of these were not only made from chakra metal but a special kind of chakra metal that was also used to craft Kiba! It was a metal that would be a national treasure worth billions of Ryo and the entire country would be elated to have enough to craft one sword! Yet, here she received two? Her head almost spun and her throat went dry. She was a swords-maniac but even she didn't dare to think about something like this being real.

"Mah, mah~. don't mind i-." Rei said lightly while waving his hand from side to side. Unknown to Ringo, Rei had enough of this metal in his dimension to actually gear up the entire country... Before he could even finish that sentence, Ringo kissed him.

Tsunade frowned and quickly covered the eyes of the pouting Mei as she saw Ringo losing control. Ringo didn't care anymore and let her instincts take over. As her tongue invaded Rei's mouth, her hand quickly went into his pants and grasped his member. She was m.o.a.ning from all the pent-up l.u.s.t that was going through her and the only thing she could think about was finally getting what she wanted. She knew Rei could stop her any time so she wasn't afraid of forcing him. If he didn't want it, he would push her away so she pushed forward. She wanted Rei!

Ringo already forgot the presence of anyone other than Rei so when Konan sporting a twitching eye-brow stood behind her, she only continued to m.o.a.n into Rei's mouth, not even realizing the ticked-off predator behind her. Rei could only give Konan a bitter look that stopped the bluenette in her tracks. A sad frown appeared on her face. She knew Rei had feelings for Ringo but... 'Ah, f.u.c.k it!' She inwardly thought and even though her expression was the perfect example of stoic, she was mentally thrashing her head around in frustration. 'Rei... if you don't want to beat it into the thick skull of the horny primal bitch, I WILL!' Resolve flooded her as she grabbed the back of Ringo's neck. Ringo momentarily stopped licking Rei's mouth but she didn't have a long time to ponder about what was happening as Konan shunshined away, dragging the girl with her.

It was time for a long talk. A talk that was long overdue.

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Chapter 80 - Ch80. Ringo 3

Konan arrived on their 'privatized' training ground via shunshin and harshly threw Ringo on the ground into the grass. Taking up a posture with crossed arms she waited until the redhead recollected herself, staring at her impassively.

It took Ringo a few moments to finally recollect herself. She could still feel Rei's lips when suddenly, she was yanked away by her neck! Of course, she would be disoriented! This was worse than any ambush in the field! Not even her instincts could catch such a treacherous strike! "What was that for!" She exclaimed and frowned when she saw Konan take out her small battle fan. Ringo instantly knew Konan meant business. She stood up and drew her Kiba blades. "What's gotten into you?" She asked Konan as she crouched down in preparation for the battle but Konan didn't answer. She just continued to stare at Ringo with her cold gaze.

Konan didn't like Ringo. She didn't mind Tsunade as the busty blonde came to them already prepared to forsake her former loyalties for Rei. No matter what it would take, Tsunade would go to admirable lengths for Rei. Konan could feel that during their joining and it made her begrudgingly accept and respect the blonde woman. Mei, on the other hand, was young and malleable. Konan had every intention to mold that girl into a woman worthy of keeping around. She would teach the girl a lot but she also expected a lot in return. Well, it was not like she was maliciously plotting against the girl. In the end, Mei would come out of it better than ever.

But Ringo was a different case. Ringo was half-assed. She wanted to be near Rei without giving her all to him. That, Konan didn't like. That, Konan couldn't allow. Because of that, she was now in an internal conflict of how to deal with it. Rei told her long ago he would probably have more women around him and she accepted. But she also decided to 'manage' this 'harem' of his and make sure her 'sisters' would be kept in line. Tsunade understood that and if Ringo wanted to become Rei's, she would too. But first, Konan had to give the girl a proper physical beating followed by a verbal rant. That however didn't mean Konan had to like it. "You are lucky Rei is fond of you. Otherwise, I would cut you down right here and now." Konan said quietly but for Ringo, it was as if somebody deafened her as Konan's bloodl.u.s.t fell on her shoulders, making her slightly shudder. She was well aware of how dangerous Konan was.

Ringo didn't have time to contemplate the words she just heard from Konan. Before she even managed to widen her eyes in surprise, she was forced to block Konan's fan with her right Kiba blade. The second she blocked Konan's strike though, Konan twisted her wrist which made her fan push the Kiba blade to the side, and due to the speed of Konan, Ringo barely managed to block the second follow-up strike with her left Kiba blade. As their weapons touched, Ringo let a pulse of electricity run through her blade, creating a slight pushing force that made both women step back, ending the short exchange.

"Why did you attack me?" Ringo asked while her eyes dutifully watched Konan and her senses were scouting the surroundings for any surprise attack.

"You still don't get it, do you?" Konan commented coldly with a disappointed undertone, raising her fan in front of herself, unfolding it. Ringo could see Konan's chakra flooding the fan and gulped when she saw the paper part of it glow in a slight blue glimmer, signifying a very concentrated wind chakra. She instantly pushed lightning chakra into her blades in full throttle and coated them in it. She believed that nothing except her best would manage to block Konan's wind coating. Despite everything, Ringo wasn't afraid.

"This will not go like our last duel." Ringo said with narrowed eyes. "It's been two years and I became a much better swordsman during that time." In response, Konan only impassively raised her eyebrow, not deeming it worth it to answer.

As a breeze passed through the clearing, both women sprang up towards each other, clashing in a flurry of violent strikes, creating slight shockwaves that ravaged the ground as they danced dangerously around, leaving devastation behind. The longer their furious quick exchanges lasted, the more obvious Konan's disadvantage became. She just wasn't a melee-oriented fighter. Ringo was pushing her back quite easily even though it was an incredibly frustrating battle for her. Konan was always on defense. Deflecting and redirecting Ringo's slashes in a way that would disrupt Ringo's tempo and make her momentarily falter. Every time the lightning and the wind coating clashed, it would make the weapons bounce from each other. Ringo preferred a more instinctual approach to fighting but against Konan who had every move planned beforehand, it just didn't fare well. Worse yet, Konan's face was completely stoic and relaxed even though she was being pushed back!

The more time passed, the more frustrated Ringo became as she just couldn't get a proper hit in even though it was plainly obvious she was a better melee fighter. She was more proficient with her chosen weapon, she was stronger, faster, more experienced in melee clash, and yet... Every hit of hers was mitigated. She got impatient. And...

"Lighting Release: Lightning Rod!" Ringo shouted as she jumped two steps back and her right hand rose towards heaven, pointing the tip of her Kiba blade at the clouds while her other Kiba blade in her left hand pointed at Konan. They weren't even five steps away from each other so Ringo was sure she would hit! She however didn't spot Konan's slight smile when she started her Jutsu.

Konan was practically goading Ringo to use ninjutsu the entire time. She knew she was worse than Ringo in weaponry but that didn't mean she could not defend herself. The tessenjutsu was very good in this regard and her wind was counter to Ringo's lightning. Konan could go for hours like this, chipping Ringo's stamina bit by bit but she decided to change this clash into ninjutsu one. Konan decided Ringo needed a proper reality check if her words should have the desired effect on the girl. As Ringo started her Jutsu, Konan also started hers.

"Wind Release: Swirling Winds." A protective barrier of rotating winds instantly appeared around Konan.

Ringo's Jutsu took only a second and a lightning strike fell from the sky, impacting Ringo's right Kiba. It then got redirected to her left sword which aimed at Konan, releasing concentrated and very dense lightning in her direction. But at the same time, the swiftly swirling wind barrier around Konan started spreading outwards, creating layers of winds around her. The two attacks met with a deafening boom and a shockwave spread through the clearing, flattening the grass and even cracking the bark of some trees at the edge. The result showed immediately as Ringo was sent flying by Konan's wind Jutsu until her body impacted the ground and uncontrollably rolled on it for a bit before she sprang herself onto her feet, panting slightly. Konan just stood in her initial spot with a slight provoking smile on her face.

"You know," She started. "in our line of work, it's not brute strength that wins most of the fights. Instead, it's some sleight of hand or a trick. Sure, having overwhelming power helps but it's not really that important." Konan told Ringo, making her furrow her brows. Konan didn't care about Ringo's internal musings and sprang herself towards her, swinging her fan. Ringo quickly put one Kiba blade in front of her chest with the intention to block but Konan was determined to prove her earlier statement. The wind coating on her fan quickly dissipated mid-swing, only to be instantly replaced by earth chakra coating which made Ringo open her eyes wide but she wasn't able to react. Both wind and earth countered lightning but both did so in a different way. The wind cut through it, figuratively speaking, while earth absorbed and nullified it.

Konan's fan hit Ringo's Kiba blade and instead of the awaited pushing force from the clash of wind and lightning, Ringo's Kiba's lightning coating was weakened and Konan's earth-hardened fan smashed right through Ringo's defense, hitting her chest, sending her rolling on the ground.

"As I said... just a little trick and you are already done." Konan calmly stated. Ringo stood up, spit a bit of blood to the side, and with a glare readied her Kiba for another round. She couldn't help but feel as if she was again that twelve-year-old girl who was continuously getting smacked around by Konan.

The clash continued... but this time, it was Ringo who was being pushed away. Konan was swapping wind and earth coatings according to the situation and Ringo was unable to react. She tried various lightning Jutsu and Konan was actually impressed at her repertoire when the count passed twentieth B rank Jutsu but the result didn't change. Ringo was getting smacked throughout the clearing no matter what she tried.

It took three whole hours for the battle to end. Ringo was panting sprawled on the ground while Konan was still her calm and collected stoic self, standing above her impassively. She looked towards Ringo, noting she had her full attention. "Ringo, no matter what you do, Rei will never accept you. Do you know why?" Konan asked and happily watched as the girl on the ground gnashed her teeth at her. "It's because he can't trust you." She said, making Ringo's breath hitch but Konan continued, not minding it. "Your priority is Kiri. Rei can never be sure that you just won't backstab him, you know? Unless you rethink your priorities, I would advise you to try and change the target of your affections. I won't accept a potential backstabber near Rei either. If you try..." Konan looked straight into Ringo's eyes to emphasize how serious she was. "I will end you." She plainly told the girl and shunshined away, leaving Ringo's beaten form in the clearing.

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Chapter 81 - Ch81. Yet another timeskip

Author Note:

Guys... about the ages of the characters, Mei is nine. The age of Konan, Rei, and Tsunade doesn't matter as they won't really age. Just think of them as 20 or something. As for Ringo, she should have been 16 right now. But really, don't take ages too seriously as even I started to have a problem keeping up with all ages of characters through these time skips.

--

Mei sprang up on her feet and quickly jumped to the side to avoid a stomp from Rei.

"Good! You are getting quicker." She could hear but her mind had no time to react as yet another punch flew at her and she had to quickly decide where to dodge next. It was then she spotted Tsunade hiding behind a tree so she nimbly jumped towards it, evading Rei's punch. Rei didn't dally and followed her. He obviously knew Tsunade was hiding there but this was training so he played along with Mei's strategy and gave chase. The second he was close to the tree, Tsunade punched it which broke it in half and sent the upper half flying as Rei jumped above it to avoid it. Mei was already prepared for that and Rei was met with a lava bullet to the face... only to melt into water.

"Water Clone!" Mei exclaimed and instantly ducked. Not out of instinct but due to her being used to Rei mostly getting above the belt strikes when she is distracted. Rei was actually quite surprised the girl noticed this little flaw of his fighting style but he just continued doing so as it made it easier for Mei. Right now, he needed to give her some foundation and made her start using her senses and instincts during the battle. If she started to notice flaws in his way of fighting then clearly, he was doing something well.

He also had to jump back as Tsunade went for a save by trying to engage Rei in a fight. He stood opposite Mei and Tsunade who were watching him intently, looking for any opening. Mei was learning teamwork right now so she and Tsunade were trying to fight against Rei. The catch was in the fact they were forbidden to verbally communicate and Tsunade reacted only when it was necessary. Mei was forced to do all the work. Mei was forced to read Tsunade's body language to know what she would do next. Mei was also forced to create openings for Tsunade as she only joined the fight when the opportunity for a good strike arose. But most of all, Mei was forced to 'survive' while Rei attacked. He may have lowered his strength and speed so she could match him but as the fight went on, he was steadily increasing it.

As she ducked, she put her hands on the ground, springing her body into a handstand and her feet kicked towards Rei who blocked her kick with his right forearm and then twisted his arm to grab her ankle in one fluid motion. Rei often told Mei that this should never happen and even Tsunade didn't try to save Mei as she got caught due to her stupidity. Rei raised his hand and lifted the girl he was holding by her ankle until her eyes met his. He was momentarily amused by her scowl as she dangled upside down in the air but it was time to admonish her. "Mei-chan..." He eye-smiled. "What did we say about providing the enemy an opening like that? Clearly, you were supposed to either use ninjutsu or kunai there! Not trying to be cool by doing a handstand kick." He told her while shaking his hand up and down and with it, Mei.

"But..." Mei tried to protest but Rei stopped her by whipping his hand to the side, throwing her away. She did a few rolls in the air until she twisted her body in such a way that she landed on her feet into a crouch.

"Again." Rei sternly said and their training continued.

...

Rei sat down next to Konan on the blanket she prepared and started munching on a sandwich. "Hmm, these are good." He offhandedly told Konan who hummed in acknowledgment, her eyes watching Tsunade spar with Mei after their teamwork training was done.

"One more year and Mei will be ten." Konan said and Rei sighed. Ten years of age meant graduation. Graduation meant killing a classmate. "Are you sure you don't want to tell the Mizukage to get her through it via clan member graduation?" Konan asked.

Clan member graduation didn't require one to kill a classmate as clan children usually didn't even join the academy and instead were home-schooled until they were assigned to a team. This proved to be the right choice however as the clan kids were more prepared for shinobi life than the kids from the academy even after their first kill.

"I know Mei already had her first kill but I want her to kill someone by her own choice, not by a stupid coincidence of having her bloodline acting up." Rei said. It might be cruel that a ten years old kid would die due to his decision but this was bloody mist. Things like this were quite common here and Rei's priority was Mei. If it meant he would have to be cruel, then so be it.

"Okay." Konan said and kissed Rei. "Don't worry. I made sure she would be mentally prepared for it." She stated. It was then they saw Mei about to score a hit onto a Tsunade, only for a bone to stick out of Tsunade's forearm, blocking Mei's fist. "Who would have thought Tsunade would be able to replicate Kaguya's Kekkei Genkai." Konan dryly said.

Tsunade was working with their Kaguya 'guest' for more than a year and every time she experimented, her expression was getting brighter and brighter until one day she proudly and smugly showed Rei and Konan her new Bloodline. Apparently, she found out how Kaguya's body works and why they could do what they could do, and the rest was easy for her. With a bit of medical treatment, Tsunade made herself able to utilize the Shikotsumyaku. She said it wasn't even that hard.

"Must be nice..." Konan whined. "To be smart." If there was one thing she was jealous of when it came to Tsunade, it was this. Despite not looking like it, Rei knew that Konan wanted to get stronger because she knew only strong people won't be trampled upon. And when Tsunade's strength rose by a magnitude just by getting the Kaguya bloodline... Even Konan got a bit mad.

Rei just quietly patted her head in order to calm her down. "You have your own strengths."

Konan smiled at that but then her expression darkened. "What about Ringo?" She asked. They had a fight because of what she did but it didn't really last that long. Both she and Rei couldn't stand being angry at each other so their 'fight' didn't last even half a day. But since then, they haven't seen Ringo at all. For the entire year at that. Rei was quite exasperated because of that but he was slowly accepting it. Konan however didn't regret anything because she knew what she said had an effect on the girl. But even then she had no idea it would take so long for Ringo to come to terms with it! It was an entire year already!

"Last I asked she is being run ragged by the assassination missions. She has at least two per month." Rei said with a sigh.

"Yeah... we should probably start preparing for the war too." Konan said, knowing full well that Rei had non-stop ten clones making seals for their use. They knew it was coming and they were doing their damnedest to prepare. She frowned. "Mei will be genin for one to two years before the war starts."

"I guess we'll just have to trust she will be ready." Rei said shruggingly, making Konan snort.

"She is already on the level of chunin and that's without talking about her bloodlines you so painstakingly nurture." Konan rolled her eyes. "I am more afraid of her mental side rather than her skills. She is too youn-"

"But so were we." Rei interrupted her and looked her in the eyes which calmed her down.

"I suppose that's right." Konan nodded. "Well... I think we will just have to adjust her mentality..." Konan let out a long whine. "That means shitty missions." She let herself fall on her back.

Rei just smiled and leaned onto her, giving her a quick kiss. "That means shitty missions." He quipped amusedly.

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Chapter 82 - Ch82. Meeting 1

Tsunade was walking on the streets of Kirigakure in her disguise as an old lady. As she promised to the Mizukage, she often worked at the hospital and helped with the healing. Despite that, she never really went out of her way to show her expertise. Till now, she was still regarded only as someone who can deal with bruises and cuts at best. Thanks to that, nobody really expected her to come and help. She was more of a volunteer who helped only when she had free time. Because of her 'inexperience', she was mostly assigned civilians or academy students as her patients and due to that, she was well regarded among the non-shinobi population of Kirigakure and people usually greeted her quite a lot. She had her reputation, after all.

Lately, however, she didn't really have time to just go and turn off while healing people. She was too engrossed in practicing with her new bone-manipulation and with the war coming... Tsunade knew she would most likely be recalled to Konoha in due time so she was currently devising a plan on how to 'avoid' that fate.

Her new bone-manipulation... Now that was a coincidence of her lifetime. She found out, Kaguya clansmen had a special body but it was too special even by the Bloodline standards and when she first started to study it more deeply, she even marveled at it, thinking if they could still be called humans. They didn't only have the ability to manipulate their bones but also could make slight changes in their bodies like creating openings for their bones to stick out and then reseal those. Contrary to the popular belief, it wasn't a fast regenerative factor but actual body manipulation. Thanks to this, Tsunade became even more durable and since her bones were now extremely strong, she could load more chakra into her strength technique without fear of breaking her arm.

The thing was, the specialty of Kaguya somehow, and she had no idea how, complemented the special body of Senju! When she found out, she spent days on end looking for why. Unfortunately, she never once thought about asking Rei...

Anyway, she found out she could possibly 'awaken' this bloodline after implanting the bone marrow of Kaguya into her body. And when she was completely sure it was safe, she instantly decided to do it. Konan was not the only woman of Rei who wanted to get stronger for his sake, after all. With two shadow clones to do the surgery and turning off her pain receptors, it was a breeze. Her Senju physique clicked seamlessly together with her new Kaguya one.

It was only when she bragged to Rei afterward and mentioned this little fact, Rei surprised her by telling her about the legend of Rabbit Goddess. Her first feeling was... being glad Senju never mixed with Uchiha. To think that Sharingan was just a downgraded version of even stronger dojutsu... She was aware of Eternal Mangekyo but to think there was something even more powerful... Her second thought was being glad the legend was so forgotten. Hyuuga had a massive ego even without knowing the progenitor of chakra had Byakugan.

Finally, it made her realize that if these bloodlines came from one body, then it should naturally be possible to 'unite' them to one body again. Maybe that's why she didn't feel any 'resistance' from her new Kaguya 'part'. This little tidbit had dangerous implications and it wouldn't do for anyone getting to know the truth. She had no idea how Rei knew and both she and Konan refused when he offered to tell them. But she didn't really dwell on it.

As she was walking through the streets, she suddenly saw a familiar man. Her eyes widened and her jaw almost dropped at the sight. "How the hell did he get here?" She mumbled for herself and instantly ducked into the side-alley.

There, she quickly altered her facial features to slightly different ones and her blonde hair colored themselves brown. Stepping outside, she hightailed it towards the man who was making a fool out of himself right in the middle of the street. Tsunade fancied herself a patient woman but she had her breaking point. Unfortunately for the man, just seeing him was enough for Tsunade to reach it.

She took his ear into her hand so quickly he didn't even manage to spot her as she sneaked up on him and dragged him away from there while he was groaning and m.o.a.ning in pain from being dragged by ear. The entire village had a show out of it.

When they finally reached training grounds, Tsunade finally released the man and crossed her arms under her chest. "What are you doing in Kirigakure, Jiraiya?" She asked in a stern tone.

Jiraiya went instantly rigid. He knew that stern, unamused, and irritated voice. He gulped. "Tsu-Tsu-Tsunade!?" He babbled out bewildered.

Tsunade sighed to herself and released... well, not really, she just altered her transformation technique to look like her 25 years old self. "Yes... it's me." She admitted.

"What are you doing in Kiri!" Jiraiya asked, making her roll her eyes.

"That's my question."

"I am gathering intel!" He exclaimed proudly only for his face to pale at her next question.

"In a brothel?" Tsunade asked unamused. Before Jiraiya could spout more nonsense about why he was there... and to avoid him asking uncomfortable questions, Tsunade continued. "And here I thought I would be able to take a calming bath in the famous bathhouses of Kiri..." She knew Jiraiya would be suspicious and most likely won't really fully buy her excuse but she didn't elaborate further. His thoughts were his own and she already gave her explanation. "My holidays are ruined. To think I would see you here... In the middle of a hostile village. Your sneaking skills are really top-notch." She said dryly, diverting the topic by praising him while also dissing him. For all of his skill, Jiraiya had one glaring fault and Tsunade was very aware of it. He loved her. Well, not like he would ever get her to sleep with him but damn if it wasn't useful sometimes.

"Hehe! Of course! After all, I am the Gamma-Sennin!" Jiraiya cluelessly boasted, ignoring her fed-up tone... or at least he appeared clueless. Tsunade knew how sly her teammate was. He was even worse than Orochimaru. There was a reason why he took the spot of the favorite of Sarutobi from Orochimaru, after all. "But even then seeing you here is a surprise..." He narrowed his eyes and mentally went through every rumor he heard from Kirigakure... there was this one blond 'nurse' helping in Kiri hospital but he doubted Tsunade would be stupid enough to do that. That would be treason, after all!

"I guess this really means the war is on the horizon." Tsunade sighed, making Jiraiya uncomfortably shuffle. "Oh, stop pretending. We are both too experienced to not see it." She rolled her eyes at him, making him laugh awkwardly. "I doubt you are here to summon me, however... right, spymaster?" She snorted.

Jiraiya amusedly shook his head and said. "No, no... Sensei is still a bit sad about how you parted the last time." Suddenly, his face morphed into a serious one. "But yes, the war is inevitable now. In a decade at most, it will start."

As he said that, Tsunade resisted the urge to grin. This was what she wanted to hear. Seeing Jiraiya in Kiri almost gave her a heart attack... as even she doubted he would be able to pull 'this' off. But she didn't approach him out of sentiment. He was the spymaster of Konoha and that meant he knew more than he probably should. And Tsunade would gladly goad some of this intel out of him for Rei. After all, who else than an old friend from Konoha would Jiraiya babble to?

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Chapter 83 - Ch83. Meeting 2

The clearing was quiet as the two old friends stared at each other. Jiraiya had a grim face while Tsunade also tried to appear glum but inwardly she was feeling quite giddy. Who would have known this portable info-bank would come to her right when she needed some intel about the happenings in the world?

In the end, Tsunade raised her eyebrow at him and asked. "Since you are here, do tell what is happening in the world. I know you have quite a lot of information."

Jiraiya smirked at her and took it as praise. Tsunade was obviously complimenting his awesome spy network! His ego was almost reaching clouds! "Ah, ah, ah," He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "I am afraid that's for Hokage's ears only!" Then, with a smirk, he added. "But maybe if you go on a date with me..." He trailed off.

The more he opened his mouth, the more the corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched in annoyance. She never liked Jiraiya's overly playful personality but at least he had enough sense to not ask anything perverted. Alas, he was out of luck. She already had a man and would not go on a date with another, much less Jiraiya. Fortunately for her, Tsunade knew exactly what worked on Jiraiya.

Jiraiya could only widen his eyes into saucers as Tsunade's fist met a nearby tree, utterly devastating it. He watched the upper part of the tree fall onto the ground because the middle part of its trunk was obliterated by one punch... and then he spotted Tsunade's gaze on his belly, giving it a similar look like the bark of the now non-existent trunk. He shuddered and loudly gulped.

"I am sure we can find a compromise, Jiraiya!" Tsunade cheerfully eye-smiled at him. "What about you being a good pal and telling me what you know and I will leave your bones in their unbroken state?" She said but then pursed her lips and tilted slightly her head. "I am kinda curious if you would get out of Kiri with a broken spine though..." She trailed off, and Jiraiya took an unsure step back. This Tsunade... His former teammate was somewhat different. More cheerful and not as depressed as she should have been. Worse yet, he was completely unsure if she would actually follow with her threat. Her expression showed only an amusedly raised eyebrow and lips raised into a smirk as she watched him like a hawk. But despite the danger, he was still a loyal Konoha shinobi! And so, he did what any Konoha shinobi would do when confronted by angry Senju.

"Fine..." He said fearfully. Jiraiya, despite his loyalty, liked his bones in their correct place. And anyway, Tsunade was Konoha shinobi even if she was currently on long, long unpaid leave. It's not like a Senju would ever betray Konoha and he really didn't have incredibly valuable intel either... The atmosphere between the two instantly lightened and both chuckled. They lived and fought together through thick and thin so both knew the other quite well. It was always joking like this that enabled them to keep their cool and not succ.u.mb to depression during hard years of war. With a sigh, Jiraiya started. "The Kumogakure is restocking their border outposts with better weapons. They try to hide it so it is a very slow process, not to say it's something very normal so it usually wouldn't be reported but my spies," Tsunade rolled her eyes at the word 'spies' as from his activities, she was very aware just what kind of 'spies' Jiraiya had. Tsunade was however surprised he could pick on something as common as a slight change in restocking the outposts. Seeing her eye-roll, Jiraiya's mood dropped a bit. "My informants were sharp enough to spot the situation. The weapons that are being sent to the outposts are those that are usually not really needed there. Clearly, somebody is preparing for quick deployment of troops..."

"And let me guess," Tsunade interrupted him. "It's mostly outposts closest to the borders of the Land of Fire." She said and silence once again engulfed the clearing. It was obvious. Konoha won two wars already and Kumo would not like that. Neither of the remaining four villages liked that, to be honest. Jiraiya just nodded. That meant Kumo will most likely attack mostly Konoha and from their previous behavior during the second war, they won't really invest much on other fronts. There will obviously be skirmishes against Iwa and Kiri but their offensive would be focused on Konoha. "Okay, next?" Tsunade asked and Jiraiya shrugged.

"Suna is buying wood from Konoha... you can guess what that means. Kiri couldn't be more obvious. They did so many assassinations in these last years that only an idiot would not know they plan to join the war." He stated but then frowned with a whining sigh. "I am quite mad about it too! Their targets are so random that it's hard to properly guess who they will attack. My guess is they would go for revenge against Kumo but nothing is certain yet. Sensei is quite worried about Kiri as there is no buffer between us except Wave Country."

"Yes... if Kiri attacks Konoha, the battle will instantly be inside of the Land of Fire." Tsunade nodded. It was a no-brainer. All other shinobi villages had to cross other countries therefore their forces could be spotted or even intercepted easily. But Kiri was a wild card. Worse yet, it was a wild card that was so well positioned, Konoha couldn't do anything about it! Take the fight onto the sea? That's suicide against Kiri. Take it into the Land of Water? Sarutobi would never do that. He knows that the Kiri forces would wipe his soldiers out if he tried to fight on their own land. There was literally nothing Hokage could do except strengthening the shore outposts. That however was far from an acceptable countermeasure. Tsunade already knew Kiri would attack Konoha but she kept quiet. Rei had his own plans and she wouldn't endanger those.

"The problem is Iwa." Jiraiya flopped onto the ground and leaned his back onto a tree. "They are gathering forces. Openly at that. Recruiting from the slaves and making them capable genin cannon fodder quite quickly. As a mountain nation, the Land of Earth is also very wealthy in iron so they have no problem gearing up either... Plus it's obvious who their target would be. The old man is really bothered by it but he assured me someone competent will hinder them."

Tsunade also leaned onto a tree but didn't sit down. This was important information. Firstly, Iwa stubbornly wanted revenge and it was obvious the main 'event' in the upcoming war would be Iwa versus Konoha. The situation didn't look well for Konoha. Suna was their grudging ally since they lost the second war but both Kumo and Iwa would be attacking. The Hokage naturally knows Suna would not be really eager to help so Konoha was more or less on their own. Which led Tsunade to the second point, 'someone competent'. Obviously, it was Danzo. There was no question to be asked about it.

"And I guess Konoha is preparing as well..." Tsunade said and looked at the sky. She didn't need to hear what the village would be doing. She knew exactly what 'preparing' meant. Clearly, Konoha had to even the board by making the pot of hate between villages boil. It wouldn't do if everyone focused 'only' on Konoha. After all, that was exactly how they won the previous wars even though they were majorly outnumbered. As if it was in the 'quality' of their shinobi... That thought was laughable in itself. Sure, they had good ninjas but not 'that' good. It was all in very underhanded tactics... They were ninja, after all.

Tsunade was hundred percent sure that Danzo's ROOT would be running circles around the Land of Earth dressed as shinobi from either of the remaining four villages, killing important people. Tsunade had no illusions and knew that Iwa would be in conflict with Kumo and Suna by the start of the war. She also knew that the war would not be really waged in the Lands of the villages. No, it will again be in the smaller countries in-between them. That was why the situation with Kirigakure was making Jiraiya shit himself and most likely the reason why he was actually here. He was surely tasked to find out Kiri's intentions towards Konoha.

Jiraiya just shrugged and grinned. "So... up for a drink? You know, to remember the old times!" Tsunade chuckled and returned the shrug in acceptance. "It's a date then!" Jiraiya exclaimed but Tsunade quickly put his hopes down.

"No, it's not." She dryly deadpanned, inwardly sighing. She only accepted as she knew Jiraiya tended to talk more when drunk and in the company of someone he trusted. Plus both Rei and Konan were on a mission and Mei in the academy... she had an hour to spare so why not gleam more secrets from her toad-loving friend?

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Chapter 84 - Ch84. Mei's graduation

Pa treon - 36 chapters ahead.

If you want to support me or read ahead:

pa /kasicair

--

Rei, Konan, and Tsunade in her disguise were sitting in the VIP lounge in the Kiri arena. The Kiri arena was a place where the chunin exams were usually held but its more important function was to execute traitors. The nuke-nin were usually killed on spot but in rare cases, they were caught alive and then proceeded to be interrogated only to end up in the arena and fight to the death. It didn't matter how many rounds they won, they continued to fight until their eventual death. This arena was also a place where Kiri shinobi could enter to hone their skills or try new techniques on 'moving' targets without any repercussions. And today, a yearly event was taking place. It was time for the academy graduation exam... which was basically just a bloody spectacle of kids killing each other. Despite that, the arena was full of spectators, mostly civilians seeking some bloody entertainment.

Rei could also see many prominent jonin from Kiri who were looking for a good seedling. After all, if they took a disciple, they couldn't be forced to take another so everyone wanted to take a peek at what is offered in this batch and if there is somebody promising. Contrary to the cheer of civilians, these shinobi were mostly bored since seeing kid's brawl wasn't really entertaining for them.

The graduation was one versus one deathmatch. The matches were said to be random... meaning they were pre-selected beforehand and just for show, there was an actual electronic board for choosing names like in Naruto's chunin exam. The proctors knew well who is likely to pass and who to fail. They watched the kids for years by now and as experienced chunins, could take their guess. That meant every match had a favorite. There were also a lot of other factors... like if somebody wanted to take a specific child under his care, the child would get an easier opponent and so on. Rei didn't really care nor did he try to manipulate Mei's match though. He knew Mei would win but her opponent would end up dead due to their own luck and not Rei's manipulation. He could do at least as much as leave it to 'fate'.

"This is really barbaric." Tsunade said disgruntled. Despite living in Kiri for years, she never once saw the graduation exam but now that she was present for it, she really thought it was too much.

"Yeah... and stupid too." Konan added. Kiri was killing off 50% of their ninja candidates. Not to mention those killed by their actual teachers for whatever reason. In the end, not even 35% of academy graduates would survive long enough to be really counted as a ninja of Kiri. For Konan, it was no wonder Kiri had so little ninja. All it would take is to give the children better guidance and not kill them off... but it seemed the higher-ups of Kiri were too stupid to realize that.

Rei wisely kept silent. Speaking up right now would start a debate he was not really willing to partake in at the moment. In his opinion, every village was utterly retarded in these practices. Kiri had this exam. Konoha had another one that also cut the graduates to a really small number. The difference was that the rest who didn't manage to graduate, could either drop-out and forever close the option to become a ninja or after three failures, the kid would be entering the genin corps where the entire training would be up to him... these were the so-called cannon fodder. Suna was the same and also had their own means of how to differentiate between 'elite' and others. He wasn't about to think about Iwa... as their cannon fodder was mostly made up of slaves. Kumo was the only village that was kid-friendly when it came to these practices. They took enormous effort to nurture their younger generations and most kids already left the academy knowing their elemental affinity and basics of kenjutsu. At times like these, Rei was really happy he made the spy network out of the Biri-Biri traders. These 'unimportant' details were exactly what helped most when one didn't really expect it.

The event was about to start and the kids lined up in the arena. There were thirty of them in total but this was quite misleading as every class had a different day of graduation so the final number of kids graduating this year was around 240. Which meant at least 120 would die. It was a big number but a few years back, Kiri started to 'recruit' kids from orphanages all over the country to have enough genin for the war. There were still 2 years until the start of the war and Rei was sure the Mizukage was thinking he had at least five more years to train these new recruits... alas, the truth was far from that.

"Ah! It's Mei!" Tsunade said and a smile lit up on her face as she said the ten years old redhead down in the arena. "I trained her so well! She is not afraid at all!" She cooed like an overprotective parent. "Just look at her bored eyes!"

Konan rolled her eyes at the almost bouncing Tsunade, but her lips also twisted into a slight smile. "It was me who gave her mental conditioning." She quipped, getting a stink-eye from Tsunade.

Rei just embraced the two girls and shushed them. "It's starting. Don't argue now."

Down in the arena, Mei was despondently watching her former classmates. For her, they were utterly unimportant and it was times like these she was really glad for Konan's teachings. While her bigger sister taught her how to recognize indoctrination, she also didn't cover the fact she was making her more loyal to Rei. Mei didn't really care though.

Now that she was looking at the nervous kids with shining eyes, just waiting to lay their lives down for a village that couldn't be bothered to give two f.u.c.ks for them... she could only pity them and be horrified at the idea she could have been one of these gullible children. The older she was, the more disgusting the idea of helping Kiri became for her. The people stopped beating her when Rei 'subtly' indicated he would be very 'displeased' if it continued but they still glared at her and generally avoided her. She was not close to anyone in the class so this little test wasn't really that big of a deal for her. But she knew she had to take it seriously as her family wanted to see if she had the resolve to kill on her own... not like she had any choice in the matter and Mei knew well why this was important. She would shortly start doing missions with Rei and they needed to know she was ready for them.

The Mizukage gave a speech about them being the future of Kirigakure or whatever and the matches started. Mei watched the kids around her quickly become disillusioned when the first match concluded. They knew this was a match to the death but Mei doubted the kids had a clear idea of what that actually meant. When the kunai sunk into the skull of Miki, a girl from her class, every classmate of hers went instantly rigid, watching her unmoving body hit the ground. The matches continued despite all protests and finally, after two hours of utter boredom, it was time for Mei's match.

She stepped inside of the arena and the spectators became instantly quiet, reminding her that she wasn't the most loved person in the village. Only the supporting look on her family's face made her smile to herself and confidently walk towards the center where her opponent and the referee were waiting. Her opponent was... she forgot his name. Scratching her cheek, she played it cool by bowing slightly in a show of respect before the referee started the match.

Her opponent instantly sprang forward to attack her but for Mei, he was moving extremely slow. She didn't see any reason to prolong this battle and as he was at arm's length away from her, she sidestepped to the right, just enough to evade his dash. The boy couldn't stop himself anymore and as he was passing by the spot she was previously at, he ran right into a kunai Mei was holding in her hand. Match over.

The arena was again engulfed in even deeper silence when Mei won so effortlessly but she didn't care and just walked away, towards the waiting area where her former classmates looked at her as if she was some kind of monster. Every match up till now lasted at least five minutes but hers didn't take even five seconds. For them, she was quite frightening.

All around the arena, many jonin gained an interested light in their eyes at the spectacle and the Mizukage was deadpanning at Rei because of how much trouble this would bring him. Many of his jonin would want Mei and will most likely try to 'challenge' Rei for her... And he would have to prevent just that. Great!

"Yes... I trained her so well!" Tsunade smiled proudly, fully knowing Mei was aware enough to know just how big of a shitstorm her quick win would cause to the Mizukage.

"Damn right." Konan added, also proud of Mei as she hid her smirk while giving the Mizukage a side-glance, enjoying his dejected look and speechless expression. "Somebody gonna pull all-nighter." She giggled.

Rei just snorted and gave the man an eye-smile and V sign. Needless to say, the Mizukage was not the happiest camper right now.

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Chapter 85 - Ch85. Planning

When Mei came home after her graduation exam, she was greeted by Rei, Konan, and Tsunade with a big 'Congratulations'. It made her happy because she didn't expect them to throw a party for her graduation. This outcome was expected and she was leagues above the current graduates so she took her passing as a foregone outcome and yet... Her family decided to celebrate it. Mei's cheeks blushed as she meekly walked inside the living room, sitting next to Rei who instantly patted her head.

"Good job." He told her and Mei could feel her body being hugged by Rei. She smiled and reassured him.

"I am fine." She said. "I had enough time to prepare myself for killing."

Rei looked knowingly at her form when he heard her telling him that. She had lowered head and slightly narrowed eyes and he knew it would bother her for a while but she had people who made it their 'mission' to make her feel better about it. That was, after all, the purpose of this party. He wasn't about to give her 'birds 'n bees talk, the shinobi version' and fuss about her 'first' kill. He would however make sure she had a great time and got any worries she could have out of her mind.

"Okay." He told her and with the corner of his eye could see Konan bringing a cake to the room. "I think it's time for a cake then! I made your favorite strawberry-flavored one."

Mei's eyes shined at the sight and she quickly turned towards Rei and hugged his waist. "Thank you!" Rei and the girls laughed at Mei's happy expression, and the celebration continued.

...

The celebration was over and Mei was fast asleep but Rei, Konan, and Tsunade had a meeting in the living room after tidying it up. They sat around the table with a cup of hot chocolate, talking about their future. After Tsunade encountered Jiraiya, she instantly told every detail she managed to glean from him to Rei who decided to start making use of his spy network. He got an incredible amount of information.

"Iwa's recruiting from slaves is intense," Rei said. "They already have around twenty thousand strong force of canon fodder. Apparently, they plan to bring down the Third Raikage and... us."

"Us?" Tsunade asked, furrowing her brows.

"The Downpour." Konan told her. "They will probably use the war, again make someone request us for a mission and then ambush us with ten thousand..." She turned to Rei. "right?"

"Yes. During the war, the village doesn't have much time to review every single request. Moreover, the village only takes requests from nobles and wealthy merchants, meaning high-profile people who would look extremely bad if the shinobi they requested was 'ambushed'. The village would know and most likely take their revenge but there surely is a lot of retards who would see immediate gains instead of long-term repercussions. Especially among the first sons of nobles. The important part is that the village wouldn't be able to warn or assist us. Nor would it do anything in our defense until the end of the war." Rei stated with a displeased frown. "Worse yet, rejecting a mission during wartime is really, really hard as if you try, the Mizukage will just order you to go and handle it. Money are important for the village and in wartime it is doubly so. The Iwa has it thought out pretty into detail while knowing the laws and usual behavior of Kiri higher-ups."

Tsunade groaned at that. "Kiri and their idiotic practices. In Konoha..."

"In Konoha, you have heaps of merchants pulling the economy for you." Konan snorted. "The situation is completely different so you really don't need to make the missions mandatory during wartime." Tsunade crossed her arms and reluctantly acknowledged Konan was right.

"Speaking of which," Rei started. "I want you to return to Konoha, Tsunade."

The entire room quieted down at that but Rei just smiled at the bewildered blonde before explaining. "We have the dimension and can see each other whenever and I know you would regret not helping your village during the war." Rei said and saw Tsunade was about to protest so he quickly cut her off. "Don't try to deny it. You might be fed-up with the higher-ups but the village is still your grandfather's memento. If I know one thing about the Senju clan, it's that they value their family above all else."

"But you are my family." Tsunade quietly said and lowered her head in embarrassment at being so easily seen through by Rei only to shriek when Rei pulled her to himself, laying her head on his lap, and coursed his fingers through her hair while staring into her eyes.

"I love you Tsunade." He said. "But that doesn't mean I demand you to forsake everything for me." Neither of them minded the teasing stare of Konan from behind her mug of hot chocolate as she watched them expectantly with a child-like giddiness dancing in her eyes.

Tsunade teared up but barely held her tears in as her head spun. 'No... but it's exactly what I want to do...' She thought to herself and her resolve to prioritize Rei strengthened. "Okay... but I won't fight for Konoha. I'll return to be the head of the hospital." She knew she would be given the position of the head of the hospital and that meant being in the council... hence knowing everything that would go on in the village. Tsunade had her own ideas and plans on how to help Rei and she would be damned if she let Konan outshine her! And... he was right. Deep down, she still wanted to minimize the casualties of Konoha in the upcoming war. She was raised there... indoctrinated there... it was hard to just let go.

Rei smiled and turned to Konan this time. "I think it's time for us to show ourselves during this war. I don't intend to always mind myself during a fight. Right now, we are strong enough to fight against S-ranking ninja so there is no need to hide our abilities." He informed her and the atmosphere in the room turned somber.

"Are you sure?" Konan asked. She was also fed up with always not using her paper release during fights only to keep it secret but she understood why it was needed.

Rei nodded in acknowledgment. "We will be defecting during the war." Rei dropped a bomb. "I have a sneaking suspicion it's not going to be good to be in Kiri after the war." He said and turned to Tsunade with a nod. "Root is really doing a good job."

While Konan knew what ROOT was, she tilted her head, not understanding what Rei meant but Tsunade's eyes widened. "You want to say they already work on preventing Kiri from attacking them?"

"No... not Kiri. Not yet, at least but I was informed some border outposts of Iwa were attacked by people clad in Suna shinobi attire. Funny that, since Suna has enough problems with itself since Rasa became the Kage as the Wind Daimyo utterly despises him and refuses to support the village..." Rei chuckled. "Same with Kumo and Iwa border... this time, it is Kumo's outposts attacked by 'Iwa-nin'. Peculiar how these people were always using fire Jutsu and were described as 'emotionless'." He shook his head. "I am sure there will be some kind of plot for Kiri too but Kiri is an even bigger threat than Kumo and Iwa to Konoha but on the other hand they have no confirmation that Kiri would actually really attack them so they will probably do something very covert and underhanded."

Tsunade bit her fingernail in contemplation. "I have no idea what would Danzo do but I am sure Sarutobi-sensei would go for public unrest or something."

Rei raised his eyebrows at her in surprise. 'Well, that would fit smashingly with the future situation, now, wouldn't it?' He thought in amus.e.m.e.nt. 'I am quite curious about how would they go about it though.'

"That doesn't matter. Kiri lost its value for us. There is nothing to gain for us here." Rei said and shrugged his shoulders. "So... off we will go."

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Chapter 86 - Ch86. Ringo 4

Tsunade was again alone at home because Rei, Konan, and Mei were on a mission. The pace of their missions was picking up lately and they rarely spent time in Kirigakure. It didn't matter that much as Tsunade could only pop herself into Rei's dimension if she missed them. She spent these alone times helping out in the hospital and today was no different.

She was healing a civilian kid when one medic-nin called out to her. "Tsuna-san!" She turned around and looked at him. Seeing that, the man started speaking. "We just received a patient and she stated you as one of the people that could be informed of her state so I am calling you," He said and then turned towards the kid she was healing, "are you free right now?"

Tsunade was baffled. She knew literally nobody in Kirigakure so she had no idea who it could have been. She nevertheless turned to the boy whose scr.a.p.ed knee she cured and smiled at him. "There, that should do it." She stood up and patted his head before turning to follow the medic-nin.

They arrived near one hospital room and could hear a crash from inside which made them enter in a hurry. As Tsunade entered she could see Ringo sitting on the bed and a frightened nurse in the corner. Between them was broken glass and a few pills strewn on the ground. "I am fine!" Ringo said menacingly, making the nurse flinch but Tsunade could clearly see she was not fine. Her entire body was shivering and she was gritting her teeth, most likely in pain. Not to say about her unnatural paleness... the girl was a mess.

Tsunade sighed in exasperation and marched closer to Ringo, she shoved her shoulders, making the unruly redhead flop into the bed and before Ringo could again sit down, Tsunade put her hand on her forehead, measuring her temperature while using her chakra to soothe the pain Ringo was in and diagnosing her state.

Ringo at first wanted to scream at whoever pushed her but then she spotted the old blond woman who lived with Rei and calmed down. Reluctantly, she let the woman inspect her while letting her displeasure known with her huge pout.

Tsunade was not happy with what she found. She glared a bit at Ringo and asked. "How long?"

"How long what..." Ringo petulantly averted her gaze only to have her head grasped by Tsunade's vice-grip and forcefully turned to look at her. Tsunade had an extremely stern gaze and it was spooking Ringo quite a lot, to be honest. In the end, she decided to answer truthfully. "Eight months." Ringo quietly said and ashamedly lowered her head.

"Is that why you didn't show up for an entire year?" Tsunade asked and Ringo nodded.

"At first, I was ashamed after what Konan told me..." She trailed off and her eyes landed on the doctor and the nurse still present in the room. They quickly ran away however when Ringo showered them with her potent killing intent. Now that the room was empty, she decided to continue. "But she was right." Ringo sniffed and bit her lower lip. "Rei really can't trust me."

Tsunade was giving the girl a blank look as she heard her reason. For her, this was incredibly stupid. She surmised this was the age difference between them at play but to not show her face for a year for such a stupid reason... she could only sigh.

"But three months passed and I started feeling off." Ringo continued, looking at the ceiling. "I..." That was when Tsunade decided to interrupt the girl. She had a very good idea of the state of the girl.

"You idiot should have come to Rei straight away. Half of your body is dead already. You are alive only because of the strength and density of your chakra." She said, making Ringo laugh a bit.

"You are right. I was too stubborn." Ringo closed her eyes. "Would you please tell him I love him?" She asked Tsunade, hoping the woman would say 'yes'. Ringo was sure she would not step out of the hospital anymore. Nor did she expect to survive the end of the week. That's why she told the medic-nin to call for somebody she knew. She wanted to... "On the desk are keys to my home. Please... return Rei his swords. Tell him I am very grateful for them." Ringo said with a fond look and Tsunade could clearly see the affection the girl had for Rei. She wanted nothing more than to say 'okay' and let the dumb girl die but she couldn't. Not when she saw Ringo was genuine in her feelings for Rei. Moreover, the girl was on the edge. Konan was not the only woman in the house who could manipulate others...

Tsunade again put her hand on Ringo's forehead, making the girl give her a confused look. "Wha..."

"I will cure you," Tsunade said, making Ringo's eyes go wide but before she could speak, Tsunade continued, "I want you to think long and hard about your life. About your purpose. About what makes you happy. About what you should do." Tsunade said sternly and could see Ringo scrunch her face but nod in agreement. "Know that I don't expect you to forsake Kiri after this." She said and Ringo looked at her bewildered. "I just want you to have a second chance at making this decision. Do you love Rei enough to forsake your loyalty to Kiri for him? Or will you, in the end, choose Kirigakure... that's up to you."

When she heard that, Ringo was opening and closing her mouth in speechlessness. The woman was basically telling her she had to have the resolve to become a traitor if she wanted to be with Rei. But Ringo always knew this was the case. Deep down, she always suspected...

Tsunade didn't care. She was to leave Kiri in a few days anyway so making her departure sooner wouldn't matter. Moreover, her hunch that was responsible for her surviving most of her shinobi career was telling her to believe in Ringo. She decided to... gamble. "If you still decide to serve Kirigakure after this, you will completely forsake any chance you could have had with Rei." Tsunade said curtly and pushed her Mystic Palm Technique chakra mixed with natural energy into Ringo's body, revitalizing her cells to cure her. Ringo couldn't even let out a sound from the intense feeling of comfort she was in as her body was again brought back to life.

What Tsunade forgot to consider, was that Ringo was one of the very few people in the world with incredible senses even for a ninja. As Tsunade started healing her with nature energy, Ringo could clearly sense this special type of not-chakra and remembered its feel. Suddenly, the world opened to Ringo's senses, and all around her, she could feel nature energy which made her astonished and a whole lot afraid. She was also very curious about who was the woman who healed her. Ringo always thought she was a civilian but this...

Tsunade however didn't notice the flicker of light in Ringo's eyes as this information was filled into her brain for later. Right now, she had more important matters to consider. Tsunade felt the girl's body was fully healed and pulled her hand away from Ringo. "Well... you are better than newer." She said and turned around to leave. As she was near the door, she briefly glanced at the bewildered redhead who stared at her. " Do not disappoint me."

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Chapter 87 - Ch87. Ringo 5

Since she was healthy, Ringo came to inform the Mizukage about her return to duty...

Entering the office, she could see the astonished look of the leader of the village who was furrowing his brows at her. "Ringo... you are alright?" He asked with suspicion in his voice when he saw the girl walk in on her own feet. Something he would never think was possible. "I was told you would be unable to continue your ninja career."

He knew she was sick. Actually, he was the first one who was informed two years ago that Ringo was sick. Same as he knew the medic-nin in the village had no way to cure her and she most likely didn't have even a year left. Unfortunately, it was right after she claimed Kiba by killing the previous owner and it was impossible for him to order her to give the Kiba to someone else. That would make every single of the seven swordsmen pissed as all hell at him. The girl also refused all of his subtle 'advice' to train an apprentice for Kiba blades... something about being too young to train a brat. In the end, he was forced to make a medic-nin inform her about her disease in hopes it would make her come to senses and pass on her techniques before passing on for real... Needless to say, that didn't happen.

But he took what he got. It was maddening that one of his S-ranking ninja... the youngest S-ranking ninja of Kiri if he didn't count Rei and Konan since they weren't born in the village... was about to die before the war even started. He decided to make use of Ringo as much as he could and made her run assassination after assassination... maybe it did take away a lot of her strength but she was dying anyway. He saw no need to be gentle with her and resolved himself to make as much use of her superb skills as possible. Thankfully, her knowledge of her sickness only made the girl even madder and she didn't stop going on missions. The Mizukage couldn't help but admire the girl standing in front of him, to be honest. She should have been dead a year ago and yet, she is standing in front of him as if nothing out of ordinary was happening.

Before Ringo could answer, the door flew open, and inside walked a man. When he saw Ringo calmly standing in front of the Mizukage, his eyes narrowed and he turned towards his leader with furrowed brows. "You told me the previous wielder of Kiba is weak and will not survive long." The man said and Ringo's eyes narrowed. It was only then she saw 'her' Kiba blades strapped to the waist of the man. Suddenly, her world completely changed when she realized... she didn't really mind. It was a revelation that made her widen her eyes and look speechlessly to the empty space for a second.

The Mizukage saw her blank look and couldn't help but curse as he could already see the fight for Kiba and knew one of his skilled ninjas would die for it! That's why he got the surprise of his life from Ringo when she said. "It's fine. You can keep Kiba." The Mizukage couldn't comprehend why Ringo gave the swords up but for him, it was incredibly lucky. They could kill each other for the blades after the war... not like Ringo would survive the war in her condition. No matter how strong her will is, he really doubted that.

Ringo would never think Kiba blades were given to someone even before she died. For a swordsman, that was an insult of insane proportions and her giving up the blades would actually show her unconfidence to win against the man she recognized as Raiga Kurosuki. But Ringo somehow didn't care. She remembered a pair of swords... given to her by a man she loved that were superior even to Kiba blades and her want to hold onto Kiba blades was gone. She would let him have those...

"I knew you would be a smart woman. A pity I won't be able to attend your funeral." The man said with a sad undertone that pissed Ringo off but before she could quip something back, he just up and went away.

The Mizukage opened his mouth and promptly closed it when he realized he would have to summon Raiga again as he had a mission for him... This was getting really troublesome.

"I will take a year break from my shinobi duties. To make sure my health is okay during the upcoming war." She said with a humph. When the Mizukage heard that, he turned to Ringo and wanted to scream at her! What 'break'!? There was a war on the horizon!

But he couldn't do anything else other than say. "Okay." Ringo had a reputation and now that he lifted the secrecy on her sickness, many people knew it. If he forced her to take missions while knowing well she was sick... they could use it against him later on. He was also sure Rei wouldn't be very happy about it... "How come you are fine?" He asked her, knowing well such miracles really didn't happen in this world.

Ringo peered him directly into the eyes and mulled over her answer. She remembered her last two years of work for the village and how dismissive of her the Mizukage was when she was thought to be sick... there was only one answer after considering all that. "I don't know." She shrugged, deciding not to snitch on Tsuna. Ringo was not yet resolved to leave the village but she would not be a puppet on strings for men like the Mizukage who would use her and throw her away at the first convenience. She thought her time with Rei taught her better as he always emphasized she needs to put her own safety before everything else but she was apparently wrong.

The Mizukage obviously didn't really believe that answer but he had no choice but to nod. "Well, then. Jonin Ameyuri, I allow you to take a year of vacation. You rightfully deserve it." He said but Ringo could hear the sour undertone in his voice and it made her sad. She gave this village everything but nobody other than Rei really cared about a little orphan like her. Her only source of influence was her own strength and the status of the wielder of Kiba she just lost. And with that, she also lost her S-rank as a Kiba user without Kiba didn't seem that threatening. In the end, her efforts for the village didn't bring her any lasting recognition nor respect.

She didn't even think that these thoughts were coming from Rei's teachings and how he always told her to not blindly trust others. She just never used it as she thought Kiri and its higher-ups could do no wrong. Apparently, she was wrong.

Both she and the Mizukage stared at each other impassively before Ringo turned around and started walking towards the door when she heard the Mizukage's voice. "Are you sure there is nothing you want to tell me, jonin Ameyuri?" She stopped in her tracks and slightly turned her head to take a proper look at the man. She instantly recognized the look he was giving her. Scheming, plotting, a look befitting of a Kage. It made her smile bitterly but it just strengthened the belief that only personal strength mattered in this world. She would have to become stronger. Pursing her lips, she answered before leaving the office.

"No... not really."

Chapter 88 - Ch88. Rei's spy network

It was morning and Rei laid in bed, kissing lazily Konan, his hand sn.a.k.e.d around her shoulder, pressing her to his side as they still sleepily enjoyed themselves. Just then, Rei shuddered and groaned while pressing his forehead on Konan's, tightening his embrace. It took a while for him to stop quivering and then he turned his head down, looking at Tsunade's smug face peeking from the sheets as she laid her b.r.e.a.s.ts on his belly, supporting her chin with her hands.

"Liked?" She teased while licking her lips and Rei narrowed his eyes at her. Only his sincere small smile betrayed his feelings on the matter as he didn't deem it necessary to answer her. His free hand quickly found its way onto her head, patting her which made Tsunade blush.

"Good girl." Rei quipped jokingly but both girls quieted down for a second as he said it. Before he could ask them what's wrong, Konan assaulted his lips again and Tsunade dragged herself up against his body until her mouth was close to his neck and started to hungrily trail kisses all over his neck. Rei could only hug them and use the meager amount of effort he was capable of mustering to try to fight back.

It took him a good hour until he lost and the trio dropped utterly exhausted to the sheets after a very satisfying morning 'exercise'. Rei was affectionately caressing the hair of both girls that laid with their heads in the crook of his neck, smiling in contentment.

"Rei~," Tsunade cooed and arched her head back to get a good look at his face. "Anything new about the situation with ROOT?"

It was already more than a year since Mei graduated and the war was getting increasingly closer. She already left Kirigakure... apparently went to visit her parents... or at least that was the official story for the Mizukage. But she hasn't yet gone to Konoha. She spent this year in their dimension, perfecting her medical and fighting skills. One could never be too careful and Tsunade didn't know if anything unplanned happened and she had to fight her way out of Konoha.

Rei looked at her with a sigh. "Yes... Most of it is just guesswork but the merchants of Biri-Biri company actually got quite a bit of intel about their actions. Apparently, the rumors spreading through the country are the work of ROOT."

This time, even Konan was awoken from her pleasure-induced dozing off as she heard that. "You mean the rumors that make the civilians fear and hate the bloodline clans?"

"Well... yeah." Rei nodded.

"But that's not all rumors." Konan stated dryly. "Kaguya really do attack villages and deserve nothing but be killed off to the last of them."

Konan really didn't like the Kaguya clan due to their 'traditions'. Anywhere else this clan would be killed off years ago but because of the treaty they had with the previous Mizukage and partly because of the pressure of the other clans who had no other choice but to do so or a precedent of having the clan treaties broken would be created, the Kaguya clan was protected here despite doing many crimes.

Once per year, they would attack an unsuspecting village killing all inhabitants except the really unlucky ones. The unlucky ones were mostly strong-looking males and females between ten to thirty years of age.

The men had a straightforward future from that point on. They were thrown into arenas made to make the children of the Kaguya clan more experienced in combat and killing. It was similar to the arena of the Kirigakure except they fought civilians rather than real ninjas. Needless to say, it was a massacre and these men didn't have a long life expectancy.

The females were different. They were used to satisfy the Kaguya males' more brutal s.e.x.u.a.l fantasies. They also were used to 'teach' the teens of the Kaguya clan their 'traditions', as they called it. It was a miserable life.

"Yes, but that's beside the point. Kaguya is an exception. You can't really say every clan is bad because one is too brutal for their own good." Rei said. "These rumors will impact every clan, not only the Kaguya one. It's actually quite a good and subtle way of destabilizing the situation in the country. If they really had a bit more time... three more years would suffice, Kiri would be unable to join the war due to internal strife."

"A pity the puppet boy will get impatient and kill the third Kazekage," Konan smirked. "which would start the war three years sooner than everyone plans."

Yes... everyone was preparing for a war that will start in three years. Except, Rei knew the war would start in a few months. That will really put a stopper to a mind-boggling number of plans. He knew that even the Mizukage was planning a long-term invasion of the land of fire but if his foreknowledge was to be trusted, there will be no such thing.

"Yeah... Danzo is efficient like that." Tsunade quipped lazily, cuddling to Rei. "I am quite amazed he managed to make a conflict between Iwa and Suna, and Iwa and Kumo, and now he is even mixing the waters of Kiri with potential civil war. That man is dangerous..." She sighed as this just made her reaffirm the fact that her going to Konoha was a good decision. Well, not like she will spend her nights anywhere else than in the bed with Rei, in his embrace. All was well... "If those rumors actually take a 'root'," Tsunade giggled. "the clans will be despised by the public, therefore cutting their revenue short. Kiri clans are not like those in Konoha that actually manage a large number of businesses all across the Land of Fire."

That was a thing that surprised Rei quite a lot. According to Tsunade, the clans in Konoha had a lot to do with the economy of the country too. Nara had a monopoly on pharmaceutics for example. It was a surprise because when he did research on various businesses of the Land of Fire, he never got even an inkling of something like this. The companies had nothing to do with these clans at first glance. It was only when Tsunade explained to him that the clans are the leaders in the shadows behind those companies he understood the clans in Konoha had way more influence than it seemed. They were an integral part of the Land of Fire by now.

"Somehow, I think that's exactly what's gonna happen and lead to a civil war in Kiri." Konan deadpanned, giving Rei a knowing look. He always had an idea what will happen next and she had no doubt this 'let's leave Kiri' had a deeper reason than 'there is nothing of value for us left here'. Rei just shrugged with a smile at her while leaning closer for a kiss.

After they finished their kiss he bumped her forehead with his. "Sure... you can think of it like that." He pecked her lips again and turned to Tsunade. "And you! Stop talking about these things. We are in bed and have more important things on our to-do list than discuss some one-eyed creep!" He admonished her playfully to which she lowered her head.

"You are right." Tsunade said in a sad voice and gave Rei a regretful expression that made him soften inside. He only meant it as a joke but Tsunade apparently took it seriously. But as he was about to apologize, he could feel Tsunade's thighs surround his mini-me and Tsunade's face instantly lit up with a mischievous smile. "Then... let me 'repent' and start doing these 'important' things." She said in a seductive voice.

"Ha? Not fair!" Konan poutily exclaimed and Rei found himself being double-teamed yet again. Yeah... who cared about the war when he had such divine mornings!

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Chapter 89 - Ch89. Tsunade's date

Author Note: Firstly, I would like to say a few words... feel free to skip it if you want.

I thought about this story and somehow, I feel as if I was lowering the quality of the relationship between Konan and MC which is alright since this is a harem story and their relationship will naturally stop being such a pivotal part of the story. The problem is I didn't write any 'relationship' showing chapter in quite a while.

Same thing for Tsunade as I didn't really give her enough attention in the story and her interaction with Rei might feel a bit lackl.u.s.ter in comparison to Konan. Which, in my opinion, is also fine as Konan is the Main Female Lead while Tsunade is an 'ordinary' or 'second' female lead.

But I decided to correct this in the next chapters.

The war arc is starting and I plan to give it the next 20 or so chapters (I am sure I will most likely overshoot it) and I decided to mix it with deepening the relationship with the girls along with other war-related things.

Hopefully, I will manage :D.

Thx for reading my rant. Have a nice day.

--

Rei and Tsunade were walking through the streets of the Capital of the Land of Water, hand in hand. Both had a slight henge on themselves that slightly changed their features like eye-color or the shade of their hair. The Mizukage had too many 'eyes' all over the Capital for Rei and Tsunade to come while looking completely like themselves. But small changes were enough for their date.

Tsunade tightly squeezed Rei's hand, happy that Rei took her on a date. This was her alone time with Rei and she was all for enjoying it! Konan, Rei, and her mostly spend the time together, doing whatever but she and Konan made a 'deal'. Both would have some alone time with Rei. When they were together, they felt like a family and it was warm and pleasant for Tsunade... but when she was alone with Rei, she felt special and unique. Neither she nor Konan was okay with losing such a precious feeling so this 'tradition' was made.

Tsunade leaned closer to Rei, hugging his arm. He turned to her with a slight smile and tenderly asked. "What's up?"

Tsunade just shook her head. "I am just happy." She said, not minding the surrounding people looking at them.

Rei also didn't care about the spectators and affectionately captured her lips into a slow, chaste kiss while his free hand gently cupped her chin. After a while, they separated and Rei said. "I am glad you are happy, Tsu." He smiled at her, making Tsunade avert her gaze by lowering her head. Rei chuckled at the small pink dusting on her cheeks and continued walking while making sure Tsunade wouldn't stumble due to his abrupt movement.

The rest of their journey was spent in comfortable silence until they finally arrived at the restaurant. Tsunade's eyes widened when she saw the luxurious exterior and she pursed her lips at Rei. "Are you sure you want to spend so much..." She worriedly asked. Sure, she was Senju, and spending money was in her nature almost as much as spamming trees but she didn't feel alright making Rei spend money on her.

Rei just amusedly rolled his eyes at her, snaking his hand around her waist and weakly pushing her forward. "You know best how much money Biri-Biri company makes. Where would I spend my money if not on you?" He whispered into her ear, making Tsunade straighten herself up and bite her lower lip.

In the end, she decided to accept it and grinned. "Then... today we will go to a casino!" She exclaimed happily, her sparkling eyes peering pleadingly at him. Rei chuckled at her childish joy and gave her an acknowledging nod. Despite Tsunade not being a drunk nor a gambling addict, she liked to have a bit of sake and a good night of gambling from time to time. Rei supposed it was just in her nature.

Their time in the restaurant was very enjoyable as the food was already waiting for them on the table since Rei ordered it a half-hour earlier with his clone. He and Tsunade chatted about various topics, neither touching the current situation nor anything that would make the other lose the good mood. It was a pleasant light banter while eating delicious food.

After that, Rei, with great reluctance, decided to fulfill his promise and took Tsunade into the casino where he proceeded to lose twenty million of Ryo... Well, at least Tsunade's image while her tongue stuck out of the corner of her mouth in concentration and anticipation while gambling was nice. Rei knew Tsunade was on edge due to his request of her going to help Konoha so he supposed letting her gamble a bit of his money while sitting in his lap and demanding him to tightly hold her was a good stress relief for his Tsu. He also couldn't complain as every time she lost, she would need a long consoling kiss that made almost all people around to turn away from them in embarrassment. All in all, both he and Tsu had loads of fun in the casino.

It was already a late evening and the couple decided it was time to go home. They transported themselves into their personal dimension, landing near the sofa. Tsunade was however slightly drunk and she 'conveniently' stumbled, pushing Rei's back onto the sofa as she landed on him, pressing her chest into his. "I enjoyed it today." She slowly slurred, making sure it sounded as s.e.xy as her juicy, slowly moving lips.

"I did too." Rei said, his eyes desperately trying to stay on Tsunade's amber orbs and not to fall onto her red lips. His hands landed on her h.i.p.s, snaking under her clothes as he caressed Tsunade'd skin with his fingers coated with the soothing water chakra that made her shudder. "I think the enjoyment didn't cease yet." Rei quipped flippantly.

The only response he received was Tsunade's hand on his cheek as he could see her big amber eyes expectantly peer at him and could feel Tsunade's body getting hotter by the second. It didn't take long for their lips to hungrily connect and not long later, the entire house resounded with long m.o.a.ns and l.u.s.tful panting. Both of them used their water chakra and medical chakra respectively to pleasure the other for hours on end, gaining another memorable night together. The entire room was drenched in their juices as they in the early morning finally fell asleep in the warm and loving embrace.

...

Tsunade groggily opened her eyes, frowning as she missed something significant, A bit of shuffling in her sleepy head, she recognized what it was and groaned while rolling on the bed to confirm her guess. Rei was missing. What she missed was his body heat as he unknowingly fondled her b.r.e.a.s.t from behind while they slept. She woke up to that feeling so many times that now she missed feeling it. Her left hand reached towards her right b.r.e.a.s.t, squeezing it as her frown grew. "Couldn't you wait until I wake up to leave the bed... baka." She quietly whined, without any real heat behind it. With another annoyed groan, Tsunade sat up into the lotus position, stretching her body and feeling the pleasant morning ache from last night's activity. She looked down at her crotch and huffed while crossing her arms under her n.a.k.e.d ample b.r.e.a.s.ts. "I really need a shower..."

A slightly later than a half-hour later, Tsunade finally entered the kitchen after her long shower, clad in a loose white shirt that was clinging to her body due to being a bit wet, not letting anything to the imagination and very short shorts that showed her plump thighs perfectly, Her long blonde hair was let loose on her back as two bangs marred her face while she rubbed her towel on her head, trying to dry her hair. Her bare feet pitter-pattered towards Rei who was gaping at her and Tsunade's face split into a blooming smile of satisfaction as her hands released the towel, letting it fall onto the ground while she put her arms around his neck, her body leaning into his and her lips instantly going for the kiss.

"Good morning." She said, her forehead not leaving Rei's as her amber orbs expectantly stared into his startled emerald ones, taking great enjoyment in taking him off-guard. She was literally showering in his attention and loved every second of it. 'Taking a bit smaller size of the shirt was so worth it!' Tsunade giddily thought while being overly aware of Rei's hands on her h.i.p.s.

"Hi, beautiful," Rei whispered after he finally got out of his stupor and pecked her lips in retaliation. 'Damn... she is gorgeous.' He thought with an audible gulp. "Er... I made breakfast?" Rei said, still unable to stop undressing her with his eyes but he decided that if he had to be a pervert, he would at least feed his girl while perving on her.

Tsunade giggled at him and happily nodded. Of course, she could smell the bacon and eggs even in the bedroom. She mischievously pursed her lips before quietly saying. "Carry me."

Rei smirked. The girl wanted to play so he decided to humor her. His hands on her h.i.p.s suddenly heaved her up while she girlishly shrieked at the unexpected movement. Tsunade found herself blinking in confusion as she was being carried towards the table on Rei's shoulders like a sack of potatoes, making her childishly pout and slap his butt. "I didn't mean this way!" She exclaimed as her hair freely fell towards the floor, almost sweeping it.

"Sorry, dear. I might have misunderstood." Rei said in a sing-song voice while also gently patting Tsunade's posterior, making her exclaim in surprise. "Also, I wouldn't engage in a spanking contest if I was you. I hold," As he said it, he made sure to squeeze her left ass-cheek tightly, "all advantages." He finished with glee, unknowingly making Tsunade into a blushing mess as her face turned completely red. Tsunade decided to let him do whatever he wanted with her.

That was when Konan entered the room and instantly raised her eyebrow as she saw Tsunan bend over Rei's shoulder while he had his hand on her butt. The right corner of her lips curled into a sensual smirk as she spoke. "Was our Tsunade a naughty girl?"

Both Rei and Tsunade just awkwardly blinked at Konan, a bit embarrassed due to the position they were found in but quickly shook it off. "You just had to show up." Tsunade huffed in irritation while pouting. She had such a nice start and they were already half-way through the teasing stage too! It wouldn't take long to eat breakfast and then... then she was sure she could have aroused Rei enough to take her right on the kitchen table! But Konan had to ruin it...

Konan just smiled knowingly at Tsunade. "I am sorry, sis." She amusedly uttered with exaggerated eye-roll, her flippant voice showing just how 'sorry' she was. "You had your alone time with Rei yesterday." Konan shrugged, making Tsunade let out a loud whine and thrash her body on Rei's shoulder to vent her frustration until Rei decided he had enough and reminded her that her butt was in the striking zone of his hand.

"Shhh." Rei shushed the pouting Tsunade and turned to Konan with a serious gaze. He knew Konan liked Tsunade like a sister so she would never interrupt their morning without a good reason. Konan noticed his look and nodded while taking an envelope from the inside pocket of her coat.

"Karubo sends his regards alongside with his report..." Konan said, her teasing smirk morphing into a weary smile. "The war... has started."

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Chapter 90 - Ch90. War starting and talking business.

"... the war has started."

He heard Konan and stopped in his tracks for a moment. When he finally recollected himself, with a great sigh, he put his hands on Tsunade's h.i.p.s and heaved her from his shoulder, putting her on her own feet.

Tsunade was not happy with that message either. It meant she would have to stop finding excuses on why to stay by Rei's side and return to Konoha. She wanted nothing more than to snarl 'f.u.c.k you, bitch' at her past self who proclaimed she would go there but on the other side, she also wanted to help Rei by going there.

While she was conflicted, Rei walked towards the table and tapped the backrest of the chair in front of him to signalize the women to sit down. Both listened and the trio found themselves eating the breakfast in silence. When they were finally done, Konan started talking again.

"Karubo sent a word that the third Kazekage disappeared and Suna is speculating it's the work of Iwa... they are preparing for an attack, bolstering their border outposts."

"But that would lead to tension which would lead to..." Tsunade started bewildered.

"To an actual attack. Yes." Konan finished with a nod. "This is only my guess based on their previous behavior but I am pretty sure ROOT will also try to start these hostilities sooner. They will try to make Iwa and Suna fight to get more time for preparations. But Konoha doesn't have an effective way of getting intelligence from Iwa. At least, not from the high places. " Konan sighed. "Iwa's higher-ups are pretty much ready and if the hostilities start, they will immediately declare war against Konoha so this move is counter-productive."

Rei just hummed in acknowledgment and tapped his finger on the table while he pondered. The war didn't start just 'yet' but it was already inevitable since Iwa and Suna would give the first shots. There was only one thing he had to care about, however. "And our merchants?" He asked Konan who only smiled.

"As you ordered, they retreated to the safety of capital cities." She said, making Rei nod.

This war was a major opportunity for Biri-Biri company to climb higher and become a lot wealthier. Their main focus became seals and each country needed those. None would dare to attack them covertly as it would basically mean forfeiting their right to buy from Biri-Biri company.

Their seals were way too advanced for anyone to try offending them and losing the opportunity to buy them. Their Storage Seals could store even a limited amount of food for an entire month. They sold Healing Tags that may not heal anyone with injuries more serious than a few scratches but instead, could stabilize an injured long enough for him to reach the medic. They also had Explosive Tags, Night Vision Tags, Short-Range Communication Tags, and much more. This war will be fought with seals from the Biri-Biri company.

Rei was okay with that. While Mr. Biri-Biri owned some stock from Biri-Biri company, that was only for the department that dealt with electrical appliances. Anything with seals or other things belonged solely to Rei. The best part, Rei doesn't even need to worry about any assassination attempt as the only known owner is Mr. Biri-Biri and Rei's identity is still a mystery. Heck, the company is even named after Mr. Biri-Biri...

Rei made sure to change the headquarters in the Capital of the Water Country into a normal branch and shuffle the headquarters all over the Nations, making it impossible to know which branch was the real one. And Mr. Biri-Biri was a research maniac when it came to electrical gadgets therefore he was always hidden in the headquarters. There was literally no target for any assassin the Kages could send. Rei was well aware the Kages must hate his company due to them supplying seals to each country and not only them but he long ago made contingencies through deals with Daimyos so they could do nothing to the company and its employees itself.

More so now when they were in the capital cities. These cities were 'protected' by various treaties and even during the war, they would not be disturbed. Daimyos wanted their peace, after all. This was a Shinobi War and was mainly fought among shinobi.

The world still revolved around money and even during the war, shinobi could not anger their future clients. Only poor and small countries had no 'voice' to be able to threaten the shinobi villages.

Konan was really helpful when she went through the transactions of the Big Five and found out, these countries basically economically suppress the countries in between them in order to create a perfect battlefield for ninjas. This way, the war would be unlikely to be fought exclusively on their territory and most of it would happen outside of their country. Rei had to admit it was quite a sly move.

Rei suddenly stood up. "Wait for a second." He said and went outside of the kitchen only to return five minutes later with a package in his hand. He marched his way towards Tsunade and put the package in front of her. "Despite being able to see each other every day, you will be leaving for Konoha." He told her with a tender smile decorating his face. "I prepared a gift for you."

Tsunade opened her mouth in bewilderment while Konan covered her smile with her fan, her mirthful eyes staring at Tsunade's giddy amber eyes staring at the box with a child-like wonder. She was honestly surprised the blonde was not bouncing in her seat. After a while, Tsunade finally opened the box and a pair of fingerless gloves greeted her. Her eyebrows rose high as she spotted a cute engraving of a bear on them, making her unconsciously smile. She remembered those...

"I saw you look at a similar pair in the store," Rei said, "so I had these made. They have special metal padding made from chakra metal and the material is the most durable, flexible, and comfortable leather found on the market. Only best for my teddy bear." He said and embraced her from behind and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you." Tsunade quietly said, biting her lower lip and putting her hand onto his. Tsunade was embarrassed because she indeed liked a similar pair of gloves in the store a few weeks ago but she had no idea Rei noticed. She remembered herself cooing, of all things, and just the thought of him seeing her like that... She lowered her head even more, groan tearing out of her throat from embarrassment.

"I think it's cute." Konan quipped teasingly. "And it fits perfectly too... You are violent, brash, and easily annoyed." Konan said and Tsunade's embarrassment evaporated in the second. Rei wisely released her from the embrace and stepped backward.

"What did you say!?" She screamed at Konan, abruptly standing up and smacked her hands on the table while glaring at Konan.

"Exactly my point." Konan smiled, making Tsunade open her mouth in speechlessness. "But don't worry, little bear. We love you despite your flaws." She snickered when Tsunade just huffed and flopped back into the chair, trying to ignore Konan's laughter

Rei sat next to Konan and watched Tsunade happily try on her new gloves as a soft happy smile decorated her face since this was the first present he gave her that wasn't for her birthday. Rei leaned closer to Konan and whispered. "You really enjoy teasing her, don't you?"

"No, no..." Konan amusedly snorted. "I only do it because I enjoy how she runs to you and demands cuddles every time she gets butthurt because of my remarks." She said, snaking her arm around Rei's and before he could realize it, she kissed him. "After all, as a loving partner, I have to make sure you have your daily quota of cuddling." She quipped.

"Sure you do..." Rei smiled and returned the kiss. As he saw the happy faces of Konan and Tsunade, he decided to get through this war and then create a safe haven for himself and his family. These happy and leisure moments were what really mattered, after all.

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Chapter 91 - Ch91. Tsunade's return to Konoha

'tap, tap, tap'

The Hokage's eyes fluttered groggily open after he pulled yet another all-nighter, trying to deduce the plans of the other Kages and form his own.

'tap, tap, tap'

It was a grueling task but such was war. And this one was inevitable.

'tap, tap, tap'

His mood plummeted down as his ears were assaulted by the unceasing tapping noise that woke him up. He was tired, irritated, and not feeling in a mood for jokes. He abruptly straightened and shouted at whoever dared to disrupt his rest. "Shut the f.u.c.k up!" His face was morphed into an angry scowl that would send a lesser man running for his life but...

Hiruzen froze when he saw Tsunade in front of him. Her eyebrow was twitching as her feet stopped tapping the floor, scowl forming on her face. He could see a faint outline of chakra form on her fist, making him gulp.

'Gotta change the topic fast!' Hiruzen mentally shrieked and outwardly, his lips bloomed into a pleasant grandfatherly smile. "Ah, Tsunade-cha..." He stopped mid-word when Tsunade narrowed her eyes and cleverly corrected himself. "...san. What brings you here?" Hiruzen swept the room with his eyes as he wondered where his ANBU guards were. He doubted they wouldn't jump at Tsunade the second they saw the chakra outline forming on her fist but surprisingly, no one tried. It was then his gaze turned to a deadpan one as he saw four bruised bodies in the corner of the room. Hiruzen quickly recognized them as his ANBU guards.

'Are they too, too old for this shit? Maybe I should pick younger guards?' Hiruzen mused.

"Cut the crap, Sensei. I came to help Konoha in the upcoming war." Tsunade said and Hiruzen's expression lit up, already thinking where to deploy her when she completely dashed his hope. "I will only help out in the hospital though. Don't count on me fighting." Tsunade said as she uncaringly flopped into the chair for guests and started inspecting her nails.

Hiruzen's eyebrows furrowed. "Tsunade... as a ninja of Konoha you have to listen to the Hokage. If I order you to lead a unit, you will lead the unit!" He sternly spoke but Tsunade just rolled her eyes at him in dismissal.

"And if I don't?" She asked lazily, making Hiruzen almost have a heart attack. His hunch was telling him he would regret taking a forceful approach but despite it, he decided to utter his next sentence. He was still too used to obedient Tsunade he remembered from years ago.

"Then you will be labeled a nuke-nin." He said with a severe expression but contrary to his expectations, Tsunade was as laid-back as before, still minding her nails more than him.

"Then I will be labeled a nuke-nin. If Konoha doesn't need me, I will be going." She shrugged with a hint of amus.e.m.e.nt on her face and started standing up, only for Hiruzen to stare at her in utter bewilderment with his mouth wide open, not comprehending what just happened. It was when Tsunade was already walking towards the door his mind turned blank and only with his long, long experience of being Kage did he resist the urge to groan.

'I am too old for this shit.'

...

Tsunade stepped through the front door of the hospital and was instantly greeted by a black missile impacting her chest. She raised her eyebrow when she realized it was Shizune.

"Master!" Shizune was hugging Tsunade and the people started whispering... Tsunade was sure there would be some pretty steamy rumors flowing tomorrow. This was Konoha, after all. "I missed you!" Shizune beamed as she arched her head to get a proper look at Tsunade and her eyes teared up. "I thought I would never see you since you were sick."

The corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched as she remembered how 'mothering' her apprentice was and she could only sigh as she started patting her head. "Well... apparently not." She shrugged. "Not like it wasn't a close call."

Her voice was loud enough that the entire hall of the hospital heard it, stopping in their tracks, wondering what kind of sickness could almost kill the best medic in the world. Shuddering thoughts.

"Anyway..." Tsunade's expression turned awkward. "I am here to-" She started but Shizune interrupted her by pinning the badge of the Head of Hospital on her haori.

"Yes, we know, Master." Shizune said with a gentle smile and Tsunade couldn't help but feel extremely proud of herself while thinking.

'I raised her so well!'

...

The news about Tsunade Senju returning to Konoha spread through the village in a heartbeat. While most villagers happily celebrated, in the council room the mood was somber.

"Hiruzen, what do you mean she refused to be a commander?" Danzo asked stoically and his cheek slightly twitched but most people inside knew that simple gesture showed just how irritated he was.

"Exactly as I said." The Third Hokage's shoulders slumped. "She wasn't even deterred by becoming a nuke-nin."

The entire room quieted down when they heard this. There was a reason why she was allowed to roam free or why she could just say 'f.u.c.k, Konoha' and have no repercussions as long as she didn't work against Konoha itself. It wasn't her status as the last of the founding clan. Tsunade was one of their heroes of the second war. Her popularity was enormous even now, a decade after the event.

Hiruzen nor the council would ever let her roam free if they could help it. She was the best medic in the world! Her value was enormous. In some ways, Hiruzen would admit her to be more important than even himself. It was her knowledge about poisons that single-handedly won them the Suna/Konoha front in the second war. The situation with Tsunade was too problematic. If they labeled her as nuke-nin, every single village would fight and promise whatever she wanted only for her to join them. That had to be avoided, hence, she was given permission to go on her 'vacation' after the second war.

Not to say, if one of the Sannin suddenly became a nuke-nin, it would create a much bigger problem than just having a strong ninja on the run. The councilors could only grit their teeth when they imagined the political shitstorm and public unrest that would start if one of their legends did something like this. Even Daimyo could become involved… and their shady deals would be much, much harder to conceal.

"Fortunately, she decided to take her spot as the head of the hospital back and is currently 'cleaning up' the place." Hiruzen tried to make the mood better.

It was then the door swung open as a body of ANBU flew straight through them, skidding on the floor all the way in front of the table. Tsunade walked in as if nothing happened, making the political leaders of Konoha inside flabbergasted. Only the Uchiha patriarch was enraged enough to react. "Senju! What is the meaning of this?" He shouted but Tsunade just ignored him and sat in a chair.

Hiruzen's eyes widened. Tsunade just sat into the chair belonging to the Head of the Senju Clan which meant...

"I am the last Senju, Uchiwawa. That obviously makes me the head of my clan." Tsunade rolled her eyes at the arrogant prick and started reading a book, completely ignoring the people around her. When the silence didn't cease even after three minutes, Tsunade let out an annoyed sigh and raised her head to look at the Third Hokage. "Feel free to continue." She told him in deadpan, finally snapping him out of it. The meeting, awkwardly continued.

'Well... infiltration success, I guess.'

--

Okay, the war from Rei's perspective will start the next chapter. I just want to say this is AU so don't expect me to spend hours studying what happened during it. I have a few events I will add... As you could see, I mentioned Sasori killing the 3rd Kazekage which started the war which is totally AU... Basically, I want to avoid people nitpicking on details so I am saying this beforehand.

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Chapter 92 - Ch92. The Nagori Isles 1

The war started and the fights were intensifying by the day. Rei had many reports from his spies slash merchants about happenings and various rumors that flooded the capital cities. From there, it wasn't really that hard to depict what was going on. He might not have a full account and surely many important events evaded the civilians who were spying for him but then again, he didn't really need military secrets. Most of his intel was guesswork created through the recounting of purchases of various villages but at least 70% was actually spot-on. After all, a village couldn't really organize a military action without enough supplies and his company was selling the best seals in the world.

That's why Rei, Konan, and Mei, the newly dubbed team Downpour, knew exactly what to expect on their first mission in this war. The Mizukage kept them in the village for the first three months as the conflicts started escalating and now, he deployed them as reinforcements to a remote region made of isles near the Land of Lightning which held almost zero interest to the Land of Water or Kirigakure.

Rei was frowning for the entire way, trying to discern what was the plan of the old grouch but he was shooting blanks. He might not know what was the end-game but for this mission, he had his guesses and he didn't like them at all...

"What's bothering you?" Rei heard a voice calling out on him from behind. He didn't need to turn around to know who it was, after all, he trained her for years.

"Ringo? What are you doing here?" Rei asked incredulously. The past two years, Ringo was avoiding him like a plague. Only with a heavy heart did he slowly accept her distancing herself from him so he had no idea why she approached him now of all times. "Shouldn't you be in the commander's tent... I don't know... commanding?"

Ringo chuckled at his question and sat next to him. Both were now sitting on the edge of the roof of a very high lighthouse on the main Island of Nagori Isles, the place where the Mizukage apparently chose to make a forward base for the Kiri forces.

"Maybe..." She nodded and leaned her head on Rei's shoulder, startling him. "I am sorry." Ringo quietly said, gazing forward without turning to Rei despite feeling his eyes intently peering at her face. "I... started seeing things and-." She tried to push the emotion-filled words out of her but had quite a problem doing so as she clutched her hands.

"Ringo are you high?" Rei worriedly but bluntly asked in a deadpan tone. Not once during the years did the wild tomboy behave like a meek and bashful, nostalgic kitten. Something was clearly wrong. Rei narrowed his eyes at Ringo and added. "You are clearly not drunk... did you start smoking weed or something? You know you shouldn't do that during a war. Kusa is known for poisoning the weed they export during wartimes." He ranted, not paying attention to Ringo anymore as the words flew from his mouth, making her more and more exasperated by the second.

Rei only stopped when Ringo took his cheeks into her hands and suddenly, he could feel himself being pulled forward and his eyes widened as his lips landed on Ringo's. It was a gentle and awkward kiss. Rei's mind went blank when he felt her silky and soft lips, his heart beating hard from the surprise.

Ringo pulled back with her cheeks dyed crimson and her brown eyes contently sparkling. "Shut up." She said with utter happiness in her voice before her hands embraced Rei's torso and she put her head onto his chest.

It took a few moments for Rei to snap out of it and when he did, he saw the small cute woman tightly clutching him which made him smile. "Now I am certain you smoked something." He sighed jokingly but his real feelings were conveyed by his hand that tenderly landed on Ringo's head, caressing her hair. Rei was smiling contently as he was staring into the horizon while feeling Ringo's warmth but inwardly, his mind was in deep sadness knowing it wouldn't last as Ringo would not betray Kiri.

As if feeling his distress, Ringo started talking. "The Mizukage doesn't trust us." She said out of nowhere in a quiet and sad tone. Rei raised an eyebrow at that because he would never expect these words to come out of her mouth. "Every S-rank shinobi of Kirigakure was given the rank of commander but you, me, and Konan." Ringo continued.

"But you are the commander here." Rei said but his face was now smirking in relief that Ringo finally started using her own brain instead of believing everything the Mizukage told her. Maybe she still could be persuaded to join the 'light side'.

Hering him, Ringo rolled her eyes but didn't lift her forehead from his chest. "As if. I have two hundred people in this base that is too far away from anywhere Kiri would be able to send reinforcements once the fighting begins. Moreover, these islands are only a few kilometers away from the coasts of the Land of Lightning..."

"Well, the team Downpour was called here because according to Kiri spies, this base here will be attacked." Rei said offhandedly while nodding. He knew her worries well and they were not unfounded. By now, they were bunkering down and waiting for Kumo troops to show up.

"The problem is we have no idea how many and who Kumo will send." Ringo stated, her voice growing weaker and weaker. Rei could feel her shuffling her head and looked down, only to be greeted with big brown eyes of Ringo, looking at him with affection apparent inside of them. "If this goes south, I want you to run." Ringo said, tightening the hold on his torso.

Rei softly smiled and pecked her nose. "Don't worry. Kumo will certainly send at the very least over thousand shinobi led by several S-rankers." He whispered calmingly. At first, Ringo calmed down due to his tone but when her brain processed what he said... Rei however continued speaking with a smirk when he saw her eyes widening. "After all, a little birdie not belonging to Kiri whispered to me that the Kumo received a missile about our numbers and that three S-rank shinobi of Kiri are here... far from home, outnumbered, and outkunaied." Rei added a bit of dramatic flair into his voice, shaking his head in mock disbelief. "Apparently the Mizukage's main goal is Kumo too! Who would have guessed..." He snorted.

Ringo wasn't stupid. She knew tactics and strategy. She just preferred to disregard them most of the time. After all, she wasn't the type to lead troops. She was a fighter, not a leader. But even then she clearly understood the message Rei was giving her by being so sarcastic. "We are a bait." She said with realization apparent in her eyes but then stopped herself. "Wait... your flight." Ringo gulped, still in disbelief at what her mind was telling her. "Only team Downpour has means of running away for sure. I have a fifty-fifty chance of survival depending on who Kumo will send. Even I can't fight an army alone." Ringo was biting her fingernail while droning on. "The two hundred shinobi under my command were sent here to be slaughtered..."

"Which would mean 'The End' for your reputation in the village. Well, if you survive and get back to Kiri, that is." Rei shrugged, getting a gaping look from Ringo. "After all, you are the commander. It's your duty to call for retreat." He said and looked towards the sea with amus.e.m.e.nt. Despite the ability to walk on water, ninjas had to use boats for naval warfare. Clearly, the boats Ringo received to get here were not the fastest sort.

"Son of a bitch." Ringo breathlessly stated. Yes... if she called for a retreat now, she would be regarded as a coward. If she called for a retreat mid-battle, her forces would be slaughtered due to slow boats. Not many if any would survive. This was one massive death trap and the only one who would easily 'dodge' it was Rei's team... "Oh." Ringo was hit with a realization and looked at their position. She was hugging Rei and he was returning the hug with head pats. "I... The Mizukage is counting on you saving me, isn't he." She plainly said with a dry tone.

"Yes... that he clearly is. Having a ruined reputation doesn't mean your skill would drop. You would be still an S-rank and a very important killing tool for the village. Just look at how many people you assassinated already, making this war easier for Kiri. It would be only your influence in the village politics and respect of the village that would disappear." Rei told her. "A clever plan, indeed."

"But if we are the bait..." Ringo's brows furrowed and Rei eye-smiled at her.

"Yup... the main goal of the Mizukage for this war was always Konoha. The spies of many countries are bringing home intel about Kiri attacking and focusing mainly on Kumo... after all, these islands are VERY close to their territory. And I bet the main force of Kiri already set sails towards Kumo. If the advance force, which we clearly are not but they don't know that, is 200 hundred strong, the main army would be around a few thousand. Oh, Kumo will hit this place hard, of that, you can be sure." Rei shook his head.

"And because of that, Konoha will lower their guard." Ringo finished with a difficult expression. "The Kiri force that set sails will turn mid-way towards the shores of the Land of Fire." Ringo bitterly stated before looking at Rei. "What should I do, Sensei?"

Rei was a bit bewildered she asked him this but appreciated her trust. He smirked as a plan was starting to form in his head. "Well, since you asked so nicely, naturally we can't attack them head-on nor try to defend the base if they will outnumber us greatly." He tenderly smiled at Ringo and kissed her forehead, making her fl.u.s.tered as he leaned towards her ear and whispered. "Let's do it like this..."

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Chapter 93 - Ch93. The Nagori Isles 2

"They are finally here." Rei said as he felt a few hundred people of varying strength through his nature sensing. This made the people surrounding him tense slightly, except Konan who just smiled and reassuringly squeezed Rei's hand.

It was three days since his talk with Ringo and these days were quite busy and demanding for every single shinobi in the small Kiri force. Rei decided to fight like a shinobi and that's why he was now looking at the 'main' base that was completely empty from a bit further away in an underground bunker made in a cliff. The Kiri troops were also scattered and hiding all around, a few meters away from the base that was supposed to be a bait. The Kiri shinobi were in ten-man squads and everyone already knew their role.

"There are around five hundred people with civilian-level chakra reserves. Mercenaries most likely... cannon fodder, I suppose." Rei said with a frown. While these people weren't ninja, they shouldn't be underestimated despite them probably hardly having low genin-level strength... if that. The important part was their numbers. Obviously, they were largely outnumbered. "Then according to the chakra-levels, there are around two hundred genins, around eighty chunin, and twenty jonin for three hundred shinobi."

"Three hundred..." Ringo repeated. "Eight hundred in total..." She bit her lower lip, hoping their plan would work.

"Plus there are two incredibly strong chakras." Rei added. "Probably commanders. I'd bet one of them is a jinchuuriki." A grin spread on Rei's lips as he said that. He was, after all, a bit of a bijuu chakra collector as of right now...

"That's bothersome." Ringo stated seriously while narrowing her eyes to the horizon. Rei's sensing range was quite a lot and the enemies couldn't even be seen yet.

"Don't bother," Rei quipped in amus.e.m.e.nt when he saw her trying to spot them. "even with your incredible eyesight you won't see them yet. You would have to be a Hyuuga for that. They are still on the other side of the island, getting out of their boats."

Ringo nodded, understanding there will still be quite a bit of waiting involved before all hell breaks loose. She only hoped their enemies would fall for the ploy.

...

"What do you sense, B?" A asked gruffly as he turned to his surrogate brother.

B frowned as he watched the base of Kiri ninja. At the very first glance, it was suspicious. There were no patrols, no traps, no nothing, and the base looked empty. It was only when B started using his chakra sensing he got a quite worrying surprise.

"There is no Yeti, it's totally empty... Broza!" B rhymed while wildly gesturing with his hands, successfully creating a tick-mark on A's forehead. Despite his silly action, inwardly B was in a discussion with his tenant about what was going on. He tried to increase the range or precision of his chakra senses and even let the eight-tails try but neither could sense anything human-like anywhere close.

Rei was too experienced when it came to sensing and had the foresight to expect enemies to bring at least one sensor with them. He made sure that every hiding place of Kiri's ten-man squads had foolproof anti-chakra-sensing seals. Unless B had a skill like Kurama's emotion-sensing, he would be unable to feel the Kiri shinobi no matter how much he would try.

"Commander A!" A barely twenty years old orange-haired woman with shoulder-long hair approached A. She at most reached his chest but the second he saw her, his face lit up. "Looks like the enemy retreated. May I take some of our men to scout the base?" She enthusiastically asked and A couldn't help but chuckle as he patted her head, making her lower her head with a pout from embarrassment and start muttering something suspiciously similar to 'A no baka'.

"Yeah, L, feel free. Looks like the Kiri cowards ran!" A boisterously laughed, making the woman smile at him tenderly. He would never allow his fiance to do this if B didn't confirm there was no one nearby. After all, she was barely a mid-chunin. It took a lot of persuasions to make his father allow him to bed someone weak like her... Alas, he really loved the girl.

L gathered the men, five jonin, ten chunin, and fifteen genins while the rest of her hundred were normal mercenaries. B was still watching the surroundings with a frown and furrowed eyebrows when L's men started to cautiously approach the base. He really didn't like the mist that was starting to rise all around. But the mist was natural and no chakra was in it so he had nothing he could say. An uncomfortable feeling however didn't leave him no matter what he did.

All of the L troops heaved a sigh of relief when no trap sprang up nor any ambush happened when ten minutes later they finally reached the door of the base. A and the rest of the army waited in the clearing, observing the situation. They saw L's men entering the base without any problem, making them inwardly happy. The mercenaries mostly cheered at the easy job, happy for being paid without fighting while the more experienced, mostly jonin, started to get a bit jumpy due to the ever-so-slowly rising mist around them. The only reason why they weren't on full alert was that it was confirmed the mist was natural.

...

Rei smirked and released another batch of storage seals that had a natural mist from around Kirigakure stored inside.

"They are making this so easy..." He heard Ringo snicker in wonder.

"Nope, it's just that ninjas use so much Jutsu they forget the basics of stealth and covert ambush. Look at them, Ringo." Rei said seriously. Ringo quickly recognized the glint in Rei's eyes. It was the one he had every time he was giving her some important lesson when she was a genin. It was the glint she so loved on her sensei. It was the thing that made her less of a battle junkie. She lowered her head slightly in bashfulness and attentively listened to Rei. "The second the mist appeared, their guard went up. But the second they confirmed the mist has no chakra in it and is natural, most of them stopped caring. Despite that, the more experienced ninja's are still tense." Rei revealed a devilish smile. "And that will be their undoing. Oh, how much chaos that can cause..."

Ringo just shook her head. "Sometimes I wonder where did you get such a nasty streak." As she said that, she gave Rei a stink-eye. "And you always admonished me for being too 'battle crazy'." She huffed and crossed her arms in mock-anger, making Konan and other people in their ten-man 'commander' squad chuckle at her antics.

Rei just ignored Ringo and turned to Kuga Mizura, a jonin who had a minor bloodline that could infuse her chakra into two sources of water... in this case water in a bowl... and 'connect' them. Rei found it incredibly useful for sending messages without needing to reveal his communication seals as the woman could basically form a text from the water and due to the connection, the same text would be created in every hiding spot of Kiri shinobi. The best and the most confusing part for Rei... no chakra was being transmitted to accomplish this so chakra-sensing would not spot it.

"Well then, Mizura, your turn." Rei gestured to the bowl and the gentle-looking brunette revealed a blood-thirsty smile as her blue eyes sparkled in anticipation. She wasn't a hunter-nin for no reason. He then glanced at Konan, giving her a silent order to prepare the start of the plan 'Boom, here we are'.

It didn't take long and the Kiri ten-man squads started to sneak through the natural mist towards the Kumo forces. Rei provided them sealing tags that could mask their chakra similarly to the ones inscribed to the hiding spots but the second they used chakra, they would be revealed. It was solely for getting closer in the cover of the natural mist without being noticed.

The 'commander' squad was still in the hideout, observing and prepared to react if anything went downhill while Ringo, Konan, and Rei were intently staring at A and B. It was obvious who would be in charge of distracting these two.

...

It was thirty seconds later that A was watching his fiance's troops entering the base as the visibility was slowly starting to drop to worrying levels.

"Bother, we should retreat." B suddenly said in a serious tone that was very unusual for him.

"Didn't you say you can't sense anything?" A raised his eyebrow at B and crossed his arms.

"Yes..." B trailed off, not in the mood to rap which made A really nervous. "But I just have this really bad feeling, kono-yaro, baka-yaro."

A furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head. 'A very bad feeling, huh?' He nodded. Certainly. Despite the mist, it's not like his men had only B as a sensor. They had twenty of them... which was a lot since there were only 300 shinobi. A requested them especially since he knew about Kirigakure no Jutsu and that good sensor-nin are best to counter it. But neither of his sensors were giving him a red alarm, meaning nobody sensed anything. Not in the mist, and certainly not in the surroundings. Yet... he still couldn't get the feeling of being watched out of his mind.

A looked at B's worried expression which was only masked by his black sunglasses and curtly nodded. He would rather get scolded for not finishing what seemed like an incredibly easy mission properly in the earliest possible time due to regrouping of his troops than being ambushed. He decided to trust his instincts. "Q! Take ten fast men and go tell L that we are retrea-"

A didn't finish his sentence when a sudden but powerful 'boom' reverberated through the island, making the wind violently rampage, dispersing the mist while also making the unprepared Kumo forces quite dazed due to the abrupt booming sound followed by a strong force of the wind that impacted the troops. Some mercenaries were sent tumbling across the ground but shinobi and only the more experienced mercenaries withstood the residual shockwaves, managing to keep standing.

"NOOO!" A's anguish-filled scream tore through the clearing as he realized what blew up when he looked at the burning rubble of what was previously the Kiri base. The explosion was so strong, even the guards stationed outside the already destroyed building were torn to shreds by it. Obviously, no one survived such an abrupt explosion. A dropped to his knees as his mind was swirling in the horrid realization that his fiance just perished. He had no idea what to do when... the distressed screams of rage and surprise of his troops filled the clearing.

The real battle has just begun.

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Chapter 94 - Ch94. The Nagori Isles 3

Mei's eyes eagerly stalked her prey as she sneaked through the mist towards the Kumo troops. She asked Rei to let her join the ninjas who will be attacking the Kumo troops and only with great reluctance, she was let go at the behest of Konan. Mei was happy that Rei cared about her but she also wanted to show him she was not someone he had to protect all the time. This, in her opinion, was the perfect opportunity.

The tension was high in the air as the Kiri-nin tried to get as close as possible without being heard or seen. The surroundings were covered in thick mist and this was their forte, after all. None of them wanted to fail and disgrace themselves.

Mei deemed herself being close enough as she heard nervous banter coming from a few meters in front of her. It was obvious they were Kumo ninja because no Kiri-nin would talk out loud in the mist, much less when they were about to attack the enemy. She crouched down and whipped ten shurikens from her pouch, half-turning her head to the side to check where her teammates were. She could only use her hearing to do that but Rei made her often practice in a thick boiling mist made of her Boil Release so she could proudly proclaim she was even better than some jonin at navigating through a mist just with her ears.

'Five from my squad are approximately ten meters to the left of me...' Mei thought as she registered their covert footsteps. It was almost completely silent and she had to applaud the sneaking skill of her squad-mates. She would be unable to hear it if Rei didn't teach her how to enhance her hearing with chakra. She tilted her head to the other side and nodded to herself. 'The remaining four are to the right... eight, nine, and eleven meters away.'

The slightly chilling world of white all around her was something Mei loved. It was this world of white where she made the best memories with Rei. Her lips bloomed into a smile as she remembered one training session with Rei that ended with her sprawled on the ground, entangled with Rei. She would always cherish his embarrassed expression...

" 'If there is a thick mist... why not make it melting?' huh?" She fondly muttered under her nose as she remembered what Rei told her during that particular training. "Well... fair enough." Mei silently molded her chakra, praising Rei for literally forcing her to learn sealless chakra molding. She only dared to do this because Rei gave her a special seal that managed to hide her chakra usage from sensors unless she used a certain amount of it at once. A very nifty seal for the current situation... It took about a minute until Mei was ready, which made her frown as it took her way too long... well, she was not yet ready to use the sealless molding during combat, especially not since she had to limit her chakra output.

"Boil Release: Melting Clone."

Two copies of herself suddenly solidified from the mist around, also drawing ten shurikens. The three of them eagerly awaited the signal to start. After all, as Konan-nee told her, she had to prove to Rei she was worthy of him!

It took almost ten whole minutes until Mei heard the loud explosion signalizing the start of the attack and she could instantly feel the shockwaves from it spread through the clearing, ripping apart the mist. If she didn't know what to expect and wasn't properly anchored to the ground with her chakra, she would surely have a hard time keeping herself in one spot.

Each Kiri ninja threw their prepared shurikens towards the Kumo troops the second they heard the explosion, creating a shower of sharp steel. . Most of the shurikens were redirected due to the strong winds the explosion created but those that were properly aimed were enhanced by the shockwaves and rained on Kumo ninjas in a flurry of death.

Mei delightedly noted that all thirty of her shurikens found purchase and thanks to the additional push by the shockwaves, the Kumo army was now forty-three men short. She knew the initial hail of steel was only a good distraction and time-efficient action. It didn't really have much of a meaning in the grand scheme of things as not that many Kumo ninjas were caught off guard and mostly mercenaries died. Mei instantly followed the next part of the plan. The mist was almost dispersed but the unexpected strong winds created enough chaos and distraction to the enemy that the Kiri ninjas were still unnoticed. The bodies of Mei's targets from the shurikens didn't even manage to fall onto the ground as she was already channeling her chakra.

"Henge!" She exclaimed quietly and together with her clones, she jumped towards the distraught Kumo ninjas as her attire changed into standard Kumo ninja uniform while according to Rei's plan, she also threw a smoke bomb right in the middle of enemy troops to create another cover for herself and her allies. What Rei didn't tell Mei nor any other Kiri ninja, the seals that previously masked chakra usage had also a function of enhancing their Henge to seem more natural which made them harder to see through it.

...

The Kumo troops were utterly unprepared for the powerful shockwave from the explosion. Worse yet, none of them anticipated a hail of steel to rain from all around them as every Kiri-nin threw out shurikens the second the explosion resounded through the clearing. But it was only after that the real hell began. The surrounding white mist was blown away by the strong winds but the visibility didn't return for long as smoke bombs started to explode everywhere around and the slaughter began. People wearing Kumo uniforms started hacking and slashing mercenaries... The real shitstorm however started when the mercenaries began to return the attack, and the clash between the people clad in the Kumo uniform and the mercenaries commenced.

...

Mei slit the throat of an old-ish burly man with her kunai and saw one of her clones, henged to look like common mercenaries, fighting with a sword-wielding Kumo-nin while the other was throwing kunai and shurikens around while quickly zig-zagging through the labyrinth of people fighting each other. The poor guy who fought with one of her clones was swiftly dispatched when his sword impacted the forearm of the clone and his expression turned to delight as he expected the arm of his opponent to be chopped into two, only for the arm to flicker and change into a boiling mist that enveloped the man's head, melting it. It was painful but a quick death… before the clone's arm again reformed as it turned to look for a new target.

Mei didn't waste her time and quickly found a man wearing a Kumo uniform who didn't have the seal-tag from Rei, meaning he was not one of the disguised Kiri ninjas. The man was distraught as he didn't know who to attack in this utter chaos where allies killed allies in hopes to kill the real enemies. Moreover, the entire battlefield was covered in smoke, clouding the visibility, and only blood-chilling and blood-curdling screams could be heard all around alongside the deafening sounds of steel hitting steel! He had no idea what to do!

Mei smiled to herself and shouted at the man while approaching. "Are you alright!?" She asked, getting his attention. The man briefly tensed until he saw her Kumo attire. "Don't just stand around! Be careful or you will die!" She admonished the man whose face momentarily twisted to embarrassment before he gave her a curt determined nod of gratitude and raised his guard. Mei was now very close to the man and smiled. "Don't worry, I have your back." She said, making him smile.

The second he acknowledged he heard her and turned around, the man instantly regretted it as his heart was pierced from behind by Mei's kunai. "I warned you I have your back, didn't I?" Her amused voice was the last thing the man ever heard as his eyes dimmed and his lifeless body fell to the ground. Mei snorted and jumped away from the man, becoming just another shadow in the surrounding smoke.

She jumped out and into a battle, killing distracted people who didn't have seal-tags from Rei. It affected others who wore the same seal with a minor unbreakable genjutsu, making them see a bit of translucent blue hue around them, marking them as allies. Mei also supported any ally who was in pinch and mostly acted like a proper ninja. Never staying too long to battle one guy and seldom participating in one versus one unless she had an overwhelming advantage or her enemy was gravely injured. The Kiri ninjas were assassins and right now, the smoke-filled clearing was the best possible battlezone for them. Mei especially liked when she saw two people clashing and none of them having the seal as it was a clear sign that their tactics were working perfectly and Kumo troops were killing each other with fervor. It was almost hilarious and exhilarating to see how well Rei's plan went.

This was the first major battle for Mei where hundreds of ninjas clashed and only now she understood the teachings of Rei. He often told her "If you don't have overwhelming strength, then stealth and mind-games are your best friend." Right now, she had a clear example of that. Kumo ninja couldn't use large-scale jutsu in fear of hitting their own and that left only close-combat available to them. They also had to be wary of anyone who approached them, even the people they knew while the Kiri-nin just picked the 'unmarked' enemies one by one from the smoke with silent killing technique while occasionally changing their disguise to look like a guy who they recently killed. The overwhelming numerical advantage of Kumo was completely nullified and turned against them as chaos ruled the battle and the massacre continued.

'Isn't this a bit too easy?' Many Kiri-nin thought while dispatching their targets and couldn't help but admire the simplicity of Rei's plan while also being exasperated. Who in their right mind would drag tons of natural mist sealed in storage scroll with them!?

--

Author Note:

Okay! This was my first writing a major battle, guys, and as you saw, I tried to depict how tactics and the control of the environment made it easy for Kiri-nin...

Do give me feedback as I dunno how well this was written and feel as if it could be better :D. Alas, writing about clashes between armies is something I will have to improve, I guess.

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Chapter 95 - Ch95. Ringo vs A

Ringo's swords quickly slashed at A, their blades streaming with lightning aura and A barely managed to activate his lighting armor to block the strike with his forearm. As the lightning armor and lightning-enhanced chakra blades met the ground under them cracked and lightning started flying discharges around, frying some unfortunate Kumo ninjas.

"Bitch!" A shouted when he saw her aim was from the start to kill the ninja around rather than fully focus on attacking him and tried to push the blades up to parry them while creating an opening for an attack.

Ringo smirked and the second she felt him trying to force her swords up, She let go, and retracted her swords which made A's arm jump upward. A could only widen his eyes at being outsmarted when Ringo's feet covered in lightning chakra impacted his chest... again, it was only the lighting armor that prevented him from being injured as his body was flung to the ground, creating a small trench by rolling like a ragdoll while mowing some more Kumo ninjas as if he was a lightning bullet.

A finally stopped himself and looked at the bloody trench with pieces of his soldiers that were torn to shreds when they got in between the ground and his lightning armor... his anger was ignited. He raised his head to look at the smug face of the redhead who yet again obviously did this not to injure him but to kill his ninja... with his own body at that! Growling, A stood up and pounced at Ringo, mentally swearing the bitch will pay!

Ringo barely managed to take a half-step to the left and lift her left blade in order to block A's fist. As the fist hit her blade, she slightly jumped, making her feet in the air when the force of the punch impacted her which made her body fly backward at breakneck speed... straight at a group of three Kumo jonin who tried to team up in order to have a better chance at retaliating. She spun her body mid-air and lightning coursed through her right blade as she was passing the jonin group. They didn't even manage to widen their eyes as Ringo's sword cleaved through two of them with one swing and her feet kicked the ground, slowing her flight and sending the dust into the air.

Ringo used the cover provided by the dust to steady herself and slashed her sword in a downward strike at the last jonin. It was about to cleave him as it descended from the sky when A appeared in a burst of speed in front of the man and raised his palm, catching the sword. "Are you alright?" He asked the jonin with rage apparent in his tone. A was downright pissed! The woman yet again used his attack as a means to kill more of his ninjas!

The jonin gulped in relief at evading certain death. "Yes, sir!" He said and jumped away from A and the dangerous redhead. He knew there was nothing he could do between the two lightning-clad monsters so he ran away, deciding to engage someone else. He was a jonin and while he could somewhat see them, he was still unable to react! It would be better to vacate the field so Commander A doesn't have to worry about anything else than putting the redhead down.

A's hand was trembling from the strength the woman exerted through her sword but the blade didn't manage to get through his lighting armor on his palm. Ringo's second blade was thrust at his chest but he also caught the blade and smirked. "Too slow. I wonder what you will do now that both your swords are unusable, woman!" His boisterous voice reverberated around with an angry undertone. He thought he had her but her calm smile stopped him short.

"Idiot." Ringo jeered as she discharged a large amount of raiton chakra with a frequency close to the frequency of A's lightning armor through her blades. Her lightning chakra resonated with A's which made his palms to be pushed away from the blade, creating an opening as his arms shot to the sides. His chest was wide open and Ringo wouldn't let such an opportunity go. Both of her blades gleamed blue as lightning coursed through them while Ringo started a high-speed slashing combo impacting A's vital places. Two, Four, Six, Eight slashes...

She managed to get in eight slashes before she was forced to jump away as A managed to get his arms under control and send a punch at her head. Ringo frowned and felt hopeless as she saw the very shallow cuts on A's neck and chest. She poured a lot of speed, strength, and chakra into these eight strikes, and yet... he barely bled. 'What the f.u.c.k is he made of? That should have killed him!' Ringo bitterly thought.

"Haah," A let out a shaky breath. "I must admit, I was scared for a second there. Your technique is incredible... but you lack power." He said, grinning at Ringo, his killing intent flared around. He knew the woman in front of him was the commander of Kiri forces, therefore responsible for... "You killed my fiance, I will enjoy beating you to the ground but don't worry, I won't kill you! That would be too merciful! I will drag you back to Kumo, strap chakra restraining seals on you, and make sure you will be tortured and r.a.p.ed until you crack before killing you off, you bitch!" He bellowed out. The angrier he got, the more his lightning armor flared, becoming stronger as his chakra spiked.

"Is that so?" Ringo crouched down, mischievously narrowing her eyes as she saw A's body also preparing for a clash. "You will have to catch me first." She smirked and with a spin on her heel, she dashed in the opposite direction from him.

A was left standing there with wide eyes and slowly, the vein on his forehead started pulsing as his anger reached new heights. "Bitch." He ground his teeth together and dashed forward, starting to chase her. He didn't realize she was basically leading him away from his troops which would enable the Kiri forces to have undisturbed happy hunting time.

A was obviously faster than Ringo so he managed to catch up almost instantly... but as he was about to grab her, he could feel her suddenly spiking her lightning chakra and as his hand closed, he grabbed only air. Ringo was a bit to the left, clearly evading him. Their game of catch continued for the whole two minutes as A numerous times tried to grapple Ringo. He tried to catch her clothes, her leg, arm, even hair! But every time, she would somehow use her lightning chakra in her body and dodge, pissing him off. She was unable to hurt him. She was slower than him. And yet... she was so goddamn annoying and slippery he wanted to tear his hair out!

Only after ten minutes of chase did Ringo finally stop and as A was again trying to grab her and she yet again flared her lighting chakra into her body... he suddenly found himself staring at the lighting-enhanced edge of Ringo's blade approaching his head. He was unable to dodge as his body was still moving forward and he had no time to change the direction. The sword was also closing in on him quite fast. The world slowed down almost to a crawl for him and in his panic, A forcefully put pressure on his neck-muscles in order to slightly lower his head.

Ringo frowned as blue lightning sparks flew when her blade impacted A's head but she quickly jumped away. She could barely react to his attacks thanks to the Territory-exercise Konan put her through so staying close to the speed-monster was not a good idea.

A felt himself being drenched in a cold sweat as his neck muscles hurt from overexerting. His shocked wide-eyes blinked in the reassurance that they were indeed still intact and looked at the redhead cautiously staring at him with her sword in front of her body. For the second time during this battle, he felt fear ran through him. "Hehe," He dryly laughed. "You are one hell of a woman. So dangerous." He said almost tonelessly as his mind processed that he almost lost his eyes a moment ago. She used his speed against him and attacked at a spot where his lighting armor was weakest, aiming to cut his eyes. If he didn't lower his head which made the sword impact his eyebrows instead... He shuddered at the precision of the swordswoman in front of him. "To be able to find the weakness of my technique so quickly." A muttered.

"Well... I am a lightning user, after all." Ringo chuckled, amused at the shallow cut that went through his eyebrows. It was only her eyes that betrayed just how irritated she was he managed to evade the deciding blow. Now he would be cautious since she showed she knew his weakness. Nobody could infuse large amounts of lightning chakra to organs without managing them. It took a large amount of control to do at least some enhancement of them. Eyes were a fragile thing so the layer of armor was weakest there. "I must say this lighting armor of yours... I will definitely try to copy it later." Ringo smirked, trying to provoke him. She was outwardly the epitome of calm and collected with a bit of playfulness but inwardly she was seriously hoping Rei would come fast. She knew when she was outgunned and the man in front of her was a large obstacle to get through. The most she could do was to keep him guessing and make him tip-toe around her in fear of being surprise-attacked again.

"As if." A harrumphed. "There is no 'later' for you." He dashed at Ringo, punching in her direction only for a lightning bolt to descend from the sky, impacting the ground in front of her, blocking his punch. As his lightning-clad fist met the lightning bolt, a light flashed through the vicinity, blinding A.

"Lightning Release: Descending Strike." Ringo's voice entered his ears as his battle instincts flared, making him quickly put his arm over his eyes.

Seeing that. Ringo redirected her sword and instead of going for the eyes, she slashed at his neck, pushing a large amount of her lightning chakra into the blade with the same frequency as his lightning armor.

A could feel the repulsing force between his lightning armor and his enemy's lightning chakra on his neck. 'Oh, shit.' He thought as an inhumane amount of pressure was put on his neck, making him feel as if it was put through a blender while his head snapped forward and his body was thrown neck-first backward like a ragdoll.

The slash was unable to directly damage his neck but the woman again used her control over lightning release to use his lightning armor against him and 'repulse' him. Worse yet, she used it at his neck with considerable force and A could feel quite a few muscles in his neck damaged.

He didn't have time to contemplate the worst pain he ever felt in his life as he had to roll away from another thrust of Ringo's blade. Springing on his feet, he did something Ringo didn't expect. As she was about to thrust her blade at him, instead of dodging to the side or backward, he stepped forward while changing the frequency of his lightning armor for a second at his abdomen. This weakened the armor in that spot but it also parried Ringo's blade, throwing her arm to the side.

As the frequency of their lightning was different, neither was pushed away and Ringo found herself in a pinch. Her eyes widened and she barely managed to put her arm in front of her head before... blinding pain overloaded her senses as her world went white.

A gleefully watched as his fist aimed at the woman's head impacted her arm. He could feel as her bones were being crushed in that arm and his punch indeed slowed a bit and became weaker while the arm did become a sort of a cushion but nevertheless... his punch struck Ringo's face as it pushed her arm into it, snapping her head back. Her feet were lifted from the ground as her body was head-first sent through the air before hitting the ground. It powerlessly bounced from the ground a bit while wildly rolling before it stopped. Still holding her swords in her hands.

A panted and looked at the motionless body of the kunoichi that caused him so many problems. She almost killed him with that strike to his neck. His eyebrows furrowed when he heard the woman's raspy groan. "So you are still alive?" He slowly walked towards the redhead and watched as blood poured out of her head, staining the nearby ground red. "Heh, idiot, why are you trying to talk to her? She probably can't hear you anyway with the amount of damage to her head." He admonished himself as he crouched above Ringo's motionless body. "Hmm... so you enhanced your face with lightning chakra before the impact and jumped backward, heh. It probably saved you from having your head torn from your shoulders. A pity you are an enemy." A praised with a nod. "I wondered why I didn't feel your jaw and cheekbones snapping. Hmm," He thought if he should follow through with his threats and take her to Kumo as his personal whore but in the end, he couldn't. "You were strong. If I don't count my father, you were the strongest ninja I faced since I mastered lightning armor. You deserve respect so I will grant you a swift death." He raised his fist, about to kill Ringo...

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Chapter 96 - Ch96. Rei vs. B

B was about to jump to help A when he saw him being attacked by a sword-wielding redhead but Konan and Rei intercepted him, blocking his path. It was mostly Rei since Konan had her chakra tightly concealed to be around the mid-jonin level while Rei released enough of the concealing to come out as an S-rank shinobi to any sensor. B, as a very accomplished chakra sensor, naturally just glanced at Konan before giving most of his attention to Rei.

Rei smirked to himself as he half-turned his head towards Konan. "Jonin Yotsuba," Oh, how he loved nobody knew his last name. If he said 'Jonin Konan', he was sure B would put two and two together and their identity would be out. A bit of bullshit no Jutsu was needed for this performance. "go and help the troops, I will take care of the big bad guy." He said in an ordering tone as if he was her superior and gestured with a nod towards B.

"Yes, Rei-sama!" Konan exclaimed loudly, sounding a bit like a fangirl... loudly enough for B to hear 'Rei-sama' which made his head snap to Rei as his eyes slightly widened while Konan turned around with an amused smile and left to help the Kiri shinobi. Rei couldn't help but laugh his ass off internally. If B had even an inkling who Konan was and her power-level he would do his damnedest to keep her as far away from the regular troops... now that had to be avoided, hadn't it?

"So you ya the famous an' mysterious Rei of Downpour... ya are nuthin' special an' I feel kinda sour." B rapped in disappointment, half to make Rei mad and a half due to him thinking Rei would have more chakra than what he was showing.

"Yeah... I feel ya bro." Rei lazily said and rolled his eyes at B who furrowed his brows. That was the second Rei waited for, B lowered his guard. Rei disappeared in a quick burst of speed as his chakra invigorated his body and suddenly appeared in front of B with shunshin. B only managed to put his hands in front of his chin before Rei's kick impacted his palm and sent him flying upward to the sky because Rei used nature energy to strengthen that blow. He needed to get this perfect jinchuuriki away from the battlefield so he decided to take some minor damage to his leg because of the abrupt channeling of the nature energy rather than try to lure him away which might not work.

Rei dashed in the direction of the flying B, smiling to himself as he realized the burly brown-skinned man might not have been injured beyond getting a scr.a.p.e on his palm but he has indeed flown at least half a kilometer away. 'The wonders of nature energy' Rei inwardly chuckled as he marveled at the strength of his kick and the fact that the damage from it, while extensive, would heal in a minute or so.

B crashed into the ground, cracking it as he created a small crater while sending dust up into the air. He stood up and rotated his shoulders when he felt Rei stop near him. "That hurt, you runt." He dryly said, making Rei laugh.

"Well, B-san, there is no distraction for half a kilometer. Let's enjoy a full out fight." Rei said calmly and his body tensed in preparation for the fight. He knew that half a kilometer was not that much of a distance considering B being the perfect jinchuuriki who can spam nuke balls but it was better than nothing.

B grinned and raised his hand with a bull horn hand gesture while looking towards the sky. "Let's do this, Hachi! Veeeeee!"

Rei chuckled and watched as B transformed into the form of Hachibi. He was a bit happy that the man didn't underestimate him and instantly took Hachibi's form despite it being annoying. Rei was inwardly gleeful at having such a big target now.

The first thing B did was to pounce at Rei. His massive form was charged towards Rei, destroying the surroundings. It took him only a second to reach Rei and he prepared to punch the place where Rei stood. His arm struck forward, impacting the ground, creating meters-wide spider-web-like cracks and sending dust into the air, reaching as tall as treetops.

Before B could rejoice, Hachibi's voice resounded in his head. 'Careful!' He had no time to reach however as hundreds of chakra strings appeared all around his body, enwrapping it. Before he could form a coherent thought, Rei who now stood a bit away flexed his fingers and the blue chakra strings started to change into crimson red while also starting to burn in the same colored flame a moment after they changed the color. Rei was feeding the chakra strings with Fire, Wind, and Nature chakra mix to create his Destruction Flames, as he named this mix. It was the same thing he used to destroy the Liza-, uh, the Salamander Realm and Rei wanted to see how durable would Hachibi be against it.

'We gotta avoid that!' Hachibi told B as the strings were catching on the crimson fire.

B was too big to evade the fast-spreading fire so he charged a small bijuu dama and fired it at Rei who was flabbergasted it took only a second for the perfect jinchuuriki to literally create and throw it in his direction, destroying the chakra strings. As the bijuu dama flew, it caught on the crimson fire which started to make it smaller but strengthened its power. Rei had no other choice than to click his tongue and transport himself into his dimension.

The bijuu dama on crimson fire impacted the floor and the world quieted down for a moment before it burst with angry orange. A loud 'boom' shook the ground as a big ball of swirling crimson flames mixed with the orange of explosion tore everything to shreds, sending shockwaves all around. B in Hachibi's form didn't even manage to steady himself as he didn't expect the crimson flames would strengthen the bijuu dama so much and was promptly blown away by the impossibly strong shockwaves.

It took a whole minute for the explosive ball of energy created by bijuu dama empowered by the Destruction Flames to stop swirling and disappear, leaving only a fifty meters deep crater, four hundred meters wide.

'B, be glad you only fired small bijuu dama or this could have taken us with him! What the heck was that!' Hachibi's bewildered voice resounded in B's head.

'I don't know, partner!' B said, completely serious as he saw the level of destruction. 'These crimson flames are dange-' He didn't finish as his instincts flared and he was forced to push his body to the side to avoid a massive shuriken made out of the Destruction Flames.

Rei was looking at B with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sure you wanna keep that massive body?" He smirked and created a small hand-sized shuriken of the crimson flames above his palm. He obviously took some 'insights' of Rasengan and Rasenshuriken and implemented them in his own way. The shuriken B evaded impacted ground three hundred meters away from them only for the rotation of the crimson fire being too strong that the shuriken failed to keep its form and in-built chakra feature made the chakra burst upwards. B gulped as he saw the previous flame Shuriken of the size of his fist in Hachibi form explode in a bright pillar of crimson reaching the sky. The air shimmered around the pillar due to the intense heat and B could only awkwardly chuckle as he could feel it even three hundred meters away. B blinked as he saw another similar shuriken forming in Rei's hand and gulped. "Ya bro... you ain't throwing that at me, right?" He unsurely asked Rei who only eye-smiled before doing precisely that.

"Fu-!" Needless to say, B was in for some hard 'dodge' lessons.

Rei wasn't trying to kill B. That would be idiotic as B was a strong jinchuuriki which meant a good distraction for Akatsuki. No, he was just distracting B while ten of his closes were siphoning a small amount of Hachibi's chakra from B, storing them for later without being noticed.

They were playing dodgeball with dangerous crimson fiery shurikens and bijuu damas for fifteen minutes when Rei suddenly went rigid and B finally relaxed. Both were quite exhausted chakra-wise and while Rei looked outwardly fine, even he was breathing slightly harder. B's ragged form was outright panting due to all the running around he was forced to do.

The surrounding country was utterly demolished and many pools of lava were created on the island today as large patches of forest disappeared for good while fires still unceasingly raged in some parts whereas others were reduced to a big crater.

B was watching as Rei's face suddenly went from playful to cold and murderous one and could feel an incredible killing intent start pressing on him as it flooded the surroundings. 'Damn… something must have gotten him pretty mad.' Hachibi commented when the world suddenly darkened as Rei's chakra burst out, no longer under the hiding technique and both B and Hachibi had to widen their eyes at the massive volume for a human. Both were aware of the amount he was throwing around just a few moments ago so him still having so much available juice was an utterly ridiculous notion! Heck, without Hachibi even B would be already on his knees energy-wise!

"AAAAAAAAAA!" Rei screamed as his head snapped to the right and dashed away.

B just stood there for a second before his eyes widened as he realized... his brother must have defeated his opponent which pissed off Rei and... "F.u.c.k! Hachibi, we need to get to brother A or he will die!" He shouted, mentally asking for more chakra.

'Brother! Please be alright!' B prayed as he rushed behind Rei in hopes to prevent the death of his brother.

--

I actually thought I would finish this by now but writing fights is quite taking a toll on my imagination and it also takes A LOT of words to do it properly (or I at least hope I do it properly) so sorry guys but another cliff-kun :D. Tomorrow, Rei's rage and a new, third mix of elements with nature energy.

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