Interlude Two (Patreon)

Shimura Danzo was not a man easily impressed. Jonin in their thirties had spent their entire lives trying to gain his favor. Genin had attempted to gain his mentorship. Few ever succeeded.

Yet, where hundreds of grown ninja had failed, a pair of children succeeded.

“Thirty-seven Jonin, one hundred eight Chunin, and twenty-six Genin,” Hua Jing rattled off. “This number includes all Jonin present in Kusagakure at the time of the attack, including the leadership cadre.”

Danzo looked at the clanless orphan. Her eyes were a pale blue, hints of the Byakugan white present even at rest. Her posture was regulation straight despite the exertion of the past two days. Danzo looked to the child beside her. Uchiha Fugaku, the clan’s unofficial heir. After this performance, Danzo doubted it would remain unofficial for long. The Uchiha might not have killed any Jonin, but his feats were no less impressive. His concealing genjutsu had fooled an entire village for fifteen minutes, long enough for his companion to complete her mission. When the enemy finally broke the genjutsu, Uchiha Fugaku’s Fire Release had proved just as potent. Were he from any other clan, Danzo would have celebrated such a powerful child. Alas, he was an Uchiha. And while there was a thin chance he might prove a worthy successor to his uncle, Uchiha Kagami, Danzo did not rely on chances. The odds were much stronger that this Uchiha would prove a thorn in Konoha’s side, much as his clan had since the days of Madara.

Danzo pushed the thoughts from his mind. They were of grave importance, but now was not the time. For now he would keep an eye on Uchiha Fugaku, but in this time of war he could do nothing further.

“Your mission was a greater success than we could hope for,” Danzo flattered. “With your work, Kusagakure will soon fall. Unfortunately, there is still more work to be done. Jonin Senju, I am assigning you to the Barrier Corps.” It was a de facto rest position, far from the front lines. Senju nodded gratefully, fully aware of the reward. “Chunin Uchiha, Chunin Hua. You are being sent back to Konoha for rest and recuperation.” Danzo would have preferred to keep them, but Hiruzen had strict rules about how long children could be kept on the front lines, and after a mission like Kusagakure Danzo would not deny that the pair deserved rest. He turned to Hua Jing. “The Hyuga clan will not be happy with your actions. They view the Byakugan as a sacred possession of their clan, and have gone to great lengths to ensure it cannot be taken. It is likely the Clan Head will demand you return the eyes.”

Uchiha Fugaku straightened, his eyes flashing crimson. Typical Uchiha, Danzo thought. Letting his emotions control him. Still, it was rather fortunate in this case. Between the Uchiha and Danzo’s own influence the Hyuga would have little room to maneuver.

“I have already given my recommendation to the Council,” Danzo continued, sympathy thick in his voice. “My allies will work to ensure your friend’s last gift remain where it belongs.”

“The Uchiha will support you as well,” Uchiha Fugaku growled. “We will not let them take your eyes, nor brand you like their cattle.” Fugaku took a breath, visibly calming himself. His eyes returned to a dark brown. “You will stay in the Uchiha compound when we return,” he continued. “I do not trust the Hyuga elders’ restraint.”

Danzo gritted his teeth. He had planned to offer Hua sanctuary himself, but only after his clansmen thwarted the inevitable Hyuga attempt. But he could work with this. The Hyuga had never liked the Uchiha, but they had yet to truly hate them either. Danzo intended for that to change.

“Thank you Fugaku,” Hua Jing bowed. “And you as well, Shimura-sama. I hope that this will be resolved swiftly.” Her chakra flared, Byakugan activating as lightning flickered on her skin. “I do not wish to kill my sister’s brethren.”

But you will.

*

Onoki glared at the intelligence report. An ally, a useful ally, had been destroyed thanks to the work of two children. Hidden Grass was dead. Oh, there were still people loyal to Kusagakure. Chunin, Genin, even a few Jonin who missed the massacre. But none of them were leaders. None of them were united either, and they needed both if they were going to withstand Konoha’s latest push.

“Has Takigakure responded?” Onoki asked.

“Not as of yet.”

“If they haven’t yet, they won’t at all. Delay the offensive for now, and have our emissaries contact the Raikage for a coordinated offensive. If Takigakure is too scared to act against Konoha, Yuga will be as well.” Onoki drummed his fingers on the table. “Make it clear that Iwa is accepting former members of Hidden Grass.”

“Missing-nin?” one of his advisors asked incredulously.

“You can’t abandon a village that’s already dead,” Onoki scoffed. Honestly, the sentimentality of his advisors was choking at times. They were supposed to be shinobi and kunoichi, not samurai and ladies. Honor was a luxury they could not afford.

“What should we do about the children?”

“Bounties,” another advisor suggested. “War breeds deserters, and deserters are desperate. They’ll go after prizes even when they know they shouldn’t.”

Onoki nodded. “How much can we afford?”

“The budget for bounties stands at thirty million ryo,” his treasurer reported. “Of that, twenty-three million has already been allotted.”

“Are we putting bounties are the girl, the boy, or the Senju?”

“The Senju already has a bounty. B-Rank, 400,000 ryo.”

“No need to add to it then,” Onoki said. “I want bounties on both of the children. A million on the girl, half a million on the boy. The boy already has the Sharingan, and those are already worth more than we can provide.”

“There are reports claiming the girl has the Byakugan.”

“If she does, she won’t for long,” Onoki dismissed. “Konoha values its clans too highly, and the Hyuga will not stand for their sacred eyes in an orphan’s head.”

*

Hono no Ryoma was a man accustomed to waiting. How could he be otherwise, given the ritual and ceremony that surrounded his life. The precise bows, the exacting nods, the immaculate and unquestionable order of the tea ceremony–these were Ryoma’s daily existence. As Daimyo of the Land of Fire, he had little time for anything else. As such, he had long since learned the value of seizing such rare opportunities when they arrived.

“The Guardian Twelve let something slip today,” his third son murmured. While his heir had ceremonial duties of his own and his second son found his place with the samurai, it was Zenzo who flittered in and out of polite society, bringing gifts and leaving with knowledge. “Kusagakure has been destroyed.”

Only decades of grace kept Ryoma from expressing his surprise. “Destroyed,” Ryoma repeated.

“Utterly,” Zenzo confirmed, a faint smile on his lips. “Their leadership is dead, as are most of the Jonin. What scraps remain is already being fought over. Iwa has offered sanctuary to those seeking a new home.”

“A bold move,” Ryoma whispered. Iwa had only recently acquired Kusagakure as a formal ally. To betray them so openly . . . why, it left room for others to do the same. “How has our dear cousin taken the news?”

“Hisaki-dono has been most distressed,” Zenzo smirked. “He is attempting to hold the village together, but his treasury can only afford to hire so many.”

“And so soon after the death of his heir,” Ryoma sighed. “How truly unfortunate. Do you believe he would appreciate our condolences?”

“Provided they were accompanied by the right escort.”

*

The following rewards were chosen during the course of the Interlude

Quest Completed: Kill 100 Ninjas

Reward: 1x Major Skill or Spiritual Blessing

Quest Completed: Kill 10 Jonin

Reward: 1x Major Skill or Spiritual Blessing

Hidden Quest Completed: A-Rank Bounty

Reward: 1x Medium Item

New Quest: S-Rank Bounty

Quest Progress: Kill 1,000 Ninjas (141/1,000)

Quest Progress: Kill 100 Jonin (41/100)

Major Skill Blessing

Grandmaster Chemistry (chosen)

Your comprehension in the field of Chemistry, the study of matter is beyond any mortal should have. You know how matters and materials are formed, how they form more matter with each other and how matters interact with each other to the point where you could easily come up with never-before-seen miracle alloys and materials never thought of. You will need time and study to properly digest the sheer amount of information this skill provides, at this level, the amount of knowledge stops becoming knowledge and simply comprehension and instinct toward the world around you instead.

Grandmaster Blade Mastery (not chosen)

You are a swordmaster on the level of a Saint, like mythical legends such as Musashi and Sasaki Kojiro. Even without abilities or energy your skill is at a level where you can even the intangible, you can cut souls, energy, and magic with nothing but your bare body and a blade of any kind.

Major Spiritual Blessing

Gluttonous Abyss (not chosen)

You can extract the energy out of any object you eat to permanently increase your own energy reserves

Decay (chosen)

Allows you to destroy any object you touch by spreading decay to it, breaking down its structure until its dust, you can spread decay further from the initial area more and more with training. Strong targets can resist decay to an extent.

Note: To fit in with the setting, this is replaced by a Kekkei Genkai, the Decay Release, which combines the Yin and Yang Releases

Medium Item Blessing

Byakugan (chosen)

A pair of Byakugan plucked freshly from a Hyuga who just unlocked them, stored in a special fluid that makes sure they don't degrade. If you find a skilled enough doctor you can have them implanted.

Note: As you already have Byakugan, this blessing will instead increase the purity and power of your Byakugan

Water Release Jutsu Scroll (not chosen)

A large scroll containing information on all Water Release Jutsu recorded inside up to A rank that allows the user to study and train to learn the Water Jutsu that are recorded inside. Those without the user's permission cannot understand what is inside the scroll.