Summon from Blood Blockade Battlefront (Part 2)

"This time, we can't let Kushina off so easily again!"

"Indeed, she went too far this time."

"Also, what was going on with that disciple of hers? Wasn't he supposed to keep Kushina settled down? Why did the two of them end up causing trouble together?"

"In any case, she must receive a severe punishment this time. A Nine-Tails Jinchuriki prying into the Sealing Scroll is absolutely a dangerous matter."

"But she didn't take the Sealing Scroll away, nor did she make a copy of it. In practical terms, she didn't cause any serious harm."

"Sarutobi, this isn't about whether any harm was caused. It's about Kushina's attitude. She approached the Sealing Scroll so casually and without a care—that's where the problem lies!"

The Hokage and several advisors engaged in a heated discussion over the earth-shaking crime Kushina had committed. They could not agree on her punishment.

Although he was rather angered by Kushina's actions, during the argument, he still spoke up for her quite a bit.

First, the punishment handed down to Kushina Uzumaki and Kamishiro Hagoromo: four months of confinement.

If those four months of confinement had been spent in Konoha Prison, then the punishment would have been quite terrifying. If enemy village ninja entered Konoha Prison, they would be finished in less than two weeks. Rogue ninja from their own village received the same treatment. Although Kushina and Hagoromo's actions could not be regarded as those of rogue ninja, suffering in prison would have been unavoidable for them.

However, their place of confinement was not the prison, but simply their own homes. To Hagoromo, this was a completely painless punishment. Staying indoors for four months was nothing to him.

But for Kushina, who was used to running wild and free, this was quite a severe punishment.

All the advisors other than the Hokage had strong objections to this punishment. They believed the Hokage had been too lenient, but unfortunately, the Hokage stood by his decision.

This involved Konoha's decision-making principles. While the Hokage was in office, these advisors only had the right to offer suggestions; all decision-making authority rested with the Hokage. Only when the position of Hokage was vacant did the advisors have the chance to exercise a portion of the Hokage's actual power.

Of course, their greatest power was probably their enormous influence over the election of a Hokage.

In short, when it came to Kushina's matter, they still had to listen to the Hokage. They could be dissatisfied, but they could not interfere with his decision.

Thus, Kushina and Hagoromo's confined lives began.

For Hagoromo, each day consisted of refining chakra, practicing ninjutsu, researching Sealing Technique, training his taijutsu, eating, and sleeping. One day passed, and another arrived.

An Anbu ninja was assigned to watch him and deliver his meals every day.

One day, two days, three days...

Then a new year passed, and Hagoromo spent his twelfth birthday in confinement.

Then four months passed.

After four months, Kushina and Hagoromo finally met for the first time. It was also the first time they had seen another living person besides Anbu ninja since their confinement began.

"Teacher Kushina, I think you've gotten paler. Mm, your skin care seems pretty good." The moment they met, Hagoromo cracked a joke.

Of course she was pale. She had not seen sunlight for four months.

"Really? You still look a little pale, just like before. I don't know whether I've gotten paler, but I do feel like I'm a little afraid of sunlight now." As she spoke, Kushina raised a hand to shield herself from the sun.

Crystal-clear skin, afraid of sunlight, absurdly strong combat ability... Wait, was her character setting changing? Was Kushina not from the Uzumaki Clan, but the Yato Clan?

In any case, Kushina had finally regained her freedom. And after being suppressed for so long, she found certain emotions even harder to restrain... She wanted to go to the front lines.

This time, no one could persuade her otherwise. She was determined to leave Konoha and head for the battlefield.

Naturally, the Hokage could not agree.

So Kushina wrote fifty petitions to the Hokage every day, and she kept at it.

So the Hokage compromised... Before Kushina could cause any more trouble, he agreed to let her carry out a short-term mission at the front lines.

Perhaps this was compensation for confining Kushina for so long?

To sum it up, after the Third Shinobi World War had begun n years ago, Kushina was finally sent to the front lines after her persistent demands.

This proved a truth: everything feared persistence. As long as one persevered, there would always be a result. Of course, that result could be either good or bad.

To ensure Kushina's safety, the Hokage assigned them a relatively simple mission this time. Although it was an A-rank mission, it would not necessarily involve combat—escort a team of Medical Ninja to Konoha's Frontline Command Post against Sunagakure.

By this point, Konoha's war against the Sand Ninja was already showing signs of victory. Perhaps the Sand Ninja were already considering how they could withdraw from the war with dignity.

The trigger for the Third Shinobi World War had been the disappearance of the Third Kazekage, but in reality, this war was merely a continuation of the Second Shinobi World War. The Kazekage's disappearance was only an excuse and the flashpoint for the war. The conflicts between the ninja villages ran too deep.

During the early stages of the war, the Sand Ninja had invaded the Land of Fire. However, Konoha quickly stabilized the situation and, over the following years, gradually pushed the battle lines back out of its borders. Yet because it was fighting on multiple fronts, Konoha had not counterattacked into the Land of Wind for the time being. The battlefield between the two sides was now located in the small Land of Rivers between them.

Along the battle line, the two sides were interlocked like the teeth of a dog, and conflicts could erupt at any time. In practical terms, Konoha had already seized the initiative on the battlefield.

Therefore, the Sunagakure front was relatively safe compared with the other battlefields.

This medical unit consisted of twenty Medical Ninja, all of them non-combat Medical Ninja. Their combat ability could basically be ignored, so they required a large number of guards. Kushina and Hagoromo could not possibly be the only ones assigned to protect them... Two people guarding twenty? That was not protection; that was suicide.

Thus, aside from the master and disciple, there were also four Anbu teams, sixteen people in total. Together, the escort force numbered eighteen.

But in reality, the first-priority protection target in the mission received by these Anbu ninja was Kushina Uzumaki. The Medical Ninja were only the second target. The mission even explicitly stated that, if necessary, all twenty of them could be abandoned.

Therefore, rather than saying these sixteen Anbu ninja had come to protect the Medical Ninja, it would be more accurate to say that they had come to protect and monitor Kushina.

As for our protagonist, Hagoromo? Sorry, the Anbu would not bother with him. On the battlefield, he would have to rely entirely on himself and fend for himself.