Leisurely Days

"Fire Sealing Technique!"

Kana gave a delicate shout and sealed the fire before her into a wooden plank.

"Generally speaking, Sealing Jutsu doesn't have particularly high requirements for the vessel. The main thing is that it must not be too fragile."

Kana explained:

"As long as the vessel of any Sealing Jutsu is gone, the seal will naturally break."

As she spoke, Kana struck the plank with a wooden stick, breaking it apart. The fire began burning again.

"In actual practice, Sealing Jutsu requires excellent chakra control, a certain degree of sensory ability, and the appropriate amount of knowledge."

"You already have all of those, so I'll skip the details." Kana smiled faintly. "Next, I'll explain the Fire Sealing Technique to you."

Hyuga Ao had a beauty by his side in the small valley. He didn't have to do anything all day, enjoyed Kana's service, and even received personal lessons in Sealing Jutsu from a member of the Uzumaki Clan every night.

His days were simply far too carefree.

"Kana, you'll definitely make a good wife in the future." Hyuga Ao spoke from the heart.

Kana rolled her eyes at him reproachfully. "Why are you suddenly bringing that up?"

Hyuga Ao pointed at the valley.

"Kana, look. All these years, you've farmed, woven cloth and made clothes, and built houses all by yourself. Whoever marries you in the future will definitely be raised into a good-for-nothing by you."

Kana blushed. "Not at all."

After fooling around for a while, Hyuga Ao suddenly said, "Kana, come with me. Go to Konoha. I guarantee that Konoha is just as safe."

Hyuga Ao had already spent a month recuperating in the valley. His overexerted body had basically recovered, and his right arm had also healed considerably under treatment.

Tomorrow, Hyuga Ao would be setting out for the battlefield in the Land of Rain.

Uzumaki Kana fell silent. She refused without a word and turned her gaze toward the distance.

"So that's how it is." Hyuga Ao's feelings grew complicated. "I understand."

The next day, Hyuga Ao said goodbye to Kana and headed for the battlefield in the Land of Rain.

"The Land of Grass?" Hyuga Ao frowned.

Naturally, Hyuga Ao needed to find out where he was. He never expected that gust of wind to have blown him all the way to the Land of Rain.

"Wait!" Hyuga Ao realized a very serious problem.

"If this is the Land of Grass, then doesn't that make Kana Karin's mother?"

Hyuga Ao recalled the information about Karin from his previous life.

The original work never described Karin's mother, but one could roughly guess what had happened just by looking at Karin's circumstances.

At that moment, Hyuga Ao nearly turned around on the spot to carry Kana away.

"Based on the timeline, Karin should be around the same age as Naruto and the others. In that case, I can come back and take her away after the Ninja War ends."

After taking two steps, Hyuga Ao realized something was wrong. "Isn't this kind of 'wait a little longer' thinking always the beginning of some melodramatic plot? No, I'll take her with me now."

Hyuga Ao returned to the valley. Looking at Kana, who was still working, he wore a mischievous smile.

Hyuga Ao concealed his presence, crept up behind Kana, knocked her unconscious, stuffed her into a sack, and carried her away in one smooth motion.

"Back to Konoha!"

"Ah!!!" A scream rang throughout the Hokage Building.

Kana woke up to find Hyuga Ao looking at her with concern.

She surveyed her surroundings, feeling completely unfamiliar with everything. A thought surfaced in her mind.

"Could Ao'er have already brought me to Konoha?"

Just as she was about to question Hyuga Ao, she saw him retreat with a beaming smile, revealing Kushina standing behind him with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my, I really am a little genius." Hyuga Ao shamelessly praised himself.

For someone like Kana, who passively refused to step out of her comfort zone, there needed to be an external force to actively bring her out.

With her personality, she would usually accept it passively.

Once Kushina hugged her and cried, then talked about the days they had shared, the current situation, and looked at her pleadingly with hopeful eyes, asking her to stay—

And then the Third Raikage could go in and talk about Konoha and the Uzumaki Clan. That would make things completely secure.

Hyuga Ao didn't believe Kana could withstand such an onslaught.

After resolving Kana's issue, Hyuga Ao also needed to go have tea—or rather, be invited to have tea.

Disappearing from the battlefield for such a long time required an explanation. However, with the merit of bringing back a member of the Uzumaki Clan, it was merely a formality.

Two hours later.

The Anbu member responsible for questioning Hyuga Ao fell into deep thought as he looked at the record in his hands.

To be honest, if the Hokage hadn't given him instructions, he really would have wanted to question him more thoroughly.

"Take this to the Hokage."

The Anbu member felt that Hyuga Ao was hiding far too much. His instincts told him that an even greater secret lay concealed beneath it all.

Naturally, the Anbu needed to ask about what had happened during this period.

Hyuga Ao's answer was very simple. He said that she had accepted a mission from Orochimaru to monitor Iwagakure, seen the Iwagakure shinobi fighting among themselves, and moved closer despite herself to take a look. Then she had been discovered and pursued by Iwagakure, before finally losing her footing and falling from a cliff in the Land of Grass.

The Anbu asked why Orochimaru would send a Chunin to carry out such a mission.

Hyuga Ao showed him the Wind Cloak, then said that everything had been Orochimaru's arrangement and that he should ask him about anything else. Orochimaru knew, and there were many things that were inconvenient to tell him.

As for how Orochimaru would respond, that was his problem. Hyuga Ao believed that after she displayed her strength, Orochimaru would not want to abandon a partner like her.

After the battle with Iwagakure, Hyuga Ao had truly figured out the extent of her strength.

Shikotsumyaku was incredibly powerful. If you had enough chakra, then setting aside the drawback of Kekkei Genkai Disease—that the more you used it, the faster you died—it could be considered an extremely versatile bloodline.

Hyuga Ao even suspected that the strength of Shikotsumyaku lay between a Kekkei Genkai and a Kekkei Tōta, half a step beyond a Kekkei Genkai.

With Shikotsumyaku activated, Hyuga Ao's current strength was already formidable even among Kage Level shinobi. She was like the Third Raikage: heavily armored, possessing immense vitality, and extremely powerful in breaking through defenses.

The problem was that Hyuga Ao didn't dare use Shikotsumyaku openly.

The fact that a pure-blooded Hyuga could use Shikotsumyaku was far too shocking. Before Hyuga Ao was strong enough, she couldn't bear the trouble this matter would bring.

Only a madman like Orochimaru would ignore everything else and help Hyuga Ao conceal it. The two of them benefited each other.

If Kage Level were divided into separate aspects, then without using Shikotsumyaku, Hyuga Ao only had Taijutsu, speed, and defense at Kage Level. Even her defense came as an additional effect of Shikotsumyaku.

"Sigh." Hyuga Ao sighed. "The road ahead is long and arduous!"

Hyuga Ao had nothing to do for the time being. Her mission report still needed to be reviewed, and as for the Wind Cloak mentioned in her briefing, the Third Raikage was extremely interested—and eager to get his hands on it.

After all, this kind of state-based technique was truly rare and unusual, and it provided an enormous boost to the user. If Konoha could deploy this technique throughout the army, it would gain a group of highly mobile and concealed ace units.

Naturally, the Third Raikage wouldn't directly ask Hyuga Ao for it. He only needed to approach the Main Family. It was simple and effortless, so why not?

Hyuga Ao didn't mind.

Teach them the Wind Cloak? Sure.

First, sense the wind. Then convert chakra into wind, and use the wind you had transformed to control the wind in nature.

How was it? Three steps. Wasn't it simple?

As for the principles behind it, Hyuga Ao said that she didn't know either. She had simply comprehended it and understood it, but couldn't explain it. And that was indeed the case.

Perhaps only after Hyuga Ao accumulated more experience in the future would she be able to describe the Wind Cloak the way Jiraiya taught Naruto the Rasengan.

So, during this period, Hyuga Ao had been helping out at the hospital.

Hyuga Ao hoped to practice Medical Ninjutsu more at the hospital. Once she unlocked the Chakra Scalpel, she could use it to restrict the spread of the Shikotsumyaku Bone Cells, allowing her to use Shikotsumyaku without side effects.

Moreover, Hyuga Ao could now truly begin controlling the Hyuga family to some extent. Because of the appearance of the Wind Cloak, the Main Family had increased its attention toward Hyuga Ao, which had consequently raised her status.

She had gone from a promising asset with a noble identity to wealth that was about to be realized.

However, as Hyuga Ao gained the authority to control the Hyuga family, another troublesome matter arrived as well.

Hyuga Ao looked at Hiashi, who had come to find her at the door, and felt a wave of dizziness.

Hiashi smiled. "Ao'er, want to take a walk?"