Naruto Bloodline Theory? It Was Nothing but Trash

The prominent wealthy merchants and officials of various countries had been killed. This was no small matter.

It had already shaken the very foundation of the shinobi code.

In the face of those who broke the rules, every nation would undoubtedly take the same action.

They would send people to investigate, then launch a punitive expedition. That was certain.

Because no survivors had been found.

They could only make deductions and conduct searches based on the ongoing investigation.

They had not expected to find anything immediately.

But fortunately—

One of the killers soon revealed traces of himself.

Following the corpses of bandits, thieves, hooligans... and others who had died along the way,

they found characteristics matching one of the killers.

He was approximately thirteen or fourteen years old... perhaps fifteen or sixteen.

Male.

Overwhelmingly strong.

Cruel methods.

He excelled at taijutsu and making use of objects.

Anything within reach could become a weapon. This indicated that the other party's moral bottom line was extremely low—or perhaps he had none at all.

As this intelligence gradually accumulated, it began to form a more concrete image.

"A young perverted serial killer?"

Pakura thought about it.

That was... probably what he looked like.

"And somewhat chauvinistic."

Most of the corpses were male, while there were very few women.

The fact that she, known as the "Hero of Sunagakure," had been sent to search was enough to show how seriously the higher-ups regarded this incident.

After all,

shinobi mission commissions and military expenditures depended not only on the Daimyo, but also on the support of High-ranking Officials and Nobles.

Now that they were dead, an explanation was certainly needed.

And Konoha and Iwagakure had surely begun moving as well.

"Lady Pakura, on this land of the Land of Rain, the only ones who would dare do such a thing must be Amegakure."

A subordinate gazed at the beautiful Pakura with adoration in his eyes.

In theory, the environment of the Land of Wind required people to cover themselves with headscarves, face veils, and long sleeves to protect their skin.

Yet such common sense did not apply to Pakura.

The year-round assault of wind and sand had done nothing to diminish her beauty.

All of this was because Pakura possessed the "Scorch Release Bloodline Limit."

A Kekkei Genkai was a type of bloodline, as well as an alteration of DNA.

Scorch Release granted Pakura resistance to High Temperature and wind.

It also gave her formidable strength.

She had climbed her way up from the bottom, completing countless missions for Sunagakure.

Pakura's popularity was immense. Counting both shinobi and civilians, she had at least five figures' worth of supporters and bootlickers behind her.

That was why she was called the "Hero of Sunagakure."

"Hanzo..."

Pakura had considered that possibility many times as well.

But after asking Chiyo, Hanzo's old rival and one of the village's senior figures,

she received a different answer.

Chiyo's message said that, given the character and conduct of that Breathing Tube Old Man... the Demigod Hanzo of the Salamander, he probably would not do something like this.

The killer should be someone else.

"Then it should be that organization called Akatsuki..."

Another subordinate guessed.

During the Ninja World War, the Akatsuki Organization had been active on this land many times.

They excelled at guerrilla warfare and rarely fought head-on.

Though few in number, they fully utilized their own strengths.

"But the Akatsuki Organization never did such things before."

The last subordinate Shook His Head, feeling that there was something strange about this.

On the chaotic battlefield that was the Land of Rain, Akatsuki might have been a troublemaker,

but they were rather naïve.

They always tried diplomacy before force, using ideals of peace as their guide.

Such extreme slaughter... did not seem to fit their former style.

"Hmph... people always change. Perhaps they lost an important companion..."

Pakura snorted.

"In any case, you are all ready, correct?"

"Yes!"

The three subordinates nodded together.

"Good. We leave tonight and find a way to continue tracking down the killer!"

Pakura waved her hand. The four of them leaped out the window and onto the rooftop, vanishing without a trace...

And in the darkness,

a pair of eyes watched in that direction.

"Hehe, even Pakura has come. But that is only natural."

Kitsuchi, who had an honest-looking face and a burly build, spoke.

He and several companions wore matching shinobi attire in shades of red and brown.

The forehead protectors on their heads indicated that they belonged to Iwagakure.

"Lord Kitsuchi, what should we do next?" a subordinate stepped forward and asked.

As the son of the Third Tsuchikage Onoki,

Kitsuchi had been assigned to investigate the disappearance of High-ranking Officials and Nobles.

The disappearance of officials and wealthy merchants from his own country was no small matter.

Naturally, his findings were much the same as Pakura's.

"First, eliminate the possibility that Sunagakure is the culprit. Konoha is even less likely... that leaves only Amegakure or Akatsuki."

Kitsuchi analyzed.

"We will keep our distance from them and continue following."

Pakura was Sunagakure's hero, and her abilities were outstanding.

As long as they followed her, they could simply reap the benefits.

"Yes."

The three nodded.

Then, four figures vanished into the night...

The Strength of the First Tier, a Powerful Build

A small roadside tavern.

Two men were drinking inside.

The dim yellow light revealed their appearances.

"Hoho, Shennong, it has been a long time. Have you been well...?"

Orochimaru used tea in place of wine, holding a small wine cup in his hand.

Shennong, seated beside him, made the same gesture.

"You look well too."

Shennong casually replied.

The two spoke of various matters as though they were old friends who had not met in years.

No one could have imagined that, during the Second Shinobi World War many years ago, they had been enemies determined to take each other's lives.

With the destruction of Empty Village,

Shennong's state of mind had gone through several transformations before finally becoming what it was today.

Over the years, he had occasionally met with Orochimaru, making a few trades and exchanges with him.

They were both interested in research on the human body.

Their research directions were merely somewhat different.

"Where is that brat who has been following you?" Orochimaru suddenly asked.

"Ah... my disciple? He went out to train in the rain."

Shennong spoke lightly.

The curtain of rain concealed the scent of blood.

Even with Orochimaru's keen instincts, he could not casually discover the slaughter taking place in this town.

And tonight was destined to be an unsettled night.

Shennong said, "You came all this way. Do not tell me it was for the Underground Exchange matter."

"Hoho."

Orochimaru set down his cup.

"That is only one reason..."

The other reason was that Orochimaru wanted to see what kind of youth the killer was.

Whether he could serve as his vessel for reincarnation.

Even if he could not, he could still be used as an experimental subject.

He had successively defeated shinobi from the Hyuga, Akimichi, Senju, Nara, Yamanaka... and other clans.

Orochimaru's first thought was that the other party definitely possessed some powerful Kekkei Genkai.

Kakashi had repeatedly come up empty-handed, which showed that the other party was swift in action as well.

"Have you considered that the killer might simply be an ordinary person?"

Shennong suddenly asked.

Orochimaru glanced at him and Shook His Head. "You have not changed..."

Other than being somewhat taller and stronger, Shennong was just an ordinary person.