Karin and Her Mother

Yugito's gaze quickly swept over the scrolls. Most of the techniques recorded on them came from the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

They were all ordinary ninjutsu, though.

Kumogakure had already "borrowed" them long ago.

Yugito spotted only two worthwhile scrolls.

One was labeled Dragon Life Reincarnation Secret Technique. It was clearly a high-level secret technique.

It could transfer the user's life force to another person, with the heaven-defying ability to bring the dead back to life.

After reading through the technique, Yugito furrowed her brows.

It was a Kekkei Secret Technique developed from Kusagakure's Dragon Life Kekkei Genkai. In theory, outsiders couldn't master it.

After pondering for a moment, Yugito took out the small camera she'd prepared in advance and photographed the scroll.

Perhaps the shinobi in her village could gain some insight from the technique.

Then she turned to the second scroll.

"Box of Paradise."

Yugito narrowed her eyes and gently unfurled the scroll.

The first thing she saw was a series of illustrations. They depicted a square box, with monstrous spirits carved into each side. It looked deeply sinister.

The scroll went on to record the Box of Paradise's history and the results of Kusagakure's research.

The Box of Paradise had fallen into Kusagakure's hands several hundred years ago. Kusagakure branch had taken turns guarding it, and three years ago, Mui, a senior member of Kusagakure branch, had brought it to Hozuki Castle.

According to the scroll, anyone who successfully opened the Box of Paradise would have one wish granted.

Yugito scoffed when she read that.

One wish granted to whoever opened it?

That was a power only a god could wield.

Even the Sage of Six Paths, who had created the Box of Paradise, might not have been able to do it.

For all these years, Kusagakure had secretly researched the Box of Paradise, hoping to open it.

Their goals seemed alike, but the two factions' ideologies were completely different.

Kusagakure branch hoped to use the Box of Paradise to rule the Shinobi World.

Kusagakure branch planned to use it to negotiate with the Five Great Nations on equal terms.

"The precise method of opening the Box of Paradise is unknown. It may have something to do with chakra?"

Yugito narrowed her eyes.

The Box of Paradise couldn't possibly be as outlandish as the scroll claimed.

But there was no doubt it was a Six Paths Ninja Tool with an unknown purpose.

Judging by how Kusagakure had failed to open it all these years, it was probably no weaker than the five Six Paths Ninja Tools in her village.

Yugito was about to take a photo and study it later.

"An intruder!"

Suddenly, a shout rang out from the office building.

At the sound, the building, which had been quiet until then, erupted into commotion. Footsteps clattered chaotically.

"Have I been exposed? When?"

Yugito's expression changed. Her first thought was that the Kusagakure shinobi nearby had discovered her.

She just couldn't figure out where she'd slipped up.

Whoosh!

There was no time. Yugito couldn't take a photo, so she grabbed the scroll and shoved it into her Ninja Tool Pouch.

With a push of her toes, her body abruptly shrank. As she leapt into the air, she transformed into a black cat.

The cat slipped nimbly through the window and climbed onto the roof.

"Quick! Don't let him get away!"

More than a dozen Kusagakure shinobi shouted as they sprinted down the main street.

Even more shinobi leapt out behind them, rushing toward the northern part of the village.

The black cat sprinted at full speed. Only when the inn was close did she slow down.

But Yugito was puzzled. The commotion behind her was growing fainter.

She stopped and climbed a utility pole, then looked up.

To her surprise, all the Kusagakure shinobi were rushing toward the northern district.

Only then did Yugito realize that it wasn't her who'd been exposed. It was Neji.

"Meow!"

Yugito's fur bristled, and she bared her fangs.

What was Neji doing?

Even if his infiltration had failed, he shouldn't have caused such a commotion.

She shook her head, nimbly leapt onto a rooftop, and raced north.

A small wooden shack with gaps in every wall.

The dim light flickered, casting shadows over the gaunt figure on the bed.

A beautiful woman leaned against the wall, her face sorrowful.

She was not yet thirty, but strands of white had already appeared in her long, blood-red hair.

"Bitch, hurry up and let me take a bite!"

Katsushiro kicked open the door and roared at the woman, his face twisted with malice.

The woman turned deathly pale with fright. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around herself. Beneath her sleeves, bite marks old and new could just barely be seen.

"Karin, close your eyes... It'll be over soon..."

The woman shielded the girl behind her with her frail body, then held out her arm.

Karin Uzumaki poked her head out from behind her mother, her body trembling.

In the dim light, Katsushiro looked like a demon crawling out of hell as he walked toward them step by step.

With every step he took, Karin felt her heart beat faster.

As she looked at the bite marks on her mother's arm, an instinct stronger than fear drove her young body forward.

"Go away! Don't come near my mom!"

At the sound of her trembling little voice, Katsushiro looked up in surprise. The tiny Karin had slammed into him.

Caught off guard, he fell to the ground.

He'd never imagined it. The mother meekly took whatever was done to her, but the daughter dared to fight back.

"You little brat, you've got a death wish!"

A brutal glint flashed in Katsushiro's eyes. He raised his leg and kicked her.

Karin's small body went flying, crashing hard into the wooden wall. Pain wracked her entire body.

"Karin!"

The woman cried out and rushed over, pulling Karin into her arms.

"Hmph!"

Katsushiro sneered contemptuously. He strode toward the woman, grabbed her arm roughly, and opened his mouth to bite down.

"You're treating a descendant of the Uzumaki clan like this?"

A cold voice rang out.

"Lightning Release: Chidori Sharp Spear!"

Katsushiro furrowed his brows, but before he could turn around, a streak of azure lightning pierced his body.

Blood blossomed. Katsushiro slowly fell to the ground.

The Chidori Spear had missed his heart. Katsushiro was gravely wounded, but he was still breathing.

The woman glanced at Katsushiro lying in a pool of blood, then turned away and hugged Karin tightly, trembling as she huddled in the corner.

Neji studied the woman.

She was curvaceous, with a pitiful air about her.

But judging by her pale face and the bite marks on her arm, life in Kusagakure had been miserable for this mother and daughter.

"I don't need to tell you what'll happen if you stay in Kusagakure."

"Come with me!"

The woman froze at his words.

Neji saw her hesitation and concern. In a solemn voice, he said, "Madam, surely you don't want your daughter to be bitten by someone, do you?"

At that, the woman fell into thought. The worry on her face gradually faded.

Kusagakure was a den of wolves.

The misery this mother and daughter had endured over the years was beyond what an outsider could understand.

Now that a Kusagakure shinobi had died, all that awaited them was even harsher torment.

They were already out of options.

They might as well take a chance.

For her daughter's sake.

"As long as you can protect Karin, I'll do anything."

The woman clutched Karin and begged in a trembling voice.

Neji shook his head and replied earnestly, "You're mistaken. It's not Karin I'll protect, but both of you."