You're that Chiba Dad mentioned?

"Um... Lord Hanzo, you forget that Youzo is Young Master Sheng Yue's teacher. The Young Master is still furious because Youzo was injured while protecting Uchiha Chiba, and she said she intends to teach Chiba a lesson..." Hanzo's Left Hand wiped the sweat from his forehead. In the few days since Youzo collapsed, all affairs had fallen onto his shoulders. In his own words, he finally understood why Youzo had been so full of resentment day after day.

Hanzo the Salamander sighed and shook his head. "Let the children handle children's matters. Sheng Yue is not much older than Chiba. Left Hand, I am heading to the front lines shortly; ensure the scouts send any information to the command post immediately."

"Yes, Lord Hanzo," Hanzo's Left Hand nodded.

"His healing speed is quite fast; he has already adapted to the salamander toxin. If I had known this kid was a mad dog, I would have just moved my hand and kicked him to death. Now, both Youzo and this brat are injured," Hanzo remarked, staring at Chiba's face.

Hanzo's Left Hand spoke up, "Lord Hanzo, this is not your fault. If you must blame someone, blame Konoha."

A long silence followed.

"In these coming days, pay close attention to messages from Konoha, especially those from Danzo. The map on this kid must be extremely important; otherwise, they wouldn't have dispatched one of Danzo's twelve Root members. It takes quite a lot of time to cultivate an elite Kage-level powerhouse." Hanzo the Salamander looked out the window at the drizzling rain; Amegakure had long since grown accustomed to this misty downpour.

"By the way, Lord Hanzo, Chiba's friends waited in the hospital stairwell all night yesterday. Should I call them up to see him?" Hanzo's Left Hand suddenly remembered and asked.

Hanzo the Salamander nodded without saying another word.

He was thinking about the future.

A few breaths after Hanzo's Left Hand exited the ward, Hanzo the Salamander, the demigod of the ninja world, sighed and muttered to himself, "Amegakure is not the place for you, after all... Konoha's resources are better. Kid, I... I truly like you quite a bit. If only you were my son..."

Knock, knock, knock.

The door was gently tapped.

"Enter," Hanzo the Salamander said in a flat tone.

Following this, Hanzo's Left Hand brought the three children—Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato—into the ward. Because Nagato's hair was quite long, Hanzo the Salamander did not notice those distinctive eyes.

"Chiba!" Konan's purple hair was slightly disheveled, and she looked unwell. Even though Chiba had only been on the front lines for three or four days, he had ended up in the hospital yet again.

"Lord Hanzo, what happened to Chiba?" Yahiko looked at Hanzo the Salamander; he did not fear him.

Hanzo glanced at the orange-haired brat and spoke in a muffled voice from behind his mask, "He will wake up soon. He was careless on the battlefield, which is why he was injured."

Suddenly—

"Cough... cough... cough cough."

Uchiha Chiba frowned, his throat parched. He coughed a few times and slowly opened his eyes.

"Water..."

Konan looked around, but there was no pitcher. What to do? She hurriedly took a small canteen from behind her back and handed it to Chiba.

This was Konan's personal canteen, and she had just taken a sip from it herself.

Gulp... gulp... The water in the canteen was drained in one go.

"Phew... I'm alive," Uchiha Chiba let out a long breath.

Hanzo the Salamander stood up.

"Kid, as long as you're fine. On the table over there is that pair of three-tomoe eyes. There are a small number of Sand ninja to the east of Amegakure; once you recover, just clear them out. As for the main front... we shall discuss that later." Hanzo the Salamander spoke, and before Uchiha Chiba could reply, he had already left the ward with Left Hand.

"Leaving in such a hurry; the situation on the front lines must be very tense," Uchiha Chiba muttered to himself.

"Um... uh..." Konan's face turned bright red.

Uchiha Chiba reached out and placed his hand on Konan's forehead.

"You don't have a fever. Why is your face so red, Konan?" Uchiha Chiba smiled.

"The... the canteen," Konan turned her head away, her voice intermittent and seemingly very shy.

Then, Uchiha Chiba looked at the canteen in his hand.

It was an exquisite purple canteen. If he remembered correctly, this was Konan's personal item. Wait... that meant that by drinking the water, it was equivalent to...

Police car: Are you going to walk yourself, or should I take you?

Chiba: No, don't mess with the new account!

Just as the entire room was immersed in an indescribable, awkward atmosphere, the door was pushed open forcefully.

"Are you that Chiba that Father... Lord Hanzo mentioned?" A vibrant female voice rang out.

Following this, a woman who looked about four or five years older than Chiba, with a rather impressive figure and face, walked in.

She had long, golden hair.

In her hand, she gripped a Kusarigama.

"You... you were able to break free from an elite Kage-level ninja's genjutsu? I find that hard to believe. Get out of bed and spar with me." The woman first sized up Uchiha Chiba, then snorted coldly, appearing to be angry.

Chiba: No, sister?? Do we even know each other?

"Chiba just woke up and is not feeling well. Miss, let's do this another day," Yahiko suddenly spoke up.

"Hmm? Is this something a brat like you can dictate? You're asking for a beating! Wait... you're not a ninja? Neither are you two?" The woman turned her head, glanced at the three children, and then returned her gaze to Chiba.

"I don't hit children. You lot should just watch the show," the woman said, shrugging.

Ding!

The Kusarigama let out a metallic clatter.

"First of all, I'm a wounded patient." Uchiha Chiba only wanted to avoid a pointless sparring match. This woman looked like the type who was all brawn and no brain, and her arrogant attitude suggested she was likely one of Hanzo's disciples. After all, for a dignified demigod of the ninja world, having a few extra disciples was perfectly normal.

"Hm? I know that, so what? Does it stop us from sparring? Hurry up, my hands are itching today." The woman spoke with earnest intensity.

Chiba: ...

"Secondly, I don't even know your name."

"Sheng Yue. Just call me Sheng Yue. There, now you know. Get out of bed."

Chiba: I'm starting to lose it...

"Konan, you three should rest here for a while. You probably haven't had a proper break. Wait for me here; I'm going to go deal with this... idiot." Uchiha Chiba paused for a moment before finishing his sentence.

Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato knew full well they couldn't be of much help, so they could only nod. However, the appearance of Sheng Yue and her words had already planted a seed in the hearts of the three youngsters—a seed named the desire to become a ninja.

Uchiha Chiba picked up the Kusarigama from the table.

He looked toward Sheng Yue.

The chakra he sensed was roughly at the level of a Jonin, and she appeared to be a ninja who specialized in taijutsu and ninja tools.

The two arrived at the training ground.

Although the wound on his abdomen had already healed, it still throbbed with a dull pain whenever the cold wind blew against it.