Home-Field Advantage and Postwar Recovery

"Is that so? But you should know that in the Rain Ninja Village, this is the home field of us Water-style ninja!" As he spoke, his body slowly turned into water. It was actually a Water Clone.

Even Shi was somewhat surprised. His teammate had cooperated with him to use a B-rank ninjutsu and a ninja technique. This was not like Konoha's Shadow Clones, which evenly divided chakra. This was a Water Clone. As far as he knew, even in a place with water, a Water Clone's strength would not exceed 30% of the original body's. Yet that previous blow had clearly inflicted damage that only the original body could have caused!

Although Yao was surprised, he kept those feelings buried inside. He was not out of danger yet—an assassin was watching him from somewhere.

So, the instant the other side's Water Clone vanished, he used Multiple Earth Flow Rampart. As four towering walls rose, he completely protected himself. He planned to use this ninjutsu to block the enemy's line of sight before escaping underground with Earth Release. That way, they would not be able to tell which direction he had fled, and this technique could also block the enemy's ninjutsu.

He then formed hand seals with both hands and slowly sank into the earth. However, just as half his body had entered the ground, lightning shot directly from the ground beneath his feet. The electricity instantly paralyzed his entire body, leaving him completely unable to move.

Only then did he notice that the puddles scattered across the ground were strange. They were all connected at one point, and that point led directly beyond the walls.

Inside the Rock Pillar Prison, Shi had both hands pressed against the ground. Clearly, he was the source of the lightning. The water had come from the technique Yu had used earlier. That was why Shi had shown no surprise even after being trapped—everything was under control.

At that moment, Yu suddenly appeared beside Yao and struck him with a heavy blow, dragging him out of the earth. As she did, she said, "We're both Rain Ninja, after all! Who doesn't have a few tricks when it comes to assassination?"

Afterward, the two of them carried Yao away. The traces left on the ground seemed to tell of the battle between ninja that had taken place there.

About an hour later, the two returned to Hanzo's office. After seeing Hanzo, they saluted him and presented a scroll.

Hanzo took the scroll and read it. His expression grew uncertain, shifting between light and dark. Then he said to his two subordinates, "You must eliminate our internal spies as quickly as possible. It was one thing for the previous information to leak, but today's news absolutely cannot have any omissions."

The two naturally understood, but today's news was indeed difficult to conceal. Everyone knew that they had gone to the hospital with Hanzo. If word got out, anyone could make a simple guess and realize that the child in Hanzo's hands was no ordinary child.

Seeing the two muttering uneasily, Hanzo knew this matter was indeed making things difficult for them. He then said, "Zhou Yang is the orphaned son of an old friend of mine. Before my friend died, he entrusted his child to me. That's all."

"Yes."

Soon, a piece of news spread through the Rain Ninja Village: Hanzo's friend's family had been attacked, and only his son and child bride had escaped. They were then rescued by Hanzo and his subordinates.

The news spread like the wind to the leaders of the major nations and villages. Everyone who read the report in their hands revealed meaningful expressions. Yet when they compared it with the intelligence sent by their own spies, they had no choice but to believe it was true. Could the truth really be so simple?

The heat of any topic gradually faded with time. That day, Zhou Yang, seated in a wheelchair, came to Nan's hospital room. After the battle, Zhou Yang had been arranged to receive treatment in a special place. When the doctors first saw his injuries, they said the child had been hurt far too badly. Whether he would ever stand again was uncertain; even whether he could wake up was a question. Looking at Hanzo's expressionless face, the doctors could only say that they would do their best.

Although he said that, the doctor privately believed the boy had little chance of waking up. But that night, the instruments monitoring Zhou Yang's condition suddenly went wild. Their readings rose without limit. Amid the doctors' shock, Zhou Yang suddenly sat up. He had miraculously awakened.

However, the doctors had thought that was already a miracle, only for Zhou Yang to go mad while his body was still so weak. The doctors were completely bewildered. What was going on? Was it a side effect? Unable to determine the cause, they immediately contacted Hanzo. As for Zhou Yang's episode, Hanzo had only heard about it from his subordinates. He was no expert himself, but based on the power Zhou Yang had unleashed at the time and Zhou Yang's body, he guessed that this madness originated from Zhou Yang's Bloodline Limit.

Indeed, ever since he had seen Zhou Yang unleash that "ka-something," he had determined that Zhou Yang possessed a special Bloodline Limit. Hanzo had also traveled the Ninja World for many years and knew that Bloodline Limits brought their inheritors not only strength, but possibly suffering as well. For instance, the Kaguya Clan he had once encountered suffered from this kind of Bloodline Disease, though their clan possessed a method of treatment. At that thought, Hanzo immediately concluded that Zhou Yang's madness was a Bloodline Disease. But he could not tell the doctors that. He could only say that he had not known his friend's son suffered from such an illness and ask them to examine him.

The doctors actually discovered that his blood was in a strange state. After observing him for some time, they found that his body was slowly replacing its blood.

Upon learning this, Hanzo became even more certain of his suspicions. He instructed the doctors not to interfere and ordered them to keep the matter secret.

Although Hanzo told the doctors not to interfere, he was extremely troubled inside. As far as he knew, people with Bloodline Disease almost always had short lives unless there was a cure. But he had no idea where the boy had come from! He even regretted impulsively deciding to make the boy his successor. What if his successor died before he did? What would happen then? At that thought, he felt like he was losing even more hair.

As the leader of a village, he could not devote all his time to finding a solution. So he ordered Yu and Shi to look through materials on similar cases and gather related information in order to determine Zhou Yang's origins.

Of course, not all the news Hanzo received afterward was bad. After examining him, the doctors said Zhou Yang's recovery ability was simply monstrous. He had originally been predicted to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair, yet in only a week, his bones had gradually healed. The doctor who witnessed it nearly doubted everything he had learned.

He hurriedly sought out Hanzo and told him that he had never seen such a patient before. He hoped Hanzo would permit him to take a little material for research. Hanzo said, "You can try." Thus, there was one more person watching Zhou Yang every day.

After some time, the doctor allowed him to leave. Although Zhou Yang could now barely walk, he was still made to use a wheelchair under the doctor's strong insistence.