ANBU

He concisely stated his identity, his voice somewhat muffled through the mask:

"Jonin Shinku has formally submitted a report on the annihilation of Task Squad Aoi No. 4511001, which you reported."

"We will now conduct a routine inquiry regarding certain details."

Hearing that it was only a routine inquiry, Hyuga Qingchuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But his mind was already racing, reviewing again and again the account he had given Yuhi Shinku for any remaining loopholes.

Seeing Hyuga Qingchuan looking nervous and unable to speak, the other man—

—softened his tone slightly. "There's no need to be nervous. This is merely routine procedure. We need to verify the specific circumstances of the incident with you."

As though reassured, Hyuga Qingchuan gradually calmed down and began recounting the events haltingly:

"After school that day, an upperclassman came looking for me. He said he hoped I could join them on a mission and promised that I would receive part of the payment..."

"The mission went smoothly, but on the way back, we encountered a wandering ninja..."

Hyuga Qingchuan clearly described every detail: how his former self had linked up with the squad, how they had carried out the mission, and how he had ultimately been killed by the wandering ninja.

All of it had truly happened. He had not lied, and it could withstand scrutiny.

As for what happened after someone saved him, it had nothing to do with the deaths of the three others. He merely glossed over it, and the ANBU was not interested either.

Wildcat listened while swiftly and accurately taking notes.

Based on his experience, Hyuga Qingchuan's account was logically coherent, and its details matched the previous investigation results.

He put away his paper and pen. "Then this matter is concluded. You may leave on your own."

Without waiting for Hyuga Qingchuan's response, he vanished without a trace with the Body Flicker Technique.

Hyuga Qingchuan stared at the spot where he had disappeared and thought to himself:

Looks like he really was ANBU. Root wouldn't be this easy to deal with.

Seeing that it was about time, Hyuga Qingchuan headed toward the training ground.

As usual, he went to the field outside the village to train with Might Guy.

After every session, both his stomach and his cells were starving. It was the perfect time to go home for dinner and send nutrients throughout his body.

That was far better than training after a meal.

Recently, with his training alongside Might Guy and the restoration provided by Sage Chakra—

—he felt that his Chakra had grown considerably. Compared to his initial shortage, he now had more Chakra available for tactical planning.

His taijutsu and hand-to-hand combat had also improved greatly, proving that his approach was correct.

He searched around but did not see Might Guy, so he could only warm up and begin training by himself.

Just then, a green whirlwind came rushing toward him from behind.

"Yo! Qingchuan, let's have a youth-burning training session!"

Hyuga Qingchuan turned around. Sure enough, it was Might Guy.

"Come on! I've been looking for you forever."

"Then let's start with a hundred laps of youthful warm-up running!"

The two of them exerted themselves and sprinted forward.

Two hours later.

"Qingchuan! Let's do another hundred laps of youthful handstand running!"

Hyuga Qingchuan slumped on the ground, supporting himself with his hands. He was so exhausted that all he could do was wave a hand and gasp for air.

Seeing this, Might Guy continued his handstand run alone, full of passion.

Hyuga Qingchuan practically crawled beneath the shade of a tree on all fours and laboriously put on his goggles.

He focused and refined that precious bit of Sage Chakra, giving himself a thorough "Sage Massage."

Only after the fatigue gradually faded did he suddenly spring to his feet.

Then, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar, hefty figure waddling over.

He had actually run into Hyuga Ryosuke again.

"Are you training, looking so lively like that?" Hyuga Ryosuke asked.

"You wouldn't understand." Hyuga Qingchuan waved him off, too lazy to explain. Then he looked at the fat man, bedraggled and covered in dust. "What happened to you? Did you go roll around in the mud?"

"Don't even mention it." Hyuga Ryosuke looked utterly miserable.

"For some reason, my uncle and his family insisted on buying a house in the village center and dragged me over as free labor."

"I just helped them haul the renovation waste outside the village to dump it."

"The village center? A house?"

Those two keywords made Hyuga Qingchuan instinctively look up at the sky. After confirming that no rice-carrying figure was floating overhead, he finally said:

"They have money to buy a house downtown, but not enough to hire people for the renovations? They had to press you into service?"

"What money? I heard they borrowed a lot. They'll probably have to tighten their belts for the next ten or twenty years to pay it back."

"They borrowed that much just to squeeze into the central district?" Hyuga Qingchuan was thoroughly baffled.

Hyuga Ryosuke looked equally helpless. "They said they wanted to get it right in one step, so they're even doing the renovations themselves to save money. That made me ready-made labor."

Hyuga Qingchuan shook his head and patted his broad shoulder.

"Talk your uncle into not living in that house for too long. Once the debt is mostly paid off in ten or twenty years, sell it as soon as possible."

"How could that happen? He plans to treat that house as a family heirloom and have three generations live there!"

"Then tell your uncle to buy a few more insurance policies."

"Even less likely. How could they have money for insurance? Things are already tight enough for them as it is."

Hyuga Ryosuke clearly did not want to continue this heavy topic. Changing the subject, he said pitifully:

"I'm exhausted today. I feel like only a hot meal made by Grandma can soothe my wounded heart and tired body..."

"I knew you showing up at this hour meant you were here to mooch a meal."

"We're neighbors. Don't be so stingy."

The two chatted as they walked, unknowingly reaching one of the village's main streets.

The atmosphere around them gradually became strange, far noisier and more chaotic than usual.

Hyuga Qingchuan followed the unusual sounds with his gaze, and his heart sank slightly.

Many ninjas who had withdrawn from the front lines had appeared on the village streets at some point.

They moved in groups of three or five. Some supported each other as they struggled along, while others lay directly on stretchers and were hurried past.

The air was filled with a faint smell of blood and suppressed, labored breathing.

"...Those Hidden Rock bastards have no rules at all. They launched a sneak attack without a word... cough, cough..."

"They've been getting more and more arrogant lately."

"The Sand Shinobi are getting restless too. They've been trying to cross the border."

"..."

As Hyuga Qingchuan watched these battered, disheveled men, the sense of urgency in his heart intensified.

These were only exhausted troops being rotated back from tense border posts. Mere border clashes had already become this brutal...

The true Third Shinobi World War was likely far more horrifying in its cruelty than he had imagined.

The original story had only glossed over the horrors of war with a few brief scenes.

But in the real world, every one of them was a living human life.

"Look, that person seems to be your dad."

Hyuga Ryosuke pointed at Hyuga Kaze among the crowd.

He was dragging one leg as he moved through the returning border troops.

With his rough, large hands, he repeatedly stopped people, seemingly asking them about something.

"Why is he here?"

Hyuga Qingchuan's heart tightened. He hurried over, and Hyuga Ryosuke quickly followed beside him.

Only when they drew closer did they hear Hyuga Kaze's anxious, hopeful voice clearly:

"Excuse me, are there anyone named Hara Shunpei and Oizumi Ryoya among the returning troops?"

He stopped two ninjas whose bodies were wrapped in bandages.

"Don't know them. Ask the troops behind us." The other man shook his head.

"Alright, thank you... thank you..."