At dawn, the battered carriage finally reached the Konoha Gate.
The guards on duty, Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane, were shocked by the terrible sight, especially the unconscious, horrifically injured Inuzuka Gaku and Kuromaru, and Ling, who was covered in blood, his face as white as paper, and practically tumbled from the driver's seat.
"Quick! Medical Team! Emergency!" Kotetsu Hagane immediately sounded the alarm, a shrill whistle piercing the quiet morning air.
Soon, a group of medical ninja hurried over, carefully lifted Inuzuka Gaku and Kuromaru onto stretchers, and took them to Konoha Hospital's emergency department.
A medical ninja also steadied Ling, preparing to examine him. "I... I'm not badly hurt. I just ran out of chakra and exhausted myself..." Ling waved weakly, doing his best to show relief at surviving the ordeal and concern for his companions. "Please... save Mr. Gaku and Kuromaru first..."
His performance was flawless. The image of a genin who had survived by sheer luck and cared more about his companions than himself left a deep impression.
"Rest assured, Uchiha Ling. The hospital will do everything it can to save them," came a slightly deep voice.
Ling looked up to find that a middle-aged man wearing the Hokage hat, with crossed scars on his chin and eyes as sharp as a hawk's, had appeared at the scene at some point, followed by several Anbu.
With the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, yet to return, the man currently overseeing Konoha was-Shimura Danzō!
Ling's heart clenched, but he promptly put on an expression of "surprise" and "awe," struggling to straighten up and bow. "L-Lord Danzo!"
Danzo raised a hand slightly to indicate that there was no need for formalities. His deep eyes swept over Ling like searchlights, lingering briefly on his bloodstained clothes and pale face.
"I've already received a brief account of what happened from the Root member who escaped back here." There was no hint of anger or pleasure in Danzo's voice. "You encountered a powerful unknown enemy. Inuzuka Gaku fought desperately, you survived by good fortune, and ultimately resolved the incident and saved the town. Well done, Uchiha Ling. You demonstrated the courage and wisdom of a Konoha ninja."
Ling sneered inwardly. An account? So that deserter really did twist the facts, conceal the crucial information about the scroll and the Sharingan, and gloss over his own desertion? That's hardly unexpected. A Root member who failed his mission and lost personnel would need a story to escape blame. But what is Danzo after, taking the opportunity to put me on a pedestal?
"No... it wasn't me..." Ling immediately lowered his head, appearing "apprehensive" and "honest." "Mr. Gaku fought with his life on the line. I... I was just lucky. At the very end, that strange enemy seemed to collapse from his own technique formula's backlash... That was the only reason I survived..." He deftly attributed everything to the "unknown enemy" and "luck," downplaying his own role.
Danzo's gaze flickered slightly. He seemed reasonably satisfied that Ling "knew his place," or perhaps he did not believe him at all and merely needed this public version of events. He nodded. "There's no need to be overly modest. Surviving a crisis like that and completing the mission is proof of ability in itself. You've had a fright, and thank you for your efforts. Go to the hospital for a thorough examination and some rest first. I'll send someone to record your mission report later."
"Yes... thank you, Lord Danzo." Ling lowered his head, hiding the coldness in his eyes.
Accompanied by the medical ninja, Ling left the gate. He could feel Danzo's meaningful gaze behind him, watching him like a venomous snake until he turned the street corner.
Konoha Hospital smelled of disinfectant. Ling underwent a comprehensive examination. The results were just as he had "hoped": severe chakra depletion, multiple soft tissue contusions, mild internal bleeding, and minor damage to his chakra pathways-typical severe fatigue and minor injuries, perfectly consistent with a genin who had narrowly survived a bitter battle. As for the backlash from awakening his Sharingan and the mysterious shard's energy impact, the Jōgan cleverly simulated and concealed them.
He was assigned an ordinary hospital room. Inuzuka Gaku and Kuromaru were right next door, still receiving emergency treatment.
Lying in the hospital bed, Ling did not let his guard down. He turned the Jōgan's passive perception up to its maximum and carefully scanned his surroundings.
[Routine medical ninja chakra fluctuations detected... No abnormalities.] [Two regular chunin guards detected outside the room... No abnormalities.] [An extremely concealed sense of observation detected... Source: approximately 200 meters southeast outside the window, a tall building. Energy characteristics: cold and sinister, sharing the same origin as the previous Root member. Strength: chunin.]
They came, just as expected. The surveillance never stopped.
Ling closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, sneering inwardly. Danzo clearly had not fully believed the deserter's report. Or rather, he always maintained the utmost greed and vigilance toward the Uchiha's power.
Over the next few days, Ling settled into the role of a weakened patient. He actively cooperated with treatment and repeated his "lucky survival" story to the Anbu who came to record his mission report-clearly one of Danzo's men-with rich detail, appropriate emotion, and no flaws whatsoever.
During that time, some of his peers and chunin he knew came to visit, including Naruto Uzumaki, who hurried over after hearing the news.
"Ling! I'm so glad you're okay!" Naruto burst noisily into the room, genuine concern written all over his face. "I heard you ran into a suuuper-powerful enemy! Is Uncle Inuzuka okay?"
Looking into Naruto's blue eyes, free of any shadow, Ling felt something stir faintly within him. This was the future Child of Prophecy, someone he needed to observe in secret now and might be able to draw on in the future.
"Yes, I'm fine. Mr. Gaku is still unconscious, but the doctors say his condition has stabilized." Ling gave a weary smile. "The enemy really was terrifying. It was pure luck that I made it back alive this time."
"Damn it! If only I'd been there! I would've taught those guys a lesson with my Rasengan!" Naruto waved his fist, then scratched his head. "But you're pretty amazing too, Ling, taking care of the enemy! Just what I'd expect from the rival I've got my eye on!"
Ling smiled without answering. Talking to Naruto always brought a simple warmth, but behind that warmth lurked the Nine-Tails, an enormous problem and opportunity.
After seeing Naruto off, Ling's smile gradually faded.
Through several days of observation and scraps of information picked up by the Jōgan, he learned that Lady Tsunade apparently could not leave for the time being because she was treating an important person remotely-quite possibly the Raikage? The timeline had shifted slightly-and her return date remained uncertain. Konoha's affairs, great and small, were still being handled by Danzo in her stead.
This meant that Danzo's power remained overwhelming.
I have to do something to break this deadlock.
Late that night, during the gap when the guards outside his room changed shifts, Ling silently opened his eyes.
He carefully took out the Root Token and the pitch-black shard he had kept close to his body.
He had already thoroughly destroyed the token, but its material was unusual, and he might be able to analyze some of Root's technology from it. The shard, meanwhile, constantly emitted cold energy, nourishing his slowly recovering body while subtly influencing his emotions, making him calmer, even... colder.
[Jōgan analysis: shard energy output stable. Host's physical recovery speed +17%, yin release affinity +5%, resistance to negative mental effects +3% (Jōgan neutralization effect), emotional fluctuations -10%. Long-term risk: emotional apathy index accumulating...]
Ling's gaze flickered. Both the advantages and disadvantages were obvious. For now, he still needed this power.
He hid the two objects again. Then he began deliberately channeling a trace of the Jōgan's power, not to see, but to try to touch the mysterious Black Mark near his heart.
The energy carefully drew closer.
Hum... The mark warmed slightly but showed no reaction, like an inanimate object. The Jōgan could not analyze its internal structure, much less disturb it in the slightest.
That mysterious man... what exactly does he want? This mark is like a Sword of Damocles hanging over my head.
Just as Ling was deep in thought, the Jōgan suddenly picked up an extremely faint energy fluctuation, different from that of the Root observer-from downstairs in the hospital! The fluctuation carried a peculiar yang release aura brimming with vitality, yet it was incredibly subtle, vanishing in a flash!
Immediately afterward, the vital-sign monitoring equipment in Inuzuka Gaku's room next door seemed to register an extremely slight, almost imperceptible fluctuation toward improvement!
Ling abruptly sat up!
Someone is secretly treating Inuzuka Gaku?! Who?
It isn't the hospital's medical ninja. I'm very familiar with their chakra fluctuations. This trace of yang release is pure and powerful, carrying a kind of...
A name suddenly flashed through Ling's mind-Tsunade!
Has she already returned to the village in secret?! Or is she controlling something remotely?
Ling's heartbeat quickened slightly. If it really is Tsunade, then Konoha's power structure might be about to change! My opportunity has come!
He immediately lay back down and did everything he could to suppress his presence. Like the most precise radar, his Jōgan locked firmly onto the barely perceptible remnant of yang release downstairs...
Konoha lay in the eye of the storm, hidden currents surging. Danzo's surveillance, the mysterious man's mark, the shard's erosion, and the Fifth Hokage who might have quietly returned... Countless gazes intertwined in the shadows.
And Ling, lying in his hospital bed, was carefully plucking the strings of fate, trying to secure a sliver of survival for himself within this complicated game.
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