Ghost Castle

At the training ground, Mitarashi Anko stared intently at Uzumaki Hane, making him deeply uncomfortable. Hane said, "Teacher Anko, what did you want to see me about?"

Mitarashi Anko said, "Uzumaki Hane, Koromo went to your house and cooked for you last night, didn't she?"

Uzumaki Hane made no attempt to hide it. "That's right. Koromo cooked for me yesterday, and she'll be coming over to help me cook every day from now on."

Mitarashi Anko's expression turned dangerous. "Uzumaki Hane, I'm in a bad mood today. Could you stand still and let me beat you up?"

Uzumaki Hane heard this, and black lines appeared on his forehead. "Come on, you're as blunt as ever. But do you think I'd agree to that?"

Mitarashi Anko said, "I helped you train your Ninjutsu last time. You ought to owe me a favor."

Uzumaki Hane smiled. "That did happen. I can agree, but you have to promise me one thing: you have to keep helping me train from now on." Hane knew his Magma-Magma Fruit countered Mitarashi Anko's Fire Style, so naturally he wasn't afraid.

Seeing that Uzumaki Hane had agreed, Mitarashi Anko put on a dangerous expression. "I'm fine with that too." She formed Hand Seals and shouted, "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"

Uzumaki Hane said, "Anko, you're attacking already? You're in too much of a hurry." A wall of magma appeared in front of him, blocking the fireball and absorbing it.

Mitarashi Anko formed Hand Seals again. "Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!" Uzumaki Hane calmly used a magma wall to absorb it.

Mitarashi Anko shouted, "Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"

An hour later,

Mitarashi Anko stood in place, panting constantly. Uzumaki Hane, by contrast, stood there at ease, without a scratch on him. With a hint of a smile, he said, "Remember, Anko, you have to help me train from now on." Then he walked away at a leisurely pace.

Mitarashi Anko watched Uzumaki Hane leave, indignant. "Damn brat," she spat. "No manners at all."

Uzumaki Hane went to where Might Guy and the others were training and continued training with them.

When he returned home that evening, Yamano Koromo had already prepared a table full of food and was waiting for him. Warmth filled his heart, and he said, "Koromo, thanks for all your hard work." Yamano Koromo smiled gently. "It's nothing." After they finished dinner, Uzumaki Hane took Yamano Koromo straight home.

After taking Yamano Koromo home, Uzumaki Hane returned to his own house and prepared to continue strengthening his body. Scalding magma flowed through his body, and the pain was still difficult to describe. That night, he endured two more rounds of strengthening.

At the same time, in an underground room in Root, Danzo sat in a chair reading an intelligence report. It recorded in detail everything that had happened to Uzumaki Hane during this period. Danzo said, "It seems Uzumaki Hane's strength is growing every day. I'll have to find another chance to get rid of him."

For the next while, Uzumaki Hane repeated the same training every day. In the morning, he trained his Taijutsu with Might Guy. In the afternoon, he strengthened his magma with Mitarashi Anko and trained his Superhuman Strength Fist. Sometimes Teacher Tsunade also took time to give him pointers. At night, he strengthened his body.

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed. Uzumaki Hane had made remarkable progress during that time. He felt that his physical condition had improved by at least ten percent, and his Taijutsu was advancing rapidly as well. He had also gradually grown accustomed to strengthening his body twice a day, and he planned to start doing it three times a night after some more time had passed.

One morning, Uzumaki Hane was sparring with Rock Lee. Their fists and feet turned into afterimages as they clashed rapidly, neither able to gain the upper hand.

Just then, an Anbu appeared and said, "Uzumaki Hane, Lord Hokage summons you."

Uzumaki Hane found it strange. Teacher Tsunade had only just given him pointers on his training yesterday, so why had she suddenly summoned him today? Could there be a mission?

The Anbu brought Uzumaki Hane to the mission room, where Tsunade was sitting at her desk. Hane called softly, "Teacher Tsunade."

Tsunade said, "Hane, you're here. Wait a moment. Hyuga Tanaka and Yamano Koromo will be here shortly too."

Uzumaki Hane said, "All right, Teacher Tsunade." After a short wait, Hyuga Tanaka and Yamano Koromo walked in and said to Tsunade, "Lord Hokage."

Only when all three had arrived did Tsunade speak. "There's a mission for you to complete this time. Shizune, bring him in." Shizune led in a young man with delicate features and said, "Lady Tsunade, I've brought him."

Tsunade said, "This is Yamamoto Satoshi, your client for this mission. His village has been attacked by bandits, and he wants us to help them wipe out the group. There are rogue ninja among the bandits, so this is a B-rank mission. Time is short, so you must leave at once."

Yamamoto Satoshi said, "Sorry for the trouble, but the village is in grave danger and could be destroyed by the bandits at any moment. We have no other options left."

Uzumaki Hane and the other two accepted the mission, hurried back to make their preparations, and then gathered at the village entrance. Hane said, "Let's hurry. Mr. Yamamoto, sorry to trouble you, but please lead the way." The four quickly set off toward their destination.

Uzumaki Hane and the others came to a fork in the road just as heavy rain began to fall. Yamamoto Satoshi said, "There's a house up ahead. We can take shelter from Hane there." Looking at the pouring rain, Uzumaki Hane saw that they really couldn't continue traveling. He said, "Tanaka, Hane, let's go over there and shelter from the rain." At the same time, he secretly signaled Tanaka and Koromo to be careful. Hane had found Yamamoto Satoshi a little strange throughout the journey, as though he were hiding something.

After walking for a while, the four spotted the house. It was extremely luxurious, like a castle, and magnificent in scale, but it gave the impression of an eerie haunted house.

Yamano Koromo said, "There's actually a castle here, and it looks so creepy." Hyuga Tanaka said, "Let's hurry over, or we'll get soaked." Uzumaki Hane said, "Yeah, let's hurry." They soon arrived at the castle gates.

Uzumaki Hane stepped forward and was about to knock when the gates slowly opened. Yamano Koromo said in surprise, "The gates just opened by themselves." The three exchanged glances, and Hyuga Tanaka said, "There's something strange about this castle. Everyone, be careful." The three grew alert. With Uzumaki Hane in the lead and Yamamoto Satoshi protected in their midst, they slowly walked inside.

After entering the castle, Uzumaki Hane called out, "Excuse us, is anyone here? We'd like to shelter from the rain." But the entire castle was silent, and no one answered. The scene before him felt somewhat familiar. It should have been something that happened in the original story, but he couldn't recall it for the moment.

After the four entered, the gates slammed shut. At the sight, they grew even more wary. Everything before them had an eerie air to it. Yamano Koromo also called out, "Excuse us, is anyone here?" But still no one answered. Hyuga Tanaka said, "Looks like we'll have to investigate this place."