This was the benefit of carrying out missions on orders—ran out of money? Just hold out your hand and ask for it.
Gekko Chizan happily pocketed the ten million ryō he'd just received. You had to know, he was a real skinflint—once money reached his hands, half of it usually vanished right away.
But after taking the money, he didn't rush back to the Land of Earth. Instead, he went home first to see his son.
"Dōnin, have you grown taller?"
"Hey—hey—hey? Dōnin, what are you doing? Put out the fire in your hands!"
The moment he stepped through the door, the smile on Gekko Chizan's face turned into sheer horror.
What was he seeing? His own son was happily playing with a fireball in each hand, while Sayo stood behind him with her face covered in soot.
And the pomegranate tree he'd planted at home had already turned into a lump of blackened charcoal.
"My god… when I came back a few days ago, our place wasn't like this, was it?"
"What exactly happened here?"
Without thinking, Gekko Chizan casually flicked out a water sphere, extinguishing all the fireballs in Gekko Dōnin's hands.
Seeing his toys disappear, Gekko Dōnin immediately burst into loud tears.
"Sayo-san, what's going on here?"
Holding Gekko Dōnin in his arms, Gekko Chizan was full of shock. His home—something he'd worked so hard to build—was now pitch-black everywhere, obviously burned.
"Hmph, your precious son is a genius!"
"A few days ago, he somehow started using chakra, and he can even turn chakra into flames."
"Pakura was overjoyed, but lately there've been more students enrolling in the ninja school, so she's been extremely busy. That left this poor old woman—me—to suffer."
"And then this little kid is just like you were as a kid! Playing with fire! And still wetting the bed!"
"But although his flames have extremely high temperature, they don't actually burn things. They just turn objects into—well—this pitch-black state, with all moisture completely gone."
"Pakura said this is her bloodline limit."
What? A one-year-old child? Awakening a bloodline limit???
This kind of thing wasn't impossible. In Gekko Chizan's understanding, there were people born with terrifying talent.
Like Gaara, who received his mother's blessing at birth and the protection of sand. Or Deidara, born extraordinary, with mouths on his hands as his ability—also a manifestation of his bloodline limit.
But he never expected his own son to be among them.
Speaking of Gaara, Gekko Chizan suddenly remembered that the future One-Tail jinchūriki should have been born by now. It seemed like time to take a trip to Sunagakure.
"Good kid! Not bad at all!"
"Scorch Release, huh! No—wait—could it be that my genes aren't strong enough? You should've at least learned Transparent Release! That's our family's inherited bloodline limit!"
"No, this won't do. What if that little brat Gekko Hayate can't be relied on—wouldn't our family's Transparent Release go extinct??"
"No way. Absolutely not!"
That was the Transparent Release that made Gekko Chizan famous. How could it disappear? Absolutely impossible!
Pakura—right, this had to rely on Pakura. One wasn't enough? Then just have a few more!
Thinking this, Gekko Chizan stuffed Gekko Dōnin into Sayo's arms.
"I'm going to find Pakura. Dōnin is in your care!"
With that, Gekko Chizan dashed straight out the door.
"Hey! You little bastard! Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find Pakura!"
Sayo: ????
...
The ninja school—just as Sayo had said, after the war ended, more children began enrolling to study.
Pakura was teaching the children, still the familiar basics of ninjutsu.
But in the very next second, a figure suddenly appeared, and Pakura vanished right in front of the students.
"Eh? Where did Pakura-sensei go?"
"The teacher disappeared! Class dismissed!"
"Don't mess around! Hurry and report it to the principal!"
...
Land of Earth, Gekko Chizan's temporary residence.
Pakura glared fiercely at Gekko Chizan, while the latter wore a lecherous grin.
"What are you doing? I was still teaching!"
"Hehehehe…"
"Can you stop smiling so disgustingly???"
"Pakura, Dōnin awakened Scorch Release and you knew but didn't tell me?"
Only then did Pakura understand—Gekko Chizan had already gone home.
She immediately lifted her head, unable to contain her joy. Her son had inherited her bloodline limit.
"Scorch Release is great! Your Transparent Release—hmph—what's so good about that?"
"That won't do. It's still the bloodline of the Gekko family. If Transparent Release can't be passed down, how could that be acceptable? So…"
Watching Gekko Chizan press closer step by step, Pakura instantly understood what he was planning.
"Hey! It's still daytime!"
"It's fine. Close the door and draw the curtains—then it's night!"
Pakura: ...
...
This whole ordeal went straight from daytime into nighttime.
The two of them leaned together, gazing at the moonlight.
"Hmph, you're just a bastard! But I have to say, the scenery of the Land of Earth isn't bad. Even though there's less greenery, it has its own unique charm."
Gekko Chizan chuckled and pulled Pakura even closer.
"Dōnin's Scorch Release has already taken preliminary shape. As his mother, you need to teach him properly. Look at what he did to our house—black here, black there."
"He's still so young. Let him play. Worst case, we just repair it."
Pakura didn't think Gekko Dōnin was wrecking the house at all. Scorch Release—such a powerful bloodline limit needed to be used often to become proficient.
"Alright, alright, we'll listen to you. When the time comes, have Yamato renovate it."
"Yamato's out on a mission. It'll probably be a while before he's back."
Out on a mission? That made sense—Yamato's strength was already nothing to scoff at.
"I'll send you back tomorrow. I still have tasks to handle here for a while. I'll find time to go home and see you and our son."
"Yeah right. You're coming to see me? Hmph!"
"Hehehehe…"
...
The next day, Gekko Chizan sent Pakura back to Konoha. Then, carrying the money, he continued his plans involving Iwagakure Village.
He placed all the seafood products from the Land of Frost inside the house.
"Chōmei, it's your turn. Still inject scale powder, but reduce the dosage this time."
"Iwagakure Village isn't as weak as Kusagakure Village. If they really investigate, not getting discovered is what matters."
He had used scale powder before in the Land of Earth, so it was better to be cautious.
Who knew what state a war-defeated Iwagakure Village might be in?
"Relax. When have I ever let you down?"
"What kind of effect do you want? Or should I add a bit of everything?"
Chōmei looked at the large yellow croaker in front of him, laughing so hard his entire body shook. Poisoning people with scale powder—he was enjoying it more and more.
If anyone ever dared say his scale powder wasn't effective again, Chōmei would definitely argue it out with them!