Kakashi's words caused Amamiya Rei to fall silent.
On the surface, Rei appeared calm and composed, yet beneath that quiet exterior, his thoughts were rapidly dissecting the ambush that had taken place earlier.
When he had just awakened, he had been too busy teasing Shisui and shamelessly biting Kakashi to properly analyze the situation, completely neglecting this crucial detail.
Now that his mind had settled, there were only two words he could use to describe the entire sequence of events.
Too convenient.
Konohagakure was one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
Yet a reinforcement unit heading to the front lines had been ambushed within the territory of the Land of Fire.
That alone was absurd.
Historically, whenever the Five Great Nations went to war, they meticulously ensured that their own countries remained untouched by the flames of conflict, pushing the battlefield outward into smaller nations and forcing those lands to bear the cost of war instead.
Yet this time, shinobi from either Kumogakure or Kirigakure had somehow bypassed not only the front lines but also the border patrols, lying in wait along the route leading to the frontline encampment.
Was that even possible?
Such a massive lapse during wartime was suspicious no matter how one looked at it.
And the timing of Shisui and Kakashi's arrival for reinforcements had also been impeccably precise.
When coincidences stacked on top of each other like this, they ceased to be coincidences at all.
They became intention.
When Rei combined this with Yamanaka Kaiichi's behavior, he could almost immediately identify the puppeteer behind the scenes.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, that damned old fox.
As the one who had been placed directly in harm's way, Rei understood Hiruzen's intentions all too clearly.
Hiruzen had never intended to kill him.
If he truly had, Sarutobi Asuma would never have been placed in that squad, nor would he have informed Kakashi and Shisui to rush in as reinforcements.
Kaiichi's words echoed again in Rei's mind.
Rei clicked his tongue inwardly.
That old man thought far too highly of him.
He had wagered his own son's life, along with the lives of many shinobi who would one day form the backbone of Konoha.
He had even used Kumogakure and Kirigakure shinobi as whetstones meant to sharpen his blade.
In that case, Amamiya Rei had no intention of disappointing him.
"Rei, eat something."
Shisui lifted the tent flap and walked in, holding a bento box in both hands like a worried young spouse.
As he approached, Shisui's gaze briefly swept over the bite marks still faintly visible on Kakashi's thumb, before he opened the lunch box and handed it to Rei.
Rei raised her head and looked toward Kakashi, reaching out to accept the box from Shisui before speaking softly.
"Kakashi-senpai, thank you."
She lowered her head and quickly finished everything inside the box without hesitation.
It wasn't because he was hungry.
It wasn't because he craved food.
It was because the vegetables were so terrible.
If he ate any slower, he was afraid he'd throw up.
The moment she finished, Rei returned the empty lunch box to Shisui, climbed down from the bed, and looked at Kakashi with determination.
"Kakashi-senpai, I'm a medi-nin. I can help with treatment. Please take me there."
Shisui hesitated, instinctively following after her.
"Rei, what you need right now is rest—"
He looked to Kakashi, hoping Kakashi would help persuade Rei to stop.
Kakashi, however, stared at the Rei standing before him, who seemed as though she had regained her vitality entirely, and felt a heavy weight settle in his chest.
He could not stop her.
That was the conclusion Kakashi had reached after carefully observing Rei's current state.
Right now, Rei needed to immerse herself in work, only that could temporarily push the memories of killing out of her mind.
Kakashi glanced at Shisui before speaking.
"All right. Come with me."
A faint smile appeared on Rei's face as she followed behind him.
"Thank you, Kakashi-senpai."
Shisui watched their retreating figures and lowered his eyes.
Kakashi led Rei toward the area where the medi-nin were stationed.
Although the encampment had separate living quarters and treatment areas for medical personnel, the sheer number of wounded shinobi had long overwhelmed the available tents.
Many injured shinobi were lying directly on the ground, receiving treatment in the open.
As Rei took in the sight of wounded bodies filling nearly every inch of space, her brow furrowed deeply.
This would not do.
How was he supposed to eat properly in a place like this, with so many eyes around?
Rei's expression grew solemn.
Kakashi, watching her profile from the side, quietly let out a breath of relief.
Bringing Rei here had been the right decision.
Right now, her mind would surely be occupied with thoughts of how to save these people.
The act of killing earlier would, at least temporarily, be pushed to the back of her mind.
"A medi-nin?"
A medical shinobi carrying a tray of instruments passed by them.
Her gaze swept over Kakashi, then landed on Rei.
"A medi-nin?"
She recognized Kakashi, but not the girl beside him.
Neither of them appeared injured, so they weren't here for treatment.
That meant only one reason for them to be here—to help.
Kakashi wasn't a medi-nin, so the helper must be the girl.
Under her scrutiny, Rei nodded.
"My name is Amamiya Rei. I'm also a medi-nin."
The woman raised an eyebrow.
Amamiya Rei?
She had heard that name before, not as a medi-nin, but as a Mokuton user.
She was also aware that Rei possessed medical ninjutsu, but the groans of nearby patients filled the air, leaving no time for idle conversation.
Without hesitation, the medi-nin spoke briskly.
"Then start helping immediately. Prioritize the critically injured. You should already know the procedure. The tools are in the tent three meters behind you."
After giving instructions, she immediately returned to the patient she had left earlier.
Guidance?
There was no time for that.
At this level of chaos, anyone who claimed to be a medi-nin knew what they were doing.
Rei paused briefly before turning to Kakashi.
"Kakashi-senpai, I'll be busy now, so I won't keep you."
With that, she stepped directly into the sea of wounded shinobi.
With the Byakugan and the innate attraction blood held for his demon lineage, Rei quickly identified the most severely injured patients.
Watching Rei already treating shinobi, Kakashi finally felt at ease.
Only healing others could make Rei forget everything else.
As long as there was even one injured person left, Rei would not stop, and she would not think about the shinobi who had died by her hands.
Kakashi slowly backed away, taking one last look at Rei's focused profile before turning and leaving.
Rei stared intently at the wounds slowly closing under the soft green glow of medical chakra, his mind working tirelessly.
Treating people like this in public wouldn't help him achieve his goal and it wasted too much chakra.
His gaze drifted downward, landing on the pale, uninjured thigh of a female shinobi nearby, and he swallowed unconsciously.
What a sin.
He could see it—
but he couldn't eat it.
This was pure psychological torture.
No.
This would not do.
Rei scanned the white tents around him.
There were simply not enough tents, which was why so many injured shinobi had to lie outside on the ground.
If there were more tents—
But the problem was precisely that there weren't.
Rei frowned deeply.
How was he supposed to get more tents?
Tents… houses…
Houses… Mokuton…
Rei's eyes widened.
He inhaled sharply.
A lightbulb flicked on inside his head.
***
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