"The negotiations with Sunagakure are complete. You may leave now. Your escorts are already waiting at the gate."
The medical ninja repeated herself, her tone firm as she urged Pakura forward.
Pakura's heart sank.
Scorpion had not explained his idea in any detail, and now the interruption cut him off entirely, leaving her suspended between fear and desperation. Deprived of her Scorch Release, she felt unmoored—uncertain of her future, uncertain even of herself.
Almost instinctively, she turned toward Scorpion, lips parting as if to demand answers.
But he had already packed away his puppets and withdrawn his Chakra threads. Rising from the bed, his expression remained unreadable, as though leaving the hospital that had confined him for half a month was no different from stepping outside for a casual walk.
Pakura bit down on her lip, swallowing the surge of questions and unease.
Now was not the time.
Under the watchful escort of Konoha ninja, the two left the ward and walked the antiseptic corridor Pakura had traversed countless times over the past weeks.
When they reached the entrance, sunlight flooded in, stabbing at her eyes after so long indoors. She blinked, momentarily dazed.
Outside, a familiar figure stood waiting—back slightly stooped, yet her posture still straight as a pine.
"Lady Chiyo!" Pakura cried out.
The elderly woman turned slowly.
She was Chiyo, advisory elder of Sunagakure—and Scorpion's grandmother.
She looked older than Pakura remembered, her face etched with fresh lines, as though the desert itself had carved into her skin.
Why her?
Where was the Third Kazekage?
Where was their Jōnin commander—Rasa?
Pakura rushed forward, panic spilling from her voice."Granny Chiyo! Where are Master Rasa and Lord Third Kazekage? How badly were they hurt? How could they lose?"
Isolated in the hospital, Pakura had only recently begun reading the papers. She knew only that both had been defeated and left behind in Sunagakure—
But Chiyo's presence filled her with dread.
Chiyo studied Pakura's frantic expression. Her lips trembled before she finally spoke.
"They… are both dead."
Crack.
Pakura's mind went blank, as if lightning had split her skull.
Dead?
The Third Kazekage—hailed as the strongest in Sunagakure's history.
Rasa of the Gold Sand.
Gone.
The blow eclipsed even the loss of her own Kekkei Genkai.
Who could have done this?
"Haven't you read the papers?" a cold voice interjected.
Scorpion.
"Sawada Hiroki knocked us unconscious in an instant," he continued flatly, "then killed Rasa using your Scorch Release."
"My—Scorch Release?"
Pakura's pupils shrank to pinpoints.
She staggered half a step back, all color draining from her face, as though an invisible hammer had struck her chest.
Impossible.
"Your Scorch Release," Scorpion repeated calmly. "The newspapers didn't mention it, but I regained consciousness briefly during the battle. He used your technique exactly."
"Most likely," he added, voice low, "he doesn't merely steal jutsu. He can wield whatever he takes—including Bloodline Limits."
Chiyo's head snapped up.
She stared at Scorpion, horror and disbelief warring across her face.
No report from the village had mentioned this.
Not even the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure had hinted at it.
What in the world was happening?
Chiyo's withered hand clenched until her knuckles whitened. She swept a sharp glance around them; the Konoha ninja stood at a distance, but their attention never wavered.
"Enough," she hissed, gripping both Pakura and Scorpion by the arms. "Not here. Come—now."
Her grasp was icy and firm as she dragged the stunned Pakura away.
Once they were back on Konoha's streets, Pakura's senses gradually returned.
The sweet aroma of dumplings drifted from a nearby stall. The clang of metal rang out from a weapons shop. Children ran past, laughing freely.
Life bustled everywhere.
And yet it felt unreal—distant.
So this was Konoha.
In Sunagakure, there were few sweets, few restaurants. Children did not play so openly. Survival came first on the unforgiving sands, beneath endless skies and sandstorms that swallowed whole caravans.
Pakura bit her lip, resentment stirring at Konoha's peace.
Then she noticed something wrong.
At a street corner, two Hyuga ninja leaned against a wall, pale eyes scanning passersby.
Outside a teahouse, another pair stood watch.
Every few dozen meters, the Hyuga crest appeared again.
An unspoken tension filled the air. Voices were low. Footsteps cautious.
"What's happening…?" Pakura whispered. "Granny Chiyo—why are there so many Hyuga? Is Konoha watching us?"
"This is Konoha's internal affair," Chiyo replied curtly. "The village is in chaos. We leave immediately."
"It was Sawada Hiroki," Scorpion said, unfazed by Chiyo's glare. "He killed the Hyuga main family and freed the branch house from their cursed seal."
"Him again?!" Pakura gasped.
"Yes. Him. By now, he's probably mastered the Gentle Fist as well."
He had overheard it from the nurses. Konoha hadn't exactly concealed the incident—it was the hospital's hottest topic.
"Enough. Move," Chiyo snapped.
She shot Scorpion a sharp look; he fell silent. Their pace quickened toward the village gate.
Nearby, Hyuga Itsuki paused and glanced toward the departing group.
"Aren't those Chunin Exam contestants?" he asked.
"Why does it matter?" an older clansman said, clapping his shoulder. "Forget them. We've got gifts for Lord Hiroki."
"Uncle… after what he did, won't he be punished?" Itsuki asked hesitantly.
The man paused, then shook his head.
"He won't."
Though his voice was firm, his eyes held a complicated glint.
"He's one of Konoha's higher-ups now. You're still a child—don't treat him like one."
His gaze dropped to the two boxes in his hands.
He wondered whether Hiroki would approve of the gifts the branch house had debated endlessly—respectful, sincere, and unmistakable.
A pair of Main House Byakugan.
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