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Within the borders of the Land of Rain,
After brewing for quite some time, the ominous clouds finally released heavy rain.
"Pitter-patter..."
The torrential rain poured down on the land, creating intense sounds.
Inside the hiding cave where Konan and others took refuge,
Saki stood at the cave entrance, his expression unchanged, gazing at the scenery outside, obscured by the mist rising from the heavy rain, as if he were a statue.
His young and upright figure, however, gave off a profound feeling.
Despite the pouring rain outside,
Inside the cave, it remained warm.
By the campfire,
Konan and the grandmother lay on a dry pile of grass, sleeping quietly.
However, on another pile of hay, young Yahiko couldn't sleep.
It had been several days, but he still couldn't accept the news of his mother's passing.
With wide black eyes, he turned his head slightly to look at the figure standing at the cave entrance, his eyes filled with determination.
He quietly got up, not wanting to disturb the sleeping Konan and the grandmother.
Silently, he approached Saki from behind.
Hearing the sound behind him, Saki slowly turned his head, his pale eyes coldly locking onto Yahiko. His voice remained calm as he asked, "What do you want?"
Looking at Saki's expressionless face, Yahiko's young, innocent face showed a hint of fear, but he still spoke with determination, "Can you... teach me ninjutsu?"
Saki didn't immediately refuse the request of the boy who had lost his mother. He simply continued with his calm tone and asked, "Why? What reasons do you have to convince me to teach you ninjutsu?"
Hearing Saki's question, Yahiko's young face briefly showed confusion. What reasons indeed...
Saki's questioning left Yahiko unsure how to respond, making him hesitate.
Seeing this scene,
Saki remained expressionless, and he continued in a flat voice, "It seems you haven't thought about why you want to study ninjutsu. Go back."
With that, he turned around and resumed watching the heavy rain outside the cave.
Hearing Saki 's rejection, Yahiko's face turned pale, and he appeared flustered. He finally managed to speak, "I want to protect the people close to me!"
As he said this, Yahiko's eyes dimmed slightly, his voice choked with tears. "It's because I was powerless that I couldn't protect my mom. I don't want that to happen again. I want to protect the important people around me! Please, teach me ninjutsu!"
He suddenly knelt behind Saki , bowing his head in submission.
Upon hearing his words, Saki's face finally showed a hint of emotion. His pale eyes glanced slightly at the kneeling Yahiko, and he spoke in a calm tone, "You want to... protect, huh?"
"I'll grant your request, but how much you can learn depends on your aptitude."
Saying this, he looked at the pouring rain outside and murmured, "I won't stay here for long. Soon, I'll leave this place..."
Yahiko, still too young to understand the meaning behind Saki's words, but aware that Saki had agreed to teach him ninjutsu, revealed a happy smile on his young, innocent face.
In the land enveloped by sandstorms,
Through the airborne sand particles, you could see scattered structures rising from the sandy terrain.
The Hidden Sand Village.
The people in the village walked the streets wearing veils over their faces.
To prevent the overwhelming sandstorms,
As the Sand Village's involvement in the war concluded three years ago with the rampage of the tailed beast,
The aftermath still lingered.
The villagers of the Sand Village wore a slightly anxious expression on their faces, unlike before.
After all, the opposing side in the war was the Leaf Village, renowned for its power in the Shinobi World War.
The villagers were generally not optimistic about the prospects of the war.
Inside one of the houses in the Sand Village,
A child with unruly red hair was staring with wide, innocent eyes at various puppet components hanging on the wall of the basement.
"Wow!"
When he saw the sharp gleam on a weapon component, he exclaimed in a childish voice.
Excitement filled his wide, innocent eyes.
At this moment,
"Creak!"
The sound of the door opening came from outside the basement.
Hearing this sound, the red-haired child was startled, showing a panicked expression. He hurriedly tried to leave the basement.
"Sasori, Grandma is back, and she bought your favorite sticky candy for you."
A gentle and kind voice slowly drifted in.
Hearing this voice, the child named Sasori became even more anxious. He tripped on the stairs as he rushed to leave the basement.
"Ouch!"
Sasori, who had suddenly fallen backward, couldn't help but cry out in alarm.
Following Sasori's cry, a middle-aged woman suddenly appeared in the basement. Her expression was alert.
Seeing that Sasori was slowly getting up from the ground, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Seeing his grandmother's arrival, Sasori's young face couldn't help but show a trace of grievance. He pouted, and big tears the size of beans rolled down his big, innocent eyes. He sobbed, "Gr... Grandma... sniff..."
Chiyō, who had returned home, looked at her grandson and saw that he was unharmed. She felt relieved and walked over to Sasori. She gently hugged him and comforted him in a soft voice.
"It's alright, Sasori. Grandma has bought your favorite sticky candy for you. Don't cry, don't cry, be a good boy."
"Didn't Grandma tell you not to enter the basement without permission? Sasori, you have to be obedient from now on!"
Sasori tightly grabbed Chiyō's clothes with one small hand, while wiping away his tears with the other. He said in a choked voice, "When will Father and Mother return? I miss them, and I'm so bored being alone at home."
Hearing Sasori's words, Chiyō smiled kindly and gently stroked his bushy red hair. She spoke affectionately, "Sasori, just wait a little longer. Your parents have gone to a distant country. They will come back to see you in some time. Before that, you need to be a good boy, okay?"
Hearing Chiyō's words, Sasori obediently nodded.
Looking at her well-behaved grandson, Chiyō revealed a warm smile.
Meanwhile,
Among the teams of ninjas from Konoha heading to the Iwa-nin battlefield,
One upright figure had deviated from the group.
In a hidden forest, Sōsuke had a faint smile on his face. He gently extended his hand and stroked the empty space in front of him, softly chanting,
" A web of black and white. Twenty-two bridges, Sixty-six crowns and belts. Footprints, distant lightning, mountain peaks, yawning land, covered by night, a sea of clouds, a streak of blue. From a circle and flying and through the sky. "
"Bakudō #77. Tenteikūra"
A square-shaped blue light instantly condensed in the space attached to his hand.
"Swoosh!" "Swoosh!" "Swoosh!"...
As if following some pattern, the blue brilliance extended along spider-like veins around the square, rapidly spreading outward.
Sōsuke carefully sensed it.
Suddenly!
A faint smile curled up at the corner of his mouth, and a glint of excitement flashed in his eyes behind his glasses.
He had found it!