Kushina's cheeks were bright red as she marched ahead. That flush wasn't from exertion—it was from embarrassment.
Especially those two small, very noticeable holes on her nose.
It was just too humiliating.
Head lowered, Kushina trudged behind Jiraiya.
Minato Namikaze scratched his face, walking quietly behind her.
Takayama Haru brought up the rear.
They crossed barren fields, a narrow bridge spanning a lake, and steep mountain passes.
After three days of travel, they finally neared the border. Though not quite there yet, they spotted a village in the distance.
The moment they saw it, Jiraiya frowned and gave a hand signal.
The group instantly scattered and hid.
The closer they got to the border, the more tense everyone became.
Even Jiraiya had lost his usual easygoing smile.
The four crouched behind a boulder, peering out at the village in the distance.
It was already dusk, yet there was no sign of smoke rising from chimneys.
Worse—
Jiraiya's nose twitched.
They were downwind. His enhanced senses—refined through chakra control—picked up a faint scent drifting from the village.
"Blood."
Something had definitely happened in that village. That's why Jiraiya had ordered them to take cover.
Without a word, he began signaling to the team with quick, precise gestures.
This was no time to mess around like they might in the village.
To avoid alerting any enemies, everything had to be done in silence.
The three younger ninja nodded, understanding the orders.
With that, Jiraiya dashed off like an arrow loosed from a bow, heading straight for the village entrance.
Kushina stayed put.
Minato and Haru split off in different directions, circling around.
Jiraiya's job was to get inside quickly and assess the situation.
Minato and Haru were to scout the perimeter.
Kushina's role was to remain on standby and be ready to support any potential combat.
Jiraiya entered the village without a sound. The place was completely devoid of life.
Only the stench of blood and a hellish scene awaited him.
His feet splashed through blood-soaked ground, surrounded by mangled corpses and severed limbs. Beyond a shattered gate, he saw even more bodies.
Soon, Minato and Haru, done with their sweep, arrived.
They shook their heads at Jiraiya.
No threats nearby.
Kushina was the last to enter.
"What... is this!?"
Her pupils shook as she stared at the severed limbs and mutilated corpses.
Covering her mouth, she ran to a corner of the village and began to vomit.
Though she had killed enemy ninja before, they were vaporized by a single Tailed Beast Bomb—she'd felt nothing.
This was the first time she had witnessed such grotesque carnage up close. Her body simply couldn't handle the shock.
Minato's face had also paled. The warm smile he always wore was gone. Like Kushina, he had never actually killed anyone—though he handled it slightly better than she did.
Jiraiya glanced at Takayama Haru.
What he saw made him uneasy.
Haru's expression hadn't changed in the slightest. He still wore that slightly flippant look and was casually poking at one of the corpses with a kunai, examining the wounds.
"All kunai, shuriken, and some sword wounds. No signs of ninjutsu."
Yep. The Uchiha really are a bunch of freaks.
Jiraiya muttered silently in his mind.
Very few rookie ninja could remain so calm in the face of a scene like this, let alone investigate the remains.
That was the sort of reaction expected from a seasoned veteran.
Haru, unaware of Jiraiya's thoughts, turned and entered a villager's home.
After searching, he came out.
"The place was looted—most valuables are gone."
He reported to Jiraiya.
Jiraiya shook his head, frustrated. It was impossible to tell who did this.
It might not have been Iwagakure alone. Grass Ninja, Rain Ninja, even Sand Ninja could've come here to loot. And let's not forget the countless rogue ninja.
Border villages never had it easy.
Kushina had finally recovered a bit, but her energy was gone.
Minato sighed and stepped forward to begin gathering the bodies.
"Wait, Minato!" Jiraiya stopped him immediately.
Minato froze, confused.
Jiraiya looked at him seriously. "Never move a corpse on the battlefield."
You never know if there's a paper bomb hidden beneath.
Even Haru had only shifted clothing slightly to inspect wounds—he hadn't moved the bodies.
Minato sighed and stood up.
"War really is brutal."
"This isn't even a war yet," Haru said flatly.
He dismissed Minato's comment. This was still supposed to be "peace time." The situation had just become tense.
But people were still dying. And it was always the civilians who suffered most.
Most ninja didn't see foreign civilians as people.
A faint sound broke the silence.
All three turned toward the village well.
Kushina followed their gaze.
From the weathered, moss-covered well came a barely audible sound. One might mistake it for insects if they weren't paying attention.
Jiraiya approached, holding a kunai. He placed its pointed tip on the stone rim and peered down, using the reflection of light to spot a figure.
"A civilian."
He leaned over the edge.
A young girl was barely keeping her head above water, the rest of her submerged. When she saw someone peeking in, she ducked back under—but when she caught sight of Jiraiya's forehead protector through the water, she resurfaced.
She reached upward.
"Help me!"
Jiraiya's hair grew long and shot down, wrapping around the girl and pulling her up.
Once out, she collapsed beside the well, soaked and trembling.
Well water was no place to hide, especially in such cold weather.
They gathered firewood, lit it with Fire Style, and warmed her up. Eventually, she calmed down.
Jiraiya finally asked, "What happened here?"
The girl looked up, eyes filled with fear.
"Three Iwa-nin attacked. They killed everyone."
Her voice trembled, tears threatening to spill. "Why did it take so long for Konoha to send someone?"
Jiraiya could only reply solemnly.
"I'm sorry."
That was all he could say. Even if Leaf ninja had been stationed here, there was no guarantee they could've saved the village.
Eliminating enemy ninja always took priority.
They were shinobi—not samurai or soldiers loyal to the Daimyō. They didn't risk their lives for just any village.
"I want revenge!" the girl cried. Though her eyes were red from crying, firelight reflected a burning hatred within them.
"If you want revenge, you can post a mission at the Konoha mission center. That'll cost 200,000 ryo," Haru said coolly from the side.
"I don't have money…" she muttered. The village had been too poor to gather that sum even when it was still standing.
"Then we can't help you."
The others looked sympathetic but said nothing to contradict Haru.
Cold, maybe—but it was the truth.
"You should…"
"We are not obligated to sacrifice ourselves for the Fire Country. Ninja act based on compensation," Haru interrupted before she could finish.
"If I determine that you're interfering with our mission…"
"I'll kill you."
There was no malice in his tone, no killing intent. Just a calm statement. Yet it chilled her to the bone, even as the fire burned beside her.
"Please… I'll do anything if you help me get revenge…"
She begged, her voice soft and desperate.
Haru opened his mouth, but Minato and Kushina quickly pulled him back.
He shrugged indifferently. The three turned to Jiraiya.
"Sorry," Jiraiya said again.
They weren't going to help her.
The firelight flickered across the girl's face, distorting her expression.
The team said no more. They turned and left.
This was a mission. None of them were foolish enough to derail it, not even Kushina with her hot temper.
She knew the stakes.
They couldn't escort the girl to safety, let alone take her to a border outpost. Those were hidden for a reason—not even most ninja could find them easily.
Bringing a civilian risked exposing their location.
And right now, exposure was unacceptable.
As they leapt through the forest—
"You're heartless, Takayama Haru."
Kushina used his full name, her expression deadly serious. She knew the mission was priority, but that girl had reminded her too much of her own past. She was the last of her clan too.
"Kushina, don't let emotions cloud your judgment. That's one of the rules of being a ninja," Minato said. He didn't agree with Haru's tone, but he couldn't say he was wrong either.
"Shut up!" Kushina snapped.
All three came to a halt.
She stared at Haru, waiting.
Jiraiya watched the argument unfold from a treetop, choosing not to intervene.
Haru scratched his chin, as if unfazed. That only infuriated Kushina more—but she didn't lash out. She waited.
After a pause, Haru finally spoke.
"A ninja is a tool. No emotions. No thoughts. Just a product of the times—a tragedy forged by necessity."
"Uzumaki Kushina… are you really fit to be a ninja?"
He asked her in return.
"Ninja aren't like that!!" she yelled.
"But it's the truth."
"No it's not!! I'll prove it to you!!"
Kushina could not accept Haru's view. A ninja wasn't just a tool. That wasn't the path she believed in.
"But that's what we are."
Haru smiled at her.
Minato stared at him, silent. It was the first time he had seen Haru's smile look so fake, so malicious.
Boom!!
Kushina punched a tree, splitting it in two with sheer force.