"I came to see you, and also to talk about the mission."
Kiyohara raised the paper bag in his hand.
"You haven't eaten yet, right? I bought some food."
"Come in quickly."
Kurenai stepped aside to let him enter, the corners of her lips unconsciously lifting into a smile.
The Yuhi family's living room was not large, but it was arranged warmly and comfortably.
"My father went to the Hokage Tower for a meeting. He won't be back until tonight."
As she spoke, Kurenai took the paper bag from him.
"Sit down. I'll make some tea."
Kiyohara sat beside the low table, his gaze sweeping across the room.
That cat that could do backflips was lazily sprawled out on the floor.
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow.
Honestly speaking, he had always found the fact that Kurenai's cat could do backflips rather miraculous.
After all, it was not a summoning beast. Even Tonton was technically a shinobi pig, capable of using tree trunks to leap and travel alongside shinobi.
But this cat was just an ordinary cat, yet it could still perform backflips.
Kurenai soon returned carrying a tea tray.
She knelt gracefully across from him and began pouring tea. Her sleeve slipped down slightly, revealing a section of her fair, slender arm.
"You mentioned a mission... is it a new one?"
Kurenai pushed the teacup toward him.
"Yeah. The border of the Land of Hot Water."
Kiyohara nodded.
"But this time, I plan to complete the mission alone."
He felt that doing things this way would be more efficient.
"Kiyohara-kun is going alone? But..."
"I'm already a jonin now. I can manage without teammates."
Kiyohara said calmly.
Theoretically speaking, he was already qualified to take on newly graduated genin from the Shinobi Academy and become their squad leader.
"I see..."
The thought that she would not be able to see him for several days caused Kurenai's eyes to lower slightly.
"Oh right, have you been tired lately? Back in the Land of Rivers, you never really had a chance to rest, did you?"
As if suddenly remembering something, Kurenai lifted her head to look at him.
"I'm fine."
Kiyohara nodded.
After inheriting part of Yotsuki Kiyohara's bloodline, his vitality had increased significantly.
It could even be described as overflowing energy. He was far more spirited and full of life than before.
"Really?"
Kurenai looked at him suspiciously.
Back in the Land of Rivers, Kiyohara had been training constantly, performing surgeries for others, and leading patrol teams at the same time.
In Kurenai's eyes, he had practically worked himself into a spinning top.
"Really."
Kiyohara gave another nod.
Kurenai bit lightly on her lower lip.
"I don't care. Even if you're not tired, you still have to try it. Recently, I learned a little massage technique from Rin."
Kurenai spoke softly.
Kiyohara raised his brow.
"You even learned that?"
"I... I just learned it casually."
Kurenai's face reddened further.
"But Rin said my hands are actually pretty good... if you don't mind..."
Looking at Kurenai's expression, equal parts anticipation and embarrassment, a trace of warmth rose in Kiyohara's heart.
It really had been a long time since he relaxed properly. From the battlefield in the Land of Rivers to killing the Third Mizukage, then rushing back to Konoha, his nerves had remained tightly strung the entire time.
Sometimes, relaxing a little was not a bad thing.
After all, compared to the weak version of himself from the beginning of the Shinobi War, he had become much stronger now.
"Alright."
Kiyohara smiled faintly.
"Then I'll be in your care, Kurenai."
Kurenai's eyes immediately brightened.
"Then lie down. Um... right here."
She pointed at the space in front of her.
Kiyohara followed her instructions and lay down on the wooden floor with his head facing toward her.
The wooden floorboards were somewhat hard, but soft cushions had been laid out underneath.
Kurenai knelt beside him, took a deep breath, and gently placed both hands against his temples.
Her fingers were slightly cool, yet incredibly soft.
"Is the pressure okay?"
She asked quietly.
"Yeah, it's good."
After receiving his approval, Kurenai relaxed slightly.
Her fingers slowly moved from his temples to his forehead, pressing gently along his brow bones, then moving down to the acupoints around his face. Every pressure point she found was remarkably accurate.
Kiyohara closed his eyes.
He could smell the faint fragrance lingering around Kurenai, mixed with the natural scent unique to a young girl.
Her breathing was light. Occasionally, a few strands of damp hair fell down and brushed lightly across his cheek, leaving behind a ticklish sensation.
"Kiyohara..."
Kurenai suddenly spoke in a soft voice.
"Hmm?"
"That... you can rest your head on my lap."
Her voice was barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.
"It'll make it easier for me to massage your shoulders."
Kiyohara opened his eyes and met Kurenai's evasive gaze.
Her cheeks had already turned completely red, even the tips of her ears dyed pink.
Following her suggestion, Kiyohara shifted slightly and gently rested his head upon Kurenai's tightly pressed thighs.
At that instant, both of them paused subtly.
The back of Kiyohara's head sank into an incredibly soft warmth.
Kurenai's thighs were more supple and elastic than they appeared. From this angle, his line of sight happened to face the slight inward curve of her abdomen as she sat.
Her skirt had tightened slightly due to her posture, outlining smooth and gentle curves. Higher up was the faint rise and fall of her chest.
Kurenai's body visibly stiffened for a moment, even her breathing becoming lighter.
"T-Then... I'll continue..."
Kurenai spoke while trying to steady herself.
The massage gradually shifted from his forehead to his scalp.
As the pads of Kurenai's fingers pressed against the pressure points on his head, they brought a perfectly balanced sensation of soreness and comfort.
It was obvious that she had truly learned proper techniques from Nohara Rin.
"Is the pressure alright?"
She asked softly once more.
"It's fine."
Kiyohara kept his eyes closed.
"In the future, you could become my personal massage therapist."
"Wh-What nonsense are you saying!"
Kurenai, embarrassed and annoyed, lightly smacked his forehead. Immediately afterward, she realized the action had been too intimate, causing her fingers to freeze awkwardly in midair.
"W-Who would want to be your personal..."
She suddenly paused, seemingly thinking of something. Her fingers unconsciously tightened around a strand of Kiyohara's hair.
"Y-You... how do you know massages feel good? Did you follow Lord Jiraiya to those... those pleasure districts?"
Kiyohara opened one eye and met Kurenai's slightly furrowed gaze tinged with unmistakable jealousy.
Her lips were pursed, her cheeks still flushed red, yet her expression was serious enough to resemble an interrogation.
"Of course not."
Kiyohara chuckled softly before closing his eyes again.
"I never go to places like that."
He was telling the truth. What place outside could possibly be safer than home?
Jiraiya truly lived too carefree a life.
After all, there were far more ways to end up with trouble than just the obvious ones.
Sometimes, merely coming into contact with certain things could still make a person sick.
"Hmph..."
Only then did Kurenai's brows finally relax, while the corners of her lips quietly curved upward.
She continued massaging the top of Kiyohara's head, her fingertips weaving gently through his hair.
"As if you'd dare."
Time quietly slipped by.
Kurenai gradually noticed that Kiyohara's breathing had become slow and steady.
She lowered her head to look at him.
Kiyohara's eyes were closed, his eyelashes casting faint shadows beneath them, the corners of his lips relaxed in a subtle curve.
He almost looked asleep.
The movements of her hands unconsciously became softer, as though she was afraid of disturbing a pleasant dream.
Looking at the face so close to her, Kurenai's heartbeat once again sped up disappointingly fast.
She hesitated for a moment, biting lightly on her lower lip as she slowly bent down.
Then she gently pressed a kiss against Kiyohara's forehead.
Just as she was about to raise her head again, she suddenly met a pair of eyes that had opened without warning.
"Y-You were pretending to sleep!"
Kurenai nearly sprang upright like a startled rabbit, her entire face turning so red it looked ready to drip blood.
"I just woke up."
Kiyohara's voice carried the laziness of someone freshly awake, along with completely undisguised amusement.
"What a pity. You only kissed my forehead."
"You still dare say that!"
Kurenai, overwhelmed with embarrassment, reached out to cover his mouth, only for her wrist to be lightly caught by Kiyohara.
He sat up while still resting on her lap, merely changing into a position where he looked up at her from below.
That posture only made Kurenai panic even more. She could clearly see her own reflection in Kiyohara's eyes, along with that teasing smile that made her heart race uncontrollably.
"Next time, you can be a little bolder."
Kiyohara released her hand and stood up on his own.
As far as he was concerned, the level of intimacy he could accept was actually quite high.
Once two people truly understood each other, everything else naturally became much easier.
Kurenai was still frozen in place. Only after watching him casually straighten his clothes did she finally react.
"Y-You're leaving already?"
"Yeah. I still need to discuss the mission with my sensei."
Kiyohara walked to the entrance and looked back at her.
"Thanks for the massage. It felt great."
He paused briefly before adding:
"My exclusive one."
Click.
The door closed.
Kurenai sat there blankly for a long while before finally burying her burning face into her palms.
"Idiot..."
By the time Kiyohara returned to Tsunade's house, dusk was already approaching.
Tsunade was sitting in the living room eating fruit out of boredom. Hearing the door open, she looked up.
"What mission did you get?"
"Escort and negotiation duty at the border of the Land of Hot Water."
Kiyohara handed over the scroll.
"An A rank mission. There's a possibility of encountering Kumogakure shinobi."
Tsunade quickly scanned through it, her brow lifting slightly.
"You're going alone?"
"It's more efficient."
Kiyohara replied calmly.
"And this mission is mainly reconnaissance. There's no need to bring a squad."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment before tossing the scroll back to him.
"Suit yourself. Just remember to come back early."
"Understood, sensei."
The next morning, Kiyohara packed some simple luggage and left Konoha.
The Land of Hot Water was famous for its hot springs. Located between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning, it often saw trade caravans traveling between the major countries.
The target of this escort mission was the caravan leader, a sharp looking middle aged man who visibly relaxed after seeing Kiyohara.
Clearly, the reputation of this young Konoha jonin was already enough to intimidate potential enemies.
The escort process itself went smoothly.
The caravan advanced along the mountain roads, finally arriving at a border town in the Land of Hot Water five days later.
Goods were handed over, agreements were signed, and everything proceeded methodically.
But Kiyohara's true objective was not here.
That night, he changed into dark casual clothing and silently left the inn.
The border regions of the Land of Hot Water often had Kumogakure shinobi operating nearby. The area was close to the Land of Lightning and also served as a major trade route, so it was perfectly normal for Kumogakure to establish an intelligence network here.
Kiyohara used the most direct method possible.
Interrogation through Sharingan genjutsu.
He wandered through the town specifically searching for targets whose chakra signatures were noticeably stronger than ordinary people.
Drunken men in taverns, travelers staying at inns, even homeless wanderers by the roadside. As long as he confirmed they were Kumogakure shinobi in disguise, a single glance was enough to drag them into a genjutsu space.
"Where is Darui?"
"I... I don't know..."
"What about Samui?"
"S-She and Lord Darui went to the northern outpost last week..."
After interrogating more than a dozen Kumogakure shinobi, Kiyohara finally obtained precise intelligence.
Twenty kilometers north, hidden among the mountains, was a secret Kumogakure outpost.
Samui and Darui were currently stationed there on a temporary assignment.
Kiyohara finally understood why he had not seen any trace of Darui before.
So he had been stationed here in the Land of Hot Water all this time.
"I really do have fate with Samui."
Kiyohara shook his head slightly.
The neighboring country of the Land of Hot Water was the Land of Frost, which was extremely close to the Land of Lightning. The waterways in this region were also highly developed, with ships even traveling toward the Land of Water.
It seemed Samui had been reassigned here.
Late at night, relying on his ability to fly, Kiyohara reached the outskirts of the outpost.
The structure was built into the mountainside, a wooden facility hidden within a recess of the cliff wall.
Simple barrier alarms had been set up around the perimeter, but to Kiyohara, they were practically nonexistent.
He walked straight through the main entrance.
The Kumogakure shinobi inside immediately reacted by drawing their weapons at the sight of the sudden intruder.
But the moment they saw those scarlet Sharingan slowly spinning beneath the dim lights, every movement froze.
Genjutsu: Sharingan.
Six chunin stood there like wooden puppets, their eyes hollow and lifeless.
Kiyohara walked through the corridor and pushed open the innermost door.
Inside the room, Darui was seated at a table studying a map.
Hearing the door open, he raised his head.
Their eyes met.
Darui's pupils instantly contracted.
He almost instinctively leaped backward. His right hand drew the long blade from behind his back in an instant while his left hand had already formed half of a hand seal.
"Konoha's... Kiyohara!"
His voice was filled with shock.
"How are you here?"
Kiyohara did not answer immediately. Instead, he calmly observed Darui.
Darui looked exactly like a typical Kumogakure shinobi. Dark skin, short white hair, and still quite young at his current age.
"Darui."
What confused Darui most was the fact that Kiyohara even knew his name.
The naming style in Kumogakure was actually rather interesting.
Samui's name meant "cold."
Her younger brother Atsui's name meant "hot."
Omoi meant "heavy."
Karui, another disciple of Killer B, meant "light."
As for Darui, his name carried the meaning of "lazy."
"So Samui isn't here. Looks like you're alone."
Kiyohara spoke calmly.
"You..."
Darui very much wanted to ask how Kiyohara knew all this.
But after seeing the Sharingan in Kiyohara's eyes, he immediately understood everything.
It was obvious that Kiyohara had obtained information through Sharingan genjutsu.
"What exactly do you want?"
"If you want to stay alive..."
Kiyohara slowly drew the shinobi blade from his waist.
"Then attack me."
Darui froze.
The statement was simply too absurd.
Kiyohara's achievement of killing the Third Mizukage had already spread throughout the shinobi world. Darui knew very well that he was absolutely no match for him.
"What are you trying to do?"
Darui tightened his grip around the sword hilt as Lightning Release chakra began flowing through his body.
"Use your strongest technique."
Kiyohara said calmly.
"The Black Lightning Release."
Darui's heart trembled violently.
Black Lightning Release was a secret technique developed by the Third Raikage. Even within Kumogakure, only a very small number of people had ever been taught it.
How did Kiyohara know he could use it?
And why did he want to see it?
But there was no longer any time to think.
Kiyohara suddenly appeared at Darui's left side, moving so fast that only an afterimage remained behind.
Darui gritted his teeth as his left hand completed the seal.
"Lightning Release: Black Panther!"
Whether he wanted to use Black Lightning Release or not no longer mattered.
Because it was his strongest offensive technique.
Darui did not dare gamble on whether Kiyohara would show mercy.
Crackle!
Unlike the bright blue color of ordinary Lightning Release, the lightning erupting from Darui's palm was pitch black.
The black lightning twisted through the air before transforming into a leopard formed entirely of lightning and lunging toward Kiyohara.
At that moment, the Sharingan in Kiyohara's eyes began spinning faster.
Everything within his vision slowed down.
He could clearly see every branch of the black lightning, see the flow of chakra inside Darui's body, and see the unique Lightning Release transformation mixed with a certain Yin Release property.
"So that's it. Yin Release chakra was mixed into it."
Kiyohara finally understood why the lightning was black.
Black Lightning Release.
Could it also be called Yin Lightning?
Then what would happen if Yang Release chakra were added instead?
What kind of transformation would occur?
"Continue."
Kiyohara said calmly.
Then he punched Darui directly in the stomach.
Darui nearly vomited out everything he had eaten that morning.
His face instantly turned pale as he realized Kiyohara truly had no intention of holding back.
He immediately formed another series of hand seals.
"Lightning Release: Wave of Inspiration!"
This time it was an area attack.
Black lightning spread outward from Darui in a circular wave, instantly covering the entire room.
The wooden walls blackened and carbonized under the corrosive lightning.
While dodging, Kiyohara continued observing the black lightning carefully.
It was precisely that Yin Release property that granted the black lightning its powerful corrosive ability and its difficult to heal effects.
He raised his right hand and spread his fingers open.
Ordinary pale blue Lightning Release chakra began gathering in his palm.
But this time, under Kiyohara's imitation and analysis, he extracted a stream of Yin Release chakra and mixed it into the Lightning Release chakra.
Failure.
The first attempt instantly lost control the moment the Yin Release chakra entered, causing a small burst of electric sparks to explode in his palm.
Darui saw everything clearly, and a storm erupted within his heart.
This Uchiha...
He was actually imitating Black Lightning Release?
And after seeing it only once, he had already touched the threshold?
Black Lightning Release should count as a secret technique, right?
Darui simply could not understand how Kiyohara could even attempt something like this.
Because in the past, no Uchiha clan member had ever been capable of such a thing.
What he did not know was that Kiyohara's talent in both Yin Release and Lightning Release had been stacked multiple times over already, reaching a terrifying level.
He had long since met the requirements to use Black Lightning Release. He had merely lacked the opportunity to learn it.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Bind!"
Darui stopped holding back entirely and formed seals with both hands simultaneously.
Several strands of black lightning burst from the ground like chains, wrapping toward Kiyohara's limbs.
The essence of this technique lay in restraint and corrosion. Once caught, the black lightning would continuously destroy the opponent's chakra pathways.
Lightning flickered beneath Kiyohara's feet as his body moved fluidly through the gaps between the lightning chains.
Not long afterward, Kiyohara raised his right hand level with his chest, fingers slightly spread.
Crackle.
Black electric sparks leaped within his palm for the very first time.
Though weak.
Though unstable.
It was undeniably Black Lightning Release.
Darui completely froze.
His mouth hung open, eyes widened in disbelief.
Kiyohara ignored his shock entirely.
The black lightning in his palm gradually stabilized and grew stronger until it finally condensed into a black sphere of lightning roughly the size of a fist.
Tiny arcs of electricity slithered across its surface like snakes.
"So that's how it works."
Kiyohara spoke softly.
"This method of injecting Yin Release chakra changes the very nature of Lightning Release... The Third Raikage truly was remarkable."
As Kiyohara spoke, a spirit invisible to Darui floated out behind him.
It was none other than Yotsuki Kiyohara.
"The Sharingan really is absurd."
Yotsuki Kiyohara shook his head.
If he himself had possessed the ability to see the flow of chakra inside other people's bodies, learning Lightning Release ninjutsu would have been much faster for him as well.
He would have mastered Black Lightning long ago.
"But in the end... you still managed to fulfill every last will I had."
Yotsuki Kiyohara spoke quietly.
(End of Chapter)