Elsewhere, at the center of Sunagakure, inside a slightly more upscale home compared to the surrounding houses—
Yashaka's delicate face was clouded with concern as she looked at the woman seated beside her.
"Big sis, what's wrong?"
The beautiful woman beside her gave a faint, puzzled shake of her head. Her shoulder-length, sand-colored hair shimmered softly under the light, creating ripples of desert-toned waves with her movements.
Then, the woman blinked her indigo-blue eyes.
A warm, gentle smile once again surfaced on her lovely face—but compared to her usual expressions, it now carried a subtle, unreadable undertone.
"It's nothing," she said softly. "Yashaka, go on. Tell me more about Rasa."
Yashaka blinked, a bit surprised.
Just earlier, her sister had shown zero interest whenever Rasa was mentioned.
Why the sudden change of heart?
She gave her sister a skeptical look—but the older woman merely smiled back at her, saying nothing.
That gentle, silent smile carried an unspoken pressure. Despite never hitting or even scolding her, when her sister looked at her like that, Yashaka always found herself breaking.
"Alright, alright! Geez, Sis—you were just acting like you didn't care a second ago, and now you're suddenly interested?"
Yashaka puffed out her cheeks in a playful pout, trying to act cute.
At the same time, her gaze subtly drifted toward her sister's chest—specifically, the two generous mounds pressing against her blouse.
Seeing the smooth, curvaceous shape of her sister's bosom, Yashaka felt a renewed sense of hope for her own future development.
Karura, seated nearby, rested her snow-pale chin atop her hand, her elbow propped lightly on the table.
Her full chest shifted slightly with the motion, pressing together to form a deep, alluring valley of cleavage that peeked out even through her modest clothing.
Yet Karura seemed entirely unaware of how seductive her posture appeared.
Instead, she gazed at her younger sister with warmth in her eyes and a faint, indulgent smile on her lips.
Though Yashaka's glance had been subtle and fleeting—lasting no more than half a second—Karura, a seasoned jonin, had been watching her sibling closely the entire time. There was no way she would miss such a telling look.
Karura found her sister's reaction both amusing and adorable.
I wonder, she thought, if a few years from now, when Yashaka finally reaches my size… will she start complaining about shoulder pain and how hard it is to find clothes that fit?
With that thought in mind, Karura leaned a little closer to the table, letting out a faint sigh.
Even as a jonin, carrying these two oversized weights around every day was exhausting.
If only mine were smaller. Would Rasa like them better I wonder? She mused before putting that thought out of her mind.
—
Meanwhile, deep beneath one of the buildings in Sunagakure, in a hidden underground chamber—
Despite being underground, the lighting in the room was anything but dim. The space was well-lit and clean, resembling a standard office rather than a secret base.
At the desk sat a woman dressed in a black windbreaker, wearing a sleek, expressionless rabbit mask.
In front of her stood two towering stacks of documents, each one so thick it nearly reached her seated eye level.
Suddenly, another figure appeared three meters from her desk in a flash—a woman in a yellow windbreaker, her face concealed behind an eagle-shaped mask.
She knelt slightly, respectfully raising a new stack of papers above her head.
"Commander Kozuki," she said calmly, "Reports from Shadow Guard Teams 3, 4, and 5 have returned."
Kozuki didn't speak. She didn't even look up or pause her writing. Her gloved hand simply continued to glide across the paper in rhythmic motion.
This lack of reaction didn't surprise the newcomer.
Instead, she remained in her bowing position, arms outstretched with the documents raised high above her head. She didn't dare step forward or place the papers on the desk—despite it being the obvious thing to do.
She stood exactly three meters away, like a line had been drawn between them.
Because Kozuki—the vice-commander of the Shadow Guard—was infamous for being… peculiar.
She never exposed a single inch of bare skin. Always dressed in long coats, masks, gloves. Always distant. Polite, yes, but with an air of untouchability.
And she had strict rules—especially about men.
If any man came within three meters of her, she would turn hostile. Within one meter? She'd strike first, ask questions never.
This particular female member of the Shadow Guard had only joined less than half a year ago, but even she had heard the rumors.
Apparently, when Kozuki had first taken up her post, dozens of men had ended up hospitalized—some of them high-ranking jonin or nobles—all because they accidentally entered her space.
And not a single one dared retaliate.
No complaints filed. No revenge taken.
They simply accepted it as bad luck and moved on.
Now, even the women in the Shadow Guard were careful around her.
Some said she had a severe phobia of men. Others whispered about an extreme case of germophobia. Whatever the reason, one thing was certain: Kozuki was untouchable.
Dozens of seconds passed in silence, the only sound in the room being the soft scratch of pen against paper.
Then, finally, Kozuki stopped writing.
She looked up.
Her pale violet eyes locked onto the woman before her, still bowing with the report held high.
Kozuki gave the faintest flick of her index finger.
The stack of papers was immediately pulled from the woman's hands by some unseen force, floating gently to rest in front of Kozuki.
She flipped through the documents as she spoke softly:
"…As expected, nothing useful. It seems Rasa was right after all—the Third Kazekage may very well have been killed and his body taken by the culprit."
The moment she spoke those words, the woman in yellow tensed.
Her pupils shrank.
Her heart began to race.
She had suspected this possibility ever since receiving her orders that morning. But now, hearing it confirmed so casually from Kozuki's own mouth…
She felt her entire body go cold.
Like many others in the village, she had been clinging to hope—pretending that perhaps the Kazekage had simply gone missing, or was on some secret mission.
But now… that illusion shattered.
The truth was darker.