It seemed that becoming a Chūnin could no longer be delayed!
Kiyohara picked up the scroll, tucked it into his shinobi tool pouch, closed his eyes, and lay down on the bed, preparing to sleep.
At the outpost's camp, there wasn't much in the way of entertainment..
Of course… that didn't mean there was none at all.
As the saying goes: the poor play with cars, the rich play with watches. With no money, he could only improvise. If one insisted, even here some form of entertainment could be found.
But after a full day of travel, Kiyohara was utterly exhausted in both body and spirit.
If he still had any energy left, he would have chosen to train himself a bit and then continue training afterward.
Unfortunately, even if he forced himself to practice ninjutsu now, it wouldn't have much effect.
Chakra was a mixture of mental energy and physical energy. If broken down further, it became the most basic unit—stamina.
So chakra refinement could not be overdone; the body needed time to recover.
Since training wasn't an option, and there was nothing particularly fun to do, Kiyohara could only lie on his bed and wait for the return orders to arrive.
…
The Next Day, at Noon
While Kiyohara was still sleeping, he suddenly heard the sound of someone entering the tent.
His reaction was instant—he cracked one eye open and subconsciously reached toward his tool pouch.
Once he saw it was Kurenai, Kiyohara calmly withdrew his hand and continued pretending to sleep.
"This guy… looks pretty good when he's sleeping."
Kurenai crouched down and studied his face.
She found that even in sleep, Kiyohara's resting expression was pleasant to look at—
completely different from Sarutobi Asuma, who was always pestering her.
Asuma dressed like a delinquent teenager, constantly butting heads with the Third Hokage, and the older he got, the more rugged he looked.
Kurenai suspected that when Asuma grew up, he would definitely have a full beard.
Just as she was about to poke Kiyohara's cheek, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked straight at her.
"Secretly trying to take advantage of me isn't very nice."
Kiyohara said calmly.
A boy out in the world must protect himself too.
"Eh?"
Kurenai froze, her ruby-like eyes blinking as she stared into his pitch-black pupils.
She never expected Kiyohara to be awake—
and even worse, to have seen her actions just now.
"I-I was just thinking… it's already noon, and you should get up to eat. Lord Minato said our reassignment orders will arrive this afternoon."
Kurenai pinched her sleeve nervously, finding an excuse for herself.
"Is that so."
Kiyohara nodded, sat up, and stretched.
They would be returning to Konoha this afternoon.
He wondered how much of his debt he'd be able to pay back this time.
Thinking of the loot he had stuffed into an entire sealing scroll, Kiyohara couldn't help but smile—
the hearty, satisfied smile of a hardworking farmer finally seeing his harvest after toiling for a whole year.
Iwa-nin were truly not bad.
They gave him accomplishments and gave him money.
"What are you thinking about? Your smile looks… weird."
Kurenai asked, puzzled.
"I'm thinking about you."
Kiyohara replied casually.
Then he picked up a cup of water from the small wooden table inside the tent, took a sip, and headed outside.
"Where are you going?"
"Bathroom."
Kiyohara looked at her like it was obvious.
What else would someone do first thing after waking up?
"Alright, don't ask. I'm going."
He lifted the cloth flap and walked out.
He was a Sigma male.
And as a true Sigma shinobi, he would never fall for a woman's trap.
Flirting was fine… but it must never delay his bathroom trip.
"This guy…"
Kurenai bit her lip, watching him leave.
She really didn't understand why Kiyohara never followed any conventional pattern.
If she asked Asuma the same questions, Asuma would only scratch his head and laugh foolishly.
When Kiyohara returned, he found Kurenai still waiting.
"This is from Lord Minato. He asked me to give it to you."
Kurenai handed him a stack of money.
Instantly, Kiyohara felt Kurenai had become even more beautiful—her curved eyes especially cute.
She should've said earlier that she came to give him money! What were they even wasting time on?
Kiyohara quickly accepted the cash and began counting.
During wartime, things were different.
They didn't need to return to the Hokage building for every mission report; that would slow everything down too much.
Often, the commander of the outpost had the authority to distribute payment directly to stabilize the morale of the shinobi.
Right now his morale was thoroughly stabilized—
the weight of the money felt incredibly solid in his hands.
"Hm… this counts as a joint A-rank mission. After deducting the village's platform cut, the remainder split among us is one hundred and thirty thousand ryō."
Kiyohara finished the calculation and couldn't help but feel impressed by how perfectly it worked out.
Normally, he wouldn't have even qualified for such a mission.
But they had been terribly short-handed, so he was used as a stopgap.
After all, their true mission was simply to act as decoys.
The real work had been done by Minato.
They didn't need Kiyohara to be strong—
they just needed him to draw attention and buy time.
Just as Kurenai was about to say something, the flap opened again.
"Let's go. The reassignment orders are here. We're returning with Kakashi and the others."
Genma said, the senbon in his lips bouncing as he spoke.
Kurenai pressed her lips together and followed him out.
…
After Several Days of Travel
Kiyohara finally returned to Konoha.
He knew he wouldn't be staying long—soon he would be headed back to the front lines again.
So he needed to complete his Chūnin promotion as quickly as possible.
"We're home."
Rin looked at the Konoha gates with a faint daze.
When they left, all of them were cheerful.
When they returned… the atmosphere was heavy.
Obito now slept forever, in a foreign land.
"I've got things to do. I'll go first, see you."
Kiyohara exchanged brief farewells, carrying his sealing scroll toward the ninja tools shop.
The newer the tools, the higher the resale price; the older, the lower.
He was desperately short on money—not only did he have debts, he also needed to forge a new weapon.
The chakra metal he looted from Kakkō would be used to forge a long blade.
Something like Sasuke's Kusanagi would do.
Of course, he figured Sasuke's sword was made from top-tier material—
Even after the Fourth Great Ninja War, it never broke.
Truly remarkable quality.
"Alright then, see you next time, Kiyohara."
Rin waved.
Kakashi gave Kiyohara a strange look.
Kiyohara interpreted it as an invitation: Let's spar more when we have time.
"Ahh, I can finally relax."
Genma scratched his head, planning to sleep for days.
"Kurenai, where are you going?"
He noticed she was still staring at Kiyohara's back.
"My father said he's teaching me stronger genjutsu. I'll go home and train."
"Ah, Master Shinku."
Genma nodded.
It was said that Kurenai's father, Yūhi Shinku, had extraordinarily high proficiency in genjutsu—
rumors even claimed he could reflect Uchiha illusions despite having no bloodline limit.
He was considered the representative of "civilian genjutsu masters."
"Alright, then I'm heading off too."
Soon, everyone dispersed into the bustling streets of Konoha.
…
Later
"This shop is really greedy."
Kiyohara muttered, holding a bag of money—the payout for selling shuriken, kunai, explosive tags, and other tools.
"My review is: not worth a second visit."
The shop owner kept lowering the price.
If Kiyohara wasn't absolutely desperate, he would have sold the items outside the village.
"As they say—there's no honest business."
said Missing-nin Kiyohara.
If he were in the owner's position, he would've lowered the price too.
He didn't believe his past self wouldn't have done the same.
"Whatever."
In total, he earned seventy thousand ryō—pretty good.
That was already half of what he made from the mission itself.
As the saying goes: Those who kill and burn wear gold belts; those who build bridges and repair roads leave no corpse behind.
Kiyohara felt that if he wanted to make real money, he needed more of these quick cash opportunities.
When his strength grew, he could loot even more corpses.
Minato had already submitted his Chūnin application, which meant the exam would take place in the next few days.
Normally, internal recommendations were just formalities—
but Kiyohara preferred to play safe.
What if something went wrong?
Caution keeps the ship sailing for a thousand years.
"Looks like you're even more cautious than I was."
Missing-nin Kiyohara sighed.
If he had been as cautious as his past self, he might not have died to that explosive tag trap.
"Since my future self died because of an explosive tag, there's no death method that can surprise me anymore."
Kiyohara said.
High-quality ingredients need only the simplest preparation.
Each "last will" represented another way he might die. Infinite futures meant infinite deaths.
"Back to training." he said, buying some daily necessities before returning to his shabby home. …
Hokage Office
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the materials on his desk.
One was a report of a major victory.
The other was a Chūnin application recommended by Minato.
The applicant was—Kiyohara.
Beneath the application was a thick stack of files.
Kiyohara's was placed on top, with his family background, blue-background photo, personality notes, habits, and other basic intel.
"Kiyohara… it seems the civilian class has produced some promising seedlings this time."
Hiruzen nodded.
Compared to clan shinobi, he preferred civilians.
Clan members, unless absolutely loyal, often prioritized clan interests.
When clan interests clashed with village interests… who would they choose?
"Deer."
At his call, an ANBU member appeared kneeling before him, wearing a mask with purple markings resembling deer antlers.
In ANBU, during missions, all members abandoned their real names and used only code names.
"Approve Kiyohara as a Chūnin—
…no. Arrange his Chūnin exam. Three days from now, select him along with other outstanding genin who performed well in the war."
Hiruzen said, changing his mind midway.
Some people are useless in peaceful times, yet shine in war.
Heroes are forged by turbulent eras.
Normally, recommendations meant direct promotion, but Hiruzen wanted to observe Kiyohara's potential.
Adding one more procedure wasn't a big deal.
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
Deer took the application and left to handle the matter.
After she left, Hiruzen rubbed his brow.
Alongside the good news… came bad news.
Some battlefronts were still uncertain.
Most importantly, something delicate had happened with Kakashi—
An outsider had been transplanted a Sharingan!
The Hyūga clan used the Caged Bird seal to prevent Byakugan leakage.
Who knew how the Uchiha would react to Sharingan leaving the clan?
He could only hope they wouldn't cause trouble during wartime.
"I must continue cultivating the younger generation."
Hiruzen exhaled smoke from his pipe.
Minato had written many words of praise for Kiyohara.
That sparked some ideas in Hiruzen's mind.
If Kiyohara truly was exceptional… could he be nurtured into another Minato?
After all, a genin who could perform so brilliantly in an A-rank mission was already ahead of most applicants.
…
Meanwhile, at Kiyohara's modest home.
Though old and shabby, it still had a small yard.
Kiyohara stood in the yard, holding a shuriken with a barely visible thin wire tied to it.
"Copper wire really isn't as good as rubber cord."
He muttered.
He was training an advanced version of the Manipulated Shuriken Technique —
tying a wire so he could retract the shuriken or make it turn mid-air for more flexible control.
"This is to prepare you for the later technique."
The Missing-nin spirit explained..
Normally, shinobi used rubber cords or steel wires for this purpose. Specially crafted rubber cords were extremely resilient.
However… most rubber cords could not withstand high temperatures.
"You haven't forgotten the Uchiha clan's 'Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique,' right?"
The missing-nin continued.
"I haven't."
Kiyohara shook his head.
The technique had appeared during Sasuke's Chūnin Exam—
fire flowing along the wire like a fuse.
"Exactly. And it isn't limited to fire—it can be used with lightning as well."
Missing-nin Kiyohara continued.
Copper was a metal conductor with low resistance.
Channeling chakra through it would greatly amplify the effect.
"Alright, I'll try again."
Kiyohara threw the shuriken toward a wooden board.
It grazed the edge, then with a flick of his wrist—
The shuriken curved sharply, circling the board several times before tightly wrapping around it.
In the next moment, Kiyohara formed hand seals, and a surge of Lightning Release chakra traveled down the copper wire.
Crackle—
Sparks danced faintly along the copper, scorching the board with blackened burn marks in concentric rings.
"What should I name this technique?"
Kiyohara pondered before deciding on:
"Lightning Release: Guided Current Manipulated Shuriken Technique."
Not bad.
His talent for naming was clearly superior to Minato's.
Kiyohara felt very pleased.
(End of Chapter)