Is this really the Hidden Stone Village?
How did they suddenly become even more stubborn than those barbarians from the Hidden Cloud? This isn't good.
Kawaki Aoba knew it was time to be a little more flexible. Pushing too hard wouldn't help. He didn't care if his identity as Smoker—an alias he used while operating in the shadows—was known across the shinobi world. Nor did he care if the Hidden Stone had the guts to stand tall after years of decline.
But if he couldn't profit from this mission, that would be a true loss.
"Heh. What you said makes some sense," Kawaki Aoba smirked. "But your Hidden Stone Village can't just toss a couple of Earth Release techniques at me and expect me to leave with a smile, can you?"
He kicked the metaphorical ball back into their court. Now it depended on what they could offer to satisfy his appetite. If they couldn't come up with anything good… well, he didn't mind taking what he wanted by force.
Across from him, the Hidden Stone shinobi felt a brief wave of relief. At least the guy was still talking—still negotiating. But the moment he processed Aoba's words, his expression twitched.
Two ninjutsu? Just?
Those were advanced Earth Release techniques, more powerful than even the Rock Fist he had mastered. Each of those jutsu was practically a village secret, passed down to elite jōnin.
If his own talent hadn't been so limited, he might've mastered them himself. And then, maybe, he wouldn't be the one groveling now.
Still, regardless of how annoyed he was at Kawaki Aoba's arrogance, duty came first.
"I'll give you another S-rank ninjutsu," he finally said, steadying his tone. "Along with the Light-Weight Rock Technique and Super-Weight Rock Technique. That makes three S-rank jutsu. There are only a handful of shinobi in the world who know that many. That should be enough to satisfy you."
Kawaki Aoba paused to think, then shook his head.
"Two, three—doesn't make much difference to me. How about this instead—swap the last jutsu for the Four-Tails?"
The Hidden Stone ninja's face froze.
You want a Tailed Beast? Are you insane?
He didn't say it, but Aoba didn't need words—he could read it clearly from the man's expression.
No village would hand over its Tailed Beast, not unless it had already been captured and they were negotiating a ransom. The Four-Tails, Son Gokū, was far too valuable. No amount of pressure would make Onoki or any successor Tsuchikage give him up.
That made Aoba's heart sink. The true reason he'd come to Iwagakure was to steal the Four-Tails. But no matter how many times he used Observation Haki, he couldn't detect the chakra signature of Rōshi, the Four-Tails' Jinchūriki.
It seemed that Onoki had hidden him away, possibly even evacuated him before deploying the majority of the village's forces. A testament to how much the village valued its Tailed Beast.
Even if someone in the village knew Rōshi's location, they'd likely be fiercely loyal to the Tsuchikage. Only someone from the Yamanaka Clan could extract such a secret from their minds.
Still… just three ninjutsu felt like a poor trade. Especially when, outside of the gravity-based techniques, there weren't many unique jutsu in Iwagakure that held true value to him.
Sensing Kawaki Aoba's hesitation, the Hidden Stone shinobi swallowed his pride and made one last desperate offer.
"…Your Excellency. The Tailed Beast is non-negotiable. But in its place, we can offer you something rare—a forbidden technique that can revive the dead."
Kawaki Aoba blinked.
What the hell? Reviving the dead? Since when did the Hidden Stone Village have something like that?
Wasn't Konoha the only village with a technique like that—Reanimation Jutsu (Edo Tensei)?
Well… Chiyo from the Sand also had something similar. Though that was more of a life-transference jutsu.
So maybe it wasn't impossible that the Hidden Stone could have developed their own revival technique—especially one shrouded in secrecy. But if that were the case, why didn't it show up during the Fourth Great Ninja War?
Either it had heavy drawbacks, or was restricted to a small circle of trusted shinobi.
Still, for Aoba's purposes—resurrection for ritual or sacrifice—the cost didn't matter.
He studied the ninja's face. He didn't seem to be lying. The arrogance in his tone suggested he genuinely believed in the technique.
"Alright," Kawaki Aoba nodded. "Those three techniques. Give them to me, and I'll leave."
The Hidden Stone ninja visibly relaxed. But even in his relief, he felt the need to bark a warning.
"Since Your Excellency has agreed, please honor your word. Even if you're strong enough to challenge us now, the Tsuchikage-sama will not let betrayal go unpunished."
Aoba gave the man a look that screamed idiot, then turned around and walked off.
Let them cling to their pride.
He had what he came for—
Or so they thought.
The conditions had already been negotiated, yet he still spoke with such harshness. If it had been those hot-headed barbarians from the Hidden Cloud Village instead, the entire transaction might've already collapsed.
Still, Kawaki Aoba hadn't lost his cool. His intelligence remained sharp, and he saw no harm in speaking politely now that he was close to reaping the benefits.
"Relax. As long as you keep your word, I won't cause any trouble. I know the difference between robbing Iwagakure and the anger I'd have to endure for toppling your entire village."
The sentence sounded a bit off, but the Hidden Stone ninja didn't linger on it. He simply gestured in a certain direction.
As expected, the Tsuchikage's office wasn't so simple. There were still many places hidden from ordinary perception.
Kawaki Aoba activated the subtle perception of his Observation Haki to the maximum—something quite unusual in the shinobi world, where Haki wasn't commonplace. In the next moment, he sensed faint barrier fluctuations emanating from a wall.
From that very wall, a Hidden Stone ninja emerged, carrying three scrolls.
That wall must be where Iwagakure stored its classified jutsu scrolls.
Though he felt an overwhelming urge to destroy the wall and loot everything behind it, Kawaki Aoba resisted.
The barrier was too well hidden, and something this well-guarded wouldn't be left undefended. If he were the one designing such a vault...
He would've included layers of traps, a self-destruct mechanism, and perhaps even a genjutsu overlay. Especially for forbidden jutsu—there would be backups elsewhere, no doubt.
With these considerations in mind, he chose to hold back. After all, Iwagakure certainly had the means to carry out such protocols.
While these thoughts swirled in his head, the Iwagakure ninja stepped forward.
"Sir, these are the Earth Release: Added-Weight Rock Technique, Earth Release: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique, and the training scroll for the forbidden jutsu Earth Release: Earth Grudge Reincarnation. I'll place them here."
He carefully unrolled the scrolls on the ground. "As a show of good faith, would you kindly release the Tsuchikage's granddaughter first?"
Kawaki Aoba watched calmly, then signaled for the ninja to step back. Slowly, he lowered Kurotsuchi to the ground but didn't release her entirely.
Instead, he manipulated a dense white smoke to retrieve the scrolls one by one.
His attention first went to the Earth Grudge Reincarnation scroll—a technique rumored to revive the dead. It piqued his curiosity.
Normally, a shinobi needed deep experience to evaluate such jutsu. But Kawaki Aoba had his own way—he could cheat.
He memorized the training method and, with a thought, placed the scroll on his mysterious sacrificial altar.
Nothing happened.
He frowned and tried again with the other two scrolls—the S-rank rock techniques. Still nothing.
"Heh…" A cold chuckle escaped his lips. He looked at the Iwagakure ninja with icy contempt.
Without saying a word, he lifted Kurotsuchi again—this time by the neck.
"Stop!" one of the Iwagakure shinobi snapped, stepping forward in anger.
"What is the meaning of this? We gave you what you wanted—do you still intend to harm her? Do you take Iwagakure for a pushover?!"
The words hit the air, but Kawaki Aoba's expression didn't shift. He silently flung the three scrolls back at their feet with a flick of smoke.
"Let's not pretend," he said icily, his gaze piercing. "Do you want me to spell out what you tried to pull?"
The two Hidden Stone ninjas glanced at the scrolls on the ground. They both knew exactly what they had done, but they were unsure if Kawaki Aoba had truly seen through it or was bluffing.
Sensing their hesitation, Kawaki Aoba snorted. "My ninjutsu mastery is beyond your comprehension. I can tell if a jutsu is real just by looking at it.
So here's your last chance. Give me the real scrolls... or start preparing a coffin for your Tsuchikage's beloved granddaughter—and pray your village survives my wrath."
The air grew thick with killing intent. Every word he uttered chilled to the bone.
After a tense pause, the two shinobi exchanged looks of reluctant defeat. Their scheme had failed. They had no choice but to comply.
Still, they couldn't admit to deception outright.
Cough, cough. One ninja picked up a scroll, pretending to inspect it. "My apologies, sir. It seems we made an error. I'll go fetch the correct scrolls."
Kawaki Aoba didn't respond. But in his mind, he remained alert. If they'd gone so far as to fake scrolls, who knew what other traps they'd laid?
He wouldn't be surprised if the Tsuchikage's office sat atop a cache of explosive clay—Deidara-style.
Soon enough, the ninja returned with three more scrolls.
Kawaki Aoba drew them to himself again using his smoke technique and examined them carefully.
He started once more with the Earth Grudge Reincarnation Technique.
This time, when he placed the scroll on the sacrificial altar, a reaction occurred.
Still, he stayed cautious. Just because the jutsu was real didn't mean it was safe. He chose to sacrifice it on the altar for confirmation.
While he waited, the Iwagakure shinobi stood tense.
Even though the scrolls were genuine, they worried that Kawaki Aoba might not recognize their value—or worse, that he truly was the ninjutsu savant he claimed to be.
If it was the former, he was cautious and wouldn't be easy to fool again.
If it was the latter… then their secret techniques might now be in the hands of outsiders. When Lord Ōnoki returned, they would be branded traitors—no excuses would save them.
As they agonized internally, Kawaki Aoba saw the result appear before him.
A skill orb dropped.
That proved the scroll was genuine. But the true value lay in what the orb contained.
After absorbing it, Kawaki Aoba instantly understood the nature of the jutsu.
Necromancy—a technique that manipulated corpses, granting the deceased temporary passage back into the world of the living.
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