Knock knock.
"I'm coming in."
Receiving no response, Terumi Mei pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Kimimaro let out a sigh and sat back down on his hospital bed.
Mei walked over, gently patting his head as she asked, "Kimimaro, how is your body recovering?"
He ignored her but didn't push her hand away.
Unfazed, Mei wore an expression full of tenderness. Leaning closer, she whispered, "Kimimaro, would you like to go to the Academy? There are lots of kids your age there. I will be your guardian and take care of you."
"What's a 'guardian'?" Kimimaro asked calmly.
"A guardian is someone responsible for protecting you," Mei replied softly.
"Protect?" Kimimaro murmured, as if recalling something. He stared straight at Mei, locking eyes with her intensely.
Under his prolonged silent gaze, despite having no ill intentions, Mei suddenly felt inexplicably uneasy and embarrassed. Her smile faltered slightly.
"Kimimaro?"
His eyes darkened slightly as he looked toward Hiroki Hyuga's direction.
"The smell in this hospital is unbearable. It's not suitable for recovery. I want to take him somewhere else."
After careful consideration, Mei realized that Hiroki currently only required daily nutrient injections, so changing locations wouldn't matter much.
She could only hope he would wake up soon.
Otherwise, if Yoro Genshi lost patience, he might just send someone to take his eyes by force.
In their ideal scenario, they'd wait for Hiroki to awaken naturally, hoping he would willingly choose to stay within Kiri Village.
Since he'd been severely injured by a Tailed Beast Ball, even if he survived, his future potential was likely limited anyway.
So he might as well just stay peacefully in Kiri and live comfortably.
Though transplanted Kekkei Genkai couldn't be passed on to descendants, natural bloodlines could continue through generations.
Perhaps someday another Byakugan bloodline clan might emerge apart from the Hyūga of Konoha.
If necessary, they would resort to the worst-case plan—take his eyes directly.
Thinking through these possibilities, Mei nodded. "Then let me take him to my place for recovery."
Kimimaro temporarily agreed.
Terumi Mei's house was quite large. She could arrange separate rooms with small yards for everyone.
Still, Kimimaro chose to stay in the same room as Hiroki Hyuga, guarding beside him every day.
It wasn't long before another ten days had passed, and Kimimaro no longer needed bandages.
In the courtyard before some wooden training posts, Kimimaro pulled two bones from his body.
The wounds where the bones emerged closed up in an instant.
Seeing this, Mei couldn't help but let out an audible gasp of astonishment.
Thinking for a moment, she took out a kunai and threw it toward Kimimaro.
He blocked with his bone weapon.
Crack~
The kunai shattered upon impact, yet not even a single mark appeared on Kimimaro's white bones.
"Kimimaro, although your body has mostly recovered, high-intensity training still isn't suitable right now," Mei advised gently.
"I must become stronger," Kimimaro said without turning around.
Mei Terumi nodded quietly, then said, "If you really want to get stronger, you should undergo formal training..."
Before she could finish speaking, Kimimaro fixed her with a cold stare and interrupted, "I must stay by Genshi's side."
Mei Terumi sighed in silence.
How could someone so pure and devoted come from the Kaguya Clan—a family obsessed with battle and bloodlust?
The Country of Hot Springs.
"Invasion by Jiraiya and Naruto Uzumaki is about to occur within the territory of the Country of Hot Springs. A fated encounter is coming," several White Zetsus said inside the palace, their faces twisted into eerie smiles.
"Finally, no more caterpillar feasting!" Naruto shouted joyfully as he followed behind Jiraiya outside a small town.
"Yeah, not bad sticking it out this long. Now your old man's gonna show you some real fun!" Jiraiya grinned.
Although they had been training all along, they couldn't live permanently atop Mount Myoboku.
After all, since Naruto was still growing, he needed a varied diet—not just one source of protein.
Living constantly among frogs might cause him to pick up frog habits; that would be a nightmare!
Therefore, once Naruto healed up, Jiraiya brought him back onto the Ninja World continent to keep learning and growing stronger.
"Time to go play? The Country of Hot Springs is definitely somewhere you shouldn't miss. This place is most famous for its hot springs—if you soak in one, your whole mood lightens up. And who knows—you might even meet someone special."
While traveling, Jiraiya explained various countries' customs and cultures to Naruto.
Soon enough, both entered a lively, bustling street.
There were shops and goods of all kinds—eye-catching and dazzling.
Numerous passersby came and went: ninja, samurai, ronin, wealthy merchants, and commoners. Different men and women bustled about, prompting Naruto to exclaim, "So there really are exciting places like this outside Konoha too!"
Jiraiya nodded and explained, "I've heard that through joint development between the Country of Hot Springs and the Country of Frost, many foreign visitors have been drawn here."
"I see ninja from Konoha! Look over there—their forehead protectors! Also Sand and Cloud ninja... Teacher Jiraiya, look at their headbands!"
Naruto cheerfully ran forward while Jiraiya quickly followed behind.
Their attention was soon captured elsewhere.
Ahead near a warehouse entrance, multiple cargo boxes were piled together.
Four men dressed as workers surrounded another man similarly clad in work attire.
Their faces were tense, wary, and clearly annoyed as they grilled him, "So, are you really a ninja?"
The man standing at the center lowered his head and calmly explained, "I'm not a ninja."
"Then why are you so strong? We don't hire ninjas here—didn't you know that?"
"I'm honestly not a ninja. I eat a lot, so I'm strong. At home, I do equally heavy work every day."
"You're really not a ninja?"
"Not at all! How many times do I have to say it? Let's stop wasting time—we still have so much to carry. Don't you guys want to eat on schedule today?" His tone clearly showed irritation.
Seeing his anger, the others exchanged glances, hesitated for a moment, then quickly dispersed without another word and got back to work.
They stopped making noise and quietly resumed their tasks. Naruto found it pretty boring and looked away.
Jiraiya watched for a while, gradually frowning with confusion in his heart.
This person must be a ninja — he had chakra, and from his movements, it was clear he'd received professional training.
But why wouldn't he admit it?
This situation sparked Jiraiya's curiosity.
Pushing down his doubts, Jiraiya kept exploring the village with Naruto.
Several days later, he noticed that the previous man wasn't an exception.
They were clearly ninja yet refused to wear forehead protectors, and seemed worried about others discovering their identities, mingling with civilians and working alongside them — why was that?
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