Rinfa shook her head. "I don't know exactly what Uncle Ryuichi was thinking… but you must be careful about [Cheap Trick] returning.
If not for the clan tradition stating that the Corpse is safest when within a Kujo's body, I would've hidden the [Torso] or kept it myself."
"No need," Ishiki replied with a grin. "If I know the ability of [Cheap Trick], then I can find a way to neutralize it."
He slipped Kujo Ryuichi's letter away into his jacket. Something told him the truth wasn't as simple as Rinfa claimed, but for now, there were no answers to be found.
"Hey sis, what about the other parts of the Corpse? What powers do they contain?" he asked.
Rinfa didn't hold back. "Left Ear—[Thoth]. Right Ear—[Khnum]. Spine—[Rainbow Catcher]. Heart—[Green Branch]. Right Hand—[Planet Waves]. Left Leg—[Debt Collector]. Right Leg—[Hermit Purple]."
Ishiki furrowed his brow. Two of those names—Green Branch and Debt Collector—he'd never heard before.
Was she misnaming them? Or were they entirely new Stand abilities?
"Green" made him think of Hierophant Green, Noriaki Kakyoin's Stand.
As for Debt Collector, he remembered Marilyn Manson, the Debt Collector, a gambling-type Stand.
Curious, Ishiki asked her to describe the powers in detail.
Rinfa gave full explanations.
According to her, Green Branch was similar to Mokuton—a wood-style jutsu—allowing the user to control trees and vegetation.
Debt Collector, on the other hand, could remotely extract anything owed by a target. No matter what the debt was, the Stand would retrieve it. If payment couldn't be made in time, it would extract the target's organs, flesh, or even soul, to reclaim the equivalent value.
As she spoke so confidently and clearly, Ishiki had to admit: these might actually be original Stand powers from this world.
They talked long into the night—until past 4 a.m.
By then, Ishiki decided not to sleep at all. As Rinfa went to rest, he left the house for a morning run around Konoha.
But his mind stayed busy, chewing on the intel from last night.
The remaining Corpse parts—nothing too terrifying, but still… each carried risks.
Take Thoth, for example—a Stand in the form of a prophecy book. And Khnum, the shapeshifting Stand.
In the manga, their users were mostly comic relief. But in the ninja world, Ishiki wasn't so sure. Here, even a joke Stand could be lethal.
Then there was Planet Waves and Rainbow Catcher—both could be powerful in the right environment.
Especially Rainbow Catcher.
"If that ended up in the Hidden Rain…" Ishiki muttered to himself.
According to Rinfa, the Corpse seeks out compatible hosts. And who could be more compatible with Rainbow Catcher than a shinobi from Amegakure?
A village perpetually shrouded in rain.
Even if most of that was due to Nagato's technique, it had been a rainy place for decades.
Then came a bad thought: Danzo was in the Land of Rain.
If he got his hands on the Spine, and thus Rainbow Catcher…
…eh, not that big a deal.
Danzo's strength, after all, wasn't that frightening. Even if he got a Corpse part, Ishiki was confident he could beat him without too much effort.
As Ishiki passed near the Ninja Academy, he spotted a familiar figure standing outside, puffing on a pipe.
It was the Third Hokage.
Wearing his usual robes—minus the hat—Hiruzen looked more like a tired civil servant than the man called the Professor.
When he spotted Ishiki, he smiled, lowered his pipe, and waved.
He looked like a kind old grandfather calling out to his grandson.
Ishiki jogged over with a grin. "Hokage-sama."
"Up this early, Ishiki? Didn't you just return last night? Shouldn't you be resting?" Hiruzen asked, casual and warm.
"Habit," Ishiki replied, holding up the breakfast he'd bought on the way. "Have you eaten, Hokage-sama?"
"I have, thank you." Hiruzen waved off the offer, then asked with sudden curiosity, "Tell me, Ishiki… do you want to become Hokage?"
The question caught him off guard.
"…I do. But I don't think I'm ready. To be Hokage, you need to earn the people's trust, lead them forward, and make life better. I'm not there yet."
His answer was earnest.
A true Konoha citizen must have the Will of Fire. And what is the Will of Fire, if not the desire to become Hokage?
Ishiki Kujo, model shinobi, bore the purest form of it.
Hiruzen smiled, deeply satisfied. That was exactly the kind of answer he'd hoped for.
When the First Hokage built the village, it had been to improve people's lives.
And Hiruzen had spent his whole life pursuing that ideal.
"Ishiki, I believe in you. Work hard!" the old man encouraged. "As long as your heart beats for Konoha's future, you're already worthy. When people see that sincerity, they will support you."
"I understand. I'll keep striving." Ishiki raised his fist, eyes blazing with determination. "My name is Ishiki Kujo, and my dream is to become Hokage!"
Hiruzen beamed. Yes… yes! This was the ideal Konoha shinobi!
"Well said, Ishiki! Keep walking that path. Your dream will come true."
"It has to," Ishiki nodded solemnly. "I've inherited too much to stand still. Ever since the night of the Nine-Tails, I knew—whatever I do, I must do it better, for the village, for you, for everyone who believes in me."
Every last doubt in Hiruzen's heart melted away.
Danzo? Schemes? Suspicion? To hell with all of it.
If this boy couldn't be trusted, then who could possibly inherit the Will of Fire?
Ishiki Kujo was the living embodiment of it.
He should have had this talk with Ishiki long ago.
All those years teaching at the Academy… now he saw the fruit of that labor.
With young men like this, Konoha would flourish.
Glory to our great Konoha!