Poll
Thanks for your votes, guys; please keep voting
Where should Yukina go after the Fourth Ninja War?
Bleach 80
Cultivation world 90
This poll will be open until I finish writing the 3rd ninja war saga
I hope you enjoy the chapter.
________
Outside the Icy Heart Cave
The Dire Wolf King and his elders sat in patient silence outside the Icy Heart Cave.
"CRACK, CRACK."
Suddenly, a sharp crack split the silence, and in unison they turned to see fissures spreading across Yukina's crystallized limbs
"CRASH, CRASH."
Shards of ice peeled away from Yukina's crystallized limbs, shattering on the ground below and revealing her untouched flesh beneath
In the next moment, Yukina's chakra erupted, flooding the cave. The sheer weight and density of her chakra stunned the elders.
"Good… very good." The king of the Dire Wolves laughed loudly, a glint of approval in his eyes. "You have barely passed the first test. The next test is way harder. Prepare yourself, girl."
After regaining his composure, Saigo turned to his king and said, "Your Majesty, her chakra density is far greater than it was when she passed the first trial. I don't understand."
The Dire Wolves king smirked at Saigo's question and began to explain, "Chakra, as you are well aware, is formed by blending physical energy with spiritual energy."
"The human girl experienced something profound in the dream world just now, which tempered her heart and mind, forcing her chakra to evolve."
Saigo and the other elders nodded in understanding; they then resumed waiting for Yukina with quiet patience
_____
With Yukina
As the world around her ceased its shifting, Yukina's breath caught. Before her eyes was a bedroom she recognized instantly: the very one she had shared with her boyfriend in her past life.
She narrowed her eyes, her voice low. "This can't be real… How can I be here? Is this… a genjutsu?
For a heartbeat, Yukina closed her eyes. When they flew open, she exclaimed, "No! This isn't a genjutsu. This… this must be part of the trial!"
Emotions welled up inside her as she glanced around the bedroom, but when her gaze landed on the mirror, her breath hitched—staring back at her was the body she once had in her past life.
She drew in a shaky breath, trying to steady herself. "How… how is this even possible? This is insane."
The bedroom door opened softly, and a blond man in his thirties entered, his handsome features lit with a tender smile as he looked at Yukina.
The man's piercing green eyes and sharply defined brows framed a strikingly handsome face, his fair skin glowing subtly over a lean, sculpted physique that seemed impossible to ignore.
Yukina's breath caught, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, and her body froze as if time itself had stilled at the sight of the man.
She gasped, her hands trembling as she whispered to herself, "It can't be… he's dead. He died in the war."
The blond man drew near, his hands gripping her waist with a strength that contrasted the softness of his tender kisses trailing along her neck.
"mmmmhhhmmm."
Yukina moaned loudly with pleasure as the man kissed her neck in the right spots, and then he started squeezing her soft buttocks.
She took a deep breath to steady herself; she felt a surge of arousal for the man's touches and quickly pushed him away.
Confusion and concern mingled in the blond man's gaze as he looked at Yukina. "Lucy… what's wrong? Are you alright?"
Reluctantly, Yukina looked at the blond man, her chest tightening. "It's far too difficult… but this is the reality; I have no choice but to confront it," she thought
After making up her mind, Yukina looked resolutely into the blond man's eyes. "Listen, Thomas, I love you," she said, her voice steady yet tinged with sorrow, "but you're dead. You died in Afghanistan. I don't know why you're here before me, or why I'm back in our house—but that doesn't matter."
"It is time for me to live my life and look forward to the future."
After speaking those words, she wrapped her arms around Thomas's neck and pressed her lips to his in a tender kiss.
"Goodbye, Thomas."
Tears streamed down Yukina's cheeks as she spoke, and the world around her began to fracture and crumble.
"CRACK, CRACK."
"SHATTERED."
As the world around her broke apart, her surroundings began to warp and shift anew.
______
Outside the Icy Heart Cave
"CRACK, CRACK."
Cracks like spiderwebs spread across the crystallized ice encasing Yukina's body, and shards fell to the ground like shattered glass. Her chakra surged violently once more, flooding the cave with density.
The Dire Wolves' king's eyes went wide, his breath catching. "Impossible," he murmured, "how could she overcome her heart demons… so fast? This is insane."
All the elders were equally shocked when they saw Yukina conquer the entire second trial—but in the next moment, the Dire Wolves king burst into loud, triumphant laughter.
"HAHAHAHA, INTERESTING. YOU ARE A VERY INTERESTING HUMAN GIRL. TO PASS THE ICY HEART CAVE TRIAL THIS QUICKLY IS VERY IMPRESSIVE."
_____
With Yukina
Yukina opened her eyes slowly and found herself in the Icy Heart Cave again, yet she felt different—her heart was serene, calm, as if the heavy weight that had pressed on her shoulders had finally been lifted.
"Great job, girl! I'm really impressed—you should feel proud of yourself."
Yukina turned around to find the Dire Wolves king and his elders smiling at her, their expressions filled with approval.
Yukina narrowed her eyes, her voice sharp. "Why didn't you tell me I'd have to face some kind of illusion?"
The Dire Wolves king let out a derisive scoff. "Do you expect me to reveal everything to you? Foolish girl. That would make the trials meaningless."
Yukina nodded in understanding at the words of the king of the Dire Wolves. He then addressed her, "We are returning to the palace, girl. After what you have experienced in the trial, you need to rest."
Yukina let out a soft sigh, nodding to the Dire Wolves king. Without another word, she fell in step behind him and the elders as they made their way back to the king's palace.
______
At the same time in Kirigakure
Hozuki clan compound
In the meeting hall
Zangetsu and his elders sat on one side, while Yukito and the Yuki clan elders sat opposite them.
Yukito noticed Tsuki's presence and gave her a polite nod. Memories surfaced of their time together in the surprise attack division during the last ninja war, when he had saved her from Konoha White Fang.
Flashback
8 years ago
The surprise attack squad of Kirigakure, composed of eight chunin, advanced swiftly along the outskirts of Amegakure.
A bold middle-aged man clad in a Kirigakure Chunin attire looked at the young Yukito with uncertainty and asked, "Captain, are you sure it's wiser to ambush the Iwa supply escort team than to infiltrate their base and burn their provisions?"
"By infiltrating their base and waiting until they replenish their supplies, we can destroy it in one decisive move and accomplish the mission more efficiently."
Yukito let out a heavy sigh, his patience thinning. He glared at his bold teammate and snapped, "Riku, use your head for once. Do you really think just eight of us could infiltrate the Iwa base and destroy their supplies?"
"We'll be dead before we even set foot inside! We don't know how many sensors they've hidden, and the base is packed with Jonin and chunin. If we try to infiltrate their base, the mission will fail, and they'll kill most of us and then interrogate those who are alive for information about our forces."
The color drained from the faces of Yukito's teammates as his words sank in. Tsuki, terrified at the thought of capture, turned to him and asked.
"Captain Yukito, are you certain that your ambush strategy against the Iwa supply escort team will succeed?"
Yukito came to a sudden stop, pulled out a map, and showed it to his teammates.
"There is a single route from the Earth Country to Iwa's base in the Rain Country. I am confident Konoha will be eager to negotiate a peace treaty, having suffered heavy losses from Hanzo the Salamander's attacks."
"Thus, they likely share our view and try to destroy the Iwa supply."
"If Konoha sends a team to attack Iwa's supply on its way to their base, we will remain in the shadows, letting them fight and weaken one another."
"Once they've exhausted themselves fighting each other, we will trigger our traps and ambush any survivors—but remember, we must eliminate them in a single, decisive strike."
Tsuki and the rest nodded their heads in understanding; they were stunned at Yukito's strategy.
Even Tsuki began to blush and steal glances at Yukito's face.
"Yukito took out an empty scroll and started drawing a diagram. After he finished, he looked up at his teammates and said, 'This is how we'll execute the plan—every move must be precise, or we will fail our mission.'
"Memorize this diagram so that each of you knows exactly where to position yourselves before the ambush."
Tsuki and his teammates nodded, their eyes fixed on the diagram as they carefully memorized every detail.
After they finished memorizing the diagram, Yukito continued, "Kagayama and Aoki, you won't be taking part in the ambush. Your task is to provide support and cover our retreat if things go wrong, using your long-range ninjutsu and genjutsu."
"Kagayama, you are a long-range shinobi; if you see an opportunity to destroy the supplies with your ninjutsu, take it without hesitation."
Yukito paused for a moment before continuing. "Aoki, your genjutsu is crucial to this mission. When I give the signal, I need you to cast a two-layer genjutsu over the area to conceal us before the ambush begins."
Aoki and Kagayama nodded in understanding. Yukito then turned to the rest of his teammates. "Tsuki, Takamura, Riku, Yagami, Nitta, and Sorimachi—you six are close-range specialists. Once I immobilize the enemy with my Ice Release, use the pincer tactic to deliver the finishing blow during the ambush. Any questions?"
They all looked at Yukito in stunned silence after hearing his strategy, and then they shook their heads.
Yukito nodded his head in satisfaction and ordered, "Alright, let's go."
Yukito and the others then quickly turned into a blur at incredible speed and moved towards the route to ambush Iwa supply escort team.
_______
After 30 minutes
Yukito and his team reached the ambush site and began setting their traps.
Once the traps were in place, Yukito and his team assumed their positions, each moving according to the strategy he had devised.
They concealed themselves among the trees. Yukito then turned to Aoki and gave him a nod.
Aoki started executing a hand seal sequence after receiving Yukito's signal.
"Demonic Illusion False Reality Twin Layers."
Aoki casts a two-layer genjutsu to conceal himself and his teammates within the area
After Aoki cast the genjutsu, he said. "Captain, the genjutsu is in place."
Yukito nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Now steel yourselves mentally and stay hidden. Everyone, wait for my signal before we move forward with the ambush."
All his teammates nodded and hid around the trees in the area.
______
After 20 minutes
Yukito spotted a carriage laden with supplies moving slowly, but his expression darkened when he saw who was escorting it.
"Damn it, give me a break. It doesn't make any sense why members of the Explosion Corps are escorting a mere supply."
Yukito leaned slightly toward Takamura and whispered, "Do you sense any shinobi approaching?"
Takamura closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them, sweat was already streaming down his face. "Captain… I sense nine chunins and a Jonin heading this way. The Jonin's chakra is immense—and I know it all too well."
"The Jonin is the White Fang of Konoha."
Hearing this, Yukito felt the color drain from his face, yet he steeled himself, forcing calm as he contemplated a way to retreat.
Tsuki, who was hiding next to Yukito, looked fearful and asked a question. "Captain, what should we do if the White Fang discovered us? We will die."
Yukito grunted in frustration. "For now, all we can do is wait. Hopefully, the Explosion Corps will weaken White Fang and his team. Our priority is to destroy Iwa's supply; once that's done, we retreat.
After hearing this, Takamura and Tsuki nodded in understanding.
Suddenly, a barrage of kunai and shuriken, each rigged with explosive tags, rained down upon the carriage.
"BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM."
Using Shunshin, the White Fang and the Konoha chunins appeared, swiftly circling the carriage.
Chobi Akamichi, a Konoha Chunin, stared at the lingering smoke from the explosion and asked, "Sakumo-senpai… do you think we succeeded?"
The silver-haired Jounin narrowed his eyes and ordered, 'We are under a genjutsu—release it at once.'
All Konoha shinobi acted without hesitation. At once, they formed the Ram hand seal and disrupted their chakra flow.
"KAI."
The genjutsu that Aoki had set was immediately dispelled, and the Konoha shinobi realized their ambush had failed.
Gari, the leader of the Iwa escort team, smirked as he eyed Sakumo and the Konoha shinobi. "Well, if it isn't the White Fang of Konoha," he said with amusement. "You lot deal with the Konoha trash. As for the White Fang… he is mine."
"YES SIR."
"BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM."
In the next moment, shinobi from Konoha and Iwa clashed fiercely.
_______
With Yukito
Yukito let out a sigh as he observed the scene. "So my prediction was correct—with the White Fang present, I'm confident they'll succeed in destroying Iwa's supply."
______
With the White Fang
When Sakumo saw his teammates in danger, he tried to save them, but Gari blocked him using his kekkei genkai, the Explosion Release.
"BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM."
Gari unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks at Sakumo, but with every strike, explosions erupted in the space between them.
Seeing that most of his teammates had been killed by the Iwa escort team shinobi, Sakumo flew into a rage and began executing a rapid series of hand seals with one hand.
Gari was stunned when he saw Sakumo forming hand seals with only one hand. 'I've never seen anything like this… how is it even possible?'
"Lightning Style: Glowing Sword Wave"
"BZBZBZBZBZBZ."
The tanto in Sakumo's grasp crackled with white lightning as he swung it through the air with effortless grace.
Countless waves of white lightning surged from the tanto, striking toward Gari from every direction at blinding speed.
"BZBZBZBZBZBZBZ."
"AAAAAHHHHH."
Gari was struck from every direction by the glowing sword-wave jutsu, and he collapsed to his knees, paralyzed.
"In the next instant, Sakumo shunshined from his spot and appeared right behind Gari.
All Gari saw was a blinding white flash—then his head rolled from his shoulders.
______
With Yukito
When Yukito saw how quickly Sakumo dealt with Gari, he cursed inwardly, 'This is bad. Even if my entire team and I ganged up on the White Fang, we wouldn't stand a chance—there was not a single wasted movement in the way he fought just now.'
"We need to retreat immediately and keep our distance from him. I'm certain White Fang will destroy Iwa's supply."
After making up his mind, Yukito signaled his teammates to retreat, and they all shunshined away.
______
With the White Fang
Sakumo's eyes narrowed as he watched Yukito and his team retreat, a sharp gleam flashing within them.
He then executed a cross-shaped hand seal.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu."
"PUFF."
A white puff of smoke erupted, and three solid clones materialized beside Sakumo. "One of you," he commanded, "destroy all the supplies and the carriage. The rest, go aid my teammates."
The clones nodded and swiftly dashed off to carry out Sakumo's orders.
Sakumo then looked in Yukito's direction and shunshined after him.
_____
With Yukito
Yukito and his team fled with desperate speed. In a blur, he executed a series of precise hand seals, and almost instantly, the air around him turned chilly.
"Ice Style: Ice Clone Jutsu."
Five ice clones materialized from thin air beside him, then they scattered in different directions at once.
Riku glanced at Yukito, confusion written across his face. "Captain, why are we retreating? We outnumbered the Konoha team—I'm sure we could have wiped them out if we'd ambushed them."
Yukito glared fiercely at Riku and snapped, 'Do you even know who the silver-haired Jounin wielding the tanto is, Riku?'
Riku shook his head, and the rest of Yukito's team started listening carefully to him.
Yukito let out a long sigh. "Why me? Why am I responsible for leading those idiots?" he muttered to himself. "All I want is to return to the village and feed the fish in the Yuki clan's pond in peace."
He then explained to his teammates, "That Jounin is the White Fang of Konoha—an S-rank shinobi and one of the finest in all the elemental nations."
"Even the Third Hokage's students—now known as the Sanin—aren't as good as he is, despite having survived their battle against Hanzo the Salamander."
Yukito's teammates all widened their eyes in shock at his words, but he paid them no mind and pressed on.
"Also, watching him fight just now, I noticed that not a single movement was wasted against Gari of the Explosion Corps. He even executed a lightning-style jutsu while forming hand seals with only one hand—I've never seen anything like it before."
"I'd guess his mastery of Lightning Release is extraordinary if he can perform the jutsu by executing a single-handed seals."
All his teammates felt a cold shiver in their spines after hearing Yukito's words.
Suddenly, from the corner of his eyes, he saw a silver blur rushing towards them.
Yukito's body moved on its own. He grabbed Tsuki's arm and threw her aside—then, in the next instant, a white flash slashed across his chest.
"SQUASH."
Blood erupted from Yukito's chest like a fountain, and in the next instant, his body turned into solid ice and shattered into shards of ice.
"CRASH."
"RETREAT."
At Yukito's command, his teammates scattered in every direction. Yukito then pressed his palm to his chest, using his Ice Release to seal his wound, then he rapidly executed a flurry of hand seals.
"Secret Jutsu: Demonic Crystal Ice Mirrors."
Ten ice mirrors started to form from thin air around Sakumo.
Sakumo frowned when he saw the mirrors.
In an instant, Yukito's clones shunshin toward the mirrors, each disappearing into one.
Sakumo was surprised to see reflections in the ice mirrors, each one showing an image of Yukito's clones.
In the next moment, each of Yukito's reflections raised a palm, aimed it at Sakumo, and murmured in unison.
"Ice Style Ice Flying Spike Jutsu."
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH."
"CLANK, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK."
The Ice spikes started flying toward Sakumo from every direction, which stunned him.
However, he quickly started dodging gracefully and knocking the ice spikes away with his tanto.
Yukito and his teammates quickly regrouped and he ordered without a moment's hesitation.
"Quickly! We need to put as much distance between us and him as we can—my jutsu won't hold him for long."
All his teammates nodded and quickly moved to put as much distance as possible between themselves and Sakumo.
Tsuki looked at Yukito's face, her cheeks flushing as she remembered how he had just saved her life.
Tsuki thought to herself, "He's like the knights from the stories I read, the ones who save princesses—he's so cool."
Yukito noticed that Tsuki was blushing and, feeling confused, asked, "Tsuki, why are you blushing? Are you alright? We need to hurry.'
Snapping out of her daydream, Tsuki averted her gaze and said softly, "I'm fine, Yukito-kun. You don't need to worry."
After saying these words, she started speeding up.
Yukito grew even more confused after Tsuki's reply and muttered to himself, 'Women are always so weird and hard to understand—especially kunoichis.'
End of Flashback
Yukito looked at Zangetsu, who was smiling warmly at him.
Zangetsu then asked Yukito, "So, Yukito, what is your answer? I know you didn't come here just to drink tea with me."
Yukito chuckled at those words, took a sip of the tea in front of him, and said, "We agree to your proposal, but my sister, Yukira, has a request. If you promise to fulfill her request, she will agree to marry you."
Zangetsu looked at Yukira with a small smile; he had always admired her beauty and resented his brother for sleeping with her."
He then asked Yukira, "What is your request, Elder Yukira?"
Yukira looked at Zangetsu with a serious expression and said, "I know the Hozuki clan has a close relationship with my daughter. I wish for the clan to help me meet and connect with her, Zangetsu-dono."
Zangetsu nodded, showing he understood. "The Hozuki clan will do everything it can to support you in this matter, but the result will depend on you and little Yukina, Elder Yukira."
With a nod of understanding, Yukira replied, "I understand, Zangetsu-dono.
Yukito took another sip of his tea and said, "Since we all agree to the arranged marriages between our clans, we must announce the wedding date to the village so every clan is informed of our union."
Zangetsu smiled and nodded. "I propose that the marriage be arranged promptly so that no other noble clan has the chance to interfere with our union."
Yukito nodded in understanding and asked, "Would next week work?"
Zangetsu smiled at this and replied, "Perfect. Let's begin the preparations."
Yukito and Zangetsu rose together and exchanged a firm handshake. "I will go back to the clan and make preparations for the wedding," Yukito said. "I look forward to seeing you next week, Zangetsu-dono."
Zangetsu smiled and nodded his head. "same here Yukito-dono take care."
After bidding farewell, Yukito and his elders exited the Hozuki clan compound and started walking back to the Yuki clan compound.
_____