"Uuuuugh…"
Jifu's footsteps staggered, and what little remained of his consciousness began slipping away.
His mind no longer controlled his limbs—only the primal hunger remained.
The chakra virus had begun spreading from his wounds, devouring his nervous system and transforming him, inch by inch, into a zombie.
The moment he caught sight of Ao, he howled and lunged.
Ao frowned, sidestepping smoothly. But the more he observed, the deeper his confusion grew.
"Jifu? No… something's wrong. He's covered in necrotic flesh. His body is decaying in real time… like he's possessed by a demon."
There were too many jutsu in the world. Most shinobi had barely scratched the surface of what was possible.
"And he's… trying to fight me with taijutsu? His form's off—limited by his injuries—but still stronger than the average genin."
In seconds, Ao had formed a full tactical assessment.
He drew a kunai and moved to finish off Kazeya Fūsai—but the zombie suddenly turned and threw itself between them, taking the blade through its chest.
A human shield. A corpse, willingly intercepting steel.
Ao's eyes narrowed. "This has to be a Konoha technique. But blocking tools like this? Could it regenerate?"
Kazeya, barely conscious, was also confused. He didn't understand who—or what—was protecting him.
"I'll treat your wounds—"
He reached out, but the zombie ignored him.
It shrieked and charged straight back at Ao.
Ao reeled, now certain the creature had no pain receptors. He kept retreating, probing with strikes and ninjutsu, trying to analyze it.
Every ranged assault—limb removal, organ rupture—did nothing to stop it.
And there were no chakra threads controlling it. No visible curse seals etched on the flesh.
"What the hell is this thing?" Ao muttered, fascination overtaking his caution.
The more the zombie chased him, the further Ao pulled away—maintaining distance, studying its behavior.
His instinct told him: this thing could be worth more than Kazeya's death.
Kazeya gritted his teeth, forcing his chakra into one final pulse to close his worst wounds.
Ao focused entirely on the creature.
He tried slicing off limbs, puncturing lungs, even gutting it—until finally, he rushed in and severed the head with a kunai and snatched it into his hand.
And the head kept biting.
"You've got to be kidding me… It's still trying to kill me? Just a head?! What the hell is this monstrous resolve?"
Ao stared in horror. The jaw twitched, the mouth opened and closed, snapping in silent fury.
"This… isn't a puppet. It's a legend. A demon. A story told to scare children—alive in my palm."
He glanced toward Kazeya and shouted, "Is this the kind of monster you Leaf shinobi breed?"
No answer.
Kazeya was gone.
Ao didn't care.
He'd found something better.
He tore a strip of cloth from his uniform and wrapped the zombie's head, planning to smuggle it back to Kirigakure.
"These eyes… they're almost like the Byakugan. Could it be some hidden Hyūga technique? Or was this a Hyūga who got caught in a forbidden jutsu?"
His obsession flared. If it was the Byakugan… and if he could decipher its secrets…
Strategic supremacy.
The Third Mizukage would reward him immensely. His standing in the village would skyrocket.
Ao thought of ancient myths—demonic warriors who wouldn't die, no matter how many times you cut them down.
He forgot all about the Mist-nin who was supposed to be chasing Fly-Bamboo Dragonfly. If the guy hadn't returned by now, he was either dead or irrelevant.
"This technique… Konoha must not mass-produce it. If they could, they'd have used it already. That means it's rare… and secret. If I can unlock it first…"
He imagined armies of the undead—unfeeling, unkillable. If it could be mastered…
"If only these were truly Byakugan eyes," Ao thought, disappearing into the trees, zombie head under his arm.
Meanwhile, far away, Tsukasa Kaede sat cross-legged on a thick branch, eyes shut.
He opened them slowly, sighing.
"They've escaped the range of my passive sensing… Looks like he's gone."
He smacked his lips, disappointed.
If Ao had been just a little less cautious—just allowed himself to be bitten, or even scratched—it would have changed everything.
Kaede didn't know exactly how long it would take to turn a jōnin-level ninja with passive infection and no chakra enhancement, but if Ao got marked… he'd live in Kaede's shadow forever.
At long range, fine control over the chakra virus consumed enormous energy. Too much for Kaede to sustain in his current state.
And he had nowhere near the chakra to let zombies use their techniques from life.
Yes—in theory, if Kaede had the reserves and complete mastery of Corpse Release, he could unleash zombies who performed at 200% of their living power—no fear, no pain, attacking until they physically disintegrated.
But that was just theory.
Reality?
Kaede was half-dead, dragging two unconscious comrades toward the village.
And the struggle was very real.
By the time Konoha's patrol shinobi found him, he was pale, drenched in sweat, and could barely walk.
"You're this injured… and still carried back your comrades? That's amazing. We'll escort you back. Rest up—you're exactly the kind of comrade we're proud to fight beside."
The young kunoichi who found him looked fresh from graduation—her face full of youthful, naive optimism. She was warm. Sincere. Her ninken, a large battle-hardened dog, sniffed Kaede and barked approvingly.
"Just lucky," Kaede murmured. "I forced the enemy to retreat. But we still lost one teammate."
He frowned. "I think I saw your photo on the Academy wall… You're Inuzuka Zō, right? One of the top graduates from two years ago?"
Inuzuka Zō, future squad leader of Konoha's border patrol and mother to Inuzuka Kiba and Hana. Unlike most Inuzuka, she'd chosen a fully grown ninken as her partner—Kuro-maru, a one-eyed monster with terrifying strength.
Kaede had no illusions—he couldn't beat that dog.
Later, at the village gates, Kaede saw Kazeya and Fly-Bamboo—both gravely wounded but alive.
"So Minato and Akimichi Dingo's squad rescued you?" Kaede asked, genuinely relieved. "Then… we didn't hold out for nothing. We really made it back."
He let his face relax in front of the crowd of shinobi, showing gratitude, humility, and just enough fatigue.
But befriending Namikaze Minato? That was fantasy.
Kaede never even entered his field of view.
Minato was already a rising star—an A-ranked prodigy with official recognition from the elders. Nicknamed the Konoha's Yellow Flash, his legend had begun.
Yes, he was cheerful. Sunny. Kind. But he didn't remember every low-level genin's name.
Konoha had tens of thousands of shinobi—more scattered across Fire Country's towns.
As the military command of the nation, the Hidden Leaf had the authority to issue conscription edicts to daimyōs and lords.
That meant Konoha's shinobi population would keep growing. Thirty thousand was conservative.
Even after the years of the Second War, thousands more had survived.
One man—even Minato—couldn't remember everyone.
Twelve years old or not, he had too many names on his patrol list. Too many missions. Too many faces.
Tsukasa Kaede wasn't one of them.
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300 Stones in this story = 1 Bonus chapter in every fanfic currently translated