"Could Rin Nohara really possess some kind of unique constitution?"
Lady Yuki Kiyomi spoke uncertainly, then after a brief pause, added,
"Though in truth, the jinchūriki's own traits don't matter much this time. We're not trying to create a stable host for long-term containment—we're making a ticking time bomb."
"Then why go to the trouble of capturing someone from Konoha?" Yoru asked, raising a brow. "Couldn't we have used any captured shinobi or even a loyal volunteer from the village? It's just a suicide mission, and the blood seal charm would give us full control anyway."
He stopped himself, realizing how it might sound. "Forgive me, Lady Kiyomi. I didn't mean to question the Mizukage's decision. I'm just... curious."
"It's quite alright."
Lady Kiyomi shook her head. Still, Yoru's comment had clearly planted a seed of doubt.
Regardless, the plan continued.
After Yagura lured away Namikaze Minato on the main front, Yoru and Kiyomi led a small Kirigakure unit toward the area where Rin Nohara had last been sighted.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, two figures stood silently on the outskirts of a small Konoha encampment near the edge of the Mist battlefield.
Suddenly, the boy grimaced and clutched his left eye—hidden behind his forehead protector. A quiet groan escaped his lips, and his face turned ghostly pale.
"Kakashi!"
Rin Nohara rushed to his side, placing her glowing palms over his eye with a healing jutsu.
Warmth flooded the area around his Sharingan. Slowly, Kakashi's rigid posture relaxed.
"Implanting a Sharingan like that puts enormous strain on your body," Rin said gently. "Without Uchiha blood, your system isn't built for it. If your body hasn't fully matured, it could break you."
She looked at him with soft concern. "You could... take it off, just for now."
"I can't," Kakashi murmured, shaking his head and pulling away.
"Obito gave me this eye so I could see what he couldn't. I'll carry him with me—through this war and into Konoha's future. Whatever toll it takes, I'll endure it."
"Kakashi…"
Rin's eyes brimmed with tears—not just for the strain he endured, but for the friend they'd lost, who had entrusted them with his final hope beneath a crushing boulder.
They fell silent again, watching as the sunset disappeared behind the mountains. Darkness followed. Without sunlight, even the clouds seemed heavier. Rain began to fall in a steady drizzle.
"Let's get back, Kakashi."
Hand in hand, they ran toward the encampment through the curtain of rain. But the closer they came, the colder the air grew—unnaturally so.
Kakashi tugged at his collar, confused. Eventually, he shrugged off his flak vest and draped it around Rin's shoulders.
Wait a minute…
Even with the rain, it shouldn't be this cold. Not in this season.
It felt like they'd stepped into a frozen tundra.
Kakashi came to an abrupt halt, his visible eye widening in horror.
Rin, too, stood frozen, staring ahead in disbelief.
The Konoha outpost was gone.
In its place was a frozen wasteland.
"Ka... Kakashi..." Rin's voice trembled.
Every last inch of the encampment was encased in ice. Even the guard tower still held the image of a Konoha shinobi—frozen mid-expression, eyes wide in shock.
"Fall back! Rin, it's an ambush!" Kakashi shouted, grabbing her wrist.
But before they could retreat, a voice echoed cold and clear:
"Ice Style: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death!"
The raindrops suspended in the air crystallized into countless layers of ice. Spikes erupted from the ground, forming a domed enclosure around them.
Moments later, a storm of icy senbon rained down from all directions.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Kakashi immediately pulled up his forehead protector, revealing his blood-red Sharingan. Forming seals, he raised a wall of stone to block the barrage.
But an instant later, a deafening roar shattered the earth wall—a massive ice tiger leapt through the debris.
Kakashi didn't flinch. Lightning surged in his hand.
"Chidori!"
The Sharingan locked onto his target. With enhanced reflexes and chakra control, Kakashi blitzed forward, shattering the ice tiger and driving straight toward a wall of frost.
"So fast!"
"His chakra control… it has both nature and shape transformation. What jutsu is this?!"
A startled voice called out from behind the ice wall. But just before the wall broke, a shadow appeared beside Kakashi.
A hand reached out and stopped the Chidori cold.
"What?!"
Kakashi caught only a glimpse of those cold, indifferent eyes—then everything went dark, and he collapsed.
Shards of shattered ice scattered into the wind.
Yoru stood calmly, holding Kakashi's unconscious body like a ragdoll.
Around him, the Kirigakure ninja tensed.
"That lightning technique… must be a custom jutsu. Really unusual for a kid."
"He's got a Sharingan too… looks transplanted."
"That's Hatake Kakashi, son of the White Fang. The most gifted prodigy of his generation in Konoha," Kiyomi muttered, raising several ice senbon toward his neck.
But Yoru spun Hyōrinmaru effortlessly, intercepting them midair.
"Lord Yoru?"
"He's still useful. Focus on the mission."
He casually tossed Kakashi aside.
The others exchanged uncertain glances before nodding at Lady Kiyomi. She silently motioned for them to bring Rin forward and prepare the sealing ritual.
From her side, she summoned the special sealing vessel containing the Three-Tails. At the same time, six shinobi stepped forward and assumed their designated formation.
But before breaking the seal, Kiyomi approached Rin and seemed to examine her closely.
Her expression was oddly conflicted.
Then, saying nothing, she returned to the circle and began unsealing the container. Alongside the six shinobi, she began guiding the chakra of the Three-Tails toward Rin's body…
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin