"Tch. No reward?" Nara Kazuki clicked his tongue in annoyance.
He had just offered up that poor bastard as a sacrifice—but nothing happened. No reward, no divine whisper, no dark boon. Either the ritual failed, or the offering didn't qualify. He hadn't seen the usual sign—no grotesque hand dragging the soul into the shadows.
Kazuki cast a glance at the woman curled under the blankets in the room, trembling as she stared at him in terror. He turned away. He had no intention of dealing with these people any further.
Just as he was about to go assist Fox and Kakashi, he turned the corner—and saw them already standing in the courtyard.
"That fast?" Kazuki blinked in surprise. "Didn't the intel say they were two jōnin?"
"They were actually just two strong chūnin," Fox replied casually. She then glanced into the room, eyes falling on the bound man and the twisted corpse of the shinobi. A flicker of confusion passed through her gaze.
During her fight, she'd sensed something strange—an eerie chill that made her shudder. Her opponent had flinched too, clearly affected. She had suspected something happened on Kazuki's side.
But now, looking at the scene, she didn't see any signs of Ice Release. If it were a kekkei genkai like that, there would've been lingering frost or ice traces.
"Is the intel division always this sloppy?" Kazuki grumbled, oblivious to the suspicion he had almost drawn to himself. He didn't know he'd nearly been mistaken for an Ice Release user.
Fox, unbothered, explained, "This town's too far out. The intel division received reports from the villagers, but they won't send anyone unless it's a major threat."
Konoha might have a lot of shinobi, but it couldn't keep tabs on every remote corner of the Land of Fire. For most far-flung villages, reports were filed by civilians themselves.
Kazuki adjusted his ANBU mask, exasperated.
This world really was running on duct tape and hope.
As the trio prepared to head back to Konoha to report, a small boy stepped into their path, standing before Kazuki.
"Hey there, little guy. Something wrong?" Kazuki scanned the area on instinct. His shadow slithered silently, ready to act—but there was no danger.
Fox and Kakashi stayed alert until they were sure there was no ambush, then looked at the boy in confusion.
The kid looked malnourished, face pale, bones sticking through his skin. No visible wounds, but his clothes were tattered. Not that unusual—most civilians in the ninja world wore rags, especially out here.
"E-Excuse me... Are you the medicine shaman?" the boy asked, voice trembling with fear and hope.
Kazuki blinked. Medicine shaman? Sounded like some backwater witch doctor title.
"I'm a shinobi, not a shaman," Kazuki smiled, trying to gently correct him.
The boy's face instantly fell, disappointment washing over him.
"You have a sick family member?" Fox asked softly, squatting down. Her voice still carried her usual tone, but she tried to be gentle.
"Mhm... My mom's sick. Dad went to get medicine, but he hasn't come back..." the boy said, head lowered.
Kazuki understood now. The kid was asking for help. But why had he mistaken Kazuki for some local healer?
Fox headed inside first, and Kazuki and Kakashi followed.
The house was bare—no furniture to speak of. A pale woman lay in bed, breathing heavily. Her face was ghostly white.
"Do either of you know medical ninjutsu?" Fox asked, frowning.
Kazuki and Kakashi both shook their heads.
But Kazuki stepped forward anyway.
The woman's symptoms looked like fever.
He walked up and placed a hand on her forehead.
Kazuki pulled out a small pouch from his equipment pouch—basic cold and fever medicine he'd gotten from the hospital in Konoha.
"Take this. It should help," Kazuki said. He wasn't a hundred percent sure it would work, but some meds were better than none.
The boy dropped to his knees, bowing repeatedly, overwhelmed with gratitude. Kazuki scratched his cheek awkwardly.
Fortunately, the medicine worked—after taking it, the woman's breathing eased, her expression more relaxed.
Kazuki and the others left soon after.
"You carry that kind of medicine with you?" Fox asked, surprised.
Most shinobi carried basic battlefield meds—antidotes, blood coagulants, painkillers. But cold medicine? That was rare.
"Just in case," Kazuki shrugged. He always carried stuff for diarrhea, colds—basic symptoms.
Sure, shinobi had stronger bodies than civilians. But they still got sick.
And the last thing you want in a fight is a stomach bug.
Imagine losing a fight, not because you were outmatched—but because you shit yourself mid-battle.
Once that got around, your reputation would be toast. Not for your strength, but for headlines like "Konoha ninja soiled himself in combat—my proudest kill!"
News like that spreads faster than heroics ever could.
Kazuki didn't think too much of the boy's request. It was a small act of kindness, nothing more.
He had more pressing matters—like leveling up his Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu.
After nonstop training, he was only 32 casts away from leveling it up.
He was confident he could max it out before reaching Konoha.
On the way back, Kazuki focused entirely on spamming Great Dragon Fire. His Shadow Clone continued farming Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu, since that was still his core offensive jutsu—and one that scaled with use.
If he wasn't stacking reps every minute, it felt like a waste.
By the time they returned to Konoha, Kazuki's face wore a bright, satisfied smile.
Finally maxed it out!
"Great Dragon Fire—what kind of upgrade are you hiding?" he muttered, rubbing his hands together in excitement.
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New translation : Naruto: I Can Use Corpse Release !
Give power stones to that new story if you want bonus Chapter in all current translated fanfics !
300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter