"How dare you look down on us!" a dark-skinned, heavyset rogue ninja growled. "Little brat, anyone can talk big!"
"Why waste words? Just kill him." Another, thinner ninja adjusted his cracked glasses. His smirk was anything but intellectual—more snake-like than scholarly.
Both bore scratched Iwagakure headbands, clear signs they were missing-nin from the Hidden Stone.
Without warning, the bespectacled one began weaving hand seals. "Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique!"
The earth rippled beneath him as he sank into it, vanishing from sight.
Kimimaro's instincts reacted instantly. He leapt onto a nearby boulder and shouted, "Jūgo, look out!"
Too late.
A hand shot up from the ground beneath Jūgo and grabbed his ankle—it was the classic Doton: Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu (Headhunter Jutsu), meant to drag enemies underground.
Kimimaro narrowed his eyes. Foolish. That jutsu wouldn't restrain Jūgo for long.
"Focus on yourself first!" boomed a voice from above.
The larger missing-nin had climbed to higher ground, hands already forming a seal.
"Earth Release: Rock Lodging Destruction!"
A barrage of large stones began to crumble from the cliffside and fall toward Kimimaro.
Kimimaro blurred into motion, evading effortlessly. His flexibility and battle reflexes rivaled those of top-tier taijutsu users—even without activating his kekkei genkai.
I'm not Obito, crushed in the past by such a move, Kimimaro thought.
The enemy dropped to the ground and pressed on. "Earth Release: Moving Earth Core!"
The terrain shifted like a wave, swallowing Kimimaro's legs and trapping him mid-motion.
"Now die! Earth Release: Earth Spear Fists!"
The chubby ninja's arms encased in hardened rock, he launched himself at Kimimaro with a bellow.
Kimimaro sighed and raised one hand, fingers stiffening.
"Dance of the Clematis: Flower—Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets."
From each fingertip, hardened bone bullets erupted and pierced through the rock-armored enemy's defenses.
On the other side of the battlefield, the bespectacled missing-nin had successfully dragged Jūgo waist-deep into the ground. But something was wrong.
The color of Jūgo's skin darkened, his veins bulging as cursed energy surged.
"W-what?" the enemy stammered. "What is that transformation?!"
He released Jūgo in panic—but too late.
With a roar, Jūgo's mutated arm extended unnaturally and slammed into the rogue ninja's torso.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
The ninja hardened his skin instantly—but it wasn't enough.
With a thunderous crack, Jūgo's punch shattered his ribcage and sent him flying. Blood sprayed midair.
The ninja tried to rise, only to be met with Jūgo's foot.
"W-wait—!"
His words were cut short as his head was crushed underfoot.
The battle was over in seconds.
Jūgo, panting, slowly returned to his original form.
"I lost control again… sorry, Kimimaro."
"It's fine." Kimimaro stepped over the fallen stones, brushing dust from his sleeve. "Did you finish off the one who attacked you?"
Jūgo nodded, a little shaken. "Yeah… I didn't mean to go that far."
Kimimaro glanced at the crushed remnants. "Better him than you."
He added, "That chubby one had some skill. I had to use Shikotsumyaku."
The enemy had underestimated him—most did. He had counted on brute taijutsu winning the fight. He hadn't expected Kimimaro to wield a bloodline that turned his own body into a weapon.
"Sorry," Jūgo said again. "I should've handled it. You used the Shikotsumyaku because of me."
"There's no need for apologies between us." Kimimaro shook his head. "But you really should work on some ranged options. Close combat alone is too risky, especially against users of Earth Release."
Jūgo looked down, thoughtful. "I will."
Kimimaro nodded. "Me too. If I want to survive long enough to escape this cursed blood, I can't rely on taijutsu alone. The world's changing. One day soon, shinobi will fight like gods—launching jutsu like artillery."
He glanced at the horizon, lips curling into a rare smile. "But don't worry. I have a plan. This system I've awakened—it's more than a second chance. It can evolve our bloodlines… give us new strength, new techniques."
He paused, then added with certainty: "And the Bloodline Gene Elixir… it works on others too."
Jūgo's eyes widened, hope stirring within.
Jūgo possessed an extraordinary physique. With his innate ability to absorb and utilize natural energy, he was already a force to be reckoned with. If he could somehow obtain and harmonize with a powerful kekkei genkai, he truly had the potential to reach Kage-level strength.
In a ninja world filled with bloodline limits and forbidden techniques, not having a trump card was tantamount to walking into battle unarmed.
"These two had quite a bit of ryo on them," Kimimaro muttered, kicking aside the pouches of two defeated rogue ninjas. "But nothing worth keeping."
He tossed the bags toward Jūgo, who silently collected them without complaint.
They continued on their journey.
Initially, when they reached the southern border of the Land of Fields, the most direct route to Kusagakure would have been through the Land of Fire. However, ever since the Hidden Sound's operations—including the destruction of Orochimaru's old hideouts—had drawn Konoha's attention, the border was crawling with patrolling shinobi from the Leaf. Passing through undetected was too risky.
Thus, they were forced to take a longer route: first into the neutral Land of Iron—home of the samurai and ruled under strict non-aggression pacts—then through the rugged and less-regulated terrain of the Land of Waterfalls.
The Land of Iron posed no threat, but the Land of Waterfalls was crawling with bandits, missing-nin, and greedy border patrols. They'd already fended off several ambushes during their trek.
A few days later, they finally crossed into the Land of Grass.
"Kimimaro, do you know the way to Kusagakure?" Jūgo asked, looking around the dense undergrowth.
Kimimaro shook his head. "No. Civilian maps don't mark the locations of hidden villages. They're classified for obvious reasons."
Their current map, bought in a small town, only showed landmarks, trade roads, and general terrain. No Hidden Village would be clearly labeled. Still, finding Kusagakure wasn't impossible—ninja villages left subtle signs of territory: chakra traces, patrol routes, hidden watch posts.
What Kimimaro really had to think about was how to locate the remnants of the Taketori clan.
The Taketori were a minor branch descended from the Kaguya clan—one of the few offshoots known to still possess trace elements of the Shikotsumyaku bloodline. However, unlike Kimimaro, who had inherited the ability in full, the Taketori bloodline had become diluted. Their relationship with the main clan had deteriorated long ago due to ideological and territorial disputes.
Kimimaro couldn't simply approach them as a long-lost relative. Even if he did, no one would willingly allow him to draw blood just because he asked.
Just as he was mulling over how to proceed, Kimimaro's senses sharpened. He paused.
"Jūgo. Someone's nearby. I sense chakra."
Jūgo nodded silently, and they moved toward the disturbance, slipping into the underbrush.
As they neared, voices filtered through the trees—an argument.
"Please, let me go!" cried a young girl, her voice trembling with fear and desperation.
"Let you go?" sneered a harsh male voice. "You left the village on your own. You know what that makes you, don't you?"
"I'm not a traitor! I've worked hard for the village. My mother died protecting it. You can't treat me like this!"
Kimimaro narrowed his eyes. The girl sounded genuinely terrified.
Another voice, colder this time, replied, "Your performance in the Chūnin Exams was pitiful. Your mother may have been a medic-nin, but she died a tool of the village. Now you'll serve in the same way. You'll use your Healing Bite Technique like she did. And if you won't offer your arm, we'll take something else."
"No! Healing is my duty, I understand that... But biting there—that's just too disgusting! It's wrong!"
Kimimaro's gaze darkened.
He stepped forward.
"Disgusting indeed," he said coldly, revealing himself from the shadows. "I wasn't aware Kusagakure's medics were trained under coercion and assault."
The Kusagakure shinobi turned abruptly, startled.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Kimimaro cracked his neck slightly, bones shifting beneath his skin. "Someone you're going to regret meeting."