As a perfect Jinchūriki, he possessed the ability to sense malice and goodwill alike—a perception that transcended ordinary chakra sensing.
Though she never stepped onto the battlefield, that woman's contribution to Konoha was irreplaceable. While she lived, no enemy spy ever succeeded in leaking information from the village.
Could Kawaki Aoba be the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki, secretly cultivated by Konohagakure?
Recent intelligence suggested that this boy carried partial Hyūga lineage. Even his missing eyes appeared to be related to the Byakugan. Yet, there were no clear signs of Uzumaki heritage—no red hair, no extraordinary life force, no chakra chains.
Furthermore, earlier reports claimed that Konoha's new Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was a red-haired female Uzumaki.
Had something happened to her? Had she been secretly replaced by Konoha? Was the intelligence faulty? Or perhaps Chiyo was simply overthinking it—could this boy, Kawaki Aoba, really just be a naturally gifted genius?
Of course, the answer Chiyo hoped for most was the last one.
If Konoha truly had a perfect Jinchūriki, it would be a dire threat to every shinobi village.
The destructive power of a tailed beast was already formidable. A perfect Jinchūriki—one in full sync with the beast—would be exponentially more terrifying. And everyone knew: among the Tailed Beasts, the Nine-Tails was the strongest.
No one dared imagine the devastation such a force could unleash on the battlefield. But no one wanted to find out firsthand, either.
Especially now—Sunagakure stood alone in a war against Konoha. That fact made Chiyo deeply uneasy.
No, this couldn't continue.
Her sense of dread drove Chiyo to act. She had to shift the tides.
"Ebizō, any word from Kumogakure or Iwagakure?" Chiyo asked her younger brother.
He shook his head. "No response. But they haven't refused either. They're waiting. Watching us bleed before they make a move."
Chiyo wasn't surprised. That was typical. In the past, she might've waited too—testing Konoha's resolve, buying time. But now…
The possibility of a perfect Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, even if just speculation, wasn't something Chiyo could ignore. She wasn't about to gamble with the future of Sunagakure.
"Ebizō, send envoys again to both villages. This time, make our stance clear. Tell them that if they do not declare war against Konoha immediately, then Sunagakure will begin peace negotiations with Konoha."
"This is still a localized conflict. If we end it now, our losses will remain manageable. If they want to profit from war, they must act now."
"What?!"
"Chiyo, how can you say that?"
"We just declared war! Negotiating peace now is madness!"
Before Ebizō could even respond, voices erupted throughout the council chamber—opposing her decision.
Chiyo initiated the war. The council supported her. And now, barely into the conflict, she wanted to back out? There had to be a reason.
"Enough!" Chiyo's voice thundered.
Despite her age, she still commanded authority. As a founding elder of Sunagakure, her words silenced the room.
"I will explain my reasons to some of you later. But for now, my word is final."
She understood the consequences—her prestige would suffer, and the village's pride would take a hit.
But so what?
It wasn't the first time Sunagakure had sought peace. And truthfully, if not for the hatred in her heart, and her hopes for the village's future, Chiyo would've retired alongside Ebizō long ago.
With her remaining authority, Chiyo forced the proposal through—dispatching two elite squads to Iwagakure and Kumogakure with her ultimatum.
Meanwhile, Kawaki Aoba, immersed in his duties of identifying Konoha's internal spies, remained unaware that his presence was subtly shifting the balance of the entire ninja world.
The change was small… but real.
"Aoba, thank you for your hard work. This afternoon's session will be more important—Lord Hokage's Anbu will be screened next."
Minato Namikaze approached Aoba with a lunchbox in hand and a warm smile.
"Is that so? That must mean we've almost finished screening the entire village," Aoba replied thoughtfully.
He pulled out a sealed envelope from his pocket and handed it to Minato.
"Minato-senpai, please give this to Lord Hokage. It's a list of unannounced spies I've uncovered, as well as several individuals whose emotions feel unnatural. I can't explain it, but something's off."
"I've detailed everything inside. I'm sure Lord Hokage will know what to do."
Minato accepted the envelope carefully, then smiled again. "Alright, I'll deliver it right away. Now eat—your food won't be any good cold."
As the "little sun" walked away, Aoba began his meal.
Lately, the quality of his meals had noticeably improved. He wasn't sure if it was thanks to the Hokage, or just a thoughtful chef. He figured it was the latter—after all, the Hokage was too busy to micromanage a genin's diet.
After finishing lunch and resting a bit, Aoba stepped outside to get some fresh air—only to immediately sense Minato rushing toward him at high speed.
He could feel Minato's anxious emotions through his chakra perception.
Had something happened?
Before Aoba could ponder further, Minato shouted from afar:
"Aoba! There's poison in the food!"
Aoba blinked, stunned.
Poison? In the food?
He hadn't even tasted anything strange.
Suddenly, his Kenbunshoku Haki flared—warning him of an impending crisis. In his mind's eye, a vision unfolded: sunset... twilight... and himself collapsing on the road home, blood seeping from all seven orifices.
Kawaki Aoba: ...
Is that tonight's future? I've really been poisoned? And it'll activate at night...
Without a word, Kawaki Aoba pulled a vial from his inventory—a shimmering purple potion stored in the system space. He had already used the red and blue varieties before, but this was the third and rarest: the Detoxification Potion.
Without hesitation, he downed the entire vial. As the liquid coursed through his body, the ominous sensation faded—the warning from his Kenbunshoku Haki vanished.
Just then, the door burst open with a loud bang.
Minato Namikaze: "Aoba! Quick, spit out the food you just ate—it's not too late!"
Kawaki Aoba: ...
"Minato... there's really nothing left to vomit. I've already done that seven times."
He took another gulp of water and waved his hand feebly.
"Honestly, everything should've been flushed out. But... what the hell happened? There was poison in the food? I didn't taste a thing."
Minato looked deeply apologetic.
"I'm sorry, Aoba. We let our guard down. Someone slipped through."
As Minato explained, Kawaki Aoba finally understood the gravity of the situation. The ninja recently in charge of his meals was a mole—an enemy spy who had infiltrated their ranks.
Because of Aoba's rising importance, the village had expected potential assassination attempts and had been diligently screening his meals. But this time, the enemy went to extreme lengths—embedding a highly trained sleeper agent and employing a compound poisoning method so subtle that standard detection measures failed.
The poison wasn't deadly in small portions. If Aoba had eaten less, he might've only gotten a stomachache. But he had been cleaning his plate lately—the meals were just that good.
What frustrated him more was that, according to Minato, the infiltrator self-terminated immediately after being exposed—using a lethal, brain-destroying technique. Even the Yamanaka Clan couldn't salvage a memory fragment.
The case would remain unsolved.
Still, though the culprit's identity remained unknown, all signs pointed to one of the four other Great Ninja Villages. Kawaki Aoba clenched his fist. He would not forget this.
"I'm fine now, Minato-senpai. I can go back to screening."
But Minato shook his head firmly.
"No way. We can't take risks. Even if you purged the poison, we need to confirm it. You're going to Konoha Hospital—no arguments."
Aoba sighed. He could've argued that he'd already neutralized the poison with the system's antidote, but there was no way he could explain that to Minato.
In the end, he compromised and followed Minato to the Konoha Hospital.
The hospital's medical system—developed by Tsunade during the Second Great Ninja War—was top-tier, especially for toxins. The medical-nin on staff were seasoned veterans, many with battlefield experience from the Land of Wind campaign.
A full examination followed. Blood was drawn. Two nurse-nin used the Mystical Palm Technique, scanning his body head to toe for any lingering damage.
By the end of it, Aoba looked like future Kakashi with his iconic dead-fish eyes.
Then the results came back.
Medical-nin: "No signs of residual toxins. No hidden injuries. Honestly, this young man's physique would make half our shinobi jealous."
"But," she continued more seriously, "since this was a compound poison, and some absorption might've occurred, we recommend keeping him under observation until tomorrow morning. If no symptoms arise, he's clear."
Despite her sweet voice, Aoba wasn't thrilled. But his objections were overruled by everyone—Minato, Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, and others who'd rushed over.
And so, for the first time in his life, Aoba was hospitalized—under the personal protection of future Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze and the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki Kushina Uzumaki.
Several ANBU operatives also maintained a hidden perimeter—likely deployed by Kushina herself. They'd stay until the spy network responsible was fully uncovered.
Meanwhile, copies of Aoba's medical report were forwarded to both the Hokage's Office and Root, where Danzo Shimura awaited.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, after reading it, smiled.
"A fine body. Good candidate for training in the Eight Gates."
Danzo, however, remained silent—glaring at the report.
"There's no trace of any unique bloodline," he muttered. "Only faint traces of Hyūga ancestry... But how is this brat's body so perfect?"
Suspicion gnawed at him.
---
Iwagakure – Tsuchikage's Office
"Lord Tsuchikage, the spy reported via emergency one-time summoning scroll. The assassination failed."
Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage, scowled.
"I see. You may leave."
He had personally authorized the mission. Like Chiyo of Sunagakure, he suspected that Kawaki Aoba—who showed an uncanny ability to sense malice—might be Konoha's new Jinchūriki.
Unlike Chiyo, Ōnoki didn't hesitate.
But as his subordinate lingered, Ōnoki frowned.
"Well? Why haven't you left yet?"
"Apologies, Lord Tsuchikage. The envoys from Sunagakure are still waiting for an audience outside."
"Heh... Let them wait." Ōnoki snorted.
He wasn't stupid. He knew the Sand wanted to drag Iwa into their own schemes against Konoha. Negotiations were just a cover. Let the fools play their games—there were always other ways to claim power in the ninja world.
After all, you didn't need to fight Konoha head-on to benefit from their fall.
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