Malicious Words
Fortunately, Dai's physical condition was strong enough to withstand opening the Seven Inner Gates. Although he was severely injured, it wasn't like Rock Lee's case, where his foundation had been permanently damaged. Dai merely needed proper rest and recovery.
After receiving confirmation from the accompanying medical-ninja, Shiro finally released the worry he had been holding in his chest.
If Dai had truly damaged his foundation this time, Shiro would have been forced to expend the Myriad Charms to repair him. That Noble Phantasm could only be used once per person.
It was Shiro's final insurance for those close to him—especially Dai. He had to be cautious. During the Third Shinobi World War, there was a very real possibility that Dai might encounter an enemy strong enough to force him to open the Gate of Death.
Shiro hoped—no, he needed—that Noble Phantasm to be preserved until then.
After all, among all the Noble Phantasms he could Project, only two possessed healing properties. One of them was the Myriad Charms. The other, though ranked B, had an extremely vague description, making its actual effectiveness uncertain.
After all, the rank of a Noble Phantasm represented its authority—not necessarily its raw healing power.
Fortunately, it hadn't come to that.
Because the mission had failed, the atmosphere on the return journey was subdued. No one spoke much. They stopped only once midway—to count casualties and transmit the gathered intelligence back to the Village—before continuing in silence.
After stabilizing his Magic Circuits and preventing further strain, Shiro began reviewing the flaws exposed during his battle with the Raikage, A. He carefully recorded each mistake in his notes.
The others were similar—some cultivating, others resting with their eyes closed.
Teacher Chen, however, kept his gaze fixed on the unconscious Dai. After a long moment, he shook his head and looked away. Only now did he truly realize how laughable his past claim of being the strongest taijutsu user had been.
His own Wood Leaf Dragon God was nothing compared to Dai's technique. More importantly, Dai's method directly addressed the greatest weakness of taijutsu specialists—genjutsu.
When Dai activated the Eight Gates, even from such a distance, Chen could sense the violent, surging chakra. Under those conditions, very few genjutsu could take effect at all.
Honestly, if this method could be popularized, the status of taijutsu ninja within the shinobi world would rise dramatically.
But that was nothing more than wishful thinking.
Such a level of taijutsu could never be widely taught. Even his own Wood Leaf Dragon God hadn't been passed down—how could something even more extreme be spread?
Moreover, seeing Dai's current condition made the price painfully clear. The difficulty and backlash of cultivating such a technique were far beyond what ordinary people could endure.
By the next morning, the group returned to the Village.
They had arrived faster than expected mainly because they hadn't stopped at the Land of Fire's border as they had on the way out. This time, they flew straight back to Konoha.
After registering with the gate guards, Shiro and the others entered the Village.
Yet from the moment they passed through the gates, Shiro felt something was off.
The two guards glanced at him with undisguised hostility—disgust, even.
Shiro frowned slightly. He was certain he hadn't offended them. His interactions with the gate guards had never gone beyond routine registration.
The inexplicable malice left him confused.
However, they still needed to report the mission outcome to the Third Hokage and send Dai to the hospital. Unwilling to stir trouble, Shiro suppressed his doubts and said nothing.
Taiyi, walking beside him and ready to support him at any moment, noticed the frown on Shiro's face and immediately asked,
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"I'm fine," Shiro replied quietly. "It's just… Do you remember me offending anyone at the gates?"
"The guards?" Taiyi frowned. "No. Why?"
"Then why did it feel like they were looking at me with disgust?"
Taiyi shook his head. "That's impossible. We're all from the same village. You're probably overthinking it."
"…Maybe."
Shiro thought it over carefully. He hadn't done anything questionable, and more importantly, he had already handed over the core results of the Eagle Project. There was no reason for anyone to deliberately target him.
Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside and continued toward the village center.
Taiyi, however, didn't let it go so easily.
Nothing happened without a reason.
He silently decided to ask his acquaintances in the Security Force to investigate once they had time.
But before that could happen, the truth revealed itself.
As Shiro and the others walked deeper into Konoha, whispers began to spread.
"Is that him?"
"Yes. Emiya Shirō. I heard his mission failed too. Just like his master."
"Tsk… like a master, like a disciple. What a waste of the village's resources."
"Quiet. He's coming this way."
"That's Emiya Shirō, right?"
"Yeah. He's a good kid, but he followed the wrong person. Now he's failed a mission just like his teacher."
"What a shame."
"Look—look! It's Emiya Shirō! How does he still have the nerve to come back?"
"He caused such huge losses to the village!"
"Exactly! If it were me, I'd be too ashamed to show my face!"
"Master and disciple—both disasters."
"These bastards—!"
"Don't," Shiro said calmly, grabbing Taiyi's arm as he tried to step forward. "Let them talk. Their mouths belong to them."
"But—"
Shiro shook his head and pulled him forward.
The others accompanying them frowned, but none spoke up.
It was obvious this wasn't random.
Their missions had also failed—so why was only Shiro being targeted?
Few dared to intervene. On one hand, the mission failure was a fact. On the other, whoever orchestrated this clearly had influence. No one wanted their families dragged into the mess.
They decided to return home first and understand the situation before acting. Speaking up blindly now would only give their enemies more ammunition.
And whenever someone tried to shift the blame elsewhere, voices in the crowd would always steer it back to Shiro.
Amid the accusations, Shiro and the others sent Dai to the hospital before heading to the Hokage Tower.
"Hokage-sama," an ANBU reported calmly, "Kōji and his unit have returned from their mission."
Kōji was the codename of the ANBU captain assigned to Shiro's operation—an elite jōnin, powerful enough to justify his selection.
No one had expected the Raikage himself to intervene.
Although the mission had failed, it wasn't without gain. At the very least, they had discovered an individual capable of contending with the Raikage head-on.
Whether that person's loyalty lay with Konoha remained to be seen.
For now, the mission report took priority. Dai's condition could be examined later—he was still unconscious, after all.
The Third Hokage exhaled a slow stream of smoke and said calmly,
"Let them in."
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