To offset the recent surge in spiritual energy, Kiyohara had begun taijutsu training.
But neither he nor the rogue-nin version of himself had ever truly specialized in taijutsu,so he could only stick to basic body training for now.
"U-Uh… you…"
That's when Yūhi Kurenai noticed—Kiyohara was wearing nothing but a pair of loose shorts, his upper body bare,sweat dripping down lean, faintly defined muscles.
'This is… way too casual!'
The well-mannered Kurenai quickly lowered her gaze, eyes avoiding his bare skin.
Just being shirtless would've been fine—but paired with that handsome face…Her heart skipped a beat.
"What's wrong?"
Kiyohara raised a brow.
He didn't think his body was anything special—maybe even a little on the thin side.
After all, ninja trained daily. Their bodies naturally toned with activity.
"Nothing."
Kurenai bit her lower lip and tried to calm herself, forcing herself to mentally picture Kiyohara's upper body… as a carrot.
"The mission site is along the eastern front in the Land of Fire."
She finally got to the point.
"The east?"
Kiyohara rubbed his chin.
That meant the Land of Lightning or the Land of Water.
"Southeast?"
"Mhm."
Kurenai nodded.
Kiyohara's brow furrowed slightly.
Southeast meant Water Country…
'If Madara's going to make a move, there should still be a few months left… just enough time for me to grow.'
In the original timeline, the exact sequence was never clearly stated—but judging by Obito's hair length, it had to be at least a few months.
By then, once Obito could move again, Madara would bait him out using Zetsu.
Until that happened, this was Kiyohara's window to prepare.
'And in just over twenty days, it'll be one full month. Hopefully the next "Will" arrives then.'
With his mind spinning through possibilities, Kiyohara maintained a calm expression and asked Kurenai for more mission details.
To his surprise, the mission this time was far lighter—transport duty.
Now this made sense for a squad of their level.
Their first mission being Kannabi Bridge level was insane—like being thrown at the boss right after the tutorial.
"I'll head to the rendezvous point tomorrow."
"Don't be late," Kurenai reminded him before quickly departing.
"Tch… no time to forge my ninja blade…"
Kiyohara rubbed his chin.
After thinking it through, he decided to save up money and go for a better setup next time.
Until then, he'd stick with kunai.
Even if he had the blade forged, he had no kenjutsu training—and maintenance wasn't cheap either.
The next morning.
Kiyohara gathered his gear and headed for the usual spot—Konoha's main gate.
The guards weren't the famous "Gate Duo" yet, just ordinary sentries.
This mission's squad remained the same, led again by Minato Namikaze.Their previous jonin had died—triggered a paper bomb and didn't survive.
Several squadmates were already waiting: Kakashi, Nohara Rin, Yūhi Kurenai, and Shiranui Genma—all ready to go.
"Kiyohara, I heard about your performance. Nicely done. This is a reward scroll from the village—a little bonus."
Minato reached into his bag and handed him a scroll.
"A scroll?"
Kiyohara opened it. It was a Wind Release technique: Wind Style: Gale Palm.
Like his Wind Style: Great Breakthrough, it was a C-rank jutsu, right within the expected range for a new chūnin.
Generally, the ranking indicated difficulty, not power—but harder-to-learn jutsu often packed more punch.
"Thank you, Lord Minato."
A free jutsu? No complaints here.
He knew this gesture came from higher-ups starting to view him as worth cultivating.
After all, Kiyohara wasn't from some "naturally evil" and discriminated clan…
"Let's move out," Minato called.
Their destination: the eastern warfront!
Several days later.
Kiyohara noticed more Hyūga Clan members appearing around them.
They must be getting close.
Most of Konoha's elite forces—and the Uchiha—were deployed against Kumogakure.The Hyūga and others were handling Kirigakure.
He recalled that Ao from the Mist would eventually steal a Byakugan from a Hyūga branch member—leading to Konoha's first case of Byakugan leakage.
This, in turn, made the Hyūga clan tighten their internal rules even more.
Why?
Because unlike Sharingan transplants, which required massive chakra reserves to maintain—Byakugan implants came with no side effects and worked like a cheat code.
"From here on, you'll be stationed here. You'll either stand guard or transport supplies to nearby outposts."
Minato returned from negotiations with the logistics commander.
"Understood."
Kiyohara was the first to respond.
This mission was perfect.Two more weeks, and he'd know if another Will would arrive.
In the meantime, he could train with the Gale Palm technique.
If another version of himself appeared, he'd be ready.
Right now, he was constantly on edge.
"This kind of mission, huh?"
Shiranui Genma scratched his head. Not bad at all.
"Finally, a reasonable difficulty."
Kiyohara shook his head.
If not for Rogue Kiyohara bailing him out at Kannabi Bridge, he'd either be dead—or collecting the remains of his comrades.
Kurenai and Genma wouldn't have survived either.
Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye.
During that time, life was peaceful.
Kiyohara's lightning affinity had grown significantly since fusing with his other self.
Even without guidance, he quickly mastered Wind Style: Gale Palm.
Beside the camp's nearby stream.
It was a communal spot for cooking, bathing, and laundry.
Kiyohara stood by the water's edge, forming hand seals,then clapping his hands together.
A blast of wind burst from his palms and struck the stream's surface.
Whoosh!
The water depressed instantly, exposing smooth river stones beneath.
A single unlucky fish was caught in the blast and sent flopping onto the shore.
"Guess dinner's covered."
He smiled, about to grab it and cook up some fish soup—
When suddenly, a synthesized female voice echoed in his mind:
[Please collect your will and urn. Ensure proper burial.]
It had arrived!
Kiyohara's eyes lit up.
By his count, today was exactly one month.