Asuma understood the hint instantly. He could only suppress his sour feelings and speak to Kiyoshi.
"Kurenai wants to invite you to a movie. Well, all three of us together."
Asuma kept a small ulterior motive, framing it as a group outing.
"Sure, let me head home for a moment first."
Kiyoshi nodded. The way of training lay in balancing labor and rest. Taking a break like this was a good idea; it might even help him gain some ocular power along the way.
Kiyoshi pushed open his door and went inside to drop off his military supplies. The house was empty; at this hour, Guren was still at the Ninja Academy.
***
Twenty minutes later, at the cinema.
"Kurenai, wait for me for a bit."
To move a woman's heart, one must start with the small details. Asuma hurried to the front desk, waiting for a fresh batch of popcorn and snacks to be ready. Kiyoshi and Kurenai remained in the waiting area.
"Weather Princess..."
Kiyoshi looked at the movie title on the tickets before tucking them into his pocket. He recalled that the daughter of the Daimyo of the Land of Snow, Koyuki Kazahana, would eventually debut in the entertainment industry and film "The Adventures of Princess Gale."
The current timeline was much earlier than the original story's main events, so Koyuki's father, Sosetsu Kazahana, was likely still around.
Once matters here were settled, he could take a look at that region and get his hands on the chakra armor and the environment modification machine.
Those two were the pinnacle of the Land of Snow's technology. The former was self-explanatory, but the latter could actually alter the climate of an entire nation. It was a shame the inventor, the Daimyo, died too early, leaving the product as a prototype. Even so, there was room for improvement.
The machine could turn the frozen lands of the Land of Snow into spring forests. What would happen if that energy were applied to the Land of Wind, which was covered in desert and desperately lacked water? The answer was that the Land of Wind, for the sake of those resources, would trade anything and provide Kiyoshi with immense wealth.
The experimental bases Kiyoshi was currently building consumed a vast amount of funds every day. The Land of Demons was only a small nation and could only serve as an initial source for equipment.
Scientific research was a bottomless pit for money. That was why Orochimaru worked for Danzo and later went through the trouble of occupying the Land of Rice Fields to provide himself with a cycle of funding, resources, and talent.
The Hidden Sound Village was born then, becoming a ninja army dedicated solely to Orochimaru. In "Boruto," the village attempted to rebuild and establish friendly relations with others to become a legitimate ninja village.
Besides money, resources were paramount. Building chakra armor required various minerals. The Land of Wind could provide these resources, allowing Kiyoshi to build a ninja force directly subordinate to him, much like the Anbu.
As for how to train these subordinates, the Land of Rain was the best choice. The situation in small nations was chaotic, and methods for refining chakra were widespread. To survive, many ordinary people sought power and learned a move or two. These people could be naturally screened for ninja potential to work for Kiyoshi.
"The Land of Wind also has the ruins of Rōran. I can check out the so-called [Ryuryaku] (Dragon Vein)."
Kiyoshi stood there in deep thought. He certainly had a lot to do. Fortunately, his puppet clones were constantly learning, bringing him massive amounts of knowledge and advancing his experiments. The only drawback was that it was a bit tiring.
"I heard 'Weather Princess' is the latest work from a big star."
Kurenai found a topic and looked up at Kiyoshi. Today, she was dressed in casual clothes, wearing a small red skirt instead of her usual ninja tactical suit. Ninjas didn't work twenty-four hours a day, all year round. During their rest, their lives were quite similar to those of ordinary people.
"Mm."
Kiyoshi nodded. He didn't really care about movie stars. He was only here for Kurenai.
"You've grown taller lately."
Kiyoshi started a new topic. He moved closer to Kurenai, using his hand to measure her height against himself. At such close range, the tip of Kurenai's nose nearly touched Kiyoshi's chest.
"I... I was bound to grow taller, just not as fast as you, Kiyoshi."
Kurenai tilted her small head up, and Kiyoshi's scent filled her nose. She instinctively leaned back a bit, but Kiyoshi caught her arm. He slid his hand down her arm until he reached her soft, delicate hand.
"Kurenai, you are getting more beautiful."
Kiyoshi spoke the classic line. Kurenai's eyelashes trembled, and a watery sheen appeared in her red eyes. She was so nervous she didn't know what to say. Her heart was filled with both joy and bashfulness.
How should she reply? "You've become more handsome too"? That felt insincere. "Thank you for the compliment"? That was too plain; would Kiyoshi think she was too conceited? "The movie is about to start"? Use that to change the subject? Would that be too dismissive?
In that moment, a thousand thoughts raced through Kurenai's mind. Seeing her conflicted expression, Kiyoshi couldn't help but squeeze her small hand a little more. How cute. Innocent women were truly something else.
"Popcorn is here!"
Asuma's voice rang out from the distance. Sitting in the lounge area, Kurenai suddenly snapped back to her senses and hurriedly pulled her hand away. She tidied her hair, pretending as if nothing had happened.
Thump-thump... thump-thump...
Her heart was still beating wildly. There were people around; Kiyoshi was truly too bold.
"What's up with you guys?"
The lighting in the lounge was dim, and Asuma couldn't see the specific color of Kurenai's face. He only saw her fixing her hair.
"No... it's nothing. Let's head in quickly."
Kurenai lowered her head, took the popcorn and fries from Asuma, and walked ahead alone.
"Kiyoshi, yours."
Asuma handed a bucket of popcorn to Kiyoshi.
"Thanks."
Kiyoshi stood up and followed them into the theater. He possessed the [Gluttonous Mouth (Blue)] Trait. Even if he ate these fried snacks, they would quickly be converted into energy, and he wouldn't gain a pound.
***
Land of Lightning, Hidden Cloud Village.
Crack-crackle!
Lightning flared, spreading through a waterfall. Beneath the hundred-meter-tall waterfall stood a figure. With dark skin and a massive build, he stood like a tower cast from black iron under the impact of the crashing water. The new Raikage of the Hidden Cloud, the Fourth Raikage, was in the middle of his training.
"Lord Raikage, here is the latest intelligence."
As the secretary to the Fourth Raikage, A, Mabui performed her duties diligently, reading the intelligence aloud in a crisp voice.
"Taking on the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alone... Father was right, that guy is worth recruiting."
The Fourth Raikage opened his eyes, a faint current of electricity flickering within them. As the son of the Third Raikage, he had trained in the B-rank [Lightning Style Chakra Mode] since childhood. Now that he was Raikage, he had trained in many Lightning Style Nintaijutsu to avenge his father, forging a body tempered a thousand times over.
"Indeed, Kiyoshi Uchiha is very clever."
Mabui pushed up her glasses, her dark skin looking even more defined in the sunlight. Her graceful and curvaceous body was completely hidden beneath her standard secretary's outfit. Her stature was tall compared to other women, with a slender waist and a full figure.
"I reviewed Kiyoshi Uchiha's actions and found that he judged his own value very early on."
Mabui began to analyze her views for the Fourth Raikage. This was what a secretary was supposed to do for a leader: analyze intelligence and offer sound advice. After a night of analysis, she had reached a conclusion.
That was, Kiyoshi Uchiha had created his own "United Front Value." Recruitment benefits minus the cost of offending him equals his "United Front Value."
Kiyoshi had been accepting the Cloud's resources while remaining ambiguous in his attitude, confident that the Cloud would keep trying to win him over. He had seen through the uniqueness of his own bloodline. But how old was he when they first contacted him? Could he really have had such courage and insight at that age?
Mabui and Kiyoshi had never actually met, but she had to admire the man's cleverness. Every so often, he would display his talent and raise his value. In just a few short years, he had grown before anyone could react.
"Give me his detailed personal file."
The Fourth Raikage, wearing black shorts, jumped from the waterfall to the shore. A thick file filled with writing appeared in his hand, with photos clipped to it. It was a diagram of Kiyoshi's musculature.
"!"
The Fourth Raikage's eyes widened. He hadn't met Kiyoshi in person and had only seen photos of him in Uchiha robes. This was the first time he had seen Kiyoshi's bare upper body. How on earth did this guy train? The Raikage frowned. Even in the Cloud, he hadn't seen such a golden-proportioned body.
One had to remember that he knew far more Lightning Style Nintaijutsu than Kiyoshi; at most, Kiyoshi had only obtained the [Lightning Style Chakra Mode]. The origin of those other black lightning techniques was unknown, though they strongly resembled the Third Raikage's techniques. But those weren't Nintaijutsu used for body tempering either.
The Raikage flipped to the next photo, which showed Kiyoshi clad in his lightning armor overlaid with the [Senjutsu Mantle]. To become the Fourth Raikage, besides being the Third's son, A's own talent was exceptional.
With his sharp eyes, he saw at a glance that this was an entirely new technique, and it was constructed perfectly. To develop it to such an extent using only basic Lightning Style...
Whether in taijutsu or ninjutsu, the Fourth Raikage was surprised to find that Kiyoshi looked more like a pure Cloud ninja than he did.
"Tell Samui to intensify the contact."
The Fourth Raikage made up his mind. Even if they couldn't recruit Kiyoshi, they had to bring back his seeds! This would surely bring a batch of excellent newborns to the Hidden Cloud.
"Yes, Lord Raikage."
Mabui nodded and went to execute the order.
***
The Hyuga Clan.
"You've decided to get married in half a month?"
Hyuga Hinayuki looked at her best friend, Hyuga Ginka, and asked in confusion.