The Box of Ultimate Bliss—an artifact wrapped in legend, feared by many yet coveted by those who dared to dream of reshaping the ninja world.
But opening such a thing was far from simple.
To activate the Box, unimaginable amounts of chakra had to be poured into it.
Not the chakra of one Jonin, nor ten… but hundreds. Even then, success was uncertain.
And because of this impossibly high requirement, the elders of the Grass Seed Faction were convinced—truly convinced—that the Box of Ultimate Bliss must possess the power to fulfill any wish.
"Absolutely not! We mustn't even consider opening the Box of Ultimate Bliss!"
The moment the proposal was raised, the Grass Flower Faction erupted in unified rejection.
Though it was often said that Kusagakure had once stood as a village capable of dominating the shinobi world, one undeniable fact stood above all:
The former Kusagakure was destroyed because of the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
This was the greatest argument of the Grass Flower Faction, and one they held firmly.
As for the mythical claim that the Box could "grant any desire"—they had never believed it.
If the Box truly granted wishes, the original Kusagakure would have never fallen.
But words alone weren't enough. They lacked proof.
And so the endless disputes between the Grass Flower and Grass Seed factions dragged on, unresolved, year after year.
"You're all far too rigid," one elder of the Grass Seed Faction snapped angrily. "A little danger is nothing! Kusagakure is on the verge of being pushed around by everyone. We need the Box of Ultimate Bliss more than ever!"
"If we can open the Box, we'll make Konoha pay for what they've done! And more than that—we will finally have the chance to unify the entire ninja world!"
Hearing their delusional ambitions, the Grass Flower elders stopped arguing and instead turned their eyes toward the one person whose decision mattered most: the Kusagakure Leader.
"Leader, we cannot open that accursed Box," an elder from the Grass Flower Faction said with urgency. "It is far too dangerous!"
"If the Box of Ultimate Bliss is unsealed, then Kusagakure may face destruction for the second time!"
The Leader listened silently, feeling all eyes upon him.
He had always stood apart from both factions—neutral, objective, bound by the responsibility of guiding the village.
But today… today was different.
Konoha's recent actions had rattled him, and though he did not show it on his face, his heart leaned—ever so slightly—toward the Grass Seed Faction.
"Leader," another Seed Faction elder pressed on. "We can place the Box in Hozuki Castle, where Mui can supervise it. The prisoners there can supply the chakra needed to activate the Box!"
Hozuki Castle—built on an isolated island near Kusagakure, surrounded by a turbulent sea.
Its name came from the hozuki berries that covered the island, but its true significance lay in its purpose:
It was the shinobi world's international prison.
A fortress meant to detain dangerous criminal ninja, entrusted to Kusagakure for imprisonment on behalf of many nations.
In truth, if there was anywhere that could secretly store the Box, it was Hozuki Castle.
The Leader understood all of this—but his expression remained unreadable.
At last, he spoke.
"The Box of Ultimate Bliss is too dangerous. We will not open it. Do not bring up this matter again."
The Grass Flower Faction instantly relaxed, loudly praising the Leader's wisdom.
The Grass Seed elders, however, trembled with frustration. Their faces shifted between disbelief and resentment, yet they could not openly defy the Leader—not here, not now.
Seeing their unwillingness, the Leader simply raised a hand, signaling that the conversation was over.
"Leave."
They could only obey.
But that night, as the full moon hung over Kusagakure, the Grass Seed Faction quietly gathered once again.
This time, the atmosphere was different—tense, cautious, and filled with grim determination.
"The Leader rejected our proposal," one elder said, voice low. "But this is a matter that concerns the future of our village. We cannot let this chance slip away."
"We will secretly transport the Box of Ultimate Bliss to Hozuki Castle," another elder declared. "Mui is loyal to our cause. With the prisoners, we can begin preparations immediately."
The others nodded, reaching a silent consensus.
Just as they were about to plan the operation—
A voice sliced through the darkness.
"It seems you all did not take my words seriously."
Everyone froze.
The Leader stepped out from the shadows, his expression cold and sharp as a blade.
"L–Leader… we…"
The elders were flustered, stammering helplessly.
They expected rage, punishment, imprisonment—anything.
But the Leader surprised them all.
"Calm yourselves," he said, raising one hand. "I knew you would not give up so easily. That is why I chose to come here."
The elders exchanged nervous glances.
Then the Leader spoke the last words they ever expected to hear:
"I approve of your plan. You must make sure Mui opens the Box of Ultimate Bliss as quickly as possible."
The chamber went silent.
The elders stared at him, stunned.
"But," the Leader continued, "this matter must stay absolutely secret. It must never be leaked to anyone—especially not to the Grass Flower Faction."
Realization dawned on them.
Earlier, the Leader had rejected their proposal publicly—not because he disagreed, but because he needed the Grass Flower Faction to lower their guard.
If Kusagakure openly attempted to activate the Box, Konoha and the other major villages would intervene immediately.
To deceive the enemy…
One must first deceive one's own people.
Of course, no secret was ever perfectly safe, and the Leader understood this.
But until the Box was nearly activated, secrecy was their greatest shield.
"This is a top-secret mission," the Leader said firmly. "Failure is not an option."
While the future of Kusagakure was being gambled in the shadows, far away in Konoha, Qingshui remained blissfully unaware.
He continued his daily routine with complete normalcy.
His real body worked its regular shift in the Konoha Hospital, treating patients and steadily building chakra through long hours of medical ninjutsu.
Meanwhile, his shadow clone focused solely on improving the Rasengan, refining control, rotation, and compression.
For other Genin, this "one-month break" before the third exam was a precious opportunity—time to gather intelligence, invent countermeasures, or develop powerful new techniques.
But Qingshui had no need for such things.
To him, the simplest path was the strongest:
Work harder. Increase chakra. Improve fundamentals.
Hidden in a nearby alley, a pair of watching eyes widened.
"This guy is actually… a medical ninja?" Motoi muttered in disbelief.
Beside him, Killer B was silent.
After the battle in the Forest of Death, B had not given up on surpassing Qingshui.
If anything, witnessing Qingshui's strength had ignited him even more.
For B, the third exam meant only one thing:
Defeating Qingshui.
Beating him meant winning the championship.
He expected Qingshui to spend every hour training.
But instead…
"He's just going to the hospital? Every day?" Motoi whispered. "He's not even preparing!"
B's jaw tightened.
Something about Qingshui's calmness annoyed him.
"What should we do now?" Motoi asked anxiously. "We barely have any information on this guy."
Killer B took a deep breath.
"…Keep watching him. You and Shiko continue the surveillance. I'm returning to training."
Motoi nodded.
Because although both B and Motoi had passed to the third exam, the real hope of Kumogakure winning rested squarely on Killer B's shoulders.
He had no time to waste.
And so, Killer B left and immediately sought out Toroi to ask for hell-level training.
Toroi naturally agreed.
Night fell.
Killer B, drenched in sweat but unyielding, continued his intense drills.
Toroi remained at his side, supervising.
"Does this Cloud brat ever get tired?"
Hidden in the trees, one of the Anbu assigned to monitor Toroi whispered with irritation.
"Stop complaining and focus," his partner scolded. "We can't lose track of him."
But the Anbu didn't know the truth:
Toroi was only here to distract them.
Far from the training grounds, a shadow clone of Toroi slipped silently into a deserted area just outside Konoha.
There, waiting in the darkness, stood a familiar figure.
Rasa—Sunagakure's rising star.
He had successfully shaken off the Anbu surveillance as well.
The two men faced each other beneath the moonlight.
A clandestine meeting between two shinobi—one from the desert, one from the clouds.
And whatever they were about to discuss…
Was certain to influence the fate of both their villages.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)