"This woman… is she Pakura?"
Only after Hikaru knocked her out did Kakashi finally walk over, curiosity in his voice.
Pakura's name carried weight across the shinobi world—especially with Scorch Release, and the "Sand Hero" reputation attached to it. Naturally, she was a priority target in every village's intel files.
ANBU life wasn't humane… but it had one advantage:
When you ran into an enemy, you could often identify who you were dealing with.
Not so you could run—
But so you could exploit the information gap and kill them first.
Kakashi had only been in ANBU for a few months, but he was already starting to feel like a proper ANBU. It was obvious he hadn't neglected intel work.
"Yeah. It should be her—assuming the photo in the intel file wasn't wrong." Hikaru nodded. "And the technique she used just now… that was definitely Scorch Release."
"Captain, what do we do with her?" Kakashi looked at Pakura and asked quietly. "Should we… just kill her?"
"Killing her would be a waste." Hikaru shook his head immediately. "Scorch Release is too valuable."
But as soon as he said it, he fell into thought.
His reason for engaging was simple: confirm whether this woman had already taken the mission that would eventually get her killed.
But after confirming it… then what?
For their current escort mission, the cleanest solution really was to eliminate her.
Because they were already transporting Yashamaru, and they only had two people. Handling a high-profile prisoner like Pakura was a logistical nightmare.
And yet… Hikaru didn't want to waste the opportunity.
If he played this right, Pakura could become a massive entry in his "achievement ledger."
After a brief pause, Hikaru finally said, "Alright. You take Pakura with you. I'll handle delivering Yashamaru."
"What?" Kakashi's eyes widened. "Captain—this is a bad idea. Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Hikaru's tone turned heavier.
"Same as always: she's a bloodline user. Since she's already in our hands, maximizing the value is the correct choice—for the Third Squad, and for the village.
"And a kekkei genkai shinobi like her… if a war breaks out later, leaving her free is absolutely not good for us.
"I checked with sensing during the fight. There aren't any other shinobi nearby.
"And before the battle, I already knocked Yashamaru out. Pakura was moving toward the Land of Rivers.
"So even if she vanishes for a while, it won't expose us immediately."
Hikaru looked Kakashi in the eye.
"Your job is to take her back to Konoha—quietly. Understand?"
Hikaru felt a little lucky.
He'd knocked Yashamaru out earlier simply because he didn't want the prisoner causing trouble—
And now that choice might save them from immediate exposure.
Of course, Hikaru was still gambling. Who knew whether Pakura recognized something from the fire-orb exchange?
But either way, he needed Kakashi gone.
Not just for Konoha's sake.
Hikaru had his own agenda.
The Dragon Vein.
He'd been thinking nonstop about how to separate from Kakashi.
And now, the perfect excuse had dropped into his lap.
"Is that so…" Kakashi frowned, then asked carefully. "But Captain—are you sure you can get out? If they try to keep you there… even Flying Thunder God—"
"I'm not dumb enough to walk into Sunagakure." Hikaru waved it off with a relaxed smile. "And honestly, Suna won't let me walk in either."
Hikaru absolutely wasn't stepping into the village.
He wouldn't even pass the bottleneck at One-Line Sky.
Yes, his Flying Thunder God was refined—but Sunagakure was still a Great Village. Even if he believed their barrier seals were weak, he wasn't betting his life on "probably."
And more importantly—
His chakra reserves didn't support long-range spam. If he went too deep, he might not have enough fuel to pull himself out.
Still, his mind wandered.
"Speaking of Chiyo… her revival technique was called One's Own Life Reincarnation, wasn't it? I wonder if she's developed it yet."
If that technique already existed, the value would be absurd.
With the right operations, he could squeeze far more out of Sand than just one prisoner.
But that was only fantasy for now.
Even if he could dance inside Sunagakure with Lizardmaru's support—
If he couldn't escape afterward, it was the same as serving himself on a plate.
And even if he got the technique, he'd have no reliable way to verify whether it was real.
A fake technique from Chiyo could kill him just as surely as a blade.
Hikaru didn't like gambling on unknowns unless he had a solid margin.
"Alright. I understand." Kakashi hesitated, then nodded. "I'll take Pakura away. Captain—be careful."
"Don't worry." Hikaru smiled. "Honestly, I'll be more flexible alone."
Then his expression sharpened.
"One more thing. Remember this."
Kakashi stiffened.
"Your task is, in some ways, more important than mine. No one can see you. Don't let anyone discover your movements—no matter who it is. Understood?"
"Yes, Captain!"
…
After sealing Pakura's chakra, Kakashi bound her properly and carried her away.
Only then did Hikaru finally let his attention shift fully to what came next.
He trusted Kakashi to complete the mission. When it mattered, Kakashi was reliable—always had been.
Once Kakashi disappeared into the sand, Hikaru began refining his plan.
"What if Sand tries to keep me here?"
"How do I escape?"
"If fighting is unavoidable, how do I maximize my advantage—then slip to Loulan without being noticed?"
In truth, those questions all merged into one.
At this stage, Hikaru's greatest tool was Flying Thunder God.
But he'd been stuck on one problem:
How could he pre-place escape marks—
and use them for surprise attacks—
without being limited to a few fixed kunai?
"Unless…" Hikaru narrowed his eyes. "Unless the marks can move."
"Or unless I have a massive, hidden network of them."
A vast network was unrealistic—he hadn't even figured out the framework yet.
But a moving mark?
He might actually have a solution.
A moment later, Hikaru formed seals quickly and slammed his palm onto the sand.
POOF—!
Smoke burst outward.
When it cleared—
Eleven tiny lizards sat in front of him, tongues flicking, staring up at him with curious eyes.
Yes.
This was his answer.
The moving Flying Thunder God marks would be these lizards.
They were small enough to vanish beneath the desert sand.
And even if Hikaru didn't know whether normal lizards thrived in deserts—
These weren't normal animals.
They were summons.
They would be fine.
Hikaru's plan was simple:
Use their stealth and the Land of Wind's terrain to create a battlefield tailor-made for him.
If he placed Flying Thunder God marks on the lizards, then ordered them to scatter beneath the sand—staying within his usable teleport range—
It would massively increase his escape reliability.
And because they were his summons, they could follow commands.
He could even keep a few circling nearby.
If combat became unavoidable—
These lizards would become the perfect moving anchors for Flying Thunder God.
Hikaru crouched, lifting one lizard that looked noticeably different from the others.
This wasn't an ordinary one.
This was the lizard that allowed Hikaru to communicate with animals.
Hikaru could command his summons himself—
But in combat, split focus was deadly.
So he needed a "controller."
If this lizard synchronized chakra with him and acted as a relay—
Using its mouth and signals to direct the others—
Then Hikaru could fight at full concentration without managing details mid-battle.
"And if something goes wrong…" Hikaru's eyes cooled. "It can help me map enemy positions too."
"It'll make running away cleaner."
…
Inside Sunagakure—
In the Kazekage's office—
Rasa gazed out toward the towering bottleneck of One-Line Sky. Beyond it, yellow sand danced endlessly in the wind.
He exhaled softly.
The Land of Wind was brutal.
So brutal it was almost cruel.
And yet, they couldn't leave it.
Even with small nations surrounding them, those countries existed mostly as buffers—preventing Great Nations from sharing direct borders.
That had advantages: fewer immediate conflicts, fewer runaway wars.
But for Wind Country and Sunagakure, it was also a cage.
Worse—
They couldn't fully control those buffer nations.
Because border regions were shared, contested, split.
Sometimes the other side took more than half.
Economic loss.
Mission loss.
Things Rasa couldn't tolerate.
"Lord Kazekage."
A young shinobi wearing Wind Country's protective gear entered. "Iwa's movements in the Land of Bears and the Land of Birds are getting more aggressive."
"I know." Rasa steadied his expression. "Our troops will be arriving soon, yes?"
"Yes."
"Then occupy positions immediately." Rasa's voice hardened. "If anything shifts, I'll go personally. Keep me informed at all times."
"Yes, Lord Kazekage."
Rasa paused, then asked, "Pakura left one day ago?"
"Yes. One full day."
Pakura was famous enough that the messenger didn't hesitate.
Rasa nodded slowly.
"Notify Ebizō."
"Tell him to deliver that letter to Viper—and instruct him not to open it yet."
"Yes, Lord Kazekage."
"And… have Ebizō watch Konoha's movements."
Rasa's gaze returned to the sand beyond One-Line Sky.
"The person they're returning should be arriving soon. They won't dare enter the village."
"I want Ebizō to lead the reception personally."
"Secretly. Understood?"
"Yes, Lord Kazekage."
Rasa's eyes narrowed.
"Go, Maki. Handle everything. Don't disappoint me."
"Yes, Lord Kazekage!"
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