"So… so strong!"
Pakura stared wide-eyed at the distant figure, disbelief written all over her face.
That small body—
Yet it contained such terrifying power.
Wen Lan turned around and walked back toward the group. Might Guy immediately rushed over and grabbed Wen Lan's left arm, squeezing it repeatedly.
"How did you do that?!" Guy shouted. "I clearly saw you cut your own arm off!"
"I used a Shadow Clone combined with high-speed movement," Wen Lan replied calmly. "It only looked like my arm was severed."
Naturally, Wen Lan had no intention of revealing the secret of his 'demon body'.
He then looked at Pakura, drew his ninja blade, flipped it around, and offered her the hilt—gripping the spine of the blade himself.
"Now it's your choice."
Pakura understood exactly what he meant.
Her fingers trembled slightly. She turned her head and glanced in the direction of Sunagakure, then recalled everything that had just happened.
Her eyes gradually hardened.
She gripped the sword hilt, ripped the forehead protector from her head, threw it to the ground—
Clang.
The blade flashed, carving a deep slash across the metal plate.
From this moment on, Pakura became a missing-nin of Sunagakure.
She hooked the protector up with the blade, then tied it back onto her forehead and looked at Wen Lan.
"So… you want me to become Konoha's strength?"
"No."
Wen Lan took back the sword and slid it into its sheath.
"You will become Uchiha's strength."
As soon as he said that, Kurenai and the others showed slight changes in expression—but none of them spoke.
They understood.
For great clans, the clan always came first, the village second.
What they didn't know was that the Uchiha had been forced into this mindset by years of oppression from Hiruzen and others.
"Fine."
Pakura nodded decisively.
"You saved my life. From now on—I belong to you."
Wen Lan gave her a strange look, then shrugged and said nothing.
After leaving the Stone Forest, Wen Lan arrived at the designated location and whistled sharply.
A ninja hawk dove down from the clouds and landed steadily on his outstretched arm.
He wrote a report about Pakura, tied it to the hawk's leg, and gave it a gentle pat.
With a powerful beat of its wings, the hawk soared skyward and vanished into the clouds.
Wen Lan's gaze turned deep and steady.
"Now we wait for the clan leader's reply."
The others nodded.
That night, moonlight bathed the camp.
Wen Lan sat quietly on a rock, gazing up at the stars.
Below him, the others had lit a fire and were grilling meat.
Pakura sat alone at the edge, clearly out of place. Her eyes wandered, and it was obvious she still hadn't recovered from being betrayed by her village.
Wen Lan noticed.
He walked over and handed her a piece of roasted meat.
"Eat something. The past is over. What matters now is the future."
Pakura looked up at him.
In those deep eyes, she saw warmth—and resolve.
She accepted the meat softly, thanked him, and took a slow bite.
It felt like it filled more than her stomach—it soothed her shattered heart.
Firelight illuminated her tired face.
"Thank you," she said quietly.
"Not just for saving me… but for giving me direction again."
Wen Lan smiled faintly, still looking toward the distance.
"Direction is something you walk out yourself. I just gave you a starting point."
Pakura was silent for a moment—then nodded gently, as if she had found strength in his words.
Three days later, the ninja hawk finally returned with news.
According to the message, Fugaku had reported the Sunagakure–Kirigakure situation to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Hiruzen was more than willing to accept Pakura, the wielder of the Scorch Release bloodline.
Of course, Fugaku had phrased it as joining Konoha—not joining the Uchiha.
Hiruzen also concluded that since Sunagakure was willing to hand over a bloodline user to Kirigakure, it meant they were not truly allied with the Mist.
As a result, Wen Lan's team was ordered to withdraw—no further surveillance required.
With both the Mist and Stone fronts under heavy pressure, Konoha needed to consolidate its forces.
Upon receiving the order, Wen Lan wasted no time and immediately gathered everyone to depart.
On the road back, they packed up quickly. Pakura even took the initiative to help, already beginning to blend into the team.
The five of them swiftly returned to the Konoha front line.
Once there, Wen Lan noticed many unfamiliar shinobi.
Members of the Hyūga clan, as well as other families, stood in small groups, whispering with grim expressions.
Clearly, reinforcements had arrived.
With Sunagakure joining the alliance, some forces from the Iwagakure front had been redirected here.
At the center of the camp stood Orochimaru, flipping through scrolls with a dark expression. His face looked unusually grim—things were clearly not going smoothly.
Uchiha Fugaku sat nearby, equally serious, brows tightly knit as he studied intelligence reports.
Wen Lan entered the tent with Pakura and bowed slightly.
"Orochimaru-sama. Clan Leader."
Orochimaru looked up, flicked his tongue across his lips, and let out a sinister chuckle.
"Hehe… Mr. Wen Lan. Long time no see."
"It's been nearly a month," Wen Lan replied calmly.
Orochimaru's gaze shifted to Pakura, interest glinting in his eyes.
"This must be the famous Pakura—the one who possesses Scorch Release."
His tone was playful, yet unsettling.
Wen Lan stepped half a pace forward, subtly shielding Pakura.
"Yes. She has decided to join Konoha."
Pakura felt extremely uncomfortable under Orochimaru's stare.
It wasn't the gaze of someone looking at a person—
It was the gaze of someone examining a specimen.
Yet when she felt Wen Lan's small body standing protectively in front of her, warmth rose unexpectedly in her chest.
"Yes," she said firmly.
"I am Pakura."
Of course she knew Orochimaru—
One of the Three Legendary Sannin.
After all, anyone who survived against Hanzō of the Salamander was known throughout the shinobi world.
Orochimaru chuckled softly but said nothing more, though his eyes remained deeply unsettling.
Fugaku finally spoke.
"The situation is urgent. The front lines are under immense pressure. You're welcome—but we must enter combat immediately."
Pakura nodded, resolve burning in her eyes.
"I understand. I will do my part for Konoha."
Orochimaru reached over, picked up a Konoha forehead protector and a green flak jacket, and tossed them toward Wen Lan.
Wen Lan caught them instinctively, looking puzzled.
Orochimaru's hoarse voice followed:
"The Hokage has approved it. You are hereby promoted to jōnin."
He paused briefly.
"And the forehead protector— is for Pakura."
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