"No! Rōshi!"
Just as Uchiha Hikari completed the final chakra transfer and was about to cleanly finish off the unfortunate duo of the Four-Tails and Rōshi, a mournful cry echoed from the sky.
Makoto looked up.
"Who's that?" he asked, turning to Konan.
"That is the Tsuchikage, Ōnoki," Konan explained calmly.
"During the Second Great Ninja War, he launched a surprise attack on the Hidden Waterfall Village. After returning, he rigorously trained to regain the chakra he had lost to the Yin Female Water. The Second Tsuchikage praised his resilience, dubbing him 'Two-Scales'."
"However, because the water had transformed him into his current state, his former lover, Rōshi, ended up falling for the Four-Tails instead."
"Still, Ōnoki didn't mind. His love for Rōshi was so tolerant it bordered on sheer delusion. Ōnoki simply hoped to live happily with Rōshi and the Four-Tails as a trio."
"To demonstrate his resolve to the beast, he even broke his own granddaughter Kurotsuchi's legs."
"But Rōshi remained unmoved, primarily because the Four-Tails despised humans. Ōnoki constantly interfered with Rōshi and the Four-Tails' relationship. Eventually, unable to bear the overwhelming harassment and affection, Rōshi fled the Hidden Stone."
"..."
Makoto had originally assumed that Rōshi's earlier remark about Ōnoki being a "white-haired loli" was just a colorful insult.
He never expected the actual lore of the Limited Tsukuyomi world to be even more absurd than the Vigorous Paradise.
After coming into contact with the Yin Female Water, the stubborn Ōnoki had literally transformed into a white-haired femboy loli.
In the original world, Rōshi left because his stubborn personality clashed with the Tsuchikage.
In this world, Rōshi fled because he couldn't handle his boss's obsessive affection!
...
"Perfect! Quick, write this down!"
Up in the audience seats, Tsunade was ecstatic.
She furiously scribbled down the details, her pen racing across the page.
This new story material delighted her to no end!
She had secretly read some of Kakashi's Vigorous Paradise series before.
The part in the book where the Raikage got a vagina transplanted into him, transforming him into a cool, ethereal maiden, was at least somewhat internally consistent within its own weird lore.
But the part where Ōnoki transformed into a white-haired loli without any given explanation?
That had always been a major plot hole!
The Limited Tsukuyomi world, however, operated like a fully automated simulation engine.
It had perfectly patched Kakashi's plot bug by introducing the Yin Female Water incident.
Moreover, Kakashi had been too timid to directly use the Raikage and Ōnoki's real names in his books, resorting to roundabout hints and pseudonyms to avoid diplomatic incidents.
Tsunade needed no such caution.
This new, uncensored book was guaranteed to become a massive bestseller across all Five Great Nations, making her rich beyond her wildest gambling debts!
...
"Return my Rōshi to me! Dust Release..."
Overwhelmed with grief and jealousy, Ōnoki raised his hands.
A translucent white cube began coalescing between his palms.
"Arghh—!"
Ōnoki's Dust Release was violently interrupted.
It was as if he had been punched countless times in a single microsecond.
He was sent flying backward, crashing perfectly into the bubbling lava of the volcanic crater with a distinct splash.
"Three-pointer," Makoto said, lightly clapping his hands.
"Huh?" Hikari tilted her head.
Why didn't Makoto go for his usual stealth backstab this time?
Has he finally grown tired of the same trick?
"Grandfather! No!"
Another shout rang out from the sky.
But this time, the voice carried absolutely no sorrow—only a distinct hint of joy.
"I've heard of the young taking the old man's place, but never the reverse," Makoto muttered, staring at Kurotsuchi as she hovered above them in a flying wheelchair.
The arrival of Ōnoki and Kurotsuchi wasn't entirely unexpected.
The Hidden Stone ninja that the Four-Tails had snacked on earlier was likely the scout Ōnoki had stationed here.
When his scout met disaster, the Tsuchikage feared for his beloved Rōshi and rushed to the scene using the Light-Weight Rock Technique.
Kurotsuchi, hindered by her wheelchair and lesser strength, simply arrived a few minutes later.
"Don't misunderstand! I'm not here for revenge!" Kurotsuchi shouted when she noticed the group below looking up at her.
She hastily maneuvered her wheelchair down from the sky.
This world's Kurotsuchi had adopted wearing a qipao much earlier than her real-world counterpart.
She looked remarkably like a certain green-haired esper wearing her sister's high-slit dress!
Fortunately, she was sitting in a wheelchair, so looking up from below, nothing inappropriate was exposed.
However, when Kurotsuchi descended to eye level with Makoto and the others, her seated posture inadvertently revealed exactly what she was—or wasn't—wearing underneath.
"Heroes! Thank you for ridding the Hidden Stone of such a great evil! You are truly virtuous and righteous ninjas!" Kurotsuchi clattered to the ground from her wheelchair, bowing deeply before them.
"Don't you hate us for killing your grandfather?" Hikari asked curiously.
"I don't hate you at all," Kurotsuchi shook her head adamantly. "Ōnoki didn't deserve to be my grandfather. For his own selfish, perverted desires, he abandoned the village's development, shattered my legs, and disowned me. I've longed for his death for years. I just wasn't a match for his Dust Release. Today, thanks to your bravery, you've finally rid our village of this menace."
"Good. Then you should focus on managing the Hidden Stone from now on. We have other matters to attend to, so we'll be taking our leave," Makoto patted Kurotsuchi on the shoulder and turned toward the Susanoo, which Hikari had already prepared for flight.
"Wait, friends! Can you take me with you?! I—"
Before Kurotsuchi could finish her desperate plea, Hikari had already launched the Susanoo, vanishing into the sky without a second glance.
"Waaah..."
Kurotsuchi knelt in the dirt, her shoulders heaving with deep disappointment.
After a few stifled sobs of rejection, her gaze hardened with resolve.
Not long after, Kurotsuchi met the messenger ninja sent from Konoha and officially received Hokage Tsunade's invitation to form a Five Kage Alliance to oppose the Akatsuki.
Having happily inherited the position of Tsuchikage over her grandfather's molten grave, Kurotsuchi promptly agreed.
....
After Makoto and his companions effortlessly eliminated the Five-Tails Jinchūriki, Han, they moved on to their next target: the Hidden Sand in the Land of Wind.
Their itinerary was set.
Next was the One-Tail, followed by the Hidden Mist's Three-Tails and Six-Tails.
However, as they crossed the harsh deserts of the Land of Wind, Makoto's group encountered an unexpected obstacle.
A formidable group of ninja intercepted them mid-flight.
Leading the group was none other than Kurotsuchi herself, hovering in her wheelchair.
"I knew it. That's exactly why she didn't show up to defend the village when we took down the Five-Tails. She had already slipped away to rendezvous here," Makoto noted, scanning the assembled group.
It was an unprecedented, all-female lineup of the Five Kage.
From Kumogakure, where all the male leaders had perished, Karui had been left with no choice but to succeed as the Raikage.
Tsunade of Konoha, who had survived the paper bomb explosion.
Kurotsuchi of Iwagakure, whose wheelchair hovered ominously after she buffed everyone with Light-Weight Rock enhancements.
Temari, who had succeeded her father as the Kazekage, seemingly just to protect her younger brother.
And Mei Terumi, the Mizukage, who appeared largely unchanged.
After being intercepted, Makoto's group descended to the sand.
The intercepting Kage also landed, forming a unified front.
"Today, the fate of the entire ninja world hangs in the balance!" Tsunade declared heroically, stepping forward.
Yet, as she made her grand speech, her gaze involuntarily drifted toward Makoto, accompanied by a very distinct, nervous swallow.
This bizarre reaction made both Makoto and Hikari furrow their brows.
'Why does this heroic standoff feel... off?'
"Right on the mark, Hokage!" Kurotsuchi shouted, clenching her fists in absolute excitement.
"I've been itching to slice That Uchiha apart, snatch Makoto for myself and become his personal steed!"