Naruto: The Hidden Shadow Style

Haseo didn't have a clear concept of exactly how long the First Great Ninja World War had lasted. After all, it was the most vague part of the story he'd gotten pulled into, so naturally his memory of it wasn't clear. But every Great Ninja World War typically followed the same pattern—large-scale group battles erupted among villages during the early and middle phases, yet once reaching the later stages, warfare reverted back to its traditional small-scale ninja conflicts.

Still, although the scale and frequency of battles decreased during these late stages, the brutality of war didn't diminish one bit.

Based on Haseo's personal experiences since entering active combat and the intelligence he'd gathered about the current situation, the Great Ninja World War had now entered precisely such a stage. None of the villages could achieve their pre-war "victory objectives," yet at this point nobody wanted to accept defeat either. Everyone kept gritting their teeth, holding desperately onto the belief that enduring just one more day might bring victory. So much so that the villagers' jaws ached from clenching them, but still, no one was ready to call it quits. 

They were dragging things out, prolonging the war indefinitely to see who would finally collapse first.

Because of this general trend, although the frontlines remained as bloody as ever, Haseo personally didn't think there was anything wrong with the celebration of New Year occurring in the rear lines... This had nothing to do with hatred over national survival or the severity of battle; no ninja village could maintain its tightly-wound wartime system indefinitely.

As humans, people naturally had basic needs in life—including emotional release. The citizens needed relaxation, and this was precisely what New Year celebrations offered. The Hokage could demand discipline from shinobi, but Konoha mainly consisted of regular villagers who weren't ninja. Therefore, currently, the Third Hokage was gradually transitioning Konoha away from its peak wartime structure, allowing other aspects of daily life, production, and entertainment to slowly resume.

Moreover, throughout the past year, several upheavals had occurred within Konoha village, and the Hokage also required some joyous occasions to dilute those negative "annual imprints." Hence, following the outbreak of the Great Ninja World War, Konoha—which had previously been especially solemn and practically lifeless—was finally becoming vibrant again.

Although Konoha was shifting away from being a concentrated ninja camp towards a more everyday lifestyle, Haseo felt little inclination to participate. In his opinion, the village's forms of entertainment still seemed somewhat "primitive." There were indeed many advanced activities happening down below in the Hot Spring Town near his residence, yet he decided against joining due to concerns about suddenly suffering a surprise attack.

Just soaking in the hot springs alone posed absolutely no problem. It was relaxing, pleasant, and entirely wholesome—allowing one to experience warmth during cold winter days.

Tomorrow then. I'll go out and check it out tomorrow… Haseo thought to himself.

After all, he lived right on top of the Hot Spring Town. Right beneath his dwelling flowed a river perpetually shrouded in misty vapor, yet he had never actually experienced the feeling of soaking in its hot spring—it really was slightly shameful.

The lights outlining the village blurred into the night. They burned until dawn, and the crowd hadn't quieted down even as the hours wore on.

Leaning against the window, Haseo drifted off to sleep in the noisy yet peaceful atmosphere.

When he woke up the next day, he felt the sharp bite of winter in the air.

"Snow?"

Looking outside through the window, Haseo noticed that everything was covered in silver. Snowflakes falling from above and mist rising from the hot springs below created a unique scenery of the Hot Spring Town.

It turned out that during the night, snow had begun to fall at some unknown moment. Even now, specks of snow continued drifting down from the sky.

The weather looked gloomy. The white vapor extending from his mouth and nose with every breath told Haseo that the temperature had sharply dropped. For him, there couldn't be a better leisure activity in this kind of weather than staying cozy at home—but his body, shaped by years as a ninja, refused to let him stay idle... As a result of longstanding habits built over years as a ninja, he would feel restless all over if he skipped his morning workout.

"Ahh..."

Haseo sighed. He wouldn't be able to enjoy the blissful life of a shut-in—lounging on the couch eating chips, drinking cola, and gaining weight—but it just wasn't physically possible. Yet pushing himself for rigorous training on days like these also felt somewhat dreary. Even the most dedicated workers sometimes wanted a lie-in.

"I'll count this as a rest day."

Haseo casually threw on some clothes. After waiting for Katsuyu to slowly settle into its hiding spot on his body, he put on an outer coat...

Seeing how sluggish Katsuyu appeared, Haseo thought to himself that it was time again for an exchange.

Slugs from Shikkotsu Forest definitely don't hibernate, but because the slug on Haseo continuously drained chakra from him, once its absorption capacity neared the limit, it would start showing signs similar to hibernation, like right now.

This was normal, though recently Haseo felt each slug seemed to fall into hibernation increasingly faster.

After splashing icy water on his face, scarfing down some cold bread, and gulping down chilled milk—just enough to shake off the last traces of sleep—he slipped on his shoes and walked out the door.

Cold wind immediately blew into his clothing. Despite wearing lightly, Haseo didn't particularly feel the harsh cold due to enhanced effects from his chakra and his physical conditioning as a ninja.

Outside, the snowfall reached a level where carrying an umbrella seemed overly fussy yet not carrying one meant getting wet, so Haseo chose simply to walk out empty-handed.

Since it was New Year's Day, quite a few people were already outdoors in the morning—there'd be no chance to enjoy crunching through fresh snow anyway. Might as well stomp through some mud then.

He aimlessly wandered around Konoha, glancing left and right, the very picture of a total slacker. However, while walking around, he gradually noticed that pedestrians ahead had begun gathering toward both sides of the street.

"What's going on?"

Unsure of what was going on ahead, Haseo didn't stay standing in the middle of the road either. Instead, he stepped aside like everyone else, curious to see what was happening.

The clouds slowly drifted apart, finally revealing the sun that had been hidden for far too long. Snow-covered rooftops on either side of the street shimmered like polished silver, casting back the light in blinding flashes.

Haseo instinctively raised a hand to block the glare—just as two sharp, resonant notes from a Kagura bell pierced the air.

His eyes finally adjusted to the glare as he lowered his arm. But by then, a group of travelers had already appeared right in front of him, standing in the center of the street.

There were over twenty of them, all clad in flowing white robes. Yet more striking than their attire was their unmistakable hair—each one possessed an exceptionally eye-catching shade.

As vivid as fire, as rich as blood—strikingly crimson.

Clad in white, their crimson hair stood out sharply against the snowy backdrop. From above, the whole scene resembled a tranquil ink painting—like figures stepping through snow and lingering among plum blossoms [a traditional image symbolizing resilience and grace in winter], radiating life and vigor.

"Uzumaki... clan..."

That brilliant red hair signified boundless vitality. Based solely on this feature, Haseo immediately knew the identity of these travelers who had arrived in Konoha.

Well, honestly, it wasn't exactly hard to tell.

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