New book is now avaible! Feel free to leave a ent, and thank you for your support!—————————————————————————————————————————

  Standing atop a t sand dune, Jinghang gazed at the crimson su, distorted by the scorg sands on the horizon. Below him, the vilge's outliretched into long, exaggerated shadows. A few tumbleweeds rolled aimlessly in the wind, adding to the se's inexplicable desotion and grandeur.

  "Sigh!" Jinghang exhaled deeply.

  "Beautiful, isn't it?" came a voice from behind him.

  Without turning, Jinghang immediately dropped to one knee in a semi-kneeling posture.

  "Yes, Kazekage-sama, breathtakingly so."

  Indeed, Jinghang was the protagonist of this story—a man who, in his inal life, was an 80s-born unity worker battling on the frontlines of epidemic prevention. With few hobbies, his only pastime was reading manga. One day, after an all-nighter due to pandemitrol work, he returo his dorm but found himself uo sleep. He opened his ptop to rewataruto. As he watched, drowsiness overtook him, and when he woke up, he had somehow arrived in the world of Naruto—more specifically, the world of the Kazekage. Surrounded by endless yellow sand and barren nd, there was no mistaking it—this was Sunagakure, the Hidden Sand Vilge. And he was nothing more than an orphan of the First Shinobi World War.

  But heaven seemed to have taken pity on him. Slowly, Jinghang discovered that he was, in fact, the one known as the "Stro Kazekage in History"—the Third Kazekage. Unfortunately, he was also the unluckiest Kazekage, who, as depicted in the manga, was turned into a human puppet by Sasori of the Red Sand upon his debut. As a transmigrator, he could not accept such a tragic fate. With his Mag Release (Jiton) bloodline limit and mastery of the Iron Sand teique, coupled with his deep uanding of the manga aless effort, he began to shine in the ninja academy. After graduating, he led his team to plete tless missions, earning the rank of jōnin at just 16 years old. His exceptional performance caught the eye of the Sed Kazekage, Shamon, ointed him as a personal guard. Over the years, Jinghang fought on numerous battlefields, earning the niame "Blue Sandstorm" (due to his blue hair). He was seen as the heir apparent to the Kazekage by both Shamon and the vilge elders.

  "You still believe we shouldn't ihe Land of Rain?" the Sed Kazekage asked.

  "Yes, Kazekage-sama."

  "Why? Is it because of that poison-loving brat, Hanzō of the Samander?"

  "Hanzō is of little ; Elder Chiyo is more than capable of handling him. My is that if the battle drags on, reat nations will iably intervene. her Konoha nor Iwagakure will tolerate the rise of a powerful—"

  "Enough!" Shamon interrupted sternly.

  "Do you think I'm unaware of the risks of this war? Look carefully," he said, pointing to the vilge below.

  "Water scarcity! Poverty! Huhis is the life we endure. Do you want our children to tinue living like this? If we don't fight, where will our space for survival e from? If we don't fight, how will we develop our vilge? You're short-sighted! You've disappointed me." Shamoions fred, and the dragon tattoo on his face appeared even more menag.

  Jinghang remained kneeling, his head bowed, silent.

  "If you refuse to fight this war, then you won't be going. Go to the Abyss and watch over that monk, Bunpuku."

  When Jinghang looked up again, the Sed Kazekage had already disappeared.

  The day, the Sed Kazekage personally led Elder Chiyo and a group of elite jōnin on an expedition to the Land of Rain. Elder Ebizō was left to manage vilge affairs, while Jinghang, the heir apparent, was demoted to guard the Abyss prison, tasked with watg over the Oail Jinchūriki (Ichibi no Jinchūriki), Bunpuku.

  As someone who had thhly studied Naruto and actively participated in various forums, Jinghang khat the uping war was the Sed Shinobi World War. It was a flict sparked by the growing eic disparity among nations following the First Shinobi World War. Uhe guise of seeking greater equality, militant fas in various tries rose to power, advog territorial expansion through force. The war began with Sunagakure's invasion of Amegakure, the Hidden Rain Vilge. What followed was a chaotic struggle involving the five great nations, with Konoha ultimately emerging victorious due to its deep reserves aile nds. Sunagakure, however, suffered signifit losses, including mae ninja. Subsequent tragedies, including the deaths of the Third and Fourth Kazekage, relegated the vilge to a sedary role among the great nations. Even their alliah Orochimaru during the Konoha Crush Pn yielded little more than the death of an aging Hiruzen Sarutobi. By the time of the Fifth Kazekage, Gaara, Sunagakure had essentially bee Konoha's subordinate. In Jinghang's view, the dee of Sunagakure could be traced back to the Sed Kazekage's decision to initiate this war. As the " prince" of the vilge, he naturally wao curb Sunagakure's aggression, but his repeated attempts to dissuade the Sed Kazekage only earned him the leader's ire, leading to his reassigo guard the Jinchūriki.

  The Abyss was a semi-enclosed yon repurposed as a prison. Vast yet desote, it housed only one is deep, winding paths and oppressive silence were suffog, like a dest into hell.

  "Sigh, boss, why did you have tue with the Kazekage? Now we're stuck guarding this miserable pstead of being on the frontlines," Rasa pined.

  "Just shut up. The boss has never been wrong in his judgment. Just follow his lead," Pakura said, using her Scorch Release (Shakuton) fireballs to light the way.

  As ae jōnin, Jinghang naturally had his own ninja squad. Before Tsunade proposed the theory that equipping a bat squad with a mediinja signifitly increased survival rates, most squads sisted of three members. Having risen early into Sunagakure's leadership, Jinghang had the privilege of handpig his team, assigning the future Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, and the powerful yet tragic elite jōnin, Pakura, to his squad. This made it one of the stroeams in Sunagakure. However, perhaps due to the Sed Kazekage's deliberate i, the eeam was reassigo the Abyss following Jinghang's dissent.

  Rasa, far from the stoid posed demeanor he would ter exhibit as the Fourth Kazekage, grumbled incessantly like a disgruntled housewife. Pakura, oher hand, was Jinghang's loyal admirer, treating every word from her captain as gospel.

  The Abyss was deep and winding. After what felt like ay, they finally spotted a faint light ahead. A tall, slender shadow stretched even longer uhe dim illumination.

  "Master Bunpuku, your meal is here," Jinghang said respectfully, handing a food box into the cell.

  A middle-aged monk slowly opened his eyes. Reizing the visitor, he smiled faintly.

  "Thank you, Jinghang-dono," Bunpuku said, bowing with his hands pressed together.

  As Sunagakure's strategic on and someone Jinghang was familiar with, Bunpuku was ner to him. In fact, they were well-acquainted. Jinghang, aware of the secrets of the Tailed Beasts, often visited Bunpuku to chat. He khis monk was extraordinary—arguably the first perfect Jinchūriki sihe Sage of Six Paths. Bunpuku's pure heart had even earhe praise of the Oail, Shukaku, who likened his character to that of the Sage. Unfortunately, the vilge, viewing the Tailed Beasts as catastrophic threats, chose to imprison Bunpuku in the Abyss rather than study and utilize his potential.

  "Jinghang-dono, my gratitude is not for the effort you've taken t me food, but for your ce in advising the Sed Kazekage against invading the Land of Rain," Bunpuku said as he opehe food box and begaing.

  "Unfortunately, the Kazekage-sama did not heed my advid insisted on proceeding. By now, the vanguard is likely at the border of the Land of Rain. A great war is iable," Jinghang sighed. Though their motivations differed—one for the nation, the other for all living beings—they shared the same desire to prevent the war.

  "You have done your best, and your sce is clear. There is no need fuilt. As, the world will once again be plunged into suffering. I shall t sutras to guide the souls of the departed."

  "Very well," Jinghang replied, gng at Bunpuku's fader the dim light. The monk's gauures were atuated by twe dark circles under his eyes.

  "Master, how long has it been since you st slept?"

  "By my t, 55 days."

  "Ah, that's terrible. Perhaps I should take you outside to rest for a while?"

  Bunpuku's eyes kled with a smile. Pressing his hands together, he said, "If so, I must trouble you, Jinghang-dono."