After leaving the guest house, Shanks walked through the corridor toward his house, his paperwork finally completed. For today, there was nothing more demanding his attention. He could spend some time with Mikoto and perhaps train a little. The wooden floor gave a faint creak beneath his steps, the quiet before noon air brushing lightly against his Kimono.
As he walked, Raphael's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
"Master, my research has been completed, and I have created the method you wished for—creating a chakra testing paper, the Yin-Yang Tag. If someone touches that tag, they will immediately be tested for their innate Yin or Yang chakra nature."
A small smile appeared on Shanks' face as he continued walking, the corners of his lips lifting almost imperceptibly.
"Well done," Shanks replied calmly.
Instantly, the complete method for creating the Yin-Yang Tags flowed into his mind with perfect clarity. If simplified, he would need to seal his own Yin and Yang chakra releases into a chakra paper. When someone with a Yin release chakra nature touched it, the tag would glow white. If they possessed Yang release, it would glow green. And if they held both, the glow would divide evenly—half white, half green. Unlike ordinary chakra nature testing papers, which were one-time use, these Yin-Yang Tags could be used repeatedly, as long as the sealed Yin and Yang chakra within them remained intact.
So that's how it works.
Shanks' eyes narrowed slightly in thought as he walked.
"I was planning to spend time with Mikoto and then pass the time by training or reading a book," he mused internally, "but it seems I have work to do instead.I will create these Yin-Yang Tags immediately and give them to Benimaru to test the other ninjas of Uzushiogakure. Some civilians will also be given a chance. If they possess Yin release chakra nature, I can recruit them into the Shadow Guards. If they have Yang release and sufficient potential, they can be trained as medical ninja."
The possibilities expanded in his mind like ripples across still water.
With this, Uzumaki Hospital could gain even more medical ninjas. And those who had once missed their opportunity to become a ninja might receive another chance at life. A second beginning.
With that thought, Shanks subtly accelerated his pace, his footsteps now firm and purposeful.
After returning home, he headed straight to his workshop—the place where he usually practiced and created different sealing tags or scrolls. The faint scent of ink and parchment lingered in the air. Scrolls were neatly stacked along the walls, and multiple sheets of chakra paper lay arranged across a large wooden table.
Without wasting a moment, Shanks took out the chakra papers, ink, and tools. Sitting down, he began engraving the intricate sealing technique onto the surface of the chakra paper. His movements were steady and precise, chakra flowing through the brush in controlled streams as delicate symbols formed one after another.
The room remained silent except for the soft scratch of brush against paper.
He worked for nearly an hour. Even for someone of his proficiency, it took around five minutes to complete a single Yin-Yang Tag. The sealing had to be exact; even a minor imbalance between the Yin and Yang chakra could destabilize the reaction.
One by one, the completed tags were placed neatly to the side, each faintly pulsing with contained chakra; which will soon disappear.
By the time he stopped, 12 Yin-Yang Tags lay before him.
After finishing the last one, Shanks closed his eyes briefly and activated his God's View ability. His perception expanded outward, spreading across Uzushiogakure until he located Benimaru. Without delay, he sent a telepathic message directly into Benimaru's mind.
"Benimaru, come to meet me at my house."
Benimaru, who had been addressing the selected academy graduates—those now chosen to become part of the Shadow Guards—suddenly paused mid-sentence as Shanks' voice echoed inside his mind. His expression shifted almost imperceptibly, but his posture remained steady.
"I have urgent work to attend to," he said calmly, looking at the ten young ninjas before him. "As I mentioned, you ten have been selected to become part of the Shadow Guards. If any of you have objections, or if you do not wish to join the Shadow Guards, your decision will be respected. You are not obligated."
His gaze swept across their faces, firm yet not forceful.
"So there is no need to be hasty. You will have one day to think it over properly. Tomorrow, when you return to the academy, inform me of your final decision. For now, go and continue assisting in arranging the bodies of the dead Kirigakure and Kumogakure ninjas."
The academy graduates nodded in unison and dispersed. Though their decisions had almost been instantaneous—each of them eager, almost proud, to join the Shadow Guards—Shanks had made it clear that no one should feel forced into such a role.
The Shadow Guards would be elites. Their responsibilities would differ from regular units, somewhat similar to ANBU in other villages. But that did not mean they would live in secrecy without recognition or spend their lives hidden behind masks and shadows.
In other villages, the identities of ANBU ninjas were kept strictly confidential, often not revealed until they had left the organization. Their existence was whispered more than acknowledged.
But Shanks did not require such secrecy.
The Shadow Guards would be another official fighting unit of Uzushiogakure—recognized, respected, and openly acknowledged. They were not to be shady operatives lurking in the dark for political manoeuvring.
There was no political opposition threatening Shanks' position. He was, in every sense, the ruler of Uzushiogakure. A king in authority if not in title. And he feared no one.
His strength stood firm. The strength of the Uzumaki siblings stood firm.
If anyone dared to defy them without reason, then they were merely digging their own graves.
Meanwhile, the academy graduates returned to the shoreline to assist in handling the aftermath of the battle from two days prior. The salty sea breeze carried a faint metallic scent, and the distant crash of waves against rock echoed rhythmically.
The Uzumaki police force and other academy students were already present, working in organized groups. They had been doing the same task earlier, but Benimaru had called these particular ten aside to inform them of their eligibility for the Shadow Guards due to their Yin nature chakra type.
Before this, Todoroki had frozen the bodies that had fallen into the sea, encasing them in thick layers of ice. But the ice was not permanent. Under the relentless heat of the sun, cracks had begun to spread across its surface, water dripping steadily back into the ocean.
If the bodies remained submerged for too long, they would swell, rot, and pollute the waters surrounding the Land of Uzumaki. The stench would spread, and the coastline would become contaminated. That was not a condition anyone desired.
So a decision had been made.
The bodies of the Kumogakure and Kirigakure ninjas were carefully retrieved from the sea and gathered separately. They were stacked methodically upon the shore, arranged in grim pyramidal formations. Once positioned, they were frozen completely on solid ground, encased again in thick ice—this time away from the tides.
They would wait.
An ultimatum had already been delivered. If ninjas from Kirigakure or Kumogakure arrived to reclaim their fallen comrades, the bodies would be returned with no interference.
If no one came by the fifth day, the bodies would be burned.
----
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