Naruto Infinite New World

The next day.

Gin was awoken by a knocking sound, sitting up in bed.

"Finally, a good night's sleep."

"Who is it, disturbing my sleep this early?"

Scratching his disheveled hair, Gin was irritable. On the front lines against the Cloud Village, he hadn't gotten a proper night's sleep for ages.

There had been times when the Cloud Village would launch surprise attacks in the middle of the night.

He had spent many nights sleeping in trees.

Finally home, he had hoped for a chance to sleep in, but even that seemed impossible.

Without fixing his appearance, he went downstairs with his bed hair and opened the door.

"Who is it?"

Gin's half-asleep eyes didn't notice anyone at the door.

"Is someone playing a prank?"

Rubbing his eyes, he slammed the door shut with a loud "thud."

Standing right in front of the door was Aburame Shibi, his body seemingly turning gray with despair.

Why...

Was he really that invisible?

Soon, Shibi knocked again, and when Gin opened the door, he was about to snap.

"It's me," Shibi quickly raised his hand.

"Shibi, huh." Gin finally noticed him. "Where were you standing earlier? I didn't see you."

Shibi, who had been standing right in the middle of the doorframe, remained speechless.

Without speaking further, Shibi handed Gin a gift box.

"You didn't have to bring a gift," Gin said with a grin, quickly accepting it.

"Come in and have a seat. I'll make you some tea."

It wasn't just the gift that made Gin so welcoming; after all, not many visitors brought anything when they came over.

Certain individuals like Minato and Kushina were notoriously empty-handed—Gin wouldn't name names, though.

Shibi entered the house.

"Sorry to bother you."

"Make yourself comfortable. I'll be right back after freshening up."

Gin hurried upstairs to wash up and returned shortly, looking more presentable. After preparing tea, he sat across from Shibi.

The room fell into a brief, awkward silence.

Shibi wasn't one to talk much, and Gin wasn't sure what to say either.

After hesitating for a moment, Shibi got straight to the point.

"My father wishes to meet you."

"Huh?" Gin was surprised. The head of the Aburame clan wasn't an ordinary person—he was one of the village's elite jonin.

Elite jonin held a high status in Konoha, as the heads of major clans were usually at that level.

And Gin couldn't recall having much contact with the Aburame clan, aside from Shibi.

A thought suddenly crossed Gin's mind.

"I'm free anytime," he said.

At the moment, Konoha was in a semi-defensive posture. Aside from sending a few strong individual ninjas on missions, most of the village's forces remained on standby.

The Aburame clan's compound was located on the outskirts of Konoha.

This wasn't due to suppression by the village leadership; unlike the Uchiha clan, Konoha's top brass didn't oppress other ninja clans in this era.

After all, the core strength of Konoha came from the ninja clans.

The Aburame clan's compound, unlike the grand mansions of the Uchiha or Hyuga clans, was covered in greenery. The buildings were hidden by dense vegetation, making the place feel more like a forest.

Shibi led Gin through the compound, which seemed to blend into the natural surroundings. Soon, they arrived at a large residence, its walls covered in vines, giving it an abandoned appearance.

At the entrance, someone stood waiting.

Dressed in a gray high-collared coat that covered the lower half of his face, with sunglasses obscuring the upper half, the figure carried a large scroll on his back.

This was the typical attire for members of the Aburame clan, which always made Gin feel like they were hiding their faces for a reason, even though it was simply their custom.

The man before them was none other than the head of the Aburame clan, an elite jonin—Aburame Shifu.

"Lord Gin, we've been expecting you," Shifu greeted Gin with a slight bow, showing no airs of superiority.

However, Gin was left puzzled by his words.

"We?"

Wasn't only one person supposed to meet him?

"Please, follow me," Shifu said, leading the way inside. Gin and Shibi followed closely.

While the exterior was overgrown with plants, the interior was a normal, well-maintained residence.

Shifu led them to a sliding door, opening it to reveal a room with tatami mats. A long table sat in the center, surrounded by several elderly members of the Aburame clan, all waiting in silence.

It really was a group of people.

Another door was open, revealing a view of the courtyard outside.

"Please, take a seat."

Shibi gestured for Gin to sit at one end of the long table, while he took a seat at the other end.

"Please have some tea."

A familiar figure knelt beside Gin, holding a teacup.

The woman had a striking figure despite her modest clothing, with her lower face exposed to reveal a delicate, fair chin. However, a large pair of sunglasses obscured the upper half of her face, leaving her full appearance a mystery.

"Aburame Mushihime?"

Gin didn't recognize her by her looks, but her distinctive sunglasses gave her away.

"It's been a while, Lord Gin," Mushihime said with a soft smile, which had a certain charm—though Gin shivered slightly, knowing that this woman's body was filled with insects.

He just couldn't handle it.

Glancing around at the impassive Aburame elders, Gin decided to get to the point.

"So, what exactly did you all want to see me for?"

They had even brought out beauty tactics.

But the women of the Aburame clan weren't his type. Couldn't they have sent someone more...normal?

He was usually a sucker for this kind of thing, but not today.

"Lord Gin," Shifu spoke respectfully. "The Aburame clan suffered heavy losses in this war, especially those we sent to the Iwa front."

The Suna front had fared better, thanks to Sakumo, but the Rain front had also seen considerable losses, though fewer clan members had been deployed there.

Gin nodded. He had seen plenty of Aburame clan members on the Iwa front.

After he had left, that front had become one of the bloodiest in the entire war.

"So, what's your point?" Gin had an idea of what they wanted but decided to play dumb.

"We need a way to quickly restore our clan's strength."

Even though the war was over, external threats remained. The ninja clans' standing in Konoha was often evaluated based on overall combat achievements and the number of active ninjas.

If the Aburame clan's weakened state became known, other clans might take the opportunity to suppress them.

They needed to show their strength to maintain their status as one of the major ninja clans.

Take the Hatake clan, for example. They were originally a small clan, but thanks to Sakumo, they were now considered one of the major clans. If only they weren't so small in number, they wouldn't face as much pressure from other clans.

"I hope we can come to an agreement," Shifu continued.

"We'd like to commission you to develop a new jutsu for the Aburame clan."

(End of Chapter)

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