Before heading toward the Hidden Grass Village (Kusagakure), Shisui Abura had already gathered a wealth of intelligence from Mui regarding the village's current state.
If one were to summarize the combat power of Kusagakure during this period, it would be: the standard "ceiling" for a small nation, relying heavily on "plagiarism" to compensate for a lack of foundational strength.
The Art of the Copycat
The Hidden Grass was not in the sa league as the Five Great Nations; in terms of high-end combat power, they couldn't even match the current Takigakure.
They lacked the strength to decide the outco of a war through direct confrontation, but they were more than capable of making any foreign army passing through their territory pay a bloody price.
Their specialty was "theft." For instance, they had analyzed a minor, signature sword style from Konoha—the Hayanagi (Flying Willow) style, which combines kenjutsu with genjutsu—and "borrowed" its principles to create their own Grass Style: Three-Sword Dance.
Furthermore, they had researched and devised counters for the signature ninjutsu of the Great Nations.
This resulted in their high-level ninjas possessing a bizarre repertoire of techniques and specific "anti-ta" strategies.
In a chance encounter, this unpredictability could catch an elite ninja off guard. However, this edge only worked against Chūnin or lower-tier Jōnin. Against true elites, their thin foundation was exposed.
They were like practitioners of a "short-cut" martial art: fast to learn and full of strange tricks that could trip up a disciplined shinobi, but useless when faced with absolute, overwhelming power.
The "Wall-Sitter" Policy
True to their na, the Hidden Grass functioned like a blade of grass in the wind—a "wall-sitter" that leaned whichever way the wind blew. Their moral compass was incredibly flexible.
Sandwiched between Iwagakure and Konohagakure, they didn't pick sides; they navigated the gaps.
Their primary goal was to ensure the flas of war didn't burn too brightly in their own backyard.
For example, when Iwa sent over a hundred ninjas through the Grass territory to ambush Orochimaru, the Grass elders looked the other way, tacitly allowing passage.
They weren't strong enough to stop Iwa, and they weren't foolish enough to die for Konoha.
Yet, to ensure they wouldn't be liquidated after the war, they secretly sent letters to Konoha claiming they were "forced" into cooperation and pleading for the Hokage to understand their "loyalty."
Unfortunately, those ssages were intercepted by third parties, leaving the Grass in a precarious position and eventually pushing them closer to Iwagakure.
Internal Strife and the "Outsourcing" Strategy
Internally, the village was split. There was the "Grass Fruit" (Kusa-no-Mi) faction, which advocated for military revival, and the "Grass Flower" (Kusa-no-Hana) faction, which leaned toward diplomacy.
With roughly 500 active ninjas and fewer than 30 true Jōnin, their pressure now ca mostly from the Land of Earth.
Though Iwa didn't officially claim victory, they had effectively seized control of the Grass borders. To Iwa, the Grass ninjas weren't allies—they were slaves.
Desperate to change their status but lacking the strength to do so, the Grass elders ca up with a cynical plan following the news of Hatake Sakumo's suicide.
Lord Ōnoki of Iwa had ordered the Grass to act as the "vanguard" to test Konoha's weakened state. To avoid wasting their own kin, the Grass began "outsourcing":
Recruiting wandering rogue ninjas.
Training "over-aged" war orphans.
Orphans were the perfect resource—give them a bowl of rice, and they'd do anything. Since they weren't "true" citizens of the village, they were treated as disposable pawns.
If Konoha retaliated, the orphans could be offered up as scapegoats.
The Transformation of Shisui
As he traveled, Shisui continued to use his dragonfly, Ao, to sense natural energy. He discovered that Ao acted as a filter; the dragonfly could only absorb the Wind Affinity of natural energy.
While this ant his progress toward a full Sage Mode was agonizingly slow, it carried a massive benefit: safety.
Whenever Shisui absorbed too much energy, risking "petrification" or nature-overload, Ao would instantly siphon the excess wind energy out of his body, acting as a biological safety valve.
The constant exposure to filtered wind energy hadn't granted him a Sage cloak yet, but it had physically altered him.
His hair, once dark, was slowly being tinged a pale, misty green.
Combined with years of wearing a mask (which left his skin unnaturally pale) and the subtle changes in his features as he matured, he looked entirely different.
Even if his bitterest enemies stood before him, they might think he bore a passing resemblance to the "Abura Shisui" of old, but they would never believe it was the sa man.
Shisui erged from the forest and entered a major city. He spotted a recruitnt poster on a bulletin board and smiled.
He tore the notice down and bought a small mirror from a nearby stall to examine his reflection.
"Pale face, green hair... what should I call myself?"
He stroked his chin as Ao nuzzled his hair in response.
"Right. Let's go with Shiraki (Shiroki). But before that, I need to manufacture a history for this identity."
With a smirk, Shisui reached into his pouch and pulled out a Transmission Bug. It was ti to pull the strings.
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