I reclined in my fine-leather chair, looking out at the pristine, snowy peaks from the window besides me. Feeling the airship's subtle vibrations as it began its slow descent toward the valley floor. I maintained my chosen mask: a younger, more boyish version of my face, paired with clothes that were stealth wealth. Doto Kazahana was a study in vanity. He had preened in his flashy and expensive robes, clearly relishing the attention of the courtesans he had brought along. Those women played their parts perfectly, cooing over the intricate embroidery of his silks and the powerful physique he claimed to possess beneath them.

  I will admit that I did not mind the presence of the beautiful young lady perched upon my lap. She was diligent in her duties, ensuring that my glass stayed full as she tilted it to pour sweet wine down my throat. Doto was clearly enjoying the fruits of his status as well. We were barely halfway through the flight when his patience for small talk evaporated. He reached out and snagged the waist of the woman named May, dragging her toward his private quarters while she offered a rehearsed giggle. It was a pity, really. I had hoped to engage him in more substantive conversation regarding the future of his domain before he became occupied with his more pressing concerns.

  The two-tailed vessel remained at his fortress, along with my three students. I had given the children strict instructions to keep their training light and unobtrusive while I was away. I had deliberately omitted the true identity of the woman staying among them. I needed to maintain a facade of total ignorance. If she realized that I was aware of her status as a jinchuriki, our delicate masquerade would shatter before I wanted to let it go.

  The other ladies departed shortly after their lord, seeing no reason to continue their performance once the audience of one was gone. This left me in a state of rare solitude. The crew and the guards were preoccupied with the technical demands of landing the massive vessel, and it seemed they did not consider me a threat worthy of constant surveillance. While their lack of caution was a bit insulting, I was in no hurry to correct their mistake.

  As the airship dipped lower into the canyon, I pushed open a window. The freezing air rushed into the cabin, as if the wind itself were trying to escape the biting cold outside. I moved with silent, practiced ease, sticking a length of chakra-infused bandage to the windowsill before swinging out into the open air. I aimed for an ancient altar that looked entirely out of place against the snowy terrain. Once I was close enough to the stone surface, I detached my binding and used a final pulse of chakra to shut the window behind me.

  I landed in a small puff of white powder. Immediately, I set to work. Using my bandages like delicate brooms, I smoothed over the virgin snow I had disturbed. After a few seconds of careful effort, only a master tracker would be able to tell I had ever touched the ground. In thirty minutes, the relentless snowfall would erase my presence entirely.

  I glanced upward to see the ship continuing its slow crawl toward the landing pad. I estimated I had three minutes at most if they moved with purpose. I hurried toward the small altar, moving with a light step that left no deep prints. There was a conspicuous slot for a key near the center of the structure, but I ignored the obvious lure. I wanted to see what lay beneath the surface first.

  Great rectangular pillars stood like silent sentinels off in the distance. Even from here, I could sense the thrum of energy flowing from the altar to those monoliths. I needed to understand this mechanism as deeply as possible without the burden of entertaining Doto. I yielded to the necessity of speed and formed the hand seal for shadow clones. Two identical copies of myself manifested in the snow, ready to assist in the expedient survey.

  I generally detested using multiple shadow clones for academic study. The feedback of memories often triggered a sharp headache when the clones dispersed, making it difficult to organize the influx of information. It was akin to trying to read a complex textbook while in side a loud and busy crowd; the facts tended to drift away unless you were carful. However, having two extra sets of eyes to examine the same mystery was a risk I was willing to take today.

  We scoured the area and unearthed several fascinating secrets. The most immediate discovery was a hidden entrance to a laboratory buried deep beneath the permafrost. It was sealed by the same mechanism as the altar. Though the space was not vast, I used a specialized earth jutsu to pulse through the ground. I sensed the presence of high-tech computers and a server room. This was undoubtedly where the true treasures were kept: the blueprints, the failed theories, and the rare materials that fueled a nation. My guess was that only a handful of people in the entire history of the Land of Snow had ever stepped inside.

  There was also a small vault attached to the facility, constructed with the heavy density of a bank safe. While I could not see the contents, the metallic resonance suggested a moderate sum of currency. Doto was correct that there was financial gain to be found here, though it was hardly enough to fund his delusions of global conquest.

  More interesting was the origin of the materials. The bunker and the security seals used to guard it were clearly derived from the Land of Whirlpools. The lab was well secured, but it was not an impenetrable fortress. I estimated it would take me a full night of uninterrupted work to bypass the traps and security measures.

  The final and most chilling discovery involved the pillars. They were not just panels for absorbing energy; they were projectors of immense scale. They were designed to draw in a power I first mistook for Nature Energy. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was something far more sinister. It was the power of darkness, the very thing Orochimaru had discussed during the festivities of the fiftieth anniversary. The previous lord had understood this energy and built a machine that could run on the collective negative emotions of his own subjects.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  It was clearly a masterpiece of engineering. While I did not yet have the expertise to replicate the machine, I could see its purpose. Much like the lost techniques of the Whirlpool, this device was intended to manipulate the weather on a continental scale. With enough suffering to power it, the machine could shift the climate of the entire nation and even control the tides of the surrounding sea.

  Sosetsu Kazahana had tried to take the literal pain and misery of his people and transform it into a beautiful future, only to be murdered by his brother who saw a more violent potential. If Doto realized what this machine truly was, he would turn it into a weapon of mass destruction, using his own people as a living battery. If the ninja of the Hidden Cloud ever discovered this technology, they would be even worse, after, of course, they drop their jaws in shock before they began to drool with greed.

  Then, I had to confront the most bitter truth. Any hidden village would likely do the exact same thing, including my home in the Leaf. This technology was too dangerous to exist in any hands, especially those that believed themselves to be righteous. It was a tragedy. This work was born from a place of hope, created by a man who was perhaps too good for a world this cruel. This altar was a monument to a beautiful dream that was destined to become a hideous nightmare.

  I felt a wave of nausea wash over me. I felt dirty and stained just by standing in the presence of such a device. I felt like a man who was preparing to set fire to a great library just to ensure the knowledge within could never be used to hurt anyone. I had committed many sins in this life and the one before it, but this felt like a new level of necessary evil that I didn’t want to be apart of. I wanted to turn and run, to hope that no one else would ever solve the puzzle, but I was not that naive. Someone, someday, would put the pieces together and unleash a darkness the world would never be prepared to face.

  The sound of approaching footsteps snapped me back to reality. I quickly dispersed my shadow clones. The rush of their memories and their shared disgust hit me like a physical blow, making my stomach churn with bile. I forced myself to swallow the bitter taste and slipped back into my role.

  I spun around and gave a choreographed jump of fright. Doto had been trying to sneak up on me, and my exaggerated reaction caught him off guard.

  "Oh, Lord Doto! You startled me. I must have been lost in my own musings," I said, my voice trembling with fake nerves.

  Doto threw his head back and let out a mocking laugh. "And you call yourself a ninja? I walked right up to you!"

  "I spend far too much time in dusty libraries and sterile hospital rooms," I replied with a mischievous smile. "I cannot complain too much, though. The nurses keep their skirts short enough to hold my attention and prevent me from falling into total boredom."

  Doto erupted in a boisterous guffaw. "That is a terrible habit! You should focus more on your physical training. Look at me." He gestured to his own frame, having thrown on simple robes before leaving his bed. He was undeniably strong for a man of his standing, perhaps reaching the level of a special jonin if I were being charitable. "I spend plenty of time with the ladies, but I never neglect my own strength. People will not respect you if they think you will snap like a dry twig in a stiff breeze."

  "You are quite right. Your people are truly fortunate to have such a leader," I flattered him. "The hidden villages on the mainland are lucky you were not born there, or we would all be in more then a little bit of trouble."

  Doto beamed, clearly drinking in the praise. "You flatter me too much," he said, though his tone suggested he wanted me to go on. I decided to spare my own dignity; I had already tasted enough of my own bile for one day.

  "You have made a valid point. I should refocus on my personal regimen," I continued. "But I am busy teaching students now, and the hospital has a way of monopolizing every spare moment if you let it."

  "Well, I did not come out here to discuss boring medical matters," Doto said, turning his gaze toward the stone structure. "Tell me, Amon, what do you think of this altar?"

  We discussed the stone work for a while. I leaned heavily into my act as a nerdy scholar, rambling on about mineral compositions and the shared cultural history between the Land of Snow and the Land of Whirlpools. Doto quickly lost interest in the technical details. I could tell he was already regretting leaving his warm bed.

  Eventually, he brought up the key, and I played along with wide-eyed curiosity. He even went so far as to offer me a bribe to betray the Leaf and stay here to unlock the vault for him. He spoke of the potential of his land and how I was a nobody back in the Land of Fire. He was a real charmer.

  I grew weary of his voice, but I gave him all the correct answers. I promised to consider his tempting offer once we returned to the ship. I spoke of a fruitful relationship between our villages and hinted at a timetable of a few weeks or perhaps two months to bypass the security. Doto was practically skipping as we walked back to the vessel. I could almost see him imagining how he would brag to May about how easily he had manipulated me and what he would spend his imaginary large fortune on.

  I followed him back onto the ship, my mind already calculating how I would destroy this priceless piece of art before it could be corrupted by fools like him. I returned to my seat and engaged in more trivial nonsense about the vault, which Doto ignored in favor of his own ego.

  The women returned, and I forced a smile, acting as if I enjoyed their company while my heart seethed with rage at the injustice of the world. I drank more of the expensive wine, but it tasted like nothing but ash and soot to me. When they asked me about the flavor, I made a joke about needing a second and third bottle to truly narrow down the notes, which earned a round of laughter from the room.

  A young crewman was caught peeking at the festivities, and Doto dragged the boy inside to taste the wine and bask in the presence of the girls. The lad hung on every word of Doto’s tall tales, believing every lie about his supposed accomplishments. I added to the atmosphere by making sharp jokes at the expense of Doto’s enemies, which the lord loved.

  In the corner, May was smirking with an arrogant air, looking like a master strategist whose plan had finally come together. Once the ship had finally docked, Doto vanished to some unknown corner of his palace, and May hurried toward the two tails jinchuriki. I made my way to the small guest house within the fortress walls, where my students were waiting.

  The children looked bored to tears, but they perked up the moment I walked through the door.

  "Amon sensei, you are back! How did it go? Was it actually cool?" Lemitsu asked, jumping to his feet.

  "Lemitsu was worried that the Snow ninja were going to kill you and use us as hostages," Moko added, eager to tattle on her teammate.

  "Do not say it like that, Moko!" Lemitsu whined, turning to the third member of the team. "Rei, back me up here!"

  The taller girl placed a finger against her cheek, adopting a look of deep contemplation. "I think we would make very cute damsels in distress. The village would definitely send a handsome hero to rescue us."

  "Rei!" Lemitsu cried out in despair.

  "I am glad to see your spirits are so high," I said, beckoning them closer. They obeyed instantly, their playful mood dying away as they sensed the change in my demeanor. "I have a very important favor to ask of you three. Can you listen carefully?"

  They nodded in unison, their eyes fixed on me.

  "When we return to the Hidden Leaf, I need you all to repeat after me, “The Snow ninja attacked us. I was afraid for my life. Amon sensei fought to protect us.”” I spoke while wearing a calming smile.

  My three students stared at me with stunned expressions for a long moment before they all uttered a confused and simultaneous "Huh?"