Aid Request from the Land of Hot Water

Natsuki was stunned after hearing Katsuya's words and asked, "I've reached my brother's level? Isn't that the third stage? Kage Level?!"

She shouted the last two words; she never imagined she could reach that level.

Actually, this is because she has a problem with her own assessment of her talent. On the other hand Katsuya, as an observer, is able to perceive Natsuki's talent more clearly.

Natsuki's level of effort in cultivation was far inferior to his, yet their progress was not much different. This was enough to illustrate the gap between the two.

Katsuya felt that he had already reached the limit of his talent, or rather, reaching the level of Elite Jonin was already beyond the limits of his talent. Reaching the Kage Level would probably be difficult.

However, Natsuki has a greater chance and a higher potential than him, and still has a chance to attempt the third stage of Yin Release.

Yichen ignored Natsuki's exclamation and suddenly remembered the moment in the original work when Black Zetsu controlled Obito Uchiha.

The sensation was somewhat similar to the Nara Clan's Shadow Binding Technique, but perhaps a more advanced one.

Could that be Katsuya by Soul Suppression?

Yichen took a deep breath and said, "Katsuya, I will support your research. Just tell me what you need."

Katsuya a wry smile and said, "Teacher Yichen, the core of this research is the soul. Does our village have a soul that we can study?"

Yichen:...

The Iwagakure does possess unique souls, but none of them are suitable for research.

There is a Moryo inside Shion's body, but Yichen cannot remove the Moryo from Shion's body for research.

As expected, a soul is sealed within the temple that Katsuya and Natsuki are currently researching, but Yichen dares not release it casually.

Yichen still possessed a small portion of Black Zetsu's body, but he couldn't use it carelessly—it was too dangerous.

After thinking for a while, Yichen suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of something.

Yichen said, "Someone, go to the lab and get something."

After speaking, Yichen wrote down an order for the Anbu who had appeared.

The Anbu took it and quickly disappeared.

Not long after, he returned carrying a jar.

Seeing the jar, Katsuya remembered and said, "Teacher Yichen, are you talking about Ghost Fire?"

Yichen nodded and said, "I didn't tell you last time, but this so-called Ghost Fire is actually a special kind of life form; it can devour souls."

Yichen told Katsuya everything he knew and guessed, then said, "I'm giving this to you to study, but you must be careful not to fall into its trap."

"When conducting research, you must protect yourself with Soul Seal."

Katsuya and said, "Teacher Yichen, don't worry, I'll be careful."

Yichen removed the seal he had left on the jar, leaving only the Soul Seal that Katsuya had previously placed, before handing the jar over to Katsuya.

Then Katsuya and his companion left with the jar containing the Ghost Fire.

Yichen returned to his office, glanced at Atsumi Akino was still studying, shook his head, and didn't disturb her.

The next day, Yichen found Kamizuru Tsuruhime at the Training Ground with the last scroll given to Danzo by Danzo.

Yichen handed the scroll containing ten special insects of the Aburame Clan to Kamizuru Tsuruhime and asked, "Tsuruhime, does your Kamizuru Clan have a way to use these insects to upgrade bees?"

"If you have any, these insects are all yours. You can use them to upgrade your bees."

Kamizuru Tsuruhime saw these insects, she almost jumped up.

She nodded vigorously and called out the names of the ten insects one by one.

"Teacher Yichen, these ten kinds of insects are all from the Konoha Aburame Clan. Where did you get them?"

Yichen said, "I obtained this from Konoha; it should be useful to your Kamizuru Clan."

Kamizuru Tsuruhime exclaimed excitedly, "Useful, so useful! I'll start using them to breed new bees right away!"

Yichen nodded and said, "Okay. If I use all ten kinds of insects, will I gain ten new abilities?"

Kamizuru Tsuruhime said, "Yes. Actually, the abilities cultivated using these insects are all very basic."

"The Kikaichū of the Aburame Clan have long possessed this ability; their purpose in raising these insects is likely to wait for them to mutate naturally."

"Although the chance of insects mutating is very low, once they do mutate, it means that some of their Kikaichū abilities can be enhanced."

"I've heard that since the Aburame Clan defeated our Kamizuru Clan, they've received special training from Konoha. They even have a place in the Land of Fire specifically for cultivating various poisonous insects."

"With such a natural breeding ground for insects, the chances of producing mutant insects are very high."

"Therefore, the Aburame Clan has grown stronger over the years."

"Teacher Yichen, I heard from my elders that the Aburame Clan is now one of the top clans in Konoha. Is that true?"

Yichen nodded and said, "The Aburame Clan has indeed developed rapidly in recent years, but don't rush to compare yourself with the Aburame Clan."

"First, add these ten abilities to your bees. Once your bees are stronger, I'll secretly take you to the Aburame Clan's insect breeding base."

With her Kamizuru Tsuruhime asked, "Teacher Yichen, really? Won't this cause conflict between the two countries?"

Yichen laughed and said, "No, I only go to other countries occasionally, not Tenten. As long as I'm not discovered, there won't be a problem."

Kamizuru Tsuruhime nodded repeatedly, her face full of anticipation.

Yichen said, "Alright, how long will it take you to raise bees?"

Kamizuru Tsuruhime said somewhat awkwardly, "Teacher Yichen, this is the first time I've trained bees to have abilities. I don't know how long it will take, but it will probably take at least a month."

"If we don't consider Chakra, my bees are still just ordinary bees. Although we shorten their breeding cycle by selecting smaller bees, they don't have any other abilities."

"According to family records, bees initially develop their breeding ability very slowly. As they accumulate more breeding capacity, the speed will increase."

Hearing the uncertain words of Kamizuru Tsuruhime, Yichen said, "It's alright, just train them well. You don't have any missions during this time."

Fujii Kusaka, who had been watching Yichen and the other person chat without understanding a word, immediately cheered.

"Lord Tsuchikage, Advisor Ikura requests your return to his office. He has important matters to discuss and has already notified the other advisors." At this moment, a Tsuchikage Assistant ran up to Yichen said.

Yichen was taken aback, thinking, "A High-Level Meeting at this time? Has something happened?"

When Yichen arrived at the office, the rest of the Advisor Group had already arrived.

Seeing this, Yichen asked, "What happened?"

Ikura handed Yichen a letter, saying, "This is a letter from the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water requesting aid."

"The Land of Hot Water?" Yichen opened the letter with curiosity.

The Land of Hot Water is quite a place of trouble.

Many major events that happened after Yichen transmigrated took place in the Land of Hot Water.

He first met his younger sister, Natsuki, in the Land of Hot Water, and had his first contact with the Jashin Cult.

He later killed Jiraiya in the Land of Hot Water.

Last time, Obito Uchiha was surrounded and attacked by Tsunade, Rasa, Yotsuki A at the Land of Land of Hot Water base.

Immediately afterwards, Yichen killed Two-Tails Jinchuriki Yugito, within the territory of the Land of Hot Water.

What's happened in the Land of Hot Water this time?

Yichen returned to his seat, quickly read through the letter, and asked in confusion, "The Jashin Cult wants to seize power in the Land of Hot Water?"

Ikura nodded and said, "I suppose so. Saying it's the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water is a bit of an exaggeration. The root of this matter is actually still the incident where we killed Yugito."

"Our Great Ninja Village fought a major battle in the Land of Hot Water, causing great damage, but the Yugakure remained indifferent."

"After that First Shinobi War, the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water and the common people of the Land of Hot Water were very disappointed with the ninja of Hot Springs."

Yichen nodded. He knew about this. Back then, in order to surround and kill the Fourth Raikage and Yugito, Yichen and his team used quite a few Area of Effect Ninjutsu.

Dust Release, Light Release, Great Five Elemental Bullet Technique, Tailed Beast Bomb —these chaotic attacks caused immense damage to the infrastructure of the Land of Hot Water.

However, Yichen never took this matter to heart. The Land of Hot Water had never been an ally of the Land of Earth, so causing damage to the Land of Hot Water put no pressure on Yichen.

After Yichen others left, the Land of Hot Water did not find peace.

Tang Ren's incompetence gave some ambitious people an excuse to launch an attack.

The Jashin Cult, which has been secretly developing in the Land of Hot Water, is one of the most active forces among them.

Taking advantage of the loss of popular support in Yugakure, the Jashin Cult rapidly spread its doctrines and expanded its influence among the common people.

The Jashin Cult not only recruited ordinary people into its ranks, but also tricked a large number of ninjas out of Yugakure.

During this period, the Five Great Ninja Villages and the Akatsuki Organization were busy preparing for the final First Shinobi War of the Fifth Ninja World War, so they did not pay attention to what was happening in the small Land of Hot Water.

Subsequent intelligence revealed that the Jashin Cult ultimately fought a major battle with the Yugakure, sacrificing many Hidden Hot Springs ninja to their so-called Jashin.

After the great battle, the Jashin Cult not only did not suffer heavy losses, but its strength actually increased.

As for the Yugakure, it was already one of the weaker ninja villages among the smaller nations, and it was completely destroyed after this First Shinobi War.

During the great war, the daimyo of the Land of Hot Water initially sided with the Jashin Cult, hoping that a ninja village would emerge in his country that dared to protect national interests.

Therefore, the Jashin Cult's actions have always been supported by the daimyo's funding, as well as the daimyo's legitimacy.

However, after the Jashin Cult replaced Yugakure, it couldn't stop, and their doctrines clashed with the interests of the Daimyo.

By this time, their war with Yugakure had ended, and the daimyo had stopped spending a large amount of money.

This was unacceptable to the suddenly powerful members of the Jashin Cult, who protested to the daimyo.

Fortunately, the higher-ups of the Jashin Cult still had some sense and knew that the Six Great Ninja Villages still existed, and that openly attacking the daimyo would cause trouble.

Therefore, the current situation in the Land of Hot Water is: the daimyo and the Jashin Cult are engaged in a war of words.

The daimyo demanded a swift restoration of peace, and that the Jashin Cult should carry out its mission like the other ninja villages.

But what patience do the members of the Jashin Cult have for carrying out any missions? All they know is to keep pressing for military funding. Besides pressing for military funding, they constantly try to recruit civilians into the Jashin Cult.

Realizing the situation was completely out of control, the daimyo immediately sent a secret letter to Land of Earth requesting assistance.

That's right, the Land of Earth is now considered a neighboring country of the Land of Hot Water, although the two countries share only a very short border.

Ikura said, "The followers of this Jashin Cult are strange; they seem to be able to increase their power by offering sacrifices to the Jashin."

"The more sacrifices they make, the more power they gain; the stronger the sacrificed objects, the greater the increase in power."

"The Yugakure initially did not take the Jashin Cult seriously, which allowed the Jashin Cult to seize the opportunity and grow rapidly."

"Intelligence indicates that those Tang ninjas who initially volunteered to join the Jashin Cult were all sacrificed by the Jashin Cult."

Yichen nodded slightly after hearing Ikura's words, and began to recall the time when he broke into a branch of a Jashin Cult alone.

Back then, a priest from that branch was able to sacrifice himself, trapping Yichen, who was already Jonin, in a Genjutsu Space similar to Tsukuyomi.

Afterwards Yichen nearly lost his life in that Genjutsu Space.

In the original work, the Jashin Cult also produced a Hidan. Yichen is not sure how old Hidan is now, but when Hidan was defeated by Shikamaru, he could barely be considered to have Kage Level strength.

In other words, the potential of the Jashin Cult is not low. Most importantly, their abilities are unpredictable, and enemies who are unsure of their true strength or weakness are easily caught off guard.

At least Yichen still can't figure out what exactly happened with that Jashin, how it killed people through blood, or how it granted Hidan immortality.

After a while, Yichen snapped out of his thoughts.

Seeing this, Saka asked, "Yichen, should we send troops to help the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water?"

Ming said, "The Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water has suggested that we establish a branch Land of Hot Water as well."

"But we don't have enough manpower right now; the newly graduated Genin haven't even matured yet."

"We recently added two new branches and a temporary base. Furthermore, we need to mobilize a large number of Teuchi the Sunagakure."

"The village is now facing a shortage of manpower."

Yichen thought for a moment and said, "The Land of Hot Water is famously wealthy; one Land of Hot Water is worth at least five Land of Bears."

"If we can take over the Land of Hot Water, the benefits to the village will be obvious."

Ming was somewhat tempted and asked, "Yichen, do you mean to take action?"

Yichen shook his head, looked around, and poured cold water on everyone's enthusiasm.

Yichen said, "Sending troops to the Land of Hot Water is a major event, as the Land of Hot Water has never been within our sphere of influence."

"The location of the Land of Hot Water is also not conducive to our annexation and establishment of branches."

"Acting rashly could disrupt the current balance of the Ninja World."

"The current situation in the Ninja World is very good, making it an ideal time for us to gradually strengthen ourselves and widen the gap with other ninja villages."

"Which is more important, the Land of Hot Water Land of Wind? It goes without saying. We cannot abandon our efforts to suppress the Sunagakure just because of the Land of Hot Water."

"Let's discuss whether there's a way to avoid causing too much turmoil in the Ninja World while still maintaining our basic strategy of suppressing the Sunagakure."

"If both can be achieved, then we will send troops to the Land of Hot Water."

Everyone fell silent.

Ikura also said, "Indeed, annexing the Land of Hot Water would be our first expansion since the Fifth Ninja World War, and such an expansion is likely to arouse the vigilance of all the Great Ninja Village."

"The territories we expanded into before were all seized during the Fifth Ninja World War. Those are our spoils of war, and the other shinobi villages could only grit their teeth and accept it."

"But the Land of Hot Water is different. We need to consider the consequences before taking action. Not only might the Mist ninja turn against us, but even the Akatsuki Organization might change their opinion of us."

Upon Tomoko immediately looked at Yichen and asked, "Teacher Yichen, do you have a solution?"

The others shared the same expectant expression, thinking, "Fox of Stone, don't let us down."

Yichen pondered for a few seconds, then said, "I have an idea. We can't give up the Land of Hot Water, but we can't keep it all to ourselves."

Kawakita asked, "Teacher Yichen, do you mean to bring Mist ninja along?"

The others nodded slightly; the idea had some merit.

Yichen said, "No, we not only need to involve the Mist ninja, we also need to involve the Konoha."

"Konoha?!" Everyone was taken aback.

Why drag Konoha into this? Everyone's current imagined enemies are Sunagakure, Konoha, and Cloud ninja.

To drag Konoha into getting rich together—isn't that aiding the enemy?

"Hehe." Yichen chuckled and said, "We do indeed intend to suppress the Three Great Ninja Villages: Konoha, Sunagakure, and Cloud ninja."

"However, the situations of the Three Great Ninja Villages are different, and the methods of suppression cannot be the same."

"The Sunagakure's finances are its weakness, so dealing with Sunagakure is simple: just one word: exhaust them! Once the Sunagakure's resources are depleted, they will be Sunagakure to rise again."

"The Cloud ninja are someone we can't deal with, so we can't suppress them."

"Konoha is the most amazing place. Konoha is not short of money. It has been the dominant power for decades and owns the richest territory in the Ninja World. We can't even imagine Konoha's resources. What they lack is time."

"What Konoha needs is time—time to restore its ninja numbers and time to resolve its internal problems."

Saka nodded and said, "That's right. The information sent back from Kajiyamari shows that although Konoha's finances are tight, that's relative to their previous wealth. They are still not short of money."

Mei also said with great feeling, "Yes, those two pieces of land obtained from the Land of Fire are truly incredibly rich. I can't imagine how much wealth the Land of Fire and Konoha have accumulated over the past few decades."

Yichen nodded and said, "Therefore, bringing Konoha into the fold and sharing some of the Land of Hot Water's profits with them won't hinder our strategy of suppressing Konoha."

"In this way, we won't need to spare manpower to garrison the Land of Hot Water. We also won't need to give up suppressing and weakening the Sunagakure."

"Furthermore, if Konoha cooperates with us, it could shake their alliance with Sunagakure and Kumogakure."

After considering it, everyone nodded in agreement with Yichen's plan.

Just when everyone thought the discussion was about to end, Yichen blurted out, "However, I don't intend to cooperate with Konoha."

Everyone looked completely bewildered.

Yichen laughed and said, "For such a good thing, of course we should cooperate with Danzo. Once this is done, not only will it increase Danzo's influence in Konoha, but it will also give Danzo the opportunity and financial resources to develop his power."

"Judging from the situation reported by Kajiyamari, the Uchiha can no longer be relied upon. I estimate that the Konoha High-ranking officials has reached a consensus on resolving the Uchiha issue by force."

"Instead of wasting our energy on the Uchiha Clan, we should spend our time on Danzo."

Tomoko exclaimed, "Teacher Yichen, you are truly amazing, no wonder you are..."

Everyone:...

Tomoko didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood.

Ultimately, the High-Level Meeting of Iwagakure decided, at the invitation of the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water Iwagakure, to send troops to deal with the Jashin Cult.

Furthermore, the Iwa ninja will be accompanied by Mist ninja and Konoha, the Advisor Danzō from Konoha, on this mission.

The Mist ninja are easy to deal with; a shrewd Genji like me wouldn't let such a good opportunity pass by.

As for Konoha, it's also easy to handle. Iwagakure just made a deal with Danzo. The two sides have a basis for cooperation and a certain level of trust.

Thus, another mission was added in Kajiyamari, far away in Konoha.

Tomoko asked curiously, "Teacher Yichen, what kind of deal did you and Advisor Danzō make this time?"

Yichen said, "I sold the technology for transplanting White Zetsu to the village to Danzo."

"In exchange with Danzo, I obtained three masks from the Uzumaki Clan's Namahado, ten weapons bearing the Flying Thunder God Mark of Senju Tobirama, ten special insects from the Aburame Clan, and training insights into the Super Beast Imitation Drawing."

After listening to Yichen's description, everyone thought for a moment: they all knew about the Flying Thunder God Mark, the insects of the Aburame Clan, and the Super Beast Imitation Drawing, but what was that mask of the Uzumaki Clan's Namahado?

Kawakita asked this question on behalf of everyone.

Yichen thought for a moment and said, "This thing was used by the Uzumaki Clan to research some strange things. I guess these things are related to souls or Space-Time Ninjutsu, so they had Kajiyamari bring it back."

"There are three masks in total. One of them is currently in Atsumi Akino's hands. She seems to have discovered something from it and is improving her Flying Thunder God."

"The other two are in the hands of Katsuya and Natsuki. These masks are very helpful to their research on the Soul Seal."

"I'm not entirely sure about the specifics of this thing, but it's definitely useful. Let's wait until Akino and Katsuya have some results before making any further decisions."

Tomoko and the others nodded and remained silent.

After the meeting, Yichen planned to go to the Land of Hot Water to check out that Jashin Cult.

Afterwards, the three parties dispatched a large number of ninjas to wipe out the Jashin Cult, but that was just a formality. It was just a ninja village in a medium-sized country, unlike the Akatsuki Organization before, which possessed the Rinnegan. No one would take it seriously.

Yichen planned to learn about the Jashin Cult before the three parties mobilized their armies, just in case there was anything good, he could get his hands on it as soon as possible.

Before leaving, Yichen returned to the Training Ground to assign training tasks to his three disciples.

Since Kamizuru Tsuruhime needed to raise bees and couldn't leave, Yichen simply didn't bring the other two along this time.

Before Yichen even got close to the Training Ground, his Mind's Eye had already sensed everything around it.

To Yichen's surprise, there was actually a complete Anbu Squad standing by the Training Ground.

There were quite a few people in the Training Ground, including Shiro, Kamizuru Tsuruhime, Fujii Kusaka, and a large group of children.

Yes, a large group of children. They were still divided into two groups, centered around Kurotsuchi and Yuki Kinuyo, but there were significantly more of them than last time.

Kurotsuchi, Beni Neji is still there. He's the only boy there, and judging from his expression, he probably didn't want to come. He's currently practicing Gentle Fist alone, a little distance away from the group of girls.

Yichen glanced at it a few times. Although Neji was still practicing Gentle Fist, his style had changed a lot from the traditional Gentle Fist of the Hyuga Clan.

Aside from Neji, Kurotsuchi was surrounded by more than ten girls. Yichen suspected that Kurotsuchi had called over all the girls in the class.

Yichen glanced briefly at the group of girls and noticed that most of them weren't looking at Kurotsuchi or at Yuki Kinuyo and the others opposite them.

These infatuated girls, just like Karin, were all watching Neji train. It seems that standing up for her best friend was just an excuse; their real purpose was to see the handsome guy.

There were fewer people on the other side, perhaps because Yuki Kinuyo had been at the Ninja Academy for a while, so she had more close friends. She was accompanied by six or seven girls.

Yichen glanced at it and looked away, but the next moment, Yichen looked back.

Yichen rubbed his temples. Was that... Shion?

Shion enrolled in school? And she happens to be in the same year and class as Sakura? Yichen really didn't know this. Yichen didn't even know when Shion moved to Iwagakure.

Yichen glanced at the Anbu Squad. No need to ask, this Anbu was there to protect Shion.

Even Kurotsuchi, the granddaughter of Ōnoki, wouldn't warrant 24-hour protection from the Anbu.

Only Shion, the daughter of the Daimyo of the Land of Demons and the designated successor Shion, received this special treatment.

As Yichen entered the arena, he quickly attracted everyone's attention.

Yuki Kinuyo the most proactive and enthusiastic; she arrived before Yichen far faster than the others and said, "Lord Tsuchikage- sama."

On the other side, Kurotsuchi gritted his teeth upon witnessing this scene.

There's no other reason than that last time Yichen acted as the referee for both sides, and with Sakura's help Yuki Kinuyo won two out of three matches.

Kurotsuchi was so angry that she ran home on the spot. For the rest of the day, she didn't call Bai "brother" even once.

Yichen had serious business to attend to this time, so he didn't stir up trouble between the two kids. Instead, he had the two of them disperse the two groups of kids who were facing off.

Yichen approached Bai and the other two and began assigning them training tasks.

Kamizuru Tsuruhime had to use all her Chakra to cultivate bees, leaving her with no extra energy for anything else.

Fujii Kusaka is practicing Fire Release Shape Transformation and is making progress, but she is still a long way from mastering the B-rank Ninjutsu - Phoenix Fire Technique.

Yichen means to try to learn the Phoenix Fire Technique as quickly as possible.

The training tasks that Yichen assigned to Bai were rather strange; Yichen had Bai practice Water Release Kazekaze Release.

Haku has great talent and awakened Ice Release early on, so Ōnoki and Kitsuchi have been training Haku in Ice Release. Yichen the large number of Ninjutsu that Kirigakure, Haku has no shortage of Ice Release Ninjutsu.

However, Haku had not practiced Water Release Kazekaze Release.

This idea will definitely have a noticeable effect in the early stages, as the power of Bloodline Ninjutsu is generally one level higher in the early stages.

However, after reading Madara Uchiha's Ninjutsu experience, bloodline limits, and Wood Style Experience, Yichen Chen's understanding of Chakra had long surpassed that of Ōnoki.

In Yichen's view, Bai's future achievements will be very limited if he only practices Ice Release. No matter how high Bai's talent in Ice Release is, it is still inherited from his predecessors and has an upper limit. His understanding of Ice Release still needs to be consolidated by practicing Water Release Kazekaze Release.