Beneath his clothes, patches of livor mortis could be seen on his exposed hands and neck.
That was something only corpses had!
But he was clearly alive. Naruto could distinctly hear his breathing.
Though his breathing was slow—so slow that it made one worry he might suffocate himself.
"What happened to him?"
"I don't know." Sakura shook her head. "When I found him, he was tied to a stone pillar and barely breathing. We have to get him back to the village as soon as possible!"
"I'm afraid that won't be possible right away."
Sasuke looked toward the direction where the monster had been swallowed by the fissure.
He knew there was no way the fissure had appeared by coincidence just as they were about to make their move. Once the monster recovered from its injuries, it would probably return.
And by now, its injuries had likely already healed.
"Sakura, leave this place first. We'll buy you some time."
And see whether they could seize the chance to seal this thing and bring it back to the village.
Rumble...
The ground shook, splitting open with a massive fissure.
The fissure grew wider and wider.
Once it reached a certain size, a stone pillar extended from within and lashed against the ground.
"Alright. Be careful, you two."
Sakura ran toward the outskirts of the village with the ninja.
That ninja's companions were still waiting for them outside the village.
She needed to hand him over to them as quickly as possible, then go help Sasuke and Naruto.
Rumble...
Another stone pillar emerged—or rather, a tentacle made of stone.
Naruto and Sasuke had found the stone pillars familiar. When the second one emerged from the fissure, they finally recognized what they were.
Sure enough, not long afterward, a monster crawled out of