Testing and Speculation

"If you think you can, then come and try!"

Facing an Elite Jonin like the captain of the Iwagakure Decapitation Unit, Hyuga Kagami felt no fear whatsoever. He stepped forward, his killing intent fully unleashed.

Hyuga Kagami knew full well why the Iwagakure ninjas had provoked them.

Without a doubt, the impact of the unexpected deaths of the Fourth Hokage and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was still spreading. The somewhat weaker Sunagakure and Kirigakure remained relatively obedient for now, but the powerful Kumogakure and Iwagakure were beginning to stir.

Yet the more things were like this, the more Hyuga Kagami felt that they could not back down.

Testing would not stop just because they retreated. On the contrary, the more they retreated, the more their opponents would press their tests!

Feeling Hyuga Kagami's killing intent wash over him, the Iwagakure captain narrowed his eyes and slowly placed a hand on the hilt of the Short Blade at his waist. He could tell that Hyuga Kagami was not merely bluffing.

On Hyuga Kagami's side, Kakashi, Guy, and Shisui immediately assumed combat stances, while the members of the Iwagakure Decapitation Unit on the other side also went on guard.

In an instant, the hall was thick with tension.

The Miko seated on the cushion stepped forward at the right moment and urged, "Everyone, please set aside your differences for now. The monster from another realm is about to arrive!"

Both sides understood that with the monster's arrival imminent, internal conflict was not a wise choice. So they each took a step back and maintained a temporary peace.

Pakura, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, asked the Miko, "Your Highness, please tell us about the current situation."

The Miko nodded. "What we are facing is an otherworldly monster called Moryo. Shamefully, it was summoned from another realm by a group of cultists in this country known as the Yomi Cult."

"The barrier I set up can stop Moryo and the Terracotta Puppets it controls, but it cannot stop the cultists of the Yomi Cult. Therefore, before Moryo arrives, it will surely order those cultists to attack this place."

"Once Moryo breaches this place, it will have nothing left to fear. The entire world will become hell amidst its madness."

After hearing the Miko's explanation, everyone's expressions darkened.

Though they had not yet seen the otherworldly monster itself, they had all dealt with those indestructible Terracotta Puppets. They knew that if those Terracotta Puppets spread throughout the ninja world, the situation would become impossible to contain.

Kakashi got straight to the point. "Your Highness, do you have any way to deal with that monster?"

As she gently stroked the girl resting on her lap, the Miko said, "I can seal Moryo, but the place of sealing must be Mount Fengmo in the Land of Swamps."

The fact that the otherworldly monster could be sealed was clearly good news. However, the seal had to be performed at Mount Fengmo, far away in the Land of Swamps, which put everyone in a difficult position.

Pakura crossed one arm over her chest and propped her chin with the other hand. "Then how do we lure the monster to Mount Fengmo in the Land of Swamps?"

The Miko smiled warmly. "There is no need to worry, everyone. I am that monster's greatest threat. As long as I go to Mount Fengmo, it will certainly follow."

Kakashi immediately took out the map he carried and spread it out on the floor.

Although the Land of Swamps bordered the Land of Demons, there were still more than a hundred kilometers between Mount Fengmo and the Miko's palace. Considering that the Miko herself was not a ninja and the route was filled with steep mountains and rushing rivers, they needed to carefully plan their path.

After thinking for a moment, Pakura said, "Those Terracotta Puppets outside are not much of a problem. As long as we break through their encirclement, their slow movements mean they will not be able to catch us."

The captain of the Iwagakure Decapitation Unit nodded. "Mm. The real trouble is that monster and those cultists."

The Yomi Cult's followers had originally been nothing more than a group of mediocre ninjas. Their leader, Yomi, was merely at the level of a Jonin. But now that they had obtained the power of Moryo, they possessed an almost inexhaustible supply of evil chakra. They could cast ninjutsu without restraint, even large-scale combination ninjutsu, causing their threat level to soar.

Considering that the situation would be difficult to control if those cultists pursued them all the way to Mount Fengmo, Pakura said with killing intent, "Rather than be attacked by the monster and the Yomi Cult along the way, we should take advantage of this barrier's ability to block the monster and the Terracotta Puppets. We can eliminate the Yomi Cult first, then escort the Miko to the Land of Swamps!"

The captain of the Iwagakure Decapitation Unit said, "That is what we were thinking as well."

Kakashi nodded. "We have no objections either."

With Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure in agreement, the Miko's palace immediately sprang into action, preparing for the fierce battle to come.

Because of his Byakugan and Eight Trigrams Palms Kaiten, Hyuga Kagami, who possessed both perception and defense, was assigned to remain in the shrine and personally protect the Miko and her daughter.

Unlike the others, who were filled with worry, Hyuga Kagami was not overly concerned about the situation at hand. His thoughts were still on artificial Tailed Beasts.

As his exploration of his Tenseigan gradually deepened, he began to feel vaguely that what limited the growth of his strength was not anything else, but the amount of chakra within his body.

He had a faint feeling that only with more chakra would it be possible to unlock the Tenseigan's other abilities.

Thinking of Nagato, who possessed the Rinnegan, made this easy to understand.

After Madara Uchiha transplanted the Rinnegan into Nagato, Nagato did not immediately gain the Rinnegan's abilities as a child. Only after his parents were killed and he suffered intense emotional shock did he awaken a portion of the Rinnegan's power.

Later, after reaching adulthood and fully developing physically, he suffered another severe shock from the death of his close friend Yahiko. Only then did he finally awaken all of the Rinnegan's abilities.

The price was that his body could not bear the burden, leaving him gaunt and emaciated!

One had to know that Nagato was an Uzumaki Clansman personally selected by Madara Uchiha for his own resurrection, and the Uzumaki Clan was famed for its tremendous vitality and vast chakra reserves.

Yet even so, the adult Uzumaki Nagato could not bear the fully awakened Rinnegan.

While that was certainly because the Rinnegan was not originally his, the greater reason was that a bloodline ability at the Rinnegan's level placed demands on its user that were simply too harsh.

Thus, Hyuga Kagami even suspected that the reason his Tenseigan had not awakened more abilities was that it was instinctively protecting him. His body was clearly not yet qualified to support a fully awakened Tenseigan.

That was why he tirelessly pursued artificial Tailed Beasts. He needed a "battery" that could continuously provide him with chakra. Only with an enormous amount of chakra would he dare to explore the Tenseigan's mysteries without restraint.

Otherwise, if he carelessly drained his vitality and ended up like Nagato—nothing but skin and bones, as frail as a sickly invalid—it would not be worth the cost...