Afterward, the furious Iwagakure searched every inch of the land, but still couldn't find where Hyuga Ao had gone. It never occurred to them that Hyuga Ao had already flown away through the sky.
The earth-shaking battle within Iwa Camp naturally couldn't be kept secret. Rather, a battle of that level could never have been concealed, especially with the Rain Ninja stationed right beside Iwagakure.
A summary of the day's events was quickly placed before the leaders of every nation.
Iwagakure had been attacked by a powerful wielder of the Mist Village's Shikotsumyaku, who had severely wounded the Four-Tails Jinchuriki right in front of Ōnoki.
The Four-Tails' Roshi was now dead or alive, and Iwagakure had suffered heavy losses. Bone Forest was still standing there, and rumor had it that Ōnoki had been so furious that his waist had snapped.
Iwagakure had lost all face.
Deep beneath the pitch-black earth lay a decaying man on the verge of death.
"Could such a pure form of Shikotsumyaku really still exist in this era? Tobi, go find this person," Madara Uchiha said.
"Good grief, if that's the case, I'll go investigate, Madara," Tobi replied.
Kumogakure, Raikage Tower.
The Third Raikage looked at the intelligence report in his hand. "Zhi, how are the troops preparations?"
The secretary holding a stack of documents bowed slightly. "Raikage, the troops are fully prepared and can set out at any time."
"Mm." The Raikage nodded, placed the report on the desk, and ordered, "Make preparations to defend against Kirigakure."
The secretary froze for a moment before replying, "Yes, Raikage."
Land of Wind, Sunagakure.
The Third Kazekage looked at the intelligence report in his hand and said disdainfully:
"Hmph. Iwagakure has truly declined."
"Iwagakure can't be relied upon. We'd better depend on ourselves."
Land of Fire, Konoha's Shadow Tower.
Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe, his gaze deep as he ordered:
"Send two Anbu teams to keep constant watch on Kirigakure's movements."
Land of Rain, Konoha Camp.
Orochimaru set down the intelligence report, a sinister smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Interesting. It can actually achieve this level?"
He immediately ordered, "Prepare to attack!"
Kirigakure.
The most bewildered of all was Kirigakure.
Kirigakure stood isolated across the sea and had no intention of joining the battle yet. Ideally, the great nations would fight each other until their tempers flared and they were exhausted. Then Kirigakure could enter the battlefield and reap the benefits.
But now, the Third Mizukage had suddenly received a report from his subordinates saying that all four great nations had dispatched Anbu to monitor Kirigakure.
This frightened him. What was going on? Had the four great nations decided to deal with the Land of Water first?
Then one furious letter after another arrived from Iwagakure.
"What the hell is wrong with Kirigakure? Are you planning to avenge the Second Mizukage now? Let me tell you, at worst, Iwagakure will stop caring about everyone else and deal with you alone!"
Kirigakure stared in bewilderment as it realized that the situation had suddenly taken a sharp turn for the worse.
It hurriedly investigated what was going on.
In the end, it discovered that this was probably, seemingly, indeed Shikotsumyaku. There was no other ninjutsu in the shinobi world that could have caused such a scene.
But with a pot suddenly falling from the sky onto them, Kirigakure naturally couldn't admit to it.
"It wasn't me! I didn't do it! Don't make things up!"
After a string of vehement denials, they quickly summoned the Kaguya Clan Leader for a meeting.
"What is going on with you? You were hiding a shinobi of this level?"
"Speak! Are you coveting my position as Mizukage?"
The Kaguya Clan Leader's head throbbed. How was he supposed to explain this? He had never been good with words, and now it was even harder for him to make himself understood.
And just as the leaders of the various nations were running around in chaos and tearing their hair out over the situation—
Where was our protagonist?
Land of Grass, inside a valley.
That day, Hyuga Ao had eventually felt a gust of wind blowing toward her. Just before losing consciousness, she adjusted her Shikotsumyaku Winged Suit, strengthening its ability to remain airborne and its durability. Then she lost consciousness and was carried by the wind toward an unknown destination.
Somewhere deep in her subconscious, Hyuga Ao felt the wind carrying her dissipate.
Then she began to plummet continuously.
Hyuga Ao fell into a mountain, crashing into countless trees before rolling down from the mountainside. Once the Winged Suit on her body lost the support of chakra, it shattered amid the repeated impacts.
When the Winged Suit broke apart, the clothes she had originally been wearing were torn into shreds as well.
In the end, Hyuga Ao lay naked beside a mountain stream, her body covered in scratches, and fainted.
When she hazily woke, Hyuga Ao felt a scorching pain throughout her body. In her daze, she saw someone approach.
That person seemed to say something beside her ear. Then Hyuga Ao felt herself bite down on something, and a warm current flowed into her mouth, spreading throughout her body. A cool sensation came from her wounds.
Once she knew she was safe, Hyuga Ao fainted again.
The morning chirping of birds mingled with the sound of dripping water.
Hyuga Ao woke to find herself inside a wooden cabin.
"Heh, an unfamiliar ceiling." Hyuga Ao smiled bitterly. At last, she had a chance to say that line.
"You're awake!" a gentle voice called out.
Hyuga Ao followed the voice and saw that the person who had saved her was a girl of seventeen or eighteen.
The girl had red hair and red eyes, with delicate features that revealed a hint of gentleness.
She wore a hempen garment, which only made her clean, untainted aura stand out more, as if she had lived isolated from the world for many years.
She held one hand behind her back and cautiously watched Hyuga Ao, like a startled fawn that might flee at the slightest disturbance.
Hyuga Ao forced herself to sit up and found that she was wearing a layer of thin silk clothing. Looking at the wary Red-Haired Girl, she said helplessly:
"Don't be afraid of me. I'm practically half-paralyzed right now. You can put the Kunai away."
Hyuga Ao had already exhausted her chakra, and after that hard landing, she was lucky not to have died. However, the shock and bruising her body had suffered would not heal anytime soon.
Hearing Hyuga Ao's words, the Red-Haired Girl blushed slightly, lowered the Kunai from behind her, and approached.
"Who are you? Why were you lying there?"
Hyuga Ao observed the approaching girl. Her red hair, together with the warmth she had felt that day, reminded Hyuga Ao of something. Looking more closely at her face, she could vaguely make out a resemblance to Kushina.
An eighteen-year-old girl living alone in a valley was even stranger.
"Are you a member of the Uzumaki Clan?"
"Clatter!"
The moment the girl heard those words, she bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She frantically backed away, knocking over a string of objects.
Fear filled her eyes, as though she carried a deep psychological scar. She picked up the Kunai again and gripped it with both hands, her body trembling slightly. In a hoarse, desperate voice, she shouted, "What more do you want! Haven't you done enough? Why won't you leave us alone?"
The girl's overreaction startled Hyuga Ao, who hurriedly tried to calm her.
"I'm not your enemy. Really. I'm a Konoha shinobi."
"Look at my eyes. Aren't they white? That's the Hyuga Clan's defining trait. You know the Hyuga, right? The Hyuga are from Konoha."
After Hyuga Ao swore repeatedly to reassure her, the girl finally lowered her guard little by little.
Then she began sobbing loudly, as though she had seen a relative.
Hyuga Ao couldn't help sighing at Konoha's incompetence.
After finally calming the girl in front of her again, Hyuga Ao's newly recovered energy was completely drained. She gave a brief explanation, then fell into a deep sleep once more.
Before you continue