"There are other humans besides me in these lost ruins thousands of meters beneath the sea?!"
Nishikawa Tetsu's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart began racing uncontrollably.
He quickly pressed his entire body against the cold stone wall in the shadows, suppressing his chakra fluctuations to the absolute minimum and even slowing his breathing to an extremely low rate.
As a deputy director who was not only proficient with all kinds of high-tech ninja tools but had also personally received training in Konoha's top assassination techniques under White Fang, Nishikawa Tetsu might not have matched a true Anbu elite in stealth, but hiding himself in these dimly lit ruins with their complex terrain was well within his abilities.
Like a gecko blending into the darkness, he crept silently along the wall of the temple passage toward the spacious underground plaza ahead.
By the faint blue light from the strange minerals embedded in the walls, the scene at the center of the plaza gradually came into focus.
The giant sea hare that had rampaged on the surface and given even Kushina trouble was now lying meekly atop an enormous formation that radiated a soft green glow in the center of the plaza.
Its eyes were closed, and it seemed to thoroughly enjoy bathing in that light. Ripples passed across its jellylike, translucent skin beneath the green glow.
Several figures stood at the edge of the formation.
A few people wearing what looked like scientific protective suits held various instruments, recording data around the formation and occasionally collecting mucus samples from the sea hare's body.
Behind these researchers stood an exceptionally conspicuous man.
He was an extraordinarily burly man.
Even standing there in silence, he exuded a savage, oppressive presence like a great bear in the wilderness. He wore a loose, earth-gray