Acquisition

"Of course!"

"No need for a deposit. If your only goal is the stars, then I can help you!"

"Wait! Natsuhi! They're suspicious ninjas, how can you trust them so easily?" Hotarubi said, but as he spoke, he suddenly coughed, his emotions running high.

"Hotaru!" Natsuhi anxiously called out to her partner. As companions and husband and wife who had trained in the Mysterious Peacock Method together since childhood, she naturally knew her husband's current physical condition. As a mother, she didn't want this tragedy to be passed on to their son.

"No matter what their intentions are, as long as they can take the stars away, isn't that enough?" Seeing the bright red blood seeping through the gaps between Hotarubi's fingers as he covered his mouth, Natsuhi's eyes welled up with tears.

"Cough! Cough! Cough..."

"Your companion... seems to have a serious problem? Shall I take a look?" Souya looked at the two Hoshigakure ninjas who seemed prone to "loudly plotting" and showed a helpless expression.

"You know medical ninjutsu?" Natsuhi, who had lived in seclusion, was not shallow in her knowledge.

"A little." Souya looked at Natsuhi, whose beautiful eyes were filled with tears, and said calmly, his emotions undisturbed. After all, he didn't have the "tyrant's hobby" of Boss Cao. Souya had also studied the Mystical Palm Technique for a period. With his powerful Soul Power, his ability to precisely control Chakra was quite outstanding. Chiyo, who had taught Souya back then, had also praised him highly. Chiyo had once lamented that Hoshigakure lacked advanced medical ninjutsu inheritance; otherwise, Hoshigakure might have produced someone like Tsunade.

Natsuhi led them into a cave. Inside, a few animal skins were sparsely laid out as blankets. Remnants of charcoal were still visible on the back wall of the cave, clearly indicating that someone had lived there.

A green light illuminated, and Souya began to examine Hotarubi's body.

"His condition is caused by his internal life force being drained, leading to organ failure and functional decline!" Souya said with a frown. To his senses, Hotarubi, who appeared very young on the outside, had organs that felt like those of a seventy or eighty-year-old man. Furthermore, his meridians were permeated with a faint purple light, like a leech clinging to his bones, constantly sucking away his life force.

"With such severe life force depletion, ordinary medical ninjutsu will no longer be effective. Only Forbidden Jutsu-level techniques might be able to extend his life," Souya concluded ruthlessly.

"How about it? Can our deal continue?" Souya interrupted directly.

"Yes! We can tell you the location of the stars and help you steal them, but you cannot harm any ninja from Hoshigakure during this process."

"We don't need money, but you must re-establish the sealing barrier and teach Natsuhi how to control it." Hotarubi changed his mind. Clearly, the after-effects of practicing the Mysterious Peacock Method had brought him to the end of his life. To completely resolve this scourge, he couldn't worry about anything else.

"Hotaru..." Natsuhi still looked at him with worry.

Hotarubi stood up, gently stroked Natsuhi's soft, long hair, and said softly, "We two had already planned to do this, but if we did, we would definitely be expelled from the village."

"Even if we don't care, we have to think more about our son..."

"If they do this, then at the very least, you can take care of him by Subaru's side in the future!"

"No! It'll be fine! You'll be fine! We'll both be by Subaru's side, watching him grow up, always with him..." Natsuhi's emotions suddenly broke down, and she buried herself in Hotarubi's arms, crying bitterly.

Hotarubi's lips curved into a smile as he stroked Natsuhi's head, a deep regret on his face.

Souya and Sasori walked out of the cave, leaving the place that reeked of sourness.

"Why didn't you just steal it?" Sasori, who had been a spectator the whole time, asked.

A gentle breeze brushed past, ruffling the short black hair on Souya's forehead. He took a deep breath, looked at the tranquil mountain valley, and felt the serenity.

"Perhaps because that woman also has red hair!"

Late that night, the starlight was dim, and the silver glow of the moon was obscured by dark clouds. The night sky appeared exceptionally deep. A golden cloud quietly drifted towards the sky above Hoshigakure, concealed by the darkness, not particularly conspicuous.

"This is it. People who train at this time have already returned, and there won't be any ninjas on guard."

"You can leave directly after you take it," Hotarubi said softly, standing on the golden cloud. The evening wind seemed a bit chilly, or perhaps for other reasons, Hotarubi's face showed a hint of worry.

"The terrain is quite unique!" Souya commented. With his exceptional eyesight as a ninja, aided by the faint moonlight, Souya could see a quarry-like deep pit below.

"What is that raised slope behind us?" Souya asked casually.

"That's where the ancestors of past generations rest!" Natsuhi, who had no ulterior motives, replied.

Souya gave a soft "Oh" and then controlled the golden cloud to descend directly to the ground. The ground was covered with small, dark blue pebbles. Stepping on them inadvertently would make a crunching sound, but if one released Chakra from their feet beforehand, this could be avoided.

"Then we're going in!" Souya turned back and signaled to Hotarubi before walking into the wooden house ahead with Sasori. The wooden house was somewhat old and had no furnishings. As soon as Souya entered, he saw a sphere placed in the center. This sphere emitted an eerie purple light, and as the light flowed, a dangerous aura could be sensed. The pitted surface of the sphere was supported by a claw of an unknown beast. Three dark silver talons protruded from the tip of the claw, looking like no ordinary object.

"There really are such wondrous things in this world?!" Sasori's attention was instantly captured by the star, the purple light reflecting deep within his pupils.

"According to them, this star fell from the sky, so of course, it's not simple."

"Let's take it first! We can study it slowly later!" Souya was also observing the star, but he hadn't forgotten the main task.

"There's also a warning barrier set up underneath. If we take it directly, they'll probably catch up soon..."

"It's a shame that this level of barrier can't stop me." Souya smiled.