Awakening, Mito's Resolve!

When the sailboat docked, the ambush officially began.

Under Uzumaki Cage General's lead, the ninjas launched a fierce assault on the enemy.

But with those women present, they couldn't use large-scale lethal ninjutsu, effectively discarding the Uzumaki Clan's most innate advantage.

Fortunately, the "Pillar of the Land of Whirlpools" was no empty title—none of those frenzied enemies lasted five seconds before him.

"Rescue them first." Uzumaki Cage General didn't forget to remind his men.

The battle went smoothly, even making him doubt the accuracy of his perception.

No matter how he looked at it, the enemy didn't seem to have set up an ambush in advance—or perhaps they had simply underestimated the Uzumaki Clan's power.

Watching the Princess open the cage and release the slaves inside, Uzumaki Cage General prepared to cover everyone's retreat first.

Once they left the harbor and confirmed safety, he would double back to test that mysterious enemy.

"Ah!!!"

Suddenly, a subordinate's scream rang out. Uzumaki Cage General instinctively turned to look.

An Uzumaki clansman lay on the ground, his abdomen soaked in blood. The killer was the female slave who had been crying just moments ago.

"Everyone be careful—these people are compromised!" Mito shouted harshly, never expecting the enemy's methods to be so vicious.

Unfortunately, they realized it too late. The Ponytail Princess's warning hadn't even taken effect before nearly half the clan lay in pools of blood.

The blades hidden beneath their prison uniforms were all coated with lethal poison; even a scratch on the skin would trigger an immediate shock reaction.

"How could this happen." Muto was bewildered, unable to understand why the situation, which had been fine moments ago, had suddenly taken such a sharp turn.

Watching the woman lunging at her, the Princess's eyes hardened. She raised a foot and kicked her squarely in the jaw.

The crisp sound of bone cracking was like a slow, soothing stream, effectively calming the wound of guilt in her heart.

"Kill!" Uzumaki Mito's eyes turned icy as she charged into the enemy ranks and began a massacre.

Men, women, old, young—anyone who didn't drop to the ground immediately became a corpse beneath her blade.

Perhaps there were innocent deaths among them, but she couldn't keep risking her clansmen's lives.

If there was sin, let her bear it alone.

Growth always comes with a price.

On the other side, Uzumaki Cage General finally met the figure he had sensed.

A formidable character with immense chakra.

"Who are you?" he asked.

But the white-haired man couldn't be bothered with words. He simply drew the long blade from his back and swung it at him.

After more than a dozen fierce exchanges, Uzumaki Cage General gradually realized he was being suppressed in taijutsu.

"Looks like you're no small fry either." His hands formed seals, and scorching flames suddenly erupted from his mouth.

Fire Style: Fire Flame Whirlwind!

At such close range, there was no way the enemy could dodge.

The Uzumaki Clan had a special constitution, with abnormally vast chakra reserves. He could unleash large-scale ninjutsu like this without pause.

He was truly a formidable ninjutsu cannon.

"HAHAHAHA." Maniacal laughter came from within the flame vortex. Under Uzumaki Cage General's grim gaze, the white-haired man stepped through the Sea of Fire one step at a time.

At that level of heat, he should have been roasted to charcoal. But beneath the man's skin lay a strange white substance.

It was that substance that had shielded him from the lethal temperature.

"Interesting, isn't it?" The man, his skin largely charred, spoke with a sick smile that outsiders couldn't understand. "This is the legendary Shikotsumyaku—a rare ability seen only once in decades."

"Forgive me for not introducing myself."

The moment he finished speaking, the white-haired man exploded with chakra, charging at his opponent like a swift arrow.

"My name is 'Kaguya Hisao.' You are worthy of knowing my name."

Several pale ribs pierced through his skin, successfully blocking the descending blade. Kaguya Hisao grinned savagely as arm bones burst through his palms, shooting straight at his foe.

Shikotsumyaku: Twin Thorns!

Two spurts of blood erupted left and right. Uzumaki Cage General gritted his teeth, abandoned his blade, and retreated, his arms moving uncontrollably.

If he hadn't twisted his body at the critical moment, his heart would have been pierced clean through.

Staring at the enemy's deranged smile, Uzumaki Cage General clenched his teeth and began unleashing large-scale ninjutsu without regard for the consequences.

If he couldn't kill the enemy, he would at least buy time—he couldn't let them chase the Princess.

"GO!!!"

The roar ringing in her ears left Uzumaki Mito's expression slightly dazed.

For as long as she could remember, Uzumaki Cage General had been invincible in her eyes. Aside from her father, who rarely acted, no one in the Land of Whirlpools was stronger than him.

But just now, the pillar had crumbled. After only a few exchanges, he had fallen completely on the defensive.

She knew that whether she escaped or not, Uncle Cage General couldn't escape the enemy's deadly grasp.

All of this started because of her blind pursuit of justice.

"Ah!" Mito's eyes split with fury. She couldn't bear to let everything she cherished slip away like this.

Just as her spirit was about to reach its breaking point, a strange light suddenly burst from the small of her back, and then she saw five golden chains howling up into the sky.

They repelled the enemies pressing in, intercepted the bone blades shot by the foe, then bound several people—including Uzumaki Cage General—and flung them forcefully toward the sky behind her.

"You go first. That's an order!" Mito's tone brooked no dissent.

For a single moment, everyone seemed to see Uzumaki Ashina himself.

Even the highest-ranking Uzumaki Cage General instinctively obeyed Mito's command. By the time he came to his senses, the Princess was already deep in encirclement.

"Your Highness!"

The golden chains forced the surrounding enemies back. Mito didn't even turn her head as she said coldly, "Uzumaki Cage General, are you going to defy my orders?"

As the Princess of the Land of Whirlpools, her commands could never be questioned by subordinates, even if they knew full well she was throwing away her own life.

"...Let's go." Uzumaki Cage General lowered his head, the guilt inside him nearly burning him to ashes.

But he understood that even if he rushed back now, it would only be throwing away another life, utterly useless.

"Kaguya Hisao, I will kill you!!!"

"Good, they're gone." A faint smile slowly crept across Mito's lips.

The golden chains behind her flickered in and out of visibility. Having just awakened, she couldn't control them well at all.

If not for the violent turmoil in her heart, under normal circumstances, Mito would have needed another ten or twenty years of training to awaken the "Adamantine Sealing Chains."

She refused to accept that ending. The only thing she could do was trade her life for theirs.

The mistake she had made, she chose to bear alone.

"It's okay. Father will avenge me." Mito's Chakra was nearly spent.

Ignoring the enemies eyeing her like tigers, in these final moments of her life, the figure of that Youth appeared before her eyes.

"Come to think of it, I've never even been in love. How unfair."

She slowly closed her eyes. The next second, she felt herself fall into a warm embrace.

"Don't be afraid. I'm here."