On the way back, Sosuke kept thinking about how to overcome the shortcomings.
Different space-time ninjutsu manifested in different ways.
In terms of offensive power, Kamui, which could easily twist space, was unquestionably the strongest.
In terms of convenience, Yomotsu Hirasaka allowed its user to travel freely between different spaces.
In terms of creativity, Amenominaka could create a space out of thin air and transfer everything within a certain range.
Compared to these techniques, the Flying Thunder God Technique's only outstanding advantage was speed.
With a mere thought, its user could teleport to a designated Space Coordinate.
But the process being fast didn't mean the user could attack just as quickly.
Using the Flying Thunder God Technique normally involved a set sequence of actions.
Sense the Space Coordinate, teleport, assess the enemy's position, choose an attack, then swing a blade to kill.
Only after all those actions did a complete space-time assassination take place.
Although he could appear in an instant, Sosuke still had to lock onto the enemy, process the information, and then overcome the delay in deciding to attack.
No matter how fast he moved, he couldn't avoid this process. All he could do was reduce his reaction time as much as possible.
"The Flying Thunder God's teleportation itself has no delay."
"I'm the one slowing down the attack."
Mito, standing beside him, couldn't understand what the boy was fretting over.
He'd created such a powerful technique, so why did he still look a little gloomy?
Suddenly, Uzumaki Mito leaped onto a tree in front of them and pointed ahead, excitement in her voice. "Look! There's a little village hidden over there."
There wasn't a soul for miles, and the forest was home to plenty of large beasts. Under normal circumstances, no one would build a village here.
A scene this strange could only mean the village itself was probably up to no good.
Still, what did that have to do with him?
He was just about to tell Mito to get down when Sosuke suddenly paused, as though he'd sensed something that caught his interest.
This time, he didn't object. He jumped up onto the treetop as well and looked toward the village.
"Well, this is interesting. I didn't expect to stumble across something unexpected."
Mito frowned and looked at the infuriating riddler beside her.
If he was going to say something, he should say the whole thing instead of leaving her hanging. Didn't he know how annoying that was?
The Ponytail Princess felt like biting someone again.
Sosuke decided to investigate the village, and naturally, she had no reason to refuse.
To be honest, Mito wasn't in any hurry to return to the Land of Fire. She didn't want to resume her role as Princess of the Land of Whirlpools.
That way, she wouldn't have to think about the future conflict between the Uzumaki and the Uchiha.
"Then I wouldn't have to face you as an enemy on the battlefield."
Of course, proud Mito would never admit that. She had plenty of excuses to convince herself otherwise.
For instance, she shouldn't defeat the benefactor who had saved her.
Defeating the Uchiha would indirectly encourage the Fūma Clan's human trafficking, and so on.
As for how believable any of those excuses were, Mito figured it didn't really matter.
With questions in their minds, the two entered the little village.
Unlike what they'd imagined, the villagers were very warm and friendly. They even prepared a lavish dinner for the two travelers.
"It's been a long time since anyone from outside came to our village." The old village chief looked genuinely delighted.
The other villagers were the same. They seemed to be quietly looking forward to something, and there was a barely perceptible hint of madness mixed in with their warmth.
Uzumaki Mito was deeply moved.
"Sniff, sniff. The villagers are such good people."
At that, a strange smile tugged at Sosuke's lips. "Don't be so quick to decide that."
He stopped his companion from giving the villagers a clean bill of health, then went to the window and focused his gaze on the northwest side of the village.
He could sense that something over there was different.
But when he tried to investigate, the villagers unanimously objected. The village chief even stepped forward to scare them off. "Listen, don't go over there unless you have to. A lot of our children have gone missing there."
The village chief looked terrified. Mito gulped repeatedly, her little hand instinctively clutching her companion's clothes.
"Th-then, have you investigated it carefully?"
"It's no use." The village chief shook his head and revealed something even more startling. "We once paid a fortune to hire a ninja, but what happened? He went over there and never came back."
"Even a ninja couldn't handle it?!"
"Hmph. Ninjas are people too. There are always things they can't deal with."
Looking at the frightened girl, the village chief quietly uttered one word: "Ghosts."
"In any case, don't go running up the mountain behind the village."
The village chief left, satisfied. Sosuke remained in the room, deep in thought. He couldn't shake the feeling that the man had been deliberately trying to frighten him.
An ordinary person would have been scared by the village chief's story. Well, Mito wasn't exactly ordinary, but she hadn't escaped its effect either.
Judging by how furtive she looked, if Sosuke weren't here, she probably wouldn't dare stay in the village tonight no matter what.
"Get some rest." Seeing no one else around, Sosuke decided to investigate on his own. "I'll find out what that ghost really is."
"O-okay." Mito nodded, with no intention of going along.
Only after her companion had left did she let out a long breath, thinking that only a fool would follow him.
She'd stay behind in the room and wait for him to come back. If something did happen, maybe she could at least collect his body.
"Heh heh heh." Gazing out at the darkening sky, the Ponytail Princess still hadn't realized how serious things were.
As darkness settled in and the entire village fell so silent that not a sound could be heard, fear suddenly spread through her.
Something was really wrong.
Even if everyone was used to going to bed early, surely there should be at least one oil lamp lit.
Staring out into the pitch-black night, Mito shuddered and firmly shut the window.
At last, she realized what was so strange about the village.
Forget sleeping—the Ponytail Princess didn't even dare close her eyes, afraid the ghost would snatch her away the moment she let her guard down.
Bang!
She didn't know how much time had passed when the violent rattle of the door jolted Mito awake as she dozed in her chair.
"S-Sosuke, you're back?" she called in a trembling voice, but got no answer.
The crack in the door looked like the entrance to an abyss. Just staring at it seemed enough to suck out a person's soul.
Mito slowly stood up, steeled herself, and walked toward the door. She wanted to close the gap in the wooden door.
"I'm not afraid. I'm Uzumaki Mito, Princess of the Land of Whirlpools, a remarkable woman blessed with beauty and brains."
The moment her hand touched the door, the Ponytail Princess—still muttering to herself—suddenly sensed something strange in the darkness outside.
She looked closer. Every hair on her body instantly stood on end, and a chill shot up her spine to the crown of her head.
In the darkness outside, an eye was staring at her through the crack in the door.
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