Sarutobi Hiruzen's Decision

A moment later!

"The Evil God Cult?"

After learning what had happened from the villagers, the expressions of Kakashi and his team shifted.

"I have heard vague rumors about this sect. It is a cult that worships the slaughter of innocent people, offering them as sacrifices to a so-called Evil God."

Kakashi's expression was grave as he said, "However, they hide within the borders of the Land of Rivers and rarely target Konoha Jonin or important figures from the Land of Fire, so it is difficult for Konoha to cross borders to deal with the Evil God Cult."

"I never imagined they could be this cruel."

"If it weren't for... his appearance, this village likely wouldn't have a single person left."

"And in other places we cannot see, there may already be many similar villages that have..."

"This Evil God Cult truly deserves to die!" Hyuga Nozomu spoke with righteous indignation, then added with some concern, "But that Blood Butcher can not only manipulate blood, he also possesses powerful self-healing abilities."

"Does this self-healing ability seem to originate from that so-called Evil God?"

"Could it be that there really is an Evil God in this world?"

"Furthermore, although the Blood Butcher's Imperfect Undying Body can be easily dealt with by Hyuga Chiba without even needing to use the power of the Tenseigan..."

"It doesn't mean there isn't an Evil God Cultist out there who truly possesses an Immortal Body."

Hearing this, Kakashi's expression also grew heavy.

An Evil God Cultist who possesses an Immortal Body and enjoys slaughtering innocent people everywhere is a headache just to think about.

If his primary mission this time wasn't to pursue Hyuga Chiba, and if the Evil God Cult wasn't located outside the Land of Fire—making them difficult to eradicate—Kakashi would have wanted to wipe out the Evil God Cult first.

"Did he say that?"

At the same time, Hyuga Nozomu learned from the villagers the last sentence Chiba had spoken. He immediately understood the latter's meaning and shook his head, saying, "He is right. It is better for you to know as little about him as possible."

"This way, you will be safer, and he can avoid some unnecessary trouble."

Hearing this, although the villagers were very puzzled, they stopped asking questions.

After experiencing such a major upheaval, they no longer wanted to bring any more trouble upon themselves or the benefactor who had saved them.

Those villagers who were quicker on the uptake and had already guessed something were even less likely to continue prying.

"Hm?"

At this moment, Pakkun, the leader of the Eight Ninja Hounds, twitched his nose and said to Kakashi and Hyuga Nozomu, "That person's scent is moving away from the previous location. I fear he will enter the Land of Wind very soon."

"Good!" Kakashi nodded, making a swift decision. "Since his target is likely Sunagakure, we shouldn't follow behind him. Let's head straight to Sunagakure at top speed."

"No problem." Hyuga Nozomu naturally wouldn't object and nodded immediately.

And so!

Kakashi, Hyuga Nozomu, and the eight ninja hounds quickly departed the village, heading directly toward Sunagakure.

Konoha!

Hokage's Office!

"The One-Tailed Jinchuriki?"

After hearing the report and speculations from Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Choza, Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe. With a gradually solemn expression, he asked Nara Shikaku, "Shikaku, do you really believe Hyuga Chiba would disregard the life of the current One-Tailed Jinchuriki and forcibly transfer the One-Tail Shukaku into his own body?"

"I apologize, Hokage-sama, I am not entirely certain. I know far too little about him," Nara Shikaku responded truthfully. "But as long as Hyuga Chiba does not linger in the Land of Rivers for long, his only target can be the One-Tail Shukaku in Sunagakure."

"Only the nearly inexhaustible chakra of a Tailed Beast would allow him to maintain the Tenseigan Chakra Mode for such an extended period."

"However, this does not necessarily mean that Hyuga Chiba will make himself the new Jinchuriki."

"According to intelligence provided by the Hyuga Clan, his Tenseigan possesses a certain ability to extract chakra from within a target's body."

"If he can control the amount of chakra extracted, he should be able to siphon only a portion of the Tailed Beast's chakra without harming the Jinchuriki's life."

"Or perhaps, the Tenseigan possesses other abilities unknown to us."

After listening to this, Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered carefully before giving his orders: "Even if Hyuga Chiba does not actually kill the One-Tailed Jinchuriki, it would not necessarily be a good thing if he manages to obtain the Tailed Beast's chakra."

"Initiate emergency communication and inform Sunagakure of this matter as quickly as possible."

"Additionally, have all Jonin currently without missions head to Sunagakure immediately."

"Stop Hyuga Chiba before he can obtain the Tailed Beast's chakra, if at all possible."

"And..." Sarutobi Hiruzen paused, his voice dropping, before issuing another order: "Find a way to locate Jiraiya and Tsunade and have them return to the village."

"Tell them I have a matter of great importance that I need to discuss with them."

"Hokage-sama?" Nara Shikaku's expression changed instantly.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's previous orders were standard enough, but to recall Jiraiya and Tsunade for such a reason at a time like this—no matter how one looked at it, it felt wrong, didn't it?

A certain possibility even began to dawn on Nara Shikaku.

If that were truly the case, then the entire village of Konoha would likely face earth-shattering changes.

"Shikaku, do as I say."

Sarutobi Hiruzen did not offer an explanation, instead emphasizing his tone.

"Yes, Lord Hokage!"

Seeing this, Nara Shikaku could only nod, immediately preparing to head out and execute Sarutobi Hiruzen's orders.

Root Base!

Danzo sat above, silently watching the Root Ninjas kneeling below.

The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly oppressive.

It was unknown how much time had passed when Danzo finally spoke, his voice flat yet incomparably cold: "Are you telling me that after all this time, you didn't even catch a glimpse of Hyuga Chiba's main body, and were instead held back by some of his shadow clones?"

Danzo was furious at this moment.

It was not just because the Root Ninjas had failed to bring back the Tenseigan he desired, but also because the Root Ninjas he had sent to hunt down Hyuga Chiba were essentially all Jonin, with one or two even being Elite Jonin.

Yet, as it turned out, quite a few of them had been lost at the hands of Hyuga Chiba's shadow clones?

One had to know that even for Root, cultivating a Jonin, let alone an Elite Jonin, was no easy task.

"..."

The Root Ninjas below buried their heads even lower, not daring to open their mouths to defend themselves.

"Lord Danzo!"

At this moment, a Root Ninja flickered into the room, kneeling on one knee to report to Danzo: "Lord Hokage has initiated emergency communications, contacting Sunagakure."

"He has also dispatched all available Jonin within the village."

"The reason is that Hyuga Chiba may be targeting Sunagakure's One-Tail Shukaku to compensate for his lack of chakra."