"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you, Hikari."
The mist gradually cleared, and Hikari appeared beside Haori. Haori's expression was somewhat helpless.
Especially when he saw the Amaterasu flames still burning all around him on the ground, he had no idea what to say for a moment.
Actually, the instant he saw those flames, he had already guessed that Hikari was responsible.
Madara's ocular techniques had never been explained. No one knew what they were.
But no matter how he thought about it, they probably weren't Amaterasu. Besides, Haori had made a few guesses of his own.
Madara had always given people one impression—that he was so powerful that no one could stand against him, and that every ability he used was terrifying.
So was it possible that one of his ocular techniques enhanced the power of any jutsu he used?
Of course, that was only a guess. What's more, judging by his later actions, he truly had never used Amaterasu.
So the only person here who could use Amaterasu was Hikari.
"And this Amaterasu is different, too. She can control its shape like this. Could her other ocular technique be Kagutsuchi?"
Haori wondered to himself, but faced with flames like these, even though he knew they were protecting him, he could sense that they might erupt at any moment.
So he didn't dare move at all, which led to a rather awkward situation.
Kisame and Zabuza had both run off.
They had also been sent flying by the massive shock wave earlier, and its immense power had made them realize they were in danger.
They also knew that all that commotion could attract even more enemies.
On top of that, the pressure Haori put on them was simply too great, so they exchanged a glance and made their decision.
Time to get the hell out of here!
Hikari had no idea what Haori was thinking. She only glanced at the flames on the ground, and in an instant, they vanished without a trace.
"Is your ability Amaterasu?"
Haori hesitated, but in the end, he couldn't help asking.
"Yeah. Amaterasu is one of my abilities."
Hikari glanced at Haori, thought it over, then nodded.
One of her abilities.
Haori could barely contain his urge to complain. He was now completely certain that more than one ocular technique had been transplanted into Hikari.
But he didn't ask any more questions. It was impolite to pry into someone else's secrets, and now wasn't the time anyway.
He still didn't know how Kakashi and Rin were doing. He had to hurry and find them.
He didn't want Obito to have it so easy, and this was related to his mission, too!
Thinking of this, Haori spoke softly to Hikari.
"I have two teammates, and I don't know where they are. I need to go find them."
"Also, you should try not to use this kind of power unless you have to."
"Why?"
Hikari looked at Haori in confusion. After thinking for a moment, she asked curiously,
"Are you worried I'll attract too much attention and someone will notice me?"
You're only realizing that now?
Haori felt a little helpless, but he chose a different way to explain. "I don't have eyes like yours, but I've read some books."
"Books?" Hikari blinked.
"That's right. The Mangekyō Sharingan is a tremendous power of the Uchiha, but these eyes have one obvious drawback."
Haori's expression grew a little more serious.
"The more you use them, the faster they'll become sealed away, until they're completely sealed and you're trapped in darkness forever.
"These eyes gave you power, but they also took everything from you.
"So I hope you'll promise me that unless you're in real danger, you won't use their power lightly. All right?"
He doesn't want me to fall into darkness again?
Hikari looked quietly at Haori. After a moment, she nodded gently. "I promise, Haori."
"Mm."
Hearing that, Haori relaxed a little. Madara had probably noticed them, but it was still necessary to keep a low profile from now on.
Still, he had a feeling that Hikari had misunderstood him.--
"Captain, does this kid really know anything?"
In a cave at the other end of the forest, several masked Kirigakure Anbu watched the unconscious Rin. One of them couldn't help asking curiously.
"According to the information we have, this kid is Namikaze Minato's student."
The Anbu Captain glanced at his subordinates, thought for a moment, then explained.
"Not just her—the white-haired one is, too. And Namikaze Minato took part in the negotiations between Konoha and Iwagakure from beginning to end.
"Since they're his students, we should be able to pry some information out of them. Then we can carry out this sabotage mission without a hitch.
"Do you want Konoha to end the war just like that? Don't forget the humiliation they've made us suffer!"
Konoha and Kirigakure had long been bitter enemies. Even the Second Mizukage and Second Tsuchikage killing each other hadn't changed the fact that Konoha was their primary rival.
Perhaps the old tale was true—when Konoha was founded, Senju Hashirama invited the clans that were then in the Land of Fire, and would later become the great clans of Kirigakure.
But they all turned him down. As a result, Uchiha Madara personally drove them all out to sea, and that was how Kirigakure came to be.
Of course, no one could say for sure whether this was true, because those great clans would never admit it.
Likewise, no one dared ask them. But the Land of Whirlpools, which had once been close to Konoha, had indeed been destroyed by Kirigakure.
"I see. Looks like this kid still has some value."
After hearing the Anbu Captain's explanation, the other Kirigakure Anbu had no more objections.
"All right. Once she wakes up, we'll interrogate her for information. One of you stay here to guard her. The rest, go clean up the traces."
"Yes, Captain!"
The Anbu answered loudly. They quickly left, leaving one person behind to guard the cave entrance.
But after they left, a stone in one corner of the cave suddenly shifted slightly, then silently crumbled apart.
Kakashi slipped out, his crimson eye fixed on the Kirigakure shinobi left on guard. The chakra within him stirred faintly.
"Hm?"
The Kirigakure Anbu sensed something at that moment, but the instant he turned around, Kakashi had already moved!
The blade in his hand flashed lightly. By the time Kakashi stood still, the short sword was already back in its sheath.
The Kirigakure Anbu had been killed without a sound!
Kakashi took a deep breath. Looking at the unconscious Rin, he felt both relieved and guilty.
If he hadn't been so weak, how could Rin have been taken away?
Fortunately, the Kirigakure Anbu who had intercepted him didn't seem intent on fighting to the death. The explosion had been so loud that they were worried more enemies might arrive.
That was how Kakashi had managed to catch up so quickly and, with the help of the Ninja Dogs, find Rin!
"It's all right now, Rin."
Looking at the unconscious Rin, Kakashi sighed inwardly.
"This time, I absolutely won't let the past repeat itself. I'll protect everything, no matter what!"
What Kakashi didn't know was that a pair of eyes were watching them from underground.
That strange chakra flowed silently through the cave--
"Lord Madara."
In the basement beneath the Land of Grass, White Zetsu's head emerged from the wall again.
"Obito is ready. He wants to see you now."
"Mm."
Madara nodded slightly, then asked,
"How are things with Iwagakure and Konoha?"
"They've both made their moves and are heading that way."
White Zetsu answered honestly. Accomplishing all this silently and without a trace was no challenge for him.
"And as Lord Madara instructed, Iwagakure will arrive early, while Konoha will be a little late."
"Then bring Obito to see me."
Madara nodded, a playful smile appearing on his aged face.
"After all this preparation and all this waiting, it's time for the show to begin."