Pakura

Digging, digging, digging on the big mountain, bringing Uchiha's great-grandmother home!

Dayu Mountain truly lived up to the "big" in its name; Uchiha Chen had spent over ten days searching it, yet he had come up with absolutely nothing.

On this day, after another grueling day of hard work, a weary Uchiha Chen lay among the canopy of a century-old giant tree, eating his dry rations while boredly counting the stars in the night sky.

He had already searched the vicinity of Dayu Mountain thoroughly, especially every type of cave and hollow tree; he had even chased several hibernating bears out of their dens.

Logically speaking, any trace of a Sealing Technique should not have been able to escape the observation of Uchiha Chen's Sharingan, yet he had searched the entire surface of the mountain without finding a single clue.

If it were sealed a hundred meters deep inside the mountain, what could he do? Should he activate Susanoo and split the mountain in half?

Uchiha Chen felt a headache coming on, but he was unwilling to just give up like this.

The moon was dim and the stars were bright; in the pitch-black forest, there was only the sound of cold wind rustling the branches and the soft, silky murmur of a nearby stream.

There seem to be quite a few pools of water on Dayu Mountain; I can check them carefully tomorrow.

Uchiha Chen finished his rations and listened quietly to the duet of the flowing water and the wind, preparing to get a good night's sleep so he could continue his search tomorrow.

The stream gently lapped against the stones, the tinkling sound as pleasant as a bell striking a chime, while the wind in the forest rose and fell like the harmony of violins and cellos, and with the rhythmic popping of firecrackers, it was truly a sound of nature!

Wait, the sound of explosions?

Uchiha Chen sat up.

In a godforsaken place like Dayu Mountain, where only hunters came to bag game in the summer and autumn, where would the sound of explosions come from?

"Boom!"

A massive, scorching fireball ignited on the east side of the mountain, and several water dragons shot into the sky; as water and fire collided, thick water vapor rapidly filled the air.

Pakura's heart sank to the bottom of the abyss.

She could not understand why she, who had come to sign a peace treaty, was being ambushed by Kirigakure ninja.

"Cough, cough!"

After struggling to dodge a round of Kunai and Shuriken, Pakura raised her slender hand, condensed a Scorch Release fireball, and threw it out, only for it to be quickly extinguished by the Mist Ninja's Water Style.

She felt a sense of despair.

The group of over thirty Mist Ninja were all elite shinobi, including six or seven Jonin, and their leader was none other than the famous Suikazan Fuguki of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.

The Shinobi World's definition of a top-tier powerhouse had always been vague, with only one standard that was not quite a standard:

The ability to suppress and defeat, single-handedly, a three-man squad led by a famous Jonin with two Jonin subordinates.

A three-man Jonin squad was generally the standard for S-rank missions and represented the highest-spec conventional combat power a ninja village could field.

An enemy that even such a squad could not defeat was definitely threatening enough to be considered S-rank, and only a few people like a Jinchuriki or a Kage could deal with them.

The twenty-something Scorch Release user Pakura had reached this threshold in the last year or two.

Therefore, to show their respect for her, Suikazan Fuguki had brought two Jonin squads and an elite company of 27 men.

"Scorch Release: Extremely Steam Murder!"

Fighting like a cornered beast, Pakura ignored the consumption of her Chakra and condensed a large number of Scorch Release fireballs to force back the Mist Ninja's pursuit, though she could not help but cough up a mouthful of blood due to the injuries she had sustained from the earlier ambush.

"Why? A peace treaty is clearly beneficial to both Sunagakure and Kirigakure!"

"Kirigakure and Sunagakure will certainly stop fighting, but only after you are dead!"

Suikazan Fuguki gently stroked the bandage-wrapped Samehada on his back, which looked like a door panel, and grinned, revealing his jagged shark teeth:

"Sunagakure sent you and those hundreds of men to the Land of Whirlpools to be cannon fodder, yet you survived in the Land of Whirlpools with them.

A hero of Sunagakure, what a grand title.

If you were to return to Sunagakure with hundreds of battle-hardened elites, would Rasa even be able to sleep at night?"

I... was actually betrayed by my own village?

Pakura stopped her escape, soul-lost and bewildered; in her distraction, the dense, scorching fireballs that had been flying around her also revealed openings.

Seeing that his psychological warfare had worked and that Pakura's will to fight had greatly diminished, Suikazan Fuguki laughed maniacally:

"A hero abandoned by their village has no value in living! Watch out for her Scorch Release, use long-range attacks!"

The Mist Ninja threw Shuriken at Pakura from all directions, attempting to wear her down until she died in the encirclement.

"Is this how I am to die?"

Pakura simply gave up on resisting, closed her eyes, and began to recall her short life.

Training, fighting for the village, training, fighting for the village... these were the only barren images she could recall in her mind.

Pakura could not help but shiver; that she would think of the village that had betrayed her in her final moments was truly ironic!

A tear rolled down the corner of Pakura's eye.

Clang, clang, clang!

The crisp sound of metal colliding continued incessantly, yet Pakura felt no pain from being pierced.

She opened her eyes in confusion and saw a handsome youth wearing a Konoha forehead protector.

"Uchiha?"

There was no gratitude in Pakura's eyes, only confusion and wariness. "Why did you save me?"

"I was already planning on going to sleep, but the commotion you lot made was just too loud.

Sunagakure is an ally of Konoha, and Kirigakure is an enemy. Since I saw you being hunted, I naturally had to help out."

Uchiha Chen's expression was quite casual and lazy, a withered leaf pinched between his fingers as if he didn't even see the dozens of Mist Ninja surrounding them.

He glanced at Pakura's blood-soaked back and suddenly asked with a puzzled look:

"It's the middle of winter; aren't you cold wearing an outfit that leaves your entire back exposed?"

Pakura had never expected Uchiha Chen to ask such a nonsensical question in such a critical situation, and for a moment, she didn't know how to respond.

"Hahahahaha!"

One hundred million ryo had just grown legs and run right over to him.

Suikazan Fuguki let out a burst of laughter. The Samehada on his back suddenly broke free from its bandages, and the deep blue, barb-covered giant blade was held in his single hand, pointing toward Uchiha Chen and Pakura from afar:

"Flame Ghost Uchiha Chen! A double blessing, a double blessing!

When you were slaughtering Mist Ninja on the battlefield, did you ever think this day would come? Prepare to die!"

"No need to go through all that trouble."

Uchiha Chen held the withered leaf between his fingers up to his eye, looking at Suikazan Fuguki through a small hole in the leaf, his tone full of playfulness:

"Let's make a bet. If you win, I'll commit suicide; if you lose, all of you die.

Let's bet on whether this withered leaf will crumble. I bet it will!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Uchiha Chen crushed the leaf in his hand into dust. "I win!"

"Are you playing with me?"

Suikazan Fuguki raised his hand and made two tactical gestures signaling an attack. Two Mist Ninja leaped high into the air, their chilling ninja blades thrusting toward Uchiha Chen.

The next instant.

Deep crimson mist turned from ethereal to solid in an instant.

Materialized Yin Release Chakra transformed into red ribs and a sternum, shielding Uchiha Chen within.

The giant skeletal arm gently swiped, brushing the two elite Mist Ninja aside like dust. The second skeletal arm that appeared immediately grabbed a Mist Ninja, crushing him with force amidst his wails.

Following that, the solid, deep red Chakra burned fiercely, condensing into a skeletal upper body over ten meters tall. It emitted a terrifying pressure that could topple mountains and overturn seas, causing everyone present to tremble uncontrollably.

That was the power of the gods stored within the Sharingan.

Darker than twilight, redder than fresh blood; as time flows on, only the fear of this technique remains eternal in the Shinobi World.

Susanoo, First Form.

Complete.

"What is this technique?"

One Mist Ninja finally couldn't endure the fear and cried out in terror.

Uchiha Chen's scarlet eyes landed on him, and a faint, mocking curve appeared on his cold face:

"Corpses... are talking?"