Finally Found It (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"

Yamanaka Santian formed the final seal, his consciousness plunging into the body of the woman who was being firmly restrained by Akimichi Timon and Nara Luyan.

"Success."

"Shaziyi" opened her eyes. The icy sharpness within them had vanished, replaced by the weary gaze of Yamanaka Santian.

She blinked, seemingly unaccustomed to the sensations of this body.

"Whew..."

Nara Luyan finally let out a sigh of relief. He looked at the jagged knife wounds on Akimichi Timon's body and the scorch marks left by Lightning Release chakra, then glanced down at his own Konoha uniform, which had nearly been sliced in two, and gave a bitter laugh.

"Women really are troublesome... It's a good thing there was only one. If another one had shown up, we'd probably be done for."

"Yeah... I didn't expect ninjas from Kumogakure to be this tough."

Akimichi Timon tied Shaziyi up securely, then plopped onto the ground, gasping for air.

"Santian, you can come out now. She's all tied up."

"Shaziyi" nodded. Just as the jutsu was released, her eyes suddenly sharpened, regaining their original ferocity.

"A bunch of trash, damn Konoha ninjas, you won't... mmm... hmph..."

Nara Luyan pulled a roll of tape from his ninja tool pouch and wrapped it around Shaziyi's mouth several times.

"Women really are troublesome..."

After securing Shaziyi, Nara Luyan turned to look at Yamanaka Santian.

"How is it? Are you alright, Santian?"

"I'm fine."

Yamanaka Santian raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, his face still somewhat pale.

"This person's mental energy is indeed quite strong, but fortunately, I managed to hold on."

He looked at Shaziyi, who remained firmly bound yet still glared with fierce eyes, and couldn't help but chuckle.

"I really don't know where you people get the nerve, coming here to run wild with only three people."

His gaze lingered for a moment on the astonishing assets on Shaziyi's chest before shifting into the distance, where Hyuga Qinglan was walking over at a leisurely pace, dragging the Druid whose limbs had been broken.

"Your Highness, I leave this one to you to deal with." Hyuga Qinglan tossed the incapacitated Druid onto the ground.

"I've already sealed all his chakra points and broken his hands and legs."

He paused, then added, "Basically, only his head can still move. Although he can't be sent to pick cotton, he's still good enough to vent some frustration on."

"Oh, oh..."

The Son of the Daimyo froze for a moment, then reacted, waving his hand heroically.

"Bring me my whip!"

"..."

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio fell silent in unison, turning their heads simultaneously to look at Shaziyi on the ground, their eyes filled with a hint of pity.

Shaziyi's heart trembled, her sharp pupils locking onto Hyuga Qinglan as he approached. Though she couldn't speak, she wasn't deaf, and she had heard every word Hyuga Qinglan said clearly.

This damn guy...

"..."

Hyuga Qinglan's gaze fell first on the deep cleavage on her chest, but he only lingered for a split second before looking away.

Although he was curious whether a weight that could rival Tsunade would cause trouble during combat, having lived three lifetimes, he had long since moved past such interests.

Even if there was a trace of curiosity in his heart, it was just a passing thought.

Nothing more.

"Rip."

Hyuga Qinglan showed no mercy, tearing the tape off in one go.

"You bastard, pervert, degenerate, animal..."

Shaziyi blurted it out, pain and humiliation surging up together.

"Mmph..."

Before she could finish, Hyuga Qinglan sealed her mouth back up with the tape.

"I didn't expect an ice-cold beauty on the outside to have such a foul mouth..."

Hyuga Qinglan looked back at the three standing silently to the side. All three shrugged at the same time, clearly having already experienced the captive's eloquence.

"Santian, can you invade her mind and check for intelligence?"

Hyuga Qinglan suddenly asked.

In his memory, it was either the Yamanaka Clan or some other clan that possessed the ability to enter someone's mind anytime and anywhere to interrogate them for information.

"No, Captain, I don't have the ability for this technique..."

Yamanaka Santian wiped the cold sweat seeping from his forehead, "I'm not as skilled at this as Inoichi, and if I force the jutsu... it might cause the target to suffer immediate brain death."

"Can we still extract the intelligence?"

"The Captain means...?"

Yamanaka Santian was stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting Hyuga Qinglan to ask such a question.

He hesitated for a moment, weighing his words: "This... I can't say for sure..."

"Then try—"

"Captain."

Nara Luyan, who had been silent until now, spoke softly: "It would be better to wait until we bring her back to the village and hand her over to the Torture and Interrogation Force."

"If we act now and fail to get the information, only for her to die instead, it would be a great pity."

"Besides, the other one might not be any worse than her."

Luyan pointed to Dekai, who was being whipped frantically by the Son of the Daimyo in the distance.

"This woman should be a squad leader; she knows far..."

Halfway through his sentence, Luyan's tone suddenly turned urgent.

"Timon, knock her out, quickly!"

Akimichi Timon didn't hesitate at all, chopping the back of Shaziyi's neck and cleanly knocking her unconscious.

Luyan stepped forward quickly, tore the tape off her mouth, and swiftly probed her oral cavity with his fingers, pulling out a tiny blade from the side of her cheek.

The blade was as thin as a cicada's wing, cleverly hidden between her gums and cheek, impossible to detect without a careful search.

"Phew... good thing we saw it..."

He let out a long sigh of relief, then looked at Hyuga Qinglan.

After all, Hyuga Qinglan was the captain; regardless of anything else, the final decision rested with him.

"That makes sense..."

Hyuga Qinglan nodded thoughtfully.

"Then take this woman with us. As for the rest, use them for interrogation first, then transmit the intelligence back to the front lines and the village."

"..."

Nara Luyan was silent for a moment, feeling that something about Hyuga Qinglan's current state was off, though he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

Was his reaction too slow? Or was it... something else?

"I hope I'm just overthinking it..."

He shook his head, casting aside his messy thoughts, and turned to begin directing the cleanup.

--

The morning mist was hazy, shrouding the entire Yugakure.

Unlike the bustling prosperity of Konoha, this small town famous for its hot springs was permeated with silence.

The figures of scattered ninjas occasionally crossed the streets, their footsteps hurried, unwilling to linger in this stillness.

But even so, against the backdrop of the war-torn ninja world, this place could be considered a rare sanctuary of peace.

At least it wasn't like the Land of Rain, where refugees were everywhere.

The real Hyuga Qinglan stood quietly in the shadows, his gaze sweeping over the ubiquitous hot spring hotel signs, sighing inwardly.

"Half of my chakra... should be enough for a Shadow Clone."

Hyuga Qinglan endured the soreness, pulling his hood down to cover most of his face.

So much time had passed; he didn't know if any changes had occurred.

He pondered silently, his footsteps never stopping.

Before that earth-shattering battle had taken place, his days on the moon had been quite comfortable.

Unlike the harsh system between the main and branch families of the Hyuga clan on Earth, the differences between the main and branch families on the moon were more about ideological disagreements.

There was no discrimination, only peace.

It was during those days that he had left behind quite a few preparations in the ninja world.

It was just that at the time, the brilliance of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara was so dazzling that he had been forced to avoid their edge.

Hyuga Qinglan passed through jungle paths and crossed several cliffs, finally stopping in front of a hidden cave.

The entrance was half-hidden by vines; if one weren't looking for it intentionally, they would never discover the world hidden within.

"Finally found it..."