Five Kage Summit

It seemed he was having a nightmare. The scenes of his companions dying replayed endlessly before his eyes, tormenting his nerves and driving him mad. He did not know how long had passed before an even more maddening agony spread through his entire body, and he woke from the dream.

A delicate little face with no particular expression entered his view. Under the quiet gaze of those scarlet eyes, Shinpu's breath caught. Pain surged through every inch of his body, cold sweat soaking him through. Yet what terrified him even more was the person before him.

It was her!

The nightmare itself!

"You're awake." Yura revealed a gentle, faint smile. "To keep you from running away, I dislocated all four of your limbs. You don't mind, do you?"

It was a smile like that of an evil ghost, carrying a detached madness—cold and brutal.

Hearing that, Shinpu lowered his head and looked at his severed limbs, blood pouring from them. His face filled with bitterness and despair.

"Don't worry, you won't die just yet." Yura continued, "I tested some stitching techniques on you. Your wounds should all be sewn up now. Does anywhere still hurt? I can stitch it up for you."

Shinpu turned his head away, refusing to look at that ghostly face. With difficulty, he said, "Kill me!"

"That won't do." Yura said, "I still have questions for you."

"You'll never get any intelligence from me! Konoha won't let you get away with this!" Shinpu snarled.

"Hmm." Yura smiled faintly. "Let me ask you something. Do you know my name?"

He did not!

Shinpu looked at Yura and slowly shook his head.

"Then does Konoha know my name?" Yura continued.

That really was a question.

Shinpu's expression gradually stiffened in despair. He was beginning to understand.

"So how exactly is Konoha going to not let me get away with this?" Yura spread her hands helplessly. "Right?"

Shinpu said nothing. Silence was his only answer.

"There's no need to keep making such laughable threats. If I were afraid of Konoha, I wouldn't have come after you." As she spoke, Yura took out a small box and waved it before his eyes.

He recognized it at once. It was the Akimichi Clan's secret medicine, the Three-Colored Pills.

Green Spinach Pill, Yellow Curry Pill, Red Chili Pill.

"I won't waste words." Yura said, "Can you give me the formula for the secret medicine?"

"Never!"

"That figures." Yura smiled sweetly, then abruptly reached out. Her small hand formed a claw and clamped over Shinpu's face. Shinpu jolted in alarm. The next instant, vast amounts of invisible hair burst from Yura's hand, surging into Shinpu through his eye sockets, ears, nostrils, and mouth. His whole body immediately convulsed as he let out muffled screams. Veins bulged across his face, twisting it grotesquely. Beneath his skin, it seemed as though countless worms were writhing, burrowing deeper into his flesh and brain, like thousands of needles piercing his skull and churning his brains.

Under that inhuman torture, Shinpu lost control of his body within moments, twitching as he soiled himself.

Black Secret Technique: Bone-Eroding Brain-Burrowing

As long as she could barely keep him alive, there was no need for complicated torture devices. Just stab him and be done with it.

As she tortured Shinpu, Yura lowered her head and looked at the black strands writhing over her hand.

Come to think of it, humans and monkeys were the same. Their entire bodies were covered in hair.

However, human hair came in different types: lanugo, vellus hair, and terminal hair.

Vellus hair was body hair, while terminal hair included scalp hair, beards, armpit hair, nose hair, and eyebrows. Fundamentally, they were all the same and all had follicles.

Strictly speaking, Yura could manipulate more than just scalp hair. She could manipulate body hair as well.

After a short while, Yura withdrew her hand. Blood dripped down along the fine hairs.

Shinpu, having narrowly survived, panted with difficulty.

"Do you still want to say no?" Yura squatted with her legs together, propping her chin on both hands as she looked down at him with a soft smile.

Even though she was posing like a cute young girl, Shinpu felt waves of chill run through his heart. The girl before him was undoubtedly an evil ghost wearing human skin. Even in the brutal Warring States era, where he had seen plenty of monsters, this girl's depravity was among the worst.

It was common for people not to change expression at the sight of blood. Even those who could laugh at it could merely be called mentally tough. Those who got excited enough to laugh wildly could only be called insane.

Like the Uchiha.

But someone like this girl, who could smile so gently and commit such cruel acts without the slightest psychological burden—what did she see people and life as?

It made him shudder from the depths of his soul.

"I refuse!!!" Shinpu roared, using every ounce of strength in his body.

"What courage." Yura praised him, then reached out and covered Shinpu's face again.

Heart-rending screams echoed through the forest as the sun gradually sank.

Yura did not waste words with him. After one round of torture, she let him rest briefly before continuing. After three consecutive rounds, Shinpu had been tortured to the brink of death.

After Yura fed him a Curry Pill, he suddenly became alert again as though returning from the grave.

Yura remembered this pill. It replenished blood and vitality and warmed the life gate. At critical moments, it could keep someone barely alive.

Tossing the little wooden box up and down, Yura looked at the remaining two pills.

The Red Chili Pill could double one's strength and chakra, unleashing one's potential. Its drawback was that it could kill the user through overwhelming bodily strain, but to Yura's immortal body, that flaw was practically nonexistent.

To some extent, it was a simplified version of the Eight Inner Gates Formation. Its advantage was that, unlike the uncontrollably violent chakra released by the Eight Inner Gates Formation, the chakra it unleashed was quite easy to control.

For Yura, who required precise control, it suited her needs better.

Hero Water worked on the same principle.

"Have you thought it over?" Yura asked.

Shinpu closed his eyes and remained silent.

What a stubborn bone.

Yura stared quietly at his face for a moment before saying, "If you can't bear to part with it, then let's change the terms. Trade a secret technique for your life. Something like the Shadow Clone Technique."

If she had a Yamanaka Clan secret technique for reading memories, she would not need to go through so much trouble. Even with a corpse, she could squeeze useful intelligence out of its brain.

Shinpu remained silent, like a corpse that had already died.

Yura sighed. She had done everything she could. If she could not get it, there was nothing else to do.

Generally speaking, clan ninja would not carry secret scrolls with them. Only wandering ninja treasured their ninjutsu scrolls enough to keep them on hand.

In any case, her primary purpose had been to test whether sensory ninja could detect her presence and to gauge her own strength through a fight.

This way, she would be more confident when returning to the village to seize secret techniques.

With no Kage in Takigakure, no one could stop Yura.

But...

"If you refuse to talk, I'll treat the Akimichi Clan as prey. From now on, whenever you Ino-Shika-Cho leave your village, I'll kill every one I see." Yura smiled faintly. "How about that?"

"Are you a demon!?" Shinpu suddenly widened his eyes and glared viciously at Yura through ragged breaths.

Yura spread her hands. "Please cooperate. It'll be good for you, good for me, good for everyone. Then this can all be over."

Shinpu closed his eyes in pain and said calmly, "Don't say such laughable things about sparing my life. I don't know the formula for the secret medicine. Only the clan head knows it. I can't give you the Akimichi Clan's secret techniques, and you wouldn't be able to learn them anyway. I don't know the Shadow Clone Technique either. That's Lord Tobirama's forbidden technique, and only a handful of people know it. Whether it's Water Release or Fire Release, you've got the wrong person. I've never learned them. None of Ino-Shika-Cho learn those ninjutsu."

"Tch..." It was the truth. Yura laughed speechlessly. "No wonder you could keep your mouth shut for so long. You don't know anything at all."

She had miscalculated. All that work had been for nothing.

"Kill me!" Shinpu said.

Yura looked over Akimichi. If that was the case, she would need to find a way to infiltrate Konoha. At this time, the First and Second Hokage brothers were both there. Breaking into Konoha would be seeking death. Therefore, developing spies as eyes and ears to gather intelligence was essential.

Yura nodded, raised a hand in the shape of a gun, and aimed it at Shinpu.

Knowing that his life had reached its end, Shinpu gave a miserable smile. "I thought the Warring States chaos had ended and the age of peace had arrived. I thought the endless slaughter and war could finally end. But in the end, was destiny impossible to defy...?"

A faint blue Demon Fire ignited at Yura's fingertip.

"Farewell, ninja..."

Shinpu stared at Yura without blinking.

"I'll wait for you in hell, ninja!"

"This is hell, Akimichi."

Black Secret Technique: External Style: Finger Gun Fire Bullet

The Demon Fire bullet shot out and entered his forehead. As the hair bullet pierced through his skull, Demon Fire consumed his flesh, and blazing flames rose up.

With the setting sun at her back, Yura turned and left. After several Body Flickers, she vanished into the forest.

Leaping through the woods from treetop to treetop, Yura quite liked this feeling of running freely. At seventy miles per hour, her monstrous body, which knew no fatigue, found the pace effortless. A short while later, Yura stopped outside a valley. Standing among the forest treetops above it, she had a rippling lake behind her. Before her, a huge waterfall poured into the valley, and beneath the towering cliff lay a small lake.

This terrain looked familiar—far too familiar. The Valley of the End?

At present, two statues were missing before the waterfall.

Probably...

Standing amid the treetops and looking down over the valley, Yura fell into thought.

Uchiha Madara had left Konoha not long after Senju Hashirama attended the Five Kage Summit, which had been half a month ago. It should happen soon, while the battle at the Valley of the End would take place years later...

Those "years later" were rather vague.

Compared to the power capable of reshaping the terrain, her own strength was still far too weak. The small pool beneath the waterfall would become a giant lake years later after Wood Release and Susanoo clashed.

Right now, Uchiha Madara was probably searching the world for the Nine-Tails.

The Five Kage Summit was mainly about distributing the Tailed Beasts. After forging alliances, Senju Hashirama would begin capturing Tailed Beasts and exchange them for funds, making them Konoha's first pot of gold and laying the foundation for its development.

It was worth mentioning that even before the Five Kage Summit, the Seven-Tails had already been captured by Takigakure. The village had suffered enormous losses for it. Yura had also taken part in that operation, which had severely weakened the village while giving it unrealistic arrogance and ambition. They had intended to use the Tailed Beast's power to become the sixth great ninja village, which was why they had conceived the idea of assassinating the God of Shinobi, Senju Hashirama.

Capturing Tailed Beasts was difficult. Aside from Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, who could do so relatively easily, even Kumogakure's First Raikage and the pursuit unit led by Kinkaku and Ginkaku had been unable to do anything to a wild Tailed Beast.

It was only natural for Takigakure to be proud. In truth, its strength ranked first beneath the Five Great Villages, even above the current Hidden Rain. Yet it had paid an immense price for that achievement. This was why, when Kakuzu later defected, he could easily slaughter the village's upper ranks. Without a Jinchuriki, no one could deal with Kakuzu. At this time, Kakuzu had only just obtained the Earth Grudge Fear secret technique and had not yet had time to train it. He was merely an elite Jonin of the village, not yet an immortal ninja, and still some distance from Kage-level combat power.

That meant the village had three secret treasures worth taking: the Earth Grudge Fear secret technique, Hero Water, and the Seven-Tails.

Though Takigakure was in poor shape now, some said its strength was comparable to Sunagakure's, and it was exceptionally skilled at producing Jonin. It was only because so many of Takigakure's Jonin had died that Yura would not have to deal with them. Otherwise, even sheer numbers would give her a headache.

Still, she had to guard against Hero Water, that temporary Jonin factory.

After lingering at the Valley of the End for a moment to scout it out, Yura left. Perhaps she could come back later and watch the battle from the best seats.

Night fell...

The little town from before was as peaceful as ever. At that moment, a lavish banquet was underway in the watchtower atop the town lord's Heavenly Guardian Pavilion. Dancers swayed gracefully in the hall, while the town lord held a concubine in his arms and smiled as he kept time with the decadent music.

At that moment, invisible black hair silently crept across the ceiling like ghosts, writhing densely and quietly.

Under the moon outside the watchtower, a figure stood in midair upon threads, scarlet eyes coldly watching the tower.

As the hairs probed, the entire structure of the Heavenly Guardian Pavilion and the locations of all its personnel became clear in Yura's mind.

Yura gently curled a finger...

Fine strands of hair descended from the ceiling, softly looping around the necks of every samurai guard. None of them noticed a thing.

The next second, Yura lightly pulled her finger, and the hairs instantly tightened.

At the same time, the strands sliced through bone with silky ease. A line of blood opened across the neck of every samurai guard. Before they could even feel pain, dizziness and weightlessness followed. Their heads rolled from their necks, tumbling across the floor.

One headless corpse after another sprayed fountains of blood a foot high from their necks, creating grotesque human fountains throughout the Heavenly Guardian Pavilion before collapsing powerlessly to the floor.

In an instant, the terrified screams of the maidservants ripped through the night.

Inside the upper watchtower, the town lord collapsed to the floor in utter shock. The samurai on either side of him had already fallen, their spraying blood covering his hair and face. His luxurious robes were soaked in filthy blood, while warm liquid spread between his legs.

The dancers screamed in panic and scattered. The beautiful concubines trembled uncontrollably, their teeth chattering.

The town lord was horrified. What he saw was beyond comprehension. He wanted to scream, but his throat seemed blocked, and no sound would come out.

No, it was not blocked. Something was gripping his throat.

A rope-like mass of hair looped around the town lord's neck. As it tightened, it dragged him off the ground and suspended him in the air. Unable to breathe, he kicked and struggled desperately. Warm liquid dripped down his pant legs. His face rapidly turned purple-red from lack of oxygen, his eyes bulging hideously as blood vessels burst across them.

To everyone else, the sight was unimaginably strange. Under some bizarre force, the town lord had been lifted into the air and was struggling in terror.

Some dancers and maidservants could not bear the bizarre sight and fainted with their eyes rolling back. Others wept and screamed as they scrambled desperately away.

"Ghosts—! There are ghosts—!!!"

In their eyes, while the scene was strange, it perfectly fit the logic of encountering ghosts. Only ghosts could accomplish something so shocking.

Before long, the hall fell quiet.

Once the area had been cleared, Yura stepped along the threads, walking through the desolate moonlight and entering through the window.

She came before the hanging town lord.

The town lord, who still had one breath left, bulged his eyes. Only at the edge of death did he finally see Yura clearly and recognize her. He did not even have time to curse those three useless Konoha ninja in his heart. His eyes filled with overwhelming terror and desperate pleading. Tears slowly streamed down his face as he begged with his gaze...

"Spare... spare me..."

Yura smiled faintly. In the town lord's eyes, she floated upward, standing in midair and looking down upon him. She reached out and patted the top of his head.

"In your next life, keep your eyes open."

With that, she turned and left.

The town lord struggled weakly in the air until his despairing face turned entirely purple. He hung there like a teru teru bozu, his tongue lolling out as he swayed gently.

Blue flames slowly rose and began to burn.