The Ninja World's peace had crumbled to dust the moment the news spread. At the center of it all, Qingwu stood quietly in the Bamboo Forest deep within the Hyuga Clan Compound, his chakra resonating with the wind and leaves as his pale blue Jōgan shifted beneath his eyelids.
He did not need to open his eyes. Every stirring across the Ninja World unfolded within his perception as clearly as a network of veins:
The three new layers of surveillance Konoha's Anbu had established around the village, the sounds of horses and carriages as Iwagakure's envoys rushed nonstop toward Konoha, the teacup shattered in the Raikage's council chamber,
The grains of sand circling endlessly above Sunagakure's raised platform, and Kirigakure's lovestruck woman gathering skilled fighters to come lend support.
Even the faint, sinister current Black Zetsu stirred as he infiltrated Konoha could not escape the insight of those eyes. What the Jōgan saw went beyond shapes and shadows—it saw torrents of emotion.
The wisp of smoke at Sarutobi Hiruzen's fingertips, mingled with shock, doubt, and apprehension, the greed and calculations churning in Ōnoki's heart,
The fury and vigilance surging through the Raikage's veins, the curiosity and wariness hidden beneath Rasa's silence...
Obito Uchiha's and Black Zetsu's scheming—these emotions spread across the Ninja World's mental landscape like ink dropped into clear water.
Mei Terumi's infatuation and worry...
"Heh. That saved me quite a bit of trouble." Qingwu's lips curved slightly. His eyelids lowered, concealing the blue glow of his Jōgan. He turned and walked deeper into the Bamboo Forest, where several plates of exquisite pastries sat on a stone table—Void's "food."
In the shadows, a nearly transparent phantom slowly coalesced. It was Void.
He had no fixed form, yet he could distinctly "taste" the negative emotions permeating the air. Now he