Somewhere in a valley at the far northern edge of the Land of Lightning.
The biting cold wind howled. Even in April, this place remained bitterly cold. If the world of the Hokage were compared to Earth, this valley would be equivalent to Siberia—already close to the northernmost Arctic.
Heavy snow, like goose feathers, whirled down. A figure appeared soundlessly at the entrance to the valley.
His black robe rustled in the freezing wind, yet his expression remained unchanged, as if he could not feel the cold at all.
Shin narrowed his eyes slightly and fell into thought as he looked at the valley before him. Dense black clouds gathered overhead, with muffled thunder rumbling faintly within them. Black lightning lay coiled and restrained, occasionally revealing a glimpse of its ferocious true form.
Below, the heavy snow continued without pause. The celestial phenomenon seemed to foreshadow misfortune, filling anyone who looked upon it with dread.
"What violent lightning-natured chakra. It's even stronger than ordinary lightning. Looks like this is the place."
Shin murmured as he looked at the valley, then slowly stepped inside.
He had come after receiving the intelligence Kakuzu reported. As the fourth of the five divine artifacts to be collected, he had not wanted to handle it personally. But since his subordinates could not manage it, there was no choice but to trouble the Boss himself.
Back when the Sage of Six Paths founded the Shinobi Sect and spread his ideals and the use of chakra, he divided yin and yang in this world. He then separated and condensed the origins of the five chakra natures, passing the true essence of Yin-Yang Release to his two children, Indra and Asura.
The origins of the five chakra natures, meanwhile, became five tangible divine artifacts scattered throughout the world,