Early the next morning, just as the sun rose, teenage Utakata paced anxiously back and forth inside the central command tent of the Kirigakure army.
Utakata had always been lazy by nature. Besides blowing bubbles, what he loved most was sleeping. Yet today, he had broken precedent and risen at dawn. Not only could he not sleep, even his beloved flute had been tossed aside.
Two days ago, his teacher, Hozuki Zangetsu, had led a thousand elite troops on a classified mission and entrusted the entire Shinobi Army to him. According to their prior agreement, they should have returned last night, but he had waited until dawn without receiving a single word.
The mere teenager was frantic. On one hand, he worried about his teacher's safety; on the other, the pressure of commanding a hundred thousand soldiers weighed heavily on him. Though he was the Six-Tails Jinchuriki and possessed Kage-level strength, he knew absolutely nothing about military command! Now that Hozuki Zangetsu had unexpectedly failed to return, he was completely at a loss.
Just as Utakata was about to gather the army's senior officers and report the situation to headquarters, a strange sound suddenly arose within the tent and caught his attention.
"Who's there?"
Utakata turned sharply, his face full of vigilance. A mass of transparent liquid seeped out from the ground, followed by a pale figure slowly emerging like a ghost, accompanied by the faint sound of flowing water.
Anyone else who witnessed such a bizarre sight would surely have broken out in a cold sweat, but Utakata instead smiled in relief. "Teacher, you're finally back!"
The man who had suddenly emerged from underground was none other than the white-haired Hozuki Suigetsu!
Seeing his disciple stride eagerly toward him, he did not smile. Instead, he frowned and rebuked him,