Orochimaru's Disappearance

On the ruins of the Mizukage Building, the wind, carrying the salty smell of the sea, gently brushed past the two of them.

Mei Terumi and Kimimaro's gazes remained fixed on the direction where Kō had disappeared.

The person had been gone for a long time, but neither of them moved or spoke.

It's as if, as long as I'm still standing here, that hasty farewell hasn't truly ended.

"You've taken care of the Three-Tails? Well done, you two!"

Zabuza late, glanced at Yagura on the ground, and subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

However, that ease lasted for less than a moment.

As he watched the still silent backs of Mei Terumi and Kimimaro, the smile on his lips gradually faded.

"Hey, what's going on here? What happened?!"

He strode forward, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the two men. When he could no longer find the figure who should have been with them, he couldn't help but ask:

"Speaking of which, where is Lord Kong? Isn't he with you?"

Mei Terumi: "..."

Kimimaro: "..."

"Hey! You two, answer me! What happened?!"

Zabuza's voice suddenly rose, and an ominous premonition gradually rose in his heart.

Mei Terumi and Kimimaro slowly turned their heads. The setting sun made their weariness and gloom more apparent.

Zabuza stared at those two faces, lost in thought.

"You, you all..."

Mei Terumi looked at Zabuza, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she couldn't utter a single word.

How should she bring it up?

What about Sora, what about Uchiha Kuro, what about that "truth" that even she herself only vaguely understands?

Kimimaro looked at Terumi Mei beside him, who seemed hesitant to speak, and lowered his head in a somber Mei Terumi, remaining silent.

Just as the atmosphere was becoming increasingly oppressive, a weak voice came from a corner not far from them.

"Ahem... Regarding the things you want to know, I can probably answer some of them for you."

Upon hearing the weak, boyish voice, the three of them instantly changed their expressions!

Zabuza was the first to react, abruptly turning his head and glaring fiercely in the direction from which the sound came.

Karatachi Yagura, who had been lying unconscious on the ground, had somehow managed to open his eyes and was looking at them weakly.

"Yagura —you bastard, you're still alive?!"

Zabuza growled Zabuza gritted teeth, drawing his Kubikiribōchō from his back, his eyes blazing with an intense, almost tangible, killing intent.

"You piece of trash who has tarnished the name of the Mizukage, I'll send you to meet your swarm of ants right now!!"

Before he finished speaking, his figure was already like a storm, rushing straight towards Yagura, who was completely powerless to resist!

"Zabuza, wait!!"

As Mei Terumi shouted, Kimimaro appeared in an instant, and when he reappeared, he was already firmly blocking Zabuza and Yagura.

A bone spike, gleaming with cold light, emerged from his palm, firmly blocking the large sword that was about to slash down at Yagura!

"Hey, you stinky woman, what are you doing?!"

Zabuza turned his head and roared sharply in Mei Terumi's direction:

This guy just got us into big trouble!

Don't tell me you're still thinking about how you can't just kill Jinchuriki. You should see clearly that I only wanted to disarm him first, not take his head!

"What do you mean 'just'? That's a really dangerous idea!!"

Yagura couldn't help but complain, then weakly coughed again.

Mei Terumi Zabuza's question.

She strode forward and walked straight to Yagura's side:

"Have you broken free of control, Yagura?"

Yagura was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

"I'm sorry, I..."

"There's no need for an apology."

Mei Terumi shook her head, her tone flat and devoid of any extra emotion:

"I understand now, what happened over the years... it wasn't your fault."

Yagura paused for a moment, gazing into Mei Terumi's calm, emerald-green eyes, his tone carrying a hint of indescribable emotion:

"You've grown up, Mei Terumi."

Mei Terumi did not respond, but simply looked in the direction where Koko had just left.

Zabuza stood to the side, staring wide-eyed in astonishment at the completely unexpected scene before him.

"What do you mean, 'break free of control'? What on earth is going on?! Can anyone explain this to me?!"

Yagura laboriously shifted his gaze to the three people before him and said earnestly:

"Don't worry, I will tell you everything you want to know, as long as I know it."

He paused, then turned his gaze meaningfully back to Mei Terumi's face:

"Including what you probably want to know most right now, about Shiina Sora."

No, it should be said... it's about Uchiha Kuro.

Mei Terumi's pupils trembled involuntarily.

She suppressed the surging emotions within her and asked in a solemn tone:

How much do you know about him?

"... I probably know some of what happened after that man took him to Mist Village."

As he spoke, Yagura's dim eyes flashed back to scenes of how, when he was controlled by the Mangekyo, he could only watch as he carried out those cruel orders like a bystander.

As the images shifted, his eyes gradually dimmed.

A glimmer of light appeared in Yagura's eyes only when the figure of a black-haired boy emerged from that gloomy memory.

"Although I cannot guarantee that everything I know about him is correct."

But at least one thing I'm sure of!

Yagura looked firmly at Mei Terumi and the other two, and said in a resolute voice:

"Shiina Sora, no, Uchiha Kuro!"

He is the hero who saved our Mist Village!

Meanwhile, in the Land of Rice.

Five years of development have completely transformed this once small country.

On the boundless fields, the heavy ears of rice swayed gently and slowly in the wind.

Not far from this vast expanse of golden rice paddies, modern buildings rise from the ground, blending harmoniously with the crisscrossing fields.

The irrigation project was built along the fields, and the ninjas were using the most basic Water Release to replenish the irrigation canals; and in the sky, which was dyed pale gold by the setting sun, several agile figures would occasionally flash by.

Those were ninjas from an air force patrol who had practiced the Mysterious Peacock Method, a method without side effects.

They spread out wings of various colors of Chakra, patrolling back and forth in the sky above the land like a flock of geese.

Ninjas were present in almost every corner of the Land of Rice, but the most concentrated area was undoubtedly the capital of this newly formed nation— Inari City!

Inari City is located in the very center of the High Heaven Palace.

Inside the spacious hall, Kou had already returned to the kingdom he Teuchi using the Flying Thunder God Technique.

He was still somewhat dazed, and a dull ache lingered in his deep black eyes.

Only after he could clearly see the grand hall before him, a hall he knew all too well, did the veil of confusion that had been clouding his eyes gradually fade away.

"Now is not the time to be emo... The most urgent thing is to retrieve the Rinnegan."

He shook his head, muttered something to himself, and then laid the bodies on his shoulder— Pain, Deva Path had completely lost his life, and Deidara, who still had a faint breath—on the ground.

He crouched down, his gaze falling on the Black Receivers on Deva Path Pain's body. A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and his fingertips reached towards the Black Receivers...

However, just before his fingertips were about to touch the Black Receivers, a series of hurried footsteps, along with a cry piercing through the hall, burst in:

"Master, something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened!!"

He paused in his knocking, then turned his head to look at the red-haired girl who was running towards him desperately down the long steps outside the palace gate. A doting smile naturally appeared on his face.

"Was it really necessary to be in such a hurry? You rushed over as soon as you sensed I was back."

As he spoke, he stood up.

Five years have passed since Karin was brought to the Land of Rice from the cave on the outskirts of Mist Village, where they had lived together for many years.

Here, Karin not only grew up safely under her care, but also finally had the opportunity to learn, practice, and make new friends like her peers.

And indeed, things turned out exactly as Kou had hoped.

Under her own and the guidance of the people of the Land of Rice, Karin not only mastered extremely solid Sealing Jutsu, but also successfully learned the Mysterious Peacock Method, which she had improved to the point of having almost no side effects.

With her awakened Mind's Eye of the Kagura and Adamantine Sealing Chains, Karin is now considered her right-hand woman in the Land of Rice.

"But she's still just as clingy as ever; nothing's changed."

He muttered a sarcastic remark to himself, and then in an instant, he appeared in front of Karin.

He bent down, looked at Karin's flushed face covered in fine sweat, and smiled as he said to her:

"What happened? Why are you in such a hurry? You should have told me beforehand, I'm very busy right now."

If it's not something too urgent, it might have to be postponed a little later.

Before Kou could finish speaking, he froze completely at Karin's next, breathless sentence.

"No, something terrible has happened, Master!"

Karin raised her little face and called out urgently to Kou:

"Orochimaru, Orochimaru... he's gone!!"