Arrival, Land of Whirlpools

The light in the room was soft and warm, casting the shadows of the two figures onto the wall where they swayed ever so slightly.

Kou sat at the table, one hand propping up his chin, his black eyes watching Mei Terumi across from him with a seemingly casual air, though he felt somewhat surprised inside.

After all, in his expectations, this girl should have fragmented the mission information once they stepped into the Land of Whirlpools, choosing to reveal only bits and pieces to him.

That was the proper way for an "employer and the employed" to interact.

It preserved the initiative while preventing the other party from harboring any untoward intentions.

Promoted from a tool to a temporary "companion," are we...

Kou muttered to himself with a strange sense of confusion:

Did I do something to increase her favorability? ...How come I don't know about it?

Perhaps that conversation at the restaurant entrance today had played a role?

Perhaps the appearance of Jiraiya had triggered some sort of "sense of crisis" in her?

Or perhaps she simply felt that, at this critical juncture, honesty was more important than calculation?

Whatever the reason, since she was willing to trust him, he wouldn't be foolish enough to push that door shut.

"You just spaced out."

Mei Terumi's voice came from across the table, her emerald eyes fixed directly on him with a hint of suspicion.

"How could that be?"

Kou snapped back to reality instantly, his face assuming an expression of righteous indignation.

He straightened his back, crossed his hands on the table, furrowed his brows, and spoke with a tone as solemn as if he were delivering a work report:

"I was merely contemplating a matter of significant importance."

Doesn't look like anything important to me.

Mei Terumi thought to herself as she watched his display.

Though she didn't want to pry, she responded with a touch of exasperation just to steer the conversation back on track:

"What matter?"

Kou took a deep breath, a flash of resolve crossing his black eyes as he asked with great gravity:

"Once we reach the island tomorrow—what are we going to eat?"

... "Caw, caw, caw."

The corner of Mei Terumi's mouth twitched slightly. Without a second thought, she replied crisply:

"We'll eat Soldier Pills."

"Huh?! Are you serious? Even my little brother's cat wouldn't touch that stuff!"

Kou's voice rose a few octaves, his handsome face filled with undisguised disgust.

"...What are you making such a fuss about?"

Mei Terumi's brows furrowed, a flicker of impatience appearing in her emerald eyes:

"I refuse to believe you've never eaten a Soldier Pill on the battlefield."

"This isn't a war zone!"

Kou's voice grew even louder as he protested with tragic indignation:

"Is there any need to treat ourselves so poorly? If we can't even eat well, how are we supposed to carry out a mission?!"

"Tsk, are all ninjas from Konoha this delicate? Can't even handle this much hardship..."

Mei Terumi shook her head, casting a look of disdain at the indignant Kou.

"You're just suffering for no reason!"

Completely ignoring her disdain, Kou stated righteously:

"If you can't even eat well, how can you execute a mission?

If you can't even get this right, it's no wonder your Mist Village isn't developing well."

"You!!!"

Hearing Kou mention the words "Mist Village," the previously composed Mei Terumi instantly lost her cool.

Her brows knitted together, and the Will of Fire burned within her emerald eyes.

Looking at Kou's smug expression, Mei Terumi thought of the serious business they had to discuss tonight and forced down her rising anger.

Her voice turned cold:

"Let's put such trivial matters aside for now. I came here to talk to you about the real mission."

As she spoke, she pulled a map from behind her.

It was a neatly folded piece of paper, which she spread flat on the table, smoothing out the edges with both hands.

Kou feigned complete ignorance, asking with a tone of curiosity:

"What is this?"

"A map."

Mei Terumi was concise, her finger tapping the map as she said earnestly:

"A map of a ruin in the Land of Whirlpools that we are about to explore."

Kou's brows furrowed slightly. He leaned in closer, feigning surprise as he remarked:

"This map looks way too new, doesn't it? It's clearly a printout."

Kou looked at Mei Terumi with feigned suspicion, his tone filled with doubt:

"You aren't trying to pull a fast one on me, are you?"

"..."

Mei Terumi looked at him as if he were an idiot, responding matter-of-factly:

"Of course it's a copy. How could I possibly take the original out of the Mist Village?"

Kou cast a sidelong glance at the coat hanging on the rack.

At this very moment, inside the ninja tool pouch on the inner lining of that coat, the "original" was resting quietly.

He looked back at Mei Terumi, his eyes flickering with a guilty conscience.

"Uh... you're right."

Mei Terumi gave him a puzzled look, a trace of confusion flashing in her emerald eyes.

But she didn't dwell on it, simply shaking her head and refocusing her attention on the map.

"According to my investigation, the ruins and artifacts recorded on this map are quite ancient.

Originally, I predicted they might be products of the Warring States Period, but after studying them for the past two days, I discovered that their history can even... be traced back to the era before the Warring States."

"...What?"

Hearing Mei Terumi's words, Kou's eyes widened slightly, momentarily stunned.

The era before the Warring States—that would be at least a thousand years ago, wouldn't it?

Although he had long expected this ruin to be an old relic, he hadn't imagined it could be this old.

No way? Is the historical preservation of the Uzumaki Clan really this good?!

Kou couldn't help but mutter to himself.

As one of the few Uchiha who enjoyed reading history, Kou had a fair understanding of Uchiha history.

As far as he knew, the Uchiha Clan's official records regarding their own history could only be traced back to the beginning of the Warring States Period.

Regarding the origins of the Uchiha Clan and the history of the Era of Ninshu, the family records were a complete blank—even less than what he already knew.

Regarding this, he could only guess that there had been a massive historical fracture in the history of the Ninja World, which was why no information about that era had been passed down.

After all, the Senju Clan next door, who had already integrated into Konoha, didn't know any more about the past history of the Ninja World than they did.

Back then, he had sighed a little about it, but hadn't paid it much mind.

After all, compared to the unchangeable past, the present and the future were clearly more important.

But now it seemed... that might not be the case.

Mei Terumi looked at the now-serious Kou, a hint of satisfaction appearing in her emerald eyes.

Her voice deepened as she said solemnly:

"The Mist Village has sent more than one elite squad to investigate this ruin, but they all failed; not a single person returned."

Her finger tapped the location marked with a red circle on the map:

"You should understand what this means."

Kou did not answer, merely staring in silence at the red circle pointed out by Mei Terumi's fingertip.

"Once we arrive in the Land of Whirlpools, we must stay together at all times and never let our guard down.

If possible, we should maintain a combat-ready state from the moment we step onto the island to deal with any potential dangers at any time."

Mei Terumi's voice echoed in the quiet room:

"You have no objections, do you?"

Kou looked at the map before him and nodded with a grave expression.

He certainly remembered that Mei Terumi had said these same words to him when he was "Sora."

Those elite Mist Village squads, not one of them returned... this was enough to prove that there was definitely something wrong with this ruin.

A product from before the Warring States, perhaps even from the Era of Ninshu, still posing such a massive threat a thousand years later...

Kou couldn't help but feel a spark of curiosity about this aspect of the Ninja World that he had never understood.

History that hasn't been recorded, history forgotten by the Ninja World...

He muttered in his heart, a flicker of contemplation crossing his black eyes.

"What exactly lies within these ruins?"

Time slipped away, bit by bit.

The moonlight outside the window shifted from east to west, and the reflection upon the sea surface drifted in tandem.

The ship continued its voyage forward, its bow cleaving through the waves with a rhythmic splashing sound.

Ahead, the blurred outline of land began to emerge slowly from the horizon where the sea met the sky.

Sunlight rose from the sea level, casting a golden glow across the water.

A medium-sized vessel sailed slowly toward that land forgotten by the Ninja World.

They... had arrived.

(Transition chapter; the Land of Whirlpools arc officially begins in the next chapter.

It will involve the origins of the Uzumaki Clan, the reincarnations of Asura and Indra during the late Era of Ninshu, and a certain well-known meme story...)