The Uzumaki Clan Ruins

"Ruins from the Warring States Period, belonging to the Uzumaki Clan?"

Kou looked at the yellowed map on the table, his brow furrowing slightly. His voice held a trace of unconcealed surprise.

"That's right!"

Mei Terumi nodded with absolute certainty, long-suppressed excitement shimmering in her green eyes.

She pointed to the spot marked with a red circle in the center of the map, her voice full of excitement.

"I found this by chance in Mist Village's intelligence room while investigating the Three-Tails Jinchuriki project from back then."

She paused, as if gathering her thoughts—or perhaps trying to hold back the anticipation welling inside her.

"You know that the Uzumaki Clan excelled at Sealing Jutsu.

If we can use this map to find the Uzumaki Clan's ruins from the Warring States Period, we might be able to uncover the Uzumaki Clan's lost Sealing Jutsu!"

Her voice rose, and her eyes practically glowed.

"And Sealing Jutsu is the natural enemy of Tailed Beasts!"

Kou fell silent, his gaze lingering on the map for a long while. He didn't answer right away.

He simply picked up his teacup and took a slow sip.

The tea had gone cold. Its bitter taste spread across his tongue, just enough to mask the thoughts churning inside him.

Mei Terumi seemed not to notice his silence and continued reasoning, her tone growing more and more certain.

"The biggest reason we still can't overthrow that bastard Yagura, even with most of Mist Village backing us, isn't the stubborn old fossils behind him. It's his strength as the Three-Tails Jinchuriki."

Her voice dropped, and a trace of wariness crossed her green eyes.

As an elite Mist shinobi who had experienced the Third Ninja World War firsthand, she knew all too well how powerful Tailed Beasts were.

They were terrifying forces capable of changing the course of a war single-handedly.

Her fingers clenched unconsciously, her knuckles turning white.

"If we don't have a way to suppress a Tailed Beast's power, and Yagura—who is the Three-Tails Jinchuriki—goes berserk in the village, Mist Village's fate will be even more tragic than Konoha's during the Nine-Tails Incident."

Even mighty Konoha fell into an unprecedented period of weakness after the tragedy of a Tailed Beast rampage. How much worse would it be for Mist Village, already strong on the outside but weak within?"

She lifted her head and met Kou's eyes, her voice full of both caution and resolve.

"Without a way to suppress a Tailed Beast, we can't overthrow him completely, and Mist Village's reforms can't be carried through.

But if we have a reliable way to deal with Tailed Beasts, we'll have the confidence to defeat Yagura and the others!"

Listening to Mei Terumi's confident words, Kou gazed at the map before him and sank into deep thought.

"The Uzumaki Clan's ruins... Sealing Jutsu?"

He murmured to himself, suddenly understanding.

No wonder Mei Terumi and the others were able to defeat Yagura, the Three-Tails Jinchuriki, in the original story. Was this the reason?

He had always wondered how Mist Village, after Obito had turned it into such a mess, had managed to defeat Yagura so easily—without even giving Obito time to come to his aid.

At the time, Mei Terumi was the only one in all of Mist Village who was worth anything.

Even with Ao, who had the Byakugan, helping her, she still couldn't have beaten Yagura, who was under the control of Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu.

After all, with Obito's mastery of genjutsu, even while controlling Yagura from a distance, he could make him trigger Complete Tailed Beast Transformation the moment he sensed danger.

Whether that would expose him or not was beside the point; Mist Village would certainly suffer a devastating blow. Obito could have used that time to get there.

He could have recovered the Three-Tails, even if he didn't eliminate Mei Terumi and the others.

There was no way things should have ended with the Three-Tails dying alongside Yagura.

The Three-Tails' death in the original story definitely wasn't part of Obito's plan.

"Now that I think about it, if they had the Uzumaki Clan's lost Sealing Jutsu, it would explain everything."

Kou looked away from the map and turned to the excited woman sitting across from him.

Though he was already mostly convinced, he still put on a skeptical expression and asked seriously,

"Is the information on this map reliable?"

His voice was quiet, but carried an unmistakable seriousness.

Mei Terumi nodded confidently and replied in a steady voice,

"I looked into it."

"This map was obtained by Mist Village during the Second Ninja World War, after we took part in the campaign that destroyed the Land of Whirlpools. It came from the Uzumaki Clan's ancestral grounds in Uzushio Village."

As she spoke, her voice noticeably softened, and a complicated emotion flickered in her green eyes.

"Most of the Uzumaki Clan's legacy was lost or destroyed in that war, but this map really was preserved. It's been kept in Mist Village's vault for years."

Kou nodded slightly. His fingers gently traced the edge of the map, moving slowly, as if he were touching a piece of history long buried in the past.

Listening to Mei Terumi's explanation, Kou immediately spotted the flaw in it.

His brows drew together slightly, and a sharp glint flashed in his gentle eyes.

"Hasn't Mist Village sent anyone to investigate all these years?"

Mei Terumi fell silent for a moment.

Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but no words came out.

Her green eyes lowered, her lashes trembling slightly, as though she were avoiding something.

Under Kou's serious, almost emotionless gaze, she finally spoke.

Her voice was a little dejected, tinged with an indescribable regret.

"Of course Mist Village sent people to investigate."

She paused, her voice dropping even lower.

"When the Third Mizukage was in power, he sent people to investigate more than once. He even sent several elite Anbu teams.

But in the end..."

Her voice sank until it was almost inaudible.

"Not a single one came back alive."

The living room fell silent for a moment. The fog outside seemed to thicken, seeping through the cracks around the window and bringing with it a damp, chilly air.

"No one knows what they encountered there. Not one of the people sent there managed to bring back any news, and they couldn't even find the bodies."

She lifted her head, regret and bitterness in her green eyes.

"If Ao were still here..."

As if she'd realized who was sitting across from her, she abruptly stopped speaking and didn't continue.

Her lips pressed together slightly, a hint of barely perceptible awkwardness appearing on her striking face.

But even though she hadn't finished, Kou understood what she had meant.

As I thought...

The corners of Kou's mouth lifted in the faintest curve, so slight it was like a nearly invisible crack.

"The key to breaking through the ruins is Ao's Byakugan!"