Dragon Talisman (Part 1)

"That was close... I almost died..."

As the afterglow of the explosion dissipated, Baldy Qiang had already vanished, leaving only Chixing and the now unrecognizable Uncle and Jiraiya standing on the devastated land.

Even now, Jiraiya felt a lingering fear. Having lost his hair, he was unable to perform defensive ninjutsu, though even if he could, it might not have been of any use...

Fortunately, Uncle's "Qi Magic Shield" had helped him block the blast of the Tailed Beast Bomb, allowing him to escape unscathed.

(In the original Jackie Chan Adventures, the shield Uncle used to turn Shendu into a statue could easily defend against attacks from the Dragon Talisman.)

The loss of the talismans was a pity, but the group had no time to dwell on it now... because they had something more important to do! That was... to restore their human bodies!

Since Uncle had been turned into a goat, he could not speak and had to be carried on Chixing's back to the market, using his hooves to point out the materials needed to break the curse.

Of course... this would likely take a very long time...

"Excellent! It seems the plan is proceeding in an orderly fashion."

Located in Konoha, Qian Yu enjoyed a massage from Jack while biting into an apple, feeling refreshed as he watched the Dimensional Points gradually increasing on the system interface.

"It seems the investment in Baldy Qiang was worth it."

Baldy Qiang was originally a byproduct of Qian Yu's talisman draws, nothing worth noting. But after Qian Yu drew the "Zhi Qiang Origin," everything changed.

He had been wondering how such a derivative of a derivative could even be drawn, when the system told him: [Host, do not be surprised. The internet is also included in the Myriad Worlds. As long as your luck is good, even Brother Kun can be drawn.]

It just so happened that Qian Yu wanted to use his remaining Dimensional Points to lock onto the One Piece World to see if he could get the Ice-Ice Fruit to form the "Bikini Bottom Seafood Three Admirals," but instead, he happened to draw the high-level version of the Three Haki.

Without a second thought, Qian Yu fused and sublimated it with Baldy Qiang! And thus, Baldy Qiang was born.

Possessing his own origin, the strength of Baldy Qiang... oh... no! The strength of Zhi Qiang was also terrifying; at the very least, he had no problem taking on a Tailed Beast in a one-on-one fight.

"Now, we just have to wait for the remaining talismans to appear, and we can welcome the finale of this chapter..."

Just as the Monkey Talisman fell into the hands of Zhi Qiang—or rather, the "Hidden Organization"—the final three talismans appeared at the same time.

Land of Fire, Capital.

At the end of the underground passage of the Daimyo Mansion—

Due to the chaotic fighting between several villages, the Shadowkhan had seized the opportunity to scavenge and retrieve the Pig Talisman. However, the other talismans were scattered among various factions.

"Lord Shendu, it seems only Kumogakure has responded to our bounty..."

"And they brought a damaged talisman..."

Enshi Shu presented the shattered Tiger Talisman with both hands, his expression strange, as if asking Shendu what to do and whether the bounty should be paid out as normal.

"Do not worry, my child... the talismans representing my divine power are not so easily destroyed. That it has split into two only means its divine power has been activated..."

As Enshi Shu pressed the Tiger Talisman into the hollow in Shendu's body, Kakuzu, who was far away in the Land of Waves fighting his own benevolent side, revealed a smile he hadn't shown in nearly a hundred years.

"Finally... I have finally returned!"

In just a few days, the benevolent Kakuzu had spent nearly half of Kakuzu's wealth on charity. At that time, Kakuzu had even thought about killing himself, but no matter how they fought, they were always evenly matched, and it ended up being nothing...

"Very well...!" Kakuzu had already decided: first, he would take back all the money he had lost!

The Land of Grass was a small nation wedged between the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, and several other minor countries. It was once a powerful ninja nation, but it had declined due to environmental degradation and barren land.

With no powerful ninjas to protect it and a terrible geographical location, the Land of Grass could now only survive by reselling intelligence from neighboring countries.

In the original Naruto, Karin and her mother once lived in Kusagakure in the Land of Grass. However, Karin had not yet been born, and only her mother was there, being used daily as a human pill to drain her chakra.

"Misaki, you have so many more wounds today... I've really wronged you..."

(Note: Since the original work did not provide the names of Karin's parents, this book uses the original Japanese-style names "Misaki" and "Kenichi"... I feel that given the era the original was serialized in, if Kishimoto were naming them, he would likely have chosen something similar...)

In a slightly dilapidated house, a man and a woman sat opposite each other. The man pulled up Misaki's sleeve and gently applied ointment to her.

"I'm fine... Kenichi..."

Although she had been bitten countless times today and was covered in bruises, Misaki felt incredibly happy the moment she saw her little boyfriend.

Kenichi could only feel "heartbroken" and helpless. As a ninja of Kusagakure, and merely a Chunin, he could not interfere with the village's decisions. That the village even allowed him to remain the boyfriend of Misaki, who possessed the precious "Uzumaki Bloodline," was already an act of mercy...

Although he had thought about taking Misaki and fleeing the village, it was a pity... his strength did not allow it.

Just as he finished applying medicine to Misaki, the voices of other Kusagakure ninjas came from outside: "Hey! Misaki! I'm hurt! Come out and help!"

Although the words were about asking for help, the ninja's tone was like that of a hooligan, showing not a shred of gratitude. Misaki had no choice; this was her duty.

Watching his girlfriend walk slowly toward the group of men who clearly weren't good people, Kenichi felt a rage in his heart with nowhere to vent. All he could do was clench his fists like an incompetent husband.

Forcing a smile and bowing to the Jonin, Kenichi left the house under the pretext of buying medicine for Misaki and went to a small stream.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

He punched the soft mud with all his might, blaming his own incompetence in his heart. If only he had power... if only he truly had the courage to take Misaki away from the village...

Just as Kenichi continued to pound the mud to vent his emotions, he suddenly felt a stinging pain in his fist, as if he had punched a steel plate.

"What is this?"

In the damp mud, an unknown object was faintly revealed. Kenichi carefully wiped away the stains and saw the true face of the hard object: a mud-covered... talisman... carved with a red dragon pattern.

"This is... a Talisman?!"

The news of the Land of Fire Daimyo offering a bounty for the Talisman had spread throughout the Ninja World. Even he, a mere chunin from a small village, knew a thing or two about it. He had even once harbored thoughts of finding the Talisman to claim the reward, then taking Misaki to flee the village and live a life of unrestrained freedom, though unfortunately, he hadn't even caught a glimpse of the Talisman in the end.

"This is perfect! With this, I can claim the bounty and take Misaki far away from here!"

His excitement was written all over his face, but before Kenichi could even discuss the plan to leave the village with Misaki that evening, several jonin caught the scent and arrived.

As Misaki's boyfriend, Kenichi was under surveillance nearly twenty-four hours a day, so the news of the Dragon Talisman could not be kept hidden at all; it wasn't long before the higher-ups of the Grass Ninja world became aware of it.

"Kenichi, will you hand it over yourself, or shall we take it by force?"

The several jonin had already drawn their Kunai, gripping them tightly like a pack of starving wolves, ready to swarm him and tear him to pieces the moment he said "no."