I Will Always Be Behind You

The group quickly selected their rooms. At this moment, Shi Xiu was preparing to set off for Takigakure Village to bring back the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Kaede.

Shi Xiu had a vivid memory of this particular Jinchuriki: an optimistic and cheerful dark-skinned girl.

Back when he was on Blue Star, Shi Xiu had always been puzzled as to how Takigakure Village managed to secure a Tailed Beast for themselves.

However, after transmigrating into the world of Naruto, he discovered that the Seven-Tails had actually been residing within the borders of the Land of Waterfalls all along.

It had never fallen into the hands of Hashirama Senju, so naturally, there was no scenario where it was captured and distributed to other villages.

Furthermore, because the Land of Waterfalls was wedged between four other nations, this unique geographical position allowed it to survive and avoid annihilation despite being surrounded by powerful enemies.

Shi Xiu didn't actually know much about the smaller nations outside the Five Great Shinobi Countries; aside from the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki Kaede, the only other person he knew of in the Land of Waterfalls was Kakuzu.

Still, the location occupied by Takigakure Village was truly gifted by nature, hidden behind a waterfall in the Land of Waterfalls, making it difficult for others to easily detect its existence.

Just as Shi Xiu was planning to take Uchiha Obito along to retrieve the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, a crisp, melodious voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Sir, are you going out?" Shi Xiu turned his head in slight surprise to see Haku quietly watching him with those large, sparkling eyes.

Haku seemed to sense Shi Xiu's confusion, lowered his head slightly, pursed his lips, and whispered an explanation: "Sir, you have been lost in thought for a while, and you kept looking toward a certain direction... so I guessed that you might be going out on business."

Hearing this, Shi Xiu couldn't help but reach out and gently pat Haku on the head, secretly marveling to himself. He never expected that young Haku would possess such keen and impressive observational skills.

Shi Xiu gently extended his hand, tenderly stroking Haku's silky, smooth hair, and asked with a smile: "What is it, Haku? Do you want to come with me?"

Haku nodded slightly, then looked up, his gaze fixed intently on Shi Xiu as he whispered: "Yes, may I? Sir."

Seeing the longing in Haku's eyes, Shi Xiu couldn't help but laugh. He nodded and replied: "Of course, no problem. However, I won't be making a move this time; you'll have to handle everything yourself. Do you think you can do it?"

Upon hearing this, Haku was slightly stunned, but he quickly regained his composure. He nodded firmly and answered with determination: "Yes, please rest assured, Sir! I will definitely be able to do it!"

Shi Xiu nodded in satisfaction, then took Haku's soft, small hand and instantly activated the Flying Thunder God technique.

A dazzling flash of light streaked by, and in the blink of an eye, the two of them vanished from the spot.

The next moment, as the light dissipated, Shi Xiu and Haku had already appeared before a magnificent waterfall within the Land of Waterfalls. The water here rushed violently, spray flew everywhere, and the surrounding area was lush with trees, creating a picturesque scene.

In truth, even Shi Xiu himself did not know the exact location of Takigakure Village.

After all, more than a hundred years had passed since he transmigrated into this world, and he had spent nearly fifty of those years locked away in a Konoha Village prison.

Although he had snuck out many times during that period, overall, the time he spent in his cell far exceeded the time he spent outside.

Shi Xiu slowly closed his eyes. A moment later, he snapped them open, and his pupils, originally as black as ink, instantly turned a chilling, ashen white.

At the same time, the veins around his eye sockets bulged like writhing dragons, as if they were about to burst through his skin.

"Byakugan!" With a low shout, an invisible force surged from Shi Xiu's eyes and rapidly spread into the surroundings.

This power acted like a massive spiderweb, enveloping everything nearby; no subtle change could escape its scrutiny.

Utilizing the Byakugan's powerful reconnaissance capabilities, Shi Xiu carefully searched the scene behind the waterfall before him.

However, to Shi Xiu's disappointment, he found no trace of Takigakure Village behind the waterfall.

With no other choice, Shi Xiu could only shake his head slightly, thinking to himself: Could I have looked in the wrong direction?

Nevertheless, Shi Xiu did not lose heart. Instead, he made a prompt decision, took Haku, and activated the Flying Thunder God technique again, appearing before another waterfall in the blink of an eye.

The same process was repeated, with Shi Xiu remaining fully focused on using the Byakugan to investigate... After tirelessly searching one waterfall after another, and passing three or four, his efforts finally paid off, and Shi Xiu found the exact location of Takigakure Village.

Shi Xiu took a deep breath, channeled his chakra, and then carefully coated himself and Haku in it.

Following this, the two of them fearlessly braved the immense pressure of the waterfall, which crashed down like a stampeding army, and walked straight toward it, one step at a time.

The water slammed violently against them, but under the protection of Shi Xiu's chakra, they pressed forward as firmly as fish swimming against the current.

Finally, when Shi Xiu and Haku successfully passed through the waterfall, the sight before them made their hearts tighten.

More than a dozen Takigakure ninja, dressed in black bodysuits and wearing forehead protectors, suddenly appeared and quickly surrounded them.

Each of these ninja held a kunai, their eyes sharp and filled with intense hostility.

"Who goes there! How dare you trespass in our Takigakure Village! I warn you, leave this place immediately! Otherwise, don't blame us for being impolite!" the lead ninja shouted sternly.

Haku looked up, casting a glance at Shi Xiu beside him. Shi Xiu nodded slightly, signaling that he could proceed.

Receiving the signal, Haku didn't hesitate; his hands moved in a blur of seals, his motions fluid and completed in one breath.

In an instant, countless sharp ice needles emerged behind him, shimmering with a cold light as they whistled toward the Takigakure ninja like a rain of arrows.

Facing the sudden attack, the ninja did not dare to be the least bit negligent.

They hurriedly performed hand seals to unleash ninjutsu to block the overwhelming onslaught of ice needles. For a moment, the ninjutsu they cast collided with the ice needles, emitting a series of booming sounds.

Seeing this, the lead ninja shouted: "Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

However, despite the ninja's quick reactions, Haku's strength clearly exceeded their expectations.

Seeing that his first strike hadn't been effective, Haku made a swift decision to unleash a more powerful secret technique: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals.

As the hand seals changed, a massive, mirror-smooth block of ice appeared out of thin air before him.

Haku leaped lightly, like a butterfly dancing in the air, and instantly vanished into the ice mirror without a trace.

Just then, the unexpected occurred. On the empty ground behind the Takigakure ninja, another identical ice mirror suddenly emerged.

Haku's figure emerged silently from the mirror, ghost-like. Before the ninja could react, countless sharp ice needles rained down upon them like a storm.

In that very instant, the entire scene turned incredibly bloody; bright red blood splattered everywhere, accompanied by a chorus of shrill, harrowing screams.

Shi Xiu walked with steady strides, moving slowly toward Haku. At this moment, Haku's face was filled with guilt; he hurriedly lowered his head and said to Shi Xiu, his voice trembling slightly.

"Sir, I am truly sorry. Even though I tried my best, I ultimately failed to stop them."

Hearing Haku's words, Shi Xiu stopped in his tracks, reached out to gently pat Haku on the head, and spoke in a tone that was both gentle and soothing.

"Don't blame yourself too much, Haku. In truth, you have already done an outstanding job."

In reality, Shi Xiu had been observing quietly from the sidelines the entire time, and he had successfully copied the Ice Release technique Haku had just unleashed in its entirety.

However, a sudden commotion erupted from the direction of Takigakure Village. A massive group of ninjas surged forward like a tidal wave, numbering in the dozens.

They charged toward this location with aggressive momentum and a clear objective.

Shi Xiu watched the approaching Takigakure ninjas without changing his expression, the corners of his mouth curling upward into a faint smile.

Yet, Shi Xiu did not see the figure of the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki among the crowd.

Shi Xiu then turned to look at Haku beside him and asked softly, "Haku, facing so many people, do you feel afraid?"

Haku stared intently at the dozens of fierce-looking enemies rushing toward them, and he could not help but feel nervous.

Haku subconsciously swallowed hard and gripped the hem of his clothes, but his eyes shone with an unwavering light.

After taking a deep breath, Haku straightened his posture and stood in front of Shi Xiu without hesitation, answering, "Sir, I am not afraid! I once said that no matter what difficulties or dangers we encounter, I will become the sharpest blade in your hand!"

Shi Xiu smiled, patted Haku's head, and said softly, "Rest assured! I will always be right behind you."

PS: To be honest, Hongchen doesn't know exactly when Kaede was captured; neither the anime nor the manga seems to mention it. However, it seems she hasn't been captured yet in this timeline.