"A spacetime rift?"
"Sss-ouch."
Yui found herself in a fantastical place, surrounded by swirling radiance. Just looking at the scenery made her feel faintly dizzy.
It was like being inside a passage.
Everything around her looked motionless.
But Yui knew she was moving forward at incredible speed.
She was moving so fast that fine, bloody cuts had been sliced into her skin.
Yui felt as though her world was falling apart. She had already spent a whole day in this godforsaken place.
And she still hadn't seen an exit.
She was beginning to suspect she might be trapped here forever.
As she pondered that, a dozen or so rings of white light suddenly appeared ahead of her.
The rings lined both sides of the passage.
"What are those?" Yui asked in confusion. "Are those... exits?"
Looking at the openings in the surrounding walls, Yui wasn't quite sure.
And there were so many of them.
Watching the rings of light race past her, she knew.
She couldn't hesitate any longer.
She picked whichever ring was closest to her.
Twisting her body, she plunged headfirst into it.
"Whoosh-"
After she entered the ring of light.
Rushing sounds rang out all around her.
"Whoa-!"
Opening her eyes, she realized she was now in the sky.
She was plummeting in free fall.
Below her stretched a dense Jungle.
As the ground drew closer and closer, Yui formed hand seals.
"Wind Release: Wind-Riding Technique!"
Two pillars of wind suddenly erupted beneath her feet.
The moment she cast the ninjutsu, her shoes were blown away as well.
"Phew-"
With her Flying Ninjutsu, Yui hovered steadily in midair.
"This is..."
Looking at the Jungle beneath her, Yui fell into a daze.
Unlike ordinary trees, the trees below her were pale blue.
At a glance, they looked like a vast ocean.
"What a magnificent sight..."
After murmuring in awe, Yui descended.
She landed in the Jungle and stood directly on the ground.
"So cold."
Feeling the sensation beneath her feet, Yui finally realized her shoes were gone.
But she was puzzled. Why was the soil here so wet?
"Sss-"
A gust of wind swept past, sending stinging pain through Yui's entire body.
Only then did she notice that every patch of skin not covered by clothing was riddled with tiny cuts.
"Sigh..."
She sighed. The wounds were small, but there were far too many of them.
She took a roll of bandages from her ninja tool pouch.
She bandaged the wounds on her face and neck.
Only then did she take a look around.
"What in the world is this place?!"
She hadn't noticed while she was in the air, but now that she looked closely, she realized.
Even the shortest trees here were probably over ten meters tall.
The tallest were probably hundreds of meters high.
Standing here, she was like a tiny ant.
Looking up from the ground, they resembled colossal pillars spanning heaven and earth.
"Squelch-"
Suddenly, a strange sound came from beneath her feet.
Yui looked down and jumped in fright.
Her feet were sinking into the ground.
At the sight, Yui didn't panic. She immediately used her Flying Ninjutsu and rose into the air.
Hovering there, Yui still felt shaken.
"Good thing I reacted fast enough."
She hadn't expected the ground beneath her to be a swamp.
But before she could breathe a sigh of relief, a burning sensation spread through her feet.
Sensing something was wrong, Yui was about to look down.
But a sudden surge of pain disrupted her movements.
"Ah..."
Yui's Flying Ninjutsu faltered, and she began to drop.
Enduring the intense pain, she steadied herself again.
Picking her moment, she slowly landed on a branch.
"Damn it..." Yui cursed as she looked at her feet.
"I let my guard down..."
She hadn't expected the swamp to be poisonous.
And just what kind of luck was she having? This was miserable.
Her fair little feet were gradually turning black.
Waves of agonizing pain came with it.
She was speechless. She had been too hasty.
She should have investigated her surroundings before landing.
The pain continued, and Yui could barely stand it anymore.
"Byakugan, activate!"
She was going to find out what was happening to her feet.
After seeing their condition, Yui sucked in a sharp breath.
Through her Byakugan, she could see the cells in her feet steadily rotting at a visible rate.
The sight made her panic. What in the world was this place?
She couldn't stand up now, let alone use her Flying Ninjutsu.
She had to find a way to save herself, or she would really be done for.
Suddenly, a pale blue leaf entered her field of vision.
Thinking it over, she looked down at the black swamp below, then at the thick trees.
Plants that can survive in a poisonous swamp like this...
If that's the case, these trees should naturally counteract the swamp's poison.
As the saying went, an antidote could always be found within seven steps.
She reached out and plucked a few leaves, crushed them, and applied them directly to her feet.
As soon as she put them on, a cool sensation spread through her whole body.
"Mmm-"
Under her Byakugan's observation, the cells in her feet gradually healed, just as Yui had guessed.
It really works. With that thought, Yui picked more leaves from nearby, crushed them, and applied them to her feet.
"That finally feels a little better."
Yui sighed with relief.
After a while, Yui's feet finally recovered completely.
She could use her Flying Ninjutsu again now, too.
Looking around, she felt a growing sense of strangeness. Aside from these blue trees, there were no other creatures or plants here.
She glanced at her shoulder and only then realized that Little White Mouse hadn't followed her.
Probably still in Konoha!
She formed hand seals, intending to summon it.
Suddenly, she reconsidered and decided against it.
It was too dangerous here. Letting it stay in Konoha would keep it safe.
Hovering in midair, she needed to find a way back to Konoha as soon as possible.
She had to return and find out where Nai Hyuga was.
Three days later.
Yui took a Soldier Pill out of her ninja tool pouch, tossed it into her mouth, and slowly chewed.
Looking at the Jungle stretching endlessly into the distance, Yui felt a surge of helplessness.
"What in the world is this place?!"
This wretched place had nearly driven her mad over the past few days.
There wasn't a single person, or even a single creature.
There was only an endless blue forest and a vast swamp below.
She was like a headless fly now, able only to pick a direction at random and keep going.
After getting herself back into shape, she continued flying forward.
Suddenly, a mountain range appeared in the distance within her Byakugan's field of vision.
The sight of it stirred excitement in Yui's heart.
"Finally, something other than forest."
Yui was almost ready to cry. If something different hadn't appeared soon, she figured she would have fallen into depression.
As the mountain range drew closer, Yui sensed something was off.
She stopped flying and studied the mountains ahead.
"That's not right," she murmured. "Why is this mountain range so rounded?"
But after observing it for a while, she continued toward the mountains.
Even if danger lay ahead, she was going to brave it.
Before you continue