The Dawnbringer sailed into a bank of dense fog on the evening of the seventh day.
The fog appeared without warning. One moment, the sky was clear; the next, white mist rose from the sea and enveloped the entire ship. Visibility dropped below ten meters, and even the Rinnegan's sight was obstructed.
"This isn't a natural phenomenon." Lin Ye stood at the bow with his Jōgan activated. Through his eyes, blue chakra patterns flowed through the fog-sealing formulas, active and constantly shifting.
"It's the Uzumaki Clan's 'Mist of the Lost.'" Karin closed her eyes and pressed both hands against the deck, red chakra spreading like a spiderweb. "I can feel the fog's core guiding us. But it needs my blood to open a passage."
"Then open it," Sasuke said. Though blind, he could sense the malice hidden in the fog. "Something's moving in there. It's fast, and it isn't a fish."
Naruto immediately entered Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, three golden tails swaying behind him. "Which direction?"
"Every direction." Sasuke tightened his grip on his cane. "There are twelve targets surrounding us. Their chakra feels... cold. There's no sign of life."
Puppets, Lin Ye realized instantly. Scouting units from the Otsutsuki Vanguard? Or the Eye of the Whirlpool's own defenses?
"Everyone, prepare for battle," Lin Ye ordered. "Kankuro, scout with your puppets. Darui, cover the sea with Lightning Release. Kurotsuchi, reinforce the hull. Chōjūrō, watch beneath the water."
"Understood!"
Kankuro sent three Crow puppets into the fog. But less than three seconds later, the chakra threads connecting them were severed.
"My puppets were taken out instantly!" Kankuro exclaimed. "The attack came from-below!"
Boom! The ship shook violently. Several octopus-like tentacles rose from the depths and coiled around the hull. Black armor covered their surfaces, and sharp bone spikes tipped their ends.
"Are these... the Uzumaki Clan's Guardian Beasts?" Sakura smashed through a tentacle with her Monster Strength Fist, but the severed end immediately regenerated. "They're regenerating too fast!"
"Use Sealing Jutsu!" Karin formed hand seals. "Sealing Jutsu: Four Symbols Sealing Formation!"
A red sealing formation spread beneath the ship, temporarily suppressing the tentacles' regeneration. But more tentacles reached out of the fog. At the same time, figures began to emerge-twelve puppets dressed in ancient Uzumaki Clan attire, their skin pale and their eyes vacant, yet their movements swift.
"The Uzumaki Clan's Corpse Puppets." Karin's face went white. "Combat puppets made from dead clan members. How could... why would the sacred land have something like this?"
"Let's deal with them first." Lin Ye raised his hand. "Shinra Tensei!"
Repulsive force erupted, blasting the approaching Corpse Puppets away. But they adjusted their stances in midair and formed hand seals-Uzumaki Clan Sealing Jutsu!
"Sealing Jutsu: Five Elements Seal!"
Five-colored beams shot toward Lin Ye from five directions, seeking to seal his chakra. He blocked three with his Limbo: Border Jail shadows. Sasuke's Chidori-aimed through his Mind's Eye despite his blindness-and Naruto's Rasengan deflected the other two.
"These puppets can use the jutsu they knew in life!" Darui cleared a swath of tentacles with Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder, but new ones quickly filled the gap.
"We can't get bogged down. They're wearing us out." Lin Ye looked at Karin. "Karin, locate the core. We'll charge straight toward it."
"It's directly ahead, but I need my blood to clear the way." Karin bit her finger, drew the Uzumaki Clan Crest on her palm, then pressed it against the deck. "With blood as my guide, I summon the gate of the sacred land-open!"
The fog ahead of the ship suddenly parted, revealing a passage. At its far end, the outline of an enormous palace was faintly visible.
"Full speed ahead!" Lin Ye shouted.
The Dawnbringer's chakra engine roared as it charged down the passage. The Corpse Puppets and tentacles tried to block it, but everyone worked together to drive them back. Three minutes later, the ship burst out of the dense fog, and the sight before them left them all stunned.
An enormous palace floated on the sea, built entirely of white jade, its architecture ancient and sacred. Nine stone pillars encircled it, each engraved with intricate sealing formulas. Above the palace's main entrance hung a massive Uzumaki Clan Crest, now emitting a faint red glow that resonated with the blood mark on Karin's palm.
"The Eye of the Whirlpool..." Karin murmured, tears spilling from her eyes. "I'm home... Mother, I'm home..."
"Your mother came here?" Sakura asked.
"No. The mother of all Uzumaki Clan members," Karin said. "I can feel it. All the clan members who died when Uzushio Village was destroyed are buried here. Their souls became the power that protects the sacred land."
The palace doors slowly opened, and the ancient, melodious tolling of a bell drifted out. As the sound reached them, everyone felt their weariness and anxiety wash away, and their chakra grew more concentrated.
"The bell has a purifying effect," Sasuke said. "My eyes... the pain is easing."
"Let's go inside." Lin Ye was the first to step onto the Jade Bridge connecting the ship to the palace.
The instant they entered the palace, space and time seemed to shift. They stood in an enormous circular hall, surrounded by countless bookshelves filled with scrolls. At the center stood an altar, above which hovered a crystal-clear orb that seemed to contain a swirling galaxy.
"Is that... the Eye of Prophecy?" Naruto leaned closer, curious.
"Don't touch it!" Karin suddenly shouted, but she was too late.
The moment Naruto's finger touched the crystal orb, it erupted with blinding light. Within that light, countless images flashed before everyone's eyes-
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