Hoshino looked down at his palm; when his knuckles were slightly bent, the tendon lines faintly visible under the skin were no different from those of an ordinary person.
This body, which has undergone countless modifications, has long since transcended the limitations of flesh and blood.
The neural connection system perfectly replaced the biological nervous system, and the energy core deep in the chest cavity, composed of Mutant Insect, continuously released a stable amount of Chakra.
Those so-called fatal wounds—severed limbs, pierced chests—were nothing more than parts that needed replacing.
But the images of death that Shion witnessed still plunged him into deep thought.
If even such a body could be destroyed, it must have encountered an extraordinary force.
"Hello!"
Shion's pouty voice pulled him back to reality, "Are you even listening to me?"
Hoshino snapped out of her reverie, and couldn't help but chuckle at her apprehended state as she looked at Shion. "Sorry, I was daydreaming."
"Really!" Shion stuffed a pastry into her mouth. "I'm telling you something very important!"
"My lady, it's getting late!" came the gentle reminder from outside the door.
Shion's expression suddenly froze, and she subconsciously looked out the window; dusk had already enveloped the entire shrine.
"Ah, it's already this late..."
She muttered to herself, a hint of panic flashing across her face.
Shion slowly straightened up, her wide, flowing priestess sleeves drooping, gleaming faintly with purple light in the candlelight.
Her slender fingers gently adjusted her clothes, each movement carrying an elegance and dignity completely different from before.
When Shion looked up again, her purple eyes no longer held any trace of childishness, only the calm and profound presence of a priestess from the Land of Demons.
" Hoshino has come from afar and must be exhausted! I have ordered a guest room to be prepared for you. Please rest well."
As the words fell, two white-clad priestesses silently appeared outside the temple gate. The candlelight cast long shadows of them, creating mysterious patterns on the stone wall.
Hoshino understood and stood up, lightly touching her left chest with her right hand in a bow, "Thank you for your kindness, Shrine Maiden."
Shion nodded slightly, and the moonlight shone through the window, casting a silvery-blue halo around her.
At this moment, she was completely different from the girl who had been stealing snacks just moments before; it was as if she had once again donned that invisible priestess crown.
Hoshino followed the shrine maiden who was leading the way out of the temple.
He turned the corner in the corridor and looked back one last time.
Shion stood in the center of the hall, adjusting her breathing under the guidance of the elder priestess, preparing to begin some kind of ritual.
Hoshino suddenly realized that this seemingly carefree girl had to shoulder the heavy responsibility of protecting the entire Land of Demons every night.
The girl's silhouette appeared exceptionally slender in the candlelight, yet it inexplicably gave one the illusion of timelessness, as if she had merged with the witches of past dynasties in the murals, guarding that thousand-year-old secret.
Dark clouds loomed over the Deliberation City of the Land of Rain, and torrential rain poured down, but the meeting hall of the Shinobi Alliance headquarters remained brightly lit.
A giant holographic projection floated in the center, displaying a map of the Shinobi World in real time, while the seats representing the Council were deliberately elevated, and the seats of the smaller countries were surrounded by them like stars around the moon.
However, the brilliance of these 'stars' has long been swallowed up by the shadow of the Council.
Maki sat in his seat in Sunagakure, tapping the table lightly with his fingertips, his mechanical eye scanning the entire room out of the corner of his eye.
Konoha's representative, Mitokado Homura, was organizing files; Kumogakure's Mabui examining a data board; and Iwagakure's Kurotsuchi was idly playing with her nails.
The representative of the Otogakure was Kabuto Yakushi, a young man who had switched allegiance and was observing everyone with a faint smile.
None of the powerful figures from the Five Great Shinobi Villages were present; instead, all who came were eloquent 'spokespersons'.
This was not a coincidence, but a deliberate act.
The real decision was made behind the scenes long ago; today's meeting was nothing more than a performance, a power declaration to make the small Shinobi World nation recognize reality.
At this moment, the holographic projection in the center of the conference hall switched to a map of the Land of Grass.
Maki noticed that Kusagakure, representing Aoki, bobbed his Aoki's apple.
The nearly fifty-year-old ninja stared intently at the map of Kusagakure projected on the screen, especially at the location of ' Hozuki Castle ' marked with a red circle.
He instinctively reached for his waist, where his ninja bag should have been hanging, but it was now empty.
All weapons were confiscated before entering the conference hall.
"According to intelligence gathered by the Shinobi Alliance, a suspected research and development facility for weapons of mass destruction has been discovered within the Land of Grass," Maki said calmly.
"Article 3 of the Shinobi World Peace Treaty stipulates that no country may develop such weapons without authorization. Representative Aoki, how do you intend to explain this?" Mitokado Homura pushed up his glasses and took over the conversation.
Inside the conference hall of the Deliberation City, shrouded in rain, the air was so still that the flickering candlelight could be heard.
"According to information brought back by our intelligence personnel at great risk, an unusual Chakra reaction has recently been observed beneath Hozuki Castle, which closely matches the energy fluctuations of the Six Paths Treasure, the Box of Box of Ultimate Bliss, as recorded in ancient texts."
Maki paused deliberately as he spoke.
The projection switched to a yellowed scroll image, with hastily written characters recording the legend of the Box of Ultimate Bliss from the Warring States period, which devoured an entire city.
The Box of Ultimate Bliss is said to be a forbidden treasure left over from the era of the Sage of Six Paths. It can grant any wish of the person who opens it, but at the cost of consuming a large number of lives.
The Kusagakure almost ruled the Shinobi World thanks to this.
After the establishment of the Shinobi Alliance, the Land of Grass felt an unprecedented threat and began to increase its investment in the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
But all of this was still discovered.
Aoki retorted, "Nonsense! Hozuki Castle is just an ordinary prison; it holds people who..."
"I remember there were over thirty prisoners who suddenly died last year!" Kabuto Yakushi suddenly interjected, tapping the table with his finger to unfold another scroll.
Mabui promptly produced a stack of files, "These are thirty-seven autopsy reports. The brain tissue of all the deceased showed signs of having had their Chakra drained."
As she spoke, she projected and enlarged the file, saying, "This peculiar symptom of nerve atrophy perfectly matches the energy absorption process of the Box of Ultimate Bliss described in ancient texts."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Aoki's forehead, and he subconsciously loosened his collar.
"That... that's just a special disease that occurs in prison..."
"Oh?"
Kabuto Yakushi suddenly smiled. "And what about this?"
The projection switched to a blurry image.
Deep beneath Hozuki Castle, a massive cube covered in runes was slowly rotating, while a dozen or so Kusagakure stood around it, Hand Seals.
Maki's prosthetic eye caught Aoki's pupils contracting instantly and his fingers trembling slightly.
This evidence came at just the right time.
Although the image was clearly manipulated, it was enough to be the final straw that broke the camel's back.
"Article Seven of the Supplementary Clauses to the Shinobi World Peace Treaty," Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses, "Any Six Paths relics that endanger the safety of the Shinobi World must be subject to the supervision of the Shinobi Alliance."
"Now let's vote: Should the Land of Grass immediately hand over the Box of Ultimate Bliss?"