Natsuhi said sorrowfully, "If it's you, then being able to easily defeat Akahoshi's subordinates makes sense."
Ignoring Uchiha Yu, Tsunade continued asking, "What do you plan to do next?"
Natsuhi fell silent. She glanced up at Uchiha Yu, then lowered her gaze and whispered, "I plan to leave the Land of Bears with my child. I'll raise him alone—far away from the cruelty of the ninja world."
Uchiha Yu said, "Go to Konoha. Look for a woman named Uchiha Mikoto. She will arrange your life for you and your child."
"Konoha?" Natsuhi was stunned. "But… didn't you lead your forces and flee from Konoha?"
The news of the Uchiha takeover hadn't yet spread through the shinobi world. Sunagakure's expedition army had been wiped out, Kumogakure's momentum was broken, while Iwagakure and Kirigakure both leaned toward the Uchiha now.
As for the Konoha remnants, they had only just stabilized themselves in the capital of the Land of Fire.
No one had the mind to discuss Konoha at this time.
But Uchiha Yu knew that soon, the establishment of a new ninja village under the Uchiha name would shake the entire shinobi world.
"You'll understand once you reach Konoha." After saying this, he looked toward her husband's corpse and asked her, "Do you plan to take him with you, or…?"
Natsuhi gazed at her husband and sighed sadly. "He was born on this land. Let him remain here forever."
This had also been his last wish.
"…Alright."
Uchiha Yu said nothing more and walked back toward the campfire. Tsunade followed him.
Natsuhi watched their departing figures, then looked down at her child, falling into deep thought.
Should she take her child to Konoha? If Uchiha Yu held influence over Konoha now…
Then her child might receive far better education there, even if it came with certain risks.
…
…
The next day, after the storm, the sky gradually cleared. The heavy dark clouds that had vented their fury vanished without a trace.
At dawn, Natsuhi carried her husband's body on her back, guiding her awakened child up the mountain to bury him at the highest point.
When she lowered her gaze toward the valley, she could still faintly see the countless corpses of the Star ninja.
For the village to suffer such tragedy… it was never something she wished for.
But as long as the Star Ninja Village insisted on keeping the meteorite for training, under the Star Shadow's ambition, the village was destined to walk the path of withering young shinobi and self-destruction.
In the distance, Uchiha Yu and Tsunade's silhouettes disappeared along a mountain trail on another peak.
After paying respects to her husband, Natsuhi took her son and began descending the mountain.
In the forest below—
Uchiha Yu and Tsunade leapt swiftly between the branches. Moments later, Garaga was summoned by Uchiha Yu.
Boom—
The ground shook violently, trees toppling as the massive crimson serpent carried them rapidly down the mountain.
Once Garaga appeared, the Edo Tensei Uchiha squad that had been hiding below the cliffs immediately moved to follow.
Uchiha Yu didn't care whether the ninja of Hoshigakure would be drawn to Garaga's presence.
Tsunade asked curiously,
"Do you think… she'll go to Konoha?"
"Whether she goes or not doesn't matter," Uchiha Yu said after a moment of thought. "If we want to study that meteorite, having her there will make things much easier."
Tsunade nodded, then looked ahead, quietly relieved. Thanks to Natsuhi's family last night, she had narrowly escaped Uchiha Yu's grasp. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable—she might not even be able to stand today.
Uchiha Yu focused, activating both the Cage Space and his external sensory perception.
Clang—
A dazzling light burst forth. Hashirama and Tobirama, who were routinely awakened in this manner, needed a long moment before their eyes adjusted.
Hashirama stared at Tsunade dressed in Uchiha clan attire. For a moment, he thought he was seeing things.
He exclaimed,
"Tell me—what happened last night?!"
Tobirama's attention was also drawn to Tsunade. His expression turned grave, unable to speak.
In the shinobi world, tradition dictated that only a woman married into another clan was allowed to wear that clan's attire and take its surname.
"It was just a rainstorm," Uchiha Yu said casually. "You don't expect little Tsuna to sleep in soaked clothes, do you?"
Then he added seriously, "At our current pace, we'll reach Hell Valley in the Land of Bears by dusk. Tell me the exact location ahead of time."
"Little Tsuna… you're calling her that? Are you sure nothing happened??"
Hashirama's expression froze, his voice trembling.
"If you don't tell me, I can't guarantee nothing will happen between me and little Tsuna on the way."
Uchiha Yu's tone sank slightly.
"You're still calling her that!?"
Hashirama's face twisted.
Grinding his teeth, Tobirama finally reported the precise location of Hell Valley to Uchiha Yu.
Now understanding the coordinates, Uchiha Yu couldn't suppress his curiosity and asked,
"The Hell Valley in the Land of Bears doesn't have anything to do with the Blood Pond clan, right?"
Tobirama replied coldly,
"You even know about the Blood Pond clan?"
They were a bloodline-limit clan exiled by the upper authorities of the Land of Lightning long before the Warring States period.
Additionally, the Land of Lightning once hired the Uchiha to suppress that clan, which shows that before the Warring States era, the Uchiha homeland was likely also in the northwestern region of the shinobi world.
As for the Blood Pond Clan, to someone of the younger Uchiha generation like Uchiha Yu, they were practically a piece of ancient history.
Without digging into it, he wouldn't even know what the Blood Pond Clan truly was.
"Just tell me what I want to know,"
Uchiha Yu said.
Tobirama replied in a deep voice, "The Blood Pond Clan is in the Hell Valley of the Land of Hot Water. It has nothing to do with the Hell Valley of the Land of Bears."
"Got it."
Uchiha Yu had originally thought the two Hell Valleys were connected somehow, but it turned out they only shared the same name and had no relation whatsoever.
Otherwise, once everything was dug clean, he could've brought a few pairs of 'Blood Dragon Eyes' back for Orochimaru to study.
Time passed quickly.
Garaga advanced without any obstacles. When the sky dimmed, Uchiha Yu and Tsunade had already entered the Hell Valley of the Land of Bears.
Jagged rocks jutted everywhere, the mountains steep and dangerous, the valley full of ravines and chasms. Compared to the surrounding forests, the place looked utterly desolate.
Compared to the Mist-shrouded Valley of Judgement, this place carried an additional aura of death.
Rumble—
Garaga moved into the valley entrance. For ordinary shinobi, the so-called Hell Valley was indeed perilous, but to Garaga, its danger couldn't compare to Ryūchi Cave at all.
The deeper they went—
They encountered marshland formed from years of landslides and decaying mudslides. Countless animal corpses lay half-submerged in the gray mire.
From Garaga's serpent head looking down, one could even see a faint cloud of green miasma.
But due to Garaga's massive size, the toxic haze didn't even reach his chin.
The sky grew darker.
Combined with the strange environment, even the howling wind sounded sharp and unnatural. Standing within the valley, one truly felt as if they had stepped foot into hell itself.
°°°
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