Two months passed quietly in training.
Nothing major happened in Konoha or in the ninja world, and it was the same for the Advanced Class.
The Advanced Class students had already gone through two monthly exams, but the rankings were almost the same as in last term's finals.
The reason was that most of the students had hit a bottleneck.
For example, Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, and Kurama Yakumo.
Two months weren't enough for them to fully master the Hatake Sword Style, Leaf Dragon God, or Illusion: Five Senses.
Hyuga Neji and Hyuga Hinata were in a similar situation, still working on Multiple Arrow and Burst Arrow.
July 14th, Monday.
After breakfast, Kitazawa headed to the Anbu base as usual.
He pushed open his office door and walked in.
When Konan saw him, she instinctively stood up.
"Anything I should know about today?"
Kitazawa walked up to her, took off her Anbu mask, and asked.
"Yes."
Konan nodded.
Every time he talked to her, Kitazawa would first remove her Anbu mask. She was already used to it.
Habit is a scary thing. Before she knew it, she had become an excellent Anbu kunoichi.
Sometimes she would even forget she was a member of the Akatsuki.
After speaking, Konan took out a scroll.
Kitazawa opened it and began to read.
Sure enough, it was intel sent back by Uchiha Itachi.
After two months of effort, Yomi had finally completed his dark medical ninjutsu based on the forbidden Medical Art: Body Revival.
Yesterday, he led his followers to the Land of Demons. If nothing unexpected happened, Mōryō would break free within the next few days.
Kitazawa closed the scroll and fell into thought.
Although Yomi had already succeeded in developing his dark medical ninjutsu, it was definitely different from how it was in the original timeline.
To be safe, he decided to personally go to the Land of Demons and watch Yomi release Mōryō.
If anything went wrong, he would be there to fix it.
And lately, the Advanced Class didn't really need him for anything urgent.
"Konan."
Kitazawa put the scroll away and smiled. "Take me to the Land of Demons."
"Right now?"
Konan nodded slightly and then asked.
"Yeah, right now."
Kitazawa thought for a moment, then said, "The sooner we get this done, the better."
The two of them left the Anbu base and headed to the Forest of Death.
"Sorry to trouble you, Konan."
Kitazawa stepped up to her, reached out, and wrapped an arm around her waist.
The moment he pulled her in, Konan fell into his arms.
She forced down the strange flutter in her chest and activated Dance of the Shikigami. White wings made of paper unfolded from her back.
She wrapped her arms around Kitazawa and took off into the sky.
The Land of Demons lay to the north of the Land of Wind and was a long way from the Land of Fire.
Even flying, it took them a day and a half.
They arrived in the Land of Demons around noon on the second day.
Despite its ominous name, the Land of Demons was actually a perfectly normal country.
Kitazawa guessed that the "demon" in its name referred specifically to Mōryō.
The two of them slowly descended from the air.
"Thanks."
Kitazawa let go of Konan and smiled.
Konan shook her head and dispelled the white wings.
"Wait here for me for a bit."
Kitazawa said, then headed north. Once he was far enough away, he activated the Byakugan.
Very soon, he found the cave Itachi had mentioned.
After thinking it over for a moment, he formed a series of hand seals.
Summoning Jutsu!
In a burst of smoke, Katsuyu appeared.
This time, though, her size was very small, looking no different from an ordinary caterpillar.
"Katsuyu-sama."
Kitazawa quickly explained Itachi's situation to her and asked her to go inform Itachi.
"Alright."
Katsuyu wriggled off toward the cave.
Kitazawa retracted his gaze and made his way back to Konan.
"What do you need me to do?"
Konan took the initiative to ask.
"Nothing. Just wait."
Kitazawa smiled.
A moment later, the sound of air being sliced open rang out. A figure approached from the distance and landed in front of them—Uchiha Itachi.
"Itachi, when is Yomi making his move?"
Kitazawa got straight to the point the instant he saw him.
"Tomorrow morning."
Itachi paused, then asked, "Do you want me to force him to move earlier?"
"No, forget it. Tomorrow is fine."
Kitazawa thought for a bit and said.
If forcing things forward caused Mōryō's unsealing to fail, that would be a huge loss.
After all, this involved three of his system quests. He couldn't afford to be careless.
"Itachi, I'll have to trouble you to keep an eye on them for one more day."
Kitazawa added, "Once this is over, I'll give you a month off."
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sama."
Itachi was briefly stunned, but he didn't refuse.
He could finally spend that month at home with Uchiha Sasuke.
He had been away for far too long.
"Let's find a place to spend the night."
After Itachi left, Kitazawa turned toward a distant valley.
When he'd activated the Byakugan earlier, he had already scanned the area. The valley was remote and deserted—perfect for staying the night.
Konan silently followed behind him.
Wood Release: Four-Pillar House!
Once they arrived, Kitazawa formed a sequence of hand seals.
In the blink of an eye, a wooden house rose up out of the ground and stood before them.
Kitazawa pushed open the door and walked in.
He opened a summoning storage scroll and took out various pieces of furniture and daily necessities.
Seeing this, Konan stepped forward to help him set up the living room.
She had already done it once yesterday, so this time everything went even more smoothly.
After spending so much time with Kitazawa, Konan understood his personality very well.
For example: he never lets himself suffer, and he really knows how to enjoy life.
Even out in the wild, he wanted things to feel like home.
Before long, the sofa, coffee table, and everything else were all in place.
Kitazawa flopped down onto the soft sofa, stretched lazily, and felt completely at ease.
Konan crouched down, picked up the teapot on the coffee table, and started pouring him tea.
Kitazawa's gaze drifted to her almost without thinking.
Konan's legs were bent, her thighs tightened, giving them a distinctly shapely look.
But what drew the eye the most was her rounded backside. In that posture, its curve looked absolutely perfect.
Konan finished pouring, set down the teapot, and picked up the teacup to hand to Kitazawa.
As she noticed where he'd been looking, she instinctively turned her head to glance back.
Konan immediately understood—but… she didn't say anything.
"Thanks."
Kitazawa took a sip and said, "You've been flying for most of the day. You must be tired. Go get some rest."
"Okay."
Konan stood up and headed for her room.
After finishing his tea, Kitazawa went outside and found a spot to practice Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique.
With Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees together with Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique, his big "Wood Release reveal" plan would definitely be a complete success.
Night fell.
Kitazawa deactivated Yang Release Chakra Mode, and a wave of weakness instantly washed over his whole body.
That was normal.
With Yang Release Chakra Mode active, his chakra could surge up to thirty units, but once he dropped the mode, it went back to fifteen.
That sudden rise and fall naturally left the body feeling off.
And the extra chakra from Yang Release Chakra Mode didn't appear out of thin air.
At its core, the technique forcibly stimulated his cells and pushed his body to generate a large amount of chakra in a short time.
There weren't really any serious side effects, but he would definitely feel exhausted.
Kitazawa returned to the wooden house.
As he pushed the door open, a faint smell of grilled fish hit his nose.
Dishes were already laid out on the table in the living room; there was no doubt Konan had cooked them.
Ever since learning that he could conjure a wooden house even in the wilderness, Konan had started carrying lots of cooking utensils and food with her, just in case.
How to put it…
Konan really was the textbook "perfect wife and mother" type.
Calm and composed, yet gentle and considerate.
You could already see it in the original story: she didn't have many opinions of her own and was always supporting Yahiko and Nagato.
The next day.
Yomi finally moved.
Kitazawa and Konan followed him to the sealing shrine in the Land of Demons.
This was where Mōryō's soul was sealed.
Kitazawa shook his head.
Although the shrine had plenty of guards, none of them were ninja. Against Yomi and his subordinates, they didn't stand a chance.
"We'll go in with him."
With a flicker, Kitazawa appeared in front of the sealing shrine.
"Who are you?!"
Yomi's followers immediately surrounded him.
But before Kitazawa even lifted a hand, they all collapsed one after another.
"Kitazawa-sama."
Uchiha Itachi dropped his disguise and walked up to him.
Yomi's men had all been taken care of by him.
Kitazawa nodded and stepped into the sealing shrine.
The shrine itself was quite simple. In the center stood a strange stone monument on a raised platform, surrounded by bottomless chasms.
Kitazawa looked down. He could vaguely see countless terracotta soldiers—that was Mōryō's immortal army.
"Mōryō-sama!"
Yomi's voice echoed through the shrine.
The stone monument cracked open, and an impossibly dark mass condensed out of it.
Yomi stood up and sliced open his own body.
The mass surged forward and burrowed into him.
Yomi's wound closed, and his aura instantly skyrocketed.
After obtaining Mōryō's soul, he had become a special kind of jinchuriki.
It was only temporary, but his strength had grown by leaps and bounds.
"Hahaha!"
Yomi spread his arms wide and shouted, "Rise again, my immortal army!"
Sinister chakra suddenly flooded the entire shrine.
In an instant, the building shook violently, and countless cracking and grinding sounds rang out in succession.
All the terracotta soldiers in the chasms came to life, smashed through the walls of the shrine, and stepped back into the light of day.
"Why are they all dead?"
Leaving the shrine, Yomi saw all of his subordinates lying dead on the ground.
Itachi hadn't killed them—just knocked them out.
But once the terracotta soldiers marched out of the shrine, they had stomped the unconscious men into paste.
Yomi glanced over them once, then lost interest.
The only reason he'd formed the Cult of Yomi in the first place was because he needed manpower to help him perfect his dark medical ninjutsu.
Now that that work was finished, whether those followers lived or died no longer mattered.
Besides, with his invincible immortal army, he no longer needed them at all.
Even if someone caused trouble, he had nothing to fear.
"Move out!"
Yomi turned toward the Land of Swamps and shouted.
Once Mōryō's physical body was released, Mōryō would become complete. By then, he'd be able to conquer the Land of Demons and the entire ninja world.
"So that's the legendary immortal army?"
Standing on the mountainside, Itachi looked down at the terracotta soldiers and asked.
"Their strength comes from Mōryō. As long as Mōryō isn't sealed, they'll keep resurrecting."
Kitazawa commented casually, "But aside from being immortal, they're not that impressive. Each one is roughly chūnin level."
As for where the inspiration for the terracotta soldiers came from, that went without saying.
There were traces of that mysterious Eastern great nation all over the ninja world.
"With that many terracotta soldiers, even at chūnin level, they can still create a massive disaster."
Itachi said in a low voice.
"It won't be long before the Priestess of the Land of Demons, Shion, asks us for help."
Kitazawa nodded. "We'll deal with Mōryō when that time comes."
Itachi opened his mouth, then closed it again, ultimately staying silent.
He really didn't understand what Kitazawa was doing.
Why release Mōryō and then help the Land of Demons seal it again?
Was he plotting something in the Land of Demons?
But the Land of Demons was just a neutral country without anything especially valuable.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Itachi's mind. He remembered the two bows that belonged to Hyuga Hinata and Hyuga Neji.
Could Kitazawa's goal be to seal Mōryō into a bow as a weapon spirit?
After all, he knew Kitazawa had used the Box of Ultimate Bliss to forge four bows.
"Itachi, head back ahead of us. Once you're back in Konoha, have Anbu send people to keep watch on the Land of Demons."
Kitazawa thought for a moment, then said, "I want to know which hidden villages the Priestess, Shion, asks for help."
"Understood, Kitazawa-sama."
Itachi vanished from where he stood.
"Konan, let's head back too."
Kitazawa withdrew his gaze and said.
Konan nodded, walked up to him, wrapped her arms around him, and with a flap of her wings, flew toward Konoha.
…
Priestess's temple, Land of Demons.
A white-haired young woman about the same age as Hinata was sitting on the bed with her eyes closed.
She was the Priestess of this generation—Shion.
Just then, urgent footsteps sounded.
The person didn't even knock, just pushed the door open and rushed in.
"Priestess-sama!"
A young man in a kimono and glasses appeared before her, his face full of anxiety.
"Taruho, what's happened?"
Shion asked, confused.
"It's Mōryō!"
Taruho said quickly, "Its soul has already broken free and is leading the immortal army toward the Land of Swamps."
Half a day had already passed since Mōryō's soul was released, so news had reached them.
"What?"
Shion shot to her feet, horror on her face. "How could Mōryō's soul possibly break through the seal my mother left behind?"
"It was Yomi."
Taruho immediately explained the whole story.
Shion froze, then slumped back onto the bed, dazed.
Mōryō breaking free meant she would have to fulfill her duty as Priestess—to seal it with her life.
She had been prepared for this, but now that the moment was actually here, she still felt utterly helpless.
At the end of the day, she was still very young, barely out of childhood. It was impossible for her to face death calmly.
"P-Priestess-sama…"
Seeing her expression, Taruho's heart twisted, but he still had to ask, "What should we do?"
"Send requests to the Five Great Villages."
Shion took a deep breath.
"Yes, Priestess-sama."
Taruho nodded.
"Once the ninja from the Five Great Villages arrive, we'll immediately head to the Land of Swamps to reseal Mōryō."
Shion added.
Taruho sighed inwardly. He wanted to say something, but no words came.
Aside from Shion, no one could seal Mōryō.
If they didn't seal it, the entire Land of Demons would suffer.
It was far too cruel a fate for someone so young, but he had no way to stop it.
"Taruho, you don't have to come with me."
Shion thought for a bit, then said.
"Did Priestess-sama foresee my death?"
Taruho hesitated, then asked.
"I didn't use my ability."
Shion shook her head. "But staying away from me will spare you from death."
"Priestess-sama, I'm not afraid to die."
Taruho said firmly, "I promised your mother I would look after you."
"Taruho, I know you're loyal."
Shion straightened up slightly. "Once I seal Mōryō, I'll leave the Land of Demons in your hands."
"Priestess-sama, you mustn't!"
Taruho blurted out in refusal.
"Do you have any other way?"
Shion gave a bitter smile.
"…"
Taruho stood there, stunned.
"You may go."
Shion waved a hand.
"Priestess-sama."
Taruho suddenly stepped forward. "Please use your prophecy on me."
"Why?"
Shion instinctively looked at him.
"Maybe things will be different this time."
Taruho paused, then said, "If they aren't, I'll go with you."
Shion bit her lip, got out of bed, and walked up to him.
She didn't believe in miracles, but at this moment she desperately hoped for one.
Shion looked up, meeting Taruho's eyes.
Brilliant light flared in her pale irises.
In the next second, she saw Taruho's future.
A purple-black monster appeared before her.
Its body was shrouded in mist, its true form hidden, with only occasional writhing tentacles faintly visible.
Around it stood countless terracotta soldiers—Mōryō's immortal army.
Taruho was leading the guards of the Land of Demons in battle against the terracotta soldiers.
Just then, countless trees burst out of the ground.
Shion's mind blanked for a moment, and she was jolted out of the vision.
She stared for a second, then her eyes flew wide and her breathing quickened.
What were those trees? Where was Mōryō?
Why hadn't she seen Taruho's death? Did that mean he didn't die?
"Priestess-sama, what did you see?"
Noticing the change in her expression, Taruho couldn't help asking.
If she'd seen his death, she wouldn't be reacting like this. But this didn't look like the reaction of someone who'd seen him live either.
"I saw… a lot of trees."
Shion answered blankly.
"What does that mean?"
Taruho was even more confused.
"I don't know."
Shion shook her head. "I didn't see your death. The vision just cut off after all those trees appeared."
"I don't die?"
Joy lit up Taruho's face. "Priestess-sama, maybe this time really is different!"
Shion came back to herself and unconsciously gripped the bell at her chest.
It was the only keepsake her mother, Miroku, had left her.
What were those trees?
Could it be… that this time, she wouldn't have to give up her life to seal Mōryō?
~~~
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