The original lord of the country was carried away from Tenbara City, but returned with a spring in his step, which immediately set the entire Tenbara City ablaze!
The legend of the Sage quickly became popular within a very short time.
Sages possessed powers even more miraculous than those of a Miko, able to cure terminal illnesses that even a Miko could not!
News of Haragami's recovery spread among the nobility, ministers, and other upper-class individuals, and then trickled down to the wealthy and commoner classes.
And as the news spread, it became more and more exaggerated.
By the end, it had become "Sages can bring the dead back to life!"
Evening.
The Miko's Palace.
The First Prince Xin appeared here.
Under the flickering lamplight, Xin said grimly, "Your Highness the Miko, you must have heard the news outside, right?"
The Miko, around fifty years old, wore a long black robe, her eyes appearing somewhat cloudy. Upon hearing this, she didn't even lift her head and said plainly, "Your Highness, if you have something to say, just say it. This is not a place where you should linger."
Xin was unfazed and instead asked, "Is there really a demon sealed here?"
"You don't want to know."
The Miko, who had been looking down, slowly raised her head. Her eyes glowed green, startling Xin, who stumbled back repeatedly, nearly falling on his backside.
But the green light in the Miko's eyes quickly vanished, almost making Xin think it was his imagination.
Taking a deep breath and steadying himself, Xin quickly said, "Haragami's illness was cured by a legendary Sage, and tomorrow, my beloved father is also going to seek out those Sages for treatment. Aren't you afraid the Land of Origins will no longer need a Miko?"
"I know for a fact that those Sages possess not only the ability to heal but also other powerful abilities."
The green light flashed in the Miko's eyes, and she slowly lowered her head. "You may leave!"
"Do not let evil corrupt your soul!"
"Even if the Daimyo recovers, you will be the next Tenbara!"
Xin immediately roared in a low voice, "What do you know?"
"His favorite is my useless brother!"
"If he continues to live, he will definitely support that waste!"
The Miko remained silent.
Xin suddenly laughed, "When I was young, I accidentally learned a secret. It's said that by gathering the blood of the black wolf, white wolf, and purple wolf, one can see that thing!"
The Miko's head shot up. Before she could react, a splash of blood was thrown at her.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...
As the blood landed on the Miko, streams of blue smoke immediately rose.
"You... you are destroying the Land of Origins!"
The Miko's body trembled violently, her voice hoarse, filled with shock, anger, and fear.
Green light reappeared in her eyes, sharp fangs grew in her mouth, and hard black fur sprouted on her body, tearing through her robes.
"No!"
"I will become the master of this country!"
Xin sneered.
"Get out!"
The Miko's body was suddenly enveloped in a powerful purple light, suppressing the green light in her eyes, the fangs in her mouth, and the black fur on her body. Then, with a wave of her hand, a strong gust of wind swept Xin out of the palace.
Clang!
The palace doors closed. Xin heard a wolf's howl, very faint, but he was sure he heard it.
Meanwhile, inside the tightly shut palace, the Miko was using all her strength to suppress the entity within her, but her body was trembling all over.
She knew that she was about to lose control.
Originally, because of her advanced age, the seal was due for transference. With the seal weakened at this time, it was impossible to suppress it.
She immediately staggered to her feet and went to the back hall. She pushed open the door to a room and woke up a girl with long purple hair, who was only twelve or thirteen years old, lying on the bed.
"Ziling, quickly leave! Leave through the underground hole in the back hall..."
Ziling, groggy from sleep, was startled by the sight of her teacher and exclaimed, "Teacher!"
"What's going on?"
The Miko pushed Ziling aside, "Don't worry about it. The demon is about to break free, you must leave immediately!"
Ziling froze, tears welling up in her eyes.
The Miko suddenly shouted sternly, "Don't forget, you are the Miko!"
"The future Miko of the Land of Origins!"
"You can't cry!"
"You bear the continuation of this country!"
"Go!"
Ziling wiped away her tears, nodded heavily, then turned and ran barefoot.
She was going to inform the Daimyo!
As long as the seal was transferred in time, her teacher would be fine!
...
The top of the Sage Tree.
Sarutobi Asuma suddenly opened his eyes and looked in the direction of Tenbara City.
He could feel it.
Standing up, his voice reached Kakashi, who was resting in the wooden house below.
A moment later, Kakashi and Yamato appeared on the treetop.
Sarutobi Asuma said, "I sensed an evil power in Tenbara City!"
"It seems there are some incredible powers on this continent as well."
"Kakashi, you two go take a look, be careful!"
Kakashi nodded. "Understood!"
A moment later.
Four figures sped towards Tenbara City in the darkness of night.
At the same time.
Tenbara City, Tenbara Palace.
Uchiha Shisui, who was disguised as a guard of the Daimyo, suddenly frowned, then turned his head to look in the direction of the Miko Palace.
"Captain, what's wrong?"
A teammate asked in a low voice.
Uchiha Shisui shook his head.
That momentary feeling, he wasn't sure if it was an illusion.
However, he had a premonition that the upcoming mission would not be peaceful.
Nevertheless, the rest of the night was peaceful.
After dawn, the Daimyo's second son, Aki, along with his guards, escorted the Daimyo out of the city to pay a visit to the Sage.
Uchiha Shisui's squad and Rin Nohara were among them.
The streets of Tenbara City were crowded with people, who were discussing amongst themselves as they watched the Daimyo depart.
And among the crowd, Kakashi, Yamato, and the other two were using the Transformation Technique to blend in.
After the Daimyo left the city, Kakashi and his group began to investigate the evil power Sarutobi Asuma had mentioned last night.
In a blink of an eye, it was noon.
Kakashi and his group of four met at a prearranged restaurant, replenishing their strength while eating and exchanging the intelligence they had gathered.
After some discussion, Kakashi said, "So, the most suspicious place is the Miko Palace, which is related to demons."
Yamato nodded. "Indeed."
"However, demons are just legends; we haven't obtained any concrete information yet!"
Kakashi continued to talk while eating, "Let's go take a look first!"
...
Half an hour later, leaving behind a pile of bowls, to the stunned expressions of the owner and numerous customers, Kakashi and his group of four left.
Miko Palace.
Kakashi searched carefully, but found nothing.
Yet, there were also unusual aspects.
The guards here were strict, but the palace gates were tightly shut, and it was eerily silent.
Furthermore, even Hyuga's Byakugan could not see through it, being blocked by a mysterious power.
Unusual!
Suddenly, Yamato's figure appeared beside Kakashi and said, "Senior Kakashi, I found a large number of scattered footprints behind the palace, leading towards the forest."
"Inside, there was a pair of bare footprints, judged to be from a girl about ten years old."
Kakashi's eyes sharpened, and he immediately said, "Yamato, take Iroha to track them!"
"Understood!"
Yamato nodded, then vanished.
This time, their four-person squad, besides Kakashi and Yamato, consisted of Hyuga Iroha and Chunin Tokaaro.
They were all from the same year at the Ninja Academy.
Of course, Hyuga Iroha and Tokaaro were three years younger than Kakashi. When Kakashi graduated, they hadn't even entered the academy yet.
But when Sarutobi Asuma was around, they were already attending the academy, so they could be considered contemporaries.
Half an hour later.
Deep within the Miko Palace, in a dilapidated room, Kakashi and the other three looked at Ziling, who was somewhat disheveled and even injured.
"So the legendary demon is real, and it's about to break free from its seal?"
Kakashi asked.
Ziling nodded and quickly pleaded, "Please take me to see the Daimyo quickly. As long as the seal transfer is completed in time, my teacher can be saved!"
Kakashi narrowed his eyes and said, "This is a bit bad!"
"From what you're saying, not many people know about the demon's existence, and even fewer know how to break the seal."
"Then..."
Kakashi didn't finish his sentence, instead saying, "Tokaaro, I'll need you to lure those guards away."
Tokaaro nodded, "Understood!"
Ziling was already crying, and just as she was about to speak, Yamato placed a hand on her shoulder, "Trust him!"
"We all come from the Sage Domain!"
1 minute later.
The previously silent Miko Palace suddenly became lively.
Tokaaro appeared out of nowhere, defeated a guard, and used this method to lure away all the guards surrounding the Miko Palace.
Meanwhile, Kakashi and the other two, led by Ziling, arrived before the palace where the Miko practiced.
However, the three of them tried with all their might, but they couldn't push open the palace door.
Then, Yamato and the others used their Jonin-level ninjutsu, but they still couldn't breach the palace.
The seemingly ordinary palace was incredibly sturdy.
Clearly, the power that had blocked the Byakugan's detection was at play.
"You all step back!"
Kakashi shouted, and Yamato and Hyuga Iroha immediately retreated.
Kakashi drew the Chakra Blade that Sarutobi Asuma had refined and reforged. A mask appeared on his face, signifying the Sage Mode, and then electric currents appeared in his hands. After a brief charge, a flowing, azure electric light covered the blade.
He couldn't help it; this power was newly acquired and he wasn't particularly proficient with it yet.
Hyuga Iroha watched with wide eyes, inwardly astonished, "What incredible chakra!"
"This is Sage Mode and the Storm Style Kekkei Genkai!"
At this moment, Kakashi swung his blade, and a light edge rapidly extended from the blade. Then, as if slicing through tofu, it cut through the tall palace door in front of him, along with the mysterious power within it.
Rumble!
The massive palace door collapsed with a thunderous crash.
Hyuga Iroha had also activated their Byakugan, their vision rapidly extending, "No one found, nor anything unusual!"
Kakashi flashed forward, sheathed his sword, and deactivated Sage Mode. He appeared inside the palace and then crouched down.
On the ground, he saw scattered pieces of torn cloth and some black, hard fur.
Ziling also rushed in, frantically searching for any trace of her teacher, but found nothing.
Kakashi sniffed the air and then reached down to wipe a bit of slime from the floor.
"This is beast saliva, like a wolf's!"
Kakashi said.
Yamato immediately understood, "It seems we were too late. That demon has likely already been unsealed!"
Kakashi asked, "When do you think they will make their move?"
Yamato pondered, "Having gone this far, it's probably their last resort."
"If it were me, I wouldn't wait for the Daimyo to return from the Sage Tree!"
Kakashi immediately said, "Yamato, you and the Hyuga clan, track towards the Sage Tree!"
"Understood!"
Yamato and Iroha nodded in unison, then disappeared from their positions.
Kakashi bit his finger and formed a hand seal.
Summoning Technique!
With a poof and a cloud of smoke, a ninja dog appeared.
"Pakkun, help me track this guy!" Kakashi said.
Pakkun nodded, then sniffed the slime and cloth scraps on the ground before beginning the pursuit.
Kakashi stood up. Over there, Ziling, who had been crying, suddenly wiped away her tears and said with a resolute gaze, "Take me with you!"
"I am the next Miko, and I can seal demons!"
Kakashi hadn't planned on leaving her behind anyway. He said, "Tokaaro, take her!"
...
The sun's afterglow fell on the river, creating shimmering ripples.
The Land of Origins' Lord's convoy had stopped by the river and begun setting up camp, a scene of busy activity.
The mountains were now right before them.
And at this moment.
Within the mountains, numerous gazes were fixed on the people by the river, emitting a bloodthirsty glow.
By the river, the Lord's guards were unaware of the imminent danger.
However, Shisui's team, disguised as guards, was aware and secretly on alert.
Soon.
Night fell.
Awooo!
From the darkness, wolf howls echoed.
By the bonfire, Uchiha Shisui opened his eyes, his Three Tomoe Sharingan quietly activating. "They're here!"
"Go wake everyone else up!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Soon, the entire camp was in an uproar. More bonfires were lit, illuminating the surroundings. All of the Lord's guards stood ready for battle, protecting the tent where the Lord resided.
Meanwhile, inside the tent.
Lying on his sickbed, the Lord Tenbara, with a blank expression but a pained voice, spoke to his second son: "Aki, it seems Xin has made his choice and made a deal with the demons!"
Aki, only 15 years old, still held a trace of innocence. He lowered his head and said, "If Father had brought my older brother this time, perhaps..."
"No!"
The Lord interrupted his second son. "If he had brought him, he would have done the same thing!"
"Aki, I command you, return to Tenbara City along the river immediately."
"Once you return to Tenbara City, you will be the new Tenbara!"
Aki looked up abruptly. "Father!"
"I... we should go to the Sage Tree and seek help from the Sage!"
"The demons have already broken the seal, and the Miko is surely dead. We can no longer seal the demons!"
The Lord said weakly, "No, we still have Ziling!"
"Her abilities have surpassed her teacher's. With her, the demons can still be sealed!"
Just then, panicked shouts came from outside: "Careful of the river!"
"Damn it, why are there crocodiles in this river!"
"So many crocodiles!"
Hearing the sounds outside, the Lord's expression changed.
Aki's face also turned pale, but he still mustered his courage and said, "Don't worry, Father, I will definitely protect you!"
With that, he drew his sword and stood at the entrance.
Outside.
In the darkness that the bonfire couldn't reach, lines of green light appeared.
A guard threw a torch. The firelight illuminated countless wolves!
No!
It wasn't just wolves!
Behind the wolves were other beasts!
Fierce tigers!
Leopards!
Giant bears!
Beside Uchiha Shisui, the Chunin Inoue couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. "There... there must be at least a thousand beasts here?"
"Why are there so many beasts here?"
Uchiha Shisui couldn't help but frown as well. He wasn't afraid.
But he could sense a bloodthirsty and frenzied aura from these beasts.
These beasts are not simple!
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