The golden light of late afternoon streamed through the large windows of the Hokage's office, casting long shadows over the polished wood. Tsunade stared at the open scroll on the table, her fingers pressing hard against her temples. The headache wasn't from the accumulated reports, but from the weight of the information contained in that single piece of paper.
"Iwagakure retreated without reason, and a few days later, without support, Kumogakure ceased its activities on the Fire Country border?" Her voice was sharp. The tone of disbelief revealed the tension she tried to hide. "Did this come from the espionage sector?"
Jiraiya nodded, his brow furrowed. His eyes were deep-set, and the usual lazy smile he used as a shield was not present this time.
"Yes. Confirmed by three different sources. One of them, in fact, was an Iwa chūnin we managed to intercept in Tanzaku." He let out a long sigh. "According to the information, the Akatsuki captured the five-tailed jinchūriki. Han."
The silence that fell in the room was like a dry punch. Tsunade moved away from the table and walked to the window, her eyes lost on the horizon of rooftops and soft smoke. The city seemed peaceful. Young ninjas training, merchants closing stalls, children running through the alleys.
But war, she knew, rarely began with noise. It was silence that announced collapse.
"So that's it..." she murmured. "They're really moving. We've stopped dealing with criminals. This is an extermination operation."
Jiraiya approached slowly, stopping beside his old companion.
"At least now the other villages have an unusual enemy to deal with. The threat is real and direct. The flames of war will die down... for now."
Tsunade turned to him, her eyes narrow, attentive.
"Or they'll change focus. And turn directly against the jinchūriki." She crossed her arms. "Naruto is vulnerable. He's still impulsive, too trusting. If they're really going after everyone, it won't be long until they come after him again."
The Toad Sage nodded gravely. His gaze drifted for an instant, as if seeing something beyond the room.
"That's why... I want to take Naruto with me." The phrase fell like a stone in water, simple, direct, and with a depth he couldn't fully measure. "He needs to be prepared for the future."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
"External training?" There was surprise in her voice, but not skepticism.
"It's not just that. Naruto has power, but he still doesn't have control. And with what's to come... he'll need more than technique. He'll need to understand the weight of what he carries." He closed his eyes for a moment. "If I can teach him to access the Kyuubi's power without being consumed by it... maybe we still have a chance."
She returned to the table and stared at her old friend's face for a few seconds. There were no boasts there, no promises of greatness. Just urgency.
"Well... this must be the best time to do it." The woman nodded slowly. "The old snake disappeared saying he had no date to return. He didn't even leave a note."
The comment elicited an irritated snort from Jiraiya, who crossed his arms like a sulking boy.
"Danzō. That damn man. Always disappears when the village needs him." He rolled his eyes. "All he does is live in the shadows with his ridiculous machinations. A mummy with too much ambition and too little use."
Tsunade didn't answer immediately. She picked up the scroll and slowly rolled it up. Her eyes shone with something deeper than concern—it was calculation. Strategy. She knew that the balance between the great shinobi nations was crumbling, but what would come next would be even more dangerous. The Akatsuki had changed the game.
"Take the boy. We can no longer act as if this is just a distant threat." She looked directly at Jiraiya. "But promise me one thing."
He smiled faintly, with a tired expression. "If it's about not letting Naruto get into trouble, I'll have to break that promise before leaving the village."
"It's not that." Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Promise me that if you find any other movement from the Akatsuki, you'll report it immediately. Don't try to deal with it alone."
"Tsunade..." Jiraiya hesitated for a moment. "You know that sometimes there's no time to turn back. If necessary, I'll act. But... I promise I'll think twice."
"One and a half. At most." She smiled humorlessly.
Outside, the sky began to darken. A cold breeze blew through the half-open windows, carrying the distant scent of pine and smoke. The village slept under the veil of a false tranquility.
Jiraiya adjusted his cloak, already preparing to leave. His gaze turned to the horizon.
"We'll leave at dawn. If anyone from Akatsuki is watching, I want them to think it's just another one of my trips. Nothing special."
"Good luck." Tsunade murmured with a sigh. "And bring him back in one piece."
— — — —
The Hyuuga clan courtyard was enveloped in an almost sacred silence. The moonlight streamed through the treetops and drew silver lines on the stone ground. In the center of that space, cross-legged, sat Li Shang.
His body trembled almost imperceptibly, but what was happening beneath the skin was grotesque. His veins bulged and twisted, pulsing like worms crawling inside his flesh. Sweat ran in thin rivulets, evaporating the instant it touched the cold ground.
He breathed slowly, his chest rising and falling at calculated intervals. In front of him rested a small translucent vial—the liquid Yuan Qi, a treasure many would consider a waste to use at such a level.
But Li Shang didn't care.
"Once more..." he murmured in a hoarse voice, and then tilted the vial until a single bluish drop trickled onto his tongue.
The taste was sweet and metallic, like nectar mixed with blood. The effect was immediate. The flow of vital energy within him exploded like a dammed river being released.
His hands clenched.
'I know I'm pushing the limit... but I can't stop now.'
For the past seven days, he had performed the same ritual every morning. He would wake before dawn, take a sip of the liquid Yuan Qi, and immerse himself in the Celestial Devourer technique. He refined, burned, rebuilt. With each cycle, his spiritual energy increased—and with it, the internal pressure.
He felt he was close. The Nascent Soul Realm—a barrier that separated ordinary cultivators from those capable of manipulating their own soul as a weapon.
Li Shang opened his eyes. His irises glowed with a metallic blue hue, but there was something different. Something deeper. Spiritual energy condensed around his body like a dark mist, undulating and deforming.
"Celestial Devourer..." he murmured.
The energy was violently sucked into him. The ground around him cracked. The courtyard stones rose and shattered in the air, disintegrated before even touching the ground.
Every cell in his body screamed.
'I... can feel... the next step...'
But along with the power came danger. The Celestial Devourer technique was feared for a reason. It refined not only the surrounding energy but also the user's own body and soul. One mistake, and the cultivator would consume themselves from within.
Blood began to trickle from his nose. The veins in his neck pulsed like ropes about to snap.
'No... not now!'
He gritted his teeth, forcing his body to withstand the flow. His consciousness began to fragment—blurred visions formed in his mind: black figures, a sea of fire, and a pale figure with yellow eyes watching him from the horizon.
Ling Wei.
Even in his meditation, the name haunted him. The memory of that man's power, the coldness that emanated from him, still made him tremble.
And in this world there were also people like Orochimaru. 'I couldn't defeat him yet... but I can escape. If I reach the Nascent Soul Realm, nothing can hold me.'
Spiritual energy swirled around his body. A dry sound echoed—a crack inside his chest.
Li Shang coughed, and a jet of black blood came from his mouth. For an instant, the spiritual flow became uncontrolled. The entire courtyard was engulfed by an overwhelming spiritual pressure, and the energy threw him back against the stone wall.
The impact reverberated throughout the house. His body slowly slid to the ground. His eyes still open, but distant. The liquid Yuan Qi continued to pulse within him, as if trying to dominate his body instead of being dominated. He clenched his fists and laughed softly.
"Hah... not yet..."
With effort, he rose again. The veins began to recede, and his breathing slowed.
Li Shang closed his eyes, controlling his breathing. And for the first time in days, Li Shang hesitated to continue his cultivation. However, when he looked at the almost empty vial of liquid Yuan Qi, a cold decision took over his eyes.
"One more drop." He raised the vial, and the blue liquid glowed in the moonlight.