Five Seal Barrier!

Sarutobi Ryo, after getting updates on the enemy's movements from Ruri with her Byakugan, walked over to where Ringo Ameyuri was lying on the grass. Nonou was busy trying to heal her.

As the healing Chakra , full of Yang Release energy, flowed into Ringo Ameyuri's body, Nonou realized the situation was even worse than she initially thought.

"What's wrong with her?" Sarutobi Ryo asked, concerned.

Nonou shook her head sadly. "It's not a deadly disease, but the problem is it's been ignored for far too long. Kirigakure ninja are like this; they hide their weaknesses from everyone."

Nonou didn't even call them "comrades." In the brutal world of the Blood Mist Village, there were no comrades, only people you worked with.

Betrayal was common. However, even in that cutthroat place, there were rules. They had to follow the cruel, survival-of-the-fittest rules set by the Third Mizukage or face punishment.

"Living in that environment, always being watched, she probably kept putting it off until it became critical," Nonou explained. If Ringo Ameyuri had been part of a powerful group or one of Kirigakure's elite, it might have been different. But according to what they knew, Ringo Ameyuri had always been a loner.

The fate of someone fighting alone was clear from what happened to Hatake Sakumo.

"I understand," Sarutobi Ryo said, nodding. "Miss Nonou, if you can, I would like you to heal her."

Nonou looked surprised, then she seemed to understand what Sarutobi Ryo was planning. "Young Master, are you thinking of using Kirigakure's internal conflicts to our advantage?"

Yamanaka Hui looked confused because he didn't know Kirigakure well. Sarutobi Ryo and Nonou, however, understood exactly what this meant.

One of Kirigakure's rules was that if a former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen was still alive, the new successor had to kill them to truly take their place.

Nonou believed Sarutobi Ryo wanted to use Ringo Ameyuri as bait to cause trouble within the enemy ranks. Once Ringo Ameyuri was healed, she and Kurosuki Raiga would inevitably have a deadly fight.

Ringo Ameyuri would have to get her sword back, no matter what. And Kurosuki Raiga needed to kill Ringo Ameyuri to become one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. They would fight each other fiercely, and we would gain from it.

Sarutobi Ryo didn't explain Nonou's idea. It wouldn't be easy to say, "I can't stand to see loyal and good people being treated unfairly, and I want to stop this tragedy and save her." That would sound like he was helping the enemy, which was a serious crime.

Besides...

Sarutobi Ryo glanced at the weak Ringo Ameyuri.

The system message was very clear:

[Mission Objective: Inject the Will of Fire into Ringo Ameyuri!]

[Mission Reward: Possibility of Ice Release!]

"How long will it take to heal her?" Sarutobi Ryo asked directly.

"At least three days, I think," Nonou replied, hesitating slightly. "But even if she's healed by then, she will still be very weak." She glanced towards the other side of the jungle. The enemy was watching, ready to attack at any moment.

Once Kurosuki Raiga made his move, they would have to move too, and the healing would be delayed.

"Their target is Ringo Ameyuri, so have your people leave," Sarutobi Ryo told Nonou casually.

He said it to keep the Root members from dying needlessly, but he also wanted to move them so he could do something else more easily.

"Withdraw separately, then... alright," Nonou agreed, without arguing.

"As for our side, I will use a Barrier to protect this place." Sarutobi Ryo took out five special papers. He would set up the Barrier before Kurosuki Raiga could react. The Barrier's strong defense should hold them off for a good while.

Seeing the five talismans, Nonou's eyes widened. "The Five Seal Barrier?!"

---

On the other side, Kurosuki Raiga, with the prisoner, slowly met up with his team. After hearing his subordinates' report, Kurosuki Raiga nodded. "In the forest, huh..." He stared into the distance, as if he could see through everything.

Soon, Kurosuki Raiga's body started shaking. This strange behavior made the others step back quietly. Because...

"Wuu… wuu wuu…"

Kurosuki Raiga suddenly burst into tears, which flowed freely from his eyes. "Ringo Ameyuri, don't worry, I will give you a great funeral!"

Then, he suddenly shrugged and started laughing. The others watched him cry and laugh, each with a different expression.

This was the Blood Mist Village, a place known for its brutality. Under the Third Mizukage's strict rules, it wasn't unusual for people to become crazy.

For example, the Kaguya Clan were all obsessed with fighting. And there were many ninja like Kurosuki Raiga, who were deeply disturbed.

"Lord Raiga, some people from Konoha are retreating!" A subordinate in charge of watching the area came to report.

Kurosuki Raiga, hearing that Ringo Ameyuri was staying put, waved his hand, not caring about the fleeing soldiers. "Keep an eye on Ringo Ameyuri, and let me question this prisoner first!"

---

Several figures were running quickly through the forest. Among them were Root ninja and Sarutobi Ryo's Shadow Clones.

Each of the five Shadow Clones held a talisman, and they ran in five different directions. Sarutobi Ryo sat on the ground, sensing where the five talismans were.

Once he confirmed that the Shadow Clones were in position, Sarutobi Ryo began to perform the technique. The five Shadow Clones felt the Chakra Flow changing in the talismans they held.

At the same moment, they reached out and stuck the talismans in places that were hard to find. "Barrier... Activate!"

Buzz!

An invisible wave of Chakra swept through the area. The Kirigakure sensory ninja immediately noticed it. The Chakra changes from activating the Barrier were very obvious.

"Five Seal Barrier?" Kurosuki Raiga frowned, looking into the depths of the jungle.

White ripples spread out, creating a transparent, invisible Barrier.

One big reason why the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed was that the Uzumaki Clan's sealing and barrier techniques were very annoying.

Barriers and seals were special because they could help weaker forces defeat stronger ones. But they were hard to deal with. You could only wait for the Barrier to disappear or use ten times the effort to break it, which wasn't worth it.

Because of this, Kumogakure and Kirigakure secretly destroyed the Uzumaki Clan in the last war.

Seeing this familiar Barrier , Kurosuki Raiga, his mind filled with bad memories, became furious.

Finding the five talismans wouldn't be easy. Unless they had the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan, they couldn't search quickly. Otherwise, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"Aaaaaah!"

With an angry roar, he slashed his blade, sending the head of one of the Twelve Ninja Warriors flying into the air.

Blood splattered everywhere, but the Blood Mist ninja around him remained calm, as if they were used to it.

"Everyone surround them! I'll see how long they can last!"