Chapter 170 – Prey of the Ancients

For weeks now, Kuro and my fourth spiritual clone have been traveling across the Land of Hot Water. Thanks to contacts shared by Kenshiro and Masaru, we managed to find underground information about suspicious activity involving a name I recognized—Utakata. If memory serves me right, that name matches the Jinchūriki of the Six-Tails. The trail was vague: reports of a reserved young man with a shinobi demeanor, said to live in a southern fishing village called Toba.

The rumors were strong enough to push us into motion. Along our journey, we came across more reports—strange monsters, explosions near Toba—and we decided to quicken our pace.

It was then that Kuro, in his childlike voice, spoke from a rocky ledge overlooking the cliff.

"I think it's possible they've captured him… the Akatsuki. If there were explosions, do you think it could've been the same ones you left your letter with last time?"

I frowned. I knew exactly who he meant: Deidara and Sasori. I tried to feel for their spiritual threads, but something masked them. A barrier, maybe. A dense spiritual interference.

"I think so. It's quite possible they were behind this. I have no other choice than to use the Silver Stage to find Utakata. The place where they're holding him shouldn't be far from the point of contact."

Kuro tilted his head.

"Are you really willing to face those men? You seemed interested in befriending them."

Hinata lowered her gaze, full of quiet sorrow.

"I doubt they'd allow me to give Utakata the talisman… to give him a chance. So yes. If I must fight them, I will. Ideally, I'll distract them, you place the talisman on Utakata and escape. Then summon me from afar so I can get away easily, and once they're gone, we'll rescue him."

Kuro nodded reluctantly.

"I don't like the plan… but I'll leave one of my shadows with you to help. Those men are dangerous."

They finally arrived at the coast. It wasn't hard for us to find Deidara's trail—clear scars of battle were carved into the land. The terrain had been ravaged by a colossal force. A new circular lake had formed beside the ocean, as if a bomb had detonated there. There were also unmistakable signs that a large creature had manifested for a short time.

Kuro sniffed the air.

"The battle here was intense... I smell two familiar scents—one human and one artificial: oil, poison, and wood. Definitely Deidara and Sasori. And one new scent—it must be Utakata. Their traces vanish here. Whatever happened, it was nearly five days ago. They left by air and covered their tracks… too long ago to follow by scent."

Hinata knelt with determination.

"If the Six-Tails is one of the first, the extraction should take longer. We still have time. Watch over me while I try to find them using the Silver Stage. This time I'll channel natural energy from the physical world, not just Yumegakure's. I've practiced enough. I'm sure I can do it."

Hinata closed her eyes.

"I'm going to dismiss my spiritual clone. Summon me here in a minute. I need to be physically present for this."

Kuro nodded. In the Land of Lighting, Hinata's body was replaced by her spiritual clone, while her true form was instantly summoned to the shores of the Land of Hot Water.

Sitting in a lotus position, Hinata took a deep breath. Extending her awareness, she called upon the threads of the white world. For nearly eight months, she had only used the threads of Yumegakure to teach and guide. Now, with a new purpose, she began receiving the white threads of the material world.

The difference was clear. Two streams of intent and memory, different in texture and rhythm. She channeled both into her soul, her body, and fused them with her chakra.

Suddenly, her senses extended beyond anything she had ever known. The world was a wave of overwhelming information. But she wasn't looking for information—she was searching for absence. For a void. Something that interrupted the threads.

And she found it.

There, among a region of small coastal islands, one of the islets had a subterranean area... a place where there was nothing. No flow. No light. No intent.

Hinata smiled.

Her silver eyes, now glowing with power, opened:

"I found them."

<<<< o >>>>

Far beneath the ocean's surface, Nurehime glided swiftly through the water. Her serpentine form, slender and sapphire-blue, moved with grace and urgency. Her face bore ancient wisdom and the cold stillness of someone who had once died. The constant pull of natural energy against her senses was growing stronger—persistent and dire. The world was approaching a point of no return.

Her disciple—no, the one who had overthrown her—had awakened her with venom, a reversal of death used only in the direst of times. The ritual of leadership succession had always included a final fail-safe: reviving the former masters. And now, for the first time in centuries, the sages of five previous generations had risen. The threat was that severe.

Not since the days of Kaguya had the world shifted so violently. And this time, she would not allow another tree to grow.

Days and nights blurred together. Her vigilance remained unbroken until a presence approached her sanctuary, a small island off the coast. She recognized him immediately—not by sight, but by scent. Though he looked like a man, the damp scent of moss and mountain air betrayed him.

A figure stepped from the mist: Kaorumi, a sage of Mount Myōboku. His body was humanoid yet toadlike—bulky with damp green skin, clad in tattered scroll robes, and carrying a staff etched with kanji older than memory.

"Who would've thought two old fossils would cross paths again, Nurehime?" Kaorumi's voice rolled across the waves. "I thought the White Serpent devoured you, as your kind tends to do."

"I was weak and caught off guard by my pupil. It's the fate of any master. And now, I am bound by their design, to hunt the sickness that afflicts us all," Nurehime replied, voice cold, eyes narrow.

Kaorumi nodded solemnly.

"We've fought each other before, but I suggest we cooperate—expand our search radius. We'll settle our differences another day."

She considered it for a moment, then nodded with resignation.

"There's no other choice. I'm surprised they woke you. I thought the frogs of Myōboku would rather wither than stir the old blood."

Kaorumi smiled faintly, stroking his chin.

"Unlike your clan, we don't replace leaders by devouring them. Few sages volunteer for hibernation, but we preserve more of our knowledge than Ryūchi Cave ever could. You would have more sages if you valued preservation over power."

"And yet our tradition strengthens the worthy and discards the weak. But that doesn't change our mission."

"Indeed," Kaorumi said. "In this region, I sensed only your pull in the natural energy… but if we each focus in opposite directions, we'll cover more ground."

Silence fell as the two ancient beings turned their backs to one another, each scanning a different horizon, attuned to the energy of the world.

Day after day, week upon week, they searched the restless ocean. Then Kaorumi's wide eyes snapped open. He turned slowly toward the mainland.

"I felt it," he whispered. "A pull like nothing before… over there, not far inland."

Behind him, Nurehime stirred. Though she faced the sea, her slit pupils widened.

"Then it's time," she hissed. "Let us hunt our prey."