"You mean you want the Tailed Beast's energy?" Hiruko asked coldly.
Shinno nodded, chuckling. "Exactly. And Hiruko-san, you want its Kekkei Genkai characteristics. Our goals won't conflict."
"The purpose of capture is ultimately to hand the Jinchuriki over to the Akatsuki to complete the mission, but the by-products during the process—"
"How to distribute them, that's something we can decide ourselves."
Hiruko narrowed his eyes, starting to think.
If he were alone right now, he wouldn't have to bother with Shinno, but—
Thinking of this, Hiruko looked back over his shoulder, the disdain on his lips growing more apparent.
"Alright, but I must prioritize stripping and replicating the Boil Release ability, and only after that will you extract the Tailed Beast's raw Chakra."
"Suits me perfectly." Shinno nodded, his eyes gleaming.
He only needed to extract the Tailed Beast Chakra and didn't require the so-called Boil Release characteristic. Letting Hiruko go first was perfectly acceptable.
Shinno said, "Then it's a pleasure to cooperate, Hiruko-san. We just need to complete the Akatsuki's mission, and within that, each take what we need."
"I also hope Zetsu, who was sent to monitor us, doesn't get in the way too much."
"That yin-yang faced monster?" Hiruko snorted disdainfully.
"As long as he doesn't interfere with my experiments, he can watch all he wants."
"Alright, then let's focus on the prey before us." Shinno grinned, not overly worried about whether they could take down Five-Tails.
After their discussion, the two simultaneously accelerated, transforming into two black streaks among the dense giant trees, rapidly heading towards their target location.
—
Land of Frost.
Along the coast, the sky seemed to be shrouded in haze.
"This is the place." Samui landed on a reef, looking at the rugged coastal cliffs before her.
Shinji and Jiraiya observed their surroundings. Samui had led the way the entire journey. It was as if she had known this location from the start.
Jiraiya turned to Samui, asking calmly, "Now that we're here, shouldn't you tell us the specific source of your information?"
Shinji looked around. If he wasn't mistaken, Kumogakure must have a Jutsu that could detect high-intensity Chakra reactions at this location.
Samui and Darui exchanged glances, then she took out a scroll.
"This location was actually detected by our side using Lightning Release: Lightning Cloud Probe."
"One day ago, abnormally high-intensity Chakra reactions and brief barrier fluctuations were detected in the coastal area of the Land of Frost."
"Based on our comprehensive assessment, Akatsuki is very likely extracting a Tailed Beast in this area."
As Samui spoke, Ao and Gonbee frowned.
Jiraiya also frowned slightly but said nothing more, taking the scroll Samui handed him and reading it.
Shinji looked around. He wasn't sure if Akatsuki was really extracting Tailed Beast Chakra at this location. After all, after so many years of development, it was normal for them to have hidden bases all over the Ninja World.
However, the Fourth Raikage even revealed such a large-scale detection Ninjutsu, and it could cover such a long distance.
Shaking his head, Shinji stopped thinking. This kind of thing had already been anticipated from the beginning.
Kumogakure's move was merely to demonstrate its capabilities and, by leveraging the advantage of intelligence, establish leadership.
However, if Akatsuki was indeed extracting Tailed Beast Chakra here, having leadership would also mean responsibility and risk.
After Jiraiya and Ao finished reading the scroll, they returned it to Samui.
Jiraiya laughed heartily. "No problem, I will see Kumogakure's tactical arrangements."
Ao nodded. "Kirigakure will provide necessary sensory support."
After all, the intelligence was indeed provided by Kumogakure, and even Jiraiya and Shinji, dispatched by Konoha, had no objections. He naturally wouldn't say anything more.
Hearing everyone say this, the usually lazy Darui finally spoke up, "What a troublesome mission."
"Since everyone has no objections, let's begin our operation."
"Ao-san, after this, we'll need your Byakugan for precise confirmation and path guidance."
"Jiraiya-san and Shinji-san, please be responsible for flank vigilance and responding to emergencies."
"No problem."
Shinji and the others naturally agreed, cooperation required a cooperative attitude.
The waves continuously crashed against the reefs. Seeing this, Samui no longer hesitated and gave Darui a concise gesture.
"Begin."
Darui nodded, quickly forming hand signs, then pushed his palms forward.
Storm Release: Illusionary Light Mist!
The next instant, countless extremely fine, liquid-like Storm Chakra particles sprayed out. As soon as these particles touched the surrounding humid sea air, they rapidly expanded and diffused like a wildfire.
In a flash, a dense, blue-gray mist so thick that one couldn't see their hand in front of their face engulfed the entire coastline.
Shinji raised an eyebrow.
This technique was interesting.
The dense water vapor combined with charged particles formed a transparent circle around Darui that could neutralize the team's own presence. It also further enhanced the concealment effect.
This wasn't the most important thing. Shinji could feel the Storm Chakra particles contained within the mist flowing slowly like an aurora. It formed a special kind of fluctuation that could effectively interfere with Chakra sensing barriers within its range.
Kekkei Genkai, if used well, was not easy to deal with.
Shinji couldn't help but start to wonder if his previous decision was correct.
Although too many Kekkei Genkais could disperse one's focus, a Storm Release like the one Darui had just demonstrated was definitely a good Kekkei Genkai Ninjutsu.
Darui slowly lowered his hands, speaking with a slight gasp, "This Jutsu is much more troublesome than fighting someone directly."
Ao, who was beside him, couldn't help but twitch the corner of his lips.
Was this guy showing off?
Samui turned to Ao and said, "However, this coastline is now covered by an optical camouflage blanket, which should be able to deceive them for a while."
"Next, we'll trouble Kirigakure."
"No problem."
Ao was already on one knee, his right hand pressed against his temple, the seal broken, and the veins around his eyes bulging.
Byakugan: Activate!
Meanwhile, Gonbee, standing to one side, secretly remained vigilant towards Jiraiya and Shinji. Ao's Byakugan was Kirigakure's only Byakugan.
Even though this was a trophy Ao had obtained during past battles with the Hyuga clan, he was still worried that Jiraiya and Shinji might try to take it back.
This was something Mei and Genji had instructed him about when they left the village.
Jiraiya and Shinji seemed oblivious to Gonbee's vigilant stance. They just waited quietly.