"Didn't you hear Miroku? You may all leave." The Daimyō of the Land of Demons waved his hand, eager to hear what Miroku had to say.
Seeing this, Minato and Yūki had no choice but to pull Kiyoshi and the others out, following the guards. As they left, they could still hear the Hidden Sand ninjas negotiating with the Daimyō of the Land of Demons.
"Daimyō-sama, would you be willing to cooperate with the Hidden Sand? The current situation is becoming increasingly turbulent." Kiku, the Hidden Sand Jōnin leader, spoke up.
Most of the Land of Wind was desert, making it heavily dependent on importing various resources. With the current turbulent state of affairs, they couldn't rely solely on their ally, the Land of Fire, and needed to prepare another avenue. Cooperation with these smaller nations was a good option; the small nation provides resources, and the Hidden Sand could offer protection during times of unrest.
"You all leave, too. We can discuss this later." The Daimyō of the Land of Demons didn't want to hear anything more from Kiku.
"Then we shall see you tomorrow." Kiku glanced at the sky outside, which was nearing dusk. He quickly left with his teammates.
After dismissing everyone, the Daimyō finally spoke to the Priestess: "Miroku, did you stay behind to tell me something?"
"Did you… truly make contact with Mōryō?" Miroku bit her lip. The seal was constantly being broken because there would always be greedy people and internal moles.
The Daimyō of the Land of Demons' expression stiffened slightly, and he said, "Miroku, you must trust me."
Miroku did not respond immediately. Their priestesses possessed an ability called the Prophecy of Death, which allowed them to occasionally foresee the death of those around them.
She had seen visions of some of her guards being killed by the Ghost Army. And, she had also seen the Daimyō's... figure.
She wanted to try one more time. The union between the Daimyō of the Land of Demons and the Priestess had always been a tradition, so she still held some affection for the Daimyō. She wanted to persuade the Daimyō of the Land of Demons to mend his ways.
***
The Hidden Leaf and Hidden Sand were assigned separate lodging. Kiyoshi and his group were located in a building in the southeast.
Kurenai, Rin, and the others were excited to be in another country for the first time, admiring the distinct architecture compared to their village. Obito, especially, was loud and talkative the whole way. Asuma, having reached his limit, told Obito to keep his voice down. The composed Kakashi still wore his bored expression.
Minato and Yūki exchanged glances, thinking about the scenes that had just unfolded in the main hall. Having reached the rank of Jōnin, they had executed countless missions and sensed something amiss with this one.
Would Hidden Sand ninjas also be deployed here? This was a delicate issue. The client usually only hired ninjas from one village, otherwise there was the potential for conflict. Ninja villages, besides being allies, could also be rivals. This time, they were safe only because of the alliance treaty they had with the Hidden Sand Village.
The eight people entered a room, but Minato didn't rush to dismiss them. He and Yūki were discussing Mōryō, the Priestess, and the Daimyō of the Land of Demons' attitudes. They were here to protect the venerable Priestess, yet neither the Daimyō nor the Priestess seemed to require their services urgently.
What was the purpose of arranging this mission? Something must have happened in between.
At this moment, Kiyoshi stepped forward and said:
"Minato-sama, Yūki-sensei, I once heard a story in the Land of Lightning about the Land of Demons. Legend has it that the Priestesses here have sealed Mōryō for hundreds, even thousands of years."
Minato looked at Kiyoshi. Based on his observations, Kiyoshi was not the kind of person who spoke without purpose. He wanted to hear Kiyoshi's insight.
"Isn't that information everyone knows?" Yūki asked.
"Yeah, Kiyoshi," Asuma interjected, "We heard the two Jōnin talking about this at Yakiniku."
"No, I'm referring to something more secret. Mōryō is actually divided into two parts: the body and the soul. The soul is sealed in the Land of Demons, while the body is in the Land of Marshes." Kiyoshi paused here, then pointed to his eyes and said, "I just noticed that the Daimyō's chakra was unusual. There's a suppressed and wicked chakra there, and it's massive. The Daimyō is not a ninja, so he shouldn't possess such chakra."
Everyone present knew that the Sharingan possessed the ability to see the flow of chakra in a person. This Bloodline ability was the best evidence.
All seven people now focused their attention on Kiyoshi. Obito felt a shiver run down his spine. Were there really ghosts?
Minato immediately spoke up after hearing Kiyoshi's words: "Isn't it the Priestess's duty to seal Mōryō?" This was not only Minato's question but also the doubt of the other seven.
"That is true, but one cannot be heartless. The Priestess and the Daimyō have clearly known each other for a long time. It's normal for the Priestess to have reservations." Kiyoshi explained.
The original work specifically recalled the scene where the Daimyō and the Priestess argued. That was when Shion was already born and still young. The Daimyō, or rather, Mōryō within him, believed that the current power combined with the Priestess's power would be enough to conquer the Five Great Nations and rule the entire world. Of course, whether he could actually achieve it was another question.
In the ninja world, there was no shortage of confident people. Almost every movie villain believed that by mastering some core technique or ability, they could overturn the ninja world, like Hiruko, Shinnō, and others. It could be said they were not particularly intelligent. It was a good thing they appeared early; otherwise, they would have been humbled fighting in the Fourth Great Ninja War.
"Acquaintances, you say?"
"Yes, and Mōryō has the ambition to rule the ninja world. He is likely to target us or the Hidden Sand to incite conflict." Kiyoshi nodded. The Priestess and the Daimyō stalled for several years.
Mōryō wanted the Priestess's technique and didn't force a confrontation, and the Priestess wanted to redeem the Daimyō and make him trust humans, so she didn't immediately move to seal him. Finally, Mōryō lost his patience and forced the issue, and the Priestess sealed him at the cost of her life.
"Then how do we execute the mission?" Obito's brain was nearly fried. Their mission was to protect the Priestess, not defeat Mōryō! This was completely outside the scope of a C-rank mission.
"Let's wait and see." Minato said. If Mōryō truly harbored such ambition, he would ensure it was sealed here. Kushina had secretly taught him many Ninjutsu, including sealing techniques like the Four Symbols Seal, which he had his own unique understanding of and had even improved.
However… Minato frowned. Killing a Daimyō was a serious crime; Daimyōs across the entire ninja world would boycott such a ninja. He could only try to separate Mōryō from the Daimyō.
The group worriedly ate some dry rations and returned to the rooms arranged by the guards.
"Kiyoshi, will everything really be okay?" Kurenai, encountering a complex situation on her first mission abroad, immediately shattered her positive illusion of the outside world.
Looking at the increasingly tall Kiyoshi, Kurenai felt a sudden surge of reliance. She had never seen Kiyoshi do anything without confidence.
"Of course, it's fine. If things go really bad, we can always run." Kiyoshi smiled. "But when that time comes, I will definitely protect you." Kiyoshi leaned down slightly and spoke to the shorter Kurenai.
The hot breath fanned Kurenai's earlobe, causing her long, curled eyelashes to flutter gently, and her face immediately flushed. No one had ever spoken to her like that before.
"Don't… say things that are easily misunderstood." Kurenai lowered her eyes and quickly ran back to her room, not daring to look directly at Kiyoshi.
Kiyoshi couldn't help but smile, looking at the cute Kurenai. Who would have thought that the future mature woman would be so innocent in her youth?
After Kurenai went inside, Kiyoshi looked up at the distant emerald mountains. The power of Mōryō was a good thing. Coupled with Dark Medical Ninjutsu, it could even achieve human modification.
Yomi's ninjas were implanted with a special kind of insect created with Mōryō's power. After these insects adapted to the body, they were expelled from the body. By consuming the insect's blood, their chakra could be greatly increased. However, this not only turned the person into a monster but also came with extreme dependence, like an addict.
Kiyoshi naturally didn't want to become like that. His goal was to discard the dross and assimilate the essence. Through Dark Medical Ninjutsu, he should be able to enhance his understanding of Medical Ninjutsu, allowing him to tolerate more Lightning Release chakra and quickly become stronger.
Kiyoshi returned to his room and continued to use the internal current to strengthen his body. A fierce battle was imminent. Any increase in strength was valuable. In the gradually darkening room, a sporadic electric arc flashed, abruptly illuminating the interior.
***
The shrine.
After returning, the Priestess sighed. She still hadn't persuaded the Daimyō.
After disrobing, the Priestess lay down. In a daze, she had another dream. This time, the dream was clearer than before.
She dreamt of a silhouette with a crimson flame fan on its back. The figure with the flame fan had a scroll hanging from their waist. Miroku couldn't see the figure clearly but felt a sense of familiarity. Instinctively, she wanted to ask who he was.
Outside, there were numerous guards and ninjas fighting Mōryō, yet this weak man was hiding here. Miroku wanted to use the Priestess's authority to scold him, but she found she couldn't speak. This strange event immediately caused the Priestess to feel dread.
The man, whose face she couldn't see, turned around. She felt two faint crimson lights staring at her.
"Honored Priestess-sama, you wouldn't want the people of the Land of Demons to be completely destroyed, would you?"
Miroku felt an ominous chakra. It was a presence deeper than Mōryō's power outside. It felt as if it had gathered all the evil of this world.
The incense burner in the room continued to burn with fragrant herbs, making the place more elegant. These herbs, meant to aid concentration and relax the mind, seemed to have no effect at all.
***
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