Ino said, "Actually, human development during puberty is influenced by hormones. When the energy provided by hormones far exceeds the body's consumption, the excess energy promotes bone growth and a series of other bodily developments. You understand this, right?"
Sakura, in front of her, fully embodied Konoha Village's principle of 'all-round development' for Ninja. She had studied Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Sealing Technique, Medical Ninjutsu, and all sorts of other things. Although she wasn't proficient in any of them, only'slightly understood' them, she at least had a basic foundation.
She nodded, indicating she understood.
Ino continued, "We are Ninja who possess Chakra. In this regard, we naturally have an advantage over ordinary people. Our height, weight, strength, speed, and other attributes are all stronger and more perfect than ordinary people. The reason you are so... well, so slow, is because you don't have enough Chakra in your body."
Sakura frowned deeply.
Ino pointed at her small chest, saying with undisguised disdain, "I can't do anything about Chakra, but I can teach you a new Sealing Technique I've developed. You temporarily seal the Chakra pathways in a localized area for one month, then release it for five days. During these five days, your body will develop rapidly, and then you seal it again for another month."
This had nothing to do with the Yin Seal or Yang Seal; it was just a scaled-down, localized seal created using the Four Symbols Seal.
After teaching Sakura twice, she fully mastered it. She could go back to her room and apply the Sealing Technique herself!
The team bid farewell to Prince Mangetsu the next day and left the palace. They didn't go to the dock but found another inn to stay in. They still had to wait for the fleet from the Southern Continent, and then they would return to the Land of Fire together.
Prince Mangetsu's act of hiring Ninja caused a sense of crisis in the scheming minister, Shabadaaba. To leave no stone unturned, five days after Ino and her team left, Minister Shabadaaba, as expected and within reason, launched a coup.
The Old King died on the spot, and Prince Mangetsu fell into Shabadaaba's hands, becoming a puppet. The boy, Hikaru, who resembled Harry Potter, was desperately sent out of the palace by guards loyal to the royal family.
Shabadaaba had also hired Ninja. No matter how skilled the guards were, without Chakra, they were just ordinary people in front of Ninja, mowed down like wheat, their heads rolling.
"Go... go find Konoha, find the Konoha Ninja!" The captain of the guard left this last wish before he breathed his last.
Hikaru, who had never experienced hardship since childhood, was at a loss. His experience playing games was useless now. All the guards were dead, and the only one with him was a monkey that performed in a circus.
"I'm so hungry," Hikaru said, dressed in servant's clothes. Two cracks appeared on the lens of his right eye, caused by an accidental fall during his escape.
Now, no one would use "restore to original" on him; he could only rely on himself.
As a prince, he wouldn't steal bread, but he was truly too hungry.
The guard captain's instruction to find Konoha Ninja was easy to say, but where were the Konoha Ninja? Should I just shout in the street?
A seemingly kind old woman noticed his predicament and directed him to a large mansion two streets away, where some kind people were distributing food for free.
Hikaru was only seven years old, accustomed to luxury, and had no social experience. His stomach was rumbling, and in a daze, he went there.
When those kind people drew his blood, and several burly men stared at him with fierce eyes, he knew something was wrong. These guys were definitely not good people.
In a critical moment, he let the monkey run first, while he was caught by several men and then pushed into a warehouse.
A strong smell of blood permeated the warehouse, the floor was covered in dried blood, and the spacious room contained more than ten large vats. The vats were filled with dark brown liquid, and three soft tubes extended from the vats, continuously injecting the dark brown liquid into transparent sealed bags suspended above the vats.
Hikaru was horrified, seeing that the transparent sealed bags contained boys and girls about his age. He instinctively wanted to call for help when a man's hand suddenly covered his mouth from behind. He smelled a pungent odor and instantly lost all strength, being manipulated like a toy. He felt himself being hung upside down in a transparent sealed bag, and then, overcome by fear, he fainted.
Ino and her team were aware of the coup in the Land of the Moon. The palace had been blocking information, but for Ninja, such a blockade was no different from no blockade. The reason they hadn't acted was that they wanted to wait for an opportune moment to offer timely help.
They didn't care if the Old King died; at least Ino didn't.
If they rescued Prince Mangetsu at a crucial moment, he would be grateful, and establishing a base for Ino–Shika–Choji in the Land of the Moon would be much easier.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak?! Squeak, squeak, squeak!" Hikaru's monkey came to them, which was something the four hadn't anticipated.
Ino and her team looked at each other. What was it saying?
Ino could understand Tonton's speech, which Tsunade and Shizune had taught her, but she didn't understand monkey language.
The monkey was frantic, but the four of them didn't understand what it meant.
"Watch me!" Sakura snapped her fingers and used Summoning Technique on the spot, summoning Kakashi's tracking dog, Pakkun.
"Yo!" Pakkun, with an expression similar to Kakashi's, raised his right paw to greet them.
Ino truly didn't know Sakura had learned Summoning Technique from Kakashi. If this girl had a status panel, her skill bar would definitely be full of lv1s. She learned so many things, but not a single skill was mastered.
After a flurry of barking and monkey chattering between Pakkun and the monkey, they understood how Hikaru had been abducted. Ino frowned. The people who kidnapped Hikaru didn't seem to be associated with the palace coup.
Shikamaru said, "There should be a connection. They're abducting so many people on such a large scale; it's impossible not to alarm the official forces of the Land of the Moon. I suspect it's been tacitly approved. Now, we not only have to rescue Prince Mangetsu but also Hikaru."
Ino thought for two seconds, then used her sensory ability to detect.
There were three Ninja in the palace. Judging by their Chakra reactions, they should be Chunin level. Following the monkey's guidance, she searched in the direction of the mansion. This search startled her; she detected a very strong Chakra reaction, somewhat familiar, but before she could examine it closely, it disappeared from her perception.
She thought for a moment and said, "Hikaru's situation is definitely not simple. Hmm... Sakura, you take Pakkun and come with me to rescue Hikaru. Shikamaru, you and Choji go to the palace to rescue Prince Mangetsu."
"Yes." X3
The four split up. Ino and Sakura, guided by Pakkun, found Hikaru's scent and tracked it to the warehouse entrance.
A tall, silver-haired young man in a black robe and mask stood at the entrance. His gaze was sharp, his back straight, standing there like a javelin.
Men holding weapons appeared one after another, surrounding Ino and Sakura.
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