Chapter 128: Valley of the Resting Wind
"The Valley of the Resting Wind, located in the northern part of the Land of Fire, is a land of death where hurricanes never cease. It currently serves as the trial grounds for the Hagoromo Clan."
A clan crest featuring a full moon above three ribbon-like patterns appeared before Tonbo Tobitake's eyes.
Looking at this data, Tonbo frowned. When he watched the original series, this clan had never appeared—or rather, even if he had overlooked some elements, this clan should have been nothing more than background filler. But looking at their territory, they weren't exactly a small family. The Hagoromo Clan occupied a vast expanse of land, including the Valley of the Resting Wind.
He had originally intended to find a region with celestial phenomena similar to the Flame Mountains summoned by Kashin Koji in the Boruto era to develop high-attack weather ninjutsu. He hadn't expected to see such a fresh term.
Driven by a hint of curiosity, he specifically looked up the records for the Hagoromo Clan and began reading. The more he read, the more intrigued he became.
This was a group that had existed since the Warring States Period and was once among the top tier of clans in the Land of Fire. In that era of constant warfare, missions were accepted and completed by individual families. The Hagoromo Clan had once been hired to fight against—and sometimes alongside—clans like the Uchiha and the Senju. Depending on their employers, there was both cooperation and confrontation between these major families.
Initially, this clan's strength was comparable to the Uchiha and Senju. It wasn't until the end of the Warring States Period, as the Uchiha and Senju grew increasingly powerful and geniuses like Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju emerged, that things changed. During a mission where they allied with the Uchiha against the Senju, they gradually fell behind in strength. They were eventually phased out by employers, their territory shrank, resources became scarce, and they slowly faded into obscurity.
However, a "starved camel is still larger than a horse." They still existed within the shinobi world, occupying a large territory for development. They were a ninja power within the Land of Fire similar to the Fire Temple.
The place Tonbo was looking for, the Valley of the Resting Wind, was their clan's private land. Just like the forest where the Nara Clan raised deer, it was off-limits to outsiders. According to the Intelligence Department's data, this shinobi clan was no longer a pure military family; they had developed various businesses in the Land of Fire and were considered a neutral ninja clan. Members of the family were also frequently selected for the Twelve Guardian Shinobi who protected the Daimyo, contributing to the clan's growth.
"Good grief, such a grand clan turned into capitalists!"
To have once been rivals of the Uchiha and Senju during the Warring States Period, their strength likely wasn't weak. The Valley of the Resting Wind seemed out of reach, so he could only search further to see if there was any geographical information on the Flame Mountains.
Even if it wasn't certain that Shippuden and Boruto shared the exact same lore, the concept of "special regions" was likely correct, especially with the Valley of the Resting Wind right here. Furthermore, places like the Demon Island where Orochimaru stayed, or the Turtle Island where Naruto practiced controlling the Tailed Beast's power, were all special regions—and such places wouldn't be rare. Demon Island was filled with summoned beasts, and the waterfall on Turtle Island could reflect the soul, and so on...
"Tonbo, you're here too?" Inoichi Yamanaka's voice rang in his ear.
Hearing the voice, Tonbo expanded his perception. He was a bit surprised to see Inoichi here. "Yeah, just looking for some materials."
"What kind of materials? I'm quite familiar with this place; maybe I can give you some advice," Inoichi offered.
"I'm developing a new ninjutsu and need to find a special region to conduct research."
"A special region?"
"Yeah, something like the Valley of the Resting Wind mentioned in this book. Unfortunately, that's Hagoromo territory, and the records say outsiders aren't allowed, so I'm still looking," Tonbo explained.
He felt it was a pity. According to the data, the storms generated inside the Valley of the Resting Wind could grind giant boulders into fine powder and turn flesh into pulp. Any creature passing through would be destroyed by the hurricanes within, vanishing into the world as dust. It was a perfect spot for researching his next celestial ninjutsu—much better than the previous rain jutsu he studied from thunderstorms, at least in terms of offensive potential.
Inoichi was stunned. "Good grief. You created a secret technique in your teens, and now you have a new research project? How is your brain wired? You're almost catching up to the Second Hokage!"
When Tonbo created the " Eye of the Creator ", Inoichi had been the one explaining the combination of physical and spiritual energy, as well as the techniques of Yin Nature Transformation. Now, he was at it again. This talent was truly worthy of being his subordinate.
"There's still a big gap between me and the Second. Don't overpraise me, Chief," Tonbo chuckled awkwardly. In his eyes, his achievements were worlds apart from the entire Scroll of Seals. Most of his current ninjutsu research was developed slowly by standing on the shoulders of the giant that was the Second Hokage.
"Haha, true. But I actually have a way to solve your problem," Inoichi laughed heartily.
"What way?"
"It's a huge coincidence; even the heavens are helping you. There is an opportunity to enter the Valley of the Resting Wind you just mentioned in five days. However, you can only stay for a short period, and you'll have to figure out the rest yourself afterward."
"Eh? What kind of opportunity?"
"The Hagoromo Clan issued an A-rank mission to Konoha. They want to hire a squad to help look after the clan's children during their trials in the Valley of the Resting Wind. The requirement is that the leader must be a Jonin, and it's best if the team members are all sensory ninjas," Inoichi smiled.
Tonbo was confused. "Aren't they a shinobi clan themselves? Why are they hiring Konoha ninjas?"
Even if they had declined, surely they wouldn't need outsiders to supervise their own children's trials?
"You must be looking at very old data. The Hagoromo Clan's current strength isn't what it was in the Warring States Period. Most of their energy is focused on business now. Only a fraction of the clansmen undergo ninja training to handle emergencies. They just landed a massive cooperation with one of the world's top shipping companies and sent most of their clan's combat strength to escort the cargo. It just so happens to be the trial period for the Hagoromo children, so they had no choice but to hire Konoha ninjas."
Inoichi continued, "Since you have inspiration for a new ninjutsu, go ahead and apply to the Third Hokage. The major hidden villages are relatively peaceful right now, and Konoha doesn't have many vital missions. I think it will be approved."
Tonbo realized the situation. "That really is a lucky coincidence. Thank you, Chief."
It truly was a case of "the mountains and rivers reaching a dead end, only to find a new village behind the willows." He had finally encountered a "protagonist-style" stroke of luck.
"Mhm, work hard. I'll just have to be tired for a while longer and continue acting as the Head of the Analysis Division. You'd better finish quickly; I'm getting old, and my bones can't handle this high-intensity work forever, sigh!" Inoichi complained like an old man.
"..."
Good grief, he didn't forget to remind me to finish my research quickly just so I can take the workload off him, did he? As expected of the Chief of the Intelligence Department.
Then again, work in the Intelligence Department required intense mental activity; it was indeed much more exhausting than most jobs.
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