The secret passage twisted through the mountain like a serpent's spine. After more than ten minutes of navigating the labyrinth, Hanekawa finally saw daylight.
He understood now why ninjas from other villages could never locate Takigakure. The passages weren't just numerous—they were deliberately interconnected, a maze designed to confuse intruders. Without a guide, you'd wander until you starved.
"Who goes there?"
"Identify yourselves!"
"Is that the rebel ninja Suien?!"
The moment they emerged into the village proper, Hidden Waterfall ninjas surrounded them. Hanekawa counted at least twenty, with more appearing from the rooftops.
A middle-aged man stepped forward, his expression hardening. "Suien. You have the audacity to return?"
"I came to take your place," Suien said flatly.
Hanekawa filed away the detail. In the original timeline, Takigakure's leader was someone named Shibuki—but he'd been young when Team Seven visited. That was over a decade away. This man had to be Shibuki's father, which meant the Seven-Tails jinchuriki wasn't the cheerful kid from the canon yet.
"Just the three of you?" The middle-aged man's laugh was bitter. "Wishful thinking. Kill them!"
The air erupted with kunai, shuriken, and senbon needles. A storm of steel converged on their position.
Hanekawa's hands moved through the seals.
"Earth Style: Rock Arm!"
The ground convulsed. A massive stone limb erupted from the earth, its palm spreading wide to shield the group. Projectiles clattered against the hardened rock and bounced harmlessly away.
The middle-aged man's eyes narrowed. "Earth Style? That's Hidden Stone's specialty. Who are you?"
Hanekawa kept his voice level. "I'm here for the Hero's Water. Give it to me, and I leave."
"Impossible."
"Then we do this the hard way."
Hanekawa clapped his hands together.
"Earth Style: Seismic Core!"
The ground beneath the man's feet lurched upward, a massive square platform shooting skyward. He jumped clear, but several of his ninjas weren't fast enough. They tumbled through the air, screaming.
"Earth Style: Rock Collapse!"
The platform detonated. Rubble scattered like shrapnel, and Hanekawa heard the wet sounds of impact, the cries of injured ninjas. He'd controlled the force carefully—pain, not death. A message, not a massacre.
The middle-aged man landed hard, blood trickling from a cut on his forehead. "What does Hidden Stone want with us?"
Hanekawa let him wonder. The blame would stick to Ōnoki eventually. The old man had the resources, the motive, and the reputation for ruthlessness. The Hidden Cloud was too broke after their recent "compensation" to Konoha.
"I've stated my purpose," Hanekawa said, already moving toward the massive tree visible in the distance. "Since you won't cooperate, I'll retrieve it myself."
He leaped upward, chakra propelling him forward in a series of bounding strides.
"You dare?!"
The man's shout was followed by a sound like tearing fabric.
A woman materialized in the air above the tree—mid-thirties, with massive chitinous wings sprouting from her back. The Seven-Tails jinchuriki. Hanekawa recognized the form immediately: Chomei, the flying beetle. Rare among the tailed beasts, and troublesome.
Flying is going to be annoying, he thought.
The woman didn't hesitate. Her mouth opened, and a cloud of yellow scale powder erupted outward.
Hanekawa vanished using Body Flicker, reappearing fifty meters to the side. The powder settled harmlessly where he'd been standing.
"Storm Release: Storm Demon Dragon!"
Black cumulonimbus clouds gathered above her head. Lightning bolts—thousands of them—fell like divine judgment.
The woman's form shifted. Dark red chakra erupted from her body, coalescing into a six-tailed beast cloak. Her tails wove together, creating a barrier that caught most of the lightning. The remaining bolts scattered across the village, and Hanekawa heard more screams.
She's strong. But wounded now.
Hanekawa formed new seals.
"Water Style: Hidden Mist!"
Fog rolled across the battlefield, thick enough to obscure vision. The middle-aged man shouted orders to his wind-users, but the mist was too vast to dispel quickly.
Hanekawa activated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Electricity crackled across his skin as he moved through the fog like a ghost.
"Water Style: Water Breaking Wave!"
A high-pressure jet of water—enhanced by lightning chakra and every water-affinity boost he possessed—shot toward the woman. Her tails tried to intercept, but the force was too great. The water pierced through, and she screamed as it struck her body.
The tailed beast coat's regeneration was impressive, but not infinite.
Hanekawa used the moment of her pain to close the distance. When she began her transformation into full beast form, he was already there.
The Seven-Tails emerged from the fog—a massive black beetle with six maple-leaf wings, red and yellow markings covering its carapace. Its mouth opened, and a Tailed Beast Ball began to form.
She's desperate. Good.
Hanekawa didn't move. He stood perfectly still as the sphere of compressed chakra descended.
The explosion was catastrophic. The ground cratered. Trees vaporized. The shockwave threw ninjas through the air like leaves.
When the dust cleared, the middle-aged man stared in disbelief.
Then the Seven-Tails wailed—a sound of pain and frustration.
Hanekawa had used Body Flicker to dodge the blast entirely. While the beast was still recovering, he'd run up its head and delivered a single, precise punch. The woman's human form had collapsed beneath him, unconscious.
"I'll take the Hero's Water now," Hanekawa said calmly.
The middle-aged man's jaw clenched, but he nodded. He couldn't afford to lose the jinchuriki. He ran toward the tree without another word.
While he was gone, Hanekawa felt the familiar pulse of a new entry forming.
[A-Rank Talent Entry: Fluttering Moth]
[Trigger Condition: Defeat Chomei, the Seven-Tails]
[Effect: Gain the ability to fly]
Hanekawa tested it immediately. Chakra flowed through him, and he rose smoothly into the air without wings or visible support. The sensation was strange but intuitive—like swimming through invisible currents.
Not bad. Useful against most opponents. Though Flying Thunder God is still superior.
The middle-aged man returned with a glass bottle. Inside, liquid chakra swirled with visible power.
"The Hero's Water," he said quietly.
Hanekawa took it, sealed it away, and nodded to Suien. "Your village is yours again. Try not to waste it."
He used Flying Thunder God to vanish, leaving the Hidden Waterfall Village to sort out its own problems.
---
Back at the ANBU base, Hanekawa examined the Hero's Water. The chakra density was extraordinary—enough to boost a ninja's power dramatically, though the side effects were severe. Drinking it would age the user rapidly.
Not worth it. Not yet.
He made a decision: keep some for research, give the rest to Orochimaru. The snake sage might be able to neutralize the aging effect. And if he couldn't, at least Hanekawa would know he'd tried.
He set the bottle aside and pulled out pen and paper. Demon Slayer wasn't going to finish itself, and he had plans for the manga adaptation. The combination of comics and serialized novels would be perfect for Konoha's growing entertainment market.
Everyone wanted to see what the Hokage's assistant created. Wealthy merchants would buy in bulk just to curry favor. The ninjas would purchase copies out of curiosity.
And if he could temporarily materialize the characters using Super Beast Fake Painting—a technique some village ninja might know—the promotional potential was enormous.
First, I need to find someone who can do that jutsu, he thought, already planning his next move.
The Hero's Water could wait. Right now, he had a story to finish and a market to dominate.
---