Rushing all the way, he quickly charged up to the main tent of the Senju clan leader. Ignoring the guards' attempts to stop him, he barged straight inside.
The Senju clan leader was bent over a battle map, arranging the defenses of Kikyo Mountain.
Seeing his son rush in so recklessly, his face immediately darkened, and he shouted angrily, "Nonsense! What are you doing here at Kikyo Mountain?"
"This is the main direction of Uchiha's attack. With a great battle imminent, blood will surely flow like a river. This place is extremely dangerous. Go back immediately!"
"Father! Listen to me!"
Senju Syura didn't even have time to steady his rapid breathing.
"I've already investigated clearly on the battlefield of the Hagoromo clan. The Uchiha aren't going to attack Kikyo Mountain at all!"
"They're planning to join forces with the Hagoromo clan, take a detour, and launch a surprise attack on the rear of our Senju territory!"
Following the lines taught by Black Zetsu, his tone was urgent and solemn, every word firm and forceful, "Your son traveled day and night, covering four hundred kilometres, riding three horses to death in succession, just to risk everything to come back and report this to you!"
———
[Mount Myoboku]
There stood a building completely out of place with the rustic style of the ninja world.
It was a villa.
It was a residence Arisu had built based on a modern villa from his previous life... smooth marble, tiled floors, a swimming pool, a lawn…
Amid the immortal trees and spiritual herbs of Mount Myoboku, it carried a strong sense of contrast.
Kaguya sat upright on the sofa, her noble posture a bit stiff, a trace of unease lingering around her. She gently poked the soft fabric of the sofa with her fingertip.
"Arisu's house really is something… why is the layout so strange?", Kaguya muttered softly to herself.
She had lived long enough to have seen the grandeur of Otsutsuki palaces and the simplicity of huts in the ninja world.
But this kind of soft, novel furnishing made even the once supreme Rabbit Goddess of the ninja world feel awkward and at a loss.
Her gaze fell on the oddly shaped gramophone on the table.
"What is this?"
Curiosity instantly rose in her, and she leaned forward, reaching out to fiddle with its parts.
"♪♪~~ ♫♫~~~"
A gentle, soothing piece of pure music suddenly flowed out. The clear notes were like a spring running over stones, like a breeze brushing through clouds. It was a beautiful sound she had never heard before.
Kaguya's pale eyes widened slightly, full of surprise. "So this thing can make sound…"
She listened quietly, the tension in her brows slowly easing.
"It actually sounds pretty nice…", Kaguya murmured softly.
Then she closed her eyes and leaned back on the sofa, enjoying this rare moment of relaxation. The loneliness and tension of countless years quietly melted away in the music.
If she had had something like this back then, she wouldn't have been so bored that she spent every day just looking up at the sky.
But after only a short while, the music abruptly stopped.
Kaguya suddenly opened her eyes, confusion rising in them. She picked up the gramophone and examined it over and over, muttering in puzzlement, "Why did it stop?"
Holding it in her hands like a precious treasure, she softly tried to speak to it.
"Are you a treasure? Can you talk to me? I want to hear the sound you made just now.", Kaguya spoke to the gramophone.
But the gramophone was just a cold, lifeless object, giving no response at all.
Kaguya grew a little anxious. Her fingers fumbled with the parts, and suddenly there was a crisp cracking sound.
Snap!
The gramophone slipped from her hands and crashed heavily onto the floor, instantly shattering into several pieces, metal and plastic parts scattering everywhere.
"Ah!"
Kaguya's expression changed drastically, panic rising in her heart. She hurriedly crouched down, looking at the scattered fragments, trying to pick them up, but she had no idea how to reassemble them.
"Why does this thing break so easily…"
A faint redness appeared in Kaguya's beautiful pale eyes, unease surging within her.
She had been summoned here by Arisu and was living under someone else's roof. Arisu was already full of dissatisfaction toward her, always wearing a cold expression.
This object that could produce such wonderful sounds must be something he treasured. Now that she had broken it, if Arisu found out, he would definitely be furious.
He might even… even mistreat her.
She was just an ordinary person now. If Arisu wanted to hit her, it would be effortless.
Kaguya crouched on the ground, her fingers turning pale from gripping too tightly, trying to piece the thing back together.
Just then...
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A clear knocking sound suddenly rang out.
Kaguya's heart tightened. Bracing herself, she stood up and went to open the door.
As soon as the door opened, Arisu stood there with a dark expression, his cold gaze sweeping over her.
"You… came?"
Kaguya lowered her eyes.
Ever since she had been summoned back into this world, Arisu had always shown her a sour, cold face, as if she owed him five hundred thousand chakra fruits.
"Mm."
Arisu responded lightly, his gaze sweeping across the room.
He had originally come to check on Kaguya's condition, and more importantly, to consult her about Yin-Yang Release and Kekkei Mora.
After all, Kaguya had once wielded those powers. Her experience far surpassed his.
"What are you doing?" Arisu asked in a low voice.
"I…"
Kaguya's lips trembled as if she wanted to speak but couldn't. Then she lowered her head deeply, her voice as soft as a mosquito's hum. "Sorry… I broke your treasure."
She raised her hand and pointed at the broken gramophone pieces on the ground.
Arisu followed her gesture, frowned slightly, then simply shook his head and said calmly, "It's nothing."
"You're not angry?"
Kaguya suddenly lifted her head, her eyes filled with surprise, unable to believe what she heard.
Arisu glanced at her indifferently and spoke slowly, "Heh, would I get angry over something so trivial?"
Hearing this, Kaguya instead frowned. The doubts she had been holding back for so long could no longer be suppressed, and she blurted out, "Why do you keep calling yourself 'this old man'? Are you that old, Arisu? How many years have passed now?"
"I'll tell you later. If you're bored, you can walk around Mount Myoboku. I haven't restricted your movements."
Arisu glanced at her lightly, his tone calm and indifferent. "Are you bored?"
As he spoke, Arisu bent down and casually picked up the broken gramophone pieces from the floor, lightly weighing them in his hand without the slightest hint of regret.
Something like this could just be made again by Gamamaru.
Come to think of it, Gamamaru seemed to be close to inventing a television recently.
It was still in the testing phase.
Kaguya nodded gently, her voice soft, carrying a hint of the indifference shaped by long years. "A little, but I'm used to it."
That had always been her life.
Enduring alone in emptiness and loneliness. Boredom had long been etched into her bones. It was just that being in this unfamiliar place now made that boredom feel even more out of place.
Arisu fell into brief thought, his gaze shifting slightly as he began to calculate in his mind.
He thought that perhaps, just like how he had won over Black Zetsu, he could slowly influence Kaguya with a bit of sugar-coated strategy and make this Otsutsuki completely serve him.
After all, in the future, he would need some experience when facing the Otsutsuki.
Having settled his thoughts, Arisu looked at Kaguya and spoke in a calm tone, "If you're bored, you can read a book."
"What book?"
Kaguya raised her head, a faint trace of curiosity appearing in her pale eyes.
A slight smile curved at Arisu's lips. With a flick of his wrist, he took out a simply bound book from his sleeve.
Arisu had also been bored over the long years.
So he liked writing books, novels.
He extended his hand and handed it to Kaguya, speaking lightly, "I recommend this one. It's called, 'Veteran of the Ninja World, From the Ancient Era to the New Era.'"