In the real world, countless viewers had still been steeped in the oppression and fear left behind by the earlier story of the Descending Thunder Emperor's origins. The world-ending power and overwhelming divine pressure described there had filled the air before every screen with tension.
But when Asama Sandayū slowly began recounting the legend of the Rainbow Hero, it was as if everyone suddenly realized something. At once, they began channeling chakra into the light screen again, and a fresh wave of discussion erupted across the comments.
—"Looking at it this way, this so-called Rainbow Hero has to be the one who sealed the Descending Thunder Emperor more than ten thousand years ago! The demon god in the legend could bring about world-destroying catastrophe, which matches the Descending Thunder Emperor's terrifying power perfectly. There's no way that's a coincidence!"
—"Assuming everything shown on this light screen is true, I honestly can't imagine how people over ten thousand years ago could have possessed such horrifying strength! Compared to them, even though we live in the age of ninja, we shinobi look like trash. There's no way we could ever deal with a god-level enemy like the Descending Thunder Emperor!!"
—"Brother above, don't put yourself down that much. Remember, the reason the Rainbow Hero could defeat the Descending Thunder Emperor back then was also because of the seven jewels bestowed by the God of Gems, who was himself a divine being."
—"Exactly! Without the boost from those jewels, the hero might not have been able to beat the Descending Thunder Emperor either. So we shinobi don't need to belittle ourselves like that."
—"That's right! I suddenly remembered what the light screen said at the beginning—this video is about the salvation journey of the Seventh Chosen One! Maybe next, this Chosen One will find the seven jewels left behind by the Rainbow Hero—the ones symbolizing the seven great virtues—and use them to seal the Descending Thunder Emperor again. If that's the case, then it means we ninja can defeat gods after all. Just thinking about that gets me fired up!!"
—"Earlier some old guy said the Land of Snow had a history of over ten thousand years. At the time I rolled my eyes and thought he was making it up—but now I've been slapped in the face hard! The Land of Snow really has existed for more than twelve thousand years. No wonder it's hiding secrets this ancient. That's insane!"
—"I've made up my mind! Whether the legendary Phantom Demon Emperor is really in the Land of Snow or not, I'm going there right now to search for the seven jewels left behind by the God of Gems. Maybe I'll really get lucky and find them!"
While viewers were still voicing their own ideas in the comments, the high-ranking figures of the major hidden villages had already made their decisions.
Orders were quickly sent out to the ninja who had originally stopped halfway and were hesitating over whether to continue on to the Land of Snow, instructing them to stop wavering and set out immediately.
After all, the earlier origin story of the Descending Thunder Emperor shown on the light screen had, from another angle, already provided strong support for the idea that Asama Sandayū's legend might be true. The jewels, the inheritance, and even the secrets connected to the Descending Thunder Emperor hidden behind that story were more than enough to fascinate these upper echelons, who were always hungry for power.
Naturally, none of them wanted to miss this opportunity.
...
"Sandayū... tell me... could all of this really be true...?"
Capital of the Land of Fire.
Inside the luxurious hotel suite the film crew had prepared for the lead actress.
Kazahana Koyuki, having only just finished the promotional work for the new film Princess Fūun's Great Adventure, stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, her eyes fixed on the ever-changing scenes of the light screen.
From the Descending Thunder Emperor's origin to the legend of the Rainbow Hero, every single story was tied to the Land of Snow.
The result was a turmoil inside her that defied description. Even the voice in which she questioned Asama Sandayū sounded faint and drifting, as though she were both searching for an answer and trying to convince herself at the same time.
"It's true, Your Highness. Every word of it is true!!"
"You are the descendant of the legendary Rainbow Hero. This light screen has shown us the truth! Only you can personally defeat Kazahana Doto, free the Land of Snow from his grasp, and restore life to that frozen land!!"
Asama Sandayū could clearly see the confusion and wavering in Kazahana Koyuki's eyes. Combined with the Land of Snow's past and the Rainbow Hero legend revealed on the light screen, he instantly understood the conflict raging in the princess's heart.
And in order to make her fully commit to reclaiming the nation, even though he still had not found the ancient texts mentioned by the light screen—the ones recording the Rainbow Hero's legend—and had no actual proof that the light screen's contents were real, he still chose to answer her in the firmest, most certain tone he could muster.
At the same time, while Koyuki and Sandayū were discussing whether or not to restore the kingdom—
Kazahana Doto, inside the royal hall of the Land of Snow, had already been left reeling by the nonstop stream of revelations coming from the light screen.
What was going on here?
There was still no conclusion to the matter of the Phantom Demon Emperor, no way to distinguish truth from falsehood—and now suddenly there was another figure, the Rainbow Hero, who was very likely the first ruler of the Land of Snow?
Of course, dizzy or not, Kazahana Doto had not entirely lost his reason.
He very quickly realized that there was no point wasting time agonizing over whether the legends were true. The key thing now was to find the jewels first.
So he immediately barked out a sharp order to the guards outside the hall, commanding them to search through every historical record and ancient text in the treasury—no matter how damaged or fragmentary—and uncover any clues related to the seven jewels symbolizing humanity's seven great virtues.
The guards did not dare delay for even an instant. The moment they received the order, they spun around and rushed off, their hurried footsteps echoing down the corridors of the palace.
For a time, the entire royal palace grew even more chaotic than before.
Not only were the Land of Snow's own guards darting back and forth between the treasury and the archives, but quite a number of shinobi sent by outside forces from nearby territories had also quietly slipped in amidst the confusion.
Their eyes were fixed on every location that might hold clues, all trying to find the key items mentioned in the legend on the light screen before anyone else, and thereby secure the advantage for their own villages.
...
[As the story of the Rainbow Hero came to an end, the convoy finally emerged from that long, pitch-black tunnel. Warm sunlight streamed in through the carriage windows, illuminating the silver-white world of snow outside.
The director was the first to push open the door and get out. Taking the loudspeaker handed to him by his assistant, he raised his voice to the members of the film crew:
"All right, all right! We're through the tunnel. Next up is the third act! Everyone, get moving and prepare!!"
The moment the director's voice fell, the crew leapt into action at once. The lighting team adjusted their equipment, the props crew arranged the set, and the entire scene instantly returned to its usual bustling rhythm.
But just then, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded from the distance.
The production manager came running toward them in a panic, shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran:
"D-Director! Something terrible has happened!"
"Yukie—Fujikaze Yukie has run off again from the dressing room!!"
"What?!"
At the director's cry of shock, the entire crew ground to a halt once more.
As for Asama Sandayū, panic flashed across his face as he looked around in every direction, desperately trying to spot Kazahana Koyuki.
But what he could never have imagined was this—
at that very moment, the princess had already stepped across the deep snow and slipped into the nearby forest, its branches dusted white with snowflakes.]**
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 175)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 126)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter134)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 87
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 79
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 64
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 73
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 45
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 49
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 45
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 45
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