At that moment, the woman's eyelashes trembled a few times, and her dark brown eyes slowly opened.
At first, her gaze was scattered and terrified. Her pupils shrank sharply, and her body instinctively tried to curl up and retreat, but she was so weak that all she could manage was a faint whimper.
She saw the unfamiliar people gathered around her, the traces of battle still left on the deck, and Kiyohara's group watching her.
"Ah…!"
She sucked in a short breath, then suddenly clutched her head with both hands, fingers digging into her hair as her body began shaking violently.
"Calm down," Kiyohara said.
"Why did you attack this ship?"
The woman trembled for a long while before finally lowering her hands.
She looked at Kiyohara, then at Tsunade and the others, as though it took her a little time to confirm that she had not fallen back into those nightmare-like hands again.
"I… my name is Isaribi," she said softly.
"I'm… from a small fishing village called Coral Settlement, near the Land of the Sea."
She spoke in fragments, explaining where she came from.
In broad terms, her story was that one day she had been gathering seafood by the shore when she suddenly felt a sharp pain at the back of her neck, and after that remembered nothing. When she woke up again, she was already in some dark place, her whole body aching. There had been a voice—a cold, sticky voice—ordering her to go out and capture living things to bring back…
Rin Nohara looked a little pained listening to that and spoke up.
"Kiyohara-kun, she… she really does seem to have been forced into it."
Kiyohara studied Isaribi closely.
He was not about to believe someone's story for no reason just because she was a woman.
As for what the truth really was, Kiyohara intended to judge it for himself.
A red gleam flashed in his eyes, and he cast genjutsu on Isaribi directly.
Her gaze immediately turned hollow and dim.
Then Kiyohara began interrogating her.
The answers he got were more or less the same as what she had just said, but he learned more as well.
For example, Isaribi had vaguely seen a white-haired man in a beige robe.
That man also had red eyes, and several subordinates with numbers marked on their faces followed him.
That information made Kiyohara think of one person.
Hiruko.
At his core, Hiruko was the same type of person as Orochimaru. But unlike Orochimaru's obsession with the Sharingan, and unlike Orochimaru's method of achieving immortality by changing bodies, Hiruko had devoted himself to studying the Five Elements. His goal was to fuse five mutually compatible kekkei genkai into his body, creating a complete internal cycle and turning himself into an "immortal ninja."
Of course, Kiyohara still could not be completely sure yet. Isaribi did not know much, so he could only wait to investigate further later.
After the red of Kiyohara's Sharingan slowly faded back into normal black pupils, Isaribi woke from the genjutsu as well.
"You're lucky. You weren't lying. But to avoid accidents, we still need an extra layer of insurance."
Kiyohara reached out and placed a hand on Isaribi's shoulder.
Black markings began spreading outward from beneath his palm.
"This is a restraining curse mark. I'm going to place it on you. It won't hurt you, and under normal circumstances it won't interfere with your regular activities or your chakra recovery.
"But if you try to deliberately draw on a large amount of chakra, or if the foreign curse mark inside you starts acting up violently, it will activate. It will temporarily seal your chakra pathways and make you unable to move."
Isaribi knew she had no real choice, so after a moment, she nodded.
Before long, a simple black collar-like pattern had appeared around her neck, only to sink beneath her skin a moment later.
Tsunade watched what Kiyohara was doing, but said nothing.
It really was the best option.
The ninja world was full of unpredictable dangers.
Even if Isaribi did nothing on purpose, it would still be dangerous if the people behind her were able to manipulate her the way they had before.
So sealing her chakra was effectively a way of avoiding that risk.
"All right."
Kiyohara withdrew his hand.
"Shizune, get her some water, food, and clean clothes."
"Yes!"
Shizune immediately moved to carry it out.
Tsunade could not help nodding slightly, a hint of approval flashing through her eyes.
If she had left this to Shizune, it probably would have dragged on much longer.
"Our mission target is a giant sea monster."
Kiyohara turned toward Tsunade and the others and began analyzing the situation.
"But these fish-men… or rather, these modified humans… while troublesome for ordinary people, they aren't truly 'giant' in either size or strength. Isaribi mentioned a dark place and being told to bring back live captives. That suggests there may be a base behind all this.
"It might even be some kind of facility where these transformation experiments are being carried out. And that place might contain the real giant sea monster from our mission target—or it could be the true source of all these incidents."
"You think we should go straight for that base?" Tsunade asked, parting her lips slightly.
"The ocean is too vast. Searching blindly would be far too inefficient."
Kiyohara shook his head and looked toward the lush green outline on the horizon, which was gradually becoming clearer.
"Isaribi mentioned a voice. That was probably some form of long-distance control or suggestion, transmitted through a technique or medium. To support experiments on this scale and with that level of precision, whoever's behind it would need a stable, hidden, resource-rich environment.
"The Land of the Sea has a lot of islands, but not many large ones that fit those conditions. I suggest we head first to the nearest and largest island—the Summoning Island."
After a brief thought, Tsunade accepted his reasoning.
"That works. Granny Shimaho, adjust course. Our destination is Summoning Island. Full speed ahead!"
"Understood!"
Captain Shimaho answered loudly, turning the helm and adjusting the sails. The Seagull cut through the waves and headed toward the lush island.
Meanwhile, deep within the Land of the Sea, beneath an island hidden behind massive reefs and dense mangroves—
This was no natural cave, but a base created through large-scale excavation.
At its deepest point was a laboratory, rows of cylindrical tanks neatly arranged and filled with pale green nutrient fluid. Suspended inside were all kinds of grotesque creatures—some half human, half beast, others completely twisted out of shape. A few of them were still twitching unconsciously.
There were also several people inside.
One of them wore a white lab coat, was thin, and had light green hair. It was the scientist Amachi.
He was frowning at a report on cellular activity.
Standing beside him was a much taller man.
He wore a white robe, and his white hair was tied into a ponytail.
It was none other than Hiruko.
"Hiruko, today's fish-men haven't come back," Amachi said, pushing up his glasses, unease in his voice.
"By the usual pattern, they should have returned an hour ago."
"Did something happen to them?"
Hiruko frowned slightly.
"Most likely," Amachi said with a nod. "Probably some ninja passing through."
The Land of the Sea did not have many ninja of its own, but it was entirely possible that those fish-men had accidentally targeted one.
"Ninja from the Land of the Sea? Or ninja from another country?"
Hiruko stroked his chin, then turned his gaze to one side.
There was a woman standing there.
She had an extremely hot, seductive figure and wore a tight red-violet latex bodysuit that left most of her waist exposed.
Her long brown hair had been curled into luxurious spirals cascading down her back.
On her left cheek were two horizontal streaks of face paint.
"Two," Hiruko said flatly.
"Something happened to that group of fish-men. Whoever dealt with them may follow the trail here. If they're ninja… capture them alive if you can. They might make excellent experimental material."
"Yes, Hiruko-sama."
The woman known by the codename Two raised her head, revealing a pair of alluring purple eyes.
She stood, and in the next instant vanished into the shadows of the corridor leading out of the laboratory.
"I just hope nothing too serious happens," Amachi muttered, shaking his head.
After all, he had secretly been cooperating with Hiruko behind the scenes.
If Orochimaru-sama found out, there would probably be consequences.
By dusk, the Seagull had drawn close to Summoning Island.
The nearer they got, the more they could feel how strange the island was.
The vegetation was abnormally dense and tall. Many of the trees were bizarrely shaped, their leaves brightly colored. The air was filled with a complicated mix of floral fragrance, rotting leaves, and the scent of wild beasts.
Even from a distance, all kinds of roars and bird cries could be heard coming from the forest, high and low, some of them carrying obvious chakra fluctuations.
"So Summoning Island really does live up to its name."
Kurenai could feel all kinds of chakra signatures scattered across the island, some of them seeming to hold fixed territories.
"Everyone, stay alert," Tsunade ordered.
"Captain Shimaho, take the ship away from shore and drop anchor at a safe distance."
"Understood, Tsunade-sama!"
A small boat was lowered, and Kiyohara, Tsunade, Shizune, Kurenai, Rin Nohara, and Isaribi—who had only just recovered a little strength and was still bound by Kiyohara's curse mark—disembarked onto the island's soft, damp shoreline.
As soon as Isaribi's feet touched land, her body visibly relaxed a little, but her eyes were still full of fear, and she stuck close to Shizune.
"There's an enemy."
Kiyohara looked toward one side.
"There's an ambush in the brush to the left. Summoning beasts."
He spoke quietly, one hand already resting on his sword hilt.
The moment his words fell, the bushes on the left exploded apart.
Several gray shadows lunged out.
They were seven beasts that looked like wolves, except each was several times larger than an ordinary wild wolf.
Their fur was a rocky gray-brown, their fangs jutted outward, and saliva dripped from their mouths. Most striking of all, along their spines ran a row of sharp bony spikes.
"They're Spine Wolves! Common pack-hunting summoning beasts on Summoning Island. The spikes on their backs can be launched—be careful!"
Isaribi cried out in alarm. She seemed to know something about the island's creatures.
Awooo—!
The especially massive Spine Wolf at the front lifted its head and howled, and the spikes on its back trembled violently. In the next instant, dozens of sharp, finger-length bone spikes shot out like bullets toward the group.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
Rin reacted quickly. After finishing her hand seals, she slapped both hands onto the ground.
A thick wall of water surged up in front of them. The bone spikes plunged into it one after another, their speed greatly reduced before they dropped harmlessly to the ground.
Several other Spine Wolves attacked from the flanks and rear at the same time, firing more spikes.
"Genjutsu: False Surroundings Technique!"
Kurenai's eyes flashed red as invisible Yin chakra spread outward.
The Spine Wolves attacking her and Shizune suddenly froze for an instant, confusion flickering in their eyes. The positions of their targets seemed to shift slightly, and all their fired spikes missed.
Shizune seized the opportunity, flicking both hands. Poisoned senbon rained down on the wolves still affected by the genjutsu.
But after a sharp series of metallic clinks, most of the senbon bounced off the Spine Wolves' tough hide and muscle. Only a few managed to strike softer areas around the eyes and nose, making them howl in pain and fall back.
"What insane defense!"
Shizune clicked her tongue.
The moment Rin's Water Formation Wall dissipated, Kiyohara charged straight out, heading for the alpha wolf giving the orders.
The alpha seemed to sense the threat. The spikes on its back tensed again, and it opened its jaws wide, chakra gathering in its throat—it was preparing to use some kind of ninjutsu.
But Kiyohara was even faster.
He did not draw his blade. Instead, while sprinting forward, he formed hand seals.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!"
Several blazing fireballs burst from his mouth.
The alpha wolf was forced to cut off its own technique, scrambling left and right to dodge while spitting wind blades to scatter the fireballs.
The moment its attention was drawn to the Phoenix Fire attack, Kiyohara appeared at its rear flank.
Then his blade flashed out of the sheath.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Blade!"
Wrapped in blinding lightning, the ninja sword thrust forward at a speed too fast for the eye to follow, piercing cleanly through the alpha wolf's heart.
The violent lightning chakra instantly destroyed its life force.
The alpha let out a final howl and collapsed with a heavy thud.
With the leader dead, the remaining Spine Wolves instantly lost their formation, and their assault faltered.
But just as the group thought they could quickly clear the rest, a shrill whistle sounded from deep within the forest.
Immediately afterward, a powerful chakra signature came rushing closer.
A red-violet figure leaped high out of the trees and landed lightly on the branch of a giant tree.
It was Two, the operative sent by Hiruko.
Looking down from above, she swept her purple eyes across the group, pausing in particular on Kiyohara's Sharingan.
A strange smile curled up at the corner of her lips.
"So it's… the Sharingan. My lord will be very pleased."
She slowly raised her right hand.
In it was a black whip covered in barbs, made of some unknown material.
She snapped it through the air with a sharp crack.
A monster suddenly appeared behind her.
It was several meters in size. Its body resembled that of a lion and was covered in short fur, but on its back was a huge dark-brown turtle shell.
Its lion head was ferocious, breathing out scorching heat. Its four claws were razor sharp, and its tail was a snake's tail covered in scales.
With one swing of her whip, Two pointed at Kiyohara and the others.
"Tear them apart!"
The remaining Spine Wolves seemed emboldened and charged in once more, fearless.
As the whip shrieked through the air, the bizarre lion-headed, snake-tailed, turtle-shelled summoning beast let out a low roar, dug its claws into the ground, and lunged forward.
It was nearly twice the size of the Spine Wolves, and the earth trembled beneath its charge.
Shizune flicked both hands rapidly, sending dozens of senbon soaked in poison toward the creature's eyes, nose, and joints.
Clink, clink, clink!
Most of the senbon bounced off the shell or the thick hide. A few barely managed to pierce the flesh of its legs, but it was like stabbing into oiled leather—they went in no more than half an inch before going no farther.
The creature only shook its head, its momentum completely unchanged, its crimson lion eyes locked on Kiyohara standing at the front.
"Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death!"
Kurenai unleashed another genjutsu.
But the turtle-lion summoning beast merely hesitated for the briefest moment before shaking off most of the effect.
When Kurenai looked up, she saw that Two had helped dispel the genjutsu from the creature.
Seeing that neither Kurenai nor Rin could stop the monster, Kiyohara tightened his grip slightly on his sword hilt.
A pitch-black sheen spread from the hilt to the tip of the blade. Steel Release chakra had evenly coated it, giving it hardness and toughness beyond ordinary metal.
Then fine blue-white arcs of electricity began crackling from his wrist, wrapping around the entire sword.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Blade."
The blade flashed, and Kiyohara cut straight through.
He felt there was no need to use anything fancier. Whether it was Two or this summoning beast, both were weak.
Two's pupils suddenly contracted.
She saw Kiyohara's sword slice into the shell as though there were no resistance at all—a shell that even explosive tags could barely scratch.
A deep crack split across the turtle shell, and thick dark green fluid sprayed out.
"ROOOAR!!!"
The turtle-lion beast screamed in agony, its snake tail lashing wildly at the ground while its lion jaws gaped open.
Then its massive body crashed down and twitched twice before going still.
The strange smile on Two's face froze completely, turning into stunned disbelief.
Kiyohara had moved once, and her summoning beast had been killed instantly.
"You…"
Her knuckles went white around the whip handle.
Biting down on her lower lip, Two lashed the whip again.
"Secret Technique: Chaotic Serpent Bite!"
The whip instantly split into over a dozen overlapping shadows.
Unfortunately for her, under the Sharingan they all looked unbearably slow.
Kiyohara merely flicked his blade upward in a casual diagonal slash.
Clang!
Lightning chakra traveled along the sword into the whip. Two felt her entire arm go numb, and the whip nearly slipped from her grasp.
Before she could even change tactics, Kiyohara had already stepped forward, his left hand closing around her throat and capturing her outright.
Against people like this, Kiyohara did not feel even the slightest pressure.
But looking at Two's face, he found that it confirmed his earlier suspicion.
There was no mistake. This woman was one of Hiruko's subordinates too.
Just as Two tried to struggle, she realized black curse-mark patterns had already begun crawling over her body.
Even if she wanted to move now, she could not.
The only part of her body she could still control was her mouth.
So she bit down toward the base of her tongue, where a poison sac was hidden between her teeth.
If it burst, she would die instantly.
But Kiyohara's Sharingan immediately cast the Temporary Paralysis Technique. Two's movement froze, her eyes turned vacant, and the muscles of her jaw relaxed.
Kiyohara stepped forward, dislocated her jaw, removed the poison sac, and then began interrogating her with genjutsu.
A moment later, Kiyohara withdrew his hand, and Two collapsed limply to the ground.
"I got the answer."
He turned and looked at Tsunade and the others as they approached.
"The one behind all this is Hiruko."
Tsunade frowned deeply.
"Hiruko? Is it someone with the same name? Why would he be here?"
She was genuinely puzzled.
And if this was really Hiruko's subordinate, why attack them?
"Well, whether it's someone with the same name or not, who knows? Maybe it has something to do with Isaribi."
Kiyohara glanced at Isaribi.
His meaning was obvious: Hiruko was conducting human experiments.
Tsunade fell silent for a moment.
That possibility was not impossible.
It just felt unreal to her that Hiruko would be involved in something like this.
"Let's take a break and regroup first," Tsunade said, shaking her head.
She had already prepared Kiyohara's birthday gift and was planning to give it to him early.
She just had not expected they would run into something this troublesome now.
If the person behind this was not merely someone sharing the same name, but really was Hiruko—
Then the matter was serious.
That kind of conduct would get him immediately branded a rogue ninja.
~~~
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