Since the seniors had stopped, the juniors, Pakura and Yagura, couldn't be so impolite either.
Everyone was still willing to give some face to the highly respected Third Hokage.
The Raikage of Kumogakure arrived yesterday, and today, the Kage or representatives of Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure had all arrived.
Thus, the Five Kage Summit was about to begin.
Time was tight and the tasks were heavy; there could be no further delay.
"Everyone, I won't waste time with idle talk. I believe you have all come to our Konoha with the intention of forming an alliance."
"Then, let us continue our discussion inside the village."
...
Hozuki Castle.
The elder of Kusagakure and the current master of Hozuki Castle—a man named Munenori Ichiro—had finished discussing their intentions.
They brought the Tailed Beast to unlock the Box of Ultimate Bliss, not to carry out a massacre.
Only then did Munenori Ichiro lift the alert at Hozuki Castle and arrange for over a hundred prisoners to work with the Kusagakure Shinobi to carry out the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
Hearing the noise, Ryou stopped frightening Ryūzetsu and Muku, shifting his attention to the exit inside the prison.
Under the supervision of prison guards, over a hundred Hozuki Castle prisoners carried out a massive black box as large as a house.
This giant iron box was cast entirely from ancient iron as dark as ink, its surface shimmering with a cold, weathered metallic luster.
A hideous demon mask was embedded on each of the four sides of the box, corresponding to the four states of Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Pleasure.
The Mask of Joy had eye slits narrowed into wicked curves, filled with a treacherous, cruel smile.
The Mask of Anger had eye sockets sunken into pitch-black voids, filled with violence and fury.
The Mask of Sorrow had two strings of beads hanging from its eye sockets, exuding endless grief.
The Mask of Pleasure carried a numb frenzy, exuding a spine-chilling eeriness.
Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Pleasure—all of them were types of frantic ghost faces; not a single one was positive.
Under the combined effort of the crowd, the Box of Ultimate Bliss was carried onto the plaza. People from Kusagakure approached, accompanied by an old man in a black trench coat.
The old man was named Munenori Ichiro, a member of the 'Grass Fruit'. Wearing a pair of glasses, he looked like an old academic.
His expression when looking at Ryou was somewhat fearful.
He must have heard information about Ryou from the Kusagakure people.
He gave a respectful salute: "Lord Ryou!"
Ryou nodded to him and then ignored the Kusagakure people, stroking his chin as he looked at the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
The entire box was heavy and majestic, its corners blunted by time. The four masks glinted with a deathly cold light under the gloomy sky, as if silently recounting its horrors.
Ryūzetsu looked a little scared and couldn't help but grab her teacher Chizu's hand.
This box didn't look like a treasure chest that could grant wishes; instead, it seemed like a Pandora's box sealing a demon.
Shirakawa and Muku walked up to Ryou. Shirakawa smiled flatteringly at Ryou and said, "My Lord, the Box of Ultimate Bliss has been brought out. Can we transport it back now?"
Ryou glanced at him. "Who told you I was going to transport it back?"
After saying that, Ryou ignored Shirakawa and walked straight toward the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
Shirakawa and the Kusagakure Shinobi were shocked. They could all see that Ryou intended to keep the Box of Ultimate Bliss for himself.
This was defying Madara's orders!
But they didn't dare interfere in the business of experts. They could only plan to run far away when the time came.
Lest they be caught in the crossfire when the gods fight.
Ryou and Candy walked up to the Box of Ultimate Bliss. As they approached, the box gave both the man and the cat an unsettling feeling.
Candy's fur stood on end, entering his Spiny Back state.
Candy warned warily, "This box is very dangerous. The thing inside is definitely not a treasure that grants wishes."
Ryou looked at Candy and asked curiously, "Candy, when your fur stands up, it's spiny back state. So when it's not standing up, is it non-spiny back state?"
"٩(ŏ﹏ŏ,)۶."
Candy hissed, "What time do you think it is to be joking? Be serious! I have a premonition that the thing inside is definitely not to be trifled with!"
Ryou hadn't told anyone about Satori. Candy being able to sense that the existence inside the Box of Ultimate Bliss was dangerous was entirely due to its own sensory abilities.
Ryou then observed the material of the Box of Ultimate Bliss and discovered that it wasn't made of metal.
It was Yin-Yang Release!
Ryou was certain; this was a box made with Yin-Yang Release.
Because he had been coming into contact with Yin-Yang Release recently.
In the movie, the Senjutsu used by Sage Naruto couldn't destroy this Box of Ultimate Bliss, proving it wasn't made of ordinary material.
Rumor had it that the Box of Ultimate Bliss was a Shinobi tool once used by the Sage of Six Paths.
Ryou guessed that back in the era of the Sage of Six Paths, Satori had committed atrocities, so the Sage of Six Paths used Yin-Yang Release to create the Box of Ultimate Bliss to seal Satori.
Then, besides mind-reading, Satori must also have an immortal body; otherwise, the Sage of Six Paths wouldn't have sealed it.
Ryou tried to use his own chakra to provoke Satori. As soon as he touched the Box of Ultimate Bliss, Ryou's chakra was rapidly devoured.
The Box of Ultimate Bliss was like a greedy little cat, frantically devouring Ryou's chakra.
Ryou quickly pulled his hand away.
Shirakawa came forward and said to Ryou, "Lord Ryou, no matter how much Shinobi chakra the Box of Ultimate Bliss devours, it's useless. It must be Tailed Beast chakra."
Why Tailed Beast chakra?
Tailed Beast chakra was violent and highly corrosive, carrying strong negative emotions, such as hatred or anger.
Satori was a demonic creature that required negative emotional energy. Tailed Beast chakra filled with resentment was the greatest supplement for it.
Ryou nodded to Shirakawa and then beckoned the Seven-Tails over.
The Seven-Tails ran over like a puppy, preparing to nudge Ryou with its antennae, but Ryou quickly stopped it; he couldn't handle such large antennae.
Then Ryou had the Seven-Tails release chakra into the Box of Ultimate Bliss. The Seven-Tails was very obedient, spitting out a mass of chakra from its mouth, forming a red beam of light that contacted the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
The Box of Ultimate Bliss reacted, greedily absorbing the Seven-Tails' Chakra.
Just as Ryou was waiting for Satori to break the seal, he suddenly noticed that the area around the Box of Ultimate Bliss was filled with people from Kusagakure.
They were all people with extreme longing on their faces.
The Box of Ultimate Bliss was rumored to be a treasure chest that could grant wishes upon opening, and the people of Kusagakure all had their own wishes.
Ryou coughed and asked Shirakawa beside him, "Shirakawa, do you all have wishes too?"
Shirakawa gave a dry laugh.
As long as one is human, they have wishes: to gain powerful strength to dominate the world; to gain a long life to enjoy everything...
Even those who want to die hope to die without pain.
Humans are deformed beings born from the collision of reality and desire.
If they could wish for power greater than Madara's, they wouldn't have to be dominated by the evil Uchiha pair of Madara and Ryou.
Staying by their side, it always felt like having only one head wasn't quite enough.
Ryou asked Shirakawa, "Shirakawa, what is your wish?"
Shirakawa said, "Lord Ryou, my wish is for Kusagakure to become the greatest Shinobi village in the Shinobi World, no longer subject to the dominance of the Great Nations."
Ryou nodded, then met his gaze with the Sharingan, instantly pulling Shirakawa into an illusionary world Ryou had woven for him.
In this world, Kusagakure became a Shinobi village that everyone could trample on. The Land of Fire, Land of Wind, and Land of Earth set their perennial battlegrounds in the Land of Grass.
The Land of Grass became the Land of Rain from the original work, directly subjected to the violent output of the Five Great Nations, with war orphans everywhere.
A look of extreme sorrow appeared on Shirakawa's face. This was a nightmare!