[ Unfortunately, New Konoha's plans fell through. Before their men could even set foot in the Land of Snow, they were discovered by the Honkai Beasts roaming the region and were forced to retreat.
Unlike Uchiha Hoshi, who was largely indifferent to the expansion of the beasts, Kazahana Koyuki consciously ordered them to prowl the snowfields—particularly along the borders of the Land of Snow. Her goal was simple: ensure any ill-intentioned interlopers died at the boundary line. It spared her the disgust of seeing them face-to-face.
For Koyuki, the Land of Snow was her only concern. She cared nothing for what happened in the outside world, but by the same token, nothing from the outside world would be allowed to disrupt her domain.
The upheaval in the Land of Snow naturally drew the attention of the other Great Ninja Villages. As soon as they learned that Honkai Beasts had appeared within its borders, they immediately dispatched ninjas to gather intelligence. Although their scouts could not penetrate deep into the country, they confirmed one terrifying fact: Honkai Beasts truly existed in the Land of Snow, and their numbers were vast—surpassing even those found in Old Konoha.
"What exactly is going on? Where did these monsters come from? Did the Uchiha hiding in Old Konoha relocate to the Land of Snow?"
Inside the Raikage's office in Kumogakure, A felt a massive headache brewing as he looked at the report. Due to a lack of information, he still believed the monsters in Old Konoha were the work of the Uchiha. After all, intelligence from spies who escaped Konoha suggested that everything originated from the disaster at the Uchiha Clan Grounds. Naturally, he assumed this was some unique Uchiha Dojutsu!
"Uchiha Hoshi? If it were her, that would actually be the better scenario," Samui sighed.
She had always remained skeptical about the origins of these creatures. The difference between these Honkai Beasts and conventional Ninja Beasts was far too vast. They had previously captured the smallest class of beast at a great cost for research, but the result was a catastrophe. A large number of researchers died, and a series of strange, identical symptoms broke out in the village, yet they learned nothing.
Eventually, they had to relocate the research to a site far from the village. Those infected with the strange illness had yet to be cured; most died in agony, while only a few with massive Chakra reserves managed to survive this long. But for those patients, even death offered no release.
Once those suffering from Honkai Sickness died, they would reanimate as monsters that mindlessly attacked others, and anyone they struck would almost certainly be infected. When those monsters first crawled out of their graves, they caused significant chaos within the village.
Because of these factors, Samui even suspected these beasts came from another world. She could find zero information regarding such creatures in their history—absolutely nothing. Now, the appearance of new beasts in the Land of Snow represented a potential opportunity to finally understand these monsters.
Onoki of Iwagakure and Rasa of Sunagakure shared similar thoughts. As for Kirigakure, it was hardly worth mentioning.
Despite the extreme danger, ninjas continued to stream into the Land of Snow to gather intel. These Honkai Beasts were unlike any Ninja Beasts they had ever encountered; their strength was terrifying, and they possessed an acute ability to sense living things—especially humans. Once they caught a scent, they would launch relentless attacks.
However, for the ninjas who had investigated Old Konoha, while the beasts' power was fearsome, their attack patterns were relatively simple and linear. High-agility ninjas found that while they couldn't kill the beasts, they could use their speed to dodge most attacks and break line-of-sight.
Until, that is, they encountered the new variants.
"Damn it... what's with these things? Why can I still feel the cold seeping into my body even with a Chakra shroud?"
A group of Kumogakure ninjas, their faces pale and tinged with blue, looked back at the ice-blue beast still pursuing them.
Ice Honkai Beast!
A specialized variant born in the snowfields, infused with incredibly potent frigid energy.
"It's not just their attacks—if you stay within a certain range of them, you get hit by the frost Erosion. And this cold is incredibly hard to dispel!"
The Kumogakure ninjas felt their bodies becoming increasingly stiff. When they first noticed this beast differed from those they had seen before, they guessed it might possess an ability similar to Ice Release.
However, these beasts didn't "cast" Ice Release in the traditional sense. Instead, their very presence radiated an intense chill. Their attacks and the paths they trod would freeze instantly, leaving trails of ice. Most critically, this chill was laced with Honkai Energy. Upon contact, it launched a horrific Erosion on their bodies.
It required several times the usual amount of Chakra just to mitigate the effects. While dispelling Honkai Energy was difficult, dealing with mere cold should have been manageable—the problem was that the beasts gave them no time to flush the frost from their systems.
"Damn it, you go first! You have to get the data on these new types back to the village. I'll hold it off!"
"But... Fine! You better make it back alive!"
Seeing the determination in his comrade's eyes, the Kumogakure ninja didn't hesitate and sprinted away. In such a situation, a second's hesitation meant neither would escape. They had already seen one teammate turned into an ice sculpture; they couldn't allow everyone to perish.
"Come on, you monster! Let me show you what a Kumogakure ninja can do!"
The ninja staying behind pulled out all his remaining Explosive Tags and rigged a crude trap. It was a trap so simple that even an Academy student would laugh at it, but for these mindless beasts, it was just enough. Besides, he didn't have the energy left for anything more sophisticated. He had to save his strength to face the beast head-on.
"What a waste. We shook off so many of them, but we still can't lose a flying one like you!"
They had initially encountered several new types. Thanks to their agility, they had outrun two massive but slow Chariot-class beasts and a flying but relatively slow Templar-class beast. However, they simply couldn't shake the faster Archangel-class variant. One man had already stayed behind to lure two away, but one still doggedly pursued them.
And now, it was his turn to be the shield! ]