It turned out that this guy's body was made of clay and could absorb the massive chakra of the underground dragon vein. Once injured, he could quickly regenerate using chakra.
But Morkel never believed in miracles. He wanted to see for himself—could this centipede regenerate even after being hit by an attack that disintegrated matter on a molecular level?
"Swish!"
A bright white light formed in Morkel's palm, and a strangely shaped cube materialized.
"Dust Release: Original World Separation Technique!"
A glowing white cube burst out from Morkel's hand and engulfed An Lushan's enormous body. Within seconds, the cube shrank and vanished.
An Lushan was completely erased, unable to even utter his last words—reduced to dust in an instant.
After a brief silence, cheers erupted from the people underground.
The long-oppressed citizens of Loulan smiled through their tears.
"An Lushan is finally dead! Loulan can finally find peace!"
"Yeah, but I think death was too good for him. They should have hung his body on a streetlamp for three days!"
"We're just lucky to be alive."
Inside the vine barrier, Queen Sarah's expression was a mix of emotions. Then, she smiled in relief. Looking at Morkel, she said earnestly, "Thank you."
Morkel waved it off casually. "I just did what needed to be done. But I'm still expecting payment."
Off to the side, Namikaze Minato and the others were utterly stunned. A ninja who could use Wood Style, Sharingan, and Dust Release? Who was this guy?
After the initial shock, the three Leaf ninjas exchanged smiles. This was the future of Konoha.
Morkel walked over to Minato. "As you said, the centipede is gone. If I reconstruct the seal, I should be able to return to my time, right?"
Minato nodded. "In theory, yes. But I've never tried it before."
"Need help? Time-space ninjutsu and sealing techniques are kind of my specialties," Morkel said with a confident grin.
"Unfortunately for you, they're also mine."
Morkel headed for the dragon vein's sealing altar. A Flying Thunder God kunai appeared in his hand.
Minato was speechless. This guy even knows the Flying Thunder God technique?!
Holding the kunai in his mouth, Morkel rapidly formed hand seals—hundreds of them.
"Time-Space Seal!"
He stabbed the kunai into the altar.
ABI!
Curse marks spread out in all directions from the kunai's position. A surge of purple light erupted, wrapping around Morkel's body.
As the blinding light faded, Morkel vanished—no farewells, no final words. Just a clean exit.
Minato stood quietly, staring at the kunai lodged in the altar.
"The shinobi of the future are truly incredible," he murmured.
He turned to his teammates. "Ding Zuo, Shibi… he's not from our time. Knowing about him could distort history. Let's use the memory-sealing technique."
Before they could respond, Sarah, still protected by the vines, called out, "Was he really from the future?"
Minato nodded. "Yes. And now that you know, your memory must also be sealed."
Sarah didn't resist. She gazed at the kunai Morkel had left her, engraved with the tree-shaped Flying Thunder God mark. It was a keepsake for her defense.
"Before you erase my memory, allow me to write a letter to the future king of Loulan... I don't know why, but he refused the dragon vein power I offered. But I made a promise…"
After writing her letter, a massive spell of forgetfulness washed over everyone.
Ruins of the Ancient City of Loulan
Back in the present, purple light erupted from the underground sealing altar!
Naruto and his team had decided to wait for Morkel, following a hunch.
The chakra beam vanished, and Morkel reappeared on the altar.
Yamato's face lit up. "Morkel? You're alive?!"
Morkel looked at Naruto and the others, silently calculating something.
He'd spent so long in the past… but here, only a moment had passed.
"Yeah. The centipede was obliterated by a chakra beam. My body is stronger than his—I survived."
He offered a small lie. Time travel? No one would believe that.
"I see. We really lucked out this time," Yamato said.
"We didn't even do anything! And Sand Shinobi owes us another favor!" Naruto chimed in, relieved.
Just then, a noise came from the wasteland. Dirt crumbled, revealing a narrow hole. A girl peeked out and saw Morkel's group.
"Who are you?"
"We're Konoha shinobi," Yamato explained. "We were hunting a rogue ninja named Centipede."
"Ah… did you guys cause that dragon vein light pillar just now?"
"No," Yamato replied. "That was Centipede. But he's dead now."
"I see. Come on up."
The team returned to the surface and found a group of young Loulan survivors behind the girl.
"We used to live here," she explained shyly. "But a disaster forced us out. Still, the dragon vein is sacred to us—an oath to the queen. So when we saw the light, we came immediately."
Morkel remained quiet, but the girl's eyes drifted to the red-haired girl standing beside him.
She took out a wrapped kunai.
"Do you recognize this?"
Morkel nodded. The Flying Thunder God mark on it was unmistakable.
"Can you confirm it?"
He nodded again.
A second later, Morkel vanished and reappeared beside her—kunai in hand.
Her mouth dropped open. "Just like the letter said… you can teleport to the kunai."
"Then, as written in the queen's letter, the dragon vein beneath Loulan now belongs to you."
Morkel looked at the kunai in his hand, heart heavy.
Sarah… she remembered their deal after all this time.
"Give my regards to Queen Sarah," he said softly.
"She passed away from illness three years ago," the girl replied. "But I'll honor her tonight with a ritual."
After the Loulan people left, Morkel sealed the dragon vein chakra into his body.
Naruto, Yamato, and Sai whispered among themselves.
"How did Morkel know the Queen of Loulan?" Naruto asked.
Sai shrugged. "No idea."
Yamato offered, "He's traveled a lot. He probably met her during a mission."
"But it sounded like they knew each other well…"
"Don't worry about it," Yamato said. "If he didn't tell us, he had his reasons."
Soon, Morkel returned and said, "Let's head to Sand Shinobi. We need to report to Gaara."
Meanwhile, outside Konoha Village
Omoi urged Karui forward. "Hurry! We must deliver this letter to Konoha! Master Killer Bee's been captured!"
"We've been running nonstop for hours!" Karui snapped.
"Fine. Rest if you want. But Master is in danger."
"He's been gone a day and a half! And you're telling me to take a break now?!"
"You don't know for sure it was Sasuke who did it."
"He was wearing an Akatsuki cloak!"
Omoi sighed. "Let's argue later. Look—Konoha is right ahead."
Back in Konoha
Morkel's team arrived at Sunagakure and reported the centipede's defeat. Morkel also handed over the core of Scorpion.
Even calm, composed Gaara couldn't hide his shock.
"You brought this back? I owe you big time," Gaara said.
"We're brothers," Morkel laughed. "No need to be polite."
"Still… do you want gold or gems?"
"Gold, of course."
Later, Naruto muttered, "It's just a core. Why's Gaara so worked up?"
Yamato replied, "The Scorpion of the Red Sand was a master of puppetry. With his core, Sunagakure might grow stronger."
Morkel sealed the gold into a scroll and returned with his team to Konoha.
In the Hokage's office, Karui and Omoi were talking to Tsunade about Sasuke.
They accused him of working with Akatsuki and attacking Killer Bee.
Tsunade was skeptical. "Sasuke? I don't think he's that strong…"
"He used Amaterasu!" Karui snapped.
After they left, Morkel arrived.
"Long time no see," he said to Omoi and Karui. "You two look familiar…"
Omoi smiled. "You brought us back with Killer Bee last time."
Karui crossed her arms. "This alliance won't last if Konoha doesn't deal with Sasuke."
"Sasuke? What did he do this time?"
Tsunade dismissed them and explained the situation.
"Killer Bee is missing. Sasuke was spotted nearby in an Akatsuki cloak. We're being asked to attend a Five Kage Summit to discuss Akatsuki."
Naruto insisted, "Sasuke would never do that!"
Morkel added, "Sasuke is allied with me. I sent him to the Land of Lightning to protect the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails!"
Tsunade sighed. "Whether we believe it or not doesn't matter. We must convince the others."
"I'll find Sasuke myself," Morkel said. "This is my responsibility."
Tsunade agreed, though she originally planned to have Morkel guard her.
"Alright. But first, come with me to the Land of Lightning."
Morkel nodded. "Understood."
He turned to Naruto. "Stay here and protect Lady Tsunade."
Naruto looked annoyed. "But Sasuke is my friend too!"
"You're strong now. The best bodyguard for the Hokage."
Hearing Morkel's praise, Naruto smiled. "Okay! Leave it to me!"
After leaving the office, Morkel tried teleporting to Sasuke with Flying Thunder God—but failed.
"The mark's gone?" he frowned. "Strange…"
It was clear now—Killer Bee's disappearance was more complicated than it seemed.
"If I can't reach Sasuke directly, I'll go to the Land of Lightning myself."
And with that, Morkel vanished in a flash of light.