It was late at night. Kusagakure was steeped in its usual low pressure, a mix of vigilance and numbness.
"Cheers!"
At a night watch post, several Grass ninjas were eating roasted meat and gulping down sake, their faces flushed with drunkenness.
"That's enough," a Grass Jonin, who hadn't joined them, said helplessly. "If those 'Realist Faction' guys see this, I'll be scolded again because of you."
Legend had it that Kusagakure once opened the Gokuraku no Hako (Box of Ultimate Bliss), the ultimate weapon from the Sage of Six Paths' era, capable of granting any wish. They were supposedly on the verge of ruling the ninja world with it. However, one day, Kusagakure was suddenly destroyed. Since then, two opposing factions emerged in Kusagakure: the 'Grass Fruit' (main war faction) which sought to revive Kusagakure, and the 'Grass Flower' (anti-war faction). Of course, the so-called anti-war and main war factions simply prioritized different interests; essentially, they were all cut from the same cloth. Their small squad belonged to the anti-war 'Grass Flower' faction. To be precise, they were the "compromise faction."
"Boss, why are you so serious? We're about to change shifts anyway," a Grass Chunin complained, his face flushed. "Given the current situation in the ninja world, who knows when Iwagakure will join in, and our Land of Grass will become a battlefield for the great nations again."
"By then, if we die, we won't even get to drink."
"If that day truly comes, I'll definitely bring that woman along. If I get hurt, I'll just bite her. It could save my life."
"Don't forget the little one, either. I wonder if her healing effect would be even better."
"Hahahaha!"
The Grass ninjas laughed wildly, their words clearly indicating they didn't see Karin and her mother as human beings. Or rather, the entire Kusagakure, from top to bottom, was like this. If even one person had stood up to object, Karin's mother wouldn't have been sucked dry of her life force and died.
"Speaking of which, what's Mui been busy with lately? Haven't seen him in ages."
"He's at Hozuki Castle, of course. Isn't that workaholic always like that?"
Seeing that they continued to act as they pleased, the Grass Jonin reluctantly stood up and said, "I'll go stand guard outside. You guys keep drinking, but don't go too far."
Before the others could respond, he stepped out of the room.
The night was as thick as ink, and a thin mist permeated the air, enveloping the already cluttered and crude village dwellings in a damp, eerie shroud. Light cast dim, flickering halos from windows. Occasionally, stifled arguments or indistinct murmurs of dreams drifted from afar, only emphasizing the dead, silent atmosphere of Kusagakure.
"..."
The Grass Jonin frowned, instinctively pulling his clothes tighter. Kusagakure seemed unusually cold tonight, and the night seemed especially profound. The air seemed to condense, and even the whimpering of the wind suddenly ceased.
Just then, the Grass Jonin suddenly felt an indescribable chill that made all the hairs on his body stand on end. He subconsciously looked back, and what met his eyes was slightly distorted air. Something seemed to exist between the tangible and intangible. It stood before him now.
Hum.
The Grass Jonin's body stiffened abruptly, his heartbeat clutched by an invisible hand, stopping for a moment. Then, he felt something pass through his body, his soul forcibly torn and stripped away. This was extreme pain from the depths of his soul. But this pain could not be released, because his soul was being extracted, leaving him unable to control his own body. He could only watch, helplessly, as his exposed skin lost its luster at a visible speed, watching his vision directly move away from his body.
In his spiritual form, he finally saw what it was. A phantom covered entirely in what seemed like black robes, as if thick, dark liquid was writhing and flowing. What covered its head was not a human face, but a pale, bony mask. Its eyes were two bottomless, pitch-black holes, its teeth exposed, and at the center of its chest was a large, dark void. Moonlight passed through its body, casting no shadow on the ground, only a vague outline.
"What... what is that?!" The Grass Jonin's last thought formed, and then, his white spiritual body was completely swallowed.
Thud!
His body, which had been standing in place, fell to the ground with a muffled thud.
"Wait, quiet. Was that a sound outside?"
Though drunk, the eerie sound instantly put the Grass ninjas in the room on alert, and they abruptly stood up. But before they could do anything, they suddenly felt the air temperature drop sharply, and then saw an invisible, distorted figure.
Buzz!!
White spiritual energy was forcibly extracted from their mouths, noses, eyes, ears, and even skin pores, uncontrollably. The people in the room fell, falling stiffly, their eyes vacant and lifeless.
Death continued to walk in the darkness. A drunken Grass Chunin collapsed silently on the bar, his life extinguished... A Jonin processing documents was robbed of his soul in an unspeakable chill, collapsing directly onto the desk before him... Whether the target was a sleeping Genin, a drunken Chunin, or a usually vigilant Jonin.
No one was spared, no one sounded the alarm. There were no earth-shattering noises, no signs of ninjutsu, not even terrified screams, only the continuous spread of death. There were no wails, no resistance. Only the fear, frozen and fixed on their faces as their souls were devoured.
Finally, someone discovered the strangely deceased individuals.
Beep beep beep!!
The first Grass ninja to notice the anomaly pierced the night's deadly silence with a sharp whistle. Instantly, more than half of Kusagakure was startled!
"What's going on?"
"Is it an enemy invasion?!"
The Grass ninjas awoke in panic, rushing out of their homes with weapons in hand, scanning their surroundings, trying to find the enemy. However, they saw only a silent, deathly still night.
"What... what is that?!"
Someone saw the phantom distorting the air, and many looked on with surprise and doubt. They tried throwing kunai, shuriken, and even explosive tags at it, but they passed through its body as if through air, creating not a single ripple. One Jonin even tried to use Earth Release to impede its movement, but its body, between tangible and intangible, easily passed through. Ninjutsu struck its form and passed through like a mud ox entering the sea, only fruitlessly cutting through the air. Yet, it advanced slowly and irresistibly, like a walking natural disaster, eradicating life wherever it went, like a harbinger of death.
"How is that possible!"
"What is that thing?!"
"Is it some kind of monster?"
Fear spread like a plague among the Grass ninjas. They faced a 'Hollow' that could not be touched by physical attacks. They faced not a physical impact, but a spiritual devouring. All of this made the Grass ninjas' counterattack seem so pale and ridiculous.
Facing this eerie scene, someone shrieked in anger, "Sealing Squad! Where is the Sealing Squad?!"
Kusagakure's so-called Sealing Squad consisted of only five people; they had already had their souls extracted before they could even be discovered. The 'Hollow's' advance showed no pause, easily passing through thick mud walls and simple wooden doors, silently devouring the souls of those within the houses. It harvested every remaining breath in every corner, dragging out and executing those who hid. With every place it visited, someone died.
"Ghost! It's a demon!"
Finally, faced with such powerlessness and despair, someone completely broke down and tried to escape Kusagakure. But when they reached the edge of Kusagakure, they saw five talismans inscribed with the character "Forbidden."
At this moment, the 'Shadow,' Nagato, and Kakuzu stood on a high vantage point, coldly looking down at them struggling in despair within the barrier.
Five-Seal Barrier, a C-rank barrier ninjutsu, forms a sealed area by placing forbidden talismans connected to the caster's chakra at five different points. Once activated, if all forbidden talismans cannot be destroyed simultaneously, the barrier cannot be broken. Although it has no offensive capabilities, it possesses extremely strong defensive and sealing power. This was the barrier jutsu Nagato used to protect the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path from being discovered and invaded. Kusagakure's capabilities were utterly insufficient to open it.
"No!"
"Ah!!"
"No, no, I was wrong!"
"Let me go..."
Ninjas trying to hide in cellars, ninjas trying to escape from the village entrance, ninjas trembling in their homes... Each bite brought excruciating pain that guided her towards those who had once tormented her.
No blind spots, no survivors.
Screams, curses, pleas, explosions, the clash of weapons... All this cacophony of the living was like stones dropped into a deep pool, unable to even create a ripple, completely swallowed by boundless silence.
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