"Is this the Sealing Shrine?"
Sasuke and the others escorted Shion to the shrine in the Land of Marsh.
They stared at the cave entrance—marked only by a single torii gate—and frowned.
A thick, ominous aura seeped out from the darkness within.
"Shiho. You stay outside."
"What? No! I have to stay by Lady Shion's side. Protecting her is my duty!"
"You'll only slow us down. If we have to protect you while fighting monsters, you'll just be a liability."
Sasuke's voice was cold and blunt.
Shiho froze.
After a long silence, he lowered his head, defeated, and said nothing more.
---
"I'll take point. Hinata and Shikamaru, left and right—protect Lady Shion. Shino, cover the rear."
Sasuke calmly arranged the formation.
They stepped into the cave.
Deeper.
And deeper.
The air grew hotter, like descending into the mouth of a volcano.
Finally, they reached a massive underground chamber.
Magma churned below, separated by winding rock paths that formed strange patterns across the lava field.
At the center, a man in black robes lay on a wooden platform.
Huang Quan.
The instigator behind the chaos in the Land of Demons.
---
"Shion… you've grown."
Huang Quan sat up slowly, eyes filled with greed as they settled on her.
"You look just like Maitreya."
"Come. Say hello to the young shrine maiden."
With his command, stone puppet soldiers marched forward along the rock paths, surrounding Shion.
"My name is Huang Quan. Once, your mother Maitreya stopped my ambition. Do you remember that day?"
"I, who led the resurrected sprite, was about to seize control of the thousand-year kingdom."
"If not for your mother… if not for the shrine maidens…"
His cold voice echoed through the cavern as the puppet soldiers advanced step by step.
A suffocating chill filled the air.
---
"Yeah, yeah. Thousand-year kingdom? Sounds ridiculous."
Sasuke cut him off with a sneer.
To him, Huang Quan was no different from Shimura Danzō—trapped by obsession and delusion.
The ninja world was vast.
A madman with four mediocre subordinates dreaming of ruling it?
Laughable.
"Hina, protect Lady Shion."
Sasuke's eyes turned crimson.
The three-tomoe Sharingan spun to life.
In a flash, he dashed past the puppet soldiers.
Raikiri tore through them.
They crumbled into lifeless stone.
"Where's the sprite? Why hasn't it shown up?"
"Fine. I'll deal with you first."
Sasuke scanned the chamber.
Huang Quan felt wrong.
Not alive.
His aura resembled the stone puppets.
Either way—
He needed to die.
---
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Technique!"
As Sasuke advanced, he formed hand seals instantly.
A blazing magma dragon erupted from the lava below, roaring as it lunged at Huang Quan.
"Konoha shinobi! Damn you! Why interfere with my plan?!"
"I'll kill you! Kill you all!"
"Then no one will stop me! I'll build the thousand-year kingdom! I'll rule the ninja world!"
Purple-black chakra exploded outward.
Like countless blades.
The magma dragon was cleaved in two.
The cavern walls were shredded under the cutting force.
Sasuke moved like lightning, weaving between invisible blades.
He closed the distance in a blink.
"Lightning Style: Chidori!"
A spear of lightning extended from his palm, striking toward Huang Quan's forehead.
Clang!
Huang Quan's hand, wrapped in dark chakra, blocked the attack.
Chakra spikes burst from his body in all directions.
Sasuke retreated instantly.
The clash was fast—blinding.
---
"Hinata, let's move Lady Shion out of here," Shino whispered urgently.
"My insects sense something… something terrifying."
Shikamaru's eyes sharpened.
"It's not Huang Quan," Shino added. "It's something else."
"Sasuke! This is a trap! Fall back!" Shikamaru shouted.
Hinata didn't hesitate. She lifted Shion and rushed toward the exit.
"Wait! Aren't we here to seal the sprite? Why retreat? We're so close!"
Shion struggled.
She had seen no vision of death among them.
For the first time, she thought fate could change.
If she sealed the sprite now—
Her destiny would break.
Everything was going perfectly.
Why retreat?
---
Sasuke withdrew to regroup, his expression grave.
He felt it too.
This wasn't right.
"Hehehe… trying to escape? Too late. Lord Sprite has fully revived. You will become its offering!"
Huang Quan laughed wildly.
Purple-black chakra surged out of him in overwhelming waves.
His body began to melt—like wax under flame—merging into the dark chakra mass.
Suddenly—
The exit tunnel sealed shut.
A massive rock wall slammed into place.
"Hehehe… shrine maiden… become one with me. Together we'll rule the ninja world."
Huang Quan vanished.
Only a writhing mass of dark chakra remained.
"This is the sprite?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Not that impressive."
The aura was powerful.
Strange.
But within manageable limits.
Even if he couldn't win, he could retreat.
"Sasuke! There's another presence here!" Shino gasped.
He was pale, drenched in sweat.
The insects' fear fed into him.
If not for Naruto's brutal special training, he might have collapsed.
"Another enemy?"
Sasuke scanned the cavern again.
Nothing.
His heart tightened.
One sprite was manageable.
An unseen second enemy?
That was dangerous.
---
Shion stood frozen.
This was nothing like she had envisioned.
Seal the sprite.
Sacrifice herself if necessary.
That was her destiny.
But now?
The seal almost didn't matter.
"Hehehe… none of you will escape! I will—"
Suddenly—
The sprite's voice distorted.
Its chakra began convulsing.
"Who?! Who is it?! Damn you! I won't let you—!"
It screamed in agony.
As if being torn apart from within.
The writhing chakra twisted violently—
Then fell silent.
Only a thick cloud of energy remained.
"The sprite… where did it go?"
"Don't bother looking. It's probably dead."
Sasuke's words left Shion stunned.
The terror that haunted generations of shrine maidens—
Destroyed just like that?
Then what about the sacrifices of the past?
What about her so-called fate?
Was it all meaningless?
---
Sasuke and the others didn't relax.
They tightened their formation.
Something else was here.
The air grew heavier.
More oppressive.
The scent of danger intensified.
Every nerve in their bodies screamed.
The real enemy—
Had not yet shown itself.
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