Meanwhile, on the other side.
In the capital of the Land of Hot Water, Yugakure.
Successive wars had shattered the dreams of those who sought solace in the country's famous hot springs.
The hot spring restaurants that should have been bustling were now shuttered. The sheltered areas on the streets were filled with refugees, half-clothed and shivering.
The cold wind whipped across their faces, biting to the bone.
In front of an ordinary izakaya,
Uchiha Seiichiro, looking panicked and timid, covered in dust with bloodshot eyes, stared fixedly at the corner at the end of the street.
He didn't dare to blink, afraid he might miss something.
Until,
A man with a stern face, wearing a dark blue haori, appeared in Seiichiro's field of vision. He stepped calmly in his wooden clogs.
Seiichiro breathed a sigh of relief and called out, weary and anxious:
"Captain Fugaku!"
"Oh, it's Seiichiro." Uchiha Fugaku saw Seiichiro, his eyes calm, unsurprised.
He had already investigated on his way here; the Ninja Cat Clan had passed information to him.
He had a general understanding of the situation in the Land of Hot Water.
"Captain Fugaku, our team was attacked by Kumogakure at the border! The Great Elder... the Great Elder and him... yes, and Uchiha Ci... both of them are in great danger now!"
Seiichiro felt anxious, as if countless ants were biting him, and he spoke urgently:
"Captain Fugaku, please, I beg you, send reinforcements quickly!"
"I'm afraid if we're even a little late, the two of them will just..."
Uchiha Fugaku nodded calmly and waved his hand.
"I see."
"You go and rest first."
"What? How can I rest at a time like this? Ci... Ci... he saved my life! I... I can't—"
Hearing this, Uchiha Seiichiro's eyes suddenly turned red. He spoke anxiously, disregarding rank and protocol in his astonishment.
Uchiha Fugaku looked at him and frowned slightly.
Seiichiro's current state showed obvious signs of extreme stress and a sleepless night.
Coupled with his frantic rush—covering a distance that normally took half a day in half the time, arriving before dark—
His physical condition had reached its limit.
Fugaku shook his head, said nothing more, and just waved his hand at Seiichiro, saying calmly,
"Stand down."
At that moment, a figure suddenly flashed in front of the door, knelt on one knee before Uchiha Fugaku, and reported:
"Captain, Uchiha Ci's whereabouts have been found."
The Uchiha clansman who reported looked somewhat embarrassed and said with difficulty:
"It's just... that place is now controlled by the Jashin Cult. Only Konoha Anbu have the detailed information. I contacted the Konoha Anbu here, but they told me..."
"No comment."
"What?!" Uchiha Seiichiro couldn't help but exclaim.
"Ci... Ci is with the Jashin Cult now?"
"Those people... those people are all madmen! They're capturing ninja and children!"
"How could this happen? How could this happen?"
As he spoke, Uchiha Seiichiro's voice even began to sound choked with tears.
In today's chaotic Land of Hot Water, there were several types of people best not to mess with.
Ranked first was Kirigakure's Hunter-Nin.
Ranked second was the Uchiha garrison in Hell Valley.
Ranked third was this emerging evil cult.
This new religion was quite mysterious, its movements hard to pinpoint, its teachings spreading rapidly, and its ideas too extreme.
Their purpose was 'You must kill everyone around you!' Their crimes and horrific methods were simply too numerous to describe! (See: "The Jashin Scripture")
Uchiha Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly, his thoughts unreadable. After a moment, he nodded, grunted, and said in a deep voice:
"I see."
Immediately, Fugaku waved his hand, signaling his subordinate to withdraw and rest. He lifted the door curtain and walked into the izakaya alone.
Uchiha Seiichiro, watching his unmoved behavior, looked on blankly.
"Captain Fugaku. What did you say?"
His face suddenly became distorted, anger surging in his heart, his whole body trembling.
"Just 'I see'?"
"You obviously received the information about Ci, right? And what are you doing now?"
"You look so carefree; do you need someone to pour you a glass of wine?"
Uchiha Seiichiro widened his eyes and asked in disbelief:
"Why? Why aren't you taking action yet? Do you have to wait until the butcher's knife falls and a clansman dies tragically for your heart to be even slightly shaken?"
Uchiha Fugaku frowned, glanced over, but wasn't angry. He just said calmly:
"You also heard that place is now under the control of the Jashin Cult."
Uchiha Seiichiro couldn't help but retort, "But... that's resignation!"
"Uchiha Ci?" Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly as he carefully studied Seiichiro's expression but said lightly:
"Is he special?"
"As far as I know, he should be just an ordinary genin, right?"
"Besides, you should have some idea of the current situation in the Land of Hot Water. Seiichiro, what's the matter with you?"
"You wouldn't have said such things in the past."
Uchiha Seiichiro's heart was in turmoil. He stood upright on the spot.
"I..."
But the next moment, he thought of the boy who pushed him outside the barrier of certain death, facing the lone Kumogakure Jonin alone. He couldn't help but grit his teeth and clench his fists!
"Fine!"
"Since you won't save him!"
"Then I... I... I will save him myself!"
"I'm going to save him! I'm going to save Uchiha Ci!"
Uchiha Seiichiro gritted his teeth, his mind racing uncontrollably:
That boy, he is now alone among the Jashin Cult.
facing loneliness, fear, and helplessness.
Maybe he's being carried onto the altar by the Jashin followers, being brutally sacrificed as a live offering.
I already ran away once.
I can't run away this time!
Uchiha Fugaku looked at Seiichiro, who turned and rushed out of the house alone. He couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, looking somewhat surprised.
First Uchiha Shisui and Great Elder Uchiha Setsuna,
and now,
another person willing to die for this mysterious young man.
Uchiha Ci,
What kind of charm does he possess? How could he make these people, who were originally incompatible with each other, do this for him?
Uchiha Fugaku couldn't understand, but he decided to meet this child himself.
Facing the bright sun,
He walked out of the izakaya and said coldly to the deserted corner:
"Let's go; follow him."
In the next moment, seven or eight pairs of scarlet eyes suddenly lit up, then vanished from the spot with a sudden sound.
At the same time,
Outside Yugakure, a group of Konoha Root agents leaped before a pale-faced young man.
They knelt on one knee, holding out a scroll with both hands.
"Lord Orochimaru, this is the information scroll collected on the Jashin Cult."
"The person you are looking for should currently be at this location."
Long black hair, vertical golden pupils, purple eyeshadow extending to the sides of his nose, pale skin, and blue magatama-shaped earrings.
This person was none other than Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha.
Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and licked the corner of his mouth, a hint of excitement in his narrow, vertical pupils.
"Good."
"Forbidden Techniques: Physical Transformation, Immortality, and the Blood Dragon Eye that controls the ultimate metabolism of bodily tissues..."
"There are so many interesting things in the Land of Hot Water now."