Early the next morning, Izuna boarded the transport ship. Besides himself, there were about ten crew members.
The farther north they sailed, the denser the fog became. Even a ninja crossing the sea with Chakra could easily get lost. No wonder it had taken Uchiha Zuoxiu's men so long to find even a single clue.
On the shore of Sage Island, three men dressed in worn gray cloth were already waiting when the cargo ship arrived. They didn't have any obvious clan-specific features like the Hyuga's white eyes or the Uchiha's black hair. But one thing was noteworthy: their physiques were all powerful. If Izuna and his people had Eastern faces, these men had Eastern faces but Western builds. Their bones were thick and strong, and they stood at least 1.85 meters tall, giving them an intimidating presence.
Of course, that was only to ordinary civilians.
"This time, the cargo is 200 jin of lettuce, 180 jin of asparagus, 120 jin of Baikal skullcap, and..."
The boatman disembarked and began to converse with the tall men with practiced ease. The men said nothing, merely listening to the boatman, then taking the goods from the other crewmen and paying for them.
From a blind spot on the ship's rail, Izuna watched it all unfold, thinking to himself, *I'd better keep a low profile this time.*
He wasn't Madara, who could just steamroll through anyone he met. His goal was to obtain the method for using sage arts.GLOSSARY
A-rank jutsu: A-rank jutsu
S-rank jutsu: S-rank jutsu
Sharingan: Sharingan
Sage Island: Sage Island
Vassal Clan: Vassal Clan
Branch Family: Branch Family
Main Family: Main Family
Five Great Shinobi Countries: Five Great Shinobi Countries
Peak Jonin: Peak Jonin
Warring States Period: Warring States Period
Hyuga: Hyuga
Land of Waves: Land of Waves
Sarutobi Furuyuki: Sarutobi Furuyuki
Sarutobi Kosuke: Sarutobi Kosuke
Watanabe Ryokai: Watanabe Ryokai
***
Infiltrating the island to find the jutsu scrolls—or using his Sharingan to control someone in the know—was a much safer bet than a frontal assault.
With that thought, a custom three-pronged kunai flew from the boat, soaring over the coastline.
Just then, a blond man from Jugo's clan, who was checking an order with the boatman, narrowed his eyes and instinctively glanced up at the sky.
Seeing this, the two men behind him asked, "What's wrong?"
"I thought I saw something..."
The blond man stared into the sky for a long moment, but seeing nothing, he looked back down.
The boatman checking the order with him, however, felt a chill run down his spine. He had a sinking feeling he knew what was happening.
On the outskirts of the village at the island's center, Izuna retrieved his three-pronged Flying Thunder God kunai and muttered to himself, "He actually sensed the Flying Thunder God kunai. Is that an effect of Sage Chakra? No, it must be their clan's unique constitution..."
He was genuinely surprised that the blond man had noticed it.
Under those circumstances, only a sensory master like Senju Tobirama would have picked it up; even a Kage-level ninja might have missed it.
The village before him was about the size of the territory of a third-rate Warring States ninja clan, like the Fuma or the Kikawa.
But when Izuna activated his Sharingan, he saw that every single person in the village had a special kind of chakra flowing within them, in addition to their own.
*Is that Sage Chakra?*
Izuna closed his eyes, considering his strategy.
Unlike the Uchiha, who had outsiders serving as farmhands and servants, everyone here seemed to practice ninjutsu to some degree and possessed Sage Chakra.
And with only a few hundred people, they probably all knew each other.
The moment he walked in, he'd almost certainly be recognized.
"Well then, this should work..."
Izuna formed the cross-shaped hand seal for the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
*Poof!*
A shadow clone appeared in the next instant. It immediately formed another seal and used the Transformation Technique to take on the appearance of the blond man from the coast, then strode into the village.
***
In a detached cottage tucked away in a corner of the village, an old man emerged from his home. From his graying hair and beard, he looked to be over sixty.
Age had shrunken his frame, so he was no longer as tall as the other villagers, but he was still the height of an average adult.
He appeared vigorous and sharp, not at all like an old man with one foot in the grave.
"Lord Hihiko."
"Lord Hihiko."
As the old man walked through the village, everyone he passed bowed and greeted him respectfully.
The elder, Hihiko, nodded in return.
He made his way to a temple-like building in the northernmost part of the village.
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