Miwa Masayo was completely convinced. She nodded and asked,
"So how are we getting to Sunagakure, meow?"
Yoru scanned the battlefield one more time before replying,
"First, we return to the dammed lake. When Mao-you arrives, we'll hand over all the lake intel to him, then split up."
"I'll head south to the capital of the Land of Rivers. I'll show up publicly at Konoha's outpost in Jingchuan Town and complete a mission handover—establishing an alibi."
"After that, I'll find a safe, hidden location and set up a long-burning lamp."
"Masayo, you go straight to the Land of Wind. Hide somewhere as close to Sunagakure as possible."
"On the fourth night, exactly at midnight, use reverse summoning to bring me over."
"Once I've launched all the bodies, we retreat immediately to the coast—like nothing ever happened—and continue the mission I prepared in advance."
Masayo's eyes sparkled.
"This plan is great, meow! Beaches, sunshine, the sea, crabs, and coconut juice—hehe, I love it!"
Yoru chuckled, then added,
"But the Land of Wind is a desert. Can you handle that kind of climate?"
"Meow! Yoru, let me tell you a little secret—our ninja cat clan originally lived in desert regions!"
"Oh? I didn't know that. Did the ninja cats migrate from the Land of Wind to the Land of Fire?"
"Of course not, meow! We're natives of the Land of Fire!"
"Then…?"
"The environment changed on its own, meow. In our bloodline memories, the Land of Fire used to have vast deserts, while the Land of Wind was once a huge grassland."
Yoru froze.
"You're saying… the current environment of the Land of Fire was created by the First Hokage?"
"That's what the bloodline memory says, meow. He did it himself. He was super amazing!"
Yoru was stunned, his mouth hanging open.
The First Hokage—Hashirama Senju—had the power to reshape the land itself. Even by ninja standards, he was no different from a god.
No wonder Madara Uchiha failed to take the clan with him—who would follow someone who couldn't defeat Hashirama?
The shift in Yoru's mindset from this battle underwent another transformation. The thought of "I'm among the top thirty in the world" shattered instantly.
Compared to most people in the current ninja world, he was already strong. But compared to Madara… the gap was still enormous. And beyond him stood Hashirama.
[That pride needs to be put away. I'll only speak of it once I can reshape a nation's environment myself.]
The once-arrogant "heart monkey" was struck down like by a hammer. Its domineering presence shrank, while the "spleen pig" and "lung cat" seized the chance to expand.
Friction between the three heart-forms intensified. Strands of monkey fur, pig bristles, and cat fur fell like rain into Yoru's mental landscape, nourishing his spirit.
Soon, he felt the change.
Waves of powerful ocular energy surged from his mind into his eyes, leaving them both cool and warm at once.
[Back to the lake. I can't rest near the battlefield—it's too risky.]
Before they even reached the dam, Mao-you had already spotted them and shouted,
"How did you find this place? It's both beautiful and useful, meow!"
"Ran into it during a mission. Pure luck."
"Come on, we've already started digging pits. Building the altar still needs you."
"No, we need rest, meow."
"Hm? What were you two doing?"
At Mao-you's question, Yoru lightly tugged Masayo's tail, then answered first,
"A group of Sunagakure ninja showed up to cause trouble. We had to drive them off—chased them pretty far…"
"Good thing you're here now. We won't have to worry anymore."
Mao-you frowned at once and immediately dispatched over a dozen ninja cats to spread out and keep watch. Then he arranged tents, food, and water for Yoru and Masayo to rest.
Inside the tent, Masayo released senjutsu chakra, filling the space to block sound leakage, then asked,
"We have to keep the Sunagakure matter hidden from Mao-you too, meow?"
"We have to," Yoru replied. "Mao-you is a good leader, but he's too proud. He underestimates human ninja and doesn't understand the weight of a major village."
"This place's natural energy is useless to ordinary ninja, and those who practice senjutsu already have their own channels. That's why the Cat Castle can occupy it peacefully."
"But if Sunagakure ever considers Cat Castle a threat, they'll send forces to wipe it out. You know the strength of the Five Great Villages—if they mobilize, even the three great sage lands couldn't resist them."
"This burden is ours alone. We can't let Cat Castle share it."
Masayo nodded.
"I understand, meow. You rest—I'll keep watch."
"Thanks."
"When you're done resting, make honey barbecue for me, meow!"
"We're out of meat. Even the wild boar leftovers have spoiled."
"Then go hunting, meow. And find honey too, meow."
"…Are you a capitalist? No—capitalists aren't this ruthless. You're a slave driver!"
"Hurry and rest. I'll have the ninja cats search for leads, meow."
At ease, Yoru sank into his inner world, observing the friction between the three heart-forms. Through this visualization, he carefully evaluated his condition.
The result was promising.
The three heart-forms were forming a stable three-way balance, restraining one another and greatly reducing his mental burden.
He began circulating natural energy, shaking his dantian and producing a deep, bell-like resonance that cleansed his inner world.
This breakthrough was substantial.
His meridians' capacity and pulse strength had increased tenfold. The resulting "bell" grew deeper and more imposing, quickly suppressing the three heart-forms and forcing them back to their original states.
However, their minimum size had permanently increased tenfold.
This reminded Yoru that his current ease in suppressing them was merely a post-breakthrough advantage.
Next time, the heart-forms would erupt from this new baseline—far more dangerous than before.
This was the principle of "as the Dao rises one foot, the demon rises one yard." As his cultivation advanced and his essence, energy, and spirit grew tenfold, his inner demons would grow just as much—or more.
With the heart disturbance settled, Yoru didn't stop. He continued his stance practice, guiding his mind toward natural harmony and accelerating the digestion of the remaining fragments.
Essence, energy, and spirit worked in tandem:
The strange metal had strengthened his energy.
The heart-form friction had refined his spirit.
Only his physical body—his "essence"—lacked a direct enhancement method.
For that, he only had two options: brutal training… or eating a lot.
His body's slower growth had already become a concern.
And now—
Even securing enough meat for himself and Masayo had become a problem. That issue absolutely couldn't worsen.
But just as Yoru stepped out of the tent, a commotion broke out among the ninja cats.
They were shouting excitedly:
"We caught something! The net caught something—lots of them!"
Yoru immediately followed the rushing cats toward the lake, eager to see what creatures the underwater trap had captured.
Guess what it is.
And… why the bonus chapter?
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> [email protected]/SorenSwiftTL (replace @ with a)