Cough! Cough, cough, cough!
Inside the pitch-black cave, a series of lung-tearing coughs suddenly shattered the silence.
Shirakumo Hayama struggled to pry his eyelids open. His chest felt as if it were being crushed by a thousand-pound boulder, making every breath a desperate, itchy struggle that triggered more coughing fits.
In his blurred vision, a figure moved through the darkness and pressed a pill into his mouth.
"Swallow slowly," Hyuga Tokuma's voice drifted from his side.
It took a few moments for the medicine to take effect. Only then did Hayama's breathing steady enough for him to survey their surroundings.
The cave was illuminated only by the faint, flickering glow of a single candle. Dried blood stained Tokuma's face, and across from them sat Uchiha Shisui, looking utterly battered.
"I held you both back..." Hayama rasped, his voice thick with guilt.
If he hadn't been so weak—knocked unconscious the moment the fighting started—his teammates wouldn't have been forced into such a desperate struggle. They wouldn't be in this miserable state.
"The enemy was simply too strong," Shisui replied. He was leaning against the cold stone wall, slowly lifting his head.
As the candlelight caught his face, Hayama's breath hitched in his throat. Shisui's left eye socket was a hollow, sunken pit, looking as if the very light in the room were being sucked into the void.
"Shisui! You—?!" Hayama's voice died in his throat.
Shisui didn't try to hide the loss. He simply used his remaining eye to scan his companions.
"The enemies in the Hidden Star are no longer something ordinary shinobi can handle," Shisui said solemnly. "If we want to uproot them, it will require a full-scale war."
But the Hidden Leaf of today was in no position to support another war.
"Furthermore," Shisui continued, "the enemy has a member of the Uchiha bloodline serving them. If this isn't handled delicately, it could cause the village to turn its suspicions toward our clan."
As Shisui spoke, both Hayama and Tokuma flashed back to the image of that terrifying black-haired girl. Hayama hadn't seen the true depth of her power, but Tokuma had witnessed the clash of those spectral giants in the forest. That god-like display of force still made his soul tremble.
"Therefore, I wish to take full responsibility for reporting this to the Hokage. As for the mission details... I hope you can keep them confidential from others, within reason."
Shisui's gaze lingered on Tokuma as he said this. He knew Hayama's character; the man wouldn't speak to anyone but the Hokage. But Tokuma was a member of the Hyuga Branch House, answerable to both the Branch and Main House leadership. Shisui didn't demand silence, but his tone was deeply considerate of Tokuma's difficult position.
After a tense silence, Tokuma nodded.
Hayama rubbed his aching head. "You're the captain. I'll follow your lead."
"Thank you for understanding," Shisui whispered, bowing his head slightly.
For the rest of the night, they took turns standing watch. Shisui, however, could not sleep. His mind was a storm of questions—and a deep, gnawing dread for how the village elders would react to the existence of another Mangekyo wielder.
The Hidden Star Village.
The small village nestled deep within the mountains was currently a hive of activity.
Gato was busy barking orders at his merchant caravans and the villagers. Wagons were being piled high with household goods, preparing for the mass migration to the capital of the Land of Bears under the protection of the Star Shinobi.
They were to establish a new village on the eastern outskirts of the capital, near the forests and mountains.
"The name 'Hidden Star' is about to become history," Hoshino sighed, standing at the village gates. He watched the villagers moving with unexpected excitement, leaving the emerald embrace of the forest behind.
In the future, this site would remain only as a military outpost for the western border. The people, however, were heading toward a new life. While Hoshino worried for the future, he saw only hope in the eyes of his shinobi and civilians.
A sudden commotion erupted near the entrance. Kakuzu marched through the crowd, dragging two captive Sand shinobi. The heavy chains of the Anbu dragged behind them, screeching against the dirt.
"Yo, Lord Kakuzu! Where'd you find those two?" Gato called out, taking a rare break from his ledger.
Kakuzu gave a dismissive huff. "Just two rats trying to sneak in." He signaled the Anbu to toss them into the cells to await the "Ashura's" instructions.
"Lady Nanashi is back!"
The arrival of Uchiha Hikari and Uzumaki Vanilla caused an even greater stir, especially since they were escorting the Iwa prisoners.
"Lady Nanashi! Lady Vanilla!" The Star shinobi bowed deeply as they passed.
Kakuzu's green eyes narrowed as he looked at the three Iwa ninja bound by the Adamantine Sealing Chains. When his gaze fell upon Gari, the Explosion Style user, a greedy glint flickered in his pupils.
"That one looks strong," Kakuzu said to Hikari. "Give him to me."
Whether for a high-quality heart or a black-market bounty, Kakuzu saw only profit.
"Don't even think about it," Hikari shot him a freezing glare. "Lock them all up. They'll be useful later."
Kakuzu clicked his tongue in annoyance but signaled his subordinates to move the prisoners.
"We ran into three Leaf shinobi earlier," Vanilla added, now that her chains were retracted. "We drove them off."
Hoshino listened to the report—Sand ninja captured, Iwa ninja bound, Leaf ninja repelled—and let out a complex, heavy sigh.
Rustle—
The sound of shifting leaves drew everyone's attention to the forest path.
Hikari's cold expression softened slightly, a faint smirk touching her lips as she clutched a "gift" in her hand and stepped forward.
"We're here. Your other two companions should have been delivered already," Menma was saying to someone behind him.
Following Menma was a female kunai with a striking figure and a staggered gait. Her Sand headband hung crookedly over her blood-stained outfit, her distinct orange-and-green hair matted with dust.
The moment Hikari saw the woman, her pupils contracted. She gripped the "gift" in her hand so hard it nearly burst.
"Lord Menma, who is she?" Vanilla asked, eyeing the long-legged Sand Jonin.
"Pakura. A Hero of the Hidden Sand... and currently my prisoner," Menma replied. He turned to Kakuzu. "Find her a cell. No special treatment, just the standard routine."
"Understood," Kakuzu grunted. He recognized the Scorch Style user immediately. The Hidden Mist had a massive bounty on her head.
Weakened from her battle, Pakura was shackled by the Star Anbu and led away toward the prison.
Menma started to head into the village to get a full tally of the captured spies, but he felt a tug on his sleeve.
"What is it?" Menma turned.
Hikari slowly raised her right hand toward him.
"I brought you a gift," the girl said, opening her slender fingers.
In the center of her palm lay a blood-slicked, three-tomoe Sharingan, its crimson iris seemingly staring directly up at him.