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The black clouds dispersed, and the pale moonlight once again bathed the earth in its glow.
Ebisu leaned on his lower back, trembling as he sat down on a broken tree trunk, panting heavily. The surroundings looked as though they had been ravaged by both a typhoon and an earthquake. Boulders were shattered into fragments, entire groves of trees uprooted, and even the soil beneath the surface churned upward as if the earth itself had been disturbed.
Ebisu reached out to nudge Chiyo-baa-sama, who was also leaning against the same tree trunk, but her head hung low, unresponsive no matter how much he pushed.
"Older sister... so you've already passed on, huh?"
But just as Ebisu finished speaking, Chiyo-baa-sama suddenly opened her eyes and burst into laughter. "Looks like I died, but actually—I was just playing dead! Hahaha, fooled you, my dear little brother!"
Chiyo-baa-sama immediately regained her vitality.
"Yes, yes, Older Sister, you really got me this time," Ebisu replied half-heartedly, still somewhat reluctant. "But Older Sister, if only we'd used the Ten Puppet Crowd..."
Chiyo-baa-sama turned to him, pointing at her swollen, nearly shut left eye. "Even if we won, it wouldn't have lasted. Look at this! That Eight Gates technique was infuriating, not to mention those pesky barriers and seals. How could he activate them so quickly?! Those brats from the Uzumaki clan sure know how to bully old women and men!"
Chiyo-baa-sama conveniently ignored that they had initiated the fight.
"By the way, where's Maki?" Chiyo-baa-sama suddenly remembered she hadn't seen him for a while.
Ebisu pointed to a small mound of dirt nearby. A gust of wind blew past, revealing Maki buried underneath, now unconscious.
Seeing this, Chiyo sighed deeply and reluctantly admitted after a long silence, "It seems we have no choice but to listen to that Uzumaki brat."
Ebisu nodded helplessly. "Yes... the future of our village rests in such feeble hands. If we die tomorrow, I'm sure we'll enter the Pure Land, only to be followed shortly by everyone else in the village."
Chiyo-baa-sama's expression darkened. It was precisely because she couldn't let go of the village that she had stepped back into this mess. "That's why we must bring Gaara back. Otherwise, there won't be anyone left to protect the village... Sigh, well, let's try going to Konoha first. If we can retrieve Gaara without paying too high a price..."
She paused mid-sentence, shaking her head in resignation. "We've truly grown old, haven't we? Never thought I'd entertain such naive thoughts."
However, her melancholy didn't last long before she chuckled again. "Heh, Gaara participating in the Chunin Exams alongside those two Uzumaki monsters—it's surprising he hasn't been casually wiped out by them yet."
Ebisu echoed her sentiment with a sigh. "Uzumaki monsters indeed... Though Kusa Village is merely a minor hidden village, their declaration of war against Konoha marks the beginning of a new era. If Suna were to follow suit and declare war on Konoha, this shinobi world would descend into complete chaos..."
Memories of the previous Great Ninja Wars resurfaced in Chiyo's mind. With a tinge of nostalgia, she muttered, "Uzumaki... what a terrifying whirlpool it is."
Meanwhile, Mu wiped away the blood trickling from Karin's nose with a cotton swab. However, as soon as she sniffed, another stream of blood flowed down.
"Damn it! Those old hags and geezers are utterly shameless! Mu-nii, are you telling me we really lost to them? What level are we at right now?"
Mu rested his chin on his hand, pondering for a moment before replying, "There are eight key qualities that define a ninja: strength, speed, chakra, ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, intelligence, and hand-seal proficiency. Considering all these factors, our current skill level before the Chunin Exams is roughly equivalent to a jonin."
"Eh? Just jonin?" Karin asked, puzzled. "But weren't those two ANBU members we killed in the arena also jonin? Why were they so weak?"
Mu laughed. "Do you remember the training methods I taught you after Mother passed away? Which aspects did they focus on?"
Karin's thoughts drifted back to memories of grueling exercises...
She gritted her teeth, standing horizontally on walls while squatting under the weight of massive stones. She sprinted up smooth rock faces, carrying boulders tied to her back. She dangled from ceilings, suspended by weights, practicing taijutsu with Mu...
Suddenly enlightened, she exclaimed, "Strength, speed... chakra, and taijutsu!"
Mu nodded. "Exactly. Out of the eight qualities, we focused on specializing in only a few areas. Your repertoire of jutsu consists of only a handful of basic elemental techniques; that meteor strike was created using the Eye of Idou. We completely abandoned genjutsu, relying solely on life experience for intelligence growth. As for hand-seal speed, when you trained by channeling chakra to your feet to cling to smooth surfaces, you were essentially honing your chakra control—a critical factor in improving seal efficiency."
"Therefore, out of the eight qualities, we invested all our efforts into four: strength, speed, chakra—these are foundational—and taijutsu specialization for you, amplified by sheer chakra reserves. Meanwhile, I specialized in ninjutsu, with taijutsu barely reaching a level where I can spar with you. By neglecting other qualities, we accelerated our progress exponentially."
Moreover, taijutsu, sealing techniques, and Sage Arts were immune to any form of counterplay.
Mu continued, "This is why, despite having overall stats comparable to jonin, we can effortlessly defeat them. Our individual strengths far surpass theirs. However, against elite jonin like Asuma with diverse skills, retreat remains our only option."
It wasn't until they obtained the Eye of Idou that their power became comparable to Asuma's. "The Eye of Idou's ability to manifest illusions compensates for our weaknesses while amplifying our strengths. Take Yuhi Kurenai, for example. At that point, defeating her would have been trivial since she invested heavily in genjutsu specialization, leaving her underdeveloped in other areas. Once the Eye of Idou neutralized her genjutsu, killing her wouldn't have been much harder than taking out those two ANBU jonin."
"Later, when we acquired Shukaku and became a Jinchuriki, even Kakashi-level opponents couldn't match us. Apart from veteran elites, we had little to fear. Coupled with the speed boost from the Eight Gates, very few could catch us. In a sense, below the Shadow Level, we felt invincible."
At this, Karin's face lit up slightly with pride. "So we're already unstoppable, huh?"
Pay attention to the rest of what I said!
Mu quickly added, "Chiyo-baa-sama didn't use her full strength. Her trump card—the Ten Puppet Crowd—is legendary. Besides, her age works against her. If she were twenty years younger, like Jiraiya, escaping might not have been so easy."
Karin slowly nodded, then asked, "So what level is Chiyo-baa-sama at?"
"Hmm..." Mu thought for a moment, uncertain. "Probably around Shadow Level. She and Tsunade have been longtime rivals. Since Tsunade is Shadow Level, so is she. But due to her age, her abilities might be slightly below average for a Shadow-Level ninja—let's call her a 'weak Shadow.' That sounds about right."
Afterward, Mu explained the concept of "weak" versus "strong" Shadows to Karin, leaving her wide-eyed.
The two cleaned up traces of their battle briefly before Mu released the mini-Shukaku from its sealed space.
"Wah! You suffocated me, you coward! What's there to fear from some tiny Sand Village? Even if they caught us, I'd crush them with a single step!" Mini-Shukaku boasted delusionally, wagging a finger at Mu.
Karin grabbed Shukaku, pinching its cheeks and rubbing them harshly. "Shukaku-kun, don't talk to Mu-nii like that, or I'll rip off your arms and shove them into your butt."
"Uh... I-I'm not scared of stuff like that! But fine, since you asked nicely, I'll give you face!" With that, mini-Shukaku scurried into Karin's backpack, peeking out cautiously.
That's too embarrassing! Absolutely cannot allow that to happen!
Seeing Karin laugh, Mu's mood improved. Perhaps he could increase Shukaku's outdoor time occasionally.
"Let's go. Chiyo and the others will take a few more days to reach Konoha. Let's head to Wave Country first and settle Mother there. We shouldn't let anything disturb her peace."
"Mm."
Unlike carefree heroes of justice, villains always had packed schedules.
Still, it had to be said: the Eight Gates technique was incredibly effective for travel.
In just two days, Mu and Karin crossed the Land of Fire, arriving at the border with Wave Country.
Wave Country was a small island nation, lacking abundant resources. After the fall of Uzushiogakure, reconstruction costs skyrocketed, and the Daimyo overseeing the region neglected it entirely. This led to dire living conditions for the populace, who relied almost exclusively on fishing for survival. The population dwindled as a result.
However, its geographical location was excellent. Though an island nation, it was separated from the Land of Fire by only a narrow strait a few kilometers wide. Boats could easily ferry goods directly to the Lands of Water and Lightning, and its natural deep-water ports made it a favorite among maritime magnates.
Just months prior, Kado, one of the world's leading shipping tycoons, set his sights on Wave Country. He blockaded its coastline, preventing supplies from entering, intending to monopolize the region for himself.
While Kado's combat prowess might rival that of a goose, his economic acumen as a billionaire was undeniable.
Eventually, bridge-builder Tazuna fled to Konoha to request assistance. The mission was fraught with twists and turns, but ultimately, Kado met his demise, along with the rogue Mist ninja Zabuza and Haku whom he hired. Tazuna built a bridge connecting Wave Country to the Land of Fire, which was subsequently named...
"Naruto Bridge."
As Mu gazed upon the name engraved on the bridge, he couldn't help but feel that walking across it might make people a little… dimmer.