Bright sunshine, clear blue sky, not a cloud in sight.
In the fields, the wheat fields were as green as a carpet, the scenery as beautiful as a painting.
Young children ran through the fields, their faces beaming with happy, carefree smiles.
Is this... is this still the Land of Rain?
Jiraiya suspected he hadn't arrived in the Land of Rain, but was still in the Land of Fire.
Those continuous high mountains are the Rain Mountain Range... Jiraiya knew about the changes in Rain Mountain, but only by seeing it with his own eyes could he truly grasp how astonishing the Rain Mountain Range was, like a natural barrier separating the Land of Rain and the Land of Rivers.
If the Rain Mountain Range was so astonishing, then Rain Mountain must be even more so... What immense power could have transformed Rain Mountain into the Rain Mountain Range, and accomplished it overnight?
Jiraiya couldn't help but recall an old rumor.
Could it really be the Six Paths Sage's divine intervention?
It's too prosperous, isn't it? Jiraiya walked through White Snake Hub Town, seeing the incredibly smooth roads, small trucks driving along, and sidewalks specifically designed for pedestrians on both sides of the road.
From White Snake Hub Town to White Snake Electric Town, Jiraiya witnessed the prosperity of the Land of Rain. After leaving the two adjacent towns, he saw the most desolate part of the Land of Rain.
He learned from the locals that this was where Ninja from various Great Nations fought.
The people of the Land of Rain almost never approached this area; all battles between Ninja of the Great Nations took place here.
The changes in the Land of Rain were inseparable from Leader Hanzo's decisions and, even more so, from the help of White Snake Pharmaceutical Technology Company.
Jiraiya bent down and picked up a worn-out Kunai. It was covered in scratches and deep indentations, clearly left from blocking attacks.
Sure enough, is White Snake, the company that can bring about change in the Ninja World, that one...? Jiraiya thought of the various beautiful older sisters with shapely figures often seen on TV, with the beauties from the Land of Lightning being particularly exotic.
"Hehe..."
As he thought, Jiraiya's expression turned lewd, and his fingers unconsciously began to move.
No, no, no! What am I thinking about?!
Jiraiya shook his head, forcing himself not to think about those things, and focused his attention on this battlefield, which often saw clashes between Ninja from various Great Nations, observing the traces of battle left on it.
A Konoha forehead protector? Jiraiya found a Konoha forehead protector in a crater blown out by an exploding tags. On the battlefield, he saw fragments of armor from Iwagakure, Sunagakure, Konoha, Kusagakure, Land of Iron samurai, and forehead protectors from smaller Ninja villages.
The color of this land, as if stained black by blood, seemed to belong to a different country than the peaceful and stable towns nearby, giving Jiraiya a strong sense of disconnect. Peace and war coexisted in the Land of Rain.
Land of Waves, Mangrove Forest.
Splashing water sounds arose. Uzumaki Chigusa, dressed in a white long dress and wearing a straw hat, her beautiful red hair fluttering in the wind, stepped her snow-white feet into the clear seawater. Her red-polished toes gripped a crab claw protruding from the sand.
The crab claw opened and closed futilely, failing to pinch Uzumaki Chigusa's toes. Instead, it was captured by her.
Uzumaki Chigusa put her hands behind her back and turned to look at Orochimaru, who was sitting on the back of the Chimera Bug King.
"How does a busy person like you have time to come to the Land of Waves?"
Uzumaki Chigusa remembered that Orochimaru often came to the Land of Waves and corrected herself: "No, how do you have time to see me?"
"Isn't it because of my promise to you?"
Orochimaru took out a manuscript from her sleeve. This was the manuscript for her new book. She had watched the movie adapted from her first book, secretly, by herself.
She had to admire the adapter, who somehow turned a teaching novel about defeating bosses into a romance novel, attracting countless naive young men and women to buy the book.
Orochimaru initially thought her writer alias, Miya, would be thoroughly criticized by readers, but to her surprise, it was widely acclaimed, which completely baffled her.
Did I write a romance novel?
That's not right, I wrote a Forbidden Technique book!
Splash—!
Orochimaru watched the crab kicked over by Uzumaki Chigusa.
No, to be precise, it was a crab she had pinched by the claw with her toes and thrown over.
The Chimera Bug King slightly raised its body, eating the crab that was waving its claws in the air, then wiggled its body and swung its large pincer, as if saying something.
"It's a pity, my collection that disappeared in Uzushiogakure."
Uzumaki Chigusa looked at the manuscript in her hand, sighed, glanced at Orochimaru, and said sadly, "If the lovely Mr. Miya was willing..."
"Don't even think about it!"
Orochimaru interrupted Uzumaki Chigusa. She wouldn't waste time rewriting the manuscripts for those books.
"You're right, let those collections sink into the vortex of history just like Uzushiogakure... sniffle, sniffle..."
Uzumaki Chigusa covered her face with the manuscript, making sniffing sounds, and even thoughtfully added sound effects to express her sadness and sorrow at that moment.
"Who, when genuinely crying, says 'sniffle, sniffle'?!"
Orochimaru couldn't help but exclaim loudly.
"I do!"
Uzumaki Chigusa pulled down the manuscript from her face, revealing a pair of red eyes full of theatrics. Apart from anything else, these eyes alone could win an Oscar.
"Chigusa, you terrible adult, so many years have passed, and you haven't changed at all!"
Orochimaru saw that Uzumaki Chigusa wasn't actually crying and felt relieved. She could tell that she had truly moved on and would no longer be sad or upset about the destruction of Uzushiogakure.
"Is that so? Thank you for the compliment."
Uzumaki Chigusa narrowed her red eyes.
"I wasn't complimenting you!"
Orochimaru looked at Uzumaki Chigusa angrily and said helplessly, "I'll make time to write the manuscripts for you... Hey! Don't suddenly pounce on me!"
Orochimaru hadn't even finished speaking when she saw Uzumaki Chigusa pounce.
The straw hat floated in the air, then landed crookedly on the Chimera Bug King's large pincer. The pincer, wearing the straw hat, seemed to show an expression of disdain.
The Chimera Bug King looked at the straw hat on its large pincer, shook it gently, causing the hat's angle to tilt. Its expression turned devilishly charming and arrogant, its mouth almost reaching the sky.
The Chimera Bug King shook its large pincer again, having a great time.
"I knew the popular writer, Mr. Miya, wouldn't refuse the request of a fan like me... Ouch!"
Uzumaki Chigusa covered her head with both hands, looked at Orochimaru, who had raised her fist, and said disappointedly, "Orochimaru, how did you pick up bad habits from Naino? You've become so violent!"
"Well then, Miss Fan, have you forgotten how you used to review my books?"
Orochimaru stared at her with an unfriendly gaze. Being with this terrible adult, she herself had become violent.
Uzumaki Chigusa placed her hand on her chest and said righteously, "I'm still looking at it with a critical eye! What does that have to do with me being your fan?"
Critical?
You really have the nerve to say that. You're clearly enjoying it, aren't you...? Orochimaru looked at Uzumaki Chigusa speechlessly. She extended her hand, and a white snake emerging from her sleeve bit the straw hat on the large pincer.
The white snake returned to her sleeve, the straw hat fell into Orochimaru's hand, and she casually placed it on Uzumaki Chigusa's head.
The Chimera Bug King looked at its empty large pincer. Its toy was gone in a flash.
"I'll get you a suitable toy."
Orochimaru noticed the change in the Chimera Bug King's mood and patted its head.
"Chigusa, I need to go back. I'll have to trouble you all to keep a close eye on the Chinoike Clan. A clan that can awaken the Ketsuryugan only through strong emotional stimulation has a lower probability of producing extreme individuals than the Uchiha Clan, but it's not impossible."
The Chinoike Clan had been in the Land of Waves for quite some time, but Orochimaru felt they couldn't relax their guard. If anything happened, Uzumaki Chigusa and the others would need to promptly seal the Ketsuryugan with a Eye Sealing Curse Mark.
"Is that all you have to say?"
Uzumaki Chigusa glanced at her dress. This dress suited her so well, yet Orochimaru seemed not to notice. Could it be that spending all her time in the Laboratory had affected her mind?
"The dress suits you very well."
Orochimaru observed Uzumaki Chigusa, noticing her gesture towards the dress, and understood. She said what Uzumaki Chigusa wanted to hear.
However, the dress really did suit her, simple yet charming.
"Hmph hmph, you still have good taste!"
Uzumaki Chigusa smiled contentedly and said, "Leave it to me, we'll keep a close eye on the Chinoike Clan for you."
"If you're exposed, just say I asked you to observe the Chinoike Clan to understand them better. Let me handle some matters; don't take everything upon yourselves."
Orochimaru formed a hand seal and said before leaving. She was afraid that if she didn't explain clearly, and if Uzumaki Chigusa and her group were discovered by the Chinoike Clan, they would take all the blame upon themselves.
What could have been easily resolved would become very troublesome due to such acts of taking responsibility and covering for others.
"Orochimaru, people who are too gentle are not suitable to be Ninja."
Uzumaki Chigusa froze for a moment, then hugged Orochimaru.
Gentle? Me...? I'm gentle? Are you kidding me?!
Orochimaru was a bit stunned by Uzumaki Chigusa's hug.
Land of Fire, Konoha.
Tsunade's improved medical kits had become widespread in Konoha. Basically, all Ninja carried a medical kit when on missions. The small medical kit contained many tools and medicines for treating wounds.
Senju Residence, Tsunade, with nothing to do, was rummaging through her grandfather's keepsakes in the storeroom. Besides various gambling-related items, there were large scrolls for sealing Ninja tools.
The large scrolls were covered in dust, untouched for a long time. Perhaps the last time this scroll was moved was when Senju Hashirama was still alive.
"This is..."
Tsunade found a dilapidated wooden box. From the decay of the box, it was clear that the contents were at least several decades old. Whatever was written on the paper stuck to the box was long illegible.
Lightning Release: Lightning Stimulation!
Tsunade became alert, using Lightning Stimulation to enhance her reaction capabilities. She slowly opened the box, and an old scroll came into view.
This material... it's not the material of current scrolls.
Could it be a Forbidden Technique of the Senju Clan?
Thinking this, Tsunade opened the scroll and found it was a map, not a Forbidden Technique.
The location marked on the map was not far from Konoha. It was a place that, many years ago, was not far from the Senju Clan's compound.
Tsunade had previously looked through the Senju Clan's archives. Many years ago, that place was a battlefield where the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan clashed.
Could there be buried treasure?
Tsunade's eyes lit up as she held up the scroll in her hand.
Let's go treasure hunting with Orochimaru!
Two people!
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