Land of Hot Water.
This is a country where the nation and the village are one, unlike the Five Great Nations, and similar to the former Land of Whirlpools and Uzushiogakure. Because it has rich natural scenery and tourism resources, and because peace is valued from top to bottom, it is one of the few truly neutral countries in the Ninja World.
During both the Second Shinobi World War and the Third Shinobi World War, it was fortunate enough to avoid being drawn into the conflict. As war faded away, Yugakure gradually lost its military edge and earned the nickname Village That Forgot War.
Hidan grew restless and disgusted with a place like Yugakure, and because of that he slaughtered those around him, became a missing ninja, and joined the Akatsuki. Of course, the current Land of Hot Water was still calm, but that calm had already been broken at the border.
First came a brief earthquake, then violent explosions, and finally the aftershocks of battle that could be heard dozens of kilometers away. No civilians dared to approach, so word was sent to the ninja of Yugakure, but the hot spring ninja had already been warned by Kumogakure and were forbidden from going near the area. With no other choice, the report was sent up to Land of Lightning.
In the darkness, a four person squad moved quickly through the forest, cold wind cutting past their ears as the rustling of leaves covered their footsteps. Leading them was a tall, well built female ninja with light blond shoulder length hair and pale skin. She was Samui, one of the swordsmanship students of "Killer Bee" Killer B, promoted to Jonin by Fourth Raikage for her calm nature and leadership ability.
At this moment, however, Samui looked grim, lacking her usual cold detachment. As soon as the news arrived, Fourth Raikage had dispatched her to lead her squad to the border of Land of Hot Water to investigate.
In fact, Fourth Raikage had already received a report from the border guards, saying they detected strange sounds to the southwest and went to check. He had not paid much attention at the time, only contacting them through a communication beast, but no reply ever came back. It was only after receiving a report from the hot spring village that he realized something was wrong and sent Samui out.
"Sis, the place ahead should be the handover site agreed on with Konoha, right?" The man behind her, with the tattooed character "hot" on his shoulder, frowned as he spoke. "This smells like another trick from those bastards of Konoha. If it really is them…"
"Atsui, calm down," Samui interrupted him flatly. "Even if it really was Konoha, we do not need to do anything extra. We only need to bring the information back safely to Kumogakure, and Raikage will make the decision."
The siblings were as different as their names suggested, one cold and one hot. The older sister, a rational and detached Jonin, contrasted sharply with her optimistic and reckless younger brother, who was only a chuunin.
The squad finally broke through the dense forest, and Samui at the front suddenly stopped. The three behind her halted without thinking. "Sis, why did you stop all of a sudden?" Atsui asked.
"We are already here," Samui replied, her voice unusually low. Atsui froze and looked ahead, seeing only flat land, then turned his head to search around in confusion.
"Do not bother looking," Samui said, letting out a breath as she pointed into the distance. "Over there is our intelligence point, the handover site agreed on with Konoha."
Following the direction of her finger, the three saw a deep, sunken shadow in the ground. As their eyes swept over the surroundings, a shocking realization hit them all at once, and their eyes widened.
"This is the port?"
In their memory, this port jointly built by Land of Hot Water and Land of Lightning had been a place of green trees and flowing water. Fishing boats used to rest on the river, the water tinted green by the trees, reflecting a wide blue sky. But now there was only silence and flat emptiness, nothing left but a barren wasteland.
Ignoring the stunned looks behind her, Samui crouched down and touched the ground. Feeling the clear spiral scrape marks in the soil, a chill rose in her chest. As expected, the port had not vanished overnight.
Everything on the surface of this area had been stripped away, like a pencil drawing on paper erased in one rough motion, leaving only bleak blankness. kacha.
Atsui stepped forward unconsciously and seemed to crush something underfoot with a sharp sound. He looked down and pulled a piece of metal from the dirt, wiping the soil away. Only then did he see the fine scratches on it, and the blurred emblem of Kumogakure.
"This is a village Forehead Protector?" he said in disbelief.
As if understanding something, Samui slowly stood and walked toward a raised area in the darkness. The three behind her followed, each drawing a Kunai and gripping it tightly, their steps growing cautious. As they approached, a familiar stench of blood filled the air.
Samui stepped into a pool of blood that had not yet dried, dark red splashing onto her pant legs. She looked at the rotting chunks of flesh, the scattered bones, and the strands of purple hair soaking in blood, and fell silent.
"Purple hair…" Atsui swallowed, his voice hoarse. "This is not Troy senior, is it?" No one answered, and the silence only deepened.
The smell was so thick it felt almost tangible, while the wind brushed past their ears with faint rustling sounds. Moonlight shone down without warmth, and the cold breeze made them suddenly feel chilled. Death filled the air, making each breath heavy with the truth that it was not just an idea, but something that could be smelled.
They all knew that if this pool of blood belonged to a single person, it would mean that person had been completely drained. Even for seasoned ninja, such a death inspired fear and anger. A famed Magnet Release user like Troy, a powerful ninja known across the Ninja World, had died in such a horrifying way.
"Who did this? Konoha?" Doubt and unease churned in Samui's mind as she looked again toward the deep crater in the distance. Her instincts told her that something else was still hidden there.
At the same time, in Konoha Hospital, the moon hung high outside the windows, casting pale light across the corridor floor. Wearing the Hokage Robe, Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped outside a hospital room. He looked through the observation window, his gaze flickering slightly.
Inside the white ward, the drip of the IV sounded softly, and the heart monitor traced steady lines. On the bed, Tangdong Akimichi slowly opened his eyes, the first thing he noticed being the numbness in his calves. Lifting his head, he saw a mess of black hair near his legs.
Ryuji Hyuga was sitting on a chair at the foot of the bed, his head resting on Tangdong Akimichi's legs, fast asleep and even snoring softly. "That kid…" Tangdong Akimichi smiled wryly, feeling a quiet stir in his chest.
He glanced at the clock on the wall and estimated that a full day had passed since he forced himself back to Konoha and collapsed. If he was not mistaken, the boy had stayed by his bedside the entire time. His burned throat itched, and he could not help coughing.
Ryuji Hyuga jolted awake and sat up straight, staring at Tangdong Akimichi on the bed. "Tangdong!" he exclaimed, hurriedly offering medicine. "Your condition right now…"
kacha. The ward door opened, and Ryuji Hyuga instinctively turned his head. Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi standing in the moonlight, he froze for a moment and blurted out, "Third Hokage?"