That was no ordinary squad, but one that included the Kumogakure Two-Tails Jinchuriki. Why would Fourth Raikage send such a force to Land of Hot Water? The decision was hard to ignore.
"This is bad," Kakashi Hatake said with a deep frown. "Fourth Raikage must have obtained solid information. That place likely holds something they need."
Otherwise, Fourth Raikage and Zetsu would never forcibly interrupt this operation and redirect such a critical asset to Land of Hot Water. Jiraiya naturally came to the same conclusion. He had not paid much attention to the so called abyss mentioned by Kakashi Hatake before.
After years of traveling the Ninja World, Jiraiya had heard countless legends and strange tales. Most were unverifiable rumors, with only a few involving things like evil gods or monsters that left actual traces. Even then, approaching them often brought disaster rather than value.
But seeing Kumogakure mobilize on such a scale made him hesitate. Could there truly be some hidden treasure? The thought lingered in his mind.
Just then, the tent flap was lifted. A member of the Konoha Ninja walked in and froze for a moment at the tense atmosphere and Jiraiya's expression. He quickly recovered and spoke in a serious tone.
"According to black market intelligence gathered by Root, someone has hired a large number of bounty ninja and sent them toward Land of Hot Water."
Before he could finish, Kakashi Hatake abruptly stood up, no longer able to stay seated. The chair scraped loudly across the ground. "Jiraiya-sama, I will take my leave first."
He moved to pull Ryuji Hyuga along, but Jiraiya stopped him. "Wait," Jiraiya said firmly. "Take some more people with you."
Everyone knew that Onoki liked to use bounty ninja behind the scenes. Those bounty ninja clearly meant that Iwagakure was interfering. Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure was one thing, but Onoki was no fool and never acted without purpose.
What Jiraiya did not realize was that Onoki was thinking along the same lines. Only Ryuji Hyuga, with his broader perspective, knew the full picture and found it slightly amusing. Everything was unfolding exactly as expected, even exceeding his projections.
This was the so called catfish effect. In a broad sense, it referred to strengthening weaker parties by introducing strong competitors. Once one or two sides began to act, others who viewed them as rivals would feel threatened and be forced to move as well.
In Ryuji Hyuga's view, if Kumogakure had acted any slower, even the usually quiet Sunagakure would have joined in. He dismissed the thought lightly. "Enough, forcing more would be pointless. Akatsuki, Kumogakure, Konoha, and Iwagakure are enough for testing."
His eyes flickered as he silently recited, "Manifest Underground Palace level one. Activation condition, the Two-Tails Jinchuriki's Chakra limit. Bodies that die within Underground Palace will retain their souls and flesh." He briefly outlined the layout, restrictions, and functions of the first level of Underground Palace.
Once they reached Underground Palace, it would be his domain. Still, expecting results without offering bait would not work, and providing rewards would also improve credibility. The first level did not need to be excessive, though ownership would remain firmly in his hands.
"Then I will manifest a Kusanagi sword called Heavenly Cluster Cloud Sword," he thought. "Use text to imply all Kusanagi swords follow it as the leader, make it shaped like a one handed axe, and embed Earth Release Ultra Added Weight Rock Technique. It should suit earth attribute Chakra."
"Since Sage of Six Paths created tools like the Gold Rope, Red Gourd, Seven Star Sword, and Banana Fan, it is not too much for me to make a God Beating Whip. Embed Vajra Sealing and make it suitable for lightning attribute Chakra."
He planned three more items tailored for the use of Otsutsuki Yunshi, Ryuji Hyuga himself, and Shadow, openly strengthening both his true body and his aliases. For Otsutsuki Yunshi, he would create a useless sword that no one else could use, to be unlocked later upon summoning. For Shadow, he would replicate a ghost shadow mask that could summon shadow ninja.
For Ryuji Hyuga himself, flight was essential, and it had to match his persona. The Winged Teigu from Akame ga Kill fit perfectly. After a moment of thought, he smiled again.
"Add a set of seven blades called the Seven Deadly Sins, corresponding to pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust." That made six special items already, so he added four ordinary Chakra blades to round it out to ten.
A prompt appeared. Spend 10000 Reality Points, confirm manifestation? "…Dropped below ten thousand again," Ryuji Hyuga twitched his mouth, then confirmed in his mind. "Manifest."
Remaining Reality Points: 8754.
Having inexplicably gained eight thousand points from the old toad and Jiraiya, Ryuji Hyuga felt no pain spending them. At least three of the items were for his own use anyway. Still, seeing the total fall below ten thousand was uncomfortable.
These ninja tools were not inherently powerful, merely Chakra metal embedded with special Ninjutsu, which kept the cost low. Yet for other ninja, weapons that could carry Chakra attributes, like Asuma's Flying Swallow, were priceless. No one crafted Chakra blades anymore, and even Chakra metal itself was scarce and overpriced on the black market.
For Ryuji Hyuga, as long as he had enough Reality Points, he could manifest unlimited Chakra metal. Using such items as bait was the most cost effective choice. The most expensive parts were the construction of Underground Palace's first level, the Seven Deadly Sins set, and the mask and wings he prepared for himself.
"Ryuji, let's go."
At this point, Kakashi Hatake had finally selected the personnel and called out to Ryuji Hyuga before hurrying out of the tent. Ryuji Hyuga pulled his thoughts back and followed him outside. He felt a quiet sense of anticipation about what returns this expenditure would bring, and what kind of waves it would stir up.
Huff… huff…
In the empty silence and darkness, the sound of the wind felt unusually clear. At this moment, everyone from Kumogakure had entered what the Scroll called the "Abyss."
They had thought the name "Abyss" was just an exaggeration, but once the group stepped inside, they realized the words truly fit this place. Its shape resembled a vast LieLie, as if the land itself had been torn apart.
Standing at the edge and looking Wang down, all they could see was deep, endless black. Even their lights could not illuminate the interior, as if the darkness swallowed light itself.
Even so, the group, including Yugito Nii, moved inside and gathered Chakra beneath their feet to cling to the rock walls. This was a basic technique that any Ninja could use with ease.
"How far have we gone?" Yugito Nii asked.
She walked at the front of the team, her catlike eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. Behind her, more than a dozen elite Kumogakure Ninja followed closely, their breathing heavy beneath their masks.
The lamps in their hands were the only light in this boundless dark. The dim yellow glow barely lit a few feet ahead, while deeper shadows consumed the edges of the beams.
"Yugito Nii-sama, the depth is almost one thousand meters," a surveying Ninja said quietly.
His voice echoed in the narrow space, carrying a hint of tension. They had been descending this seemingly endless Abyss for a long time.
The air was growing thin, filled with a decayed smell mixed with rust and dust. Above them was a sky already lost in darkness, and on both sides were wet, rough rock walls like the insides of a giant beast.
"Based on the estimate provided by Root and Raikage-sama, we should be close," Yugito Nii replied.
She did not turn back and only gave a small nod. The team continued forward cautiously in the darkness opposite Zetsu's direction.
The slick ground forced them to watch every step. Their vision held nothing but still darkness, guided only by narrow beams of light.
Thinking back to how relaxed they had felt at the entrance, cold sweat now appeared on their backs. They had not known it was this deep, and from this height, even a Ninja would not survive a fall.
At that moment, Yugito Nii's pupils suddenly tightened. She felt the Two-Tails Chakra inside her body stir uneasily.
It was not a warning, but something closer to instinctive fear. A deep, wordless unease crept into her thoughts.
"Stop," Yugito Nii said calmly, raising her hand.
The team froze at once, all lights focusing forward. The beams cut into the darkness, then seemed to hit an invisible wall.
They had reached the deepest point of the Abyss. The sound of pata… pata echoed faintly.
Letting go of the rock wall, the group fell briefly before landing on solid ground. The narrow LieLie vanished, replaced by a wide space that was finally bright enough to see.
"T-that is?" a young Kumogakure Ninja blurted out.
The beams of their searchlights stretched forward and outlined a massive shadow that made it hard to breathe. At the end of the Abyss, a huge space had been carved out, and within it lay an enormous Underground Palace.
"Stay alert," Yugito Nii said in a low voice.
Her words broke the silence brought by the Underground Palace. "This should be our target."
She stepped forward first, and the Kumogakure Ninja behind her followed closely, gripping their weapons in silence. The structure of the Underground Palace was impossible to take in at a glance.