Kusagakure.
This small Ninja Village, which had maintained good relations with Konoha, was now completely unrecognizable.
The original hospital building had been half-destroyed by explosions, and the entire village lay in ruins after the battles of that night.
This was the devastation caused by nma's Nine Masked Beasts, a force powerful enough to rival an entire army!
Standing at the edge of the battlefield, even two days later, Mui still felt a deep sense of dread toward the terrifying power of Shura.
Under Mui's leadership, the surviving Kusagakure's Ninjas and villagers were doing their utmost to rescue the wounded and recover the dead.
But under the rampage of those nine terrifying summoned beasts, Kusagakure's heart had been utterly ravaged. Over forty Ninjas, including the village's leader, Kusanagi Koji and the Anbu Commander, Ryuki, had been killed, while the number of injured, including villagers, exceeded three hundred!
For a small Ninja Village like Kusagakure, casualties of this scale had nearly halved their overall strength. It would take at least a generation to slowly recover the combat power lost in this battle.
"Brother!" Mujo approached, leaning on a crutch.
He also held a damage report in his hand.
"The village's losses have been tallied." Mujo read out, "Including Koji-sama and Anbu Commander, Ryuki, a total of nine Jonin have died, along with thirty-eight Chunin and Genin. Three hundred and seventy villagers have also perished."
"The injured include eight Jonin, fifty-six Chunin and Genin, and five hundred and sixty-three villagers."
Hearing these numbers, Mui trembled uncontrollably.
The village's leader was dead. Over a dozen Jonin were killed or wounded. Nearly a hundred Ninjas were casualties, and close to a thousand villagers were dead or injured!
And since this was the village's central district, most of these villagers were potential ninja recruits… the very foundation of the village's mobilization capability in tis of war!
Such devastating losses had dealt a crippling blow to Kusagakure's vitality!
"Brother… should we place a bounty on Shura at the bounty exchange?" Mujo stood beside Mui, his expression dazed as he recalled the battle from two days ago, still shaken by the mory.
That mysterious Shura, with only nine terrifying summoned beasts, reduced their entire village to this state.
He hadn't even fought personally, yet he brought such tragic casualties to Kusagakure!
"No need…" Mui closed his eyes and sighed deeply. When he opened them again, they were filled with wariness and fear: "We are no match for him. Let's not give him any excuse to return and cause more trouble!"
They couldn't win, even their entire village couldn't win. This overwhelming sense of despair made Mui feel as though their enemy was akin to a God!
'Perhaps even the legendary [God of Ninja] and [Shura of Ninja World] who had dominated the Ninja World over fifty years ago, were no more fearso than this.'
Mujo silently agreed.
The two brothers stood there, their expressions heavy with silence.
Far from where Mui and Mujo stood, in the shadow of a building that was destroyed to only half of its original size-
A Venus flytrap-like creatures erged from the ground.
"Wow, what incredible destruction!" White Zetsu whistled, looking at the devastation in the center of the village with a mix of awe and pity.
anwhile, Black Zetsu looked at the destroyed Kusagakure with an expressionless face.
'Such terrifying combat power… is he a descendant of Hagoromo or Hamura?' Having operated in the shadows of the ninja world for a thousand years, even Black Zetsu had rarely witnessed such devastation.
This level of power, which was enough to annihilate an entire city, was sothing he had only seen in the likes of Asura, Indra, Madara, and Hashirama.
Yet, despite monitoring the Ninja World for centuries, Black Zetsu had no information on this man at all!
This made him instinctively suspect Hamura's descendants on the moon.
Only those with the Byakugan on the moon, whom Black Zetsu had always deeply feared, could have possibly trained soone so powerful. He had never dared send White Zetsu to spy on the Otsutsuki Clan on the moon, leaving their activities a mystery.
'Then… what is his goal?' Black Zetsu pondered Shura's actions since his appearance.
Attacking Konoha's Hyuga Clan. Assaulting Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning. And now, striking Kusagakure.
'Wait… could it really be…?' Suddenly, Black Zetsu rembered sothing related to the Otsutsuki Clan on the moon.
A few years ago, the elderly Madara had summoned the Gedo Statue to prolong his life. Later, the statue remained in the Ninja World and was eventually summoned by Nagato, continuously draining his Chakra.
'Has the Otsutsuki Clan on the moon noticed the disappearance of the Gedo Statue and sent a powerful agent to investigate the Ninja World?'
Once this thought occurred to him, Black Zetsu found it more and more plausible.
This mysterious Shura had no traceable background, and it is impossible for an ordinary Ninja to possess such powerful strength comparable to Hashirama or Madara out of thin air.
Unless he had the chakra of Asura or Indra, but for a thousand years, their reincarnations had only appeared within the Senju and Uchiha Clans...
If this man truly was from the Otsutsuki Clan on the moon, then Black Zetsu knew he needed to be cautious.
'It seems I'll have to arrange for Nagato or Obito to test this guy. If he keeps running amok in the ninja world, he might disrupt my plans!' Black Zetsu had waited in the shadows for a thousand years, biding his ti until Madara appeared.
The Eye of the Moon Plan to save his mother absolutely could not be jeopardized!
…
The bustling marketplace in the capital of the Land of Fire was alive with activity.
Dressed in new clothes, Hikari is particularly eye-catching.
The deep blue coat paired with black shorts and open-toed boots gave the young girl a heroic air, a far cry from her ragged appearance when she first broke free from her seal.
"Hikari-nee! Hikari-nee! Try this!" Karin held up an orange hairband, pestering Hikari eagerly.
This outfit had been picked out for Hikari by Kanon.
Now, seeing the three-year-old Karin holding up the hairband with such enthusiasm, Hikari couldn't help but feel a pang of affection for the unfortunate child. She crouched down and let Karin place the hairband on her head.
"Hikari-chan, you look even cuter like this." Kanon said with a gentle smile, carrying so daily necessities they had just purchased.
It was Hikari's first ti in such a lively marketplace, and she felt a bit uneasy. If nma hadn't tasked her with protecting Kanon and Karin, she would never have willingly co to such a crowded place.
After gathering the supplies, the three returned to the inn where they were staying.
nma was studying a map, deep in thought.
When he noticed their return, his gaze lingered on the hairband adorning Hikari's head. He smiled and praised, "That's a lovely hairband."
"Karin picked it for ." The girl replied softly, the slight upturn of her lips revealing her inner joy.
"nma-nii! Praise too!" Karin bounced up to him, tilting her head expectantly.
nma reached out and affectionately ruffled her hair.
"It's ti to set off." nma put away the map and said to the three people, "The other team from our organization has already set off. We need to catch up."
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