svetikya Chapter 387 Invading the Lair
Chapter 387 Invading the Lair
Chapter 387 Invading the Lair
Konoha Hospital, Director's Office.
The afternoon sun slanted down on the mountain of documents, outlining their jagged shapes, but it couldn't penetrate the brown eyes behind the desk.
Tsunade, one of the legendary Sannin and the medical genius of Konoha, is now losing her life force at a visible rate.
She slumped in the high-backed chair, her chin resting on the cold tabletop, staring blankly at a spider spinning its web in the corner of the ceiling.
The spider worked diligently, but Tsunade only felt that it was mocking her.
"Signature — Signature — Again, a signature —"
She muttered unconsciously, her right hand rising mechanically to grab a document, glancing at the title before scribbling it down in a single stroke.
The whole process was smooth, precise, and efficient, yet it was permeated with a numb, zombie-like quality.
Her soul seemed to be gradually siphoned off and crushed by the endless forms, reports, and budget applications, leaving only a humanoid signing machine called "Dean" running numbly.
The culprit behind all this, that name, she almost ground to dust between her teeth.
"Panasonic—— Taichi——"
Tsunade suddenly sat up straight, her forehead slamming hard against the table with a dull thud, causing the pen holder on the table to jump.
She rubbed her forehead, which had instantly turned red, and gritted her teeth, her voice filled with resentment at being betrayed, "That damned brat—where the hell is he? Is there another war in the Land of Hot Springs? Does it take this long to catch a few petty thieves?!"
She grabbed a new document in a fit of rage, slammed it onto the table without even glancing at it, as if it were Taiyi's always calm and expressionless face.
The document unfolded, revealing a dense array of numbers that made her dizzy.
The peaceful days, the lazy times, the thrill of spending money like water in the casino—these beautiful memories, like dandelion seeds scattered by the wind, are drifting further and further away from her.
It's all because that guy isn't here! With him gone, all the trivial, annoying, and troublesome things that should have been his responsibility have fallen on her shoulders!
Tsunade wailed in despair, burying her face in her arms again, "Come back—come back, you bastard—if this keeps up, I'm going to be buried alive by these papers—"
Just then.
Thump, thump, thump.
Three clear and restrained knocks on the door, like pebbles thrown into a stagnant pond, broke the suffocating silence of the office.
Tsunade froze, then suddenly raised her head like a startled cat, her eyes flashing with intense, almost ecstatic light!
He's back! That kid finally knew to come back!
"Go in!" she almost shouted, her voice filled with unspoken anticipation. She involuntarily sat up straighter, and even her hair, which hadn't been styled for days, seemed to perk up a bit.
The door was gently pushed open.
Her golden hair shimmered briefly in the sunlight streaming through the doorway, followed by an even more dazzling, fiery red.
"Lady Tsunade, excuse me."
Minato Namikaze's gentle voice rang out as he carefully helped Kushina Uzumaki, whose pregnant belly was clearly visible, into the room.
Kushina wore a gentle yet slightly shy smile, her hand instinctively protecting her stomach.
Not Taiyi.
The raging flame of "liberation" that had instantly ignited in Tsunade's eyes went out with a "poof".
It happened faster than being doused with a bucket of ice water.
She visibly slumped down again, her shoulders slumped, and her eyes became empty again, even more so than before, as if she had just experienced a huge shattering of hope.
"Oh—it's you guys." Tsunade waved her hand listlessly, her voice becoming languid again, thick with a nasal tone. "Sit down. Routine check-up?"
"Yes, Lady Tsunade, I'm troubling you again." Minato helped Kushina sit down beside the examination bed, keenly sensing the intense fluctuations in Tsunade's emotions and the overwhelming resentment within her. He smiled apologetically, "You seem—very busy?"
"Busy?" Tsunade let out a cryptic chuckle, her gaze sweeping over the mountain of documents. "Ha, busy contributing to Konoha's paper industry."
She stood up resignedly, stretched her stiff neck, and made a soft cracking sound.
Although utterly disappointed, the woman before her was the village's Hokage's wife, and moreover, the extremely special Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Her prenatal check-up could not be taken lightly and was one of the "few important tasks" that she had to do herself and could not shirk.
"Getting rid of those damned documents for now is a chance to catch my breath," Tsunade consoled herself, forcing herself to cheer up.
She walked to Kushina's side, and the expression on her face that belonged to the "dejected dean" quickly faded, replaced by the focus and composure of the "medical master Tsunade".
He led Kushina to a special examination room and gently and skillfully measured her abdominal circumference and fundal height, and listened to the fetal heartbeat.
When the strong, powerful "thump-thump" of a heartbeat was clearly heard through the stethoscope, Tsunade's serious face involuntarily softened slightly.
"The little guy is very lively, and his heartbeat is very strong." Tsunade's voice was unusually gentle.
Kushina smiled happily, while Minato stared at the receiver with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation, as if trying to see through it to the little one inside.
Next comes the most crucial part.
Tsunade's expression became extremely solemn. She placed her hands on Kushina's abdomen, her palms glowing with a soft chakra light. She carefully probed inside, not to sense the fetus, but to feel the seal of the Nine-Tails.
The office was silent except for the faint hum of the instruments. Minato held his breath, and Kushina also stopped smiling, her expression solemn.
After a long while, Tsunade withdrew her hand, and the chakra light dissipated. She let out a long sigh of relief, a truly relaxed smile appearing on her face, and nodded to the tense couple: "Very good. The seal is very stable; the Nine-Tails' chakra is firmly locked inside, and the effects on the fetus and the mother are within safe limits. Kushina, your physical condition is also very good; the little one is developing very healthily."
Minato and Kushina both breathed a sigh of relief, their faces beaming with bright and relieved smiles. "That's great! Thank you, Lady Tsunade!" Minato said sincerely.
"However," Tsunade resumed her usual "fierce" tone, pointing at Kushina, "you brat, don't take your good health for granted! No strenuous exercise, no extreme emotional swings, get enough rest, and eat a balanced diet! Especially in the last few months, the pressure on the seal will increase, so be extra careful! If you feel any discomfort, even just a slight tightening in your stomach, come see me immediately! Do you hear me?"
"Yes, yes, yes! Lady Tsunade!" Kushina stuck out her tongue and quickly agreed.
After giving them a few more instructions, Tsunade let them leave.
The moment the door closed, Kushina's voice, tinged with laughter, faintly drifted over: "Minato, can you hear the baby's heartbeat?"
"Wow, so strong! — It must be a healthy child!"
The office returned to quiet.
Tsunade stood there, staring at the closed door, a trace of the gentle warmth of a doctor still lingering on her face from the examination.
The brief sense of vitality and human warmth brought about by prenatal checkups dissipated as quickly as the tide receded.
She turned around slowly and very reluctantly.
My gaze returned once more to that enormous desk, and to the mountain of documents that stood like tombstones.
The office, which was just moments ago full of sunshine and hope, suddenly became cold, heavy, and suffocating.
The last trace of gentleness on Tsunade's face vanished completely, replaced by a numbness even deeper than before.
She dragged her heavy steps, as if walking to an execution ground, back to the high-backed chair that symbolized "the duties of the dean." Her body sank heavily into it, letting out a groan of unbearable strain.
The human-shaped signature machine is started again.
Tsunade's soul, trapped in a cage piled high with documents, let out a silent lament.
While Tsunade was missing Taiichi, Taiichi, far away in the Land of Hot Water, finally saw a turning point in his mission.
Frost Moon Village.
Taiyi's figure slowly descended, stepping onto the viscous pool of blood, yet remaining completely untouched.
He didn't even glance at the crippled people who had lost their fighting ability. His cold gaze swept over the terrified villagers and the piles of sacks, finally landing on the leader who was trying to struggle.
"Want to die?" Taiyi's voice seemed to come from the depths of hell. "Until I finish my question, your fates are not in your own hands."
Before the words were even finished, Taiyi's figure appeared in front of the team leader like a ghost.
A resolute glint flashed in the leader's eyes. He puffed out his cheeks, ready to bite open the poison capsule hidden in his teeth. Once it was broken, it would draw blood and kill him instantly!
However, his teeth hadn't had a chance to close properly.
Snapped!
A crisp cracking sound rang out!
Taiyi's fingers moved with lightning speed, precisely pinching his chin and crushing his entire jawbone with a slight exertion!
The excruciating pain caused the leader to let out a muffled scream as venom sacs mixed with broken teeth and blood fell from his unable-to-close mouth.
Taiyi's eyes showed no pity. With his other hand, he pointed his fingers like a sword, a hint of dark blue, and instantly touched Taiyi's brow.
Illusion Technique: The Technique of Seeing the Abyss.
The team leader began to convulse violently, his eyes rolled back, and he made strange hoarse noises in his throat.
Taiichi's illusion technique is different from ordinary Naraku's. It is a technique he developed specifically for punishment and torture, in order to deal with this kind of situation.
After a long while, the illusion ended.
The leader of the cultists collapsed to the ground as if all his bones had been removed, foaming at the mouth, his eyes completely glazed over, his spirit utterly broken, turning him into a complete idiot who could only drool.
Taiyi withdrew his finger, his eyes as cold as ice. Even with his resilient spirit forged through countless battles, the scene he had just witnessed in the leader's mind ignited a burning rage within him!
That was no longer the human world, but a complete and utter hellhole!
"The heretical cult—should be exterminated!"
The cold words were squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying a chilling killing intent that seemed to make the already frigid air around him drop even further.
He ignored the crippled people on the ground and quickly formed hand seals.
Shadow Clone Technique!
Bang! Two shadow clones appeared.
"I'm leaving this to you. One of you is responsible for escorting these villagers to the nearest town for shelter, contacting local officials, identifying yourself, and ensuring they provide proper accommodation and protection. The other, immediately go to the Daimyo's residence in Yudo, find the eldest son, and tell him to make all preparations and await my news!"
"Understood!" The two shadow clones replied crisply and immediately split up to carry out their tasks.
One went to comfort the terrified villagers and release them from their restraints; the other transformed into a streak of light and sped off towards the City of Hot Springs.
Taiyi took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed his surging anger.
He looked up towards the northeast, his gaze seemingly piercing through layers of mountains, locking onto the abyss of sin hidden within the cavern.
With the Flying Thunder God Technique activated, Taiichi's figure vanished from the spot!
next second!
Deep in the mountains of northeastern China, more than ten kilometers away from the place where the evil god cult's lair was hidden, in a secluded mountain valley, space fluctuated once again, and Taiyi's figure appeared out of thin air.
This was one of the coordinates he set up for the Flying Thunder God technique during his previous reconnaissance, just to be on the safe side.
Without pausing, the wings of light on its back unfolded once more! This time, Taiyi did not fly high, but instead, like a ghost, silently clung to the steep mountain wall, speeding towards the coordinates it remembered.
The roar of the waterfall grew closer and closer, deafening. A massive curtain of water cascaded down from a cliff hundreds of meters high, crashing into a bottomless pool below, creating a mist that, in the morning light, formed a hazy rainbow.
Taiyi hovered in the shadow of the cliff opposite the waterfall, his sharp gaze piercing through the mist, carefully scanning behind the waterfall.
Sure enough, with his mental energy highly focused, he discovered a clue: about one-third of the way up behind the water curtain, there was an area where the rock texture appeared too "regular," and the sound of the water hitting the rocks had a very subtle "hollow" echo.
Unless one knows in advance and deliberately explores, it is extremely difficult to discover this cave entrance hidden by the barrier.
"This is it."
Taiyi quickly formed hand seals, channeling the chakra within his body.
Earth Release: Rock Concealment Technique.
His body seemed to melt and sink into the rock beneath his feet, his aura merging perfectly with the rock before disappearing without a trace.
Underground, Taiyi, like an invisible ghost, silently penetrated the barrier that maintained the illusion and officially entered the territory of the evil god cult's lair.
Upon entering, a pungent, viscous liquid-like stench of blood and rotting corpses assaulted the senses.
The aura was far more intense and foul than anything he had sensed in Frostmoon Village!
Even through the rocks, Taiyi felt a strong physical discomfort, and the anger in his chest was instantly ignited to the extreme!
He suppressed his nausea and carefully extended his senses.
The bloody altar was covered with fresh bloodstains and unidentified fragments.
The cramped cages held countless dying "sacrifices".
Although the huge crematorium had been extinguished, it still emitted a nauseating smell of burning flesh.
The entire base has a complex internal structure with interconnected passageways, and there is an even larger space deep inside.
There were quite a few cult members patrolling, but most of them had blank expressions and moved with a mechanical, brainwashed quality. Their core areas showed a stronger chakra response.
Taiyi's senses expanded, imprinting the entire base's situation into his mind. A ruthless and efficient elimination plan instantly took shape in his mind.
"As expected—there's no one left to save."
The offerings had been exhausted; only the perpetrators and a few soulless remains remained. The last shred of restraint vanished.
"Then—" Taiichi's eyes turned completely icy, "Begin the purge."
He was like a death god lurking underground, his hands forming hand seals, and a vast amount of chakra gathering underground!
"Earth Release: Rock Collapse!"
Rumble!
The ground in the selected area was as if it had been violently torn apart and lifted by an invisible giant hand! Hard rocks shattered and collapsed like fragile cookies! A huge roar and violent tremors instantly swept through the entire underground cavern!