Chapter 463

After a brief, friendly exchange behind the scenes between the two generations of Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village, the battered and bruised Shamon pushed open the door to the VIP room and walked in, followed by the refreshed-looking Reto.

"I never expected Gin-san to travel thousands of miles to rescue me; Shamon is truly honored."

At this moment, Uchiha Gin and his group were receiving top-tier hospitality from the Hidden Sand Village. Countless delicacies unique to the Land of Wind covered the table, and the mellow, intoxicating wine in the cups emitted waves of fragrance.

The three famished individuals were tasting the food one by one, while a smiling Chiyo kept them company on the side.

"Has your work report been finished?"

Uchiha Gin, who was studying a snack called "Delicious Wind Snake," looked up and winked with a teasing expression on his face.

"The First Lord is brilliant and mighty; I could never finish learning from him in a lifetime."

Shamon flattered him insincerely, pulled out a chair to sit opposite Uchiha Gin, reached out to pick up a skewer of roasted, golden-brown Delicious Wind Snake, and began to feast.

Having been in a coma for so long and relying on intravenous drips to sustain his life, his stomach had no oil or substance; now that he had awakened, he had to properly nourish himself.

Uchiha Gin also took the opportunity to ask Shamon about the details of the attacker. After all, Shukaku was just an ignorant beast and had not described the event in detail; there was no objective account, only subjective speculation.

"Shamon Laodi, could you tell me about the details of your attack?"

"Gin-san, judging solely by the appearance and methods of the culprit who attacked me, it was undoubtedly your Hidden Leaf's First Hokage."

Upon hearing this, Shamon wiped his mouth, his expression gradually becoming serious, and his hairless brow furrowed tightly.

"Senju Hashirama?"

Uchiha Hikari, who was tasting fruit on the side, looked at Shamon in confusion.

"He shouldn't be that kind of person, right?"

Although her first impression of Senju Hashirama wasn't very good, it had improved during subsequent contact, and she recognized him as a peace-loving leader.

Such a person could not possibly be a criminal who would attack other villages and attempt to incite war.

"The Hidden Leaf just wants to incite war! After so many years, it finally couldn't help but reveal its fangs!"

Reto sat down indignantly, looking at Uchiha Gin and his group with ill intent. Even though Shamon had been saved by them, it still couldn't change the reality of Senju Hashirama's crime.

"First Lord!"

Chiyo, who was pouring wine for Uchiha Gin, turned her head and looked at the fiercely speaking Reto with a reproachful expression.

"Could you tell me what happened after you were subdued?"

Ignoring Reto, this old antique, Uchiha Gin put down his wine glass and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

As soon as the subject of his capture was brought up, Shamon's complexion became very ugly. After hesitating for a moment, he recounted the details of his defeat.

"His Wood Release is very effective at suppressing Tailed Beast power. I fought him in close quarters for a long time, but in the end, I was still suppressed by a giant wooden figure."

Recalling the details of the battle with the attacker, a trace of bitterness appeared on Shamon's face.

He had clearly been evenly matched with the "Darkness of the Ninja World" before, yet in the blink of an eye, he was handled by Senju Hashirama with five fingers; his Dao heart was faintly showing signs of collapsing.

"After he hung me up using Wood Release, the Tailed Beast power in my body was sucked dry by the wooden branches before long, and my transformation was forced to end. At that moment, the opponent took out a grayish-brown seed and implanted it into my body."

Stroking the hideous wound on his lower abdomen, Shamon told the truth about his encounter.

"Afterward, for some reason, he suddenly let me go. I took this opportunity to use my self-preservation ninjutsu, Particle Sealing Palm, to wrap myself in a sphere condensed from Magnet Release, and thus escaped a disaster."

Escaped a disaster?

It's possible the opponent never intended to take your life on the spot.

After listening to Shamon's account, Uchiha Gin already had some self-interpreted conclusions in his heart.

If one wanted to incite a chaotic war between villages, that "Senju Hashirama" could have simply killed Shamon directly; why go to such great lengths to plant that strange seed in him?

Therefore, the opponent's goal was definitely not war, but simply to plant the seed and harvest the kind of Chakra Pill he had dug out once it matured.

"By the way, since Shamon Laodi was already in a coma when he was discovered, how did you lock the culprit onto Senju Hashirama?"

If you could pin the blame on Hashirama Laodi based solely on the residual Wood Release traces at the scene, wouldn't the Hidden Sand Village be a bit too arbitrary?

"Because this wasn't his first crime. The Hidden Cloud Village, Hidden Stone Village, and Hidden Mist Village have all been attacked by him."

The silent Reto raised his aged face, clenched his fists, and said bitterly.

"The Silver and Gold brothers of the Hidden Cloud, Onoki of the Hidden Stone, and Gui of the Hidden Mist have all encountered ambushes by Senju Hashirama and suffered extremely heavy losses, but they were all stronger than Shamon."

The victims from the other villages at least still had consciousness after the battle. Shamon was delayed by their misdiagnosis, which caused the seed's germination progress to advance, and he nearly lost his life.

"Oh? Can you elaborate?"

Listening to Reto's tone, the victims from the other villages didn't become vegetative like Shamon. He was very curious about how these people solved the seeds in their bodies.

"Hmph!"

Reto snorted coldly upon hearing this, with no intention of speaking.

The details to be spoken next were the contents of a unified confidentiality agreement signed by their villages; apart from a very small number of high-level confidants in the villages, there had been no leaks.

"First Lord, Uncle Gin has already cured the teacher, so there's no need to hide it from him, right?"

Chiyo, on the side, wrinkled her nose and said indignantly.

"How can you turn your back on your own?"

Looking at the junior he thought highly of, Reto was suddenly heartbroken. She hadn't even become Kazekage yet, and she was already saying such rebellious things.

"Reto-sama, it's fine; I trust Gin-san's character."

Just as Reto and Chiyo were at loggerheads, Shamon stood up, nodded with a determined look in his eyes, and said.

"Fine, fine, you're the Kazekage now; you have the final say."

Seeing that even Reto was standing on the opposite side of him, Reto sighed heavily and chose to remain silent.

"Then let me tell Uncle Gin."

Chiyo raised her hand very actively, and Uchiha Gin immediately pricked up his ears.

"Onoki of the Hidden Stone Village was defeated just like the teacher and had a seed planted behind his waist by the opponent. But the Third Tsuchikage has always been suspicious by nature, so he directly used his Kekkei Tota to cut off the part where the seed was planted at the root."

Tsk! The little potato is still ruthless; he cut off his perfectly good kidney just like that.

"Gui of the Hidden Mist Village was the same, except that after the seed was planted in him, he paid the price of burning his life force to perform the Yuki clan's S-rank forbidden jutsu, Absolute Zero, turning his whole body into ice crystals in an attempt to perish with the enemy. The result was that the opponent escaped, and the seed in his body also annihilated under the effect of Absolute Zero."

Uh... The wig is even more ruthless; he even used a life-burning forbidden jutsu.

"As for the Silver and Gold brothers of the Hidden Cloud..."

Chiyo, whose mouth was a bit dry from talking, casually picked up the wine glass in front of Uchiha Gin and took a sip. Several red clouds quickly floated onto her face, making Uchiha Hikari and Otsutsuki Yueji on the side frown, their sense of crisis rising sharply.

Not good, she's coming for Gin!

"What happened to them?"

Uchiha Gin didn't take Chiyo's little actions to heart; he was more interested in the encounter of the Silver and Gold brothers now. After all, these two Laodi had a good relationship with him and could be considered old acquaintances.

"They encountered two identical Senju Hashiramas at the same time."

Then it's over. One Hashirama Laodi is enough for them to handle; if two come, wouldn't they beat the shit out of both Laodi?

"However, they were the ones with the best battle record among all those who encountered the attack."

"Huh?"

Hearing this, Uchiha Gin blinked in surprise.

Could it be that the Rubik's Cube divine power manifested, and the ancient Ninja Scroll was epicly strengthened?

"Although the Silver and Gold brothers each had a seed planted on their arms when they were at a disadvantage, the two of them, in a desperate situation, performed a newly developed combined technique - Lightning Plough Hot Blade."

Exploding with power in a desperate situation; fits the bloodline.

The two Laodi didn't lose face for the Sage of Six Paths ancestor and were worthy of the blood flowing in their veins.

"The two of them each lost an arm, but they also successfully severely wounded the enemy."

Got it, you can't be a good Raikage without losing an arm, right?

Uchiha Gin curled his lips, feeling a bit regretful that the two Laodi could only play with themselves with one hand from now on.

Wait!

Severely wounded?

"Was it really a severe wound?"

Uchiha Gin asked in disbelief.

If the enemy really stole the power of Hashirama Laodi, how could they be severely wounded by mere Silver and Gold brothers?

No, didn't you just praise their bloodline? How did it become "mere" in the blink of an eye?

Can that be the same?

How can the descendants of a concubine compare to the descendants of the main wife?

"That's right. According to the Hidden Cloud Village's description, the Silver and Gold brothers did indeed succeed in breaking the neck of one of the enemies at the cost of carbonizing their arms. Seeing this, the other accomplice directly picked up the unconscious teammate and ran away."

After listening to Chiyo's account, Uchiha Gin frowned for a long time, his expression strange as he asked.

"No, since two Senju Hashiramas appeared at once, anyone with a brain would suspect that the culprit was definitely not him, right?"

If it were said that one person launched an attack every time, it would be understandable for other ninja villages to suspect it was the Hidden Leaf's doing. But two people appearing at once?

"We indeed discussed this issue, and finally reached a conclusion."

Just when Uchiha Gin thought he had found a blind spot, Reto exited his silent state, his expression also carrying a trace of strangeness.

"What conclusion?"

Keenly sensing the irrepressible teasing look in Reto's eyes, Uchiha Gin scratched his head in confusion.

"If there had only been one enemy before, we would still have to discuss whether it was the Hidden Leaf's doing. But with two powerful Senju Hashiramas appearing at once, it must undoubtedly be the Hidden Leaf's doing."

"Huh? Why?"

How did this pot land on the Hidden Leaf's head?

"Still pretending? Your Hidden Leaf has the most famous human experiment master in the Ninja World; isn't cultivating biological weapons for war a piece of cake?"

"Achoo!"

Inside the brightly lit laboratory, Senju Hijiri touched her itchy nose, her large red eyes full of confusion. Isn't this a dust-free laboratory?

And in the cultivation tank behind her, a completely naked white-haired man was curled up and sleeping in light green nutrient solution.

"It's all Bai Mao's fault. Now it's truly a case of yellow mud falling into the pants; even if it's not shit, it's still shit."

"Eww! Gin, that description of yours is so disgusting~"

Listening to Uchiha Gin's sighing complaint on the side, Uchiha Hikari curled her lips with disgust.

The three of them had already stepped out of the gate of Loulan, preparing to find a hidden place to take transportation, followed by Shamon, Chiyo, and others who had come to see them off.

They had now completed their mission. Shamon, whose body had not yet recovered, tried his best to persuade them to stay for a few more days, but Uchiha Gin had a secret mission, so he could only tearfully say goodbye to Chiyo, who had tears in her eyes.

"Seeing us off here is enough. Shamon Laodi, your body hasn't recovered yet, so don't exert yourself further."

"Then Gin-san, take care on your journey. As for the attacker, I will continue to investigate."

"You should still be careful; the opponent is very likely to make a comeback."

Uchiha Gin's worry was not without reason. The attacker's goal was clearly the Tailed Beasts; before obtaining the fruit formed by the seed, they would never give up.

"Many thanks, Gin-san, I will be careful."

"Bye-bye~"

It wasn't until the backs of Uchiha Gin and his group disappeared into the sand that Shamon, who was standing in place, slowly spoke.

"Chiyo, your teacher is old."

"Teacher, what are you saying?"

Chiyo, who was staring blankly at Uchiha Gin's back, gave a sudden start, her face full of confusion as she turned around.

"Teacher's body is already broken."

Shamon looked at the ignorant Chiyo, the corners of his mouth curling into a bitter arc.

Although Uchiha Gin had saved his life, the body eroded by the strange seed had already suffered irreversible damage.

If he continued to use Tailed Beast power to transform, his life would come to an end.

"Shukaku, Lord Dragon Pulse, I leave it to you."

While speaking, he took out the treasured One-Tail card, his gaze falling on the honest-looking raccoon dog on the card. He lingered on it for a long time before finally handing it to Chiyo.

"The future of the Hidden Sand Village and Loulan is left to you."

"Number One, what are you waiting for?"

On a sand dune tens of miles away from Loulan, three black-robed figures with identical appearances stood in a row. Jigen, who was standing behind them, looked curiously at the Number One experimental subject that was not taking any action.

Number One raised his head, and a flash of red light flickered in his black pupils.

"The parasitic spore has been destroyed."

"Uh?"

Jigen was stunned upon hearing this. The five experimental subjects he had sent out before didn't have high mission completion rates; they had only absorbed a small amount of Tailed Beast Chakra, which was simply not enough to sustain his plan.

There was even one experimental subject that was injured by a descendant with a thin Kaguya bloodline and was still soaking in the base's nutrient solution.

Only this Number One was relatively promising; not only did he successfully plant the God Tree parasitic spore, but according to his sensing, it was almost mature and ready to bear fruit.

"Then what about the fruit?"

"The immature fruit is still there; the holder is in that direction."

The Number One experimental subject pointed into the distance, which was exactly the route Uchiha Gin and his group were taking.

If there were no accidents, the two groups would meet in a few minutes.

Jigen's left eye condensed, and his pure white pupils activated his long-distance vision ability, seeing three unfamiliar figures galloping in the yellow sand. Only then did he understand why Number One was standing still; it turned out he was waiting for the rabbit to hit the tree. He immediately revealed an arrogant expression.

"The three of you, go and eliminate them." (End of chapter)