Chapter 96: , Terumi Mei's Weakness

At this moment, as time passed, the sky grew dim, and the time was inching toward night.

Against the backdrop of the night, the pitch-black cave entrance looked like the gaping maw of a monster, as if it were about to devour someone.

"Whoosh~"

A breeze blew by, and a humming sound like the wailing of ghosts immediately came from the cave entrance.

This strange sound made Terumi Mei's body tremble.

Looking at the pitch-black cave, this fearless female ninja couldn't help but show a hint of hesitation in her eyes.

"It should be here."

"The enemy is hidden and we are exposed; remember not to stray too far from me."

About to enter a dangerous place, Mizunuki Ryosuke instructed the two beside him.

Hearing this, both nodded.

Then, the three gathered materials on the spot, made torches, and used them as a light source to head into the cave.

Dark, damp, and the faint sound of wind in their ears.

These were all constantly shaping a terrifying atmosphere.

Inside the cave, strangely shaped stalactites and uneven, bizarre rocks could be seen everywhere.

The torchlight cast the shadows of the three onto these strange rocks, forming twisted silhouettes.

As the three ventured deeper into the cave, the sides became wider, and the space inside expanded continuously.

Eventually, the space inside the cave became as wide as a massive four-lane road.

After entering the cave, the squad did not maintain their previous formation; instead, the strongest, Mizunuki Ryosuke, took the lead, Tatsuo brought up the rear, and Terumi Mei stood between them.

Suddenly, Suishi Tatsuo seemed to have sensed something and shouted toward the back.

"Who's there!!"

Tatsuo's exclamation immediately drew everyone's attention.

Mizunuki Ryosuke turned around immediately and looked in the direction of Tatsuo's gaze, and at once saw a hazy, blurred white shadow; at first glance, the shadow looked like a legendary ghost.

"Ahhhhhhh!!!!"

"Ghost!!!!"

But who would have thought, before the two could even act, Terumi Mei suddenly screamed and formed hand seals at an incredible speed.

Ryosuke could even guarantee that this was definitely Terumi Mei's limit-breaking hand speed; in normal times, her sealing would never be this efficient.

Clearly, this belonged to a "potential explosion" under specific circumstances.

Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!

In an instant, five fireballs were spat out from Terumi Mei's mouth.

"BOOM!!!"

The aftermath of the fireball explosion instantly illuminated the entire cave; using the sudden flash of light, Ryosuke took the opportunity to observe the entire cave, but ultimately found nothing.

It was as if the hazy white shadow seen before was just an illusion.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

After releasing the Phoenix Sage Fire Technique, Terumi Mei stood in place panting, her expression still looking somewhat stiff.

"What's wrong, Mei?"

Seeing this, Mizunuki Ryosuke quickly asked about Terumi Mei's state.

To this, Terumi Mei waved her hand quickly and replied to Mizunuki Ryosuke with a stiff expression.

"Sorry, Captain, I'm fine."

Terumi Mei also knew that her behavior just now might have been a bit too extreme.

But fortunately, it was just a false alarm and didn't cause any major trouble.

Mizunuki Ryosuke could naturally see that Terumi Mei's situation was not quite right, and he had faintly guessed the crux of her problem.

"I didn't expect this girl, who usually looks quite tough, to be afraid of ghosts."

Mizunuki Ryosuke sighed to himself with some helplessness.

Things had reached this point, and they had already ventured deep inside; it was clearly inappropriate to have Terumi Mei withdraw now.

So Mizunuki Ryosuke could only try his best to stabilize Terumi Mei's emotions.

"Mei, you can stay as close to me as you want from now on."

"But remember, you must never act rashly again."

Hearing Mizunuki Ryosuke say this, Terumi Mei's face flushed with shame.

Just a moment ago, she had sworn in her heart not to drag Mizunuki Ryosuke down again, but now she had become the object of care once more, which her pride could not accept.

Helplessly, the surrounding environment was simply too uncomfortable for Terumi Mei, so she could only forcibly suppress the shame in her heart and accept Mizunuki Ryosuke's extra care.

Just like that, the distance between Terumi Mei and Mizunuki Ryosuke closed from three meters to less than one.

After hesitating slightly, Terumi Mei reached out and held onto the corner of Mizunuki Ryosuke's clothes.

Feeling the touch from behind, Mizunuki Ryosuke turned his head and saw a small face that was stubborn yet shy.

Looking down, Ryosuke saw the small hand of Terumi Mei tugging at his clothes.

To this, Ryosuke just smiled lightly and didn't say anything.

At a moment like this, blame and complaints wouldn't serve any purpose; Ryosuke hoped his encouragement would make Terumi Mei brave.

Seeing Ryosuke's gaze, for some reason, Terumi Mei's small face became even more flushed.

Even Suishi Tatsuo, on the other side, showed a strange expression after seeing this scene.

He never expected that this woman, who usually went head-to-head with him, would be afraid of ghosts.

If this were normal times, he would definitely mock her a couple of times, but Tatsuo knew to prioritize the big picture, so he kept it to himself for now.

Although he didn't say anything, he secretly noted this weakness of Terumi Mei in his heart.

The three continued forward, exploring toward the depths of the cave.

And in another corner of the cave, the situation was completely different.

In a certain corner of the cave, it was brightly lit, and the scene looked somewhat like a security control room in a modern office building.

Several crystal screens displayed scenes from various locations in the cave; it could be seen that the cave's coverage seemed to be extremely large.

And beneath the crystal screens, there were also many strange buttons and control levers.

Countless figures hidden under black robes, looking extremely strange, were busy inside.

And on one crystal screen, it was currently showing the figures of Ryosuke and the other two.

Similarly, on another screen, Tian Yang, tied up and unconscious, was lying in a corner of the cave.

"Hiss, hiss, hee-hee!!"

"The good show is about to start, meow!"

A black-robed figure let out a strange laugh, looking at the figures of Ryosuke and the others on the crystal screen, his tone full of excitement.

The words of this black-robed figure also stirred the emotions of the others; for a time, all the black robes in the room let out "hissing" strange laughs.

Meanwhile, Hidden Mist Village, Mizukage Building.

Many Jonin questioned why the figures of Ryosuke's squad had disappeared from the Water Screen Jutsu.

Tian Tian Yuanshi explained unhurriedly.

"This assessment was not organized solely by the village."

"It was entrusted by the village to another force to set up."

"The village is unaware of certain secret locations set by the other party, but given the nature of the assessment, there generally won't be any casualties."

"And Ryosuke's squad has entered some special scenarios set by the other party."

"For the sake of fairness, Ryosuke's squad might gain some advantages and intelligence in the scenario, or they might be eliminated directly for failing to pass the scenario."

As Tian Tian Yuanshi finished his explanation, the Jonin finally showed expressions of sudden realization.

"Team Leader Tian, can you reveal what the identity of the other party is?"

"Why have we never heard that the village has a partnership with such a force?"

A Jonin immediately asked.

To this, Tian Tian Yuanshi just shook his head, looking as if the secrets of heaven could not be revealed.

Seeing this, the Jonin had to shift their gaze back to the water screen, looking forward to the scenes on the Water Screen Jutsu revealing the answer.