Naruto: I, who fooled the ninja world, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 225 Hogyoku?!
Inside a high-rise office in the Raikage Building in Kumogakure.

Outside the window, thick, leaden-gray thunderclouds pressed heavily over the Hidden Cloud Village, with pale lightning occasionally tearing through the churning clouds.

The atmosphere in the office was heavy and oppressive, with mountains of documents piled up on the desk, almost burying it.

"Damn it!"

Xi slammed a report on the table, rubbing her throbbing temples, her voice filled with undisguised exhaustion and anxiety: "Because of the appearance of those 'hollows,' the Land of Lightning is now in complete chaos!"

“False attacks are being reported everywhere, and those nobles are sending us letters every day urging us to send more men to protect us! People are panicking, and rumors are spreading! If this continues…”

Beside him, Tu Tai, with a calm and composed expression, was meticulously reviewing documents.

Hearing Xi's complaint, he didn't even look up, and comforted her, "The Raikage personally went to the Land of Demons to participate in the Five Kage Summit, wasn't it precisely to resolve these troubles?"

"Everything will be alright once Lord Raikage returns with the results of the talks."

Sitting in the main seat, Mabu-i exhaled a deep breath and gently put down the document in his hand, which was stamped with the seal of the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning and contained stern language.

The document once again urged Kumogakure to send elite ninjas to the capital to strengthen defenses against Hollow incursions.

"I hope everything goes well for Lord Raikage..." Azabui's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible worry.

Immediately, she rubbed her sore neck and glanced out the window at the churning thunderclouds with lightning and thunder.

However, just as her gaze swept across the sky outside the window...

A bolt of lightning tore through the thick clouds, and a blinding white light instantly illuminated the world.

In that brief moment of intense light, reflected in the slightly contracted pupils of the man in linen clothes, deep within the rolling thunderclouds, in the gaps torn by lightning.

A huge, menacing black shadow vanished in an instant!
"What is that?" Mabu-i suddenly stood up from the chair and blurted out.

Xi and Tudai, who had been looking down, subconsciously raised their heads and followed her gaze to the depths of the thunderclouds outside the window.

Rumble!
As thunder roared, the thundercloud in the sky churned and twisted violently, as if stirred by an invisible hand, and a vortex formed in the center of the cloud.

Deep within the vortex, a strange and dazzling scarlet light slowly shone forth!
Immediately afterwards, another bolt of lightning streaked across the thunderclouds, this time illuminated by a ghastly white flash.

The enormous black shadow hidden deep within the thunderclouds was finally clearly revealed before the three of them!
It was a huge, headless humanoid monster with a pair of enormous wings flapping on its back.

A suffocating, oppressive atmosphere surged forth from the thundercloud!

The three men in hemp clothing felt their hearts pounding, and a chill instantly enveloped them!

"Enemy attack!"

Mabu's expression changed drastically, and without hesitation, he pressed a hidden red button under the desk!

Whoosh! Buzz!

The sharp, piercing highest-level alarm instantly resounded throughout the entire Hidden Cloud Village, shattering the village's evening tranquility!
However, just as the alarm sounded, the crimson light also completed its formation.

hum! !

A blazing, scarlet beam of light shot out from the center of the thundercloud vortex, striking the Thunder Shadow Building with perfect accuracy!
Tu Tai's pupils contracted, and almost instinctively, his hands formed hand seals at a speed beyond his limits!
Melt Escape: Protective Jade!
puff!
A large mass of viscous, highly elastic rubber was ejected from the mouth of the earthen platform, instantly expanding to form a tough, enormous rubber ball.

At the critical moment, he enveloped Mabui, Nozomi, and himself!
Boom! !
A deafeningly terrifying explosion engulfed the entire Raikage Building!
The three people inside the protective membrane felt only a blinding white light before their eyes, and all sounds disappeared. They could only hear the pounding of their hearts in their chests.

A terrifying force slammed through the protective membrane and hit them hard. It felt as if their internal organs had shifted, and intense pain instantly swept through their bodies!
The three people encased in the protective membrane were violently thrown away by the blast wave and crashed heavily into a mess of rubble and twisted steel bars!
"cough!"

A violent cough accompanied by blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, the woman in burlap slouched, supporting her dizzy head, and opened her bloodshot eyes to look outside through the protective membrane.

Through blurred vision, a scene of apocalypse came into view.

The once magnificent and sturdy Raikage Building is now nothing but a huge, charred crater!

The broken steel bars, like a twisted skeleton, were exposed in the scorching rubble. Flames crackled in the ruins, and thick smoke billowed, blotting out the sky!

In the sky, 'Satoru' flapped its wings, hovering beneath the rolling thunderclouds, mercilessly reaping the lives of the Cloud Village ninjas who tried to fight back on the ground.

The entire Hidden Cloud Village was engulfed in flames and chaos.

"How, how could..."

Xi stared at the horrific scene before her, her voice trembling with shock and fear.

Mabuya tried to stand up, but the intense pain made her kneel down again, letting out hoarse gasps, clearly indicating that her internal organs had been damaged.

However, just as the three were still reeling from the shock,

A chilling killing intent suddenly emanated from behind them!
"careful!"

Tu Tai was the first to notice and let out a loud shout. Before he could turn his body, he formed a hand seal!

Lightning Release: Scattered Strike!
Zhila! !
The violent blue lightning instantly condensed in the palms of the earthen platform, forming two lightning balls that flickered violently and emitted a piercing buzzing sound.

The violent lightning emitted a piercing shriek, bursting out indiscriminately behind them, arcs of electricity radiating wildly like a spider web, striking a figure that appeared behind them!

The figure was covered with a shell as hard as rock, but under the impact of the violent lightning, it was instantly covered with spider web-like cracks and made a sound of being unable to bear the weight.

Lightning Release ninjutsu is effective against Earth Release ninjutsu.

"Humph!"

The figure who had been knocked back several steps snorted coldly and swung his right arm, which was covered by broken rock layers, forward.

His right hand separated from his wrist, connected by countless writhing black lines, and shot towards the terrified Xi like an arrow!

"Ugh!"

Xi only had time to let out a short cry of surprise before that arm precisely gripped his neck.

The black thread connecting his palm suddenly contracted, pulling Xi's body and dragging him in front of that figure!
"Let him go!"

Despite the excruciating pain, Tu Tai struggled to his feet, his eyes filled with anger and solemnity.

"Kakuzu, the S-rank rogue ninja of Takigakure!"

He stared intently at Kakuzu, who was wearing a mask, and said in a deep voice, "What are you doing here?"

"Are you making an enemy of the entire Hidden Cloud Village by doing this?!"

Kakuzu, expressionless, grabbed Nozomi by the neck and lifted her high in front of him.

He ignored Tu Tai's questioning, his cold green eyes sweeping emotionlessly over Tu Tai and the burlap clothes before finally raising his head to look at 'Wu' flying in from afar.

More accurately, it is looking towards Wuwei, who stands atop the head of 'Enlightenment'.

"How is it?" Kakuzu's voice was hoarse and deep. "Did you find it?"

Wuwei stood on high ground, looking down at the Hidden Cloud Village engulfed in flames below. He slowly shook his head, and his voice reached Kakuzu's ears. "We have not found the Two-Tails Jinchuriki or the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki."

"I just found a Jonin from Kumogakure, and he told me that the Two-Tails Jinchuriki has left the village with the Fourth Raikage to attend the Five Kage Summit in the Land of Demons."

"And the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki seems to be hidden somewhere else as well."

Upon hearing this, Kakuzu frowned and asked, "The Two-Tails Jinchuriki isn't here?"

The Gedo Mazo needs to absorb the tailed beasts in the order from the One-Tailed to the Nine-Tailed.

If they cannot obtain the Two-Tails, even if they obtain other tailed beasts, they will not be able to continue.

At most, Miyajo En knew that the Five Kage had left the village, but he never expected that the Fourth Raikage, that madman, would bring Jinchuriki to the Five Kage Summit.

Kakuzu remained silent for a moment. The thought of being looked down upon by others after returning home caused a murderous intent to surface in his cold green eyes.

"Since the Two-Tails isn't here," Kakuzu's voice turned chillingly cold, "then dig three feet into the ground and find the Eight-Tails to take with you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he didn't even bother with interrogation. He slowly hunched his back, and it seemed as if something alive was churning beneath his black robe with red cloud patterns.

puff!puff!
Countless black lines burst forth from his body, transforming into fire-attribute and wind-attribute masked monsters, which then opened their mouths on his shoulders.

Fire Release: Head Carving!
Wind Release: Pressure Damage!

The fire-attribute masked monster spewed out a vast sea of ​​flames, while the wind-attribute masked monster unleashed a raging, shrill hurricane.

"Composite Ninja Technique: Strange Face Explosive Flame!"

------

Meanwhile, at this moment, Kakuzu is longing for the Land of Demons.

Inside the shrine, the solemn and heavy atmosphere did not dissipate with the departure of the other figures; on the contrary, it became even more profound and oppressive due to this one-on-one private conversation.

The candlelight flickered, casting restless shadows on the gauze curtains, and the air was filled with the scent of sandalwood.

Hinata Kumokawa squinted as he looked at the slender, hazy figure behind the layers of gauze curtains.

“Your Highness, priestess.” His voice was steady and clear, with just the right amount of confusion and inquiry. “What you just said is truly perplexing.”

"You said you saw my future? To use 'your power' to kill the demons? To become the savior of the ninja world?"

Hinata Kumokawa's tone was tinged with undisguised skepticism, and even a hint of absurdity.

"This sounds utterly absurd." He frowned and said in a deep voice, "I am just an ordinary Konoha ninja, responsible for protecting the Hokage."

"I'm afraid I can't shoulder such a heavy responsibility as saving the ninja world."

"And what exactly is this 'power of witchcraft' you speak of?"

Ignoring the notification in his mind, Hyuga Kumokawa continued, "What is its connection to the demons, and to this 'hollow' that is sweeping the ninja world?"

Behind the gauze curtain, Maitreya's figure swayed slightly in the candlelight.

"Lord Hinata Kumokawa..." Her voice remained ethereal, yet carried a hint of remoteness, "Do you know the true origin of the demons?"

Hinata Kumokawa, of course, knew this, but his face showed a thoughtful expression at just the right moment as he said, "The Wraith is a demon from another world, sealed here by the priestess..."

“No.” Miroku shook his head. “That’s just a legend. The demon doesn’t come from another world; it was born from the priestess herself.”

"In ancient times, in the primitive era before chakra was born and ninjas appeared."

"Human beings are filled with the most primal awe and fear when faced with natural forces that are incomprehensible and irresistible, such as lightning, earthquakes, and floods."

“They attributed it all to the gods. They revered nature and believed in animism, but the first priestess created a completely different kind of power.”

"She guides people to gather their fear, awe, prayer, hope... into an invisible force, which we call 'the power of will'."

"Or, in terms you ninjas are more familiar with, it's spiritual energy."

"The priestess absorbs people's faith and absorbs their pure spiritual energy, transforming it into her own power."

"Then, with this power, one can control the heavens and the earth and nature."

(The image above shows the form that 'Miyako' Shion takes after unleashing her power.)
The immense power that controls heaven, earth, and nature?

Upon hearing Miroku's words, Hinata Kumokawa's eyes flickered, and he instantly thought of something similar.

Immortal mode?

A human-like immortal mode?
"Later, more and more people came to believe in witches."

Miroku continued, "The spiritual energy absorbed by the priestess begins to be mixed with the believer's selfish desires, greed, and even evil thoughts."

"Without a strong enough will and the ability to stay true to oneself, one will lose oneself and be corrupted by the malice and greed of believers."

At this point, Miroku's voice lowered: "The first priestess worried that one day she would lose herself in that power and become a disaster that would harm the world."

"So she forcibly stripped away all the negative emotions that had grown deep within her soul—arrogance, fear, hatred, greed... all the dark side that could erode her heart."

"This stripped soul has become the monster we know today."

"From then on, all the darkness in the spiritual energy absorbed by the priestesses of each generation was directed towards the demons, while they themselves absorbed pure spiritual energy, digested and transformed it."

"Therefore, suppressing evil spirits became an inescapable mission and responsibility for priestesses throughout history."

"Lord Yun Chuan!"

At this point, behind the gauze curtain, Maitreya's figure seemed to lean forward slightly, and he said in a deep voice, "What I want to pass on to you is this power!"

"Not as the successor to the priestess, but as the savior who can wield this power and end the demons and 'hollows'!"

Hinata Kumokawa listened quietly, his pure white eyes growing increasingly profound.

He had been thinking about how to convert spiritual energy into his own power without becoming a 'hollow', thereby accelerating the awakening of the Otsutsuki bloodline and the Tenseigan.

The priestess's power and abilities undoubtedly opened up a new avenue for him.

He thought of an 'artificial creation' in the world of "Death".

They also possess abilities similar to those of priestesses, capable of absorbing the wishes of people around them and materializing and fulfilling those wishes!
—Hōgyoku!
If one could use the power of the priestess to absorb spiritual energy and create a core similar to the 'Hogyoku', thereby allowing one's body to continuously evolve to a higher level...

Thinking of this, Hinata Kumokawa's eyes narrowed slightly, concealing the deep emotions within them.

“Manifestation.” He lowered his eyes and thought to himself, “Using the power of the priestess, to create an object similar to the ‘Hogyoku’ that allows me to continuously evolve to higher levels…”

(QAQ I'm finally out of the blacklist! Over 8,000 words, please vote with monthly tickets!!)

(End of this chapter)