Naruto: I'm in Konoha, my name is Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 149 The Tumultuous Changes in the Land of Demons, The Imprisoned Shrine Maiden
Ghost Country Shrine.

Heavy, dark clouds hung low, making it hard to breathe, and even the faint sandalwood incense that usually lingered around the shrine was completely replaced by the smell of rust and sweat.

Outside the shrine, a dark mass of troops is surrounding the shrine deep in the forest, blocking all roads leading to it.

These armies were composed of ordinary people, whose soldiers wore standard armor and were mainly spearmen and archers, with few cavalry.

Their faces showed a mixture of awe for the shrine and nervous unease.

The air was thick with the smell of cheap tobacco, the stench of leather, and the pungent body odor emanating from the crowd.

The horses snorted uneasily, their horseshoes occasionally clattering against the stone slabs with a harsh, grating sound, adding to the oppressive atmosphere.

Inside the shrine, the atmosphere was even more stagnant and icy.

The nominal ruler of this country, the Maitreya priestess, sat upright on a futon in the main hall. Her pure white priestess robes were spotless, which only made her face appear even paler.

Her eyes remained calm, like a bottomless ancient well, but beneath that calm lay deep worry and a chilling sense of betrayal.

Several strong, fierce-looking warriors, clearly private soldiers of nobles, stood like jackals eyeing their prey at the palace gate and beside Maitreya, their hands always resting on the hilts of their swords.

Although this era was the era of ninjas, it doesn't mean that samurai disappeared.

Besides the Land of Iron, which has a large number of samurai as regular soldiers, other daimyo also keep some samurai, whether as a figurehead or as henchmen, to deal with ordinary people or even some rebellious civilians. Compared to ninjas, samurai are much cheaper to hire.

Footsteps echoed in the empty hall, carrying a deliberate heaviness.

The daimyo of the Land of Demons, Hamahata Shun, entered, surrounded by a group of nobles.

He wore a luxurious dark purple robe, his fat face plastered with feigned concern, but his small eyes gleamed with greed and ruthlessness.

The nobles behind him, their bulky bodies wrapped in silk and satin, wore expressions ranging from arrogant to fearful to gloating, all bearing a lust for power and a sense of satisfaction at the suppression of the priestess's authority.

The strong scent of incense and perfume mingled on their bodies, creating a nauseatingly sweet aroma.

“Lord Miroku,” Hamahata Shun’s voice was deliberately gentle, yet carried an undeniable air of coercion.

"Your recent actions, including sending people to investigate the Star Kingdom, have truly caused widespread panic throughout the country." He paced back and forth, his fat fingers unconsciously stroking the hilt of the jewel-encrusted short sword at his waist.

"Some things are best left unsaid in private. But you insist on showing such concern for that rebellious nation founded by traitors. Tsk tsk, isn't that a bit much?"

He stopped in front of Maitreya, bowed slightly, casting a shadow over him. His voice was lower, yet even colder: "Do you know how quickly your priests and attendants have spread the various rumors they brought from the Star Kingdom among those lowly people? The Star Kingdom's seductive tricks are shaking the very foundations of my Demon Kingdom!!"

Miroku slowly raised his eyelids, his gaze calmly meeting Hamahata Shun's calculating eyes.

"I just want to know what happened in the Star Kingdom."

Her voice was ethereal yet firm, like a jade chime striking in a temple, echoing clearly in the oppressive hall, carrying an inviolable divinity.

"As for the common people flocking to the Land of Stars... Lord Hamahata, and everyone here, isn't that a question for you?"

"Ask us?!" A nobleman with a hooked nose next to him couldn't help but sneer, his spittle almost landing on Maitreya's clean robes.

"The biggest problem is that you're spreading rumors here! What do those lowly commoners know? Without us nobles, they wouldn't even be able to afford hot shit!"

"Miroku, recognize your place! You are nothing more than a priestess serving the gods. Just do your job well, perform your rituals, and appease those ignorant people!"

"National affairs are none of your business!"

Several nobles were discussing amongst themselves, loudly rebuking Maitreya.

"Enough!" Hamahata Shun suddenly raised his hand to stop the nobles' incessant chatter, but his expression grew even colder.

He stared at Maitreya, and the last shred of his feigned patience vanished completely.

"Lord Miroku, it seems you are still stubbornly clinging to your delusions. For the sake of the stability and prosperity of the Land of Demons, we have no choice but to ask you to 'quietly cultivate' in this shrine for a while."

"Pass down the order: no one is to enter or leave the shrine without my permission! And no one is to pass on any messages!" He surveyed the samurai in the hall and said sternly, "Keep a close eye on the priestess! If anything goes wrong, you'll pay with your head!"

"Yes!" The warriors knelt on one knee and answered in unison, their scabbards clanging menacingly.

The nobles wore smug smiles.

The priestess is nominally the ruler of the Land of Demons, but she spends most of her time in this shrine, never wielding power and rarely interfering in state affairs; however, the priestess's prestige in the Land of Demons is so high that even the daimyo must use honorifics when addressing her.

Now that they've finally found a reason to weaken the priestess's power and status, how could these nobles not be happy?

The nobles escorted the daimyo as he left the shrine.

The heavy palace doors slammed shut behind Maitreya, cutting off the last ray of sunlight and severing freedom. Only the heavy breathing of the samurai remained inside.

Maitreya closed his eyes, his hands quietly clenched in his wide sleeves, his nails digging deep into his palms.

She could clearly "see" a dark chakra, originating from the depths of the earth and filled with hatred and destruction, stirring within her.

The daimyo and nobles of the Demon Kingdom will be slaughtered by the demons!

We must...we must get the message out!
Stop the resurrection of the demons!
As night fell, the darkness became the best cover for despair.

On a secluded, slippery moss-covered path behind the shrine, a figure, like a frightened raccoon dog, frantically weaves through jagged rocks and dense bushes.

The priest, Ashikagashi, was Miroku's most trusted confidant. His family had been protecting the priestess for generations. At this moment, he had already taken off his solemn priest robes and put on a coarse cloth garment covered in mud.

He clutched tightly to the secret letter written by Maitreya using secret methods, stained with the blood from her fingertips. The cold paper pressed against his chest, yet it brought a faint spark of hope.

He dared not take the main roads and could only travel through the desolate mountains and forests.

The rough branches whipped against my face and body, leaving bloody streaks.

The slippery moss and loose pebbles underfoot caused him to nearly fall several times, each time startling him so much that his heart almost jumped out of his throat.

In the distance, he could hear the shouts of patrolling soldiers and the barking of hunting dogs. With each sound approaching, the hairs on his body stood on end. He desperately plunged into the deeper shadows, curled up, and held his breath until the sounds faded away before daring to continue his desperate escape.

Sweat soaked through his coarse cloth clothes, mixed with mud and grass clippings, clinging tightly to his skin, cold and sticky.

The stench of rotting leaves and wild animal droppings in the mountains and forests became the only background scent on his escape route.

Boom——! ! !
A muffled, deafening roar, as if the heart of the earth had been crushed, suddenly came from the direction of the City of Ghosts!

Even from a great distance, the deafening roar still made my feet go numb!
He turned around in horror and saw that the night sky in the direction of the City of Ghosts was stained with an extremely ominous, dark red light, like bruises!
At the center of the light, countless twisted, shrieking black shadows could be faintly seen dancing wildly, as if the door to another world had been opened!

A chilling, evil chakra surge filled with endless hatred, like a tangible gust of cold wind, swept across the entire Land of Demons in an instant!
"Ugh!" Shigan was swept by the aftershock of this evil chakra and felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave. His vision went black, he felt nauseous and almost collapsed to the ground.

He stared intently in the direction of the City of Ghosts, his heart filled with boundless fear and despair: "Wraiths! It's the aura of wraiths! Someone released wraiths?! We're doomed!"

Without hesitation, Ashishima fled towards the Land of Stars.

After an unknown amount of time, he finally arrived in the Star Kingdom.

Star City.

Ashigashi didn't know how he had been brought here.

The bumpy ride, the fear, and the shock of the evil chakra left his mind in a daze. He only remembered encountering a border patrol team of Star Ninjas during his escape and being taken down.

He was being helped, or rather dragged, to a large door.

On either side of the entrance stood two silent Star Ninjas, dressed in dark blue to almost black uniforms, their faces covered with white animal masks that only revealed their eyes, their gazes sharp as eagles, and their bodies radiating a cold aura.

This is a member of the Star Ninja's Anbu ninja unit.

The door slid open silently, and Zu'an was pulled inside, staggering a few steps before barely managing to stand.

An even more overwhelming and heavy sense of oppression instantly seized him, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

The main hall was unusually empty, with its towering dome hidden in deep shadows.

The floor was made of smooth, mirror-like wooden planks, reflecting the few dim rays of light hanging from the dome.

At the top of the steps at the end, there stands a black chair.

A figure sat casually on the throne.

His face was covered by that terrifying white three-eyed fox mask, its empty eye sockets like abysses, gazing down at the shore below.

Ashigashi trembled violently. The exhaustion from his escape, the fear of witnessing the upheaval in the Land of Demons, and the immense pressure he now faced from this legendary being completely shattered his will.

His legs buckled, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud, his forehead slamming hard against the cold, hard obsidian floor with a dull thud.

Sweat, mud, and bloodstains on his forehead mingled together, making him look utterly disheveled.

"My lord!" Zuan's voice was hoarse and broken, tinged with tears. He tremblingly pulled out the crumpled secret letter from his bosom, soaked with sweat, mud, and even bloodstains, and held it high above his head with both hands, as if offering up his last lifeline.

"The daimyo and nobles of the Land of Demons have imprisoned Lord Miroku... Someone took advantage of the chaos to break the seal on the demon spirits! The Land of Demons is in turmoil! Please! Save the priestess! Save the Land of Demons!"

(End of this chapter)