From Naruto onwards, I've become a dreamer.

Chapter 495 A Pillar-Level Symbol

As the 'Spirit World' gradually subsided, and that unsettling aura fell back into slumber, Uchiha Muneki finally breathed a sigh of relief.

No wonder there's a saying: "It's easy to invite a god, but hard to send him away."

Even with the angelic kingship that embodies 'uniqueness,' Uchiha Munezuki still felt lingering fear.

"What exactly is the origin of that will?"

Judging solely from the power it displayed, it easily dispelled the "Fallen Mother Goddess".

Moreover, judging from its characteristics such as thunder and light, it seems somewhat like 'God'.

Uchiha Munetsuki fell into deep thought: "Was a part of God's will left in the 'Spirit World'?"

It's not that such a possibility is entirely impossible, but it always makes Him somewhat uneasy.

Or perhaps, another pillar-level "old friend"?

At present, the answer is unknown.

After resting for a while, Uchiha Muneki calmed down and turned to look at 'Shennong'.

Because the connection with the 'spirit world' was severed, 'Shennong' could not sense the 'Fallen Mother Goddess', and thus screamed in panic. His already distorted reason seemed to have fallen into an even deeper abyss, and his body was surrounded by festering black mist.

"We must speed things up."

Uchiha Muneki frowned and looked up at the spiritual sky.

The spiritual realm's reflection on the mental level presents a turbulent and unpredictable state. Although the flowing black mist has dissipated, the power of the 'Fallen Mother Goddess' still cannot be completely dispelled.

Furthermore, the mysterious entity hidden in the spirit world forced Uchiha Muneki to accelerate his plans once again.

"Adam!"

Suddenly, Uchiha Muneki spoke, his voice penetrating the collective subconscious realm.

His voice, like a resounding bell, stirred ripples in the ocean of the subconscious, penetrating directly into the depths of Shennong's consciousness along countless islands of the mind and the illusory web woven from thoughts.

On the island of the mind formed by Shennong's surface consciousness, there seems to be no trace of Adam.

"Is it hidden in the deep subconscious?"

Logically speaking, once He calls your 'name', even if you are in a state of unconsciousness, you should be 'awakened' by the turbulence of your subconscious ocean.

However, when He called out the name of Adam, He received no response whatsoever.

That means it is hidden on the island of the mind, deep beneath the "ocean of the subconscious," within a more profound collection of subconscious thoughts.

"Things have become a little complicated."

Uchiha Muneki felt somewhat helpless. He didn't intend to give up on 'Adam,' after all, it was a 'clone' that he had painstakingly cultivated.

Immediately, His figure seemed to become transparent, and with one step, He directly entered the subconscious realm of Shennong.

"Wow, the Black Forest?"

Upon seeing that nauseatingly dark forest, Uchiha Muneki was truly taken aback.

He already had some vague suspicions, but after seeing the island of the mind occupied by the dark forest, he was probably certain.

"The mythical creature form of the Fallen Mother Goddess is almost identical to the 'Black Goat of the Forest.'" He frowned slightly, deep in thought. "Or perhaps it could be considered that the two are one, just with different symbolic meanings?"

After all, whether it's the "Black Goat of the Forest" or the "Fallen Mother Goddess," their greatest "authority" is almost exactly the same.

"Reproduction" can also be called "birth"!

"Ha, if we really go by that, then what is the 'Lord of Mysteries'?"

Uchiha shook his head, couldn't help but chuckle, and banished the thought from his mind.

Regardless, He would eventually have to explore it himself, perhaps in order to unravel even the slightest clue about this strange island and the 'Fallen Mother Goddess'.

Uchiha Muneki used layers of mental defenses to tightly wrap himself up, completely concealing his spirituality.

In this way, one can directly delve into the deeper layers of consciousness without disturbing the island of consciousness.

However, the result seemed to be different from what He had expected.

As soon as he stepped onto the ground, which resembled rotting flesh, Uchiha Muneki frowned slightly, sensing the unusual activity in the forest.

The silent, dark forest sensed His intrusion!

The 'offspring' roared in a low voice, pulling their roots out of the rotting fleshy soil. Each one of them was a twisted, nauseating, crazed monster, howling as they tried to stop the invaders.

"now you."

However, Uchiha Munetsuki remained calm and composed as he watched the approaching 'offspring'.

The next moment, the shadow beneath His feet seemed to come alive, suddenly standing up from the side, shedding its shadowy shroud, revealing himself to be the 'Hidden Angel' draped in a tattered yellow robe.

The hidden angel extended its pure white hand, as if bidding farewell to the group of flesh-and-blood monsters, waving lightly.

In the blink of an eye, the group of fleshy monsters disappeared, like paint being erased out of thin air by an eraser, layer by layer.

The "offspring" were baring their fangs and claws, ferocious and terrifying.

Unfortunately, in front of the 'Hidden Angel', it was all meaningless, and there was not even the slightest resistance; they were simply 'hidden'.

As for where they went, no one knows.

After all, there are no hidden towns created by the "Lady of the Night" in this world, so she must have gone to a place unknown to anyone.

"Let's keep moving forward."

Uchiha Muneki seemed unfazed, stepping on the rotting fleshy soil as he ventured deeper.

One thing must be acknowledged: on this island of the mind shrouded in the remnants of the Fallen Mother Goddess's power, He could always sense the pervasive force of "contamination" that sought to penetrate every nook and cranny.

"Still not giving up, trying to corrupt me?" Uchiha Munetsuki frowned slightly, but fortunately there was no need to worry too much.

Having embodied 'uniqueness', given His status, it would be virtually impossible for Him to silently and imperceptibly corrupt an angel king from the distant 'spirit realm' unless He directly confronted the true form of the 'fallen mother goddess'.

"A mere 'Sequence Four' harbors so many 'offspring' on Mind Island?"

Uchiha Munetsuki pinched the bridge of his nose, looking at the 'offspring' who were rushing forward one after another, trying to stop them from advancing, and couldn't help but chuckle: "You've gone to such great lengths and paid such a high price, which makes me even more curious about what you've hidden inside."

The Hidden Angel stepped forward and, with its Sequence Two status, directly erased the group of creatures that tried to block its way!

"Should we send Sasriel?"

The previously silent hidden angel suddenly spoke up: "The situation is rather complicated now, and I'm worried there will be more to come."

Uchiha Munetsuki pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly: "Sassriel."

"it is good."

As soon as the word was spoken, a man dressed in a black robe with silver thread, intricate patterns, and ornate accessories suddenly appeared beside him.

Her hair was long and dark, past her shoulders, and her eyes seemed to be shrouded in shadow. There were also illusory, dark wings on her back.

Dark Angel, Sasriel!

Although it is still an avatar, it can briefly use the power of the "Hanged Man" pathway at the "Angel" level.

In this operation, I could be considered a barely indispensable member.

After that incident, Kakashi was worried that something unexpected might happen along the way, so he led his team back to Konoha Village at a faster pace.

Fortunately, nothing else seemed to happen along the way, and Sasuke and Sakura arrived safely in Konoha.

The two were taken to Konoha Hospital for treatment and examination.

As for Kakashi, he immediately went to the Hokage Building and reported the events that had occurred in the town of the Land of Rivers to the Fifth Hokage.

"Lord Hokage, that's the whole story."

Kakashi, combining information from Sasuke and Sakura, recounted the entire incident.

After listening to Kakashi's description, Tsunade sighed and casually pushed a newly delivered intelligence report over to him: "Take a look at this first, Kakashi."

Kakashi took the intelligence report, but after glancing at it twice, his expression turned to horror: "What?! The entire town has vanished?!"

"That's right. According to the intelligence sent back by the Anbu, everything within a 100-kilometer radius of that town, along with the mountain you mentioned, has disappeared," Tsunade said with a sigh.

"Disappear. What does that mean?" Kakashi was still a little confused. What exactly did "disappear" mean?

Was it damaged?

Seemingly noticing Kakashi's confusion, Tsunade slowly said, "No, it wasn't destroyed, but rather completely 'erased' from the world by some kind of power. Just three days ago, after you left, it was as if you never existed, leaving no trace."

Completely erased?

Kakashi felt a slight tremor in his heart, and his pupils quivered slightly.

"Let's put this matter aside for now."

Tsunade immediately stood up, placed her hands on the table, and looked at him solemnly: "Kakashi Hatake, I have to announce to you something even more important now."

Kakashi saw an unprecedented seriousness on Tsunade's face and immediately straightened his back: "Please speak, Hokage."

"You were the first to experience what happened in Iwagakure, so you should know a lot about it, right?"

Tsunade's tone was grave as she said in a deep voice, "I have allied with Kumogakure, Sunagakure, Amegakure, and Kirigakure, and plan to travel to the Land of Iron to formally negotiate a five-nation alliance to counter Iwagakure and the Aurora Society. According to intelligence obtained by the Anbu at great personal risk, Iwagakure is preparing for a large-scale war!"

"Wow, they moved so quickly!"

Kakashi was shocked, even though he had already guessed that Iwagakure and the Aurora Society might start a war in a short time.

But to everyone's surprise, only a few days after the Kazekage was kidnapped, preparations were already underway.

"Lady Tsunade, what exactly happened?" Kakashi suddenly asked, a thought flashing through his mind.

The Hidden Cloud Village and the Hidden Mist Village have a deep-seated blood feud with the Hidden Leaf Village. Unless special circumstances arise, it would be impossible for them to reach a cooperation agreement with the Hidden Leaf Village so readily.

"You really are smart, Kakashi."

Tsunade smiled and nodded with satisfaction, then handed over a document: "Take a look at this, and perhaps you'll understand why."

"Yes, Lady Tsunade."

Kakashi felt a strong sense of unease for no apparent reason and opened the document.

But what was inside truly terrified Kakashi, causing his pupils to shrink to the size of pinpoints.

"In the past few days, Iwagakure, in conjunction with the Aurora Society, has begun a large-scale operation to capture the Tailed Beasts." Tsunade sighed, her tone somewhat grave: "Besides me, the Jinchuriki of the One-Tailed Beast, and Gaara, the Kazekage, they have successively captured the Two-Tailed, Three-Tailed, Four-Tailed, Five-Tailed, Six-Tailed, and Seven-Tailed Beasts."

"How...how is this possible?!"

Kakashi suppressed his shock, but his expression was filled with horror.

"We find it hard to believe too."

Tsunade rubbed her temples and said in a deep voice, "But according to the intelligence from Kirigakure and Kumogakure, unfortunately, these are all facts."

"It seems that Iwagakure has mastered some kind of special power, so much so that Kirigakure and Kumogakure are completely unable to stop them." She paused for a few seconds and continued, "That's how it is. Kumogakure and Kirigakure finally believed our warnings and decided to formally discuss the issue of an alliance in the Land of Iron."

"It's simply unbelievable."

Even though it had been confirmed, Kakashi was still extremely shocked: "I didn't expect Iwagakure and the Aurora Society to act so quickly, and they even captured seven tailed beasts. Does that mean only the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails are left?"

"That's right."

Tsunade's expression turned solemn as she said, "Therefore, three days from now, you will be accompanying me to the Land of Iron as the Hokage's bodyguard, along with Might Guy."

"No problem, Hokage-sama."

Kakashi nodded, but after a few seconds of silence, he asked, "Lady Tsunade, I'd like to ask Naruto, what are your plans for handling this?"

Seemingly guessing what he wanted to ask, Tsunade paused for a moment before saying, "Don't worry about this. I'll have Jiraiya go to Orochimaru and hopefully we can negotiate to have Naruto handed over to us for protection. That would be better for everyone."

"Lord Jiraiya."

Hearing that it was one of the Sannin who was going in person, Kakashi was immediately relieved: "Then thank you very much, Lady Tsunade."

"You're welcome."

Tsunade smiled and said, "Personally, I don't really like that child, but from the perspective of the whole ninja world, Shikaku advised me that we must join forces with Orochimaru and it would be best to hand Naruto over to Jiraiya for protection, so as to minimize the chances of him being found by the Aurora Society and Iwagakure."

Kakashi hesitated, because he really didn't know whether he should tell the story or not.

"You can speak freely about anything."

Tsunade sat down again, raised her hand, and gestured for him to speak directly.

"That's right, Lady Tsunade."

Finally, Kakashi mustered his courage and said, "You should know about the relationship between Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha. They were both my teammates, so I was thinking, could Sasuke go with Jiraiya-sama? After all, they were master and student."

"Oh, so that's what you wanted to say."

Tsunade couldn't help but laugh out loud, and jokingly said, "I can tell you care a lot about your teammates."

Kakashi scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "After all, what happened back then left me with a lot of debt to them. If it weren't for me, Naruto probably wouldn't have left."

"Don't worry, Jiraiya has already said that."

Tsunade smiled and said, "Once Sasuke and Sakura have recovered, Jiraiya will also form a small team and lead them to the Sound Village to seek negotiations with Orochimaru."

(End of this chapter)