Escape from Konoha.

Although it was Shiraishi who first proposed the organization, he suddenly realized that Ruri was much more professional than him in establishing an organization.

"However, have you decided where you want to establish the organization?"

Liuli asked this question.

The organization's base of operations could not possibly be established within the territory of the five major powers, as these five countries represent powerful nations that would not allow uncontrolled forces to remain outside their borders.

If an organization were to be established within the territory of these five countries, it would inevitably face a devastating blow.

Therefore, we can only start with small countries.

"The Land of Demons or the Land of Iron... which do you think is better?"

"A neutral country?"

Neither the Land of Demons nor the Land of Iron can be considered a major power; there are only five major powers in the ninja world.

However, not all small countries are classified as neutral.

For example, the Land of Rain, the Land of Rivers, the Land of Grass, or the Land of Whirlpools that was destroyed a few years ago... Although they are small countries, they are in danger of being destroyed by larger countries at any time.

Therefore, among the many small countries, the Land of Demons and the Land of Iron stand out as particularly special.

Especially the Land of Demons.

This is a country with no prominent name.

The highest ruler of the country is not a daimyo, but a being known as a 'shrine maiden'.

This country has a belief in witches and possesses a certain mystical style.

Ruri had also heard that the ruler of the Demon Kingdom—the priestess—possessed an extremely special power, which was said to be able to see the future.

There's no universally accepted conclusion as to whether this is true or false.

Regardless, the Land of Demons is indeed the most unique country in the ninja world.

Its mode of governance differs from that of most countries in the ninja world.

"Yes, neutral countries can provide a good protective identity and will not be affected by war."

"The Land of Demons, perhaps."

"Liuli said."

Shiraishi looked at her, eager to hear her reasons.

In fact, the Land of Iron and the Land of Demons are quite similar, but in terms of proximity, the Land of Iron is more suitable.

“My parents mainly work there. Because of business dealings, they have some connections with the rulers of the Demon Kingdom and can provide them with some conveniences.”

"A shrine maiden?"

Shiraishi remembered Ruri saying that her parents were merchants in a small country in the far west of the ninja world.

The Land of Demons is located in the far west of the ninja world.

The only slightly complicated part is that the Land of Demons is very far from the Land of Fire.

Even if you travel at full speed without stopping, it will take more than three days to barely reach your destination.

If only there were airplanes. But Shiraishi could only dream about it.

With the current technology in the ninja world, there may be flying tools, but they cannot be widely used and would be very expensive.

"I don't know much about the shrine maiden either. Later, I'll have them organize the intelligence on the Land of Demons, as well as some information about the shrine maiden."

"That would be wonderful."

Aside from the somewhat long journey, Shiraishi was quite satisfied with the unique circumstances of the Oni Kingdom.

We've already seen the ninjas, but what kind of being would a shrine maiden be?

Having the ability to see the future, I really want to see it for myself.

◎

A month is neither a long nor a short time; it has passed by in the blink of an eye.

After that, Shiraishi also went to the Hyuga clan and invited Ayane out. He also mentioned the organization's affairs. She didn't get upset and said things like, "I will unconditionally support whatever decision Shiraishi-kun makes."

Sometimes, Shiraishi really couldn't understand girls' thoughts.

Perhaps this is due to the onset of puberty.

The underwear and kimono that Shiraishi had been hiding in her room were not given to Ayane during this opportunity, because she would not accept them now.

Although he is still as obedient and well-behaved as before, he can be stubborn in certain aspects, which Shiraishi believes is a kind of growth that he finds very interesting.

What will her future hold? After freeing herself from her cage, will she leave herself to find the true freedom she yearns for, to break free completely from herself... and find her own path...?

After all, these were ninjas he had personally trained.

It was a bit of spoiling, or perhaps indulging, her unreasonable demands.

He wanted her to follow him for life, but he also wanted her to have complete freedom to do what she liked without having to care about his feelings as her 'master'.

This is a very complicated state of mind.

—As for the organization's establishment, it is progressing relatively smoothly.

First, the organization chose the Land of Demons in the far west of the ninja world as its base.

Shiraishi didn't need to go there to observe in person; he could simply control the five people, making them his eyes, hands, and feet.

Even if he goes to the Land of Demons, it will be many years later.

There is absolutely no need for him, the person in charge, to rush over at the moment.

After a month of basic training, the five people barely mastered the basic skills of a ninja. The next step was to apply these skills to actual combat.

Two days before the end of their vacation, the training was completed. Ruri was tasked with transporting them out of Konoha, and Ruri's ninja cats were responsible for liaison between the two sides.

Those five people were heading to only one place—the Land of Demons.

Once they get there, someone will tell them what to do next.

The laboratory has returned to its quiet state, with only Shiraishi working there.

Compared to a month ago, the issue of replacing chakra with natural energy as the life energy source has been basically resolved.

The result was somewhat unbelievable, but Shiraishi had no choice but to believe the answer he had verified.

That is, in some way, natural energy is extremely similar to chakra!

It could even be said that natural energy, after undergoing a series of processing procedures, can be transformed into energy similar to chakra.

According to computer statistics, the similarity rate is over 90%.

The reason why they cannot be 100% identical is because it is technically impossible, and there are many things that Shiraishi cannot understand and finds incredible.

In other words, processing natural energy to this extent has reached its limit.

To proceed further, special 'equipment' is required.

Shiraishi has no clue about this 'device' at the moment, and even its existence is unknown.

Shiraishi thought this might be a coincidence.

Because natural energy comes from the natural world.

Chakra is derived from the combination of physical and mental power in the human body.

They are fundamentally completely different and unrelated.

The only connection between them is the fusion of Sage Chakra.

Natural energy is equivalent to chakra in nature, which is different from human chakra.

Therefore, this unexpected discovery may really be a coincidence.

He originally only wanted to process natural energy as a life energy source to replace chakra, but the more he researched, the more contradictions and problems that completely defied common sense appeared one after another.

"What's going on here..."

Shiraishi gave a wry smile.

To be honest, Shiraishi really had no other choice.

There's no need to continue the experiment to verify the relationship between chakra and natural energy. If the goal is simply to solve the problem of the caged bird, this is already sufficient.

Furthermore, he genuinely had no other choice.

Because the research trail ends here.

Shiraishi sensed a door tightly shut in front of him, and the answer lay behind that door.

No matter how much force or other methods were used, the door could not be moved even slightly.

Bai Shi was helpless about this.

We had no choice but to give up exploring further.

Shiraishi couldn't possibly conjure up something out of thin air when there was absolutely no clue about it.

If new clues emerge later, we can continue to explore them; now is not the time to focus on such matters.

Soon, he would be going to the battlefield again.

◎

At the beginning of October, my two-month vacation ended, and today is the day I head to the front lines.

Shiraishi, Ruri, and Ayane met at the entrance of Konoha Village.

Shortly afterward, an ANBU member appeared, handed two documents to Ruri and Ayane, and then disappeared.

"A Chunin appointment letter?"

The two documents are identical in form; they are special appointment letters for promoting ninja ranks.

The people being promoted are naturally Ruri and Ayane.

"boring."

Having already reached the level of a Jonin, Ruri was not very satisfied with the position of Chunin.

Ayane smiled, put away the appointment letter, and clearly didn't care about it.