Naruto: From Fake to Real, Deceiving the Ninja World.

Naruto slowed his pace, fully engaging his keen senses.

He heard arguing, children crying, and patients coughing weakly coming from behind the thin wooden wall.

The deeper one goes, the more dilapidated the surrounding scenery becomes, and the chilling atmosphere in the air grows increasingly intense and tangible.

Most of the longhouses on both sides had broken doors and windows, and were nailed shut with rough wooden planks, clearly indicating that they had been uninhabited for a long time, leaving only a desolate scene.

Only a few scattered houses still emitted faint lights and the soft sounds of people, which only added to the desolation.

Naruto fell silent.

If I'm not mistaken, most of the people here have probably been forcibly evicted.

Is it to prevent "emptiness" from growing here?

As for the impoverished people who were evicted, what will become of them...?

Naruto recalled the blood-soaked soil and bustling city outside the city.

However, it is clear that even so, a steady stream of poor people continues to emerge, and the void left behind will only be filled with deeper despair.

This is another side of the capital of the Land of Fire, forming a stark and cruel contrast with the magnificent palace of the nearby Daimyo and the delicacies served at the banquet.

It's hard to imagine that such a place still exists in what is clearly the most prosperous capital of the Land of Fire; it's as if it were a product of two different eras.

Naruto's purpose in this trip was not only to witness suffering, but also to gather intelligence.

Is the appearance of "emptiness" related to extreme poverty and despair...?

Are the policies of Daming Prefecture beneficial to the common people...?

The real Land of Fire, which is never mentioned in the book...

Like a silent ghost, Naruto moved through the maze-like alleyways, his eyes constantly scanning the surroundings and his ears catching any potentially useful words.

Kagura's "Mind's Eye" remained activated, not only to guard against potential dangers but also to more deeply sense the almost tangible oppression and despair permeating the area...

Without a doubt, this kind of environment is the best breeding ground for 'emptiness'.

As night fell, the dim light of oil lamps flickered in the slums, like fireflies, but could not illuminate the deep darkness.

"It seems this is the only way for today."

Naruto knew he had to return to his residence before curfew began.

However, just as he was about to turn and leave.

"He's not a monster! He's my child!"

"You can't do this!"

A sudden, intense commotion, accompanied by terrified cries, angry shouts, and the sound of things breaking, arose from the depths of the alley not far away.

According to Kagura's perception, an unusually cold aura was spreading in that area.

“This aura…” Naruto felt a chill run down his spine.

Almost at the same time he sensed the anomaly, several other auras in the distance also stirred.

Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!

Several swift black shadows swept across the rooftop above him, their movements agile and synchronized, clearly indicating they were ninjas hired by the Daimyo's household.

They also noticed something was wrong and rushed to the scene immediately.

Immediately afterwards, heavy and chaotic footsteps and the clanging of metal armor came from the alley entrance, and a patrol of samurai carrying long spears and wearing katana at their waists rushed over upon hearing the noise.

Without the slightest hesitation, Naruto concealed his aura to the extreme and, using the dilapidated houses as cover, silently made his way towards the center of the commotion.

Meanwhile, in the distant center of the riot, several poorly dressed onlookers were being roughly shoved by several burly men dressed as slaves, wielding sticks.

Scattered on the ground were broken and simple belongings, while a boy was pinned to the ground with his hands tied behind his back by two town slaves.

A gaunt old woman stood with her arms outstretched, blocking several burly men from the town's slaves. Behind her, a figure huddled up.

Town slaves were low-ranking personnel employed by the "town office" to perform odd jobs and guard duties.

Samurai were generally affiliated with nobles. Even in the most prosperous capital of the Land of Fire, it was impossible for samurai to manage all the security. Most of the time, the "town hall" was responsible for it.

However, when faced with an unarmed old woman, these burly men who usually roamed the streets appeared unusually nervous, as if something extremely terrifying was lurking behind her.

"I'll say it again, get out of the way!"

The leader of the town slaves broke out in a cold sweat, his voice shrill with tension, his eyes fixed on the shadow behind the old woman: "He's going to turn into a monster! If we don't deal with it now, it'll be too late!"

"Don't kill him! He can still be saved!" the boy with his hands bound shouted. "Wait for my teacher... wait for the people from the Fire Temple! They can..."

"No, no, you can't take my son away, he's just sick..." The old woman's voice trembled, but she refused to budge an inch.

"He's dying! If he really dies, he'll turn into a monster!" Another burly man finally lost his patience, roared angrily, and shoved the old woman away roughly.

The old woman screamed and stumbled, falling onto the cold, muddy ground.

This completely exposed the figure she had been trying to protect.

A young man curled up on the ground, convulsing violently.

"Roar..." He let out a low growl that was not human. Under the skin of his bare neck and arms, there seemed to be dark lines moving and wriggling under his skin, as if they were alive.

That chilling aura was surging wildly from his body.

(Two more chapters to go)

Chapter 343 Namo Amitabha Buddha

"do not want!"

Seeing the burly man push the old woman down, the boy who had been restrained changed his expression and roared.

But, it's too late.

Click...click click!

The burly man's act of pushing the woman down seemed to provoke the man, and an even colder aura surged out, as if the strange noise of dislocated bones suddenly erupted from his body.

Just as the burly men gritted their teeth and pounced forward, a sudden change occurred!

The man's curled-up body was rapidly swallowed, twisted, and expanded by a thick shadow that appeared out of nowhere!

His head was raised at an extremely unnatural angle, his facial features disappeared, and in his place was a pale, smooth bone surface that firmly covered his entire face.

The Void was born!

"Roar!!"

The newly born "Void" let out a sharp, piercing howl, filled with pain and resentment.

It seemed to retain a trace of its former consciousness, its scarlet eyes looking at the old woman who had fallen to the ground, its movements momentarily frozen.

But then, driven by an even stronger instinct, it swung its arm, which had mutated into claws, indiscriminately sweeping it towards the nearest living creature with a piercing whistling sound.

puff!

Several burly men who rushed at them were caught off guard and were sliced ​​in half by the sharp claws, letting out shrill screams.

"retreat!"

Almost at the same moment that "Hollow" completed its transformation, the ninjas who rushed over and formed an encirclement shouted sharply.

They were well-trained and instantly threw kunai with explosive tags to block the Hollow's first wave of attacks, while simultaneously forming hand seals.

"Trap it! Don't let it get close to the Daimyo's residence and threaten His Highness!" the leading samurai shouted, and his men immediately dispersed to restrict the void's movement.

"Earth Escape - Earth Collapse!"

A ninja crouching on the ground was the first to complete the hand seals, slamming his hands down onto the ground.

As the chakra surged, the already soft and muddy ground beneath Hollow's feet suddenly collapsed, forming a deep pit!

The "illusory" body immediately lost its balance and, accompanied by mud and gravel, crashed into the pit with a loud thud, temporarily restricting its movement.

"Water Release: Water Binding Rope!"

Another ninja seized the opportunity, quickly forming hand seals and conjuring a torrent of water from his hands.

The water flowed rapidly, intertwining and twisting into several strong ropes, which he then flung towards the "empty" limbs in the pit!

The water rope firmly bound the "Void's" constantly struggling claws and lower limbs. Although it could not completely subdue its frenzy, it greatly restricted its movements.

Clearly, they were very experienced and knew very well that the "virtual" body was mostly incapable of being directly touched or harmed by ordinary physical attacks.

However, its mask and limbs are parts with "physical" characteristics, and therefore can be affected and bound by ninjutsu and attacks.

"Now!" the leading samurai shouted, seeing the situation.

Without hesitation, the three elite samurai beside him leaped into the deep pit, their samurai swords gleaming coldly in the dim light, the tips pointing directly at the pale mask on the ghost's face!

You can kill him by destroying the mask!

However, just as the samurai were about to strike down from mid-air...

"Hooray!"

The "void" in the deep pit seemed to sense a deadly threat and suddenly raised its head, letting out a deafening roar!

In front of its skeletal face, a point of red and black light began to rapidly gather and expand!

"Not good! Retreat quickly!" The ninja at the edge of the pit exclaimed in alarm, his expression changing drastically.

However, it was too late.

呲!

A blinding crimson beam of light shot out from in front of the "Void" mask, instantly engulfing the three samurai who jumped down!

There were no screams, no struggles. The moment they came into contact with the Cero, they were as if they were evaporated by the high temperature, turning into a few wisps of black smoke, leaving not even a trace!

The terrifying power chilled everyone around to the bone!

The next moment, the 'hollow' arm pulled hard, instantly dragging the ninja who was using water-style ninjutsu down.

puff!

The water-style ninja was torn in two by the Hollow's claws, and the blood splattered on the pale bone mask made it even more terrifying.

Earth Release: Rock Pillar Technique!

The ninja who initially used Earth Release reacted extremely quickly, his expression furious, and his hands rapidly formed hand seals once again.

Chakra was injected into the ground, and a thick stone pillar at the bottom of the pit suddenly rose upwards.

The "Cero" that was building up its second Cero was pushed up from the crater.

"kill!"

No further instructions were needed; a look of determination and rage flashed in the eyes of the surviving samurai.

Taking advantage of the precious gap created by the stone pillar, they rushed forward en masse, their blades flashing like bolts of lightning!

puff!puff!puff!

Several sharp samurai swords pierced through various parts of the Hollow's body simultaneously, but most of them did not cause any damage. Instead, they were pierced by the Hollow's claws.

but……

Click!

A crisp cracking sound was exceptionally clear!

One of the knives pierced through the pale bone surface of "Xu's" face!

"Woo..."

"Xu" let out a short, distorted wail, and the cracks on the mask spread rapidly, covering the entire bone surface like a spider web.

Immediately afterwards, its entire spiritual body began to twist, and finally with a soft "bang," it completely turned into countless points of light and dissipated into the night.

All that remained were the potholed ground, the pervasive dust, and the lingering chill in the air.

A newly born "Void" was successfully destroyed.

This wasn't the first time they'd dealt with a 'hollow'; such things happened almost every day. At least this was just an ordinary 'hollow' that had only recently been born due to illness.

If it were a 'void' that had absorbed many souls, the casualties would be far greater than this.

Even the weakest 'Hollow' paid the price with the deaths of several town slaves, three samurai, and one ninja.