Chapter 596: Kumo's Collection
Sōkai followed Ishiro's instructions and sealed Ginkaku's soul into the Reaper Death Mask.
"What about Ginkaku?" Ishiro asked. "Can you release him from the Sword of Totsuka?"
Sōkai checked. "Yes."
He activated his Susanoo and released Ginkaku.
Ginkaku emerged, still "alive" as an Edo Tensei. But before he could rage, Ishiro and Shion struck simultaneously, binding him with a double seal.
Then, he followed his brother into the Reaper's stomach.
Ishiro sealed the Reaper back into the mask. "Alright. I'll watch things here. Go to Turtle Island. Find the casters of the Edo Tensei and use genjutsu to control them."
Sōkai's eyes lit up, and he rushed onto the island.
Killer B saw Ishiro and Sōkai casually sealing the Third Raikage and the Gold and Silver Brothers' souls.
His despair deepened.
B knew that after today, Turtle Island would be gone. Even if Kumo won other battles, it wouldn't matter. Even if they took some Iwa ninja down with them, it was meaningless.
What they were protecting was already lost.
With that thought, B launched a suicidal attack on Neji.
He used his best kenjutsu, abandoning all defense, charging at Neji with the intent of mutual destruction.
Neji's eyes flashed. First, an Imperial Wheel halted B's charge, then a Vacuum Palm sent him flying.
Neji frowned, feeling bored. It had been too easy.
Earlier, B's kenjutsu had posed a threat—far more than Sasuke's childish taijutsu. That version of B had been an excellent sparring partner, helping Neji gain experience.
So Neji had focused on improving his combat skills.
But now, B was essentially committing suicide. He didn't dodge. It wasn't a fight anymore. It was execution. It offered no training value.
Neji stopped holding back. Using the Giant Tenseigan, he unleashed a barrage of dōjutsu, instantly critically injuring the defenseless B.
Then he rushed in. Bam-bam-bam-bam! A series of heavy blows landed on B.
"BEEEEE!" The Eight-Tails, Gyūki, roared.
As a perfect Jinchūriki, Gyūki felt the moment B's life faded.
However, B had released Gyūki from his body before the fight, so B's death didn't kill the Bijuu.
Gyūki was distracted by B's death, but the emotionless rock golem didn't miss the opportunity.
Boom! It smashed its fist onto the distraught Gyūki's head, driving it into the water.
From high above, Ishiro saw this. He immediately generated a massive amount of porcelain mud, wrapping Gyūki up to seal him.
But Gyūki's resolve exceeded Ishiro's expectations. Before the seal could form, Ishiro's Mind's Eye sensed Gyūki's chakra fluctuating violently.
Flying in the air, Ishiro's gaze sharpened. This scene was familiar. The Three-Tails Jinchūriki, Yagura, had been like this before he died.
Then Obito had made him explode. So Gyūki was going to self-destruct?
Ishiro didn't hesitate. Since the mud was already around Gyūki, he controlled it to fly rapidly into the distance.
"Neji!" he shouted. "The Eight-Tails is going to self-destruct! Block it with the golem!"
Neji also sensed the fluctuation. He knew how terrifying an Eight-Tails explosion would be.
He quickly ordered the golem to turn and shield the group.
Ishiro moved the massive Bijuu away while opening the mud on the far side to vent the explosion. On the side facing them, he hardened the mud into a thick barrier.
But the next second, both Ishiro and Neji were dumbfounded.
The Gyūki, who had seemed so resolute, suddenly shrank... and dove headfirst into the ocean, swimming away at high speed.
Ishiro stared blankly at the fleeing Bijuu.
What the hell? Weren't you going to die with your Jinchūriki? Why did you run?
Because he had moved Gyūki far away to protect everyone, they were now too distant to stop it. They could only watch it escape.
Ishiro felt embarrassed. I got played by a Tailed Beast?
Neji paused for a moment. "Ishiro-sensei, should we chase it?"
"Forget it," Ishiro said. "Let it go! An Eight-Tails without a Jinchūriki can't make any waves."
Neji nodded but said nothing. He felt Ishiro was covering his embarrassment.
While Ishiro was dealing with Gyūki, another battle concluded.
Ōnoki's fight with the First Raikage.
The First Raikage's strength was average, but his ninjutsu was good, allowing him to defend against Dust Release. And his Lightning Release countered Ōnoki's Earth Release.
Although Ōnoki had the upper hand, he wouldn't have won quickly.
But Natsuki, from the air, had interfered.
Using Spirit Infiltration, she briefly controlled the First Raikage's body, slowing his movements just enough for a Dust Release blast to hit.
Natsuki dodged before the blast arrived, and Shion, coordinating perfectly, sealed the First Raikage with a Priestess Seal.
Ishiro saw this, pulled the sealed Raikage to him, and called Neji over to help seal the soul into the Reaper.
Ōnoki, having not fought in a long time, was a little excited but unsatisfied. He looked around and charged at the Second Raikage, who was fighting Han.
Ishiro shook his head, ignoring him.
A moment later, Sōkai returned. He looked embarrassed. "Ishiro-sensei, Kumo was prepared. The casters of the Edo Tensei have already committed suicide."
Ishiro nodded. Surprising, but logical.
The caster was the technique's greatest weakness. Kumo had guessed Iwa might target them. Since they summoned their own people who didn't need to be controlled, the casters killed themselves after the summoning.
After reporting, Sōkai saw Izumi hadn't finished her fight and moved to help.
But just then, Izumi erupted.
The two former Jinchūriki she was fighting weren't B or Yugito, but they used Bijuu chakra much better than the Gold and Silver Brothers. They coordinated well and fought steadily.
Izumi struggled to find an opening to cast genjutsu on the Two-Tails Jinchūriki.
Her genjutsu was different from Sōkai's. She controlled the Jinchūriki and the Bijuu inside him.
Once controlled, she didn't do anything else. She simply made him perform a specific set of hand seals before he could break free.
By the time he broke the illusion, it was too late.
His body turned into paper, revealing the sacrifice inside.
Following the method Ishiro had learned from Tobirama, Izumi had forced the Edo Tensei to release itself.
It didn't end there. As the soul tried to depart for the Pure Land, Izumi captured it using the Giant Sharingan.
Shion quickly sealed the soul with a Priestess Seal.
Izumi tossed the soul to Ishiro, and Sōkai eagerly stuffed it into the Reaper before Neji could act.
So far, Ishiro had collected five of the eight Kumo souls. Only the former Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, the Second Raikage, and Jiraiya remained.
These three weren't the strongest. With Iwa's absolute advantage, the battle would end soon.
But then, an accident occurred. Jiraiya suddenly abandoned Haku and ran into the distance.
Neji immediately gave chase to help Haku.
However, to everyone's surprise, Jiraiya formed hand seals as he ran.
The same scene that happened with the Two-Tails Jinchūriki repeated itself. Jiraiya performed the release seals, and his body began to dissolve.
The people capable of stopping his soul were too far away. By the time Neji arrived, Jiraiya's soul had returned to the Pure Land.
Ishiro chuckled. "Heh. Jiraiya of the Sannin. I underestimated him. He figured out the release method."
Neji was annoyed; Haku looked ashamed.
Ishiro laughed. "Why the long faces? He can't run."
He turned to Sōkai. "Go back into Turtle Island. Find Jiraiya's corpse."
Sōkai's eyes lit up. He rushed back into the island.
Izumi noticed this too. Feeling her carelessness had allowed Jiraiya to escape, she took her anger out on the former Eight-Tails Jinchūriki.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Jinchūriki was smashed into paper by Izumi.
He, along with the last remaining Second Raikage, did not escape the fate of being sealed into the Reaper.
A moment later, Sōkai ran out of the island, excited.
He had been clever this time. Not only did he bring Jiraiya's corpse, but he also grabbed a Kumo ninja to use as a sacrifice.
Right there on the porcelain platform, in front of everyone, Ishiro performed the Edo Tensei.
When Jiraiya opened his eyes again, he saw the group of people who had just captured a bunch of Kage-level powerhouses standing around him, staring.
His expression was priceless—even more awkward than when he was standing among the Kumo giants.
Ishiro smiled. "Jiraiya-senpai, why the rush to leave?"
Jiraiya: "Hahahaha... haha... ha..."
After sealing Jiraiya, Sōkai remembered something. "Ishiro-sensei, when I put the Kumo ninja under genjutsu, I found that many of them suspect they were betrayed by Konoha."
"They think Konoha leaked their location to us."
Ishiro paused. How did they come to that conclusion?
But he quickly figured it out. Only Naruto, an outsider, knew the island's location. They hadn't been found for two years, but right after Naruto visited, Ishiro targeted them. Even if Kakashi talked until his tongue fell out, he couldn't clear his name.
"Hehe!" Ishiro laughed. "This is good. Kill the rest, but leave one alive. Make it look like he slipped through the net!"
"Let him leave with his suspicion of Konoha."
Letting one go didn't matter. Ishiro knew Konoha had taken in hundreds of Kumo refugees. One more wouldn't hurt.
Sōkai was confused, but Izumi answered for him, "Lord Tsuchikage, I know what to do."
The battle was over. Ishiro looked at the massive Turtle Island, considering what to do with it.
The giant turtle hadn't made any aggressive moves from start to finish. It had only tried to flee after Ishiro attacked, and now it was controlled by Sōkai's genjutsu.
"Empty the island," Ishiro said. "Then take the turtle to the Land of Earth's coast and kill it."
"Don't touch what's inside its body. It might be useful later."
Everyone nodded. Ōnoki, Natsuki, Han, and Haku stayed outside to guard, while Ishiro led Izumi, Sōkai, Neji, and Shion inside.
There were many people inside, mostly children, all lying on the ground—some under genjutsu, some killed by Sōkai.
"Izumi, Sōkai, handle these people," Ishiro ordered.
"Yes." They went to clean up the Kumo ninja, planning to leave one lucky survivor.
Ishiro, Neji, and Shion began searching for Kumo's treasure.
The interior was vast. They searched separately for a while until Neji pointed in a direction.
"Ishiro-sensei, over there. Something is buried underground."
Ishiro's Mind's Eye was good for chakra, but Neji's Tenseigan was far superior for finding treasure. His x-ray vision pierced through everything.
Ishiro went to the spot and used Earth Release to dig.
"Wow! There really is something!" Shion exclaimed.
A large pit appeared, filled with neatly stacked boxes.
Ishiro opened them. Inside were various strategic materials, categorized and packed.
Decades of Kumo's jutsu scrolls, vast amounts of money, and Kumo's core research technology.
Ishiro flipped through a few scrolls and saw records of Kumo's secrets, including legends about the Sage of Six Paths' era.
There were also things he hadn't expected. Shion picked up a jar containing a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan.
Kumo had collected dozens of pairs, likely spoils of war.
There were also eight jars containing flesh, labeled with names. Ishiro recognized them as the samples for the eight Edo Tensei they had just sealed. Kumo must have kept them in case the corpses decayed.
Ishiro also saw several high-quality ninja swords and chakra metal.
Everything here was a treasure. Though the quantity was small, the value was immense.
Consumables like explosive tags and kunai were stored in large storage scrolls. Ishiro didn't check them.
He packed everything up and looked at Neji.
Neji had scanned the entire island. "That's it. No other hidden caches."
"There is a warehouse for daily supplies, where the corpses of the reanimated ninja are. But aside from that, everything else is low value."
Ishiro nodded. "Good enough. The value here isn't less than what we got when we sacked the village. This trip was worth it!"
After Ishiro collected the loot, Izumi and Sōkai finished dealing with the Kumo ninja.
They threw the bodies into the sea. One ninja had been stabbed in the chest, but luckily missed the heart.
Sōkai handed a bottle to Ishiro. "Ishiro-sensei, this is the survivor's blood."
Izumi had collected it, knowing Chiga's ability.
Ishiro nodded. "Izumi is reliable as always. Sōkai... when will you learn?"
Sōkai blinked innocently.
Leaving the island, Ishiro looked at the Sage's Tools left by Kinkaku and Ginkaku.
The Rope, Sword, Gourd, Fan, and Pot.
None of them had been effective against Sōkai. Now they were spoils of war.
The Banana Fan (Bashōsen) was the most useless. At Ishiro's level, the five-element attacks it produced were negligible.
The Rope, Sword, and Gourd combo was too cumbersome. Ishiro didn't care for it.
The Amber Purifying Pot was decent. It could seal a target if they responded to their name. Used unexpectedly, it could be effective.
But against the powerful enemies Ishiro faced now... he wondered if it would hold them.
Konoha.
Naruto returned safely, escorted by Samui's team.
He immediately wanted to find Sasuke to spar. But Kakashi told him Sasuke was in surgery and couldn't be disturbed.
Kakashi politely invited Samui's team to stay, but they refused.
Worried about Killer B, they rushed back to Turtle Island.
But the island was gone. Taken by Sōkai. Samui's team searched the sea and found only corpses.
They recognized them—the children of Turtle Island!
Realizing disaster had struck, they panicked and expanded their search.
They didn't find the island, but they found the Kumo ninja Izumi had let go.
He was just a boy. He had survived the sea but nearly drowned.
He wept as he told Samui what happened after they left.
Samui forced down her grief and fear. "Where is Killer B-sensei? Mabui-sama? Where is the island?"
"I was under Sōkai's genjutsu," the boy said. "I don't know the result of the battle outside."
"But since Sōkai had time to come in and deal with us... it means Killer B-sama must have been losing."
Samui was distraught. "How? We had Edo Tensei! With so many Kage, how could we lose?"
Karui and Omoi were in no better shape. Karui lost control of her chakra and fell into the sea.
Samui and Omoi fished her out, and the three began to accept reality.
"Killer B-sensei might be dead," Omoi said.
"Captain, use Edo Tensei. Ask the predecessors!"
Samui jolted. Right. She could ask them what happened!
She was the first Kumo ninja to learn the jutsu, and she had the DNA samples.
They took the wounded boy back to the Land of Lightning, found a civilian sacrifice, and cast the jutsu.
But the Third Raikage's summoning failed. They tried others. All failed.
After a moment, Samui said with difficulty, "The summoning failed. Either they are still fighting... or they've been sealed."
"The former is unlikely. It's been too long."
She didn't finish, but the others understood.
"Captain," Karui said, "we have nowhere to go. Should we go to Konoha and find the Hokage?"
Samui hesitated. The boy suddenly spoke up. "We can't go to Konoha. Mabui-sama told me her guess."
"Our location being exposed... it might have been Konoha who sold us out."
Omoi instinctively argued, "Impossible! Konoha is our ally! We share an enemy in Iwa! They wouldn't betray us now!"
Karui was conflicted and looked at Samui.
Samui remembered Kakashi's attempt to keep them in Konoha before they left.
Could it be...? Does Konoha want to absorb the hundreds of our ninja living there?
(End of Chapter)