"Most of the people currently living in the Land of Whirlpools are gathered in the outer areas. The central region, because the battle back then was too tragic, has no one willing to live there."
Out in the wilderness, Shimon summarized the intelligence gathered in the Land of Whirlpools:
"At the same time, this is also the site of Uzumaki Village."
"In that case, tomorrow we'll investigate this area, then set out to return to the village."
With his finger, Takeshi circled the central position of the Land of Whirlpools on the map, feeling worried about the current situation of the village, before deciding to carry out one last day of reconnaissance.
Everyone, each carrying their own thoughts, rested for the night. At dawn, they packed up and moved toward the ruins of Uzumaki Village.
Just as the intelligence had said, the closer they got to the center, the fewer people they encountered. Along the way, not even a single conflict occurred, and before long they stood on the ruins of Uzumaki Village.
To call it "ruins" was perhaps too generous. Apart from a few broken walls still protruding from the ground, most of the area had long since been swallowed by wild grass.
Wherever their eyes landed, it was barren.
"After Uzumaki Village was destroyed, Konoha also sent ninja to look for survivors. Unfortunately, none were ever found."
Kneeling down and running his hand over a piece of rubble, Shimon searched briefly but found no hidden passages.
"Yeah. Everything useful was taken away by the invaders. Even the things they couldn't take, they destroyed."
Tobitake Tonbo, however, did find a hidden passage. But after investigating for a while, he realized it had already collapsed and was no longer usable.
"Earth Release: Moving Core."
To be sure, Takeshi used Earth Release to lift the soil and stones covering the passage, checking whether it was truly blocked.
Several broken skeletons were brought out by the jutsu. Clearly, this passage was indeed unusable.
Perhaps it was for the best. This way, their team would have every reason to return to the village as planned.
Canceling his jutsu and letting the stones fall back into place, Takeshi dusted off his hands and prepared to check another direction.
"Huh?"
Just as Takeshi lifted his foot, he heard Tobitake Tonbo make a puzzled sound.
Turning back, Takeshi saw Tobitake Tonbo staring down at one of the skeletons.
"Found something?"
Takeshi asked casually.
But he wasn't expecting much. After all, how could the invaders back then possibly have left behind anything important?
Tobitake Tonbo didn't answer, but instead tugged at the rotted clothing hanging from the bones.
His movements also drew Shimon's attention.
"Huh?"
Echoing Tobitake Tonbo's tone, Shimon also studied the scrap of cloth in his hand.
"Takeshi-san, can you raise this area again?"
Just when Takeshi was about to lose patience, Tobitake Tonbo finally spoke.
"Hm? Sure."
Takeshi froze for a moment, then nodded.
Could it be that he really had found something?
Did the invaders back then really fail to properly check the bodies?
"Earth Release: Moving Core."
As Takeshi raised the ground again, Tobitake Tonbo and Shimon immediately began digging into the soil blocking the passage.
Unable to watch them struggle, Takeshi fashioned some digging tools with Ice Release and tossed them over.
Before long, the two had gathered a pile of tattered cloth scraps and laid them on the ground, gradually piecing them into a whole.
"No doubt about it. It's a cipher."
Though the piece was incomplete, Tobitake Tonbo still nodded with satisfaction, a sense of achievement rising in his chest.
After all, even the search teams back then hadn't found anything this critical. This alone proved his skill.
"A cipher?"
Takeshi examined the faint patterns on the cloth but couldn't make anything out.
"Yes, a cipher. But not Uzumaki's."
Tobitake Tonbo explained: "It's normal that Takeshi-san can't read it. This isn't Konoha's cipher either, but one used by the Sarutobi clan during the Warring States period. It fell out of use after Konoha was founded."
"I see. No wonder I couldn't read it."
Shimon revealed a look of sudden realization.
He had guessed it might be a cipher, but hadn't known how to interpret it.
Who would have thought it was a code from the Warring States era—and from the Sarutobi clan, no less?
But why would a Sarutobi cipher appear in the ruins of the Uzumaki?
"Exactly. I only knew of this because of an old textbook published in early Konoha—'The Logic of Cipher Decoding.' Because of its age, the ideas inside are outdated, so almost no one ever reads it anymore."
"Fortunately, I still remember the decoding method it recorded. Even though some parts are missing, I can at least interpret a bit."
Taking out pen and paper, Tobitake Tonbo sat cross-legged on the ground and began decoding on his own.
Takeshi listened, nodding at first, then shaking his head.
This didn't seem right. A Warring States cipher, of unknown contents, possibly outdated—was there really any point?
What if the message turned out to be some secret of the Sarutobi clan?
To Takeshi, this felt like a total waste of time. Instead of decoding some irrelevant cipher, it would be better to head back to the village immediately.
After all, the Sarutobi clan's current leader, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was still alive. If they just gave him the cipher, surely the answer would be clear in no time.
...
Still, Takeshi decided to give them half a day.
By evening,
Beside the campfire, Tobitake Tonbo clutched his notebook, tirelessly decoding the cipher they'd found earlier. His absorbed expression even made Shimon feel a sense of admiration.
Only Takeshi quietly grumbled in his heart.
Seriously—his head was wrapped in bandages. How was this guy even reading text and ciphers?
After dinner, just as Shimon was preparing to send a routine message back to the village, a hawk's cry drew everyone's attention.
Even Tobitake Tonbo stopped what he was doing and looked up at the sky.
A ninja hawk, circling once, descended smoothly onto Takeshi's shoulder, tilting its head to study him.
"A messenger hawk from the village?"
Recognizing the breed, Takeshi untied the small pouch on its leg and pulled out a letter.
Once Takeshi finished, the hawk flapped its wings and took off again, leaving him sitting there with the letter in hand.
"What does it say?"
Akimichi Shitō asked curiously.
A shadow flickered in Takeshi's eyes. He crushed the letter tightly in his fist.
"The village wants us to return immediately, regardless of whether the mission is complete."
At this, everyone was surprised.
Shimon and Tobitake Tonbo, being closer to Takeshi's age, didn't fully grasp the meaning of the words. But Akimichi Shitō understood the weight behind them.
"Something big is about to happen."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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