"Isamu, I'm sorry!" Garuda said, her voice weak and dejected. The sorrow in her tone was genuinely heart-wrenching.
"Garuda, what's wrong?" Isamu asked, puzzled. Though he still wasn't fully used to being embraced by a beautiful woman, seeing her so downcast kept him from pushing her away. He simply let her hold him.
"I know I was unfair to you about my eldest and second brothers. Ashura is my family, after all, so I had to side with them. But I never meant you any harm. You know how I feel about you…!" Garuda sniffled, burying her face deeper into Isamu's chest.
Hearing this, Isamu immediately understood. She still hadn't gotten over his earlier rejection. A wave of emotion washed over him. Throughout history, many people spoke passionately, but few remained truly devoted. Seeing Garuda's unwavering persistence touched him deeply. He gently stroked her back and comforted her.
"It's alright. I don't blame you. If Ashura were my brother, I'd favor him too. There's nothing wrong with protecting your family."
The soft feminine scent of her body, combined with the press of her generous curves against him, stirred something in Isamu. Suddenly, memories of his time with Tsunade flashed through his mind, and his body began to react. Even the strongest shinobi could find it hard to resist a woman like Garuda—especially one with both a breathtaking face and figure.
No, no… this is wrong. Garuda was from a thousand years ago. They were separated by an entire millennium. More importantly, he had no way to bring her back with him when he returned. How could he…?
Just as Isamu tried to push those thoughts aside, Garuda suddenly leaned in and kissed him. The bold move caught him completely off guard. Was this really the behavior of someone from the distant past? And right here, in the tomb of her uncle, the Six Paths Sage?
The kiss shattered Isamu's ability to think clearly. He was no stoic ascetic. He couldn't resist such an eager advance—especially when his body had already responded. Garuda's initiative was the final push. Activating his Dōjutsu, Kamui, Isamu pulled both of them into the Kamui dimension.
Inside the Kamui dimension, intense kissing quickly gave way to roaming hands. Clothes were shed with urgent need, and they moved straight to the main act. Soon the alternate space echoed with their heavy breathing and passionate sounds.
While everyone else frantically searched for treasure in the tomb, Isamu and Garuda were locked in their own fervent "exchange of techniques" in a completely separate dimension. After more than two hours of intense battle, a spatial vortex reopened, and Isamu stepped out with Garuda in his arms. Though they had bared everything to each other, Garuda's face was still flushed crimson, and faint traces of their passion lingered on her neck.
Isamu, however, felt deeply awkward. When he had asked Garuda in the Kamui dimension why she had been so forward, her answer left him mortified. It turned out he had been the one to initiate.
While they were embracing, Isamu—seeing how much Garuda resembled Hinata, especially those prominent curves—had become physically aroused, pressing against her lower abdomen. The innocent Garuda had taken that as Isamu making the first move and had gladly responded, leading to everything that followed.
Isamu, you idiot… why can't you control yourself? Now he had taken Garuda's first time. He couldn't just abandon her.
But bringing her back to the future was an entirely different problem. He had traveled through time thanks to the system's guidance, yet taking someone from the past with him seemed impossible. Even if he managed it, she likely wouldn't be able to stay. If gods truly existed in this world, they would never allow someone from a thousand years ago to remain in the future. How many time-travel stories ended with everyone simply returning to their own eras?
"Isamu, what are you thinking about?" Garuda asked softly. "Let's hurry and find the artifact. We've… we've already spent over two hours. If we don't move quickly, there won't be anything left for us!" By the end of her sentence, her head was practically bowed to the floor in embarrassment, her neck glowing bright red as memories of their earlier intimacy flooded back.
"Uh… right!" Isamu replied, letting Garuda pull him along in search of the artifact. In truth, treasure was the last thing on his mind. All he could think about was how to bring Garuda back with him.
Unlike Isamu, Garuda—having shared such an intimate connection—now seemed genuinely motivated to find the artifact. Not for herself, but for him.
What neither of them realized was that while they had been occupied in the Kamui dimension, Ashura had already arrived with a large force and joined the search. Normally, Isamu's sharp perception would have detected the arrival of such a sizable army immediately. But his mind had been so preoccupied with Garuda that he only noticed when chaos erupted.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion shattered the tomb's silence. Stone pillars collapsed with a thunderous crash, and the entire structure trembled violently. Two figures burst out from the rising dust and debris—Indra and Ashura, bitter rivals locked in combat once again.
"Indra! This is our father's tomb!" Ashura shouted, visibly frustrated. "Breaking in is bad enough, but do you really intend to fight me here and destroy the place?!"
Indra sneered, his eyes fixed coldly on Ashura. His chakra surged powerfully as he gripped a gleaming long sword. Though similar in appearance to his previous blade, the sharp, oppressive aura radiating from it made it clear this was no ordinary weapon.