"I will tear you apart!"
Kajika lunges at Ayaka.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan,"
Ayaka casts a powerful genjutsu on Kajika with just a blink of her eyes.
Argh…
Kajika halts in his attack. The pupil in his eyes constricts and drool leaks from his mouth. Kajika struggles to hold himself conscious as he weakly mutters.
'How could her Genjutsu be so powerful?'
Whoosh…
Darkness shrouds him, and he loses consciousness. Multiple cracks appear on Kajika's body as he suffers the backlash of nature energy after failing to maintain his curse form.
'Their curse form paired with the chaotic chakra flow makes them invulnerable to even a powerful genjutsu. However, I have managed to modify my genjutsu after studying Yakumo's techniques for almost three years. My genjutsu doesn't affect his chakra system instead it targets their mindscape. People with strong mental strength can easily shrug it off, but a person with chaotic will like him will easily fall prey to it.'
Ayaka seals Kajika's chakra with a sealing tag. She erects a barrier around him and quickly flickers toward Izumi's location.
---------------
A few moments later,
Ayaka and Yakumo arrive at Izumi's location at the same time. Both of them notice Izumi resting against a tree while Hanabi heals her wounds with medical Ninjutsu.
"Izumi Nee-san, are you alright?" Ayaka asks her.
"You should call me Izumi Sensei and yes, I am alright. I just exhausted my chakra." Izumi closes her eyes.
Hmm…
Ayaka notices a faint invisible green energy leaking from Izumi's eyes.
'That's life force. Did she use her life force to substitute for her chakra? I have to ask Lady Katsuyu to replenish her life force.'
"What happened here?" Yakumo looks around and notices the widespread destruction and an unconscious Guren lying near Izumi.
"It was an intense battle, but I somehow managed it." Izumi gives a subtle reply, avoiding the topic.
"I have already sent a backup request to the nearby patrol teams. We will return to the village once they are here."
Hmm…
"They are already here!" Izumi turns in a direction.
Soon,
Swoosh… swoosh…
Multiple shinobis in Konoha shinobi wear and headbands surround the group. Sakumo walks out of the shinobi group.
"Sakumo-san!"
Izumi slowly stands up.
"What happened here?"
"Sakumo-san… it's…" Sakumo notices Izumi's expression and dismisses the nearby shinobis.
"You can brief me now," Sakumo assures her.
"It's like this…" Izumi narrates the entire incident to Sakumo.
"Hmm… So, Kabuto's plan has already reached this stage." Sakumo's expression turns ugly.
"I will personally escort your group and the captives to Konoha. The intel this time is quite detailed. It will greatly bolster our preparations." Sakumo clenches his fists.
'Looks like another war is about to break out soon.' Izumi gets the subtle hints from Sakumo's words.
A few hours later, the group departs for Konoha.
-----------------------
A day later in Konoha,
Inside the meeting room in the Hokage office,
The new villager elder council, various clan leaders, Minato, Jiraiya, and Tsunade, are sitting around a round table.
The latest intel gathered by Izumi is placed on the table. Every clan leader has a tense expression.
"Kabuto! That son of a bitch." Choza slams his palm on the table.
"How could he… how could he destroy a major population of the Land of Rice Paddies? With this, I won't receive the latest rice crackers from…" Choza's sound turns feeble as he utters the later words.
"…"
An awkward silence spreads throughout the entire meeting hall.
Ahem…
Tsunade clears her throat and continues.
"The Land of Sound has been a budding threat since its establishment by Orochimaru. Orochimaru established multiple secret laboratories throughout the Land of Rice Paddies and near the border of the Land of Fire. He experimented on countless shinobis from various nations and multiple civilians from nearby villages to create his curse seal. …" Tsunade pauses and stares at everyone.
Emotions of rage, hatred, and disgust are spread across the faces of various clan leaders as they recall their losses under Orochimaru's hands.
"But we were able to neutralize him before he could threaten the safety of the village any further. However, his disciple Kabuto, a genius medical-nin and a member of Konoha's orphanage…" Tsunade turns towards the orphanage head, who lowers his head.
"… he learned from Orochimaru's mistakes and hid pretty well. Now, after years of preparation; he improvised all of Orochimaru's plans and flaws."
Tsunade picks up a scroll with information on the curse seal.
"This is the latest intel on Kabuto's improved cursed seal. Orochimaru's curse seal is based on the Sēji clan."
"Sēji clan?" Most of the elders and clan leaders are clueless about the new clan.
"Hmm… I seem to have heard about this clan." Shikaku Nara taps his finger on the table.
"It was a very powerful ancient clan in the Land of Ancestors."
"Was?" A few clan leaders raise their eyebrows.
"Yes, this clan was one of the most powerful clans, even before the era of the Sage of Six Paths."
"Sage of Six Paths? Isn't he a myth?" A few clans leaders have skeptical expressions.
"Mount Myoboku, Ryuchi Cave, and Shikkotsu Forest are also mythical places, but don't they exist?" Shikaku answers them with a question.
"Well… there might be some truth to it!" A few clan leaders agree as they stare at a silent Jiraiya.
"What was so special about the Sēji clan?" Inoichi inquires.
"Every member of the Sēji clan was a sage."
"What?" Jiraiya, who was silently sitting near Minato, suddenly opens his mouth.
"That's… that's ridiculous!" He exclaims as he recalls the painful process of learning Senjutsu.
"As incredible and unbelievable as it may sound… but it seems to be the case." Shikaku also has a dubious expression on his face.
"I only knew about it since there seems to be some record of it in our clan's library in the forest." Shikaku takes out a few scrolls with some writings on them.
"This is the relevant information I copied from the books." He passes the scroll to the members of the elder council.
"Then how did this clan perish if they had such abilities?" Jiraiya curiously inquires.
"There are not many details on it… but at some point in time, a curse that led to insanity afflicted the Sēji clan members. The insane clan members fought amongst each other, leading to their downfall. However, there are still a few surviving members of their clan roaming the shinobi world." Shikaku crosses his arms and closes his eyes.
Ahem…
Minato clears his throat to get their attention.
"As you all might have predicted, Orochimaru managed to get his hands on a Sēji clan member. He studied the unique physical abilities of the Sēji clan members and replicated them through his cells. However, the process was imperfect since Orochimaru himself wasn't a Sage. He required a suitable vessel to perfect this technique and gain greater power. However, before he could achieve his ambitions, he met his end."
"So, does this mean… this orphan kid Kabuto achieved what Orochimaru couldn't in just a few years?" The village elders and clan leaders have incredulous expressions.
"Yes, he not only perfected the curse seal, but he modified it to mass produce Jounin-level shinobis from genins, turn normal civilians into chunnins, and raise a jounin to the level of a Kage." Minato throws a report on the table.
"This is a report on the recent captives brought by Team Three. This group includes a rare Kekkei Genkai Crystal Release with the power of a Kage, a few genins, chunnins, and even civilian soldiers. Most of these people are under mind control and the intel we got from them is quite worrying." Minato's expression turns solemn.
"How bad it is?" Fugaku, whose eyes were closed the entire time, slowly opens them.
"Given the current state of things, a fourth shinobi war is around the corner!" Minato declares his speculation.
Before Izuna went missing, he disclosed a few things hinting of the Fourth Shinobi War. To prevent a paradox in the timeline, Izuna only revealed the major involvement of the Kabuto, Akatsuki, and Otsutsuki clan.
These subtle hints were enough for Minato and the rest to conclude.
"Fourth Shinobi War?"
Whoosh…
All the clan leaders stand up from their seats, stunned by the shocking revelation.