Country of Bears was also a small country, located in the west of Amegakure, sandwiched between the Country of Earth and Country of Wind.
Generally speaking, the only value of the existence of this small country was to act as a strategic buffer zone for the Country of Earth and Country of Wind.
This position was placed on Country of Bears because it carried a little unexpected factor.
It was because there was a Ninja Village in this small country called the Hoshigakure.
The leader of Hoshigakure was known as Hoshikage, and he was determined to make Hoshigakure the sixth major village that could rival the five major ninja villages.
"After rushing for a few days, I've finally arrived..."
Yuuji slowly raised his head, and his eyes looked straight ahead under the bamboo hat.
The leader of Hoshigakure dared to call himself a Kage. He was extremely arrogant, but no great country would really go and destroy Hoshigakure because of this kind of boring reason.
"The balance of power between the major powers is one of the reasons Hoshigakure can survive. Another reason is the meteorite..."
Yuuji stood on a rock and suddenly chuckled.
This meteorite fell in the Country of Bears two hundred years ago and was discovered and used by the first Hoshikage.
This thing was a fragment of Juubi, and it constantly released radiation. It had the ability to stimulate the body and strengthen the chakra, and it also gave Hoshigakure the confidence to be comparable to the five major villages.
"From now on, this meteorite belongs to me. If it belongs to Juubi, it will definitely become nourishment for me."
Yuuji's figure moved slightly, moving at an astonishing speed. He rushed forward with a whistling sound and entered deep into Country of Bears.
Along the way, he passed through several villages and arrived at the periphery of Hoshigakure.
A long valley lay in front of him.
"After passing through this poisonous gas valley, I will arrive at Hoshigakure..."
Yuuji recalled Hoshigakure's related memories.
This stretch of poisonous gas valley was also a natural barrier to protect Hoshigakure.
Yuuji estimated the distance, and with a powerful leap, he crossed the valley and quietly shuttled through it.
In the deepest part was a huge crater and an ancient building was there, which seemed to be a place to worship gods.
"Oh, I can't hold on anymore... The power of stars is too strong."
"I can't hold on for long either. It seems that this training will end here."
Several figures were in the house, surrounding a strange meteorite and refining their chakra.
One after another, people who could not support the huge power of the meteorite opened their eyes in pain and looked at the meteorite with fear and awe.
"Although this thing can greatly improve our strength, the problem is that the damage to our bodies will increase as time goes by... I'm really worried that we won't be able to last for the moment when Hoshigakure grows."
"Shut up, Natsuhi! The Star is a treasure bestowed to us by the heavens. Although there are some flaws, this is a test for us! As long as you love the village deeply enough, you can overcome this trivial difficulty. If you can't hold on, it must be because you don't love the village enough!"
A long-haired man with a cold expression shouted.
"'... Got it."
The woman named Natsuhi glanced at the others who were gritting their teeth and holding on. She sighed and closed her eyes in pain.
The Star had indeed greatly improved their strength and had also allowed them to use a secret technique that resembled the Bijuu chakra coat, allowing them to protect themselves in the cruel Third Ninja World War.
But the problem was... the price they had to pay was similarly enormous.
Many children did not even have time to stabilize their strength before they died one after another.
In order to practice, the entire Hoshigakure was enduring great pain.
Especially this bastard, Akahoshi, who always used that damned set of fallacies to bewitch people, such as "the reason why you can't bear it is that you don't love the village enough", "The more loyal a person is, the stronger the power."
It was simply ridiculous.
After the end of this training.
Natsuhi walked out of the house with a deep worry on her face.
"Why don't we go see the Third Hoshikage? That extremists Akahoshi doesn't make sense." A man tapped her on the shoulder.
"Hotarubi ... I'm afraid Hoshikage-sama will not agree to us. Only powerful strength can protect the village, but to get powerful strength, we have to pay a lot of casualties. This kind of thing..."
Natsuhi smiled bitterly as she looked at her husband.
The husband and wife were guards who were responsible for guarding the meteorite. They were also the people who had the most contact with the meteorite. Naturally, they knew the harm of the meteorite the most.
"Then we will find a way to steal it and make the village lose the Star forever. This way, no one will be killed by its power."
Hotarubi suggested in a low voice.
Natsuhi's expression changed slightly, and she hesitated for a moment before making up her mind.
That night.
As usual, the couple returned home and looked after their son, Sumaru.
Both of them knew that this was probably the last time they would spend time with their son.
"Mom, Dad, you came back so late!" The young Sumaru said seriously and hugged Natsuhi.
"Ah, something happened. Sumaru has to be obedient."
After the three of them had their dinner, Sumaru fell asleep.
Natsuhi and Hotarubi looked at Sumaru worriedly.
"Star will bring disaster. We can not let Sumaru walk on our path."
"I have been thinking that Star's radiation power that eroded the human body seems to be very similar to that of Konoha's disaster ninja. If we really reach the end of the road, we can offer the Star to him and maybe get his help."
The two of them sat in front of the candlelight and talked in a low voice.
After the Third Ninja World War, even a small country like Country of Bears had heard of Shiranui Yuuji's name.
"Let's wait a bit longer. It doesn't matter if we die, but Sumaru is very talented. If he is infected by the Star's radiation..."
"Star... We must destroy this thing!!"
...
In the middle of the night.
Natsuhi and Hotarubi had yet to take action.
Not far from the Hoshigakure, two uninvited guests also arrived.
"That is Hoshigakure, a very ordinary small village. Unfortunately, you have your eyes on it. It is really sad. It seems that I can only go and save these guys."
A bald monk recited his slogan with an indifferent smile on his face.
On the side, another man wearing a wide monk robe with a strange appearance said indifferently, "Put away your hypocritical sympathy. For you, killing is a normal thing. I really don't know how a person like you becomes a monk in Sunagakure."
The bald monk smiled, "Killing is a kind of salvation. It is the honor of us monks to be able to send these suffering benefactors to the Pure Land. Moreover, compared to me, you are even more elusive... Jigen-sama."
Jigen took off the bamboo hat, revealing his ordinary face.
Only the top of his head has hair tied in a ponytail and hanging down the back of his head.
His cold and indifferent temperament gave people a feeling of fear.
"Hoichi, go and bring the Star back for me. Ninja World is changing a little fast now. I need this meteorite to make some arrangements." Jigen's eyes were like dead fish eyes, dull and rigid.
Monk Hoichi sneered, "I know, meteorite, right? Speaking of which, the five major ninja village is actually very interested in this thing, but they are not sure of its specific value, so they have not taken any action to snatch it... Just leave it to me, as long as you don't forget what you promised me."
Jigen nodded with a cold expression. He jumped into the distance and looked ahead.
Hoichi snorted and looked at Jigen with a suspicious gaze.
To be honest, he was not familiar with Jigen. He only knew that this strange monk was unfathomable. In terms of strength and knowledge, he far surpassed him.
However, his reputation was not well-known, and he was extremely low-key. In the entire Ninja World, there were not many people who had heard of Jigen's name.
Hoichi had a limited number of contacts with him, and most of it was as a monk, talking about scriptures on behalf of the temple.
Even if it was Country of Fire's Chiriku or the previous Ichibi Jinchuriki who had died, they were far inferior compared to this Jigen.
"As long as I get that meteorite, Jigen will teach me a method to perfectly control the Ichibi. This kind of thing..."
Hoichi muttered to himself for a moment.
The sealing technique was the weak area of Sunagakure. They had always lacked a sealing technique that could forcefully seal Ichibi, causing Ichibi Jinchuriki to go berserk easily.
Ever since the death of the old monk Bunpuku, the newly appointed Ichibi Jinchuriki had become a vessel that had carried Ichibi since he was a baby. However, he was still unable to suppress Ichibi until now. It was unknown when he would lose his reason and go berserk.
"Fourth Kazekage's plan has failed. Gaara is not a qualified vessel, to begin with, so we can only think of other ways... As long as we have Hakke no Fūin Shiki(Eight Trigrams Sealing Style)'s level of sealing technique, Ichibi is no longer a threat to the village."
The young monk Hoichi was full of ambition, and his eyes were filled with an ominous glint.
"Jigen, remember your promise. Although I don't know why you didn't do it yourself when you were clearly very strong, if you played with me, I would kill you."
Hoichi said to Jigen in the distance. He immediately put down the bag on his back and took out his strongest weapon, and held it horizontally in front of his chest.
A lute.
"Oh? You even used this? Looks like you're serious..."
Jigen watched from afar with an expressionless face.
In his brain, a strange consciousness was constantly gushing out, controlling Jigen's thinking and will.
"Monk Hoichi, a Country of Wind's Kage-level ninja. Unfortunately, he is already an adult and is not easy to brainwash. He can only be used as a one-time item."
Jigen watched Hoichi's actions with an indifferent expression.
Hoichi carried his lute and rushed into the crater.
He headed straight for the building at the very bottom.
"Who is it?!"
"Someone come; someone wants to rob the Star!"
"What? The Star is a treasure passed down from generation to generation in our Hoshigakure. How can it be obtained by an outsider!!"
Instantly, people rushed out of the houses scattered around the huge crater in anger.
For Hoshigakure, it was not just a tool to increase one's strength. In the past two hundred years, the people in this village had already deified this meteorite, and it was worshipped and revered by people as a divine object.
This time, someone brazenly wanted to rob the Star and directly violated their reverse scale.
Many ninjas from Hoshigakure rushed out one after another. A pentagram was engraved on their foreheads.
"Is it that guy?"
"Carrying a lute and wearing a robe? Which singing group is this madman from?"
"Baldy, stop!"
A large number of ninjas gathered and rushed into the crater.
"Baldy? You have angered me." Hoichi stopped and looked at these fellows with a cold expression.
Weng!
He suddenly lifted up his lute and fiercely plucked.
A large amount of chakra was poured into the lute. Along with the music sound, powerful ninjutsu burst out, turning into a violent shock wave that swept in all directions.
Soon, a mournful scream rang out.
Rows of ninjas fell one after another and died on the spot.
"Although killing is very cruel, I will be happy to be able to send you out of this world and into the sacred Pure Land. I will bear all the sins."
Hoichi sneered.
He was a Kage-level ninja of the Country of Wind, and what no one knew was that it was not an exaggeration to say that he was the strongest.
"Damn it; he is so strong... Quickly use Kujaku Myoho(Mysterious Peacock Method)!"
The survivors all made hand seals, and as they shouted, the pink chakra that emerged from the body surface turned a feather-shaped array behind them.
"Yes, it is very similar to the Bijuu chakra coat, but it is too fragile."
Hoichi played the lute again. After killing these people in front of him in an instant, he walked step by step toward the building in front of him. He then senses a powerful aura from the building.
This aura was very strange, and he faintly felt an indescribable sense of threat.
"To be able to be fancied by that mysterious guy Jigen, it is indeed extraordinary. Speaking of which, according to the information I got from Sunagakure, Hoshigakure's Kujaku Myoho(Mysterious Peacock Method) relied on this thing in their training."
Hoichi was about to push open the door.
Natsuhi and Hotarubi immediately attacked. The Kujaku Myoho(Mysterious Peacock Method) that these two people grasped was the most powerful, and the amount of chakra they condensed was the thickest.
"Kujaku Myoho: Kemono(Mysterious Peacock Method: Beast)!"
"Kujaku Myoho: Yoku(Mysterious Peacock Method: Wings)!"
"I won't let you take the Star!"
The two of them used pink chakra to create different shapes and launched an attack on Hoichi.
"Well, the beast is to create a big snake, and the wings are to fly. It's really interesting. A flying ninja is extremely rare... Then I'll have to offend you!"
Hoichi exclaimed in admiration and immediately shouted.
Rip!
The clothes on his body burst open, revealing his upper body.
Natsuhi, "! What do you want to do?"
"...Don't get me wrong, this poor monk is not interested in women."
Hoichi continues, "I'm actually very interested in killing women."
A violent sound wave burst forth along with the powerful chakra visible to the naked eye. It suddenly spread out, and in just an instant, it smashed Natsuhi and Hotarubi's chakra coat.
The long snake made of chakra that rushed toward Hoichi didn't even touch his clothes before it was easily scattered.
Compared to Hoichi, these two were still too weak.
Perhaps with a few more years of training, they would barely be able to fight him head-on.
After the two of them vomited blood and flew backward, they looked up in despair as they watched Hoichi calmly push open the door.
"Damn it; the Star was actually taken away by an outsider."
"What is Akahoshi doing? Why isn't he here..."
Hoichi was no longer interested in paying any attention to the lives of these two trash fish.
He barged into the room and intended to use the meteorite in here to exchange for a powerful sealing technique from Jigen.
However, when he stepped into the room, his expression froze.
A black-clothed man had already appeared on the altar at the center and grabbed the meteorite.
"Is this the Star? What an interesting thing. From now on, this thing belongs to me." said the man in black.
"If you don't want to die, then put down the stone in your hand. This is not something you can control." Hoichi's face sank.
"Is that so? But you alone are unable to unleash the true power of Juubi's fragment."
"... Juubi? What Juubi?" Hoichi was stunned, and his face was full of confusion.
"You don't need to know this. You are going to die soon anyway." said the man in black.