Chapter 129: Aftermath
The desperate Funato Taikai placed his last hope in his two missing sons. Little did he know, they had met a fate worse than his own, having already perished long ago.
"Is he the leader of the Funato clan?" the Mist ninjas asked, curiously eyeing the man trapped within the green barrier.
Mei Terumi nodded. "Yes..."
"For you to use a sealing barrier, he must be quite formidable. Let's just remove the barrier and kill him together," one of the Mist ninjas suggested confidently.
"No!" Mei Terumi refused outright. "It's not about numbers. This man is Funato Taikai, an immortal being. No matter how severely you injure him, he can regenerate using water. We can't kill him; we can only seal him."
"What? Such a person exists??"
The Mist ninjas were stunned. They finally understood why Mei Terumi resorted to using a barrier.
Ao, clutching his wounded shoulder, hobbled over to Mei Terumi. "Maintaining this barrier requires a tremendous amount of chakra. You can't keep this up forever. When your chakra runs out and the barrier weakens, he will escape. Let the others who know sealing techniques help you."
"I'm aware of that, but we can't keep assigning people to maintain this barrier indefinitely. I'm considering a permanent solution—taking him back to the village and sealing him there forever, where he can do no harm," Mei Terumi said, her expression serious. Though she had temporarily subdued Funato Taikai, figuring out how to deal with him was crucial.
An opponent who couldn't be killed was a significant problem. If he were to escape, he would undoubtedly return with more pirates, turning their efforts into a wasted endeavor. This time, he had to be contained permanently.
"Ah... Ao-senpai, you're injured! Medical ninjas, over here quickly!" cried Chojuro, finally noticing Ao's condition.
"You're just noticing now? Youngsters these days have no eye for detail..." Ao muttered, though relieved that his pain was starting to subside under the care of the medical ninjas.
Mei Terumi glanced at Ao, a hint of reprimand in her eyes. "Injured by a mere girl? How could you?"
Ao smiled wryly. "She wasn't just any girl. Her chakra arrow attacks were both fast and fierce. If not for my Byakugan, I would've been dead. But I managed to dodge the fatal blows."
"Hmph, you still have a lot to learn," Mei Terumi said, her tone severe.
"Please, don't scold me. I just thought of a way to keep this guy restrained permanently," Ao said, a hint of excitement in his voice.
Mei Terumi's eyes lit up. "Oh? Tell me."
Ao cleared his throat. "The key to his regeneration is water. We could create a transparent prison, severely injure him first, then lock him inside. If we remove the air, creating a vacuum, and seal the prison completely, he won't be able to regenerate and will remain in his weakest state indefinitely."
"That's a good idea," Mei Terumi said, satisfied with Ao's suggestion. She immediately ordered a message to be sent to the village, requesting the construction of a vacuum chamber capable of holding a person, to be delivered to the island as quickly as possible.
"Ninjas skilled in sealing techniques, gather here!" Mei Terumi commanded.
"Yes!" Twelve elite jonin quickly assembled in front of Mei Terumi.
"You'll form four teams of three. Each team will take turns maintaining the barrier, switching every thirty minutes."
"Understood!" The jonin swiftly formed their teams, with the first group taking over from Mei Terumi and her two shadow clones.
"Ugh..."
The moment she released her shadow clones, Mei Terumi felt a wave of exhaustion, nearly collapsing.
"Lady Mei!" Chojuro was quick to catch her, his voice filled with concern. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine... just tired," Mei Terumi replied, trying to stay composed.
"I'll help you to the ship to rest," Chojuro said, his determination clear despite his own bruises.
"Ao, take care of things here. Don't kill the widows of the Funato clan; they're originally from our Water Country. Bring them back to the village for Lord Gengetsu and the elders to deal with..." Mei Terumi said, her voice growing weaker.
Despite her often cold demeanor towards Ao, Mei Terumi trusted him deeply in critical moments.
"I understand, Lady Mei. Leave it to me. Chojuro, take good care of our Water Shadow—no, our Mizukage!" Ao corrected himself, acknowledging Mei Terumi's rightful title after her achievements in this battle.
"Yes, I will take good care of Mizukage-sama!" Chojuro affirmed, feeling a swell of pride and responsibility.
With Mei Terumi and Chojuro gone, Ao took charge. He sent a portion of the ninjas to search the island for any hidden enemies, capturing anyone suspicious. The rest, he organized to transport the Funato widows onto the ship bound for Kirigakure. He also left a small team of elite jonin to protect the ninjas maintaining the barrier.
A ninja inspected the body of Funato Seiki and reported to Ao, "Sir, this girl is dead."
"Oh..." Ao wasn't surprised. He had fought hard to severely injure Funato Seiki. Her strong life force had kept her going longer than expected.
"Take her body. The techniques she used were strange. We'll have the Body Disposal Squad study her. If they succeed, we might be able to learn her techniques."
"Yes, sir," the ninja responded, lifting Funato Seiki's body and heading toward the shore.
An hour later...
The cleanup was going smoothly. Nearly a thousand Funato widows were captured and secured on the ship. The bodies of the fallen Funato ninjas were mostly incinerated by the Mist ninjas, leaving no trace behind.
The search team reported back, confirming that the island was clear of any threats. Ao finally felt a sense of relief.
"Excellent, notify everyone to rest," Ao ordered. "We'll wait here for the vacuum chamber from the village."
...