Outside the barren mountain.
Edge of the battlefield.
Looking at the spoils strewn across the ground, Bai Shi furrowed his brow. "How can I possibly carry away all of this?"
Although he held no particular feelings about killing Huang Tu, the son of the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki, he understood that if he wanted to avoid facing relentless pursuit in the future, he needed to maintain a low profile.
In that case, lugging around large bundles of loot was definitely not a viable option.
As for the Sealing Scroll, such rare items were hard to come by, especially during wartime. Even his own Sealing Scroll couldn't accommodate so much treasure.
"It would be nice to have a space ring... eh, a space ring?"
The thought of a space ring sent Bai Shi's mind wandering.
There was no doubt that space rings did not exist in the ninja world; therefore, if he wanted one, he would have to create it himself.
To craft a space ring, he needed to access an alien space or anchor one. The ninja world may lack many things, but alien spaces were abundant.
Take summoned beasts, for example. Each summoned beast with even a modest background typically resides in its own dimensional space, making them excellent resources for what he needed.
Bai Shi considered how to cut apart these spaces and concluded that sealing techniques would be a good approach.
With the right seals, he could create a channel connecting to reality.
The first thought he had was of the summoning beasts. The summoning contract permitted ninjas and summoned beasts to traverse between their respective realms.
However, the issue with summoning was that it required blood, which posed a problem.
Secondly, Bai Shi contemplated the Flying Thunder God's lightning technique.
This technique was a space-time barrier ninjutsu that opened a spatial rift to teleport objects.
Yet, Bai Shi wasn't certain whether this spatial rift could connect to another space. If it could, things would become much simpler. If not, he would have to devise other means.
As Bai Shi pondered, he continued to collect and seal some of the spoils into his scroll.
After tidying up, he performed earth-escape ninjutsu, burying all the bodies underground. With that complete, he altered his appearance and departed the battlefield.
To evade any pursuit, he utilized the Flying Thunder God Technique several times in succession, traversing most of the Bird Kingdom's territory until he could no longer sustain his chakra.
---
**The Country of Birds.**
**East.**
In a small town, Bai Shi wandered through the streets, taking in the closed doors lining either side.
Just a few months ago, he had come here to procure supplies. Back then, the place had been relatively prosperous. Now, however, it reeked of despair.
The reason for this stark decline was simple: the war in the ninja world had spread to this location.
With the Sand Village and Iwagakure leading the charge alongside their vassal nations, a war had ignited within the Land of Birds, shattering the peace of this small nation.
Even if the unfortunate encounter with Huang Tu had not occurred, Bai Shi would likely have departed hastily.
He had no desire to get embroiled in the complexities of the ninja world for the time being; instead, he planned to head directly out to sea and find an uninhabited island to survive.
Despite his current strength being formidable, he was still far from invincible. Without reaching a level of supremacy in the ninja world, there was no need to waste energy on unnecessary conflicts.
In the ninja world, no matter what actions one took, without sufficient strength backing them, it would all ultimately prove futile.
If he truly detested this world, he could simply wait until he became invincible. At that point, whoever dared to oppose him would be swiftly dealt with—wasn't that far more appealing?
With that thought, Bai Shi's expression lightened. After procuring some supplies, he exited the town and headed toward the border of the Bird Country.
As a small nation nestled between the Wind and Earth Kingdoms, the Bird Kingdom did not have direct access to the sea. Thus, to reach the ocean, there were only two possible routes.
One was to enter the Land of Earth and travel north to reach the sea. Clearly, Bai Shi would not choose this option, especially after killing the son of the "Minister of Defense." Wandering around their territory was a surefire way to court death.
Thus, Bai Shi had only one path left to take.
That was to enter the Land of Rain via the eastern border of the Bird Country, traverse through the Land of Rain into the Land of Grass, and finally enter the Land of Taki through its northern border, where he would find an outlet to the sea.
Once there, he could revel in the freedom of the sky to soar like a bird and the sea for fish to leap.
The caveat was that the Rain Country, Grass Country, and Water Trap Country were all current battlegrounds for the major ninja villages, making caution essential.
However, with his Wood Release, Wood Transformation, and the Flying Thunder God Technique, Bai Shi was confident in his ability to navigate this "Road of Death."
---
**At the same time.**
**The Land of Earth.**
**Iwagakure Village.**
Accompanied by the shrill cry of an eagle, a gray herald eagle swooped into the Tsuchikage Building.
Moments later, a decrypted piece of intelligence from the code squad was delivered to Ōnoki.
Upon reading the information, Ōnoki rose abruptly, his expression darkening. It was unclear whether it was due to the shocking news or simply the sudden movement causing discomfort in his back.
After a moment, Ōnoki carefully sat back down.
At nearly sixty years old and having experienced many highs and lows, Ōnoki remained composed—even when informed of his last son's death. Yet now, beneath this calm exterior simmered a potent desire for revenge.
The target of this rage was none other than Bai Shi.
It was undeniable that Huang Tu's death influenced Ōnoki's murderous intent toward Bai Shi, but it was by no means the only factor.
As Tsuchikage, Ōnoki prioritized the interests of Iwagakure above all. Avenging his son's death was secondary; the real issue at hand was Bai Shi's value—more specifically, his value to Konoha.
Current intelligence revealed that Bai Shi not only possessed Wood Release but had also mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique. At the tender age of eight, he had decisively defeated a group of over a dozen mid-level and high-ranking ninjas.
Though this capability stemmed from a lack of intelligence on the enemy's part, it was not to be underestimated.
Ōnoki couldn't fathom how powerful Bai Shi would be if he matured further.
If it had been six months prior, when he first learned of Bai Shi, Ōnoki's greatest fear was that this child might grow to become the next Senju Hashirama.
Now, he was convinced that as long as Bai Shi did not die young, he could become a pivotal figure capable of influencing the entire ninja world.
This was something that Iwagakure could not afford to accept.
Though existing information suggested that Bai Shi was not on good terms with Konoha, after all he had inherited the Wood Release from the First Hokage. This connection made it uncertain whether he might switch allegiances in the future.
Thus, Bai Shi must be eliminated—at all costs.
With this thought, Ōnoki promptly commanded, "Hunting!"
"I'm here!" A masked ninja appeared silently.
"Gather the demolition team members and search for the whereabouts of 'Tree,'" Ōnoki ordered.
The code name 'Tree' referred to Bai Shi, a name given by Sarutobi Hiruzen in an attempt to mislead the enemy and obfuscate information.
Neither Danzo, Orochimaru, nor Sarutobi Hiruzen knew Bai Shi's real name.
In the entire ninja world, only Bai Shi himself knew that this was indeed his true identity.
---
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