Chapter 200:
"Shikamaru, are you alright?"
Ever since learning about Ōtsutsuki Isshiki's transformation into the monstrous entity known as Evilmoku, Shikamaru hadn't been able to sleep for nights on end, and his hair had noticeably started to thin.
"I'm fine, it's just... I'm worried about the future of the Shinobi World... whether it's the current threat of Evilmoku, or the biohazard that may happen in the future…"
The emergence of Evilmoku had brought with it an unprecedented pressure—this wasn't the kind of enemy one could overcome with just intelligence and strategy.
"Try to stay calm, Shikamaru. Besides, we still have the Light and Shadow Armor. Even though the entire bloodline of the Wind Daimyō has been wiped out by Evilmoku, didn't the Jar Merchant say it himself? The ability to summon the Light and Shadow Armor doesn't depend on bloodline, but on the summoner's sense of justice. As long as one has a just heart, anyone can become an Armor Warrior."
Seeing Shikamaru's worn-out expression, Naruto spoke gently.
"As for the zombie virus from the biohazard incident, Granny Tsunade and Kabuto are already developing a vaccine. According to her, Orochimaru's own virus strain is much easier to handle than the one developed by S.H.I.E.L.D."
Encouraged by Naruto's words, Shikamaru gradually steadied his emotions and suppressed his anxiety. "Is that true, Naruto?"
This might be one of the few pieces of good news lately.
"Yeah, so don't put too much pressure on yourself, Shikamaru." Naruto looked at him and said, "Our enemies may be powerful, but neither Konoha nor the Shinobi World are as fragile as you think..."
Umbrella Organization's Underground Base
"The zombies in the Land of Wind are gradually being wiped out."
The clone of Gray Wolf, who had accidentally awakened the original Gray Wolf's memories from his genetic data, reported to Orochimaru.
"Mm, I know." Wearing a white lab coat, Orochimaru remained immersed in his microscope, barely acknowledging the statement.
Orochimaru had always expected that his zombie virus would eventually be neutralized. After all, it was still in its early experimental stages. To assume that such an immature virus could run rampant in the Shinobi World would be to seriously underestimate both Tsunade—his fellow Sannin—and Kabuto, his most accomplished disciple.
"Is there anything else?"
Among all his clones, Orochimaru was most satisfied with this one.
With his wild imagination and outstanding hands-on skills, Orochimaru had even begun grooming this clone of Gray Wolf as his assistant. The only flaw was the way he looked at Red Wolf—it made Orochimaru somewhat uncomfortable.
"Um... I was wondering where Red Wolf went?"
"Jiraiya took her and Mitsuki on a mission."
"A mission?" The clone of Gray Wolf looked visibly worried.
Seeing his expression, Orochimaru inexplicably felt irritated and waved him off. "It's just a simple mission..."
And it really was a simple mission: interrogating the ghoul investigators Kōsuke Hōji and Juuzou Suzuya for information on Hydra.
If the Umbrella Organization was a subordinate of S.H.I.E.L.D., then CCG would be considered a branch of Hydra.
...
"There are traces here."
Mitsuki crouched down, examining the bloodstained, scale-like fragments on the ground. He leaned forward and sniffed them. "Ukaku-type kagune… The blood's still fresh. The target must've been killed recently."
"That's a pretty blatant trail, almost like they're luring us in. Should we follow it, Mitsuki?" Jiraiya asked, glancing at the boy beside him.
"Yeah." Mitsuki nodded. "When you have overwhelming power, schemes and tricks are meaningless."
"But I didn't expect there to be other ghouls in this world besides you..."
"Must be one of Gray Wolf's experimental subjects." Mitsuki replied as he led the way.
They followed the trail deeper in, as a dense white mist began to spread through the surroundings.
"This is the Hidden Mist Technique—be careful, Mitsuki," Jiraiya warned.
"...I hear running water. Looks like the enemy's chosen a battlefield favorable to them," Mitsuki said as he leapt into the air.
The moment he left his original spot, three shuriken laced with explosive tags embedded themselves into the ground beneath him and detonated.
"You okay, Mitsuki?!"
"I'm fine. Red Wolf, just keep the other one busy for me." Perched on a tree branch, Mitsuki's scarlet ghoul eyes locked onto the enemy ahead.
"For a ghoul, you sure have some nerve showing yourself in front of investigators," Jiraiya remarked as he looked toward Mitsuki, also crouched on a tree branch.
"Kōsuke Hōji, I ignored you before because I didn't care. But now, I'm on a mission." Mitsuki suddenly appeared behind Jiraiya, his rinkaku-type kagune launching an attack mid-sentence.
But Jiraiya turned into a splash of water upon being struck, hitting the ground with a splash.
"A Water Clone!" Mitsuki quickly scanned his surroundings, trying to spot Hōji in the mist.
"Water Style: Water Prison!"
"What?!"
The water that had pooled on the ground reformed into Kōsuke Hōji's body, who then launched a surprise attack while Mitsuki was distracted.
"It wasn't a clone—it was a transformation."
In fact, at the moment Mitsuki's kagune struck, Jiraiya had used a transformation jutsu to become water and drop to the ground, evading the attack and fooling Mitsuki at the same time.
"Mitsuki!"
Jiraiya called out anxiously, his voice full of concern. Though Mitsuki was Orochimaru's son, Jiraiya had long since come to see him as his own child.
"You're not going anywhere to disrupt Hōji-sama!"
As he shouted, Haku hurled a barrage of flying knives connected by chakra threads and made from kagune, aiming them at Red Wolf.
"Damn it!" Jiraiya was forced to evade. Then he began forming hand seals. "If that's how it is, I won't hold back either! Toad Oil Bullet!"
Jiraiya spat a massive stream of oil toward Juuzou Suzuya.
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
Though he no longer had access to his Ice Release Bloodline Limit, Haku still knew how to perform other nature releases.
A wall of earth rose in front of him, blocking Red Wolf's attack.
While the wall successfully blocked Jiraiya's offensive, it also obscured Haku's vision.
Having been through countless battles, Jiraiya wasn't going to miss that opening. He jumped high into the air, clearing the wall, and began raining down sharp wolf hairs from above.
Haku started dodging frantically, occasionally throwing flying knives to hinder Jiraiya's attacks. But in the end, he still fell into Jiraiya's trap.
When the wall had first blocked Haku's line of sight, the very first thing Jiraiya did was cast the Yomi Numa technique.
A jutsu that turned solid ground into swamp, it had become one of Jiraiya's specialized trap techniques after extensive refinement.
It looked just like ordinary terrain, but the moment an enemy stepped on it, it would trigger and transform into a swamp beneath their feet.