Unlike the Hidden Rock Village, nestled in plains, or the Hidden Mist Village, tucked in a valley, the Hidden Cloud Village was concealed among towering peaks that pierced the clouds.
Its buildings were constructed between steep cliffs, connected by suspension bridges, walkways, and iron chains, forming a unique, three-dimensional layout.
The high altitude brought thick, swirling mist, giving the village a natural veil of mystery.
For outsiders unfamiliar with the terrain, it was easy to get lost.
The dense fog also created a harsh environment, with thunderstorms frequently striking the peaks and buildings.
Wooden structures wouldn't hold up in such conditions.
As a result, the Hidden Cloud Village relied heavily on stone for its architecture.
This gave the village's buildings a rugged, almost primal aesthetic.
But don't let the stone structures fool you into thinking the village was primitive or backward.
On the contrary, among the five great ninja villages, the Hidden Cloud Village was the most technologically advanced.
In the future, they'd develop the Chakra Cannon capable of bombarding the moon—a strategic weapon on par with a Tailed Beast.
In some ways, it was even more powerful than a Tailed Beast.
After all, there were only nine Tailed Beasts, but with enough materials, the Chakra Cannon could be replicated endlessly.
Of course, at this point in time, the Hidden Cloud Village likely hadn't yet succeeded in developing such a weapon.
Hovering in midair, Seimei gazed at the Hidden Cloud Village under the moonlight, its misty, enigmatic silhouette sparking a flurry of intelligence in his mind.
After a moment of thought, he suddenly released the "All-Encompassing Seal" at his forehead, revealing the sealed Byakugan within.
The eye opened.
In an instant, everything within a one-kilometer radius came into view.
Seimei's gaze pierced through the fog, locking onto the Hidden Cloud Village.
Because the village was scattered across multiple peaks, its structures too spread out, it didn't have a sensory barrier covering the entire area.
But that didn't mean its defenses were weak.
On the contrary, without a sensory barrier, the Hidden Cloud Village placed extra emphasis on guarding its entry and exit points.
To that end, they trained a significant number of sensory ninjas specifically to monitor these areas.
Combined with the village's militarized management, its defenses were, if anything, stronger than those of other villages.
This was exactly why Seimei hadn't recklessly stepped into the village's territory.
However, the presence of these sentries gave him an opportunity to act discreetly.
Under the cover of night.
Seimei concealed himself among the clouds, circling the mountain range where the Hidden Cloud Village was located. From time to time, he activated his Byakugan to observe the sentries patrolling the perimeter.
That's right—he planned to target these guards.
His goal was simply to plant a few spies, and it didn't matter who they were, their status, or their importance.
With that in mind, Seimei quickly locked onto a target.
Whether it was luck or some kind of fate, the person he chose wasn't just anyone.
Wearing a mask and a black cloak, they were unmistakably a member of the Hidden Cloud's Anbu.
At that moment, the ninja was alone, stationed in a crevice on a cliff, silently watching a path leading to the village below.
On the path, a team of four Cloud ninjas stood guard.
It was a classic setup: the four on the path were the visible sentries, while the Anbu on the cliff was the hidden one.
Being alone was perfectly normal for a hidden sentry.
And that made them a natural target for Seimei.
It was, as he saw it, a kind of inevitable fate.
Pushing aside stray thoughts, Seimei stopped overthinking. He carefully flew above the Cloud Anbu, hiding behind a rock, and dispelled his "Wind Release: Wings of Wind."
Next, he gathered a faint amount of chakra at the soles of his feet, just enough to support his weight, allowing him to walk along the cliff.
But he didn't rush to approach the Anbu. Instead, he activated his left eye's dojutsu—Heavenly Veil!
Silently, he cloaked his presence.
Only then did he step along the cliff, moving toward the Cloud Anbu below.
At first, everything went smoothly.
But as he got closer, the Anbu, perhaps sensing something or acting on instinct, suddenly grew restless.
They looked around, trying to spot anything unusual.
Unfortunately for them, no matter how hard they searched, they found nothing out of the ordinary.
Their gaze even passed over Seimei's position multiple times, but they didn't detect him.
True, even with the Heavenly Veil active, some people could vaguely sense his presence.
But this Cloud Anbu was definitely not one of them.
Before making his move, Seimei had used his Byakugan to assess the Anbu's chakra levels and gauge their strength.
This Anbu was, at best, a Special Jonin—and not even one specialized in sensory skills.
For someone like that to detect him was a pipe dream.
The only reason they sensed anything at all was likely because Seimei had stared at them too long, triggering their instincts, combined with his close proximity.
But none of that mattered. Seimei kept moving forward.
In his view, the Cloud Anbu hesitated for a moment before deciding to trust their gut. They prepared to call the four Cloud ninjas below to search the area for potential hiding spots.
But they made the decision too late.
By the time they stepped out of the crevice to act, Seimei was already right in front of them.
He dropped the Heavenly Veil, appearing silently less than half a meter away.
"What?!"
The Cloud Anbu's heart skipped a beat. They opened their mouth to shout and instinctively moved to pull back.
But the moment they met Seimei's eyes, the fight was over.
In an instant, Seimei's "Genjutsu: Sharingan" took control of them.
He grabbed the Anbu and pushed them back into the crevice, both of them hiding in the shadows.
After a moment, Seimei cautiously peeked out, glancing at the four Cloud ninjas below.
They were still grouped together, chatting, completely unaware of what had happened above.
Seimei let out a small breath of relief.
Wasting no time, he raised his hand, formed seals, and unleashed the fully mastered "Heart-Sealing Soul-Locking Contract Teleportation Mark."
Slap!
Seimei pressed his palm against the Anbu's chest.
The next moment, intricate sealing patterns spread from his hand, enveloping the Anbu's body like a vast net.
But the patterns didn't linger for long.
Soon, they vanished.
Only Seimei knew they hadn't disappeared—they had been etched onto the Anbu's soul.
Carefully, he set specific restrictions on them.
Then, he planted a suggestion to monitor the movements of the Two-Tails before using his Mangekyo Sharingan to erase the last few minutes of their memory.
Not stopping there, he manipulated the Anbu's body, returning them to their original position and blurring their sense of time.
This way, when they snapped out of the genjutsu, their first thought would be that they'd zoned out, not suspecting anything more.
Seimei had already perfected this technique on numerous Rock and Mist ninjas, so he wasn't worried about any slip-ups.
After restoring everything, he reactivated the Heavenly Veil and quickly distanced himself from the Cloud Anbu.
About ten breaths later, the Anbu came to.
Beneath their mask, their brow furrowed, a strange emptiness in their chest as if they'd forgotten something.
After a moment of thought, they peeked out, looked around, and, confirming everything was normal, refocused on their duty as a hidden sentry.
(End of Chapter)