Kirigakure's most famous techniques were not those exaggerated Water Release jutsu, nor the so-called Seven Ninja Swords, but a remarkably refined ninjutsu.
Water Release, Hidden Mist Technique.
This ninjutsu wasn't particularly difficult to learn—most Kirigakure jōnin could use it. After casting, a thick mist would envelop the surroundings, blocking the enemy's vision while the caster remained unaffected.
Gekko Chizan stepped outside with his Transparent Release active. Seeing the dense fog before him, he couldn't help but click his tongue.
With such naturally perfect misty weather, no wonder the Kirigakure shinobi developed such a practical ninjutsu.
"This kind of weather is really annoying."
Muttering softly, Gekko Chizan rose into the air.
There weren't many places in Kirigakure that could actually catch his interest.
"Chōmei, help me sense where any seals are."
"You know what I mean."
Chōmei froze—then froze even harder.
Seeing his partner not reacting, Gekko Chizan immediately pushed him again:
"Hey, Chōmei, what are you doing?"
"Uh—uh—I just didn't react for a moment."
Chōmei shook his head. When he heard Gekko Chizan tell him to locate sealing sites, for some reason his mind went straight to Yugito.
This bastard had a criminal record of abducting Jinchūriki. Previously he kidnapped the Two-Tails' Jinchūriki from Kumogakure. Now that he'd come to Kirigakure… could he be planning to repeat the same job?
This bastard—does he want to kidnap every tailed beast?
"Chōmei, I can feel what you're thinking."
"You're wrong. I don't intend to kidnap Kirigakure's tailed beasts."
"I'm just trying to confirm something."
Ever since Nagato had been abducted, Gekko Chizan knew that the situation had completely deviated from the original storyline he remembered.
So he needed to figure out exactly how far the other side had progressed.
Were Isobu and Saiken still here? Because when he met the Fourth Mizukage earlier, he could tell the man wasn't a Jinchūriki.
Which meant Isobu should currently be sealed independently.
In the original story, Kirigakure was infiltrated by Uchiha Madara, and to provoke Uchiha Obito, they deliberately used Isobu to set up a scenario…where Kakashi personally killed Rin.
That incident caused Isobu to break free from Kirigakure's control.
And now that the three little ones were with him, safe and sound, would the Isobu incident still happen?
"Got it, I'll help you look."
"Mm, let's do it together."
Searching from the air, Gekko Chizan's eyes plus Chōmei's senses—one human, one bug—began sweeping Kirigakure for any signs of a seal.
But after a while, Gekko Chizan realized something was wrong.
"Chōmei, hold on. We might both be idiots."
"How could a tailed beast seal possibly be placed inside the village???"
"If the seal broke and the beast rampaged, wouldn't the whole village be finished?"
Maybe he'd stayed in Konoha too long—Gekko Chizan had actually forgotten that tailed beasts were weapons of war. Only Konoha would dare keep a tailed beast right inside the village.
Look at Kumogakure—Gyūki lived in the Valley of Clouds and Lightning.
Look at Sunagakure—Elder Chiyo imprisoned Shukaku's previous host, and Gaara only lived freely because of Rasa's protection.
Normally, tailed beasts were always kept in some hidden location outside the village under strict supervision.
"Uh… then why didn't you say that earlier? I searched half the village for nothing! Do you know how badly this fog affects vision??"
"I forgot, all right? Stop complaining. Let's search outward."
Gekko Chizan and Chōmei began flying toward the outskirts of Kirigakure.
"If it's not inside, then a nearby valley or underground cave is possible."
Analyzing as he flew, Gekko Chizan saw Chōmei nod heavily while constantly probing for anomalies.
The fog was still thick, but their speed did not slow.
Strangely, there were even mountains partially surrounding Kirigakure, blocking the southeastern side.
Without thinking, Gekko Chizan flew toward the mountains. After all, in his understanding, Kirigakure had two tailed beasts.
One was the turtle-shaped Isobu.
The other was the slug-like Saiken.
The former lived in the sea.
The latter, if he remembered right, was imprisoned in some cave.
Suddenly, Chōmei shouted excitedly: "There's a powerful chakra fluctuation in the valley ahead! It's probably there!"
Gekko Chizan's heart lit up. He sped toward the direction Chōmei indicated.
Soon he arrived beneath a mist-shrouded mountain. The peak looked terrifying under the dense fog.
"Chizan, there's a cave over there."
"I see it, and I can sense chakra from inside. Looks like this is the seal."
"Tch, as if I wouldn't know who's in there without you saying it."
Hearing Chōmei's disdainful tone, Gekko Chizan laughed.
He had already guessed the owner of this place. The only tailed beast that lived here could only be Saiken.
"This sour, rotten smell—it's definitely that slug bastard. Still disgusting as ever."
Saiken was a massive slug, shaped almost like it had limbs.
Its body constantly secreted a highly corrosive fluid, and it emitted a gas that caused anything it touched to rot.
Because of that trait, even the other tailed beasts disliked it.
"Since the Six-Tails is here, no need to go inside."
"At this time, it should be asleep."
Gekko Chizan didn't approach. He was only here to confirm things—not actually meet the Six-Tails or Isobu.
One was a turtle, one was a slug—he had zero interest.
He rose into the air again, heading this time for the coast near Kirigakure.
After all, Isobu was a sea turtle—it lived in the ocean.
But after circling the entire coastline at high speed, he still found no trace of Isobu.
His brows tightened.
"Isobu is gone?"
"How is that possible?"
Of course Isobu was gone. It had been implanted into Rin's body by Uchiha Makito and Black Zetsu to provoke Nagato, and was ultimately killed by Konoha shinobi.
The Jinchūriki's death meant Isobu had entered a resurrection period, and it still hadn't revived yet.
As dusk settled, Gekko Chizan, unable to find anything, used Flying Thunder God to return to his lodging.
His arrival made Pakura and the three little ones hurry toward him.
"How was it? Did you find anything during your walk?"
Facing Pakura's question, Gekko Chizan shook his head.
Not finding Isobu meant something had definitely happened in Kirigakure—he just didn't know what.
For a moment, Gekko Chizan felt the situation had slipped far beyond his expectations.
And that was not a good thing.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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