"..."
The deathly still air almost solidified, pressing heavily on everyone's chests.
The newly added "stain" on the door silently declared that everything that had just happened was not an illusion.
Several rapid breaths emerged from the otherwise calm darkness, clearly from people hidden in the shadows, just like that Cloud Village rogue ninja.
Aside from that brainless Cloud Village rogue ninja, there were no fools present today, so naturally, no one was foolish enough to jump out and be a trailblazer.
Even with perception ninjutsu that could detect the presence of others, everyone tacitly refrained from acting, merely observing coldly as the Cloud Village rogue ninja was used as a test subject.
Yet, they hadn't expected to witness such a bizarre scene.
A door that could devour chakra and even people?
Just as most people were lost in shock and fear, a hint of blood permeated the air.
Boom!!
Accompanying several bloody arcs streaking through the air and splattering, a figure with a slit throat, severed Achilles tendons, and hand tendons, terrified like a broken doll, was violently thrown from the darkness.
Without time to react or resist, he slammed into the massive portal.
Buzz!
The deep blue, eerie glow on the door reappeared, and the bizarre scene repeated itself.
From the man's slit throat, only a strangled, completely discordant gurgle of air managed to escape before his chakra and flesh were visibly drained, meeting the same fate as the previous Cloud Village rogue ninja.
"That's right."
This time, Yugito Nii saw it clearly, thinking to herself: "It really did open a little."
It wasn't just her who noticed keenly; everyone else present also perceived it.
Throwing that unlucky fellow onto the door was to verify their hypothesis.
"..."
Several people stared intently at the crack in the door, which was only slightly clearer than before, but the almost imperceptible gap seemed to mock the fragility of a life.
The crack was bottomless, revealing nothing behind the door, only radiating a more pure darkness and stillness that seemed to freeze the soul.
A chill licked at the cheeks of those present, and the atmosphere before the underground palace gradually grew heavy.
Just then, someone made a move.
Buzz!!
A blazing white light instantly illuminated, abruptly tearing through the impenetrable darkness.
Dozens of figures hidden in the darkness finally appeared, instantly growing wary and creating distance from those around them, instinctively squinting towards the source of the strong light.
Didn't they attack?
The intense light only appeared for a moment, but nothing happened, and it was swallowed by the dense darkness again.
However, soon, a voice entered everyone's ears.
"Yugito Nii, right?"
Yugito's cat-like eyes moved slightly towards the voice, looking at the five figures emerging from the darkness.
They were five ninjas of varying builds, not wearing headbands, and dressed in different colored clothes. Upon recognizing the five, Yugito's cat eyes constricted.
"You are... the Xuanyuan Sect, the 'ninja hunters'?"
She stared at the five figures, her voice deep: "It seems someone has hired you?"
If one looked closely, the figures of the five flickered like smoke, clearly not their true bodies.
"Taking money, eliminating disaster for others, nothing more."
The leader said calmly: "I just didn't expect even the Two-Tails Jinchuriki to be present. We'll need to ask for more when collecting the final payment."
"I imagine you can also tell that to open this door, more chakra needs to be devoured."
Another person beside him spoke: "I think there's no one more suitable here than you in that regard."
Hearing this, Yugito sneered, extending sharp claws from her fingers: "Just you lot?"
"Meeting us," one of the Xuanyuan Sect members suddenly chuckled, "your luck is very bad."
"Hmph, mere bounty ninjas daring to boast!" The Cloud Village ninja standing beside Yugito's expression turned cold.
Since they didn't know where the enemy's true body was, they would just use indiscriminate attacks to force everyone out.
With that thought, the Cloud Village ninja formed hand seals, his refined chakra surging within him.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Rod..."
But the next moment, as lightning flashed around him, some of his chakra seemed to be absorbed by something, and his chest instantly swelled to a terrifying size.
"Ah!!"
The sudden, intense pain directly interrupted his hand seals. The Cloud Village ninja let out a pained scream.
The expressions of the surrounding Cloud Village ninjas turned to surprise and doubt. They were about to step forward when they heard the ninja roar: "No, don't come over! Ah!!"
Crack! Crack!
As his chest swelled again, Yugito seemed to discover something, her face changed, and she shouted without hesitation: "Fall back!"
The Cloud Village ninjas accompanying her were elites. Hearing the command, they instinctively distanced themselves.
Boom!
Like a blood-filled bag exploding, flesh and blood scattered and splattered like rain in the explosion.
Splat! Splat!
The Cloud Village ninjas were bathed in their comrade's blood rain. Scarlet chunks of flesh and blood splattered onto their shoulders. They looked at the puddle of blood on the ground, their expressions furious and shocked.
"What kind of jutsu is this?"
"You're asking for death!"
Just as some of them were about to charge out again, they were stopped by Yugito, who raised her hand.
"Very good, just like that, don't move recklessly."
Seeing this, the leader of the Xuanyuan Sect swept his gaze around again, coldly saying: "The others as well. The one who hired us only wants what's behind the door, no killing required."
"I suppose you all understand that only by opening this door can you obtain what's inside."
"Since everyone's goal is the same, if you don't want to end up the same way, then obey me honestly."
"Otherwise, I can't guarantee who will be the next person to explode."
Upon these words, the figures that had been hidden in the darkness, eager to move, instantly froze. For a moment, the Xuanyuan Sect truly managed to suppress the situation.
That Cloud Village ninja's death was quite bizarre; no one had seen how the Xuanyuan Sect had attacked.
Until the principle of that explosive ninjutsu was understood, most of the people present truly dared not act rashly, as no one could guarantee whether they had been affected.
Especially the bounty ninjas present, who were familiar with the Xuanyuan Sect's reputation and abilities, could only stand still and observe coldly out of apprehension.
"Please." The leader of the Xuanyuan Sect looked at Yugito, saying in a deep voice, "What you lack least is chakra, isn't it?"
Actually, even if Yugito Nii were to attack suddenly now, she wouldn't explode like that Cloud Village ninja.
Because this technique was actually their cultivated "Exploding Bugs," which could parasitize the enemy's body and feed on chakra. Using chakra and ninjutsu was feeding the "Exploding Bugs," accelerating their growth until they reached their limit and exploded completely within the body.
Since Yugito, the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, was needed to feed that door, the Xuanyuan Sect naturally couldn't plant "Exploding Bugs" on her as well.
They were gambling.
Gambling that Yugito Nii wouldn't dare to act.
Gambling with the lives of their five members and over a dozen Cloud Village ninjas.
"..."
And just as they expected, Yugito narrowed her eyes, but indeed didn't dare to act rashly. She walked to the door.
The two distorted stains on the door seemed to come alive, exuding a greedy desire. Her expression grim, she slowly raised her hand and pressed it onto the door.
Hum! Hum!!
That familiar light reappeared, but it was no longer the faint, eerie glow from before. Instead, a deep blue light erupted with a roar, instantly engulfing the massive door like a tsunami!
The light was so intense that it even briefly dispelled the darkness underground, illuminating the entire area before the underground palace with a chilling brightness!
"Uh-ah!" Yugito Nii let out a painful, suppressed groan.
The immense, pure chakra within her, like billions of icy needles, pierced through her skin, muscles, and meridians, uncontrollably surging towards the door, then being devoured by that greedy, colossal door!
That terrifying suction force, as if an invisible giant hand was constantly seizing her body, felt like it was tearing her soul out.
Click, click, click!!
Under the varied gazes of everyone, and with the frenzied infusion of chakra, the previously imperceptible crack in the door visibly widened.
As the teeth-grinding friction sound emerged, an even colder, more deathly silent, and ancient aura gradually seeped out from the other side of the door, permeating the air.
Yugito's gaze was fixed on the door's crack, that chill seemingly able to corrode her bones through her sight.
She could feel that something was behind the door.
Ancient, cold, full of malice, yet it made her feel strangely familiar.
But, soon.
Yugito's chakra was almost completely drained, yet the door before her had only opened to the size of a fist.
"Damn it! Damn it!!"
Yugito tried to reach her hand into the crack, but it was still blocked by an invisible force. Her gradually paling face instantly darkened.
She could actually feel that if she continued like this, the door would open soon.
But by that point, her chakra would be completely exhausted, and she would have no strength left to contend for what was inside the door!
So, she deliberately acted as if her chakra alone wasn't enough.
The expressions of the others who witnessed this scene also grew grim. Their suppressed thoughts and movements began to stir once more.
It seemed they could hear the door greedily whispering down to them.
Not enough! Far from enough!
Give me more!
Undoubtedly, if even Yugito Nii couldn't open the door, then it would be their turn to die next.
Who knew how many more lives would be needed to fill it? The same way the Xuanyuan Sect forced Yugito to die, they would naturally force them to die later.
They couldn't wait any longer...
"Hmph!"
"Damn it!"
Thump! Thump!
Accompanying the sound of flesh being torn, angry roars erupted from the darkness. The five ethereal figures of the Xuanyuan Sect suddenly dispersed.
And that voice was quite familiar to the others; it was one of the Xuanyuan Sect members who had just been threatening them.
Bang! Bang!
Two bodies, like crumpled sacks, were casually thrown out, hitting the cold door with dull thuds.
The lights from the Cloud Village ninjas' flashlights quickly swept over, revealing two still-warm corpses, wearing the yellow and blue attire of Xuanyuan Sect members.
Horror and pain were frozen on their faces. They had large, gruesome penetrating wounds on their necks, and they were gradually being sucked dry and shriveling by the door.
"What are you still hesitating for?"
A voice with a hint of laughter echoed from the darkness, like a tempting whisper, stirring everyone's desires.
"Kill!"
A single syllable, imbued with coldness, was softly uttered, instantly tearing through the suffocating silence and breaking the already fragile balance.
After a brief, tense silence, several figures in the darkness lunged at each other, starting with the closest ones.
"Ah!"
"Damn it!"
"Kill them!"
Roars, screams, curses, and explosions instantly erupted in that darkness!
Flickering flames illuminated faces contorted by anger, fear, and greed.
The colossal door and the shadows in the dark quietly looked down upon these sacrifices slaughtering each other before them, offering their lives and souls.
It was only natural.