Sakura's medical training had made her methodical in searching Hayato's home.
While the others checked obvious locations, she examined less visible spaces, behind furniture, inside storage containers, anywhere small objects might be hidden.
"Found something," she called from near the kitchen area.
The others gathered around as she held up a small carved figure, a twisted wooden sculpture that seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it.
The moment it came into view, Yuta could see the Dark aura oozing off it
"It was kind of difficult to channel chakra through it even with my control so I guess..." Sakura tried explaining
"That's it," he said simply.
"This little thing?" Ino asked skeptically.
"It's causing all that chaos?"
Without warning, Yuta took the trinket from Sakura's hands and crushed it between his fingers.
The wooden carving crumbled like ash, and for a brief moment, there was a sound like a matchstick being struck barely audible but somehow significant.
"What was that?" Choji asked, looking around nervously.
"Cursed spirits need binding materials to amplify surrounding negative emotions and influence their environment," Yuta explained, brushing the ash from his hands.
"This was the binding material. These objects create a link between the user and the cursed spirit."
"User?" Kakashi's tone sharpened.
"Someone placed this here deliberately to allow the creation of a cursed spirit to latch on to the village elder, likely," Yuta glanced toward the unconscious Hayato.
"Destroying the binding material can either make the cursed spirit perish or run amok, depending on its level. This one was low-rank, it should easily ..."
He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes fixing on a point above Hayato's prone form.
The others followed his gaze but saw nothing.
"What is it?" Sakura asked.
A translucent shape began to form in the air visible only as a slight distortion, like heat waves rising from summer pavement.
It struggled to maintain cohesion, its form wavering as it searched for a new target.
The entity's attention settled on Ino, who stood closest to the door.
It began drifting toward her with predatory intent.
Yuta simply stepped between them, and the cursed spirit immediately recoiled.
Without Rika even manifesting, the creature's form began to dissolve, unable to maintain itself in the presence of Yuta's spiritual pressure.
"Was that a cursed spirit?" Shikamaru asked.
"A weak one. But there have to be more trinkets, this one couldn't be the only cause of such widespread effects."
Kakashi nodded grimly.
"Search the settlement. Look for objects that feel wrong, that seem to repel chakra. If breaking them causes any kind of shock or explosion, that's our target. If not, keep searching. Regroup in thirty minutes."
---
The teams spread out efficiently, each taking different sections of the village.
The search revealed a disturbing pattern, trinkets hidden in homes, even tucked into the village shrine.
Each one, when destroyed, released that same small but significant discharge of energy.
Twenty-five minutes after they'd dispersed, the groups found themselves naturally converging on the community center. The change was immediately apparent.
The oppressive atmosphere that they hadn't noticed had hung over the village like a burial shroud was lifting.
The air itself seemed cleaner, more breathable.
"The underground," Sakura said, voicing what they were all thinking.
They descended into the cellar to find a dramatically different scene.
The frantic atmosphere that had permeated the space was gone.
The vegetative patients were stirring, blinking with growing awareness.
The drunk-acting group had stopped their aimless wandering and sat quietly, looking confused but coherent.
Even the mutated villagers showed signs of improvement, the elongated limbs were slowly returning to smaller proportions, and the woman's sharpened fingers had begun to recede.
"With basic healing techniques, they should return to normal," Yuta said, observing the changes with professional assessment.
"Though watch for occasional strange behavior while the residual effects fade."
"Sakura, Ino, you're our medics," Asuma said.
"Take care of them. The rest of us will secure the area."
---
Outside the cellar, it was almost evening and everywhere felt colder than it had hours earlier.
The village was beginning to show signs of life, the village elder had been notified of the removal of the plague, shutters opened, people cautiously emerged from their homes, and those outside returned to theirs.
There was nothing anyone could do about those who had left.
"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Kakashi asked, his tone more curious than accusatory.
Yuta met his gaze directly.
"I don't trust you."
The blunt honesty hung in the air like a physical presence.
Choji stopped mid-chew of his chips.
Asuma's cigarette paused halfway to his lips.
"Fair enough," Shikamaru said after a moment, his strategic mind already moving past personal feelings.
"But we have two problems now."
"Two?" Asuma asked.
"First, our inability to see or sense these cursed spirits," Shikamaru continued.
"We'll be fighting blind against enemies we can't detect."
"Sensing emotions is advanced-level ninjutsu," Asuma pointed out.
"So is manipulating them. Not many shinobi have that specialization."
"Which makes identifying the perpetrator difficult," Kakashi agreed.
"What's the second problem?"
Shikamaru's expression grew troubled.
"Why would a small agricultural settlement like Kozakura have an underground cellar designed for holding prisoners?"
The question struck them all simultaneously.
Villages this size typically had simple storage areas, root cellars for food preservation.
But the underground space they'd just left had been constructed with containment in mind, reinforced barriers, multiple sections, proper ventilation for long-term occupancy.
"You think this was planned?" Choji asked.
"I think," Shikamaru said slowly,
"That someone knew exactly what would happen when those trinkets were placed. They wanted the villagers contained, not cured."
Yuta's expression darkened.
"A testing ground."
"For what?"
"To see how cursed energy affects people in this world. To measure the effects, document the changes." Yuta's voice carried a cold anger.
"Someone's conducting experiments."
The implications settled over them like a second curse. Somewhere out there was an individual with knowledge of cursed spirits, deliberately spreading corruption through innocent villages.
And they were just getting started.
"We need to report this," Kakashi said finally.
"And then?" Asuma asked.
"Then we find the other settlements," Shikamaru replied.