Hey guys, first of all I want to wish you a happy new year, and also, thank you to all the readers and supporters who helped this story move forward.
That being said, I have two things to say. First, the update schedule will return to normal from now on, meaning two chapters per week on the webnovel.
Second, from midnight on January 1st until 11:59 PM on January 7th (Brasilia/Brazil time), P_treon will have a 20% off promotion for the first month on all plans.
Promotion Name: New Year - 20% off
Promotion Code: ABAC0
--x--
With only a few days left until the next full moon, Jugo was in a hurry, so he continued searching throughout the following day, hoping to find a possible location.
In the land of rain, there is a place called the Swamp of Purple Mist.
What's special about this place is that it's surrounded by fog all year round, a purple fog that makes anyone who sets foot there lose themselves in a deep stupor. The reason for this was discovered a long time ago, it's home to a large group of carnivorous plants of the same species.
This plant, nicknamed Purple Death, is as big as a cart when it grows. That place has so many that you can see one, from small to large, every few meters for a radius of several kilometers, each emitting a purple pollen that merges with the humidity in the air, generating an endless fog.
This is a place that has been considered a restricted zone for a long time, but if that were the case, they would have died out a long time ago. But there is another inhabitant in that swamp: salamanders.
Yes, the same type as Hanzo's.
This group grew up in a symbiotic relationship, the salamanders, large and small, work together to create a farm stretching for miles. The salamanders feed the plants, and the plants produce a nectar that the salamanders love, which also helps enhance the potency of their venom.
Thus, it is a rare case of extreme mutualism.
Even if no one goes there, the salamanders still hunt all kinds of animals and throw them to them.
The smaller ones survive on insects because the mist they emit is very attractive to them, but more intelligent creatures are unlikely to fall for it, so salamanders are responsible for feeding the larger ones.
Jugo was very surprised to read about it and thought that with all those who had died there over the years, feeding the plants known as Purple Death, he probably should have found the right place.
Even if the souls of animals left behind a much smaller amount of spirituality, how long will that place have existed?
Jugo believes that this target was exactly what he was looking for.
Now he needed to find a way to leave the village.
Jugo could just leave, it was unlikely Karin would be hurt by Orochimaru, but Kin and Dosu shouldn't be so lucky, so ideally they should take them all.
But if he left with everyone like that, it could make the snake paranoid and that would be another problem.
Thoughtfully, he devised a simple and straightforward plan.
-Do you want to look for Tsunade?- Orochimaru, his arms bandaged and lying on a hospital bed connected to a bag with some liquid dripping slowly, looked at Jugo with narrow, snake-like eyes.
-Yes, Orochimaru-sama, honestly, after managing to control myself, being stuck in one place is making me a little irritated.- Jugo said, with his usual gentle tone. -I'd rather help with the search than wait here.
Orochimaru paused thoughtfully for a moment, but finally turned to Kabuto, who was looking at some data on a monitor and jotting something down on his clipboard.
-Kabuto, give Jugo our current findings.- Orochimaru requested calmly.
Kabuto paused for a moment, then glanced at Jugo out of the corner of his eye, smiling slightly. He nodded. -Alright, Jugo-kun, please follow me.
Kabuto left the room while Jugo followed him, Orochimaru's eyes fixed on Jugo, but he didn't see any strange signs. His long tongue unconsciously licked his lips, his body was sweaty and his face didn't look well. Therefore, even though he found Jugo increasingly strange, he didn't care, finding Tsunade was the main thing.
Jugo left with Yami, Yoru and Getsu in tow, not only them, but also Dosu and Kin.
Jugo managed to get them out with the excuse that they were already used to working as a team, in reality, Kabuto said that they were still considered a team and Jugo's rank was raised to Jonin, while Kin's was raised to Chunin and Dosu's to Special Jonin.
Not that Jugo cared much about it, nor did Orochimaru care about it, it was just a title given randomly. In the Village Hidden in the Sound, that kind of title can be given at will, as long as one's strength reaches a certain point.
There are no powerful clans or advisors and elders to give their opinions, only Orochimaru. If he decides something, it gets done.
Putting that aside, Kin was very happy to go out while Dosu seemed relaxed.
The three dogs traveled ahead while Jugo headed for the land of the earth.
He wouldn't go directly to the Rain Village, the nearby Land of Earth would serve as a transit point, so as not to arouse Orochimaru's suspicion if he had sent someone to follow them.
Jugo could escape any pursuer by going alone, but with his companions, he traveled at a much slower speed.
He could simply create clones and upload them, but in that case it would be clear that he was trying to hide something.
Thus, Jugo could only endure.
Fortunately, their speed wasn't slow, in the last city bordering Earth, Jugo hid with his group while separating some clones and transforming them into his companions, allowing them to leave the city.
Jugo, on the other hand, hid the group in a caravan heading towards the land of rain.
At that point, even if he were discovered, Jugo could say that he had a feeling he was being followed and thought it was ninjas from the country of Konoha.
Jugo hadn't sensed anyone following him, but he still preferred to be safe than sorry, at the very least, if the villagers came looking for them later, they could confirm that they had left for the land of Earth.
Jugo, on the other hand, had already entered the Land of Rain, leaving the caravan shortly after and following the map towards the Purple Mist Swamp. Kin and Dosu were finally informed about part of the information.
-I need to train a technique that will make me much stronger.- Jugo strode through the rain, speaking to the group, all now covered by raincoats except for the dogs.
-What do you need us to do?- Dosu didn't ask what it was, but directly inquired about their role.
-Nothing, I just got you out of there to prevent you from becoming targets.- Jugo said calmly.
Kin looked at Jugo in surprise and Dosu narrowed his one eye, turning to Jugo, this was the first time anyone had done something like this for him.
His eyes narrowed over the cover as he let out a soft sigh.
Kin, on the other hand, already wanted to jump on Jugo, but she held back, it wasn't the right time.
-I'll leave you in some village along the way, don't expose yourselves, I won't be able to help you while I'm training.- Jugo continued.
-Okay.- Dosu and Kin nodded.
He couldn't take them with him, the fog there was already dangerous, not to mention the poisonous salamanders. If he weren't a zombie unafraid of poison, he wouldn't even want to go in there.
A few hours later, Jugo parted ways with them, quickly continuing his journey. It took him only a quarter of a day to reach the swamp, the purple mist could be seen from afar, and the sweet scent had been felt for a long time.
The closer he got, the better the smell became.
Jugo, on the other hand, felt something that most other people wouldn't feel, a dense spiritual aura.
He could even hear the laments of the dead echoing through the fog.
They were not souls, they were merely remnants of persistent spirituality.
Jugo didn't care much and didn't enter the fog head-on, but used the ground style to get onto the ground and continue sailing away, the full moon was only two days away and he preferred to spend the remaining time searching for the perfect spot.
Deep underground, he transformed into a zombie, further enhancing his spiritual senses. He began to wander inward, going deeper and deeper into the swamp's core. He was so deep that no roots could reach him, but he soon found some tunnels, likely used by the larger salamanders.
He then went even deeper, luckily he didn't need to breathe for a long time.
It took him two hours to find the point of greatest spirituality.
The point? A huge cave full of salamanders of all sizes crawling around, but the real highlight was the bones, bones scattered everywhere.
He was confused to see so many bones hiding in the darkness, he saw a salamander regurgitate the bones and finally understood.
He didn't understand why such a large animal couldn't eat the bones, but he wasn't a biologist, he wasn't there to understand these salamanders.
Jugo sighed and sank further into the ground, ending up ten meters above the cave of bones.
He dug a hole large enough to hold a coffin and then went to buy one, he didn't want the smell of decay to attract salamanders to eat him, and besides, there would be other insects trying to devour his flesh. Lying directly on the ground would be a real nightmare.
Along the way, Jugo was in a particularly good mood.
Moving on to a Wraith would be the turning point for him, finding the right spot was truly a stroke of luck.