The two figures walked through the vast, boundless forest. With every step, dry leaves crunched beneath their feet, producing a soft rustling sound that filled the air.
Leading the way was a man with long flowing hair and scarlet eyes.
Walking closely beside him was a young woman with black hair and a gentle, quiet demeanor — most notably possessing a voluminous figure that drew the eye.
They were none other than Kaoru and Hinata.
Kaoru had vivid memories from his past life of watching The Last: Naruto the Movie.
In the film, there was a mysterious cave believed to be an ancient ruin belonging to the Ōtsutsuki clan, located in the Land of Fire, not far from Konoha.
Aside from the dense forest surrounding the area, it was marked by a large river and a waterfall at its center.
Indeed, bringing Hinata here was exactly his intention, and the gift he planned to give her was directly related to this place.
The eerie, blood-red glow of his Rinne Sharingan flared to life, its power surging outward. In an instant, every detail and movement within the area fell clearly into Kaoru's sight.
"Found it..."
A faint smile appeared on Kaoru's lips. Holding Hinata's hand, he led her forward.
After passing through another stretch of woodland, they could already hear the faint, rushing sound of falling water echoing in the distance.
"Is that waterfall our destination...?"
As she spoke, Hinata had already activated her Byakugan. Her enhanced vision spotted the waterfall nearly a kilometer ahead, cascading downward like a great ribbon of white silk.
"Precisely..." Kaoru nodded gently.
After walking for several more minutes, Kaoru and Hinata finally stood directly before the massive waterfall.
The roar of the water was deafening, and mist filled the air all around them.
"This is the place..."
Standing before the immense curtain of falling water, Kaoru murmured to himself.
Through the penetrating vision of his Rinne Sharingan, he could see a dark cave hidden directly behind the cascade.
"Hinata, come with me inside..."
"Mm..." Hearing his words, Hinata nodded and stepped closer to his side.
Kaoru gently took her hand. A faint aura of power radiated from his Rinne Sharingan, and in the blink of an eye, the two of them vanished from where they stood.
The next moment, they had appeared safely inside the cave, behind the waterfall.
As their eyes gradually adjusted to the dim light within, Hinata realized that the cave opened up into a massive space.
"Kaoru... what kind of place is this? It feels like there is an entire hidden world inside..."
"There are even more interesting things waiting further in..." Kaoru replied with a smile.
"Over there... it looks like there is something..."
Using her Byakugan, Hinata observed deep into the cave. Far ahead, resting on the ground, appeared to be a pool of glowing liquid.
"Then let's keep going."
Kaoru held her hand firmly and guided her deeper into the cavern.
"It seems we weren't wrong to come here..."
Upon reaching the depths, Kaoru saw exactly what he remembered: a pool of water glowing with a soft, emerald-green light. It matched perfectly with the image from his memory.
"This water is amazing... it doesn't even get things wet..."
Hinata knelt down and scooped up a handful of the liquid. She was surprised to find that although it felt like water, it left her hands and sleeves completely dry.
"And there seems to be something strange beneath the surface," she continued.
Her Byakugan, usually capable of seeing through anything, was unable to penetrate the pool.
When she looked toward the bottom, her vision became distorted and blurred.
"Now... we are going to enter the pool," Kaoru said calmly. To the power of his Rinne Sharingan, such an obstruction meant nothing at all.
SPLASH!!
Still holding her hand, Kaoru dove straight down into the water.
"It seems... we can speak normally underwater too..."
As they swam deeper toward the bottom, Hinata laughed and spoke to him, realizing that sound traveled perfectly clearly through this strange liquid.
"Mm..." Kaoru nodded softly.
He watched as Hinata, curious as a child, swam freely through the water.
She noticed large bubbles floating around them — each the size of a human being — and instinctively reached out to touch one.
"Careful! Don't touch those bubbles! They cast genjutsu illusions."
Kaoru stopped her just in time. He remembered these bubbles well; they were spat out by a giant crab summon and were traps that trapped anyone who touched them in hallucinations and memories.
"Ah..." Hinata quickly pulled her hand back, looking slightly disappointed.
Of course, such illusions had absolutely no effect on Kaoru. With a simple wave of his hand, every single bubble in the water vanished instantly.
After swimming downward for about a minute, they broke the surface again.
They were still within a dark cavern, but this section was filled with countless floating orbs suspended in mid-air, alongside jagged rocks that resembled quartz crystal jutting out everywhere.
"What a mysterious place... Kaoru, is this where you were looking for?"
Hinata looked around at the floating spheres, which looked strangely like miniature planets drifting in space.
"No, we must go deeper still..."
Kaoru surveyed their surroundings, then pointed toward yet another pool of water ahead of them.
"Another pool to enter...?" Hinata murmured, looking at the new entrance, a look of slight trepidation on her soft face.
"Come on... let's keep moving forward."
Kaoru felt a surge of excitement. Just ahead lay the ancient ruins of the Ōtsutsuki clan.
They dove back into the water. The conditions were identical to the first pool they had swum through. Kaoru dispelled all the obstructive bubbles with ease.
As they emerged from the second pool, Kaoru sensed immediately that something was waiting for them — a distinct and formidable presence.
Creaaaak...
Hinata climbed out of the water first and froze. Lying right on the bank was an enormous crab, watching them intently with beady eyes.
"It's... it's so huge..." Hinata gasped, staring at the colossal creature.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!...
The giant crab seemed startled at first by their sudden appearance, but quickly recovered. It eyed them as if they were two delicious meals.
It scuttled toward them rapidly on its eight legs, smashing through piles of stone and debris in its path.
As the massive creature charged, raising its powerful claws to crush them, Kaoru showed not a hint of panic.
He simply raised one hand and caught the giant pincer effortlessly, stopping the beast in its tracks.
"Quite a bit of strength... though compared to me, it feels no stronger than an infant's..."
Kaoru stood his ground, physically blocking the heavy strike with his bare hand. He felt the force transmitted through the claw and spoke casually, completely unfazed.
The giant crab was shocked that such a tiny human had stopped its attack. Before it could react further, it felt an overwhelming, divine power surge from Kaoru.
Its massive body was lifted entirely off the ground, swung around, and slammed violently back down onto the earth, sending clouds of dust and dirt billowing into the air.
"S-Such... incredible strength..."
Hinata stood frozen in awe, watching Kaoru lift and overpower the gigantic monster with nothing but his own hands.
Krrr-kkk...
Thrown onto its back, the crab was furious at being humbled by a "tiny" human.
It flipped itself back upright, waved its two massive claws threateningly, opened its mouth wide, and spat out a stream of white foam — like a miniature waterfall — directly at them.
"I see... so these are the bubbles that trap people in illusions underwater..."
Seeing the barrage of foam, Kaoru's eyes lit up in understanding. With just a thought, every bubble shattered and dissolved. He then extended his open palm directly toward the beast.
"Yin-Yang Release: Stone Coffin..."
Solid rock rapidly condensed and hardened around the giant crab. In the blink of an eye, the creature was sealed inside a massive stone sarcophagus.
It was completely encased in stone as dense and hard as diamond, unable to move a muscle — save for one large claw that remained sticking out from the structure.
This technique was one Kaoru had developed after absorbing the Ten-Tails' power and thoroughly digesting its abilities.
In truth, he had mastered many other powerful techniques derived from Yin-Yang Release — powers that far surpassed even those of the Sage of Six Paths...
____________________
For more advance chapters visit my patreon
patreon.com/kane45
Tier: 10$ Casual Reader - +20 Advance Chapter
20$ Intermediate Reader - +40 Advance Chapter
40$ Expert Reader - +80 Advance Chapter
Update: "Monday to Friday - Update 3 Chapters a Day"
"Saturday and Sunday - Off"