r18novel Chapter 76 Sea of Insects
Chapter 76 Sea of Insects
Ritsu Tsuruta, one of the prisoners exchanged between the two sides, returned to his hometown a month ago.
The moment he stepped through the gates of Sunagakure, he felt as if he had entered another world.
There were no flowers, no welcoming ceremony, and no attention from those above.
He couldn't quite remember what the situation was like at the time.
In the few fragments of memory I had, I felt like a mouse, slinking back home in shame.
He had imagined dying a heroic death on the battlefield, and even fantasized about turning the tide and achieving great success.
I never imagined that one day I would be brought back as a prisoner of war.
Fate played a trick on him, not too big, not too small.
He locked himself in his room for ten days, and he still doesn't want to think about what happened.
But ten days later...
When he reappeared on the streets of Sunagakure, he was met with pointing fingers and whispers.
At first, the villagers just watched from afar, whispering among themselves.
Later, in small groups, snide remarks began to occasionally reach our ears.
Half a month later, my former friends started to drift away, and I found myself followed by a tail.
He went to Luo Sha to explain the situation, and Luo Sha told him not to care about what those people thought and to let him rest for a while longer.
But after resting for a few days, he suddenly received orders to guard the Wind Scorpion Small Realm, and when he knocked on Luo Sha's door again, no one answered.
Ha! What's the difference between guarding this place and being exiled?
Ritsu Tsuruta pulled himself out of his somewhat chaotic thoughts and glanced across the deck of the large ship.
Everyone on deck was listless and lacked the energy to do anything.
Here, you might not see a new face for years, and most of the people are wounded veterans.
And he is Ritsu Tsuruta.
He was the only healthy young man among this group who had returned from the battlefield.
By now, he was completely numb to the strange looks he received from those around him.
After being stationed there, all his ambitions finally subsided.
Because there's nothing here except the sea and the entrance above.
Once a person is settled, their heart also calms down.
The halo of past genius, the praise sung after his death, and that spirited morning all vanished with the sea breeze.
When the mind is calm, thoughts naturally begin to deepen.
During this time, he re-examined himself and recalled his experiences along the way.
He was wrong; all his previous pursuits were misguided.
Why do people hate and kill each other? Why do wars break out between villages? Is there no peaceful place where people can live freely?
Although no answer has been found, people have begun to think along these lines.
The sky is reflected in the sea, and the white clouds look like boats sailing on the water.
Six meteors streaked across the sky, hurtling towards us from the cliff.
meteor?
Are there shooting stars during the day?
The piercing alarm pulled him back to reality. He rubbed his eyes and looked again:
It wasn't a shooting star; it was clearly a ninja with enormous frost wings, gliding down from the edge of the cliff.
The enemy is coming very fast; they should arrive here in just a few breaths.
Prolonged relaxation leads most people to develop lazy habits.
The moment the enemy attack alarm sounded, the figures on the deck scattered like headless flies.
Of the four defensive heavy crossbows, only one was hastily removed from its enclosure.
Ritsu Tsuruta subconsciously raised his leg, the words to organize the defense on the tip of his tongue.
The next moment, he hesitated.
When actions contradict ideals, people become hesitant.
The leg that had been about to step down hesitated, and the shouts and noises gradually faded away.
He pulled his leg back, turned around, and stepped down the stairs without hesitation.
The dream of flying is etched into a person's bones; the wind whistles in their ears.
Mo Jingxian flew at the back of the group, protecting the five people in front of her.
The wings that buff teammates are simply a fixed structure and rune stacking, lacking flexibility.
While crossing this distance shouldn't be a problem, unexpected events are inevitable.
The stability of the Frost Wings is even better than expected.
The unexpected situation did not occur.
The Sand Ninjas below surrounded the ship, and a few heavy ballistae were fired sporadically, but unfortunately, their aim was a bit off.
Mo Jingxian gently blew the airflow, causing the crossbow bolt to deviate from its original trajectory.
The crossbow bolt pierced the air ten meters away from the group.
Before parting, Mo Jingxian played a game of aerial bombardment.
A giant ice ball fell from the sky, smashed through the deck, and bloomed inside.
After taking one last look at the slightly tilted hull, Mo Jingxian was the last to plunge into the curtain.
Consciousness swam upwards in a deep pool, and Mo Jingxian slowly opened her eyes.
The images started pouring in.
The sky was dim, the light like that before dusk, casting a dark yellow hue over everything.
Below them was a mountaintop littered with loose rocks, where their teammates had already taken their positions.
Aya waved to him, and Mo Jingxian controlled his body to land steadily.
Frosty wings turned into shards of ice, falling among the scattered pebbles, where tiny specks of light appeared.
Mo Jingxian took the opportunity to survey the environment. It was more desolate than the outside world, with sparse and mostly low-growing vegetation.
The sky was bathed in a dim, yellowish light; there was no sun.
This world seems to be a forgotten corner, silently awaiting its demise.
"Not bad." Tsunade patted Mo Jingxian's shoulder casually.
"This operation was a success thanks to you."
"No need for praise." Mo Jingxian stepped aside.
"I'd be better off if you punched me less from now on."
"You little brat—"
Tsunade turned her head away, tied her blonde hair tightly, and smiled.
The other companions chuckled, and the atmosphere relaxed, dispelling some of the tension.
"Let's begin." Once Tsunade got down to business, she transformed back into one of the legendary Sannin, renowned throughout the ninja world.
Aburame Shiki released countless insects, and Hinata Ayako activated her Byakugan.
"There is no danger nearby."
"Yes, stay alert."
Tsunade took a small object out of her weapon pouch and tapped it a few times.
It was a bronze disc the size of a watch, with a hand that vibrated slightly, and if you listened carefully, you could hear the sound of mechanical clicking coming from it.
Tsunade followed the pointer's movement and selected a location a few minutes later.
"Over here."
She pointed out the direction.
Kakashi set off, leading the way and protecting the group from unknown risks.
Mo Jingxian brought up the rear, while the remaining four walked in the middle, and the six-person team officially set off to explore the unknown.
Mo Jingxian, who was walking at the back of the group, unconsciously frowned.
From the moment he entered, he noticed that the energy contained in the air here was somewhat different from that outside.
Besides chakra, there's something else.
That thing is somewhat connected to chakra, mixed in yet clearly distinct.
How to put it? It's like energy that evolved from chakra, with similar properties, but more advanced.
Perhaps there were others like that too; he thought of something called immortal arts.
I can't be sure, but I imagine it's pretty close.
Mo Jingxian had not studied this kind of thing before; perhaps the energy of immortal techniques in the outside world was too low to be easily captured.
But it's different here; he can clearly sense the presence of this energy.
He secretly compared it to the energy of the elemental and chakra mixture in his body, and found it somewhat similar.
However, they are not the same thing; there are still obvious differences between the two.
Since she couldn't figure it out, Mo Jingxian put the matter aside and focused on perceiving her surroundings.
This world is so boring.
The scenery along the way was the same: the landforms, the plants, the light—everything seemed unchanged.
They felt as if they were walking through a desolate place, and the feeling was somewhat unsettling.
Just then, the advancing column suddenly stopped.
No one made a sound, because faint, scattered noises were coming from all directions at the same time.
The team of six walked to a mountain hollow, surrounded by low, rocky hills.
next moment,
Countless insects poured out from rock crevices, low bushes, and some natural caves.
The number of insects was countless, like a black tide, pouring down from the high places to the low-lying areas.
The three girls in the group looked pale.
Although the swarm of insects had not yet arrived, my senses were already frantically sending signals back, and goosebumps covered my entire body.
Not only girls, but even Mo Jingxian felt her scalp tingle.
The insects that make up the sea of insects are not of a single species; there are all sorts of strangely shaped insects, including black, gray, and brownish-brown ones.
Rolling around and huddled together, they were attracted by the aroma of meat emanating from the group and pounced on them.
Now is not the time to investigate how they evaded detection; Tsunade immediately gave the order:
"Break through to the east, charge forward!"
Kakashi took the lead and unleashed a burst of fire jutsu.
The fireball cleared a path through the insect blanket, and the six people quickly advanced several dozen meters.
The air was filled with the smell of burning, and the fireballs crackled and popped wherever they passed.
Fortunately, these insects are only disgusting to look at, but their defenses are not very strong.
Ninjutsu has a significant killing effect on them.
The problem is, there are too many bugs here.
A single Fireball spell can't clear out much, and the cleared area is immediately covered by new Insect Moths.
The few insects that Aburame Shimi had were of little use.
But why was he so excited? Mo Jingxian clearly saw that he had secretly collected several kinds of poisonous insects.
Don't count on those women; their techniques aren't applicable here.
The frost spread over the group and outwards, quickly forming a thin layer of ice several meters in diameter.
Countless insects were frozen beneath the ice, and the swarm of insects at the edge of the ice surface ceased.
Instead of charging straight at them, they started circling the ice.
It worked! Mo Jingxian's eyes lit up.
He immediately switched places with Kakashi, and Kakashi took over the task of clearing the way.
Strands of cold air shot out from Mo Jingxian's mouth, freezing as they landed.
The six-person team moved quickly across the ice.
After running for about ten kilometers, the group finally broke out of the sea of insects.
Mo Jingxian's mouth was numb from blowing all the way.
Once he was sure it was safe, he plopped down on the ground, panting heavily.
It was a close call, and the best news is that none of the six people were injured.
Who knows how many of those insects were poisonous? Just thinking about it makes my skin tingle.
It's so annoying.
After Mo Jingxian recovered for a while, the others began to study why the insects were able to evade Lingzi's detection.
Sudden.
Then another noise came from behind the hillside.
However, this time the noise was quite loud, unlike the noise made by small insects.
"Again!"
Mo Jingxian and his group of six looked in the direction of the sound and saw a long, thin needle appear on the mountaintop...