Volume 1 Chapter 18: The Rendezvous

Fengtian was incredibly fast. Already agile by nature, his movements became even swifter after mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique.

In less than the time it takes to burn half a stick of incense, he reached the front gate of the Hidden Sand Village. Shrouded by the night, he crouched cautiously in a dark corner, his eyes fixed on the scene unfolding before him.

Seven or eight Sand ninja, each holding a scroll, were surrounding a massive sealing formation of gold dust. As they continuously wove hand seals, more and more intricate talismans began to manifest upon the surface of the gold dust. On the perimeter, four other ninja were maintaining a simple barrier, constructing a sturdy defense. It was clear that they had made extensive preparations just to be safe.

"They're reinforcing the seal..." Fengtian murmured. "Could it be that Shisui and Sasori were sealed away?"

Fengtian’s eyes widened in shock. He found it hard to believe that two legendary genius ninja could be captured so easily. After a moment of stunned disbelief, he composed himself, closed his eyes, and began to scan for the chakra signatures of Shisui and Sasori.

A moment later, Fengtian opened his eyes, a faint, smug smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Just as I thought, things aren't that simple."

"Shisui is truly clever. He must have caught Rasa off guard and placed him under a genjutsu without him even realizing it."

Through his sensory perception, Fengtian could detect absolutely no trace of Shisui or Sasori’s chakra within the sealing formation. He surmised that Shisui had trapped Rasa in an illusion, leading the Kazekage to mistakenly believe he had successfully sealed the duo. Being able to deceive Rasa was partly due to the man's anxious state of mind; had he been calm enough to inspect the site carefully, he surely would have discovered the ruse.

Returning his thoughts to the present, Fengtian guessed that Shisui and Sasori had already escaped and were likely waiting at their prearranged rendezvous point. Without further hesitation, he utilized the Flying Thunder God Technique, swiftly vanishing toward the markers he had left along the path.

...

Meanwhile, at Sasori’s hideout, Shisui and Sasori were sitting on the ground. The high-intensity battle had left even these two geniuses feeling a touch of fatigue.

"I’m going to the entrance to keep watch; you stay here and get some rest," Shisui said, rising slowly. Seeing that Fengtian had been gone for a long time, he felt the need to head toward the cave entrance to meet him. If Fengtian didn't return soon, he planned to infiltrate the Hidden Sand Village alone to retrieve him.

"Hmph," Sasori grumbled, looking at Shisui with a dissatisfied expression. Although he had only escaped his predicament thanks to Shisui’s help, his pride prevented him from acknowledging the other man’s efforts. He pulled out several scrolls, released his puppets, and began to repair those damaged in the previous battle.

Shisui offered a faint smile and vanished, reappearing at the mouth of the cave the next moment. To his surprise, not even half a stick of incense later, a flash of light signaled the activation of the Flying Thunder God mark, and Fengtian appeared before him.

"How is the situation? Did the Sand ninja notice anything?" Shisui asked with a smile, though he was aware that his little trick could not last forever and feared that if the village discovered the deception, they would surely dispatch search parties.

"Your handiwork was beautiful; the Sand ninja haven't noticed a thing yet," Fengtian replied calmly, offering Shisui an approving look. "Besides, I left a little surprise for Rasa there. I reckon we’ll be safe for the time being."

Before Shisui could respond, Fengtian seemed to remember something and shifted the subject: "By the way, where is Sasori? Did he make it back with you?"

Shisui smiled faintly and glanced toward the depths of the cave. "He returned with me. He’s inside repairing his puppets right now."

Hearing this, the furrow in Fengtian’s brow finally smoothed out. He exhaled a long breath and sighed, "It seems the mission went reasonably well, and everyone is safe."

Despite saying this, Fengtian knew the true cost of obtaining the One-Tail’s chakra. Sasori, in particular, had suffered the greatest loss; nearly all his puppets, including the Third Kazekage, had been decimated in the fight. The time required to repair them would be immense. If Fengtian could still use his "Causality Reversal," he could have saved them significant time, but unfortunately, his reckless tampering with cause and effect had severely damaged his eyesight and ocular power during the battle.

If he didn't bring the One-Tail’s chakra to the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path soon, his Mangekyo Sharingan might suffer permanent damage. As for Shisui, although he hadn't been physically harmed, his identity was exposed, which could bring considerable trouble to the Uchiha clan in the Hidden Leaf. This was the only thing weighing on Shisui’s mind; despite his nominal defection, he remained deeply concerned for the village and his kin.

"Now that this is over, what shall we do next?" Shisui asked. In his eyes, completing the Eye of the Moon Plan and creating a world without war or bloodshed was the only thing that truly mattered.

"As for Sasori, let him head to the next location for the tailed beast extraction on his own," Fengtian replied, already mapping out the next steps in his mind. "As for us, we will return to the Leaf briefly before rendezvousing with him."

He had to collect enough tailed beasts to bolster his power before the rest of the ninja world caught on. Once the world realized what was happening and united to protect the beasts, things would become increasingly complicated.

Shisui nodded in agreement. Driven by his dedication to the Eye of the Moon Plan, he was eager to move on, but he asked, "Where is the next location? And which beast are we targeting?"