Naruto: Echoes of a Distant Home

The snowstorm had stopped. The bare ground, melted by steam, remained uncovered by fresh snow. The massive tree stood in place, its lush green leaves dotted with white, making it particularly conspicuous.

Kotoe and Shin approached Ye Zi after dealing with the three Iwa-nin. This mission had been relatively easy; those three Iwa-nin were, at best, of average strength. From the start of the battle to its end, neither Yan Ye nor Jin felt even a hint of pressure.

"Lord Ye Zi, should we destroy the bodies?" Shin asked.

Ye Zi didn't respond to Shin. Instead, he looked toward the empty ground and said, "The fight is over. There's no need to hide anymore. Go take care of the bodies."

As soon as his words fell, White Zetsu's body slowly emerged from the barren ground. "Even if you leave them alone, animals would eat them soon enough," he grumbled.

Despite his complaints, he dutifully went to clean up the corpses.

While Iwa-nin's bodies could be dealt with, there was no way to hide the giant tree created by the Wood Release.

Ye Zi placed his hand on the tree's surface to confirm that Han had lost consciousness. He then released the Wood Release binding.

At the top of the tree, the wooden pillars that had been tightly wrapped together began to bloom like petals, spinning as they unraveled and revealing Han inside.

With the bindings released, Han fell from the top of the tree.

Kotoe and Shin instinctively stepped back a few paces, while Ye Zi simply shifted to the side.

Boom!

With a loud crash, the unconscious Han hit the ground heavily, landing face-first in front of Ye Zi.

Ye Zi glanced coldly at Han's fallen form. In that moment, fragments of memories—tiny remnants of the soul of the Iwa-nin boy buried deep within Han might have finally felt a sense of satisfaction.

What that boy couldn't do, Ye Zi had helped him accomplish.

Looking at Han's body, Ye Zi ordered, "Shin, carry him. We're leaving."

Jin nodded slightly, lifting Han and hoisting him onto his shoulder.

At this moment, White Zetsu returned, having dealt with the three Iwa-nin corpses.

Ye Zi scanned the group and said, "Let's go."

With that, he headed in the direction of the Land of Fields. Kotoe and the others followed closely behind.

The capture had been easier than expected, though controlling a Jinchūriki and their Tailed Beast was indeed tricky.

The four of them walked across the snow-covered ground, disappearing into the distance.

The snowstorm remained still for nearly an hour before fine snow began to fall again.

The Land of Fields bordered the Land of Iron. At their current pace, it would take about two days to reach their destination.

A day later, Ye Zi and his group arrived at the border of the Land of Fields and entered a forest. They had not progressed far when White Zetsu suddenly emerged, causing Ye Zi to stop.

"What is it?" Ye Zi asked.

"A little mouse," White Zetsu replied.

Ye Zi's gaze turned cold. "When did you notice it?"

"Just now," White Zetsu replied casually.

"Where?" Ye Zi asked sharply.

The "little mouse" White Zetsu referred to was likely a ninja from another village, sent to gather intelligence.

"Direction: eight o'clock, about 1.5 kilometers away," White Zetsu reported accurately.

"Wait here for me."

After saying this, Ye Zi's body crackled with lightning threads as he dashed toward the direction White Zetsu had indicated.

Jin casually threw Han's body onto the trunk of a tree, watching Ye Zi's retreating figure.

Yan Ye took out a few senbon, idly playing with them while also observing Ye Zi's departure.

White Zetsu chuckled slyly before merging into a nearby tree. He was off to watch the fun.

1.5 kilometers away, a ninja dressed in the standard ANBU uniform, wearing a white mask, stood on a tree branch.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, the ninja seemed to realize something terrifying and turned to flee without hesitation.

"Discovered already?"

This ninja was Ryō Hyūga, a member of the Hyūga clan and one of Danzō's subordinates.

After Ye Zi defected, Danzō had sent multiple assassination squads, all of whom had been wiped out by Ye Zi. Realizing that he couldn't eliminate Ye Zi, Danzō abandoned direct attacks and instead began covert surveillance to gather intelligence on Ye Zi's abilities.

At the same time, Danzō sought to exploit Konoha's official forces to deal with Ye Zi by leaking intelligence about him to Minato's side. However, the results had been minimal.

Ye Zi's existence was like a thorn: it didn't cause fatal harm, but its presence was irritating and uncomfortable.

Moreover, Danzō was deeply interested in the reason Ye Zi and his companions could use Wood Release. If he could uncover the secret, it would become a critical asset in his pursuit of the Hokage position.

Ryō Hyūga was one of the rare subordinates Danzō had managed to recruit from the Hyūga clan, and he was the only member of the Hyūga in Root.

Danzō didn't lack combat-capable ninjas, nor was he short on intelligence operatives. However, when it came to following Ye Zi without being detected, only Ryō could achieve it.

In the earlier squads Danzō dispatched, there was always one member tasked with staying on the outskirts to collect intelligence on Ye Zi's abilities. Yet, without exception, Ye Zi always managed to uncover and kill them.

After several failed attempts, where no subordinates returned, Danzō had no choice but to send Ryō. Unlike the others, his mission was not combat but information gathering.

Most of the intelligence Danzō possessed about Ye Zi had been gathered by Ryō. Using the Byakugan and exceptional stealth skills, he could completely avoid being detected by Ye Zi.

Unfortunately, this time, Ye Zi had White Zetsu with him. In terms of intelligence-gathering, White Zetsu was unmatched, there was no one better. No matter how exceptional Ryō's concealment techniques were, encountering White Zetsu meant inevitable failure.

Using his Byakugan, Ryō saw Ye Zi heading directly toward him. Without any hesitation, he turned and fled. However, deep down, he had already prepared for the worst.

He was well aware of Ye Zi's abilities. Hiding was useless, and running was even more futile. The reason he turned to flee was simply to buy himself a little more time.

"Summoning Jutsu."

As he leaped through the trees at high speed, Ryō summoned a white hawk, which perched on his shoulder.

Remaining calm, he pulled out a pen and paper. Ryō knew that he was unlikely to make it out alive. At this final moment, he wanted to record everything he had seen and ensure it reached Danzō.

Ryō had always been careful and cautious. Even if he failed to gather information, he prioritized never revealing his presence. This was why he had remained undetected by Ye Zi for so long.

This time, however, the situation was critical. No matter what, he had to get this final bit of intelligence back.

From a distance, Ye Zi, who was pursuing him, noticed Ryō's actions. His gaze turned icy cold as he activated his Lightning Release to full power. His figure streaked through the forest like lightning, closing the distance rapidly.

Feeling the sharp intent pressing against his back, Ryō's expression beneath the mask remained calm as still water. Sacrificing some of his speed, he quickly scribbled down the information in the simplest, most concise words possible, ensuring nothing important was missed. He then rolled up the paper and let the hawk carry it.

Gently stroking the hawk's head, a determined look appeared on his otherwise serene face.

The white hawk seemed to sense the impending danger for Ryō. Its eyes held a rare, human-like sadness before it spread its wings and flew off.

Just then, a slender wooden spike sliced through the air, aimed directly at the hawk's head.

"Poof!"

The hawk disappeared into a puff of white smoke as the wooden spike passed harmlessly through it and fell to the ground.

Seeing the hawk escape, Ye Zi's expression darkened. The ninja's clothing and style were clearly aligned with Konoha's ANBU, which meant this was likely one of Danzō's men.

He didn't know how much of his abilities or strategies had been recorded. Since the hawk had gotten away, the next best course of action was to deal with the ninja himself.

The distance between Ye Zi and Ryō had shrunk to just 100 meters.

Ye Zi's icy gaze locked onto Ryō's back, his heart filled with murderous intent.

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Currently on Chapter 408 - What is Given Must Be Returned