Chapter 527: Activating The Box Of Ultimate Bliss (Part 3)

"Hm?!"

Gari’s brows instantly knitted tightly together. He had no time to think about why the box hadn’t even reacted when he made his wish, yet responded the moment this man spoke. His instincts simply told him to seize the one making the wish first. As long as the wish-maker was in his hands, the initiative would remain with the Village Hidden in the Stones.

But the instant he moved, dozens of crimson flaming chains shot out from the side, weaving together in midair into a blazing net that forcefully blocked the space between him and Morihara Hayato, completely cutting off his advance.

Fire Style: Celestial Fire Prison!

Mui had made his move; although he came from the small village of the Village Hidden in the Grass, was still relatively young, and was not even considered part of the village’s upper echelon, he possessed extraordinary talent in both Fire Style and Sealing Jutsu.

He had even fused the two together, creating a unique series of Ninjutsu that combined the destructive burning power of Fire Style with the restraining, binding, and sealing properties of Sealing Jutsu.

With this Celestial Fire Prison, flames became chains, and chains formed a net. Even an expert like Gari found it difficult to break through in a short time.

The moment Mui acted, the Kusagakure ninja present reacted as well, quickly forming a protective line in front of Morihara Hayato and Mui.

The Village Hidden in the Stones side naturally refused to back down, swiftly forming ranks behind Gari. The two forces suddenly confronted one another on the valley floor amid the surging black mist. This fragile alliance, cobbled together only temporarily, seemed ready to collapse in an instant.

Kakuzu, acting as a mercenary, merely watched the scene coldly, making it clear that he intended to support neither side.

However, just then, another disturbance erupted from the Box of Ultimate Bliss, forcibly interrupting the battle that was about to break out.

With a thunderous clang, the masks covering all four human faces simultaneously crashed to the ground, revealing four mouths twisted to the utmost extreme.

Inside each was a place that resembled both mist and ink, pitch-black and unfathomably deep, radiating endless, terrifying darkness!

The next moment, a vacuum-like suction force erupted like a black hole. Torrents of air rushed violently into the four gaping mouths, while the black mist covering the valley floor was drawn into spiraling currents, sending shattered rocks and dust flying wildly through the air.

In only an instant, before anyone could even react, Morihara Hayato’s body had already been swept into the air by that overwhelming suction.

"Hahahahahaha!"

Amid Morihara Hayato’s frenzied laughter, his body vanished into that immeasurably deep darkness like a lump of clay sinking into the sea. His laughter came to an abrupt halt in the final instant before he was completely swallowed, and from then on, not the slightest sound emerged from him again.

The great mouths of the four human faces immediately closed. The raging currents around them subsided just as suddenly, leaving behind nothing but devastation across the ground and the four fallen face masks.

An eerie silence settled over the valley floor. The forces of the Village Hidden in the Stones and Village Hidden in the Grass still maintained their confrontational stances. The people of the Village Hidden in the Grass wore expressions of uncertainty and alarm, while those of the Village Hidden in the Stones were equally suspicious.

Did this count as a successful wish?

If it had succeeded, then what exactly would become of Morihara Hayato after being swallowed inside?

Just as the atmosphere had become as tense as drawn swords and bent bows, Mui took a deep breath and was the first to break the silence.

"Gari-sama, matters have already reached this point. Even if everyone from the Village Hidden in the Stones kills us now, it will accomplish nothing. Most likely, Konoha’s pursuers are already close behind. If we start fighting each other here, it will only interfere with your village’s plans moving forward. Wouldn’t that simply benefit someone else?"

"Besides, according to our previous agreement, the wish of the Box of Ultimate Bliss was supposed to belong to Village Hidden in the Grass from the very beginning. As one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, surely the Village Hidden in the Stones won’t go back on its word?"

Mui kept his posture extremely humble. Although the Village Hidden in the Grass had already made its wish, what exactly was involved in making that wish, what had happened after his teacher was sucked into the box, whether he could come back out, and what kind of power he would obtain after emerging, every one of these things remained unknown.

If, by any chance, Morihara Hayato’s newly gained power was nowhere near as strong as imagined, or if he did not even come out alive, then with the Village Hidden in the Grass’s current strength, falling out with the Village Hidden in the Stones would be no different from throwing an egg against a rock.

The wisest course of action for the moment was to stabilize relations with the Village Hidden in the Stones first.

Seeing Gari remain silent, Mui immediately added, "Regardless of the outcome of this wish, the agreement between the Village Hidden in the Grass and your village still stands. From this day forward, Village Hidden in the Grass will follow your village’s lead in all things and obey every arrangement."

"The Village Hidden in the Stones naturally will not go back on its word."

Hearing this, Gari gave Mui a long, searching look before finally nodding slowly.

Mui was right. At this point, the wish had already been made by the Village Hidden in the Grass.

Even if every Kusagakure ninja present were slaughtered now, it would not change that fact.

As long as Village Hidden in the Grass’s earlier promise of complete allegiance still held, then this operation could not be considered a total loss.

Besides, Konoha’s pursuers could arrive at any moment. Starting an internal conflict with the Village Hidden in the Grass here would indeed be unwise.

However, after everything was over, the Box of Ultimate Bliss had to belong to the Village Hidden in the Stones. On that point, there was no room for negotiation.

Gari said nothing more and, simply folding his arms, he once again turned his gaze toward the increasingly sinister and terrifying Box of Ultimate Bliss while thinking to himself, ’Then let me see exactly what this so-called infinite power and immortal body really look like. What kind of power would this leader of Village Hidden in the Grass obtain from the Box of Ultimate Bliss? Would he even walk out alive?’

The answers to these questions would determine how the Village Hidden in the Stones would treat Village Hidden in the Grass from this day onward.

Just then, the Box of Ultimate Bliss, which had been continuously emitting waves of dark and filthy chakra, suddenly fell silent.

All the surging malevolent aura, all the twisted fragments of emotion, and all the black mist seeping from the cracks in the box vanished in the very same instant.

Immediately afterward, the four enormous mouths slowly opened at the same time.

After a brief moment of deathly silence, under everyone’s watchful gaze, a blurry human figure gradually emerged from the darkness deep within the gaping mouth.

He, or rather, it, walked out of the darkness one step at a time with stiff, mechanical, and numb movements, each motion awkward, like a baby that had only just learned to walk and was relearning how to use its limbs.