Naruto: This Uchiha is too innocent.

Huangtupo, located in the northwesternmost part of the rainy country, is perhaps a rare rainless place in this rainy nation due to its geographical location near the border.

However, this is not a place to live. As far as the eye can see, there is only the vast, boundless Loess Plateau, devoid of vegetation. The parched ground is cracked like a giant spider web, with shocking fissures. Gale-force winds whip up sand and dust, forming billowing sandstorms that relentlessly harass caravans passing through this area.

The villagers of Amegakure rarely come here, and since a fierce battle broke out here some time ago, it has become even more deserted.

On this day, Uchiha Sora and Hyuga Ame arrived at the loess slope.

"Phew... I'm finally rid of that endless rain. These past few days in Amegakure, I feel like I'm going to grow mold all over my body." Uchiha Sora said, kicking a pebble aside and basking in the long-awaited sunshine, his face full of contentment.

During their stay in Amegakure, the incessant rain had never stopped. While conducting their investigation in the village, they kept their umbrellas with them at all times, and if the rain became heavy, they had to wear raincoats. Having lived year-round in the sunny environment of Konoha, they were honestly quite unaccustomed to the cold and damp Amegakure.

Hyuga Yu merely glanced at Uchiha Sora indifferently, remaining silent. She was always like this; very few things could disturb her emotions.

"According to that drunkard, a fierce battle broke out here. Let's split up and look for clues." As soon as Uchiha Sora finished speaking, he leaped from the high slope and landed steadily on the crisscrossing ravines.

Huhu——

The wind, whipping up sand and dust, howled sharply, like the roars of angry beasts. Uchiha Sora found a relatively tall rock and hid behind it. He quietly watched the spectacular sight of the yellow sand swirling in the sky, the rolling sand waves like surging tides, one after another, and he fell into deep thought.

"If we continue along this deep ravine, we'll enter the Land of Earth. It's no wonder that sandstorms rage so frequently here. I really admire the people who live in the Land of Earth..." Uchiha Sora thought to himself.

If he were also from the Land of Earth, living in the dust all year round, constantly fearing sandstorms that could erupt at any moment, he would also support attacking Konoha!

Before long, the raging sandstorm gradually subsided. Uchiha Sora slowly emerged from behind the rocks and began carefully searching for traces of the battle.

"If Nagato summoned the Ten-Tails here, the damage would have been extremely significant..." He looked around, pondering to himself. "However, a battle took place here... Was Hanzo trying to eliminate Nagato, this dangerous individual, or was Nagato seeking revenge for Yahiko?"

In Uchiha Sora's view, the latter possibility was more likely. Although Hanzo was a ruthless and cunning tyrant, that was many years ago. Having lived as a king in Amegakure for so long, the blood and spirit he once possessed had long been gradually washed away by the merciless carving knife of power.

If Danzo hadn't sown discord and created the illusion of certain victory for Hanzo, given Hanzo's current temperament, he wouldn't have dared to easily attack the Akatsuki.

"Tsk, in the end, there are no winners," he remarked.

With Yahiko's death, Nagato turned to the dark side, and the Ten-Tails appeared, not only terrifying Hanzo and causing him to live in constant fear, but also wreaking havoc on Danzo's Root organization.

It can be said that Danzo's attempt to sow discord resulted in a lose-lose-lose situation for all three parties.

"It's a pity... I've lost Xiao Nan as a friend." He shook his head. Back when Xiao Nan accepted the assassination mission, he and Xiao Nan got along quite well during those days.

Now that something like this has happened in Amegakure, his relationship with Konan has most likely broken down as a result.

He felt a sense of powerlessness. He had warned Konan to be careful of Hanzo when she left Konoha, but the tragedy still happened.

"roar--"

Suddenly, a roar caught Uchiha Sora's attention. He stopped, looked around, and after a moment, suddenly laughed.

"I never expected to be targeted by a bunch of beasts."

As soon as he finished speaking, pairs of fierce eyes appeared on the nearby hillside.

With its amber pupils, golden fur, and black spots, Uchiha Sora knew exactly what kind of animals were surrounding him.

"A leopard... a snow leopard? Or a leopard? It doesn't matter." Uchiha Sora drew his Kusanagi sword and chuckled. "Hey, judging by your appearance, you haven't eaten in a long time, so you've mistaken me for prey?"

Regardless of whether the leopards could understand him or not, he muttered to himself, "Look at your muscles, you could definitely fetch a good price as contracted ninja beasts. Too bad... I don't have the time to capture you alive."

He grinned menacingly, "So, those of you who can't release your contracted ninja beasts, you'd better play with me for a while."

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of sword light appeared, and Uchiha Sora charged into the cheetah pack, engaging in fierce combat. In an instant, blood splattered everywhere...

……

On the other side, Hinata Ame discovered traces left after the battle.

Although the wind and sand have washed away most of the traces, the exaggerated deep pit in the center of the ravine will not be able to recover for at least a few years.

Hyuga Ame crouched beside the deep pit, her white eyes gleaming.

"This size...it's terrifying," she muttered to herself, her face expressionless.

The crater in front of us is at least tens of meters wide, and it looks like it was hit by a meteorite. Ordinary combat methods could not have created such a mark.

In her understanding, the only person in Amegakure with such destructive power could probably do it, and even then, it was only a possibility.

"Hanzo made a move?... No, it seems more like the marks left by some kind of ferocious beast."

She suddenly remembered the monster the drunkard had mentioned, a monster that could scare a man into impotence.

"So... these are traces left by that monster?" She frowned slightly. If so, it was most likely related to this mission. And this kind of monster was not something she and Uchiha Sora could handle.

She stood up and leaped to the highest point to look down at the area. Sure enough, what came into view were one deep pit after another. It was as if the place had been hit by a meteorite. She was certain that such destructive power must have been caused by that monster.

"Amegakure has gotten itself into a huge mess..."

Suddenly, she noticed something and calmly looked in a certain direction. There, a dozen hungry leopards were staring at her greedily.

"Is it because of the monsters that there's no food left in this area, so they've set their sights on me...?" she said calmly, slowly raising her palms, her lips slightly curved as she beckoned with her finger.

"Come."