Naruto: Cthulhu: Ch. 257

From within the darkness, the Black Pharaoh slowly emerged.

He was quite confident in his own stealth capabilities, especially in darkness. Aside from a few who had previously encountered him, almost no one could perceive his presence during his second arrival.

The Black Pharaoh wasn’t human, he didn’t breathe, had no chakra, and couldn’t be sensed by normal means.

Yet, Moryō seemed to be a special case. He sensed the Black Pharaoh’s presence as soon as he appeared.

Under the astonished gazes of the Gang of Four, the Black Pharaoh stood between two dimly flickering candle flames.

Even so, his pitch-black skin looked as though it had been born for darkness. Under the faint light, one could only make out his tall and imposing figure, his dignified and arrogant posture, and the extravagant robe that looked almost absurdly flamboyant by shinobi world standards.

“Who are you?!”

The four quickly drew kunai, scythes, and other ninja tools, falling into defensive stances. They didn’t know why, but perhaps it was because the tall, dark-skinned man towered over even the tallest among them, Gitai, whose head only reached the man’s chest.

Or perhaps it was the fact that he had appeared so close without any of them noticing. Whatever the reason, all four of them instinctively felt an overwhelming sense of pressure, as if they were facing a great enemy.

Yet in the face of their challenge, the Black Pharaoh's eyes simply swept past them and landed on Yomi, who remained seated like a mountain.

“You’re now nothing more than a soul housed in a human body. How pitiful.”

As he spoke, a mocking smile, the only expression he ever showed, appeared on his face.

That mockery instantly ignited Moryō’s fury. Controlling Yomi’s body, he raised a hand, and from his sleeve flew out several black snakes, aiming straight at the Black Pharaoh.

But the Black Pharaoh didn’t flinch or even move.

As the black snakes neared him, they were instantly sliced into pieces by invisible blades in the air, falling to the ground in segments.

Only then did the Gang of Four, Yomi, and even Moryō notice the two hovering distortions of air on either side of the dark-skinned man. The air was abnormally warped, as though something invisible was hidden within it.

This surprised Moryō, he hadn’t noticed these “things” at all.

With the attack neutralized, the Black Pharaoh stepped forward and continued, “All you can do now is control a human body and these clay soldiers.”

He glanced at the nearby terracotta warriors.

“You pose no threat to me. So don’t waste your strength. Just listen. What I’m about to tell you could benefit you greatly, it will provide you with a new body.”

The Black Pharaoh’s words caused a subtle tremor in Yomi’s body under Moryō’s control, though it quickly stopped.

“I have a body of my own. It’s just sealed. Once I reach the underground shrine in the Land of Swamps, I can reclaim it. Why would I want a new one?”

The Black Pharaoh chuckled. “Hah. That’s just wishful thinking. Your body wasn’t simply stored away, it was sealed. Even if you reach the underground shrine in the Land of Swamps, you won’t be able to undo the seal or reclaim it. Moreover, the path to the Land of Swamps is already full of ninja ambushes. The shrine maiden of the Land of Demons is also on her way to reseal you. If you insist on going to the shrine, it’s no different than marching to your death.”

Moryō was startled.

Who is this man? How does he know so much about me?

This dark-skinned man was right, his biggest challenge was breaking the seal to reclaim his body. Only the shrine maiden could undo the seal. Unless he could trick her into breaking it for him and then seize the opportunity... But he still hadn’t figured out how to do that.

After a brief pause, he decided to hear what else this mysterious man had to say.

“So, how do I get this ‘benefit’ you mentioned?”

The Black Pharaoh gave a cold snort, his voice flowing like the waters of the River Lethe. “Simple. Lead your ghost army north, to the Land of the North. In a cave called the Cavern of Y'quaa, you’ll find the new body you desire. Forget the Land of Swamps. You’ll gain a new body many times stronger than your original one.”

His magnetic voice was compelling, but Moryō still asked, “How can I be sure what you’re saying is true? And what do you gain from this?”

As Moryō finished speaking, the Black Pharaoh suddenly raised his hand, reached into the inner pocket of his flamboyant robe, and pulled out a scroll, tossing it toward Yomi, who caught it effortlessly.

“The map is inside. Whether you go or not is up to you. As for what I gain… I simply enjoy watching the misfortunes of mortals from above. That’s all.”

These words sent a chill down Moryō’s spine, an eerie, unnatural dread even for a demon like him.

As the final words echoed, the Black Pharaoh slowly receded into the shadows until he vanished completely.

The oppressive atmosphere dissipated, and the Gang of Four finally relaxed their tense shoulders.

Should we follow that strange man’s advice and head north?

It was Yomi speaking, asking Moryō within.

I don’t know if that man was telling the truth, but he was right about one thing. My body is sealed. Without the shrine maiden’s power, I can’t retrieve it.

The shrine maiden’s power was both the key to reclaiming his body and the reason it was sealed, a paradox that deeply frustrated Moryō.

In that case, we have no choice but to head north and try. If I truly can obtain a new body… then this world, and that man, none will be spared!

---

The next day, when Kagami returned to the frontlines on the grasslands, the advance scout ninjas had already sent back the latest news.

"The Ghost Army has set out, but the entire army suddenly diverted northward for some unknown reason."

This unexpected news caught Kakashi, the overall commander of the frontline combat forces, completely off guard.

The Ghost Army was composed of a large number of terracotta soldiers whose movements were relatively slow. If their destination was the underground shrine in the Land of Swamps, their route would have been fairly predictable, they would have chosen the flattest, most geographically simple path. The frontline forces could have set up ambushes along that pre-planned route, minimizing direct casualties and fully leveraging the mobility of the ninjas.

However, the sudden change of direction by the Ghost Army rendered the entire plan obsolete. All the carefully prepared ambush sites were now useless.

"Could it be that the Ghost Army no longer plans to go to the Land of Swamps?" Guy asked.

Kakashi, staring intently at the map, considered all the possibilities.

Could the Ghost Army be trying to intercept the shrine maiden of the Land of Demons before she even departs?

But if that were the case, why not head directly for her location instead of changing course only after reaching the border of the Land of Demons?

Besides, the shrine maiden of the Land of Demons was a key figure in this war and would surely be protected by elite ninjas. Despite their overwhelming numbers, the Ghost Army was slow-moving and would struggle to catch a small, mobile group of ninja.

The enemy commander must be aware of this. It's more likely they'd send assassins rather than delay the entire army for such a small force.

So, just as Guy speculated, was the Ghost Army abandoning their original target and heading somewhere else?

Kakashi placed a finger on the map and let his gaze follow his finger northward, finally settling on the Land of the North.

The Land of the North, directly above the Land of Demons, was a country half its size. There wasn't much of interest there, few plains, mostly mountains.

Because of its lack of large plains, human settlements were scattered, and the country still operated under a primitive tribal system.

The mountain-hidden tribes functioned independently and occasionally engaged in minor conflicts, earning the region the nickname "Land of the Backward Barbarians."

If the Ghost Army was moving north, there were no other plausible destinations for now besides the Land of the North.

Although Kakashi still couldn't figure out why the Ghost Army had suddenly changed course toward the Land of the North, this important intel had to be reported to Tsunade immediately.

"Report to the Hokage at once. The Ghost Army has suddenly changed course toward the Land of the North."

"Yes!"

A ninja immediately ran off.

"Hold your position. We need to be ready in case the Ghost Army changes course again. Also, advance scouts must keep close watch on the army's movements and report immediately if anything changes."

"Yes!"

Among the emotionally stirred ninjas, Kagami, standing at the back, also heard Kakashi's impromptu orders.

It seemed that Moryō was changing his plan? Why was he heading to the Land of North instead of going to the Land of Swamps?

Anyway, that meant Haku, who was assigned to protect the shrine maiden, would be out of danger and could safely reach the underground shrine in the Land of Swamps.

However, there was still one thing he couldn't understand, Moryō's physical body could only be unsealed with the shrine maiden's power. So why had Moryō originally sent the Gang of Four to assassinate her?

If they had actually succeeded, Moryō's body could never have been unsealed.

Fortunately, the Gang of Four were weak, and thanks to the sacrifice of Taruho, Moryō was able to provoke the shrine maiden Shion into prematurely activating the sealing technique and opening the barrier, allowing Moryō, through Yomi's body, to recklessly break into the barrier and reclaim his own physical form.

---

The Ghost Army moved slowly but had stamina.

Moryō could command the vast Ghost Army to march for up to 20 hours a day. But due to the limits of human bodies, he still had to rest for three to four hours each day.

During those rest periods, his desire for a new body grew even stronger.

Seated on a platform, Yomi sat cross-legged, one arm propped on his knee, hand clenched into a fist supporting his head. Though his eyes were closed, he issued commands.

"Where are the Gang of Four?"

"We are here." Four white shadows appeared and kneeled on one knee before Yomi.

"Straight ahead is the Land of the North. I haven't studied the terrain there. Scout the area immediately and find a route suitable for the Ghost Army to move through."

In a world without navigation systems, massive army movements relied on forward-operating ninjas, well, scouts, to chart a reliable path.

"Yes!" The Gang of Four accepted the order and vanished. Once they had gone, the hand Yomi had resting on his knee began trembling uncontrollably, until his other hand pressed it down to stop the shaking.

---

"We must hurry."

In the deep forest, the Gang of Four leapt swiftly over the treetops.

"Aniki, do you really trust that dark-skinned man's words? I find him suspicious. He doesn't seem very reliable," said Shizuku, the smallest of the four with short orange hair.

Kusuna, the one referred to as "Aniki," replied with firm conviction. "Since Yomi-sama and Moryō-sama have decided to trust him for now, we must trust Yomi'-samas judgment. That is our duty."

He played the "big brother" part among Yomi's underlings not only because he alone could perform Yomi's chakra body reinforcement technique, but also due to his exceptional loyalty, which earned Yomi's favor.

At that moment, Setsuna noticed something on the forest floor.

"There's a small wooden cabin over there!"

"Hmm. Let's go check it out. If someone's living there, maybe they can give us directions."

"Alright."