Naruto: Cthulhu: Ch. 226

Soon, Tsunade conveyed the same diagnosis to the arriving couples of Ino's and Chōji's parents.

The women couldn't help but burst into tears, and their husbands could only try to comfort them. However, Inoichi wore an expression of utter unwillingness to accept the reality.

"Even Lady Tsunade can't fully heal them?"

"I'm afraid not. Their bodies are severely damaged. I'll do my utmost to save them, but no matter what, there will be lasting aftereffects."

"There must be a way—right?" Inoichi shouted at Tsunade with the desperation of a father. However, Jiraiya placed a firm hand on his shoulder, the weight of it helping Inoichi regain some composure.

Chōza also placed a reassuring hand on Inoichi's other shoulder. "Inoichi, Lady Tsunade has already done her best."

Although Inoichi often complained about his daughter's rebellious nature during the older generation's frequent drinking gatherings, his love and concern for her were undeniable in moments of crisis.

After calming down slightly, Inoichi bowed deeply to Tsunade and said in a somber tone, "I apologize for losing my temper earlier. Please, Lady Tsunade, I beg you to do everything you can to save my daughter."

"I will," Tsunade replied with a nod before returning to the ward to continue her work.

Naruto, observing everything from the sidelines, clenched his teeth in anger. His expression twisted with frustration, his fists tightly clenched, but he didn't know where to direct his fury. The fire of his indignation burned silently within him.

Inside the ward, Tsunade led a team of a dozen medical-nin, including Shizune, who were channeling chakra into the patients' bodies. They focused on stimulating brain activity and reviving bodily functions.

The next phase involved a medical formation of four medical-nin working together to gradually restore their bodies. It was a painstakingly long process that aimed to recover as much as possible, but full recovery was unattainable.

Strangely, although the patients' physical tissues and organs had deteriorated to a severe degree, their chakra pathways remained remarkably intact. It was as if the aging process had deliberately spared these pathways.

This had an advantage: once the medical treatment was complete, their future ninja careers wouldn't suffer a fatal blow. With proper follow-up care and supplements from the Nara clan, their external tissues and bone strength could be mostly restored.

However, the irreparable damage Tsunade mentioned primarily concerned vital organs such as the heart.

A human heart typically beats about three billion times in a lifetime, but the hearts of Shikamaru and the others could only manage around two billion at most now. Such fundamental aging couldn't be reversed with medical techniques. If it could, it wouldn't be medicine but something akin to divine immortality.

That said, Tsunade did have one idea—albeit one she was reluctant to voice.

Long ago, she had seen a technique developed by Orochimaru: the Shoggoth Body Reconstruction.

Orochimaru had used a shape-shifting organism called a Shoggoth to create a new body for Anko's brain. Such a body wouldn't be affected by the limitations of aging.

However, Tsunade hesitated to bring this up. She had witnessed the Shoggoth firsthand, especially its rampage. It was an existence that had no place in this world.

Unless absolutely necessary, Tsunade had no intention of reviving such a sinister technique to create inhuman bodies.

If it weren't an absolute last resort, Tsunade would never consider bringing up that sinister technique used to craft inhuman bodies.

Furthermore, with Orochimaru now dead, that technique should have been buried with him in the earth, never to surface again.

What Tsunade couldn't comprehend was the true cause of this rapid aging in Shikamaru and the others. Their bodies couldn't have deteriorated for no reason. According to the accounts of the ninjas from Hoshi, the entire village had been obliterated in just one day.

In the shinobi world, powerful figures exist who could destroy a small village like Hoshi overnight, so Tsunade wasn't entirely surprised. After all, even Uzushio, once thriving and allied by marriage to Konoha, had been annihilated in an instant.

However, Tsunade couldn't imagine what ninja force would covet that territory enough to destroy Hoshi completely, leaving no trace of its inhabitants, animals, or even plants.

Even if someone's hatred for Hoshi was so intense as to wipe it out to the last lifeform, how could that explain the bizarre aging of Shikamaru and the others?

From Tsunade's intuition, it seemed as though the life force of these young shinobi had been drained by something unseen.

The ability to accomplish such a feat would require a jutsu significant enough to be classified as forbidden. Tsunade was certain she should have at least heard of such a technique.

Could it be… those things again?

Tsunade's thoughts drifted to the mysterious discoveries made in the shinobi world over the past few years. Each inexplicable event seemed to be tied to a previously unknown piece of history or a terrifying, otherworldly entity.

At that moment, Shizune's excited voice interrupted Tsunade's contemplation.

"He's awake! Someone's awake!"

Tsunade immediately snapped out of her thoughts and hurried over to Shizune's side, focusing on the face of the patient lying in the hospital bed.

Shikamaru had slightly opened his eyes, but his vision was blurry, the world around him reduced to indistinct shapes. Despite this, the antiseptic smell of the hospital wafting into his nose told him where he was. A faint, weary smile appeared on his face.

"I guess… I'm not dead yet, huh?"

"You're in Konoha Hospital now, receiving treatment," Tsunade replied with a reassuring tone.

"Heh, lucky me… To survive that kind of—"

Suddenly, Shikamaru's expression changed. Remembering something, his weak voice quickened.

"Ino… Chōji… Where are they?"

"Don't worry, they're in the next beds, also receiving treatment."

Hearing this, Shikamaru sighed in relief, but the realization of something urgent quickly returned. He tried to sit up but found his body unresponsive. Instead, he spoke desperately.

"Quick… hurry… I know something important…"

"It came… from the meteorite. It grew, thriving in darkness… It grabs onto any living thing, devouring their spirit… their life force…"

"That horrible color… It's called the Color Out of Space!"

With all his remaining strength, Shikamaru screamed the name, his chilling voice startling everyone in the hospital room.

The effort proved too much, and with those words, he collapsed into unconsciousness once more.

---

Inside the conference room, the village leaders were in discussion.

"After emergency treatment, the condition of Shikamaru's team, along with the ninja from Hoshi, has stabilized. What they require now is long-term chakra therapy and physical rehabilitation, which will take at least six months for a full recovery."

Sitting in her chair, Tsunade looked visibly fatigued but delivered the latest update on the treatment of the severely injured.

"As for Hinata's condition, she has regained consciousness and is able to communicate normally. And as for the details of Hinata's report, Shino will explain further."

At the front of the table, Shino cleared his throat and brought up a presentation on the large projection screen.

"To provide clarity on the mysterious insects that attacked Hinata and her team, we have prepared a briefing."

"This compilation includes the insect-related memories extracted from Hinata's mind and intelligence gathered from dissecting the insect corpses by the Aburame clan."

"Please watch."

Shino's explanation was formal, reflecting how seriously the Aburame clan regarded the incident.

The Aburame clan, originally a lesser-known family in Konoha, had risen in status after defeating the Kamizuru clan of Iwa during the great wars. This new incident presented another opportunity for the Aburame clan to showcase their expertise, and they were determined to handle it with utmost dedication to further elevate their standing within the village.

"The insects that attacked Hinata and her team are called the Shan, a race of insectoid beings from another world."

"That's correct. We can now confirm conclusively that the Shan are not of this world. To use an old term, they are creatures from another dimension."

"Most tales of interdimensional creatures are mere myths, but these beings exist in reality," Homura said gravely.

"Indeed. Extensive research on the Shan has revealed the following key findings."

"First, as we initially hypothesized during dissection, the Shans have six brain lobes. Each pair of lobes forms what we would consider a fully functional brain."

"In other words, the Shans can think about problems from three distinct perspectives simultaneously, granting them incredibly advanced cognitive abilities. This likely underpins their highly developed civilization."

"Based on Hinata's memories, we've determined that the Shans originated from a world called Shaggai, where they built highly advanced cities."

"This world had two suns, and the Shans lacked any digestive systems. Their survival depended entirely on a photosynthesis-like process similar to plants."

"For them, it was a paradise—a world with optimal conditions and abundant sunlight, free of predators or food scarcity."

At this point, Koharu raised her hand and asked, "Then why did the insects come to our world?"

"That is because their world was destroyed."

Wearing a high-collared coat and sunglasses that obscured his expression, Shino's voice turned solemn, underscoring the gravity of what he was about to reveal.

"The Shaggai was destroyed by a massive red celestial body. Although we don't fully understand the nature of this event, it was not a typical physical catastrophe like an asteroid impact."

"It was something far more incomprehensible. In any case, their world was utterly annihilated, forcing them to flee to other dimensions."

"During their exodus, they encountered many worlds, but most had environments unsuitable for their species' survival."

"Eventually, they arrived in our world."

"So, they are essentially a refugee race," Jiraiya commented, then mused aloud, "Although these refugees come from another dimension."

"Is there a way to coexist with them peacefully?" he asked. "Could we accept their existence the way we would with an animal species, thereby avoiding conflict?"

"If we could establish such an arrangement, perhaps we could exchange reasonable living space for their cooperation. This would greatly enhance Konoha's combat strength, and their advanced technology could be invaluable for research."

Homura and Koharu couldn't help but voice their most optimistic assumption: 

If the Aburame clan could control the Shans, they would undoubtedly become the most powerful insect handlers in the ninja world, significantly boosting Konoha's overall strength. 

However, Shibi immediately shook his head, rejecting the two Konoha advisors' hopeful vision. 

"As things stand, the advisors' idea is unachievable," Shibi explained. 

"The Shans have extremely long lifespans. It takes hundreds of years for them to mature from larvae to adults, and they never face concerns about food scarcity."

"This has led to the species developing a pathological form of pleasure-seeking during their long periods of inactivity: enslaving other biological species and deriving enjoyment from abusing those slaves."

"As a high-intelligence species comparable to humans, they completely lack human morality and reason. They are fixated solely on the sadistic enjoyment of self-inflicted pain and the suffering of other species."

"Additionally, according to Hinata, the Shans hold a fanatical belief in a powerful cosmic deity named Azathoth." 

"In their ideology, all species other than those who worship Azathoth are deemed false and must be eradicated." 

"Considering these factors, I don't believe humans can coexist peacefully with such malevolent insects. Their intelligence is coupled with extreme madness, and they cannot even be regarded as a normal form of life." 

Shibi's explanation was clear, leaving the two Konoha advisors no choice but to abandon their hope of incorporating this insect species into Konoha. 

The fundamental difference in belief systems made it impossible for the two sides to coexist. Konoha's faith must always center on the Hokage, a principle that could never change, no matter how much time passed or who was involved. 

But the Shans belief was in an obscure, unheard-of evil deity: Azathoth.

What is that? 

The two Konoha advisors had no idea what to make of the enigmatic name, but Jiraiya, standing nearby, immediately thought of another name. 

An evil god?

Is it similar to Cthulhu? 

"In that case, the only solution is to find a way to completely eliminate them," Jiraiya said. 

"Shibi, tell us about their abilities and weaknesses." 

At this critical moment, Shibi employed a phrase commonly used among the Aburame clan: 

"The advisors' suggestion is also difficult to achieve—or, to put it another way, achieving it would come at a great cost to the village." 

"As for why that is, allow me to explain in detail."