Naruto: Cthulhu: Ch. 218

For a ninja, the journey from the Land of Fire to the Land of Bears took only half a day.

When they reached the border of the country, the three travelers were stopped by a natural barrier.

It was a massive canyon stretching for kilometers, so deep that the bottom could not be seen. The canyon was filled with a yellow gas. Anyone with even a hint of sense would hesitate to proceed after seeing the ominous fumes.

Thus, the trio decided to wait at the spot.

Before long, a person roughly the same height as Shikamaru emerged from behind the rocks on the other side of the canyon.

This individual was wearing a gray gas mask, obscuring his face. However, his skilled use of a crossbow to shoot a rope across the canyon and his agility in crossing the canyon on the rope revealed his ninja abilities.

The ninja approached the group, removed his gas mask, and revealed a youthful face beneath the intimidating mask. He introduced himself.

"I am Sumaru, sent to escort you."

"I'm Shikamaru. These are my teammates, Ino and Chōji," Shikamaru said, showing his Konoha forehead protector tied to his arm. The group exchanged formal introductions. Since there were no unpredictable individuals among them, the handoff went smoothly.

On the way, Sumaru briefed the group on the surrounding area.

The canyon they had encountered was called Devil's Ravine. Even passing over Devil's Ravine was dangerous due to the risk of inhaling the toxic fumes, making gas masks essential.

Hoshi was located in a forest adjacent to Devil's Ravine.

After traversing the forest, Shikamaru and his companions arrived at Hoshi.

It was a very small settlement surrounded by dense woods, which not only shielded it from the residual toxic gas but also isolated it from the outside world.

Despite its isolation, the village was well-equipped, with its compact design lending a sense of precision and care.

As they walked through the streets of Hoshi, Shikamaru noticed a cheerful atmosphere. The villagers' faces were lit with happiness.

Sumaru explained that the village was preparing for the Star Festival to celebrate the arrival of a second celestial star, which had brought prosperity to the village.

Shikamaru nodded in understanding. The unique status of this small village, sought after even by the powerful Konoha, stemmed from the meteorite that had fallen here two centuries ago. Now, with the arrival of a second meteorite, the villagers' excitement was natural.

Sumaru led them to the village chief's office to meet the mission's client, Akahoshi, the self-proclaimed Hoshikage. He was a thin man with a grim expression.

"Akahoshi-sama, these are the Konoha ninjas," Sumaru introduced.

Akahoshi nodded and began to explain the details of the mission.

"Hoshi was founded by the First Hoshikage using the power of the star that landed here two hundred years ago. Our existence depends entirely on the star's presence."

"With the star's unique power, our village grew stronger and became a target coveted by the great nations' ninja villages."

"Though years have passed and the larger nations' interest in the star has waned, the arrival of a second star will undoubtedly draw their attention back to us."

"Thus, we wish to enlist Konoha's help in protecting this second star."

It was unsurprising that Hoshi, accustomed to being targeted, sought protection for their newfound treasure immediately.

However, Shikamaru asked, "Forgive me, but if the focus of defense is entirely on the second star, could the first star become vulnerable to outside ninja?"

Akahoshi nodded. "We've considered that. However, the first star is located in our village's training grounds, where our genin live and train with the star. It has been secure for years, so we are not currently worried about it."

"Our priority is guarding the second star, particularly during the Star Festival in five days, when the village will be bustling. We ask for your assistance in safeguarding the second star."

Akahoshi stood up, signaling that he would take the three of them to see the second star that had descended upon Hoshi. However, this seemingly normal gesture aroused suspicion in Shikamaru.

From Akahoshi's earlier remarks, it was clear that he distrusted the ninja villages of the great nations. Despite the friendly relations between Konoha and Hoshi, Shikamaru believed that Konoha, too, wouldn't be exempt from Akahoshi's suspicion.

So why was Akahoshi so willing to show something as significant as the second star to three Konoha ninjas? Surely, such a valuable item wouldn't be shown to outsiders so easily. 

Yet, when Shikamaru was taken to the site where the second star had landed, his doubts began to clear.

The second star's landing site wasn't far from Hoshi—in fact, it was located right within the village itself. 

Behind a farmhouse on the outskirts of the village, in its backyard, was the spot where the second star had descended.

The area was guarded by four Hoshi ninjas. After Akahoshi exchanged a few words with them, he led Shikamaru, Ino, and Chōji inside.

In the open backyard of this seemingly ordinary farmhouse lay a massive crater, quietly "resting" in the ground.

Crossing over the soil overturned by the impact, Shikamaru, Ino, and Chōji approached the center of the crater, where the star lay.

It was a large brown mound of soil and charred grass. If the star was to be considered spherical, its diameter was at least two meters. 

Upon seeing such a massive meteorite, Shikamaru immediately understood why Akahoshi wasn't concerned about showing it to them. 

The sheer size of the meteorite made it impossible for the three of them to take it away, even if they wanted to, unless they had high-level jutsu like a summoning technique to seal it into a scroll.

At that moment, Chōji, captivated by the sight of the meteorite, accidentally lost his footing and nearly fell. This sudden movement caused a moment of tension among everyone present.

Thankfully, Chōji regained his balance in time and avoided tumbling into the crater or colliding with the meteorite. 

However, his slip caused some loose stones and charred soil to slide into the pit. These fragments rolled down the slope of the crater and slipped into the gaps between the meteorite and the surrounding ordinary soil.

It was then that Shikamaru noticed something peculiar: the meteorite didn't perfectly align with the central impression of the crater. The meteorite was visibly smaller than the pit it occupied.

This discrepancy immediately raised Shikamaru's suspicions.

Could it be that Akahoshi was trying to deceive them by placing a fake meteorite here, which would explain why the crater and the star didn't match?

Or… could it be that the meteorite had shrunk?

If Akahoshi had prepared a fake meteorite for them to inspect, Shikamaru could understand why. 

By having Shikamaru guard this fake meteorite, it would divert the attention of those from other ninja villages attempting to steal the meteorite, ensuring they targeted the fake one instead. 

As for the meteorite diminishing in size, while it was true that a meteorite would lose mass from friction with the air as it fell from the sky, once it landed, it became an ordinary rock that couldn't inexplicably shrink further. 

But Shikamaru couldn't draw any firm conclusions about what was truly going on. 

After showing the Konoha ninjas the meteorite, Akahoshi returned to his work, leaving them to wander around the village. 

Since the meteorite had landed in the village, any ninjas from other villages trying to steal it would likely disguise themselves as ordinary villagers, biding their time to strike. 

Therefore, the three of them first needed to observe if any villagers had been replaced, especially those living alone. 

Scanning his surroundings, Shikamaru noticed three women in a corner of the street, seemingly conspiring about something. 

The trio immediately positioned themselves on the inner side of the corner wall, eavesdropping on the women's conversation. 

"Why are you whispering about this?" 

"Well... there's something Akahoshi-sama forbade me from telling others, but I'll share it with you two." 

The woman was clearly the initiator of this secretive chat among the women, her tone hesitant and uncertain. 

"What is it?" 

"On the night the second star fell, I saw it with my own eyes..." 

"Saw what?" 

"That star glowed!" 

"What's so special about that? The first star in the village also glows." 

"It wasn't ordinary light!" The first woman's voice, though low, carried an unmistakable tone of shock. "I saw it! The light that came from the star that night, its color was so strange—" 

"A kind of strangeness I can't put into words..." 

"I've never seen anything like it in my life!" 

The first woman emphasized repeatedly that the meteorite glowed at night, and that its light was extraordinarily peculiar. However, her story didn't elicit much surprise from the other two women, who responded in a slightly mocking tone: 

"What's the big deal about that? Just a couple of days ago, I even saw Natsuhi-sama in the forest outside the village!" 

"Natsuhi-sama?" 

Mentioning this figure immediately evoked greater astonishment from the women. 

"Natsuhi-sama? That's impossible! Are you sure you didn't mistake someone else for him?" 

"I'm absolutely sure! I saw her in the forest, and it looked like he was hunting. When I saw him, I was so startled I dropped the basket I was holding to gather mushrooms." 

"And then she noticed me and turned around to run away." 

"How could that be? After what happened, you're not suggesting you saw her spirit, are you?" 

"Hey, don't scare me like that—talking about spirits and such..." 

The useful information stopped there. The women soon shifted their conversation to trivial matters, such as this year's crop yield and their hopes to harvest before the Star Festival to use the produce for the festival feast. 

Afterward, Shikamaru and his team continued wandering the village, but they didn't hear anyone else discussing the meteorite.

---

That evening, as usual, the three reported to Akahoshi.

Their report was a standard mission update: there was no sign of anything unusual in the village.

"However..."

"However?" Akahoshi questioned with a hint of curiosity.

"Earlier today, I overheard some villagers mention someone named Natsuhi. I wanted to ask—who is Natsuhi?"

The moment Shikamaru mentioned the name, Akahoshi's eyes widened, and his already stern expression darkened significantly. His gaze momentarily drifted into an absent state.

This intense reaction immediately caught Shikamaru's attention.

After a brief pause, Akahoshi spoke slowly: "Natsuhi... What a nostalgic name."

"Natsuhi was a once-in-a-century genius of Hoshi. Unfortunately, ten years ago, on a fateful night, both she and her husband, Hotarubi, perished while fighting ninja from other villages who were attempting to steal the star."

"In fact, she is the mother of Sumaru, the young boy who guided you."

"By the way, how did you come across villagers talking about her?"

"Oh, nothing significant. They were simply expressing their fond memories of Natsuhi."

"I see."

Akahoshi nodded thoughtfully, while Shikamaru silently observed him with an even more profound look.

After finishing the report, the three returned to the lodgings Akahoshi had arranged for them.

"Well, Shikamaru, what do you think? Did you discover anything?" Ino asked as she prepared her bed.

"Not much yet, just a few things that caught my attention."

Shikamaru rubbed his chin, standing by the window with a pensive look. His gaze was fixed on the distant horizon, toward the site of the second meteorite's impact.

"About this Natsuhi—Akahoshi's reaction suggests he definitely knows something more."

"And as for the second meteorite, there are some details that are bothering me."

Seeing Shikamaru's keen interest in the meteorite, Chōji cautioned, "Shikamaru, this is a ninja village in another nation. If you're caught spying, the consequences will be serious."

"Of course. I'm not foolish enough to go snooping around at night."

"Alright, let's just get some rest."

As the room's lights abruptly went out, outside, two pairs of eyes peered through the gaps in the foliage, silently watching the direction of their quarters.

Meanwhile, at the opposite end of Hoshi, in an open area behind a farmhouse, Akahoshi stood atop a mound of earth on the edge of a deep crater. Flanking him were his two trusted subordinates.

The burly, bald man was named Yotaka, and the slim, sinister-looking man beside him was named Shisō.

In the center of the crater, the massive meteorite emitted a faint, ethereal glow under the night sky.

As described by the woman earlier, the light emanating from the meteorite had a color unlike anything known to human perception—neither familiar nor potentially imaginable. It exuded a mystic and mesmerizing quality.

This strange light flowed across the rough, curved surface of the grayish-brown meteorite like liquid, slowly seeping into the surrounding soil.

Anyone witnessing this otherworldly phenomenon for the first time would find themselves utterly captivated, unable to look away.

But Akahoshi and his men were no strangers to this sight. Their initial astonishment had long since faded.

Standing at the edge of the crater, Akahoshi formed hand seals, invoking a secret technique developed by harnessing the power of the "Star."

"Kujaku!"

Suddenly, a number of chakra wings unfurled behind Akahoshi, resembling the spread of a peacock's tail. The wings shimmered with a peculiar purple hue.

At first glance, the chakra wings bore an uncanny resemblance to the flowing colors of the meteorite's glow.