Super Technological Ball

I was expecting that with our pursuit, they would send more people or others to intercept us, but I suppose the fact that they lost Sasori along with our speed (which was faster than Kakashi's team in the original) left them with few options.

And they need about half a day to extract all the jinchuriki's chakra, if I'm not mistaken.

At the moment, Kimimaro is having fun fighting alone with Kisame's clone and intends to requisition Samehada to give it to Ameyuri, completing her collection of the seven mist swords.

Too bad it's a clone, so it's not like he's using the real one.

Although the fact that Nagato's technique managed to copy even Samehada is quite interesting. I wonder what the principle behind that is...

On my end, I have Itachi's clone facing off against Temari and Maki. They are being very careful not to look into his eyes to avoid falling under his genjutsu, and given that the clones' mission is to delay rather than kill, it's clear he's restraining himself to make the clone last as long as possible.

As for me, while keeping an eye on the fights with my Mantra to intervene if necessary, I'm looking for the location of the cave where that strange seal should be.

I always wondered after watching the series, couldn't they just have made a hole in the side or the roof of the cave to get in?

I mean, maybe the seal acted as a general barrier, and no one said it, but I lose nothing by using common sense. In fact, I think I'll call Mariko to ask her. It's the right time; she should be awake by now.

"Hello, I wanted to ask you something..." I explained what I remembered about the seal and asked for her opinion as a fuinjutsu expert.

"Yes, I know that seal, but we Uzumaki didn't use it because despite seeming practical, it has a rather ridiculous hidden design flaw," Mariko said with the voice she has when waking up and not having had her coffee yet.

"You mean I could enter through the wall or the ceiling, bypassing the sealed door?"

"No, that would still be covered by the barrier's effect," she denied, confirming that at least what they did in the series had a reason. "The flaw in this fuinjutsu is that people think they have to remove the seals at once and defeat their copied versions to solve it. But the truth is, as long as someone splashes some ink on the seals and ruins them, it won't be necessary to peel them off, and no clone will appear to fight."

"That's... quite a big flaw," I was speechless at such a blunder.

Actually, I wonder if a clone of mine would appear if I tore off a seal, because I don't have chakra to reflect for reference.

Would the clone have the power of the Devil Fruit, or would it not know what to copy?

Oops, I have to be careful not to suddenly become all Orochimaru...

"Does it have to be ink?" She refocused and returned to the conversation with Mariko. "What if I burned the paper seals?"

I left the ink for seals in the other pants!

I never use it, and just when it has a use, this happens.

"Um... wait, let me have my coffee; I'm not awake enough to answer that right now."

As I continue searching, I hear the sound of coffee preparation, and suddenly, I crave sugary churros with hot chocolate.

I think I'll ask Pakura for some when I get back. She got a recipe from the Wheat Country that is truly sublime, and the Lightning Country's chocolate is pretty good.

"Okay, I'm focused now," Mariko sounds much more energetic now. "If you were to burn the seals... most likely, it would cause a chain reaction. The accumulated chakra to generate the clones of the invaders wouldn't have an exit from the seal circuit to direct to, resulting in some pretty big explosions. At least everything around the burned seal within three hundred meters will be vaporized."

"But the entrance seal would open without a problem, am I right?"

"Yes, after the explosions, you could already enter the place," Mariko confirmed, pleased that I'm paying attention. "Although you should say goodbye to the element of surprise."

"That won't be a problem; thanks for clarifying."

"You're welcome, 'boss,'" Mariko joked. It's evident that she has had her coffee. "By the way, Pakura asked if everything was okay and if you needed reinforcements or something."

Ah, there's that warm feeling again.

"Tell her everything is fine," I replied with a smile. "She should take Hikari to play with Kenta, so she can distract him for a while as Anko finishes treating the Sunagakure ninjas. You know how he gets when his mother isn't around."

"Yes, babies are treasures that demand a lot of care." Mariko clearly understands, not for nothing is Karin's mother and has been through the same. "I'll tell her, don't worry."

I hang up the call and keep searching.

Come on, it's a cave with a seal stuck at the entrance where a river passes through, and I think it even had one of those super flashy torii gates; it can't be that difficult!

If I were a sensor ninja, I could surely locate the massive amount of chakra they must be extracting like a beacon in the darkness. Unless the barrier also covers that...

Oh, Kimimaro already killed Kisame's clone. Maybe I should...

Aha! I found it. Finally, I managed to figure out where the damn cave is located.

There's an area where my Mantra only sees darkness, so I assume that must be the cave's barrier negating my senses.

Curious, I didn't know there were barriers that could do that, something to keep in mind for the future...

I mean, the barrier Orochimaru used in the attack on Konoha didn't prevent me from seeing what was happening inside. Of course, that barrier was more for blocking than interfering.

Anyway, now I know where it is; let's go back for the rest.

Temari and Maki are still fighting Itachi's clone, so I send an electric shock to finish him off, and... did he just perform the substitution jutsu on me?

Cheeky!

He took off the alloy bracelet I made years ago and transformed it into a javelin.

"Apoteosis del Rayo!" Let's continue the tradition of saying the names of the attacks out loud.

The javelin shoots towards Itachi, who performs the substitution jutsu again, much to my displeasure. I see him starting to make seals to probably throw some Uchiha fire technique at me, but he shouldn't have taken his eyes off the javelin.

3, 2, 1...

Itachi is paralyzed when the electricity I infused into the javelin hits him, expanding like a chaotic fountain around him. He can't dodge by following patterns because there are none, and even if he replaces himself with a log, he won't take long to be hit again. After all, this substitution jutsu has limited range.

"Couldn't you have done that earlier?" Temari asks as she tries to catch her breath now that "Itachi" is out of action.

Her expression darkened when the true sacrifice for the clone was revealed.

"I was looking for the location of their hideout," I shrugged. "Come on, I'll tell you on the way while we pick up Kimimaro."

We leave the scene, and a few minutes later, a Zetsu, half white and half black, emerges from the ground.

"Well, I guess it's my turn to clean up the traces again," complained White Zetsu.

"Hurry up and finish," urged Black Zetsu. "I have a bad feeling."

"All right, all right..." White Zetsu prepared to crouch down and start his work, but then he saw a strange object out of the corner of his eye. "Hey, what's that?"

"Hmm?" Black Zetsu only had time to see a ball, half red and half white, before it hit them, and they disappeared in a red light, trapped inside.