Naruto was running as fast as he could. A few hours ago, the clones finally managed to find a path that went through a new section. Naruto summoned one of his foxes and informed her that they might need emergency reverse summoning in case something went wrong.

They headed through the tunnel that was discovered. Everything was fine initially, but soon, Shisui found some seals that messed up their plans. The seals were from a layered trap. If they used chakra past that point, they would activate.

The seal had too many layers for Naruto to decipher efficiently, so instead, he made a last batch of clones to go ahead, and they decided not to use chakra anymore. The boys were still going ahead since, even without Sharingan, they had years of training with their dojutsu and were more keen on picking up small details.

They were leading on steadily. Naruto was still completing his map. The clones would go ahead of them if they were suspicious of the existence of a trap or needed to check something. Their progress was slow, but with Naruto's calculations, they should reach an ending soon.

The pressure of the earth grows as people go down since the earth above them weighs down. The temperature would also rise due to volcanic activities in the mountain range. Naruto had rough calculations of how deep they could go based on the structure of the caves and the depth they were in.

They should reach an ending within half a day at their speed or at least head up again. His brain hurt from all the details, but he knew there was no room for mistakes. Naruto kept following the boys as they communicated by signs.

The path was getting narrower, and it was making Naruto worried. He had a bad feeling in his gut, and Kurama was on edge. They were passing through a narrow bridge over a spiked pit when it happened. They felt the ground beneath them shake and a rumbling sound behind them.

It was as if something was getting dragged and rolled behind them like a….. GIANT ROUND STONE. It was the

same size as a tunnel, so there was no escaping to the sides and avoiding the rock, so they started running.

They ran faster and faster, using chakra and Shunshin to get away. Naruto could hear explosions and traps getting triggered behind him, but none of them dared look back. They were following the only path forward, but the downward slope was helping the boulder roll faster.

Suddenly they started seeing some light at the end of the tunnel and pushed through just as the boulder closed the exit. They were kneeling on the ground, panting and taking a moment to take the new area in.

They were there. Finally, they were in an open area that stretched around. The clearing had approximately 20 wooden houses and a few more prominent buildings that were probably storage spaces. There was a rutting area in the whole area.

Naruto quickly took out special masks made for ANBU that also had air-purifying filters in them. They put them on and wore gloves and covers to ensure they would not touch something dangerous. None of Naruto's clones made it, so after a quick check around and not finding any seals, they decided to use chakra again. They weren't sure how safe it was, so Itachi and Shisui turned their Sharingans on, but Naruto didn't make any more clones. They started going through the clearing.

The houses were mostly empty. There weren't any signs of life in the village for a long time. Most of the things were destroyed by the passage of time, but they finally found it. One of the houses had a trapdoor on the ground, which led to a cellar.

Inside was a vault protected by seals. Naruto got started on breaking the seal while Itachi and Shisui went to check the rest of the area.

It took a few hours, but when Naruto finally cracked the vault, they had a better understanding of what happened to the village. Itachi found the notes of the chief in one of the houses and read through them. It started years ago.

They were in a nasty conflict with a clan originating from Ame. The clan had the ability to expel a poison gas similar to Hanzo, the salamander. In high doses, the gas would kill those in contact with it within seconds, making their flesh melt on the body.

In smaller doses, however, it was almost undetectable. The ninjas would be fine for months or even years before the first symptoms. The victims would start with flu-like symptoms, mild coughs, and pain in the chest.

The symptoms would then get more severe. They would cough harder and harder, eventually coughing up blood. The poison would expand in the lungs, finally taking over them completely, killing the victim in the process.

They weren't able to find any cure, and there was a crucial detail they found out too late. Even those who weren't directly in contact could get affected if they were close to the victim for too long. The village was small, and it took years, but finally, they were all infected.

They fell one by one. The writer of the note was the last survivor and completed the notes before passing. When Itachi told them all the details, Naruto felt a chill go down his spine. He quickly opened the vault and went through it like a madman.

Most of the weapons were rusted and useless, and scrolls were destroyed with time. The whole vault was useless. Naruto kept searching and digging, ignoring the concerned questions of his companions. This can't be.

Naruto went through shelves and boxes, throwing useless objects around until he found them. His hands were shaking, and his breath was hitched, but there it was. The sword of Totsuka. Naruto was on the verge of a panic attack.

This can't be it. Everything was falling into place. No one knew how the past Itachi got sick or what his sickness was, but the symptoms matched. In the past, Itachi was also in possession of the sword, but he never told anyone how he found it.

Orochimaru was searching for it for years. When the boys suggested hearing about such a sword and how it can be used to seal Zetsu, Naruto was a bit skeptical. Kurama indicated that it might work, so they decided to start the search.

They went through all historical documents available until they found an Uchiha mentioning something matching the description of the sword used in a battle. That was why they came here.

Naruto tried to calm himself down, telling himself that they were careful and used masks and protection so that there wouldn't be a chance, but he couldn't risk it.

He finally noticed Shisui shaking his shoulders, trying to get his attention. "uto. Naruto, you have to listen to me. You need to breathe." Shisui said, voice traced with worry.

Naruto noticed that he was holding his breath. He slowly breathed out and followed Shisui's instructions to calm his breathing. Itachi was right beside him, holding his hand.

"What happened?" Itachi finally asked. His voice was soft, as if he was afraid to send Naruto into panic again.

Naruto didn't know what to say. He could not lie to them, but he couldn't tell them the truth either.

"I need you guys to trust me. I can't explain things right now, but I think there is a chance we might be affected by the poison they mentioned." Naruto said, his breathing hitched.

"What do you mean?" Shisui asked, holding Naruto's shoulder a bit tighter.

"I can't tell you the reason. Not yet. But please trust me. We need to find any sample that might be left. Any DNA or anything that can have traces of the poison, and we need to get back to the village as fast as possible." Naruto said.

Itachi and Shisui shared a look and got up. They knew that the situation must be dire from the tone of Naruto, and there was no time to argue, so they got to work. Naruto sealed the sword and anything else that might be useful and helped the boys.

There was a pit where all bodies were buried together, but they were decomposed years ago. Still, Naruto sealed them all, along with all the notes and information on the disease. As soon as they were done, Naruto used a few careful explosions to blow up the ceiling and get them out as quickly as possible.

They made it out within the hour and headed back. They only stopped near a river to take a quick bath and burn their old clothes to burn any traces that might be on their body. Naruto sent one of his summons ahead to prepare an isolated room for them and put in emergency protocols.


They didn't enter the village but a unique laboratory outside the wall. They couldn't risk getting the citizens or anyone else sick. As soon as they entered the facility, they saw Orochimaru and Tsunade, wearing full gear waiting for them.

There was no room for formalities. They first entered a room to dispose of all their weapons and stuff that couldn't be replaced. Once they were sure of how the poison worked and if they were affected or not, and how to cure them if they were, they could clean up their gear.

For the time being, they were stripped completely naked. They got into a medical room where Tsunade ran quick diagnostics, writing down every detail while Orochimaru took blood and other samples to check. They were then guided to a room that had three beds prepared for them, along with a hospital gown. They weren't given any food or water since they didn't know how it would affect them. They decided to nap while they waited. They had nothing else to do.


After what felt like hours, a speaker went on in the room. "Ok, listen up brats. We have good news and bad news. The good news is you are all in your normal health. There isn't any change from your last available medical records."

"But the bad news is there is definitely something going on. There are traces of something in your blood, but we don't know what yet. Orochimaru is doing the experiments to find the problems, and I have to head back to help him along."

"We know that it is mostly airborne since the largest trace was from your kung tests. From my medical examinations, I could also see some chakra concentration in your lungs. It isn't dangerous per se but very unusual. I will check with you guys in a few hours once we know if you can have an IV or not. Until then, get some rest." Tsunade said.

Naruto shared worried looks with others. He talked with Kurama, but whatever was happening, it was out of his power to help. Naruto wanted to use his sage powers to eradicate the virus altogether, but there was no telling how it would react to his abilities.

Naruto knew that Orochimaru was familiar with his abilities and would consider the possibilities, so he wasn't worried about it. He couldn't lose his friends, and while he was glad they found the illness on time, he couldn't help but worry about a cure.

For now, they would be stuck there. The facility was entirely closed to the outside world until they were sure of the complete functionality of the disease. They had about 6 months of supply, and if they ran out, there were protocols in place to bring it to them.

None of these things were the problem. Naruto wanted to help, but he knew there was nothing he could do for the time being. He had to trust others to do their part. Naruto decided to go to a shelf which was to the side of the room, and pick some books to read.

He couldn't meditate with all the thoughts in his mind for now, so reading was the next best thing.