Journey to a forgotten land - I

The day after Naruto's spar with Kakashi, the Uzumaki clan in Konoha gathered for their first joint mission to the land of the whirlpools. Karin was apprehensive at being assigned a mission despite being a new member of the sensor division. Her apprehension quickly gave way to wonder when Tomi revealed they'd be traveling to the long-forgotten Uzumaki homeland.

"Hey Karin! Glad you're joining us!" Naruto said with a bright grin. He hadn't spent much time with his second cousin besides occasional family dinners, and he was eager to get to know her better.

"Hi, Naruto!" Karin returned his infectious smile. She turned to the two older women standing nearby and bowed respectfully. "Tomi-sama, Suchiko-sama."

"Haven't I told you to cut out the formal stuff?" Suchiko scolded gently, shaking her head in mock annoyance. "It doesn't suit an Uzumaki."

"So, you're an Uzumaki too?" Karin asked with a sly grin.

Suchiko hesitated before grinning carelessly. "Ah, you got me."

"Wait, seriously?" Karin laughed. "I thought you'd keep that a secret forever. So, you're admitting it now?"

"Guilty as charged," Suchiko said cheerfully. "Now you just need to figure out how exactly I'm related to the family."

Karin studied her carefully. "You're Naruto's…"

Suchiko's eyes widened slightly, waiting for her guess.

"Aunt?"

Suchiko hid a smile. "You're close," she said, holding her thumb and forefinger close together. "But not close enough."

"You're obviously blood related to an insane degree." Karin shook her head in disbelief. "I thought for sure you would be his mother's sister or something…"

Suchiko's smile faltered, a shadow of pain crossing her eyes for just an instant before she forced it away. "Well, keep trying. Just giving you the answer isn't fun at all." She smiled.

Karin opened her mouth, but decided against prying. "Just you wait, I'll figure it out!" she declared instead, pointing her finger at Suchiko.

Tomi smiled warmly at their banter. "If everyone's ready, shall we get going?" she asked, placing her hand gently on Karin's shoulder.

Karin blinked in confusion. "Aren't we heading for the village gates first?"

"We want to leave without attracting too much attention," Tomi explained. "So, we'll teleport to a place much closer to Uzushiogakure."

Karin stared, astonished. "Teleporting? You can actually use a teleportation jutsu? Aren't those incredibly rare? I've only heard of the Fourth Hokage doing it."

"The Second and the Fourth Hokage were the most famous," Tomi corrected gently. "We've learned the basic version. We can't match their skill, but it's enough to shorten our travel time."

Karin sensed Tomi's chakra brushing against hers. The world spun. Karin stumbled, momentarily dizzy from the sudden teleportation.

"Woah!"

She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. As her vision cleared, Karin stared in amazement at the vast ocean in front of her. Waves stretched out endlessly, glittering in the bright sunlight.

"Woah," Naruto murmured beside her, echoing Karin's own awe. "Where are we?"

"We're at the northeastern edge of the Land of Waves," Tomi explained. "My clone traveled here a few days ago and placed teleportation seals. This spot is the closest we can get to Uzushiogakure without crossing the sea."

Naruto perked up instantly. "Wait, for real? I figured we'd have to walk the whole way! Is this near where that big bridge got built?"

Suchiko grinned playfully. "The Great Naruto Bridge? Sadly, no. We're on the opposite side. That one's way over on the other side. It links to the Land of Fire. This side used to have a harbor, though. Back in the day, it connected straight to the Land of Whirlpools."

Karin gaped as she processed that information. "They named a bridge after you?" she asked, extremely confused. "Seriously? Why?"

"'Cause I'm awesome, believe it! I'll tell ya the whole story later." Naruto grinned. He then turned to Suchiko. "But how the heck did ships get past all those whirlpools? I thought that place was impossible to sail through!"

"Boats reinforced with fuinjutsu." Tomi told him. "They were powered by chakra and could navigate quickly even in the most treacherous waters. This part of the world had some of the most experienced and talented sailors because of the difficulty in navigating this trade route."

Karin glanced at the sea, focusing her senses. She felt something faint yet distinct, far in the distance. "There's still some chakra signatures out there... Is there another island nearby?"

Tomi raised an eyebrow, impressed. "Your range is remarkable, Karin. About a hundred kilometers northwest of here is Mizunoha Island. It's small, but inhabited. That island is the entry point to the Land of Water. As it is part of the Hidden Mist's jurisdiction, we will be avoiding it."

Karin nodded, entirely understanding why any sane ninja would want to avoid going anywhere near the mist. Especially members of a bloodline wielding clan such as themselves.

"Next lies Shikotsumyō Island. That was the ancestral land of the Kaguya Clan, before they attacked Kirigakure. No one lives there now. The soil is poor, the land unfriendly, and superstitious folks claim that the ghosts of the Kaguya clan's ninja still haunt the place." She looked at the group. "I believe that can act as our first rest stop."

"What? Why?" Karin asked a little apprehensively. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"What is the danger in a deserted island?" Tomi smiled. "If anything, it should be the populated islands that we should be worried about."

"Well, that's true…" Karin mumbled. Still, she felt uneasy about going to the homeland of the deranged, bloodthirsty Kaguya clan.

"After a brief stop at Shikotsumyō, we'll head straight past Umiwake Archipelago."

"That's good." Naruto looked visibly relieved. "That place is a hellhole."

Karin looked at Naruto curiously. "I've never heard of that place. Why do you say that?"

"Uh, Umiwake's… kinda outta control," Naruto said, scratching his head. "Pretty much just bandits, pirates, ronin, and rogue ninja out there."

Karin blinked. "How can so many criminals live in the same place?"

"I think there's seven islands," Naruto said, frowning a little as he tried to remember. "Three run by pirates, three by ronin, and one by a bunch of bandits... There are rogue ninja in all of them, but nobody knows where and how many. They're not exactly hangin' up signs or anything, y'know... One of those islands hosts the headquarters of the Kuroi Rengō, the black union, which deals with bounties and bounty hunters across all villages and nations."

"How can rogue ninja live on an island?" Karin asked, surprised. "Wouldn't they get hunted for the bounties on their heads?"

"Not if they're tough enough to stay outta trouble." Naruto replied. "Some of them are the bounty hunters. Others work directly for the Kuroi Rengō."

"Then why doesn't anyone just get rid of the place?" Karin wondered.

"The hidden villages kinda benefit from it," Naruto said. "They use the islands to gather intel or put out bounties in secret. If they wiped it out, they'd just mess things up for themselves."

Karin squinted at him. "You sound like you've been there."

Naruto laughed nervously and scratched his head. "Well, Jiraiya-sensei told me a lot about it."Well… Jiraiya-sensei told me a lot about it. He, uh… visits pretty often.""

"Oh," Karin nodded slowly. "That makes sense. Someone like him could get a lot of intel from a place like that."

Naruto turned back to Tomi, curious."So what's past Umiwake? Isn't that where the Land of Whirlpools starts?"

Tomi nodded. "The waters past Umiwake aren't like the open seas we're seeing now. That stretch of ocean is known as the Hageshi-umi. The fierce sea. The currents become erratic, the winds unpredictable. And, of course, it's home to our country's namesake: sudden, enormous whirlpools that make navigation a nightmare."

Naruto whistled. "So, what, it's like a natural defense?"

"In a way, it was," Tomi agreed. "Only those who knew the safe routes and had boats reinforced with Uzumaki fuinjutsu could get through unharmed. Beyond that dangerous stretch is Uzume Island. The last inhabited place before we reach our destination."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, seriously? Inside the Land of Whirlpools?"

"Yes. Uzume Island is just beyond the boundary, a bit inside those dangerous waters. Unlike Uzushiogakure, it was mostly ignored during the war because it held no shinobi. It was a simple farming village. Though it once fell under Uzushiogakure's protection, it was spared from the worst of the destruction."

"They must be isolated now, right?" Karin asked. "How do they come to the mainland?"

"To the best of our knowledge, they don't." Tomi told them. "They have given up on sustaining contact with the outside world after the destruction of Uzu."

"We're gonna go there, right?" Naruto asked, with sympathy in his voice.

"Of course. I would like to see how they have fared, and if there is any useful information to be found in that place."

Naruto rubbed his hands together eagerly. "Alright, sweet! So… how are we gettin' there? We bring a boat or what?"

Suchiko smirked at him mischievously. "Why do you think we brought you along?"

Naruto blinked. "Uh, because I'm an Uzumaki?"

"Nope," Suchiko snorted. "Everyone here contributes something specific to the mission. We have two seal masters, one sensor, and then there's you."

Naruto frowned, feeling a slight sting to his pride. "Okay, then… what am I?"

"Our ticket to Uzu!" Suchiko declared. "Because we're gonna fly, baby!" She mimicked a bird flapping its wings energetically.

Naruto stared at her. "Wait… there are four of us. I can't exactly…" He trailed off as Suchiko continued flapping wildly. Suddenly, understanding dawned on him. "…Oh!"

Karin looked from Naruto to Suchiko, utterly baffled. "Wait, what are you talking about? Fly?"

"Just watch!" Naruto grinned widely. He walked a few steps away, turned his back on the others, and focused carefully on the Animal Path. 'Come on, please don't embarrass me now,' he silently pleaded with the beast, begging it to appear correctly. He mimicked the hand signs for the summoning jutsu to keep up appearances and slapped his palm to the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!" Naruto shouted dramatically.

Instantly, thick smoke erupted, engulfing the area.

Karin stumbled back, suddenly overwhelmed by an enormous surge of chakra. Her breath caught sharply, heart racing as she sensed something massive appear within the smoke.

A huge shadow loomed as the smoke cleared, revealing a towering, alien-like bird.

Naruto exhaled, relieved as the gigantic creature appeared correctly. "Yes! Success!"

But Karin didn't share his relief. She was rooted to the spot, staring upward, wide-eyed and trembling as her mind struggled to process what she was seeing. It looked like a gigantic bird, but with three wings and three legs. Its beak alone looked big enough to split a building in half.

She slowly raised a trembling finger, pointing at the thing. Her voice came out in a weak, terrified whisper. "Wha- wha- what is THAT?!"

"Relax, it's okay!" Suchiko said cheerfully, placing a firm hand on Karin's shoulder. "That's just Naruto's summon."

Karin stared at her incredulously. "Just his summon?"

Her voice rose sharply in disbelief as reality fully sank in. "JUST HIS SUMMON?!" she cried, her voice cracking with panic. "That thing is almost as big as the Hokage Mountain! It's not a summon, it's... it's an abomination!"

"Well, it's a friendly abomination," Suchiko said, shrugging casually. "And we're going to ride it."

Karin's eyes widened even further, horror overtaking her features. "Ride THAT?" she shrieked, vision blurring. Her brain short-circuited. She fainted on the spot, crumpling to the ground.

Suchiko blinked uncertainly, glancing at Tomi. "It's not that scary, right?" Okay, yeah, she'd been stunned the first time too. But still. It wasn't that bad.

Tomi smiled faintly. "Our perspective might be distorted from seeing the Nine-Tails most of our lives. Give her some time; she'll come around."


Karin jolted awake, heart thudding. As her vision cleared, she found Suchiko looking down at her, amused.

"I thought I saw a giant bird," Karin mumbled groggily. She sighed in relief. "Glad that was just a dream."

Suchiko gave her a sympathetic smile. "Umm, you might wanna go back to sleep then, Karin…"

Karin froze. Something felt terribly wrong. She could still sense that overwhelming chakra. Massive and frighteningly close. A cold dread filled her chest as her eyes darted around frantically.

All she saw were clouds drifting lazily around them.

Clouds?

Her breath caught. Slowly, she looked down.

Beneath her, she wasn't on solid ground. She was perched on something broad, something alive. A jolt of dread snapped through her as she followed the massive chakra signature.

Her stomach dropped.

They weren't just in the air. They were flying. She thought the winds were abnormally strong, but it made sense now.

They were riding the nightmare bird.

"I… I thought I was on a mattress," Karin whispered weakly, her voice barely audible over the wind.

Suchiko patted her shoulder reassuringly, clearly trying not to laugh. "Don't worry. It's actually pretty comfortable once you get used to it."

"Used to it?" Karin echoed faintly, clutching the feathers beneath her. "Are you insane?" Then she realized that maybe, tugging on the monster bird's feathers wasn't the best idea. She let go immediately.

"Just breathe deeply, Karin," Tomi's calm voice came from behind her. "Flight is something most shinobi never get to experience in their lives. Breathe, relax, and enjoy the view."

"The… view?" Karin whispered hesitantly.

Her limbs felt stiff, but curiosity gnawed at her fear. Slowly, she shifted onto all fours, crawling toward the edge of the massive bird with cautious, deliberate movements.

Her breath caught in her throat.

They were impossibly high. The vast ocean stretched endlessly below, its deep blue surface broken only by scattered clouds drifting beneath them. The world looked impossibly distant, the sheer scale of the height making her dizzy.

A small, strangled noise escaped her lips. "Eeeek..."

Without thinking, Karin scrambled backward in a frantic rush, retreating to her original spot and clutching onto the bird's feathers for dear life.

"Yeah, that happens," Naruto called over his shoulder, grinning. "Took me a while to get used to it too."

Karin shot him a glare but couldn't muster a response. Right now, all her focus was on keeping her breathing steady.

After a moment, she swallowed and tentatively asked, "How… how long have we been flying?"

"About an hour now," Naruto replied. "This thing's fast! We spotted Mizunoha to the east a few minutes back, so we've covered over a hundred kilometers already."

Karin blinked, then covered her face in embarrassment. "Wait… I was out for a whole hour?"

"Looked like you were really stressed out!" Naruto laughed. "And, well, waking you up seemed like more trouble than it was worth."

Karin huffed, quickly shifting the topic. "We're headed to Shikotsumyō first, right? When will we get there?"

She never thought she'd look forward to reaching the homeland of the infamous Kaguya clan, but right now, she'd take solid ground over flying on a giant three-winged bird any day.

"That'll take a few more hours," Tomi said. Karin's shoulders slumped. "But if you want, I can teach you something to help pass the time."

Karin perked up immediately. "Really? What is it?"

Tomi smiled. "Just a little trick for using your Mind's Eye of the Kagura. I'll show you how to use it more effectively."

Karin grinned, eager for the distraction. "Okay! What do I do?"

"First, take a deep breath and close your eyes," Tomi instructed gently.

Karin obeyed without hesitation.

"Do you still sense Mizunoha?"

She nodded. "Yes, to the east. I don't sense any ninja, just civilians with tiny amounts of chakra."

"Good. Now, I want you to focus on those details. How many people do you sense? Are they moving? Are they scattered or clustered? Memorize everything you can."

Karin furrowed her brows, concentrating. "Okay… I think I have an idea now."

"Now, I want you to let go of that information. Just like how you ignored our chakra when sensing Mizunoha from the shore, I want you to ignore Mizunoha now. Make it fade into the background."

Karin frowned. "That's… difficult. There are so many of them."

"It helps if you redirect your focus elsewhere," Tomi advised. "Try scanning northwest, toward our destination. Shikotsumyō is the first island along that route. That one is uninhabited. After that comes Umiwake. A constellation of seven islands, teeming with ninja and civilian criminals. Imagine yourself moving closer to it. Feel yourself drifting further away from us and Mizunoha, letting both of our chakras fade. Keep moving forward."

Karin's breathing slowed as she concentrated. At first, her mind felt cluttered with the nearby signatures. But as she followed Tomi's instructions, she pushed past the distractions.

She imagined herself gliding farther northwest, past Mizunoha, over the vast ocean sea. She was no longer bound to the summon. She drifted freely, like a bird in the wind.

A few minutes passed. Then, her eyes snapped open.

"I… I think I found them," she murmured, slightly dazed.

Tomi's voice was warm with approval. "Describe what you sense."

Karin frowned as she tried to concentrate on the distant, dull signatures. "It's still faint. Much harder to distinguish than Mizunoha. But I think… yes, I can sense seven clusters, as you said, close to each other. One of those islands is especially prominent, so I couldn't sense the others that well at first."

"That should be the one currently hosting the Kuroi Rengō," Naruto said grimly. "There are bound to be powerful ninja there."

Karin turned to him curiously. "Currently hosting? You mean they don't stay in one place?"

"They move around every few weeks," Naruto said. "Makes it way harder to track them or plan anything."

Karin grimaced. "They're very organized for a rogue group."

"Ninja cannot live together without an established hierarchy." Tomi told her. She then gently shifted the subject. "Now, Karin, focus on those islands, and keep them in your sights during our journey. As we will be passing near them at some point, we will need to be aware of the goings on as much as possible."

Karin nodded, determination settling in. She kept her senses locked onto Umiwake, carefully tracking the shifting chakra from the distant islands.


The sun was now directly above them, indicating that noontime had arrived. Karin shifted slightly, having grown bored of the constant monitoring of a distant island.

"Karin, we shall have our lunch now," Tomi said gently, breaking Karin out of her reverie. She opened her eyes, and saw, to her surprise, that Tomi had already arranged their lunch on a mat on the bird's body.

"That's great. I was starting to get bored." Naruto grinned. He had been using this time to explore his connection to the bird summon. He could tell that the bird was completely obedient to him. It did not seem to possess feelings or emotions.

While exploring his animal path, he also saw images of a few other alien-like beasts.

A gigantic three-headed dog.

Something that looked like a giant Chameleon.

A creepy looking centipede. A rhino. An ox…

'Holy shit, these are seriously awesome!' Naruto salivated at the prospect of his own army of summons. But judging from the huge chunk of chakra the bird shaved off him, it would require a lot more chakra than he could use without tiring himself.

"So, Tomi-nee-chan, you mentioned that you'd tell me more about Uzushiogakure?" Karin began hopefully.

Tomi smiled, pleased that Karin was finally addressing her more informally. "Of course. I told you about your mother's side of the family and a little about the clan, but not much about the Land of Whirlpools or the village itself."

Tomi extended her hand and pulled back her sleeve.

Karin's eyes widened. "Are those… storage seals?"

She could see several seals layered into an intricate matrix across Tomi's arm, forming a complex network of interwoven patterns.

"That's right. You recognized them quickly. Good." Tomi gave an approving nod. She pressed a specific point within the array, causing it to glow faintly before a small scroll materialized in her palm.

Tomi unfurled the scroll, which turned out to be a map. "This is the Land of Whirlpools. It consists of twenty-one islands, most of which were once populated. This," she said, pointing to one island at the southwestern end of the archipelago, "is Uzume island. As you can see, it's a little way off from the main cluster of islands. Because of that, it was spared from the worst of the destruction."

Naruto nodded. "Is this Uzushiogakure in the center?" He asked curiously.

"Yes. Uzushiogakure is surrounded by these four islands, known collectively as the four pillars. These islands were critical to the defense of the village. The first one is Reijuu-jima, the spirit beast island. It was home to many of our clan's sacred sites and the original home of the mask temple, which is now located in the outskirts of Konoha."

"Why is it called spirit beast island?" Naruto asked.

"That name has existed for generations," Tomi explained. "Ancient stories speak of a beast that once terrorized these isles before the Uzumaki settled here."

"The next island is Honami-jima. It had a large civilian population that supported Uzushiogakure's shinobi. They were farmers, fishermen, traders, and craftsmen. Their work ensured that the village was self-sufficient."

"The third island is Kenkyū-jima," she continued, tapping its position. "This was home to our Sealing Research Division. Many of our clan's most powerful fūinjutsu techniques were developed there."

"And finally, Shugo-jima. The Guardian Island," Tomi said, resting her finger on the fourth island. "This was our first line of defense. It housed our best sensors and combat specialists. As the island that acted as the entry point into Uzushiogakure, any attack had to go through them first."

Naruto frowned, puzzled. "With defenses that strong, how did Uzu still fall? Shouldn't the sealing barriers have stopped them?"

Tomi's expression darkened. "Uzushiogakure was believed impregnable... until a barrage of Bijūdama proved otherwise."

Naruto stiffened. "You mean-?"

"They turned Hashirama's gifts of peace into weapons against us," Tomi said bitterly. "According to Jiraiya's investigation soon after the attack, six Jinchūriki struck simultaneously. The Kage of the three nations were guarding them. Even our strongest barriers shattered against their combined power."

Naruto's eyes widened in horror. "Six Jinchūriki and three Kage? But how did the sensors miss something like that?"

Tomi sighed grimly. "From what we later discovered, the enemy tunneled deep beneath the seabed, far below our sensor range. Chakra sensing grows unreliable at extreme depths, and the Hidden Stone exploited that weakness. Jiraiya's investigation revealed they dug tunnels over a hundred meters below the ocean floor, stretching from the shallow sea between the Land of Lightning to Guardian Island. By the time our sensors detected their chakra signatures rising, Ōnoki had already burst to the surface using Particle Release, destroying most of the frontline defenses in an instant."

Naruto's fists tightened anxiously. "But couldn't we have used chakra chains to restrain the Jinchūriki?"

"They tried," Tomi said quietly, sadness lingering in her voice. "But each Jinchūriki was closely guarded by the likes of the Third Raikage, Third Mizukage, and Ōnoki himself, or other kage-level shinobi. They targeted anyone attempting to seal the beasts, eliminating them immediately. I've heard that the clan's strongest fighters fought desperately, holding the line just long enough for a handful of survivors to escape. They never had a chance to mount a counterattack."

Suchiko listened silently, gaze distant, lost in memories she had buried long ago. The thought of her father and grandfather holding the line, fighting desperately to buy their people just a little more time, twisted painfully within her. She had left Uzushiogakure about two years before its tragic fall, sent to Konoha as a child to become the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki. Even so, knowing her home was destroyed, knowing she was safe while they suffered, had never stopped haunting her.

Naruto had his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white. "They weren't even enemies at the time, were they? Uzu never attacked anyone first, so why…?"

"They weren't allies either," Tomi sighed wearily. "Hashirama… the First Hokage passed away shortly after Madara's death, and Second Hokage fell in the First Great War. Two decades later, as tensions once again began simmering between villages, they decided to strike first. Mito Uzumaki was already old and bedridden, unable to aid Uzushio when it mattered most. The Third Hokage, along with his students, had grown into Konoha's newest pillars of strength. The other hidden villages saw Uzushio as Konoha's strongest ally. They wanted it destroyed before another war broke out."

Karin's face was pale with shock. "I never knew," she whispered shakily. "My mother barely mentioned Uzushio. I had no idea the history was this tragic."

Suchiko squeezed Karin's shoulder reassuringly. "Few survivors could bear retelling such painful memories. Your mother probably wanted to spare you the grief and the bitterness that comes with knowing."

"So..." Naruto began thoughtfully, after a pause. "Earlier, you mentioned protective measures guarding Uzu's secrets. What kind of protection did you mean?"

Tomi nodded slowly. "To understand that, you'll need to hear a bit about Uzushio's history first. As you know, our clan and the Senju descend from Ashura, who lived about a thousand years ago. While the Senju trace their lineage to Ashura's elder son, we Uzumaki are descended from his younger daughter, Miyuki. Miyuki was said to be a gifted sailor who loved exploring the sea. But she often struggled against powerful currents and dangerous whirlpools. According to legend, Miyuki developed the chakra chains we now possess as a method of anchoring herself to nearby islands or rocky outcroppings. Even in my time, this method was quite popular among the Uzumaki fleet for navigation."

"We had a fleet?" Naruto asked, surprised. "I guess that makes sense."

"Indeed. Miyuki eventually settled on these islands after falling in love with a native villager. She aided his village by subduing a spirit beast that had long tormented them, and taught the villagers her sealing arts. Those villagers, together with Miyuki, became the ancestors of the Uzumaki clan."

"Over generations, Miyuki's descendants realized their isolation wouldn't protect them forever. Even though Uzushio avoided entanglement in shinobi politics, their close ties to the Senju clan drew unwanted attention, particularly from clans like the Uchiha, who coveted the powerful sealing techniques our ancestors developed."

"To defend themselves, our ancestors built upon Miyuki's original techniques, developing powerful sealing barriers and intricate defense arrays. Over centuries, each generation refined and expanded these defenses to protect Uzushio's secrets and its people. But those barriers relied heavily on constant vigilance of skilled sensor shinobi, and manual activation during threats."

Naruto tilted his head thoughtfully. "So they had to constantly watch out for threats and activate defenses themselves? I guess that's how most villages work."

Tomi nodded in agreement. "More than half a decade before Konoha was founded, Uzushio's defensive measures underwent a dramatic transformation, led by a sealing genius unlike any other in our clan's history. He was Kaiyo, Mito Uzumaki's great-uncle. Her grandfather's older brother. His understanding of fūinjutsu was so profound, so intuitive, that even now, decades later, the world remembers him as the Fūin-no-Kami. The God of Sealing."

"Kaiyo... so that was his name," Suchiko murmured. "I knew the title, but I had no idea he was directly related to our family."

"He isn't someone I remember fondly," Tomi confessed. "That's why I rarely mention him. But when discussing Uzushio's defenses, Kaiyo's work can't be overlooked."

Karin looked at Tomi curiously; the woman remained a mystery. Her chakra felt unusual. It was distinctly different from a normal person's. Karin still wasn't sure how Tomi was related to Suchiko or Naruto. Tomi had promised answers would come in time, yet her deep knowledge of history and the way she addressed others, often calling the Hokage by his name and even scolding the legendary Tsunade Senju, suggested an age and authority far beyond her apparent years. Karin couldn't help but wonder if Tomi was using a jutsu to conceal her true age. Even now, she was casually remembering a person from the forgotten past, predating even Konoha by five decades! Even if she used a jutsu, her true age seemed far greater than it had any right to be.

Naruto tilted his head in confusion, sensing Tomi's conflicting emotions. "What exactly did he do that makes you feel that way?"

"I'll explain that soon enough. First, you should know what Kaiyo did for Uzushio. At twenty-one, he invented a technique so groundbreaking it became one of the greatest masterpieces of Uzumaki fūinjutsu. This technique was called Jinkaku, or personality seals."

Naruto was confused by the unlikely name. "Personality seals? What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's a type of seal capable of granting artificial life, or rather, artificial consciousness, to otherwise lifeless objects," Tomi explained. "Imagine puppets or constructs that move and behave according to a single, clearly defined personality or directive. Kaiyo employed this technique extensively in protecting Uzushio. He created towering stone giants, each imprinted with a personality designed specifically to defend the village. He crafted bird-like constructs that endlessly soared above Uzushio's seas, watching vigilantly for intruders and relaying their findings directly to the clan head. He even built sentient wooden ships that could cut through Uzushio's whirlpools and intercept intruders without any crew aboard."

Naruto gaped, struggling to visualize it all. "An army of living guardians, birds and ships with minds of their own… that's incredible!"

"It was indeed remarkable," Tomi nodded slowly. "Kaiyo was even elevated to be the clan head soon after this, due to his immense knowledge and power. But the power to create artificial life, no matter how limited, also carries tremendous risks. The first and foremost risk was its infamy. Multiple failed attempts on infiltrating Uzu alerted our enemies of the growing power of the Uzumaki and the advanced surveillance and defensive measures. Eventually, that caught the attention of the Uchiha clan."

"Uchiha?" Naruto frowned. "This should be way before Madara's time, right?

Tomi nodded. "Yes. The Uchiha clan at that time had a leader perhaps almost as dangerous as Madara. That was his grandfather, Uchiha Takafumi. Under his leadership, more than half of the clan mobilized to attack us."

"When you say he was almost as dangerous as Madara…"

"He did not possess the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, but his Mangekyou alone was dangerous. He and two other Uchiha who also possessed the Mangekyou attacked us with their Susano'o, intent on destroying us. Takafumi burned the Jinkaku constructs with his Amaterasu, and the flames continued to burn and spread throughout the island until we were able to seal it. The other Uchiha soon joined them. The devastation only ended when Takafumi and his two fellow Mangekyō wielders were sealed by the newly created Shiki Fūjin."

"What is the Shiki Fujin?" Karin asked.

"It is one of the greatest Uzumaki sealing techniques, invented by Kaiyo. It allows the user to summon the reaper and seal their enemies within the belly of the death god. But it comes at a price. The caster must sacrifice their own soul, sharing the same fate as those they seal."

"Wait, what?" Karin's mouth dropped. "Sorry, you said it allows the user to summon…"

"The God of Death, yes." Tomi smiled faintly. "There are many forbidden jutsu in this world, Karin, with power that is almost beyond comprehension. This is one of them."

"Wow…"

"And this Kaiyo used that against Takafumi and the two Uchiha who could use the Susano'o?" Naruto asked.

"Not Kaiyo," Tomi said bitterly. "He chose to sacrifice someone else. Specifically, his youngest brother, my younger granduncle. Kaiyo used the Mind Subjugation mask, another one of his inventions, to force him to perform that jutsu."

Naruto stared at her. "He made his own brother do it?"

Karin looked just as stunned. "How could he possibly justify something like that?"

"Kaiyo believed his life was more valuable. As clan head, he saw himself as the linchpin of Uzushio's future. The one person who couldn't be lost. He claimed that the survival of the clan depended on him, and that his brother's death was a necessary cost."

Naruto's face twisted. "That's... that's just-"

"Unforgivable," Tomi finished for him. "The clan thought so too. Even though we survived the assault and repelled the Uchiha, no one supported Kaiyo. The former clan head and the council of elders declared that he had betrayed the trust of the Uzumaki."

"What happened to him after that?" Naruto asked.

"He was stripped of his title and imprisoned within the clan compound," Tomi said. "His access to chakra was sealed, and he lived out the rest of his life in confinement. After his removal, my grandfather, the middle of the three brothers, assumed leadership of the clan. Kaiyo died not long after The First Hokage's passing, around the time Tobirama became Hokage."

Karin listened intently. So Tomi was directly related to the past Uzumaki clan head. This would place her in the same family as Lady Mito Uzumaki. Was she her niece, perhaps? That might explain her interactions with Lady Tsunade and her intimate knowledge of past events and politics. But Kaiyo being her grandfather's older brother still didn't make sense. History wasn't her strong suit, as she was never given formal lessons in Kusagakure.

"Wait…" Naruto frowned. "That doesn't add up. He died after the First Hokage? Wasn't he older than your grandfather?"

"Uzumaki geezers live forever," Suchiko chimed in, flashing a mischievous grin at Tomi. "Most of them reach a century, especially if they spend their lives sitting around like Kaiyo did. Chakra and jutsu wear you down over time. But someone with a strong life force who isn't using too much chakra? They can just keep going."

"That's right," Tomi nodded, ignoring Kushina's jab at her own long lifespan. "He was, I believe, one hundred and sixteen when he passed."

"Holy shit." Naruto gaped. "That's... way too long. So he spent most of his life locked up?"

"Nearly all of it," Tomi said. "Sometimes, a long life becomes a punishment. My grandfather visited him often, and occasionally brought me along. I never liked him. But he kept trying to make Kaiyo understand what he'd done. Kaiyo never apologized. Not once. Not even at the end of his days."

No one spoke for a while after that. The wind carried on around them, high and constant, as the great bird beneath their feet glided through the open sky. Even Naruto, who usually bounced back quickly, was lost in thought.

Eventually, Tomi shifted her posture slightly and looked over at Karin.

"We still have time before we arrive. Would you like to practice your chakra chains?"

Karin straightened. "Really? Yeah!"

"This will be useful to you, too, Naruto. So pay attention."

Naruto leaned forward with interest. Tomi had told Karin about the Uzumaki chakra chains and had instructed her on it over the past week. Karin made surprisingly good progress with the technique, even though she did not have something like the Rinnegan to aid her. As an excellent sensor, she could probably understand what changes where required in her chakra to create the chains. Naruto could tell that she had an innate talent for it. As both of them could already produce the chains, Naruto wondered what else Tomi was going to teach them.

"Our chains aren't merely a tool to restrain or an extension of our body. As they are formed of our chakra, we can direct our fuinjutsu through the chains and restrain even mighty creatures like tailed beasts. Of course, that is no easy feat. But it is possible to restrain them in a manner similar to the wood release using these chains."

"You're serious?" Karin's jaw dropped. "I can barely lift a boulder with it!"

"You've just started out." Tomi smiled. "It's impressive that you can do this much already. You caught up to Naruto, who had started before you."

"Thanks." Karin blushed at the praise. She didn't think what she did was particularly noteworthy.

"Now then," Tomi smiled, "Let me show you how to turn your chakra chains into their feared variant. The adamantine chains."

Naruto blinked. "They're different?"

"It's just what we call the perfected version of the chakra chains. Strong enough to restrain tailed beasts and hard enough to be practically unbreakable. We incorporate our sealing jutsu into the chains to grant them these properties. Of course, just learning the technique would not make the chains instantly as strong. It still requires maintaining a delicate control over the chakra and maintaining the seal on the chains."

"I, uh, probably don't know enough fuinjutsu to learn this." Karin said with embarrassment. "I studied the basics with your help, but I still can't make anything remarkable."

"That's fine," Tomi said reassuringly. "This technique is a combination of ninjutsu and fuinjutsu. I will teach you the formula, you visualize it in the mind and direct it to the chains with the help of hand seals. Eventually, you should be able to perform it even without the hand seals."

With that, Tomi took out a scroll and started sketching an elaborate seal.

"It's fortunate that we have a few hours before reaching our destination. You will need to memorize this seal, which was handed down directly from the ancestor of the Uzumaki clan, Miyuki-sama herself."

Naruto stared at the alien looking seal, his mind not comprehending its intricate mechanics.

"It will be difficult to understand it as you are now," Tomi said, "The sealing language is ancient, and the formulas are not the ones you are accustomed to. It took me a long time to understand it myself. But thankfully, this is one seal which you need not understand to use it. It is so well designed that even beginners should be able to wield it with enough practice. It is also designed to complement our bloodline perfectly."

"Wow…" Naruto whispered. "So we'll be able to use it just like that? She must have been incredibly skilled."

"She is the originator of most of the branches of fuinjutsu. She inherited much of the foundations from her father, of course, but she developed them and started different fields of study."

As the hours progressed, Naruto and Karin worked on memorizing the seal by drawing many physical copies of it. Tomi wanted them to remember the pattern even in their sleep, so they had work to do.


The air grew cooler as the sun dipped slightly. Ahead, the edge of an island began to take shape on the horizon. Gray cliffs, jagged coastlines, and a faint shroud of mist curling around the distant rocks.

Tomi rose to her feet and turned to the group.

"We're almost there. That's Shikotsumyō."

Naruto stood beside her, gaze fixed ahead.

"Looks creepy already."

"It is," Tomi said. "But don't let superstition distract you, unless we find actual ghosts there."

Naruto stilled at that possibility. "The clan was wiped out about a decade ago, right?" He said uneasily. "There shouldn't be many lingering ghosts."

"You believe in ghosts?" Karin asked, her voice teasing.

"You'd believe in them too, if you could see them." Naruto said before he could stop himself. Suchiko suppressed a snort, earning an irritated look from Naruto.

"...see them?" Karin asked. "Uh, you're joking, right?"

"Well…" Naruto winced. They had intended to ease Karin into their secrets as they reached Uzushiogakure. Might as well start now. "I have a dōjutsu that helps me see them."

Karin stared. "A dōjutsu? But you already have the chakra chain bloodline, right?"

"And you've got both chakra chains and the Mind's Eye," Naruto pointed out.

"...Fair." She paused. "But I've never heard of an Uzumaki dōjutsu. Did it come from your father's side?"

"It's complicated," Naruto said. "And you can't tell anyone this without the Hokage's permission. Before the Uchiha clan massacre, an Uchiha transferred their ocular chakra to me before their death. It reacted with mine and… mutated."

Karin's eyes widened. "An Uchiha just gave it to you? That's one of the most closely guarded bloodlines in the shinobi world."

"He had his reasons," Naruto said, his tone quiet. "I can't share the details. But with the amount of chakra I have, I was the best possible host for something as chakra-hungry as the Sharingan. That's one of the reasons why he chose me."

"You said it mutated?" Karin asked. "So it doesn't look like the Sharingan anymore?"

"Not even close." Naruto dropped the illusion concealing his eyes. "It's called the Rinnegan."

Karin inhaled sharply. "That's... yeah. That's not the Sharingan." She paused, taking it in. "Isn't the Rinnegan one of the three great dōjutsu? I've heard the name, but I've never heard of a clan that carries it. Or anyone that used it, really."

"It's more like anl evolution of the Sharingan, from what we understand." Naruto explained. "I'll tell you more about it later. Looks like we're about to land."

The massive bird began to descend, its wings silent as it lowered itself toward the forested island. Clouds thinned. Mist curled off the treetops.

Naruto scanned the terrain, but sensed nothing unusual. Then again, ghosts weren't exactly easy to spot. Shisui had appeared to him clearly, but finding Indra had taken much more effort.

"I don't sense anything," Karin said, frowning. "No chakra signatures. I don't think anyone lives here."

"It's not like people are lining up to visit a haunted island once inhabited by crazy bloodthirsty shinobi," Suchiko said cheerfully, noting Naruto's unease with a smirk.

"Well," Naruto muttered, "let's get this over with."

The bird dropped into a crouch as it landed, wings folding close to its body. The four shinobi leapt down one by one.

"I still can't believe you can summon that thing and maintain it for this long," Karin said, eyeing the massive creature warily. "Aren't you going to dismiss it?"

"Nah. It's draining, yeah, but keeping it around costs way less than summoning it again. No one's going to see it here, and... honestly, it's nice having backup on a creepy island."

"Reassuring," Karin muttered under her breath. "Sure."

Naruto turned, surveying their landing spot. The island was peculiar, to say the least. Although there seemed to be a layer of top soil, it did not possess natural rocks. Rather, bony structures projected out of the ground, forming rock-like clusters all around them. There were some trees, but they were thin and unhealthy, barely surviving on the thin layer of soil the island possessed.

Naruto looked down, wondering why the soil seemed so thin.

"What the-?!" He exclaimed, marvelling at the hard bone-like substance that seemed to form the entire foundation of the island. "The entire island is made of bones?"

"The dead bone pulse bloodline limit." Tomi supplied. "I had heard legends that the entire island was made using that justu, but I hadn't expected it to be true."

"That's… creepy." Karin looked at the bony structures with apprehension. "It's like this whole place is a graveyard."

"In a way, it kind of is," Naruto muttered. "But thankfully, the Kaguya clan met their end in the hidden mist village, not here. Well, all except one, anyway."

"There's still a clan member alive?!" Karin asked with apprehension.

"Kimimaro Kaguya." Naruto nodded. "He's one of Orochimaru's top henchmen. He has that bloodline, the dead bone pulse. But he is in extremely bad shape these days, though."

"A wielder of the Shikotsumyaku." Tomi mused. "It was an exceedingly rare gift, so most of the Kaguya did not possess it. The world would have been a terrifying place if they did."

"It's that dangerous?" Karin asked.

"In the hands of the bloodthirsty, lawless and suicidal Kaguya clan, any great power is too dangerous. They have an almost infinite supply of lethal weapons and a natural armour stronger than steel. They take almost no damage from most taijutsu and even lower rank ninjutsu. They can also regenerate and heal themselves during battle." Tomi explained, as Karin grew visibly pale.

"That's overpowered." Karin mumbled, any ounce of sympathy for the clan's fight vanishing at the thought of a horde of ferocious bloodthirsty shinobi.

"I can't see more than a few meters below the ground." Naruto told them. "The bones are very thick. Normally I could see about ten or twenty meters below the ground depending on the terrain."

"I can't sense too deep either." Karin agreed. "Around ten meters, maybe."

Tomi nodded. "That should be fine. We are quite far away from civilization. However, we need to stay vigilant."

"What's that?" Suchiko asked, breaking her silence. She pointed at a structure about a hundred meters away from them.

Naruto observed the structure. Rising from the ground like gigantic, jagged ribs, four bony spires arched unnaturally inward. In the middle of the formation stood what looked like a black stone altar.

"Let's check it out." Naruto suggested.

Tomi nodded. They needed to survey the area before they set up camp, after all.

They moved cautiously toward the altar. It was unlike anything else on the island. It was a deep, dark stone that seemed to absorb the light around it. Not reflective, not polished, just unnaturally smooth. No moss clung to its surface. No cracks. It had weathered nothing, as if untouched by time.

As they reached the structure, Naruto crouched beside the altar and squinted, looking at the base. At first glance, it looked unmarked and featureless. But something about it pulled at his senses. Almost on instinct, he poured more chakra onto his Rinnegan and focussed his attention on the altar.

Faint traces of script began to surface from underneath the top layer of stone. It was as if the altar had grown over them. Ancient and alien markings shimmered slightly in his vision.

"There's something here," he said quietly. "Inscriptions, buried under the stone. I think only I can see them."

Tomi knelt beside him, frowning. "Where?"

Naruto pointed, but to her, the surface looked blank.

"They're old, I think. It seems like they're trying to tell a story. The clan's history, maybe?" Naruto mused. Although he didn't understand the script, it's meaning seemed to be slowly becoming clear to him.

The longer he looked, the more the inscriptions began to take shape. The scripts became clearer, and seemed to morph silently into images in his mind.

A pale woman draped in white flowing robes, arms outstretched. Her face and features looked alien, with white pupiless eyes and horns jutting out of her head.

She stood upon a raised stone, much like the one next to Naruto now. Her arms lifted slowly, deliberately, as her chakra pulsed outward. It seemed to weave itself into a strange pattern.

The air around her shimmered. Then parted.

From nothing, a figure emerged.

Not born, but made. Kaguya had forced her imagination on the canvas of reality, and a human was made from her will. His body took shape, seemingly molded by chakra. When the process ended, he stood motionless before her, head bowed. She placed her hand on his crown as if in blessing.

Priestly robes materialized around him. He knelt.

She spoke. Naruto couldn't hear the words. Her meaning somehow carried into his mind.

'Find them. Those who bear chakra. Bring them to the tree.'

The man rose without question.

Time slipped forward. The vision fractured and reformed.

Now the man stood at the head of a gathering. Dozens kneeling before him, their foreheads pressed to the ground. They bore simple clothes, weary eyes, but all viewed him with utmost reverence. Around the clearing, strange symbols were carved into stones and bark.

They chanted something, inaudible yet rhythmic, heads raised toward a bone effigy of the pale woman.

In another scene, he walked among them as a leader and a seer. They built shrines. They fought. They bled for Kaguya's name. And some of the female followers, drawn close to him by reverence or something deeper, became his mates.

Children were born.

A new bloodline began.

And though generations passed, and his form faded into legend, the worship did not. They continued to worship the rabbit goddess. In the absence of a divine tree, they simply sacrificed their enemies and drank their blood to honor their ancestor. Their rites became violent, disorganized. But still, they remembered her.

Naruto blinked hard, his vision returning to the clearing. The altar was back to normal, blank and unblemished. But now, he understood what it was.

It was the birthplace of the Kaguya clan's ancestor. A being created by the goddess they were named for.

He stepped back slowly.

"Well, that was interesting." Naruto muttered to himself. 'That must have been Kaguya's version of the creation of all things.'

"What did you see?" Tomi asked.

"Their ancient history, sort of." Naruto described the vision, explaining the creation of the Kaguya clan ancestor and the rituals that followed.

As he spoke, Karin shivered slightly. "To think there was such a powerful being in this world… Someone who could create a person from their chakra. That's incredibly disturbing. No wonder they ended up as such a violent clan."

Tomi nodded thoughtfully, her brow creasing. "That explains a lot about their reputation, at least. Still, I wonder why such visions were embedded into this altar-"

A sudden, barely audible crack echoed though the clearing. Naruto spun around sharply, his Rinnegan instantly scanning their surroundings. Karin's eyes widened in alarm, her senses picking up something headed towards them.

"Underground! Something's coming…"

Naruto saw it too. Something or someone was swimming through the bony base of the island, moving towards the surface at a fast pace with the ease of a fish in water.

Tomi registered the presence a second later and immediately shielded the group with her adamantine chains. Two chains she extended outward, poised and ready to strike the enemy that would surface any second. Naruto also readied his summon to attack at a moment's notice.

With an explosive crash, a grotesque, spiraling bone drill erupted from the earth, scattering dirt and debris in every direction. The drill scattered into shards, revealing a tall figure stepping out of it. Naruto couldn't understand why, but the figure looked familiar, but different at the same time.

His hair split in two: one half bone-white, the other a wild, burnt orange. Pale skin stretched over a dense, muscular frame, twitching occasionally as if it was a mere cloth covering something volatile. Two crimson dots sat on his forehead. His eyes, bright green with a flicker of orange around the edges, scanned them with an eerie calm. A rope-like belt wrapped his waist, and dark, ragged clothing clung to him.

"Kimimaro, or Jugo?" Naruto muttered, his face revealing his utter confusion at whom he was seeing. The bizarre man in front of them seemed to be a fusion of the two close aids of Orochimaru.

"I am Jūmaro." The figure said, and alarm bells rang on Naruto's head.