Naruto: From Fake to Real, Deceiving the Ninja World

Chapter 523 The Lord said, there is no place for them in Hell.

A fishing port on the eastern coast of the Land of Earth.

The sky was like an overturned inkwell, with thick, dark clouds pressing low over the sea, churning and swirling, resembling a ferocious giant serpent coiled between the sky and the sea.

The torrential rain showed no signs of stopping; large raindrops pelted down, splashing white foam on the sea surface. As far as the eye could see, the sea and sky merged into one, shrouded in a misty rain.

It's raining both in the sky and on the ground.

creak...creak...

Strong winds howled, the harbor pier groaned in the wind, and the fishing boats moored to the shore were like rootless duckweed, rising and falling with the surging waves, their flags taut and fluttering.

Amidst the turmoil, two small figures were perched on the roof of the port's duty room, wearing raincoats and straw hats that offered little protection from the rain.

"Oh, there's a huge thunderclap over there."

The older boy, about fifteen or sixteen years old, held a pair of binoculars, squinted, and strained to look in the direction where the darkest clouds were and lightning flickered faintly.

That was the area where Orochimaru and the others were. Even from such a distance, they could see the blinding light that flashed across the sky and hear the faint, muffled rumbling.

"Brother, let me see too!"

A younger companion squeezed through the crowd, reaching for the binoculars and shouting, "I heard there's a battle going on over there. Are lots of ninjas using ninjutsu?"

"Don't push, let me see clearly first!" The older boy impatiently pushed away the boy's face with his elbow, still holding the binoculars close to his eyes and staring intently.

"...Huh?"

He leaned forward slightly, craning his neck, trying to get a better look.

On the distant sea shrouded in rain and fog, he could only see some moving dark shapes due to the limited field of view of his telescope and the terrible weather conditions.

"What is that? A boat? It doesn't seem like it, it's too fast..." the boy murmured.

Clang!

Just then, the door to the duty room below was suddenly pushed open.

"You two little brats, get down here!"

An elderly man with gray hair and a wrinkled face poked his head out and yelled at the two teenagers on the roof: "Climbing on the roof in this heavy rain? Are you looking for death?!"

The two boys were startled, their hands slipped, and they almost dropped the binoculars. They quickly gripped them tightly.

"Okay, okay, Grandpa!" the two replied hastily, using both hands and feet to slide down the sloping, slippery roof, and finally jumped down.

"Come in quickly." The old man cursed and half-pulled, half-shoved, shoving the two soaking wet teenagers into the duty room, then snatched the binoculars from their hands.

Without even bothering to wipe the rain off his glasses, he stood by the door, squinted, and looked in the direction the two of them had been gazing at—the area where the thunderstorm was most intense.

"Ugh, this awful weather..."

The old man frowned and muttered under his breath, "This war is being fought in such a strange way."

He'd lived for so many years, and had even been involved in the previous Shinobi World Wars, but he'd never seen anything like this before. The weather had changed; it was as if the sky had fallen...

The old man held up the binoculars and looked for a moment, but his expression gradually changed. His initial agitation quickly faded, replaced by surprise and solemnity.

He also saw a dark figure in the rain and mist on the distant sea.

Those weren't ships at all, but... people!

They are ninjas who can run on water!

Moreover, there were quite a few people, and the formation was somewhat scattered.

As a civilian who had personally experienced both Shinobi World Wars, the old man knew very well what these ninjas, who were most likely fleeing, might do.

boom!

The old man abruptly put down his binoculars, slammed the door shut without hesitation, bolted it shut behind him, rushed into the room, and blew out the lamp on the table in one breath.

Darkness instantly engulfed the small space, with only dim light filtering in through the crack in the door.

"Grandpa?" The two boys were bewildered by the old man's series of actions.

"Shh, don't speak." The old man lowered his voice and made a shushing gesture. "From now on, no making a sound, no lighting, and no going near the doors or windows."

"No matter what noises you hear or what you see outside, you'd better stay put, don't be curious, and don't make a sound!"

The two boys were stunned by the old man's unprecedented seriousness and fell silent, even their breathing became soft.

The old man walked back to the small window, turned slightly to the side, and looked out at the turbulent sea.

The only sounds in the duty room were the roar of the raging wind and rain outside, and the suppressed breathing of the three people.

The old man stared intently at the distant sea. Through the rain, the dark figures drew closer and closer, their outlines becoming barely discernible.

They were indeed ninjas, and not just a few, but hundreds or even thousands.

The ninjas strode across the sea at incredible speed toward them, and the old man would never mistake the leader, even from this distance.

"The Third Hokage of Konoha in the Land of Fire... Hiruzen Sarutobi?" the old man murmured, his heart sinking.

"Grandpa, what's wrong? What did you see?" The two boys came closer, asking with a mixture of curiosity and unease.

The old man just shook his head without explaining, staring at the torrential rain outside the window, his fingers unconsciously tapping his knees.

This was not his first time experiencing war.

During the Second and Third Shinobi World Wars, he witnessed ninjas fighting, ships being destroyed, and civilians being displaced.

But this time, it felt completely different.

He had never seen such a hurried and chaotic raid that required the Five Kage to personally lead the team, and even from this distance, he could see the almost overflowing fear emanating from those ninjas.

Something's not right.

The old man repeated himself in a low voice, his unease growing stronger.

The five major powers have not released any information about the battle, and even the identity of the enemy is unclear, except that it is an organization called "Akatsuki".

But if the enemy were really that simple, they wouldn't have gone to such lengths.

The old man sensed a danger far greater than in any previous conflict.

clap clap clap!

With the sound of footsteps hitting the water, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the ninjas rushed past. The old man inside the house suddenly stood up and began pacing in the small, damp room.

The old floorboards groaned beneath his feet. The two boys, frightened by his solemn expression, dared not ask any more questions and huddled in the corner.

After pacing around in circles for what seemed like an eternity, the old man suddenly stopped, as if he had made up his mind, and turned to the two boys: "Pack your things, take anything useful, and let's go now."

"Go?" The two boys were taken aback and blurted out, "Where are we going, Grandpa?"

It's pouring rain and a violent storm outside, and it's getting dark.

"Isn't there some 'cult' that's been making headlines around here lately? I heard even famous people have died at their hands."

The old man had already started stuffing things into his bundle with practiced ease, without even looking up: "Whether it's true or not, they must have some skill to make such a commotion, so let's go find them."

"A cult?" The older boy's expression changed. "That evil cult? Aren't they said to kill, burn, and sacrifice people, that they're a bunch of lunatics? How could we go looking for them?"

The old man continued working, only glancing at him upon hearing this: "If the war really comes this far, if something that even those ninjas couldn't stop comes..."

"If their religion could really save our lives, then even if their murders and arson were real, I'd still believe in them!"

"Stop talking nonsense and get to work!"

The two boys were frightened and dared not say another word. They hurriedly began to look for anything they could take with them.

But then...

Ugh!

A deep humming sound pierced through the clamor of the raging wind and rain, faintly heard.

Immediately afterwards, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble, dust fell from the roof, and the thin light of day, which had been obscured by dark clouds and torrential rain, suddenly dimmed.

"What's going on?" The old man looked up in surprise and gazed out the window.

Rumble!!

The sea near the port, which was originally calm, was now churning violently as if boiling, as if countless enormous objects were stirring up the seabed, with bubbles bursting out in large numbers.

One after another, towering waves, tens of meters high, crashed down on the small harbor, casting shadows that engulfed the port, the pier, the ships, and even the duty room in darkness.

The old man's pupils dilated slightly. He turned around abruptly, grabbed the wrists of the two boys with one hand each, kicked open the door, and rushed out, running frantically away from the giant waves.

boom!

The giant wave crashed down, easily crushing and tossing the fishing boats of all sizes moored on the shore. The houses also disintegrated like paper, swept away by the seawater and surging towards the three people.

The younger boy instinctively turned around, then let out a shrill scream: "Grandpa! Behind us!"

Upon hearing this, the old man turned around abruptly, his heart almost stopping.

"What the hell is that thing?!"

Suddenly, from within the still-raging giant waves, hundreds of thick, black and red tentacles tore through the water curtain and surged toward the direction they were fleeing.

These tentacles are like giant earthworms, with their tips burrowing into the soft, damp ground and then emerging from the ground, their suckers covered in sharp teeth.

[Approximately as shown in the image above]

Their escape speed was as slow as a tortoise crawl in the face of these tentacles.

Several tentacles were already lunging forward, their slippery surfaces covered with eyeballs and their hideous mouthparts clearly visible, and the stench was almost hitting my face.

Fear was evident on the faces of the old man and the two teenagers. Local.

"Alas! All of you, get out of my way!"

A strange cry suddenly came from the sky, causing the three of them to look up instinctively.

Suddenly, a red figure descended from the sky, wearing a striking red robe and holding an exaggeratedly large three-section scythe.

The man was in mid-air when the sickle was already swung out.

Several arc-shaped blades detached from the scythe and slashed at the tentacles that were lunging toward the shore.

puff!puff!puff!

Those incredibly tough tentacles were easily severed by these dark red blades, the dull thuds of the blades cutting into flesh echoing throughout.

A large amount of thick, foul-smelling liquid spurted from the broken surface, falling onto the beach and into the seawater, making a "sizzling" corrosive sound and emitting pungent white smoke.

Bang!

The figure landed heavily, blocking the three people on the ground from the tentacles. The scythe swung again, and several more bloody blades flew out, shredding another wave of tentacles to pieces.

Still shaken, the three involuntarily landed on the back of the man's red robe, where a black symbol with an outer circle and an inner triangle was embroidered.

"An evil...evil god cult?" the old man blurted out instinctively.

"ha?!"

The figure whirled around, revealing a face etched with impatience and rage. He glared at the three people slumped on the ground and roared angrily, "Cult of Gods! Cult of Gods!"

"How many times have I told you? We are now a cult of God! If you say it wrong again, I'll kill all three of you who are in the way and sacrifice you to the evil god, you bastards!!"

The three men trembled at his undisguised murderous intent and rude words, and scrambled backward on their hands and feet, but their legs were too weak to stand up.

"Hidan-sama."

Just then, a figure dressed in a black robe appeared behind Hidan, bowed slightly, and calmly reported: "We have notified the nearby civilians to evacuate according to the plan."

"But the people here are scattered, and the wind and rain are too strong, so it will take time to completely evacuate them."

Upon hearing this, Hidan frowned even more and clicked his tongue.

"Then hurry up!" he ordered without turning his head, as he casually swung his scythe, severing several tentacles that lunged at him again.

"Get Dou and the others moving. According to the previously designated area, everyone who is still breathing should quickly roll into the underground rat holes we dug nearby."

"Try to keep these disgusting things at bay and don't let them spread too quickly."

"...Oh, right."

He paused, as if only then remembering that there were three people behind him. He casually pointed the handle of his sickle behind him, pointing at the still-shaken old man and boy.

"Bring these three along too, and hurry up, I don't have time to babysit them all the time."

"Yes." The black-robed cultist responded respectfully, then walked up to the three terrified men. Although his aura was fierce, his movements were surprisingly gentle and even polite.

He reached out and helped the elderly man, who was soaking wet and trembling like a leaf, to his feet. He said in a calm tone, "Please come with me, it's too dangerous here."

He then looked at the two terrified teenagers and gestured for them to follow.

The old man and the boy were somewhat bewildered by him, but their survival instincts made them subconsciously follow the black-robed cultist, staggering and running in the opposite direction from the coast.

Before leaving, the old man couldn't help but look back one last time.

Hidan stood alone before the tentacles that burst from the ground, wielding his scythe and unleashing a shower of bloody blades that shredded wave after wave of the approaching tentacles.

The long red robe fluttered in the wind and rain, and the silhouette from behind was somewhat...

reliable?

"Ugh, so annoying! It's all Kabuto's fault, with that 'education for all' nonsense..."

Hidan, while expertly clearing away the tentacles, complained loudly, "What kind of grotesque creatures are they collecting these days? The industry has become like this!"

"Respect the elderly and care for the young? Seeing anything in our way, we should just chop it down and offer it to the evil god, you bastard!"

In the distance, the black-robed cultist seemed oblivious to his master's complaints, dutifully leading the three civilians away into the rain and the encroaching chaos.

Outside the port, more figures in black robes appeared and disappeared amidst the torrential rain and escalating chaos, guiding, driving away, and even forcibly leading the crying civilians deeper into the harbor.

Similar scenes are playing out along the coastlines and border regions of the Land of Wind, the Land of Thunder, the Land of Water, and the Land of Fire.

The black and red tentacles that grew from the Ten-Tails' body indiscriminately attacked any place where living beings gathered.

But no one expected this...

The fastest to react were not the ninjas or the samurai, but the evil cult.

The cult's symbol, a circle on the outside and a triangle on the inside, appeared before more and more desperate civilians, bringing them a glimmer of hope.

According to Hidan, all of this was due to just one reason.

"Because the Lord said..." he said matter-of-factly, "there is no place for them in hell now."