Start with the Mangekyo Sharingan: Follow Lord Madara out of Konoha

The dim light cast long shadows in the air, which was thick with the pungent mix of mildew, dampness, and faint decay. The cold, black walls of the Whirlpool Hidden Village dungeon were chilling to the bone.

The space was oppressively small. The only source of light was a narrow iron window perched high in the wall, through which dust motes drifted in the feeble light, failing to dispel the darkness lurking in the corners.

Following the leading man's footsteps, Kamihane and Nian moved in single file down the dark, cramped corridor. The sound of their footsteps echoed through the silent prison, sounding quite distinct.

In reality, the entire dungeon was empty; there weren't any of the notorious criminals Nian had imagined. Finally, they reached the end and saw a cluster of indistinct figures.

It was a cell deep within the dungeon, where about a dozen figures were lying sprawled haphazardly on the cold floor. All of them looked lethargic. Each of them had a Sealing Talisman stuck to their chest. Ink-black seals snaked out from the talismans, binding their bodies tightly.

Ash-covered and utterly disheveled.

"Brothers, these are the guys. They've been lurking suspiciously outside the village every day. Take a look. What kind of people are they?"

Kamihane pushed up his sunglasses slightly. In truth, he didn't even need to look. The moment he entered the dungeon, he had used his powerful sensory abilities to scan them all.

These individuals were dressed plainly, and their appearances were unremarkable. They were the kind of people who would disappear directly into a crowd. Whether it was the feedback from the Chakra overfrequency wave transmissions or what he was seeing now, he couldn't discern any clues.

Though the Sealing Talismans restricted the Chakra within their bodies, he could roughly gauge their strength through soul perception. Each of them was at least at the Chunin level. The soul fluctuations of a few even reached the Jonin level.

Nian frowned slightly, clearly also using the passive perception of the Spirit Transformation Technique to investigate the details of these people.

Seeing Kamihane arrive, the prisoners exchanged glances and tacitly remained silent, acting like numb machines.

Kamihane narrowed his eyes slightly. This group, considered together, was the standard reconnaissance squad for war...

It seemed that the other party was obviously prepared and had malicious intentions.

Kamihane was thoughtful. What he was seeing through observation, the Uzumaki Clan had probably already discovered. Obtaining deeper intelligence would be easy as pie for a Yin Release expert like him. Even his great-nephew by his side could easily handle it.

However, neither the Sharingan nor soul-searching with the Spirit Transformation Technique could be demonstrated in front of the Uzumaki Clan.

He paused slightly and beckoned the man behind him. "You know what, I actually did see something about a few of them."

"Really!" The man seemed extremely excited and quickly asked, "Who are they?"

"Hey, don't rush; there's always a 'but'," Kamihane said with a smile. "But I can't be sure yet. What if I'm wrong? Wouldn't that cause your Uzumaki Clan to make enemies for no reason?"

"This..." The man scratched his head, looking troubled.

"This concerns the safety of Whirlpool Hidden Village; this cannot be taken lightly," Kamihane said thoughtfully. "Here's what we'll do: if you don't mind, I'll dispatch a letter to access our archives. This will ensure a precise identification of their identities."

Tantōsai headquarters? What archives? Uchiha Nian, standing aside, was stunned. He looked at his uncle, who was full of hot air, and couldn't help but cast him a strange look, as if to say:

'Uncle, you're too good at talking!'

Kamihane glanced at him, the corner of his mouth curling into an almost imperceptible smile, as if responding:

'This is nothing. He'll even thank us for it!'

"Ah, we're so grateful!" The man's eyes lit up, and he grabbed Kamihane's hand, his face filled with sincerity. "The Uzumaki Clan will never forget this kindness!"

"Well, I'll go back and write the letter now, but..." Kamihane said, carefully considering his tone, "We in the Land of Iron aren't skilled in ninjutsu. Though we've opened up diplomacy in recent years and the chamber of commerce has reformed a lot, our Summoning Communication is still very underdeveloped. It'll take at least a day for the message to get through…"

"It's okay; we can wait," the man said, patting his chest confidently. "From now on, you two can stay in the village without worry. I'm the Southern District Chief of Whirlpool, Uzumaki Kurami. My words are good here. As long as you don't go to the restricted areas, you can wander around the village as you please!"

As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something and looked up at Kamihane. "Seeing as you're so young, how old are you this year?"

"3..." Kamihane blurted out subconsciously, but seeing the other man frowning, he immediately corrected himself: "Um... 23?"

"Hmm... That's more like it. I thought you were in your early twenties." Uzumaki Kurami's brow relaxed as he smoothed his soft red hair. "Old bro here is eight years older than you, so I'll take the liberty of calling you little bro!"

"Um... Big bro?" Kamihane asked tentatively.

"Yeah!" Kurami slung arms over shoulders with Kamihane. "With your old bro here, you brothers can stay for as long as you want! If you can really identify those thieves, old bro will definitely not let you do it for nothing!"

"Hey, it's just a small favor; no need to mention it."

"Hey, you're too kind."

The two slung arms over shoulders, enjoying each other's company, seemingly brothers in perfect harmony. Uchiha Nian, standing to the side, had lines all over his head as if he was a clay statue.

Just like that, the uncle and nephew left the dungeon. Under Uzumaki Kurami's warm hospitality, they enjoyed a hearty meal and were then arranged to stay in the best hotel in Whirlpool Village.

Whirlpool Village's economic strength obviously couldn't compare to Konoha's, or even some small countries. So, even the most luxurious hotel was somewhat antiquated, yet it excelled in its environment, with lush trees and strangely shaped rocks, offering more natural scenery to enjoy.

Soon, night fell and the moon quietly climbed into the sky.

Inside the room, the windows were tightly shut, and the two sat facing each other across the table.

"Uncle, you can leave this to me," Nian said quietly.

"It's rare that I'm in the mood, just protect my body here and don't let me be disturbed," Kamihane said, waving his hand. "Besides, I still want to wander around Whirlpool Village. If I happen to touch any restrictions, I'll need your help to break them."

Kamihane refused Nian's offer and closed his eyes slightly. As a breeze stirred, a light spirit body leaped out from his head and disappeared into the roof in the blink of an eye.

Nian was suddenly stunned. Uncle's actions were too smooth; he had omitted the hand seals. The spirit body was born from the mind and moved with his will. This was the highest level of the Spirit Transformation Technique!

In fact, even he, who was also practicing the Spirit Transformation Technique, didn't react before Kamihane's spirit body disappeared without a trace.

The only thing he could feel was that the seemingly light spirit body contained spiritual energy vast as an ocean and unfathomable.

"Uncle... have you become this powerful?"

Only now did he understand that Kamihane's earlier statement about "needing your help to break the restrictions" was just to humor a child.

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