"I heard your power is as strong as Timothy's? You call this power 'Chakra'?"
Naruto shook his head, his expression serious. "My power is much stronger than Timothy's."
Hyde smiled but said nothing.
"If you have such great power, why don't you contribute to world peace? With great power comes great responsibility. Join me in building an ideal nation, a place where there is no war and the weak are not oppressed. I need your calendar district."
Hearing this, Morkel's expression turned odd.
This guy sounds like he's running a pyramid scheme!
Sai remained expressionless, as if he hadn't heard a word. Meanwhile, Naruto looked thoughtful. "It sounds tempting, but I have to become Hokage. I can't go with you."
As they spoke, Nilugu peeked out from Timothy's armor, grinning at Hyde.
"What's this?" Hyde asked, pointing at Nilugu.
Timothy quickly responded, "A mink raised by a caravan. It's always been with me."
Hyde narrowed his eyes, carefully observing the patterns on Nilugu's body. A strange glint flashed in his gaze.
After a moment, he smiled. "Ah, I see. Just a caravan pet."
At that moment, a signalman's urgent voice echoed through the hall.
"Lord Hyde, something terrible has happened!"
"The fleet sent to the Wind Country has been completely annihilated!"
Morkel suddenly realized they were close to the Wind Country's border.
Hearing this, Timothy—who had been so determined to build his "ideal nation"—rushed out first.
"I have to check this out immediately!"
Naruto quickly followed. "Hey, if you're leaving, at least hand over the ferret first!"
With no other choice, Morkel and Sai followed. The Wind Country was an ally of the Fire Country, and Morkel was curious to see what had happened.
Before stepping out of the mechanical fortress, Morkel turned back and gave Hyde one last look.
Something about this guy feels off.
Once Morkel and the others left, Hyde's smile faded. He gestured to one of his subordinates.
"Fengwai, go investigate that caravan. Someone there might know what we've been searching for."
The Aftermath of War
Ten minutes later, they arrived at the Wind Country's border. Since it wasn't far, they covered the distance quickly, riding on their eagles.
From the sky, Morkel spotted wrecked mechanical ships scattered across the beach. Thick smoke still billowed from their hulls.
Morkel directed his eagle to land.
Impatient, Timothy rushed inside one of the wrecked ships to investigate.
Morkel, Sai, and Naruto followed closely behind.
Inside the dimly lit cabin, Sai observed the damage. "A battle just took place here."
Morkel narrowed his eyes. "The question is—who were they fighting?"
The only ones capable of standing against this level of technology… were ninjas.
Suddenly, the sound of wood scraping against wood echoed through the cabin.
A wooden puppet lunged at Timothy!
Clang! Clang!
Timothy hastily raised his broken sword, blocking the attack in a panic.
Morkel focused on the puppet. Something about it felt familiar…
Then, in a flash of realization, he exclaimed, "Kankuro?!"
The puppet's movements halted abruptly.
In the dim light, Kankuro's figure became visible. His expression was one of surprise. "Morkel? What are you doing in the Wind Country?"
Morkel waved his hand. "It's complicated. First, tell us what happened here."
Kankuro turned his gaze to Timothy, his voice filled with anger. "In short, the person piloting these battleships launched an unprovoked attack on the Wind Country. Several villages were reduced to ruins by their artillery fire!"
Naruto clenched his fists, stepping forward and grabbing Timothy by the armor.
"You said you wanted to create an ideal country without war!" Naruto shouted. "But you're the one starting wars!"
Timothy remained indifferent. "To achieve great ideals, sacrifices must be made."
Bang!
Naruto punched Timothy square in the face.
"Sacrificing innocent lives—is that your so-called ideal country?!"
Sai, watching, subconsciously touched his own cheek, recalling the punch Naruto had once given him. "Why is this guy always so impulsive?" he muttered.
Morkel, after a brief moment of thought, nodded. "It does seem hypocritical."
The group worked together to restrain Timothy.
Morkel used the Soul-Searching Technique to probe Timothy's memories.
Through them, he learned Timothy's village had been attacked by raiders. Hyde had rescued him, filling his head with grand ideals of an "ideal nation." Desperate to escape war, Timothy had been brainwashed into following Hyde's vision.
More importantly, Morkel discovered something shocking—the Grell Stone.
This mysterious gem contained immense power, granting abilities similar to Chakra. The energy within Timothy came from a Grell Stone implanted in his chest.
Hyde and Timothy had crossed the ocean to find a legendary Grell Stone mine.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
Hyde was full of lies.
And then Morkel remembered something—Hyde's strange interest in Nilugu.
Elder He Yan had once mentioned a stone containing mystical power, which his ancestors used to establish a kingdom.
If the stone He Yan spoke of was the Grell Stone, then Hyde's interest in Nilugu made sense.
Nilugu wasn't just a caravan pet. It was a royal family's pet. Wherever there were ferrets like Nilugu, there were descendants of the kingdom.
Morkel's eyes widened.
"Elder He Yan might be in danger!"
Naruto and Sai looked confused. "How can you be so sure?"
Morkel's voice was urgent. "We have to get to the caravan—Hyde may have already taken action!"
Summoning his eagle, Morkel flew toward the caravan with Sai, Naruto, and their restrained captive.
A Massacre at the Caravan
Arriving at the bottom of the valley, Morkel and his team landed near the caravan's remains.
What they saw filled them with rage.
Corpses littered the ground.
Naruto's eyes turned bloodshot, and even Morkel rarely showed such anger.
He turned to Timothy, his voice filled with fury. "Why should others die for the peace you seek?!"
Before he could finish, Morkel raised his hand.
"Calm down!" Naruto quickly stopped him.
Timothy looked dazed. He had lived with these caravan members. They were kind, hardworking people.
He realized, too late, that if they hadn't met him, they wouldn't have died.
Morkel took a deep breath, pushing his anger aside.
They had to stop Hyde before he reached the Grell Stone.
Searching through the wreckage, they found survivors—only six or seven people out of the thirty in the caravan.
Among them, Elder He Yan was missing.
Morkel approached He Yan's granddaughter. "Where's your grandfather?"
Tears streamed down the girl's face. "He was taken to find the mineral vein… I don't know where."
Naruto frowned. "How do we track them?"
Morkel smirked. "I have that covered."
He performed a summoning jutsu.
With a puff of smoke, a wolfhound appeared.
"I borrowed this from the Inuzuka Clan," Morkel explained. "It'll find Hyde."
Hyde's True Intentions
Meanwhile, Hyde forced Elder He Yan to an ancient ruin.
Standing at the top of the mountain, Hyde smirked.
"Is this the vein?"
He Yan trembled. "Yes… but to enter, we need royal blood."
Hyde's eyes glinted. "Royal blood, huh? That boy, Timothy—he must be a descendant."
Just then, Morkel and his team arrived.
"Stop right there!"
Hyde's face lit up with joy.
Morkel had just delivered what he needed.
As Morkel charged, a female knight stepped forward.
"I won't let you interfere!" she declared.
Morkel's figure blurred.
Slash!
Blood sprayed.
The knight collapsed, eyes wide in shock.
Naruto gasped.
Morkel had killed her in one move.
Even Sai, usually calm, was stunned.
"How… is he this fast?"