After briefly considering, Sora decided to target those two patrol guards. He silently followed them deep into the forest, and seeing no one else around, quietly landed behind them.
Thud! Thud!
His hand moved like a blur, instantly striking the back of their necks.
The two guards, who had just been chatting casually, abruptly went white-eyed and collapsed without making a sound.
After checking them briefly and confirming they were ordinary people without any special powers, Sora quickly carried them back down the mountain.
Without needing to carefully observe his surroundings this time, Sora was much faster, returning to Might Guy and Kurenai within five minutes.
"Kurenai, interrogate them using your genjutsu and find out anything useful." Sora casually tossed the captives at Kurenai's feet, then stepped back and dusted his hands off.
Everyone had their own expertise, and this was exactly Kurenai's area. Besides, she needed a chance to shine.
"Got it!" Kurenai grabbed the two unconscious men, a determined look on her face. "I'll get everything out of them!"
Ignoring Kurenai's side for now, Sora began to explain to Guy what he'd observed earlier.
Once they'd finished their discussion, Kurenai came over, while the two captives had already disappeared.
"Shinobi truly have no hesitation killing," Sora silently noted, seeing that Kurenai's expression was unchanged.
"I learned something. The Death God Cult has one Cult Leader and two Guardians. These three are the strongest within the group."
Kurenai found a clean rock to sit on, then continued speaking to Sora. "The girls being sacrificed are almost always killed personally by these three. The other cult members just get some minor benefits, gaining weak powers sufficient only to intimidate ordinary people."
"Did they know how strong the Cult Leader and the Guardians are?" Sora asked urgently as Kurenai paused.
"No." Kurenai shook her head. "All they knew was that those three could steal souls, exactly as Kumaichi described."
Having heard the complete information, the three shinobi sank into deep thought, considering their next move.
Only the Cult Leader and his two Guardians could take souls, while other members were much weaker, unable to threaten either Guy or Kurenai significantly.
"Let's move together. You two deal with the ordinary members and free the civilians. I'll take care of the leader and the two Guardians," Sora decisively instructed.
The three wasted no time, quickly entering the mountain.
At the mid-point, they encountered several ordinary cult members assigned to guard duty.
Most were mere civilians, with only a few possessing minor powers from the sacrificial rituals.
"Genjutsu—Hell Viewing Technique!"
As Kurenai's voice softly echoed, two guards holding swords slowly collapsed, screaming hysterically, "No! Stay away! Help!"
Ignoring them, the trio continued moving upward.
"Death God—Soul Extraction!"
Suddenly, one of the guards who'd already collapsed stood up. His face was shrouded in dark mist, forming a terrifying mask resembling the Death God itself.
As his inhuman chant rang out, Sora and his companions suddenly felt their bodies lighten, momentarily losing all sensation.
Pfft!
Blood spurted from the guard's mouth, and the black mist vanished. He seemed to age decades instantly, turning from a middle-aged man into a frail elder with white hair and deep wrinkles appearing rapidly on his face.
"No… impossible! How could you resist the great Death God?" he gasped, nearing death.
Glancing at him briefly, Sora calmly said, "Ignore him. He won't live much longer. Let's move on!"
After that encounter, the three shinobi swiftly eliminated more than a dozen similarly powered guards without much trouble.
Soon, they reached the place Sora had seen earlier, where numerous civilians were being held captive. "You two free the civilians. I'll handle those higher-ups!"
With a fierce grin, Sora vanished from sight instantly.
Although ordinary cultists posed little threat, their strange abilities made him wary, prompting him to separate from Kurenai and Guy for their safety.
"Who dares invade our sacred ground? You must wish for death!"
As Sora reached the summit, a dilapidated temple came into view, clearly constructed hastily by the cultists themselves, no different from a makeshift slum.
Before he could inspect further, a dozen cult members surrounded him, all displaying twisted smiles.
Their expressions resembled wild beasts anticipating their prey, barely human.
"Die!"
"Raikiri! Rapid Body Flicker!"
Lightning flashed as Sora disappeared, using dozens of Body Flicker techniques in rapid succession, moving too quickly for anyone to react.
When he reappeared moments later, he stood calmly before the temple entrance.
Only then did the cultists behind him collapse lifelessly.
Earlier, after splitting from Guy and Kurenai, he'd stumbled across a pit filled with human skeletons. Considering the earlier looks on these cultists' faces, it was clear those victims had served as their food. Such people deserved death!
His killing intent intensified as he stepped into the temple, fire and lightning flickering around him.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
The temple was dark and empty, filled only by the sound of Sora's footsteps.
"Hiding, huh? Let's see how long you can stay hidden," Sora sneered, stepping back to the temple entrance.
Since they refused to come out willingly, he'd force them!
"Tailed Beast Bomb—Crimson Flame!"
At the temple entrance, Sora quickly formed a Tailed Beast Bomb, merging it with fire-natured chakra.
Flames swirled violently around the once attribute-less sphere, scorching the surroundings intensely.
Seeing that Sora intended to destroy the place in one strike, the two Guardians hiding in the shadows panicked and rushed out.
"Death God—Soul Extraction!"
As the voice echoed, Sora suddenly felt his body lift uncontrollably.
"Get back here!" he roared, forcibly exerting his physical power to drag his soul back into his body.
"Thankfully, my physical strength is powerful enough to anchor my soul. Otherwise…" Sora felt a deep sense of relief at his narrow escape.
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