Ninja World: I, Kisame Hoshigaki, am no longer human!

He realized that Jiraiya had probably been tracking him all along, but had failed to recognize his identity and had missed him, the "Konoha invader".

Kisame withdrew his gaze and instructed the Rain Ninja to continue on their way.

His current strength has reached the Kage level, enough to place him among the top-tier ninjas in the ninja world. But for Kisame, that alone is far from enough.

In the past few days, he had encountered several Konoha ninjas, including Kushina's Adamantine Sealing Technique, Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God Technique, and Jiraiya's Sage Mode from Mount Myōboku.

You could say they're all incredibly talented.

This made Kisame wary.

Therefore, Kisame desperately wanted to become stronger, ideally to devour the Box of Elysium before the flames of the Third Shinobi World War swept across the world.

Only in that way can he truly possess the power to defy fate.

At that time, regardless of whether the opponent is a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki or one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha, Kisame will be able to easily overpower them with his strength.

Thinking of this, Kisame looked ahead.

Hozuki Castle, here I come.

Two days later.

Jiraiya wandered around for a long time, but ultimately returned to Konoha empty-handed.

He entered the Hokage's office to report the situation to Hiruzen Sarutobi, only to find Tsunade and Orochimaru there as well.

Half an hour later.

The three legendary Konoha ninjas left the Hokage Building together and went to their usual izakaya (Japanese pub).

During the meal.

"By the way, do you guys remember the winner of the last Chunin Exams more than three months ago?"

Jiraiya suddenly asked, because he remembered Kisame, whom he had seen in the prison cart that day.

"You mean Kisame Hoshigaki from Kirigakure?"

Orochimaru looked at Jiraiya with surprise, not understanding why the latter had suddenly brought up this matter.

Tsunade frowned, slammed down her wine cup, and said with a displeased expression:

Why bring that guy up? It's bad luck.

Clearly, Tsunade was very unhappy.

Because that shameless bastard Kisame Hoshigaki framed her for the death of Prince Fuji, and she had a hard time getting away with it and proving her innocence.

She naturally hated Kisame to the core.

"I met him in Kusagakure. Kisame Hoshigaki was sent to Hozuki Castle as a prisoner, supposedly for intentionally murdering his employer. It seems... it happened on the set of that movie you were filming before?"

Jiraiya explained the reason and then asked Tsunade out of curiosity.

"Is that so?"

Upon hearing this, Tsunade was taken aback at first, then burst into laughter, gloating, "That guy finally got what he deserves! It's truly gratifying!"

Under the astonished gazes of Jiraiya and Orochimaru, she picked up the bottle of wine on the table and gulped it down her throat.

Unjust is doomed to destruction.

Kisame Hoshigaki finally got his comeuppance after doing so many despicable things.

Tsunade became happier and happier as she thought about it, and she drank with great joy.

"Pity."

Orochimaru sighed softly and murmured.

He had heard that the Hozuki Castle prison was a place of no return, a forgotten corner of the ninja world.

He wasn't sorry for Kisame as a person, but rather for the Totsuka Sword, a family heirloom of the Hoshigaki clan.

Ever since his late-night meeting with Kisame in the alley, Orochimaru has been obsessed with the Totsuka Blade.

Of course, he also wondered if Kisame was bluffing him, and that the information Kisame gave about the Totsuka Blade was false.

It's a complete lie.

What puzzled Orochimaru was how Kisame knew about the Totsuka Blade and why he was trying to trick him.

In short.

In Orochimaru's eyes, Kisame Hoshigaki was not an ordinary Chunin from Kirigakure, but a mysterious man whom he could not see through.

However, he will probably never see Kisame again in his life, since the latter went to that prison.

Thinking of this, Orochimaru shook his head and stopped thinking about Kisame.

Within the Land of Grass.

On a vast inland sea, the wind and waves were turbulent, and a small boat drifted with the current, struggling to move forward.

Several rain ninjas clung to the boat, gripping the edge tightly, afraid of accidentally falling into the water.

Their gazes were filled with resentment as they stared at the back of Kisame Hoshigaki at the bow of the ship. He stood there with his hands behind his back, seemingly rooted to the spot, showing no fear of the wind and waves.

The group dared not speak out against Kisame.

Over the past two days.

After Kisame joined the escort team, he started eating and drinking for free, and he ate an enormous amount, enough to feed five people.

Kisame "borrowed" a lot of the Rain Ninja's food, and they all went hungry.

What's even more outrageous is...

Kisame lay in the prison cart every day, just like a grandpa riding in a sedan chair, and every few hours he would order everyone to stop.

Because he needed to get out of the prison van, stretch his muscles, walk around, and even take a hot bath.

This isn't a prison sentence; it's a vacation.

The original prisoner, Scarface, was also driven out of the prison van by Kisame and, wearing handcuffs and shackles, walked behind the group.

Fortunately, they're almost at their destination. For the Rain Ninja, just a little more patience will do.

When we arrived at that place, Kisame was crying.

Two hours later.

In the distance, an island rises high above the sea, forming a steep and magnificent cliff. On the cliff, there is a large complex of buildings.

That's Ghost Lantern Castle.

"Watch out!" The Rain Ninja gripped the edge of the boat even tighter.

That's because many giant, sharp rocks emerge from the seabed around the island, creating invisible whirlpools in the vicinity.

If someone were to accidentally fall into the water, even a ninja could easily be swept away by the current and lose their life.

No wonder people say that Hozuki Castle is a natural prison.

We finally made it ashore.

The escort team walked along the muddy road, heading straight for Ghost Lantern Castle.

The road is lined with large groves of cranberries, their red fruit and green leaves swaying in the wind.

These are ghost lantern fruits.

These ghost lantern fruits are occasionally blown into the prison by strong winds from the sea. Eating the ordinary red fruits is fine, but eating the white variant will cause paralysis throughout the body, and the effects will not subside for a day.

So the prisoners on the island would try every means to get their hands on white ghost lantern fruits, eat them, and then sneak into the medical cell to enjoy the air conditioning and hot water there.

"My stomach is a little upset, please wait here for me."

Kisame found an excuse, jumped out of the prison cart, and walked behind a tree by the roadside.

He collected some white berries, stored them in a storage scroll, and then swallowed the scroll.

Once inside Ghost Lantern City, these white Ghost Lantern Fruits become the hard currency of the prison.

After finishing this task, Kisame returned to the prison cart.

It was called a prison cart, but the wheels had been removed when they crossed the sea, leaving only an iron cage.

With no other option, the Rain Ninja and the others could only stand around the iron cage, lift the more than 200-pound Kisame, and walk step by step toward Hozuki Castle.

Soon, their shoulders ached so badly that they couldn't stand up straight from exhaustion.

"Lord Kisame, why don't you... get down and take a walk?"

After walking for a while, the leader of the Rain Ninja finally couldn't help but ask for help.

"No, I'm a serious criminal who has committed grave crimes and am extremely dangerous. Someone like me must be locked up in a prison van."

Kisame flatly refused the other party's kindness, crossed his arms and sat cross-legged, looking righteous and stern.

Upon hearing this, the Rain Ninja could only grit their teeth and continue lifting.

Finally, the group arrived at the gates of Ghost Lantern Castle and saw the cold and desolate steel prison up close.

They are both prisoners.

Scarface's face was ashen, his eyes filled with despair and fear, and his whole body was trembling.

On the other hand, Kisame showed a genuine smile, his eyes filled with hope and anticipation, as if he had come home.

crunch.

The gate, several meters high, slowly opened.

In the open space at the prison entrance, several prison guards were counting the prisoners who had just arrived that day.

There were also a dozen guards around, holding matchlock guns, their eyes fixed on the prisoners like hawks. If they found anyone acting strangely, they would raise their guns and shoot.

With the arrival of Scarface and Kisame, today's batch of prisoners is now complete.

boom.

After several Rain Ninja removed the iron cage and handed it over to the prison staff, they passed by Kisame with cold smiles and hurriedly left.

Although they wanted to see Kisame get a severe beating, no one wanted to stay in this eerie, ghostly place for long.

Behind the group of prisoners, the gate slowly closed.