Mokuton Phantom in Naruto

With Hoshigakure weakened after sending fifty shinobi to support Konoha, missions began piling up.

Since the village lacked military strength, most assignments were escort missions.

One day, Ryuusei was summoned by the Second Hoshikage, Eizen.

The village leader informed him of his new task: escorting a small family, a father, mother, and daughter to a village in the Land of Birds.

The Hoshikage's office was silent when Ryuusei entered.

Eizen sat behind the desk, hands clasped, his gaze calm yet serious.

"Ryuusei," he began, cutting straight to the point.

The young shinobi stood firm, attentive.

"We have a mission for you."

Eizen slid a scroll across the table.

Ryuusei picked it up and unfurled it.

Mission Rank C – Escort

Destination: Small village in the Land of BirdsClients: Civilian family (father, mother, and daughter)Risk Level: Low

"It's a simple escort," Eizen explained. "The route is safe, with no connection to the war."

Ryuusei frowned.

"If it's so safe, why send a shinobi?"

Eizen smiled faintly.

"Because in times of war, there's no such thing as 'guaranteed safety.'"

The family waited at the village gates.

They looked completely ordinary.

The father was a plain-looking man, dressed like a traveling merchant.

The mother was petite and reserved, holding the hand of their six-year-old daughter.

The little girl seemed curious yet anxious.

"You're the ninja escorting us?" the father asked, somewhat hesitant.

Ryuusei nodded.

"Yes. I'm Ryuusei Hoshi from Hoshigakure. I'll make sure you reach your destination safely."

The mother squeezed her daughter's hand.

"It will be safe… won't it?"

Ryuusei glanced at the sky.

The sun shone brightly. The weather was clear.

The war felt distant.

He forced a smile.

"Yes. It'll be safe."

But deep down, he couldn't be sure.

The wind blew gently across the fields, carrying the fresh scent of damp earth.

Ryuusei led the way, eyes constantly sweeping the surroundings.

The dirt road was quiet, almost serene, aside from the occasional creak of wagon wheels and the snap of reins in the driver's hands.

Unlike his first mission, when he'd been caught off guard and forced to face the brutality of the ninja world, this time he wouldn't allow anything to escape his sight.

The war hadn't touched him directly yet, but its weight pressed down on his shoulders.

"I'm alone on this. If something goes wrong, there's no one to back me up."

The driver tried to strike up conversation a few times, asking about Hoshigakure, if Ryuusei had seen combat, but the young shinobi remained silent.

He couldn't afford distractions.

Surprisingly, the journey was uneventful.

No bandits on the road. No ambushes.

By the second day, the small village emerged from behind the trees.

It was even smaller than Ryuusei had imagined.

Simple houses dotted the landscape, a few carts parked near a wooden barn.

A crystal-clear river cut through the village, shimmering in the sunlight.

Ryuusei delivered the family safely and lingered to observe the settlement.

Eizen had given him discretion to stay for a few days. Any information, no matter how trivial, could prove useful.

The village nestled quietly among rolling hills and dense trees.

The houses were modest but well-kept. There were no guards, no towering walls.

Yet the villagers didn't seem worried about security.

That unsettled Ryuusei.

The world was burning in the flames of war. Entire cities lay in ruins.

But here… it was as if the chaos couldn't touch them.

Even stranger was the village's abundance.

The fields thrived with crops tall, golden wheat and oversized vegetables.

And the people…

Nearly everyone had orange hair.

The trait was too prominent to be coincidence.

That evening, at the inn where he stayed, Ryuusei decided to dig deeper.

During dinner, he sat near the innkeeper, a burly man with sharp eyes.

"This village… it's unusually prosperous," Ryuusei remarked casually.

The old man chuckled.

"It's always been like this. Our land is blessed."

Ryuusei arched a brow.

"Blessed how?"

The innkeeper nodded toward the lake at the village's center.

"The water."

"Water…?"

"Our soil's always been fertile, and our bodies always strong. It all comes from the lake."

Ryuusei frowned.

"That doesn't sound normal."

The man leaned closer, elbows on the table.

"Maybe not to outsiders. But to us, it's just the way things are. I'll tell you this, though, we've never known hunger. Sickness is rare. Anyone who drinks our water grows stronger."

That night, sleep eluded Ryuusei.

Curiosity gnawed at him.

Unable to ignore it, he slipped out and headed toward the river.

The water was so clear it mirrored the sky.

After two days of travel without rest, a bath seemed like a good idea.

He removed his cloak and stepped into the river.

The current was cool and soothing, easing his tense muscles.

Ryuusei closed his eyes and submerged himself.

And that's when he felt it.

"What…?"

A subtle vibration.

Something flowed around him, something familiar.

Ryuusei's eyes snapped open underwater.

The riverbed glowed faintly.

Among the ordinary stones, bluish-green fragments pulsed with light.

His heart raced.

That sensation…

It was the same as when he meditated near Hoshigakure's Star Meteorite.

He burst from the water, gasping.

"This… This is the same energy!"

But it didn't make sense.

The Star's power came from the meteorite in Hoshigakure.

How could the same energy exist here?

Determined to uncover the truth, Ryuusei followed the river upstream.

The path led deeper into the forest.

The landscape shifted.

The trees grew taller, their trunks twisted and ancient.

Some leaves shimmered faintly with purple hues under the sunlight.

The entire forest felt alive.

The closer he got, the stronger the energy became.

The journey took two days.

Finally, he found it.

A cave hidden behind a waterfall.

The river flowed from the darkness within, feeding the village's lifeline.

The cave's interior was damp and eerily quiet.

At the far end…

The stones glowed.

Ryuusei stepped closer and touched one.

A surge of energy shot through him.

It was unmistakable.

The same sensation as the Star Meteorite.

"This…"

"This is the same as the Star's energy!"

His heart pounded in his chest.

If this energy existed here…

It meant Hoshigakure's power wasn't unique.

The village had been exposed to this energy for generations.

The orange hair…

Ryuusei had asked the innkeeper if the villagers were part of a single clan.

But the answer had been no.

"They've been changed by this energy."

Ryuusei stepped back from the cave wall, mind spinning with questions.

"If this is the same as Star Chakra…"

"Then what happened in Hoshigakure… wasn't unique?"

If the entire village had unknowingly absorbed this energy for decades…

What would happen if someone mastered it completely?

He swallowed hard.

The potential was staggering.

[Author's Note:

"Naruto fans might have already caught the connection. Hehehe… Jugo… Natural energy…"]