Half an hour later, Obito dragged Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage, out of the Kamui space.
During the past half-hour, Obito had assaulted Yagura multiple times using his Mangekyō Sharingan's Kamui. After exhausting Yagura's chakra, he finally cast a genjutsu with his Sharingan. Though Obito would have preferred to win without such methods, after losing to Byakuya and Minato, he had become far more cautious. There was no need for reckless risks that could lead to unnecessary trouble.
Glancing at Yagura behind him, Obito frowned. Although he had successfully placed Yagura under a genjutsu, the control was temporary. To maintain this hold, he would need to recast the Sharingan genjutsu every few weeks. While it wasn't difficult, it was certainly bothersome.
However, compared to the benefits of controlling Yagura, this inconvenience seemed insignificant. Still, Yagura's behavior would inevitably change under his control. If Yagura's close allies noticed these differences, it could lead to problems for Obito in the future. What could he do to avoid this?
Lost in thought, Obito surveyed the room, and his eyes fell upon the Mizukage's desk. Suddenly, an idea formed in his mind. If controlling Yagura posed such a risk, why not take his place as the Mizukage himself?
With Obito's abilities, raising strong subordinates in Kirigakure would be a simple task. Plus, this would bring him one step closer to his ultimate goal of becoming Hokage. After all, both the Mizukage and Hokage were the leaders of powerful ninja villages, and in a way, water even countered fire.
With this plan in mind, Obito used a transformation jutsu to assume Yagura's appearance and took his seat at the Mizukage's desk, casually picking up the scrolls awaiting Yagura's attention.
He opened one of the scrolls, and after just a glance, Obito's brow furrowed. The scroll contained a simple inquiry, asking how the Fourth Mizukage intended to deal with the ninja and clans who had lost in the Mizukage election.
Obito was silent for a few seconds. These matters were beyond his expertise. How was he supposed to know the proper way to handle election losers? This wasn't something they taught in the ninja academy.
But then again, those who opposed the Fourth Mizukage were clearly his enemies. And enemies… should be eliminated entirely.
With that thought, Obito manipulated the nearby Yagura to write down a decisive solution.
After handling about a third of the tasks on the desk, Obito was already feeling fatigued. He had never imagined that being the leader of a ninja village could be so exhausting—completely different from what he had envisioned.
With a sigh, Obito glanced at a scroll containing intelligence on the Nine-Tails incident. As the mastermind behind the attack, he didn't need the report to know what had happened that day.
However, during the interrogation of Yagura, the Mizukage had made several deductions that he should never have known.
Yagura had pieced together the idea that Madara Uchiha had been controlling the Mizukage and had instigated the Nine-Tails attack.
In reality, Obito was indeed acting as " Madara Uchiha." He had assassinated the Third Mizukage, and he had orchestrated the Nine-Tails incident.
But the assassin of the Third Kazekage? That, Obito truly had no idea.
Then there was the matter of the Three-Tails Jinchūriki... Obito's expression darkened. He didn't want to think too deeply about it, as it touched on matters involving someone he greatly respected.
Madara had intended for Obito to become Hokage. There was no way he would betray him.
Furthermore, when Obito had killed the Third Mizukage, there had been no sign of mind control or manipulation—everything appeared perfectly normal. Yagura's assumptions were nothing more than baseless speculation.
...
As the farthest village from Konoha, Kumogakure (Village Hidden by Clouds) was the last to receive intelligence on the Nine-Tails incident.
At this moment, the Fourth Raikage was not in his office but at the training grounds, sparring with several taijutsu specialists. The sound of their grunts and roars echoed like thunder as they trained with unrelenting energy.
Watching the Raikage's intense enthusiasm, his assistant Mabui could only shake her head in helplessness.
Compared to other ninja villages embroiled in schemes and rivalries, Kumogakure was refreshingly straightforward. Any dissatisfaction was typically resolved on the training grounds.
Yet, Mabui found it somewhat exasperating to watch the older men wrestle endlessly. Couldn't the village leaders devote their energy to managing village affairs? Relying solely on her to run Kumogakure was a daunting task.
Still, it was perhaps this lack of cunning that had allowed the village to grow to the scale of the second-largest ninja village in recent years, with a faint hint of surpassing Konoha.
Activating his Lightning Release chakra mode, the Fourth Raikage defeated his opponent, a seasoned jonin, and turned to Mabui, frowning. "Mabui, didn't I tell you? If there's nothing urgent, don't come looking for me."
Mabui adjusted her glasses and handed him the intelligence report on the Nine-Tails incident. "Raikage, this is indeed very important."
As the Fourth Raikage took the report and noted the suspected deaths of the Fourth Hokage and his wife, a shadow crossed his face.
Seeing this, Mabui asked in confusion, "Raikage, isn't it a good thing that the Gold Flash and the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki are gone? Why do you look so unhappy?"
The Fourth Raikage sighed. "Last time I fought against Minato, we had agreed to battle again once we both became Kage. I didn't expect him to die so inexplicably in such a short time."
"A strong rival like him… it's a pity to lose."
After a pause, his expression sharpened as he gazed toward Konoha. "But for our village, this is a tremendous opportunity."
"You plan to attack the Land of Fire?" Mabui was taken aback. "With Konoha having signed peace treaties with Iwagakure and Kirigakure, isn't a solo attack too risky?"
Shaking his head, the Fourth Raikage replied, "This is the best chance we have. If we pass it up, Kumogakure will remain confined to this peninsula, forever unable to gain land in the Land of Fire."
Mabui hesitated before saying, "What about Ōnoki from Iwagakure? He might strike us again, just like last time!"
The Fourth Raikage waved his hand dismissively and grinned. "If we keep worrying about every possible threat, the village will never expand. I believe in my brother Killer Bee, and I trust our comrades. We can't lose!"
Hearing the Fourth Raikage's passionate declaration, the nearby Kumogakure jonin grew excited. They had long wanted to expand their territory, seizing lands in the Land of Water and even the Land of Fire. Only by gaining more rewards could the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning offer more support.