After leaving Terumi Mei's house, Shūichi didn't leave Kirigakure. Instead, he transformed into an ordinary Mist ninja and strolled around the village.
The term Bloody Mist originated during the reign of the Third Mizukage, but under Obito's control, the oppressive atmosphere had grown even worse.
This terror extended from the training methods of the academy to every corner of the village—manifesting as tensions between ninja clans and ordinary shinobi, and increasing hostility toward families with Kekkei Genkai.
After spending three days in Kirigakure, Shūichi could clearly sense the undercurrents of unrest in this seemingly tranquil village.
On the fourth day, he stumbled upon something intriguing: someone was planning to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage!
"So, it's Hōzuki Mangetsu…"
After the two conspirators left their meeting spot, Shūichi emerged from the tree trunk he had been hiding in.
Wood Style: Dangan Invisibility!
This was a Wood Release technique he had learned from White Zetsu. Once he mastered the nature transformation for Wood Release, replicating Zetsu's jutsu wasn't difficult.
The two conspirators were none other than Hōzuki Mangetsu and a young ninja named Shuang from the Yuki Clan, known for its Ice Release.
What piqued Shūichi's interest was their age—Mangetsu was only ten, while Shuang was thirteen.
These two prodigies, one from the Hōzuki Clan and the other from the Yuki Clan, were plotting to kill the Fourth Mizukage.
Shūichi thought back to the original timeline. In it, the Fourth Mizukage had been placed under Obito's control after Uchiha Itachi defected from Konoha, following his failed attempt to infiltrate Kirigakure and defeat the Mizukage.
That timeline was likely still six or seven years away.
"So, these are real prodigies."
"Assassinate the Mizukage, destroy their clans…"
Shūichi chuckled to himself.
Still, despite their genius, Shūichi thought the two were far from capable of assassinating the Fourth Mizukage successfully.
"If the Hōzuki and Yuki clans truly work together, there might be a sliver of a chance."
Deciding to investigate further, Shūichi followed Mangetsu to the Hōzuki Clan to eavesdrop.
---
In the study of the Hōzuki Clan leader:
Hōzuki Kyūgetsu abruptly stood up in shock after hearing Mangetsu's plan.
"What?! Who else knows about this?"
Mangetsu's expression remained calm. "Clan leader, the Mizukage is becoming increasingly hostile toward us. If we don't act first, it's only a matter of time before he destroys us."
The Hōzuki Clan, known for its unique Hydrification Technique, had been classified as a Kekkei Genkai clan.
Kyūgetsu's face darkened.
Mangetsu continued, "If our plan is exposed, the Mizukage won't just punish Shuang and me. He'll use this as an excuse to eliminate the Hōzuki and Yuki clans entirely."
Kyūgetsu growled in a low voice, "So, you're willing to gamble the entire clan?"
Mangetsu replied indifferently, "Clan leader, do we have any other choice?"
Do they? Kyūgetsu clenched his fists and sighed, abandoning any thought of silencing Mangetsu.
If that was the case, then…
Looking at the young prodigy he had once admired most, Kyūgetsu asked, "Are you sure the Yuki Clan will join us?"
Mangetsu smiled faintly. "Do they have a choice?"
Kyūgetsu nodded slightly before asking, "Are there any others involved?"
Mangetsu shook his head. "The fewer who know, the better."
"Besides, our two clans are enough."
Kyūgetsu frowned. "What about the Kaguya Clan…?"
Mangetsu immediately dismissed the idea. "Those brutes? They'd alert the Mizukage before we even acted."
Kyūgetsu sighed again. The Kaguya Clan truly was a group of reckless fools who only knew how to fight.
Reluctantly, Kyūgetsu agreed, though his concerns remained. "Then it's settled."
Mangetsu stated with determination, "In three days, we'll storm the Mizukage's office!"
At only ten years old, Mangetsu had seized control of an assassination plot against the Mizukage.
Hidden nearby, Shūichi couldn't help but find the situation absurd.
What a twisted world—where even coups were handled so recklessly!
Storming the Mizukage's office? The confidence was overwhelming!
---
Deciding to watch how events unfolded, Shūichi slipped away, thinking of another figure—the Ice Release prodigy, Haku.
"Let's see this drama play out first," he muttered, remaining hidden in Kirigakure.
---
Soon, the day of the assassination arrived.
Early in the morning, Shūichi transformed into a bird and perched on a tree outside the Mizukage's office to observe.
Wait—
He noticed Terumi Mei entering the Mizukage's office.
Before she reemerged, Shūichi spotted Hōzuki and Yuki clan ninjas quickly approaching the office.
Meanwhile, the clan leaders—Kyūgetsu of the Hōzuki Clan and Shuang's father from the Yuki Clan—had already entered the building.
After a brief silence, a deafening explosion shattered the calm, blowing apart one of the Mizukage's office walls.
The hidden ninjas from the two clans immediately launched their assault.
Indeed, the two clans had planned in secret; the Mizukage's office was completely unguarded.
By the time the invading ninjas began their killing spree, the Mizukage's guards were only just realizing what was happening.
It wasn't until their comrades started falling that the Mist ninjas understood—someone was attempting to assassinate the Mizukage!
As Terumi Mei prepared to leave the Mizukage's office after receiving a new mission, she found herself face-to-face with an attack. Two groups of ninja wearing identical white masks had stormed the building.
"Someone's trying to assassinate the Mizukage!"
Terumi Mei's face hardened as she quickly assessed the situation. Her first thought was that it must be Konoha's doing. Forming hand seals rapidly, she shouted, "Protect Lord Mizukage!"
With a crash, a torrent of water surged forward, blocking the incoming Water Release jutsu. Immediately after, a water dragon materialized, slamming into an enemy and sending them flying.
Lava Release: Lava Monster Technique!
Terumi Mei retreated toward the staircase leading to the second floor. Opening her mouth, she spewed out a grayish, viscous liquid that dripped down, forming a wall to seal off the entrance to the upper floor.
But then, she felt a sharp threat behind her.
As she turned, a barrage of ice needles flew straight at her, piercing her body.
"The Yuki Clan…"
Terumi Mei's disbelief was short-lived. With a splash, her body dissolved into water.
"A water clone…"
She emerged from a nearby puddle, and before the masked Yuki ninja could launch another attack, she spewed a jet of lava. The liquid engulfed the enemy, dissolving them into a skeleton in mere moments.
After eliminating the immediate threat, Mei quickly moved to the second floor.
The floor was littered with corpses, making it impossible to distinguish friend from foe.
Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed through the building.
Terumi Mei's expression changed drastically—she could sense it.
It was Tailed Beast Chakra!
The Fourth Mizukage had tapped into the power of his tailed beast.
Rushing to a window, Terumi Mei looked outside. Sure enough, she saw Yagura cloaked in the tailed beast's chakra, piercing a white-masked ninja with a single claw.
But the ninja's body liquefied upon impact.
"The Hōzuki Clan!"
Terumi Mei's pupils contracted sharply.
The assassins are from the Hōzuki and Yuki clans? Are there other Kekkei Genkai families involved?
A deep sense of unease settled over her. Regaining her composure, she ignored the chaos inside the building, broke through a window, and leapt outside.
While midair, she completed her hand seals.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!
She exhaled a torrent of water, which roared into the shape of a dragon and swept away several assailants surrounding the Fourth Mizukage.
Lava Release: Lava Monster Technique!
Even before landing, she launched her second jutsu. Lava splashed down, melting a Hōzuki ninja instantly—their Hydrification Technique proving useless against the attack.
Watching from the roof, Shūichi couldn't help but smirk.
"Not bad. She's quick."
The moment Terumi Mei landed, several ice mirrors formed around her.
"Terumi!"
From within the mirrors, Shuang, the Yuki Clan prodigy, appeared. "You know the state of the village. The best course of action is to eliminate the Fourth Mizukage and elect a new leader. If we don't, the village will crumble sooner or later!"
Terumi Mei's expression turned grim. "And have you considered this? If you succeed in assassinating the Mizukage, what's stopping someone from assassinating the next leader? This would plunge the village into an endless cycle of coups and internal strife!"
Shuang sighed softly. "It seems I can't convince you."
His gaze turned icy. "In that case… you're my enemy!"
With a flick of his hand, ice senbon shot out in a flurry.
Terumi Mei dodged swiftly, but Shuang attacked from behind, wielding an ice blade that sliced through her.
Splash!
Terumi Mei's body once again dissolved into water, and her true form emerged nearby. Without giving Shuang a chance to react, she exhaled a mist that rapidly filled the area.
Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!
The high-temperature acidic mist spread quickly, dissolving the ice mirrors surrounding her in an instant.
Terumi Mei's hands didn't stop forming seals. When Shuang's true form finally emerged, a water dragon was already lunging at him, jaws open wide.
However, the water dragon was quickly frozen solid, crashing to the ground as a pile of shattered ice.
But Terumi Mei had already appeared behind Shuang. With a swift strike to the neck, she knocked him unconscious.
A Kekkei Genkai battle, and Terumi Mei had won decisively.
Watching from the rooftop, Shūichi muttered to himself, "That Ice Release is pretty underwhelming."
From his perception, Shuang's chakra reserves were noticeably inferior to Terumi Mei's—a gap not only in age but also in physical constitution.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Mizukage, cloaked in his tailed beast's chakra, continued to dominate the battlefield with unstoppable force.
However, Shūichi was well aware that everything happening was under Obito's control.
"It seems the Hōzuki Clan has no chance of winning. Time to collect some corpses."
Shūichi transformed into a member of the Mist's assassination squad and infiltrated the Mizukage's building to retrieve bodies.
With so many bodies lying around, it would be a waste to leave them. They could serve as excellent cadavers for medical research, contributing to the shinobi world's medical advancements.
After gathering all the bodies in the Mizukage's building, Shūichi noticed that the battle outside had ended.
The assassination attempt by the Hōzuki and Yuki clans had clearly failed.
In Shūichi's opinion, if they hadn't succeeded in killing the Fourth Mizukage in their first strike, the mission was doomed from the start.
The combined forces of the Hōzuki and Yuki clans were simply not strong enough to withstand a counterattack.
Although the Fourth Mizukage, under Obito's control, had implemented a brutal Blood Mist policy, it hadn't yet reached the point where everyone was willing to rebel.
There were still many loyal shinobi in the Mist Village, just like Terumi Mei.
Disguised as an assassination squad member, Shūichi joined the other Mist shinobi under the Fourth Mizukage's orders to hunt down the remaining Hōzuki and Yuki clan members.
Of course, Shūichi's true goal was to collect bodies—and perhaps find a few orphans worth saving.
The extinction of Ice Release in the shinobi world would indeed be a pity.
Both the Hōzuki and Yuki clans seemed to have prepared for the possibility of failure. When the Mizukage's forces arrived, the clans had already scattered in retreat.
Thus began the pursuit.
Halfway through the hunt, Shūichi broke off from the group and sank into the earth, traveling stealthily.
---
On a mountain path, the ground was stained red with blood, and the bodies of women lay strewn about.
A young boy was wailing loudly, his short legs stumbling as he ran.
Run! Run away!
The boy clung to his mother's dying words, pushing himself to flee with all his might.
But how could a child outrun a shinobi?
"Hey, kid, where do you think you're going?"
A Mist ninja appeared suddenly, grabbing the boy effortlessly and lifting him into the air. The ninja sneered viciously.
"A brat from the Hōzuki Clan. How pitiful!"
"But hey, you brought this on yourselves. Who told your clan to try and assassinate the Mizukage?"
"And don't forget—your clan always looked down on us ordinary shinobi, didn't you?"
The Mist ninja tossed the boy to the ground and raised his blade, ready to strike. But before he could swing, his body froze.
Looking down, he saw a hand piercing through his chest.
Shūichi pulled his hand back, letting the Mist ninja collapse to the ground.
He turned to the filthy, tear-streaked boy in front of him and asked with a smile, "What's your name?"
The boy, barely two or three years old, wiped his tears and stammered, "H-Hōzuki Suigetsu…"
What a coincidence.
Shūichi extended his hand. "Suigetsu, huh? Good. Come with me, and I'll make sure you survive."
Suigetsu looked at the corpses around him, then nodded, reaching out his dirty little hand to grasp Shūichi's.
The next moment, they vanished from the spot.
---
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield…
Orochimaru stood, smiling at Shūichi. "I didn't expect to see you here, Shūichi-kun."
Shūichi's eyes flicked to the boy standing beside Orochimaru. "The decline of bloodlines is always such a tragedy."
Orochimaru nodded in agreement.
The Hydrification Technique still held significant research value.
Of course, he had already studied the bodies he had acquired. Orochimaru had come here at the invitation of the Akatsuki, intending to receive their "offer of sincerity." The Mist Village's internal conflict was a mere coincidence—an opportunity to rescue the Hōzuki boy standing beside him.
After exchanging a few words, Shūichi and Orochimaru parted ways.
"So the Snake Bastard has already started colluding with the Akatsuki…"
Shūichi speculated silently.
The Mist Village had shown no prior signs of rebellion. Orochimaru's sudden presence here could hardly be a coincidence.
---
Continuing his subterranean journey, Shūichi eventually sensed a nearby battle and surfaced silently to observe.
Ahead, two Ice Release users were fighting alongside a young girl.
But one of the male Ice Release users was already gravely injured, teetering on the brink of death. The remaining two were clearly not far from the same fate.
"Lucky for you, I showed up."
Electric sparks crackled around Shūichi as he moved. Before the Mist shinobi could react, he eliminated them all effortlessly.
The injured woman stared in shock. "This honorable sav—"
She froze again when she noticed Shūichi's youthful appearance and the Leaf insignia on his attire.
"You're… a Konoha ninja!"
(End of Chapter)
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