Deidara clearly possessed tremendous talent—yet he had chosen to abandon Iwagakure and become a Missing-nin.
With the Third Tsuchikage as his teacher, he could have easily become a future Tsuchikage candidate.
Shigure studied Kurotsuchi in front of him.
"That's correct. So what about it?"
Kurotsuchi exhaled softly. Since Shigure didn't deny that Deidara was in Kirigakure, that made her mission straightforward.
"The old man—Lord Third Tsuchikage—hopes the Mizukage will hand Deidara over to Iwagakure. After all, he is a Missing-nin from our village. It would be most appropriate for us to deal with him."
Shigure smiled faintly.
"We captured him. And now you want us to turn him over so you can handle him yourselves?"
"Do you really think that's possible?"
Kurotsuchi pressed her lips together.
From her perspective, Deidara originally belonged to Iwagakure, so he should naturally be judged by his own village.
But it was clear the Mizukage did not share that sentiment.
She recalled the Third Tsuchikage's instructions before she departed.
Kurotsuchi lifted her head.
"If Lord Mizukage is willing to return Deidara, Iwagakure will compensate Kirigakure with double the amount of damages caused during Deidara's invasion."
A ransom.
The Third Tsuchikage was as shrewd as ever.
Double compensation was a small price to pay to retrieve a genius.
To him, this deal was practically a bargain.
Shigure chuckled.
"There's one more condition."
Kurotsuchi's expression tightened.
"Isn't Lord Mizukage being a bit greedy?"
Shigure waved dismissively.
"Then you can leave."
If negotiations weren't happening, he saw no reason to entertain her further.
Seeing Shigure's hard stance, Kurotsuchi quickly regained her composure and bowed her head.
"…Lord Mizukage, I apologize. Please state your condition."
Shigure looked at her again.
She knew when to advance and when to retreat.
Truly the makings of a future Kage.
"This time, I will give Iwagakure face and hand Deidara over. But there will not be a second time."
"As long as the missing-nin we capture are not Iwagakure's own, how Kirigakure deals with them is our business alone. We will not release anyone else."
Kurotsuchi blinked.
That was all?
A warning—nothing more.
Agreeing to this condition posed no problem for Iwagakure.
After all, they weren't shameless enough to come begging repeatedly.
"Yes. Iwagakure accepts Lord Mizukage's terms."
"Kuji."
A masked figure appeared silently behind Kurotsuchi.
Shigure smiled.
"Take her to retrieve Deidara."
Kuji bowed.
"Miss Iwagakure shinobi, please follow me."
Once Kurotsuchi was gone, Shigure finally let out a satisfied exhale.
Kirigakure didn't just hold one Iwagakure shinobi.
It held another—
Han, the Jinchūriki of the Five-Tails.
The condition he imposed was specifically crafted to shield Kirigakure when Han's existence was eventually revealed.
If Iwagakure demanded his return, Shigure would have the perfect excuse.
He lowered his head and resumed reading the documents on his desk.
Not long after, the door swung open again.
This time, Ringo stepped in.
"Lord Shigure!"
"What is it?" Shigure replied without looking up.
Ringo bowed.
"Ninjas from Kumogakure request an audience with the Mizukage."
Having just sent off the Iwagakure shinobi, Shigure now learned that Kumogakure-nin were requesting an audience as well.
Being a Kage… truly meant never having a moment of rest.
Shigure exhaled softly.
"Bring them up."
Outside, the Kumogakure delegation was making their way up the stairs when they saw Kurotsuchi being escorted down by Kuji.
C—one of the Raikage's trusted jonin—narrowed his eyes.
Iwagakure shinobi… negotiating with Kirigakure?
His expression tightened briefly before he followed Ringo to the Mizukage's office.
Inside, Shigure was sorting through a stack of documents.
Despite the workload, everything was arranged neatly—orderly, efficient, and calm.
Exactly the type of desk one would expect from a decisive Mizukage.
"Kumogakure Jōnin C, greets Lord Mizukage."
Shigure raised his head slightly.
He recognized this man—one of the Raikage's guards during the Five Kage Summit, a skilled shinobi proficient even in medical ninjutsu.
"So? Has Kumogakure come to negotiate something with Kirigakure again?"
C sensed Shigure's tone and gave a strained smile.
"Not exactly. This time, Lord Raikage has sent me to request Lord Mizukage's assistance."
"Speak," Shigure replied. "What kind of help?"
C's face grew solemn.
"I hope Lord Mizukage can tell us the location of the Akatsuki's base. Lord Raikage has said that as long as you provide it, Kumogakure is prepared to accept any condition Kirigakure puts forward."
A declaration made at all costs.
It seemed Kumogakure had finally reached its breaking point with Akatsuki—
Two Jinchūriki attacked, pride trampled, and Raikage's temper was never one to forgive humiliation.
But what could Shigure realistically gain from Kumogakure right now?
Still… letting Raikage throw himself at Akatsuki and disrupt Obito's plans didn't sound bad at all.
"Fine," Shigure said calmly. "I will tell you the location of Akatsuki's base. You may return."
C blinked.
That was it?
Shouldn't the Mizukage at least give him coordinates, a map, a scroll—something?
"Lord Mizukage… since you've agreed, could you please tell me directly? I'll report to Lord Raikage at once."
Shigure smiled thinly.
"Go. Once you leave Kirigakure, you'll understand."
"Uh…"
C was completely lost.
The Mizukage wasn't saying anything—what kind of answer was that supposed to be?
Yet Shigure had already dismissed him, and Ringo was escorting him out.
With no room to argue, C reluctantly followed.
He was guided all the way to the port, still confused as he boarded the ship.
Was his mission a success… or a failure?
The Mizukage agreed—but said nothing.
Just as C was questioning reality, a white dove descended from the sky and landed on his shoulder.
C froze.
"This is…?"
"A specially trained summoned beast?"
It had to be. What else could appear so suddenly and so precisely?
But… a dove?
And the strange thing was—
He had seen the same type of white doves around Kumogakure.
Often. Very often.
A chilling realization struck him.
Wait… these doves… were they all trained by the Mizukage?
Has Kirigakure been monitoring Kumogakure this entire time?
No—
Perhaps not just Kumogakure.
A cold sweat ran down C's back.
This was the Mizukage of Kirigakure…
No wonder Kirigakure had survived two Akatsuki invasions without suffering losses.
No wonder everything felt so calm on the surface—
—when beneath it, the Mist was quietly watching the entire Shinobi World.