Yamanaka Kairi said he needed to make some arrangements, leaving Black Ape outside the Tenshu Castle to stay in contact with the Hippo Squad at all times.
Yagami followed him into Tenshu Castle, helping Kairi set up some hidden formations.
Kairi found a guard ninja from the Uzumaki clan, sat down to drink with him, and chatted deep into the night.
When the Uzumaki guard finally lowered his guard, Kairi used the Mind Body Switch Technique to take control of him.
Under Kairi's control, the Uzumaki guard disappeared into the depths of Tenshu Castle.
Yagami stayed by Kairi's side the entire time.
The Yamanaka clan's Mind Body Switch Technique was terrifyingly strong — it could completely control even a jonin.
Half an hour later, Kairi recovered his consciousness.
"I'll go check things out first. You shouldn't wander around inside Tenshu Castle. Wait here until I come back."
After Kairi disappeared, Yagami looked around to make sure no one was near, then took out the scroll Uzumaki Yuka had given him and began to study it.
He had been too busy earlier and hadn't had the chance to look at it until now.
A Contract Seal and a Summoning Technique — one was for forming a contract, the other for summoning a beast.
After memorizing the hand signs and chakra flow pattern, Yagami quietly practiced it in his mind.
Then, he pressed his hand onto the Contract Scroll.
After forming the seals, he summoned — and a small white heron appeared before him.
Yagami handed the scroll to the heron and released the summoning.
He hoped Uzumaki Yuka had managed to escape the Land of Waves.
Half an hour later, Kairi returned.
"Let's go! I've taken full control of Tenshu Castle. Time to close the net!"
Yagami disguised himself as one of Kairi's subordinates and followed him through the daimyo's castle.
Tall walls divided Tenshu Castle into separate zones — the Main Hall District, the Civil Officials' Quarter, the Generals' Area, the Inner Chambers, the Gardens, and so on.
Two- and three-story wooden buildings filled the grounds. The daimyo's wealth was staggering.
Deeper inside the castle, Kairi stopped outside a courtyard with a plaque that read Inner Treasury Office.
This was where the daimyo's fortune was stored, one of the most heavily guarded areas in Tenshu Castle.
"Lord Kairi!"
The surrounding samurai called out their greetings.
Kairi nodded and continued inside.
At the entrance to the underground vault, Kairi inspected the area, then turned to leave.
But halfway through turning, he suddenly snapped his head back. "Hm? Damn! Someone's broken into the underground vault!"
The samurai around him looked at Kairi in shock, then at the vault entrance.
"Lord Kairi! We just changed shifts — we don't know anything!"
Kairi quickly asked, "What about the keys?"
The daimyo had one key, and the vault guards had another. Only both keys together could open the vault.
The samurai rushed into a nearby room and found the key guard bound by a sealing technique.
"Alarm! Sound the alarm! Someone's infiltrated the vault!"
A sharp alarm blared across the sky above Tenshu Castle.
Everyone who heard it felt a wave of panic.
Kairi immediately pulled out a large number of Explosive Tags and plastered them onto the vault door.
Yagami couldn't help but feel a pang of envy — that was at least fifteen tags. Too damn rich.
The Explosive Tags detonated with a thunderous boom, shattering the vault door.
Amid the thick smoke, a figure tried to burst out.
Kairi and Yagami jumped in unison.
One to the left, one to the right — they cut down the figure together.
Kairi gave Yagami an extra glance. This Anbu wasn't bad — his Body Flicker and kenjutsu were both sharp.
When the smoke cleared, the intruder's body was revealed.
A kunai was lodged in his left side, a ninja blade in his right.
Most striking of all, his clothes bore the Uzumaki clan crest.
The samurai captain shouted in shock, "What?! An Uzumaki guard ninja stealing from the daimyo's treasury?"
The wounded guard coughed blood, his eyes filled with disbelief as he looked at Kairi.
Trembling, he lifted a finger to point at him.
Before he could speak, Yagami moved again — his kunai slashed across the man's throat.
Kairi had used the Uzumaki guard's trust against him, taking control with the Mind Body Switch Technique.
Now, the guard couldn't clear his name even if he tried.
After hearing from Black Ape about the village's true stance, Kairi hadn't hesitated to frame the Uzumaki.
With guards and samurai gathered, the daimyo arrived at the treasury courtyard.
He looked at the blasted vault door, then at the dead Uzumaki guard, and instinctively took two steps closer to the Hidden Leaf's protectors.
Confusion and fear filled his voice. "What happened here?"
Kairi spoke, "My lord! The Uzumaki guard attempted to steal from your vault! I discovered it and eliminated him!"
The daimyo stared blankly at the corpse, then turned toward the Uzumaki guard captain.
"I've heard lately that you plan to rebuild Eddy Village. Were you planning to use my treasury to fund it?"
"No!" the captain protested immediately.
"I would never! Completing our mission comes first — if we abandon that, who would ever trust Uzumaki with missions again?"
No matter how much he explained, the daimyo no longer believed him.
He turned to the Hidden Leaf guards. "Please, Leaf shinobi — seize the Uzumaki!"
The Uzumaki captain knew further explanations were useless. He couldn't die here.
He threw down a smoke bomb, and several Uzumaki guards vanished into the mist.
Kairi gave quick orders. "Three guards stay close and protect the daimyo! I'll pursue them!"
Yagami followed right behind.
Kairi didn't move fast — he kept his distance, clearly intending to follow the Uzumaki to find their remaining allies.
Soon, Captain Hippo arrived with the Anbu squad.
Yagami felt something was off. Why were the Uzumaki running across rooftops like that?
Shouldn't they be moving stealthily instead of exposing themselves?
They chased all the way out of the city.
Just as they leapt down from the wall, Yagami spotted a mass of Mist shinobi approaching from the flank.
The commotion had drawn the Mist's attention too, and they had come to investigate.
A long-beaked white heron flew overhead, dropping a scroll from the sky.
From a distance, the Uzumaki captain shouted, "Isn't this what you wanted — the elder's sealing scroll? Come then! If you're not afraid to die, come and take it! I'll die here, but before I do, I'll drag you all down with me!"
The Mist had the overwhelming advantage — two full battalions compared to the Leaf's single squad.
They overtook the Leaf and became the main pursuers, all three sides clashing across the open plains.
The Land of Waves had few mountains, unable to block the sea's moisture. Rain was scarce, and apart from the coastal greenery, vast stretches of barren land lay exposed.
After fleeing the capital, the Uzumaki turned and charged straight into the desolate wasteland.
The Uzumaki guards ran madly, as if their lives meant nothing.
The Mist and Leaf forces were different — they had more men and needed to think about supplies.
"Do we have enough ration pills?"
"Do we have enough water?"
The captains tallied their provisions.
For the Leaf's Anbu, the biggest problem now was the Mist. The Uzumaki elder's sealing scroll couldn't be allowed to fall into Mist hands.