After parting ways with Orochimaru, Ryūjin immediately entered Sage Mode, spreading his senses across the entire Hidden Mist Village in search of Yagura Karatachi's chakra.
The result caught him slightly off guard.
It was not that he failed to locate Yagura. On the contrary, that part was effortless. What surprised him was the presence of several other chakras mixed in.
The first ones he noticed belonged to Yahiko and Konan.
They had come to question Yagura about Obito, and Ryūjin had assumed they would have already left the village by now. After all, he had caused quite a disturbance in the Hidden Mist for nearly a full day. That was more than enough time for their business to be concluded.
Yet, to his surprise, they were still here, and even more unexpectedly, they were with Yagura.
The second chakra that caught his attention belonged to Obito.
As for Kisame Hoshigaki, the other target of this trip, Ryūjin had never encountered his chakra before, so tracking him would take more time.
"Yagura, Yahiko, Konan… all of their chakras are active."
"And there are several others around them in the same state."
Ryūjin narrowed his eyes slightly.
"So they are fighting."
With the scale of chaos unfolding in the Hidden Mist, it made sense why Yagura had not shown himself earlier. He had clearly been occupied.
"This place is really falling apart today."
A faint trace of amusement flickered in Ryūjin's mind.
The next moment, a spatial vortex formed within his pupils. His body was pulled inward and vanished without a trace.
In an instant, he reappeared silently in an open area outside the Mizukage's office building, concealing himself in the shadows.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions echoed through the air.
Looking ahead, Ryūjin confirmed his suspicions.
Yagura, Yahiko, and Konan were locked in battle against a group of enemies.
And those enemies were not strangers.
Zabuza Momochi.
Haku.
And another figure dressed in a style similar to Suigetsu Hōzuki, wielding Samehada with remarkable skill.
Hōzuki Mangetsu.
"Zabuza and Mangetsu teaming up to attack Yagura?"
Ryūjin raised a brow slightly.
Zabuza turning against the village made sense. After his failed assassination attempt on the Mizukage, becoming a rogue ninja was inevitable.
But Mangetsu joining him was unexpected.
Then again, thinking about it carefully, it was not entirely strange.
Mangetsu's story was barely explored. It was only known that he died early, and not by natural causes. Illness was unlikely, as ninja rarely succumbed to such things, unless it involved a bloodline disease like Kimimaro's. That clearly did not apply to the Hōzuki clan.
Which left one possibility.
He was killed.
Given the brutality of the Bloody Mist era, countless ninja had attempted to assassinate Yagura. Mangetsu being among them was not far-fetched.
Recalling past events, Ryūjin remembered that during the Kaguya clan's rebellion, Zabuza and Orochimaru had both been present in the Hidden Mist.
At that time, Zabuza was already a rogue ninja. Yet he had returned.
Did he really believe he could succeed with only Haku at his side?
Haku was still just a child back then.
Now, seeing Mangetsu here, the situation made more sense.
Perhaps Mangetsu had been the missing piece.
As for whether the Kaguya clan's rebellion was connected to this assassination attempt, Ryūjin did not care enough to investigate. It could have been a coincidence, or an opportunity seized by those involved.
Either way, it was none of his concern.
As for Yahiko and Konan, they were likely dragged into this mess by chance. Given their personalities, there was no way they would ignore an assassination attempt on a Kage.
Clang! Clang!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The battlefield was chaotic, filled with constant bursts of chakra and shockwaves.
Yahiko and Konan were struggling against Zabuza and Haku.
Zabuza wielded the Blastsword Shibuki, swinging it with terrifying force. Each strike carried immense weight, and the blade was lined with countless explosive tags.
Every slash threatened to detonate.
Yahiko was forced to retreat continuously, relying on agility rather than direct confrontation. He could not afford to clash head-on, nor could he risk getting too close.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Konan supported him from a distance, her paper shuriken flying relentlessly toward Zabuza, forcing him to divide his attention.
Without her assistance, Yahiko would have already been overwhelmed.
Zabuza was a prodigy of the Hidden Mist, infamous for slaughtering all his fellow examinees during the academy graduation exam. His reputation as the Demon of the Hidden Mist was not exaggerated.
Yahiko simply could not match that level of combat experience.
As for Haku, his Ice Release was powerful, but his age limited him. He could only provide support, unable to turn the tide on his own.
Because of this, the battle remained barely balanced.
On the other side, Mangetsu and Yagura were also locked in a stalemate.
Yagura, as the Mizukage and a jinchūriki, possessed immense power. However, Samehada proved to be a serious obstacle.
The blade devoured chakra.
If Yagura was careless, his advantage as a jinchūriki would become a liability.
Mangetsu, a rare genius of the Hidden Mist, matched him in both ninjutsu and taijutsu. The fight between them was fierce and evenly matched.
"Hōzuki Mangetsu… I never expected even you would betray the village!"
Yagura's voice rang out, filled with anger and disbelief.
At that moment, a new figure descended from above, landing firmly on the battlefield.
It was Mei Terumī.
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