In Naruto: Reborn With Talent

by Little Merger

A soul was transmigrated into Narutoverse but was refused to be given any sort of insta-OP power, instead, he could choose from three talents. Follow him and his loved ones on their journey to become strong as they pave their own path through the battle-filled world of Naruto. Will they be villains? For some, surely. Will they be heroes? For others, maybe. But anything they do is d

7. 193

In Naruto: Reborn With Talent #Chapter 193 - Ch193. Leaving the Fire Capital - Read In Naruto: Reborn With Talent Chapter 193 - Ch193. Leaving the Fire Capital Online - All Page - NOVEL NEXT

Chapter 193 - Ch193. Leaving the Fire Capital

Tsunade and Rei sat in a tavern near the Western Gate of the Fire Capital, enjoying their afternoon with tea and a bit of innocent cuddling. The attention did wonders to stop Tsunade's mind wandering back towards the speculations about Hiruzen's part in the Senju extinction and Rei was hell-bent on keeping it that way. He even decided to teleport back home to inform his girls that he and Tsunade are taking a week-long vacation and will travel back home on foot rather than teleporting back.

That naturally prompted a few protests from Mei and suddenly, Rei found himself promising a private week-long time to each of his girls, not even knowing how or when.

This day was also quite hard for Tsunade. The talks about the Konoha Creation Treaty continued, causing her a stark reminder of what happened to her clan while also highlighting all the reasons Konoha's higher-ups could have for it.

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This time, however, Rei was more focused on the other founding clan, the Uchihas. He doubted Madara would sign a treaty so favorable to the Senju clan without getting anything in return for his own clan.

Turns out that while the Senju got land, and it really didn't look all that profitable at first glance, the Uchiha clan got many permanent exemptions for tax and trade. Rei didn't need to think hard to find out why such an imbalanced treaty was signed. In a way, Uzumaki Mito screwed the Uchiha clan over with this treaty since they got immediate returns and a chance to get rich fast all the while the Senju clan part looked quite unappealing from a financial standpoint. They got the land and had to rent them for free to clans. At that time, most of Konoha's populace was made of clans, hence the returns were abysmal. No wonder Madara would sign it. Rei wouldn't be surprised if the man was elated and gleeful at the time.

Rei knew how 'scheming' clan heads could be. They had to be good in business and diplomacy but he doubted even the current clan head of the Uchiha clan would figure out how insidious Mito made the entire treaty without spending weeks of pondering and referencing economy books. Madara? He had no freaking way to see it. He might have been a combat prodigy of titanic proportions but businessman he was not. At best, Madara was passable in the field because, at the time of the village formation, the clan heads didn't really need as much knowledge in such matters as nowadays when most profitable clans are those who have businesses in the village.

It was simple, then, ninja clans earned most money through doing ninja missions. Now? Now the really rich clans are focused on producing strong ninjas only to uphold tradition and reputation while keeping the clan strong. It is more a matter of pride and standing in the village rather than money.

Alas, only when more and more civilians came to Konoha, the Senju started raking in money on a monthly basis, becoming the ric.h.e.s.t clan in the village in a few short years. Not that anyone noticed since, by that time the clan was already in half-shambles, half-extinct, and the Senju clan was not known for its wealth in general, nor were they inclined to show how much money they had. In short, nobody even knew how wealthy the clan was, except the Hokage.

The next part that interested Rei was how they managed to convince Madara to sign the treaty with a clause that would let the Senju clan head take command of the village in case of corruption. According to Toyotomi, Rei was looking at it from a bad angle.

The Senju clan got a special privilege but the Uchiha clan also got something similar. Sadly, neither Toyotomi nor Tsunade could tell him what exactly the Uchiha clan received. No matter what privilege they received in return for letting the Senju clan seize the village if it became corrupt. It must have been equally good for Madara to sign the doc.u.ment. All Toyotomi knew was that it had something to do with the seat of Hokage. Needless to say, Rei could make a guess and if he was right, it would be quite obvious why Madara was so pissed when Hashirama was chosen to be the first Hokage.

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Well, at the very least, Rei now finally understood why Hiruzen wasn't that sad after the Uchiha massacre and why Danzo was so driven in getting rid of them. The entire reason was politics... who would have guessed, right?

The second part of the day, after the breakfast and the talks, was Tsunade healing the Daimyo's son, a man of thirty years old. It wasn't hard to heal him, per se. The problem however was that it was not an illness but poisoning by a very rare and slow-acting poison from Kusagakure. Fortunately for the man, the poison was very easy to get out of his system and Tsunade did it in ten minutes tops. The real danger of the concoction was how undetectable it was.

Needless to say, neither the Daimyo nor his son was amused by that revelation and the shitstorm began. The Daimyo ordered a search through the belongings of literally everyone in the castle. Hundreds of samurais made a whole lot of mess, heedless of the protests. Honestly, both Rei and Tsunade found it quite funny, considering their own belongings were stored in the dimension and their room was basically empty.

Not even an hour after the order was given, the poison was found in a drawer of one of the Daimyo son's concubines. The one who bore him his oldest son and his heir since his own wife only had daughters.

One quick interrogation later, the boy was no longer the heir and the concubine... well, Rei had no idea what happened to her or the boy afterward. He knew enough to not get entangled in such a royal pain in the a.s.s as that situation.

All in all, Rei was damn happy because finding this out and helping in the matter only made it easier for Rei to negotiate the trading agreement between the Land of Fire and the Land of Spring more in the favor of the Land of Spring for him.

The main reason why he came to the Land of Fire finished and knowing staying longer in the Fire Capital would be unpleasant because of the following events, Rei and Tsunade quickly decided to be on their way.

As they relaxedly sipped their tea in the tavern while sitting near the window and watching people passing by on the streets, three black blurs whizzed through the crowd, completely without any notice from the civilians. Rei and Tsunade's eyes, however, saw these three figures clearly which told them it was time to leave the city.

"Konoha's ANBU." Rei sighed, "I guess, the Hokage already knows of your presence in the capital."

"Yeah," Tsunade bitterly smiled, "Time to leave the city."

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Chapter 194 - Ch194. Anko Mitarashi 1

Anko Mitarashi leaned on the tree behind her, gasping for air as her useless injured arm dangled from the shoulder of her beaten and tired body. She was actually quite surprised she still had the arm attached considering she used it to block most of the explosion from the trap she so unwittingly sprang up.

'F.u.c.k. The mission report said it was just a bunch of bandits! What the heck is this!?' Anko mentally cursed, feeling her exhaustion as hopelessness started to creep into her heart.

Around her, three men vigilantly awaited her next action. All three would clearly be able to get to chunin rank if they were ninjas. Anko could only wince because of the bruises forming on her reasonably uninjured hand and legs while she hatefully accepted she lowered her guard at the worst possible moment.

The mission she set out to finish was the basic extermination of a bandit camp. Nothing hard, according to her standards and record of completed and survived suicide missions.

Everything went just fine too... at least until she had fifty corpses under her feet and decided to search through the camp.

Who would have guessed there would be a high-level fuinjutsu explosive trap in a camp full of basically a bit stronger civilians!?

Worse yet... who would have known four chunins would jump at her the second a tree stopped her momentary flight due to the explosion.

Fast-forward a quite shameful beatdown where she was forced to repeatedly retreat, and here she was. Leaning on a tree to keep standing. Her working limbs were bruised as hell. The arm that ate up the explosion was bloody and somewhere even charred. She could feel her body reaching her limit due to exhaustion. Sweat was flowing into her stinging eyes and stuck her hair to her skin. She felt like vomiting and barely suppressed the pain her body was screaming at her in.

What made it all worse was that the three men in front of her were considerably okay which only hurt her pride. She was almost jonin level! Four chunins should be easy to deal with... normally. Alas, she was quite disabled due to the explosion. Anko could only keep pushing her torn muscles in order to not have her head leave her shoulders. Not that the fight was a particularly long one but she was a bit satisfied that she managed to kill one of them.

But by the looks of it, this was a game over for her. There was only one way to get out of this alive and even that had only a small chance of success. Yes... Anko could clearly feel the pulsing pain from her shoulder where the accursed Cursed Seal was.

'Should I use it?' Anko reluctantly thought, knowing the repercussions.

"Let's just kill the bitch, Orochimaru-sama..."

And just like that, Anko's mind froze, not paying attention to whatever was said afterward.

'Oro...chimaru?' The realization hit her like a proverbial truck. This was a test. It could not even be called a trap. No... her bastard of a former teacher most likely sent them to test her willingness to use the Cursed Seal.

Any notion of using the only thing that could save her life was instantly rejected. Anko simply refused to give Orochimaru the satisfaction of activating the seal... not even if it cost her her life.

Gripping her kunai harder, Anko prepared for one last stand. If she was to die at the hands of Orochimaru's subordinates, she decided to take as many of the bastards out with her.

Seeing the change in her attitude, the three chunins tensed for a second, before chuckling at the absurdity of it all. The woman in front of them was barely standing. She will not be able to take a few steps forward, much less run at them. If they decided to make a pincushion out of her, she won't even be able to dodge. Really... her determined stare was actually incredibly hilarious to them. The woman was beaten. Now it was only a matter of how they would finish her off.

They relaxed...

Anko hated the smug glint their eyes were giving her. More than that, she was ashamed that somebody could be so relaxed when facing her in a fight. It reminded her of the times when she was a little girl facing the big badass snake Sannin who decided to train her. And she utterly hated how she missed those times.

Suddenly, red droplets impacted Anko's face, causing her to owlishly blink, her brain trying to comprehend what happened when her eyes finally registered her three attackers, gaping at her with glazed soulless eyes, their bodies riddled with...

'Are those wooden spikes?' Anko's mind, completely shocked, barely managed to come to this conclusion as her eyes saw wooden spikes impaling the three chunins so violently, it caused blood splatter all over her.

Anko... fainted.

...

Tsunade sat behind a wooden table in a basic small wooden house she created with her mokuton and was in the process of trying to write easy-to-understand medical scrolls for the medic-nin academy course. Rei was currently outside, hunting for dinner. While they had enough food stored in the dimension, Tsunade could only wistfully smile. She knew well that Rei wanted to hunt something and then spend time with her, preparing and cooking it. In some sweet misguided way, it was his attempt at cheering her up. She snorted. If he wanted her cheerful, all he had to do was bend her over the table she created.

Tsunade's eyes momentarily flickered towards the bed in the corner of the room, at the nuisance she saved earlier today and the most probable reason why Rei didn't simply do exactly that. Really, Tsunade was honestly starting to regret saving the bothersome unconscious girl.

The second Rei left the house, Tsunade made damn sure to create more rooms and applied silencing seals. She could understand why it would be awkward having s.e.x in the same room the unconscious girl laid in but... she vehemently refused to hold herself back just because there was a stranger in the house! No more.

Tsunade saw the girl's body twitch and knew she was on the verge of waking up. Sighing to herself, Tsunade stored her half-finished medical book, just as Anko's upper body abruptly rose into a sitting position on the bed, her eyes warily looking through the room as if she was a cornered animal on the verge of a panic attack.

It was then Anko's eyes met Tsunade's unamused stare and widened out of proportion.

"Tsu-Tsu-Tsunade-sama!?" Anko stuttered in disbelief, causing Tsunade to roll her eyes at her.

And just like that, Anko... fainted... again.

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Chapter 195 - Ch195. Anko Mitarashi 2

Rei was making dinner while Tsunade amusedly watched awkward Anko stare at the cup of coffee in front of her with an unreadable expression, most likely questioning how she got into her current position.

Anko couldn't believe she was saved by Tsunade Senju of all people. 'What is with this month and me meeting the legendary Konoha ninjas one after the other? First I am sent as a contact to Jiraiya-pervert, only barely getting out before he could visually molest me as a relief from his overbearing wife. Then on the way back towards the village while doing a side-mission I am ambushed by some Orochimaru's throwaway butt-buddy mooks only to be rescued by the ever-elusive badass Tsunade Senju because of whose hiding ability even Hokage is ripping his hair out due to frustration? I must have spent a decade worth of misfortune in this month alone!' Anko wanted to cry. Sure, she was happy her life was saved but... the woman, who was the shining idol for most of the Konoha's kunoichi population, not only saved her but also saw her on her lowest and THEN she even fainted after meeting her and squealing her name in surprise like some damned fangirl!

Yes, the blushing Anko wouldn't refuse a hole to hide in as Tsunade stared her down with barely restrained snickers. 'At least the coffee from this Rei person is quite good and isn't poisoned or drugged. Yup, positive thoughts.' Anko thought as her eyes quickly swept the man while outwardly her face scrunched into a grimace.

It was then that Tsunade took out a folder and started reading. Anko only managed to spot her picture as her eyes widened, realizing this was her file that should be locked in Konoha's archives!

"Anko Mitarashi, 17 years old, Chunin..." Tsunade momentarily stopped before her lips twitched, "with Jonin level skills but red-taped for promotion by the Council for being Orochimaru's apprentice, and by the Hokage for unstated political reasons. Proficient at poisons, snake summoning, fire Jutsu, yadda, yadda, yadda, lots of expected junk saying literally nothing." Tsunade rolled her eyes as she turned the page while Anko gaped at her to which Tsunade just returned an innocent smile to her, causing Anko's mouth to snap shut in disbelief as Tsunade continued reading out loud.

Personal files of a ninja or kunoichi contained the most comprehensive intel on their abilities, rank, missions, current standing in the village, and stuff like that. There is no way somebody who was not in the village for years could get their hands on a copy of her files! Anko really couldn't believe this was happening. Tsunade was basically narrating her life for her.

Tsunade, on the other hand, took a great deal of p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e in this small power-play of hers. Without Konan's incredible intelligence network, this would be impossible. Normally, Tsunade or Rei would never consider revealing they are capable of procuring a file from the archives of Konoha but Anko was a wild card they stumbled upon by total accident as they walked home from the Fire Capital. There was a lot of improvisation in this and honestly, Tsunade begged Rei for permission to try her plan because she saw herself in the girl. If Anko was just some normal kunoichi of Konoha, Tsunade would simply leave her lying next to the road and be done with it but Anko was a pariah. Someone who suffered Konoha's wrath for something out of her control. For the Good of Konoha.

Rei knew Tsunade probably wanted to lash out at Hokage in some way and this could provide her an outlet so he made sure to listen to her plan and not get in the way, the intel of their spying capabilities be damned.

"... and that's all." Tsunade gave the flabbergasted Anko a knowing look, "I only left out you are red-listed." She mockingly shrugged as if it was nothing important before continuing in a deadpan, "Honestly, I feel I should praise you for not defecting the first chance you got."

Now that woke Anko up, "I will never defect! I am not a traitor!" She heatedly stood up and shouted, her hands tightly balled into fists on the table.

Tsunade only raised her eyebrow, happy at the reaction she drew out from the kid, knowing it was real. "You are in the Red List of Konoha for the fourth continuous year. You either f.u.c.k the missions up so often they should kick you out of the force for being a waste of space, resources, and oxygen and throw you into the nearest brothel where f.u.c.k.i.n.g is actually rewarded, or you are a bonafide confirmed traitor with many friends who they can't really just casually call out on the act and so they are only waiting for a single mistake to get you. One way or another, there is no other way to get on the Red List for such a long time."

Anko stood there, mentally anguished that Tsunade, her childhood idol, would think this of her, completely forgetting the fact that the woman had her file. "N-No! I am neither of those! I made a deal with the Third Hokage!"

Tsunade's eyes flashed. She naturally knew of the deal between them. In fact, Tsunade probably knew more about the girl than she herself knew but this was not about that. This was about showing Anko Hokage's machinations. Only then would the girl consider joining their side. Tsunade was not nearly stupid enough to simply come up with an offer before she showed the girl the 'right' path.

Rei watched from the stove as Tsunade put her persuasion skills to use, still somewhat amused that it actually worked on THE Anko Mitarashi. Alas, this was not the TI Expert yet. This was a girl who did not get such a position and training pertaining to it. A girl who survived her certain demise due to luck just a few hours ago and was still quite shocked by what was happening around her.

"Oh~, do tell. What deal did the old geezer propose to you?" Tsunade asked, causing Anko to finally calm down and flop back onto the chair. For a moment, suspicion flickered through her eyes but it went as soon as it came. Seeing that, Tsunade gave the girl a proud nod, somewhat mollifying her.

"Lord Hokage told me the old geezers on the council will always hold back my promotion so he gave me a deal," Anko childishly pouted, irritation clear in her gaze. Tsunade only cared for one thing, however. The clear respect the kunoichi in front of her held for the old man Third. That was a problem. "I was supposed to be listed for five years in the Red List and then I will be promised promotion and a position in one of the specialized divisions of Konoha."

Hearing such a ridiculous pile of bull, Tsunade couldn't help but sigh tiredly as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Do you even understand what the Red List is, kid?"

"Of course! It's where ninjas suspected of serious crimes or those who failed important missions are put, causing them to receive the most dangerous missions to redeem themselves and prove their loyalty to the village." Anko said irritably, "I did my research before accepting the deal. But Hokage promised that as long as I could be patient and last five years there, it would persuade the Council of my loyalty and I could get a promotion."

'Well, she is not wrong. Surviving five years without even a speck of suspicion in the fabbled suicide-mission list would mean she is either that capable or really loyal. But...' Tsunade inwardly hummed before cringing, "And do you know what being put there for five years means for your career from the political standpoint?"

Anko's face shifted to a blank expression as she stared at Tsunade with total confusion that made Tsunade sigh yet again at the clueless girl. "You don't, don't you?"

"I... Who cares? I am a kunoichi, not a politician." Anko frowned, causing Tsunade to chuckle.

"Silly girl, you really remind me of myself." Tsunade smiled. "The village is built on politics. And you wonder why you find it hard to be promoted?" She chided lightly, enjoying the embarrassed blush it elicited on Anko's cheeks. "Let me put it into a perspective for you, okay?" Tsunade asked and quieted down, waiting until Anko got into a good mindset to listen.

After a few seconds of clear indecisiveness on her face, Anko decided to seriously nod. Clearly, there was something she was overlooking and since Tsunade Senju wanted to explain these political reasons why her decision to accept the deal was stupid, she would listen. But she would also make sure to not take anything at a face value. She trusted one Sannin already and it didn't pay out so well for her. Anko was subtly preparing to make a run for it if this was some elaborate trap. She wasn't dull. Anko could recognize how manipulative the setting was but the topic was simply too... much. Here, Tsunade, one of the most loved kunoichi to ever hail from Konoha, and a former pupil of the Third Hokage, was telling her the Third screwed her over. Something was clearly fishy here. It wouldn't be bad to play a shocked trusting girl for a bit longer to find out what. Plus… she really wanted to hear what Tsunade thought her being in the Red List for so long meant.

Unfortunately for Anko, Tsunade was not the best medic in the world. Somebody not even trained in hiding his tells could not hope to hide their attitude in front of her.

Tsunade smirked, "You see, from a political standpoint, you are a nuisance..."

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Chapter 196 - Ch196. Anko Mitarashi 3

"You see, from a political standpoint, you are a nuisance." Tsunade dryly stated, causing Anko to furrow her brows in a show of confusion. "The clan heads do know you are not Orochimaru's subordinate but unless you are close to them or are somehow profitable for their clan, they will not stand up for you. So, Anko Mitarashi, are you profitable to some clan in Konoha?" Tsunade asked despite knowing the answer.

Anko looked a bit conflicted at having it spelled like this to her. Naturally, she knew about this but some things are better left unsaid. Now her mind wouldn't stop thinking what assholes the clan heads are. "No." She simply shook her head.

Tsunade hummed before continuing, "Then there are civilians which are the worst of your problems." She started with a sentence she knew would get Anko's complete attention. "Konoha's civilian council is made of a few seats for wealthy merchants and civilians who have influence in certain fields. These seats are just like clan head seats and seldom change the a.s.s sitting on them. And then there are elective seats where elected civilians sit to safeguard the interest of the general public. These seats change every three years and have nothing to do with the ninja stuff..." Tsunade paused for a moment, her eyes smiling at how Anko leaned forward, "at least, that's what they would like you to believe. In reality, these people have some indirect influence over ninja matters and unfortunately for you, it is these people who will never see you as anything but the Snake Whore." Tsunade brutally stated, causing Anko to wince before lowering her head in a pondering manner as a concerned frown etched itself onto her face.

Despite Tsunade's goal of manipulating Anko to their side, she did somewhat care for the girl. If only because both were in some form screwed by Konoha and neither really d.e.s.i.r.ed revenge on the village. They were simply alike and Tsunade liked that. Even if Anko decided she wanted nothing to do with them, Tsunade would count it her victory if the girl at least started thinking about how the ruling system in the village really works and why some unworthy individuals get promoted to jonin rank while having only chunin level skill, or why some people with clearly jonin level skill can never get their promotion.

Seeing Anko raising her head again, Tsunade quickly noted the resigned look in her eyes. 'So the girl got it, heh?'

Honestly, Anko was not dumb. She would not be alive after being assigned one suicide mission after another for years on end if she was stupid. She was simply disinterested in politics. Once Tsunade nudged her in the correct direction, Anko could come to the conclusion herself.

Civilians didn't understand how the ninja world worked. For them, a rumor of her being this vile traitorous bitch who likes to f.u.c.k with whoever is available before stabbing them with a poisoned kunai was all they knew about her.

"I see how getting support from the civilian side of the council would be... difficult." Anko said with a grimace, making Tsunade snort at her choice of words.

"Difficult, she says. They hate you almost as much as the Kyuubi brat, girl. But unlike him, you don't have a chakra factory stuffed in your gut which means you are not really all that important to the village. No... civilians will not give you any sort of support be it due to fear or contempt and the other parts of the village's council see no worth in helping you either. Especially since you were on the Red List for years, you idiot." Tsunade clicked her tongue, still in disbelief, somebody was stupid enough to agree to be put on the Red List for years.

"What do you mean?" Anko asked. "What does being on the Red List have anything to do with civilians?"

Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose and looked at Anko with a difficult expression. "You know... every time a ninja is about to be promoted, the council has the right to put a stop to the promotion. Sure, they have to get at least three thirds of the council in favor for this to pass, which means it almost never does, but that's not really a problem in your case, is it now? The problem is, the second they see your track record and the amount of time you were Red Listed, they can argue you are unstable, incompetent, or untrustworthy. Neither of which is a good thing to have on your resume if you pursue a promotion. You were put there for four years, Anko," Tsunade sighed in exasperation, "and one can not simply officially state that the reason for your placement there is a 'deal' with the Third Hokage. You would be laughed out of the council room if you did that. Do you understand where I am going with this?"

The more Tsunade talked, the more disgruntled Anko appeared. Until... the realization settled in. "I am never gonna be promoted, am I?" Anko whispered with wide eyes. "This is why I was always passed up when it came to promotions. This is why I was always selected for the promotion process but was never chosen as a 'fitting' individual to pass it and receive one, isn't it?" She spoke with a resigned undertone full of hurt, hanging her head in disappointment.

Tsunade gave the downtrodden girl some time, slowly sipping her tea and enjoying the silence. She was glad Anko was getting the right conclusions by herself so she doesn't have to waste time persuading the girl. She was certainly clever enough to understand the implications and put events that happened to her in the past together.

"Holy shit, purely judging by my track record, I am the most probable person to betray the village." Anko suddenly exclaimed, unshed tears wetting the edges of her eyes.

"Yes... the only place where they would accept you is TI and even then it is more to have you always surrounded by experts at spotting and putting down traitors rather than to fulfill your wish for promotion. I believe that is exactly what Hiruzen aimed at when he proposed such a deal. Funny thing is, if you declined, you would already be in that division by now if only to have more experienced eyes on you. The Elders and the clan heads would strong arm you there if you wanted it or not. The only thing stopping them is your placement on the Red List active rooster. Worse yet, getting the rank of Tokubetsu Jonin would not be hard in the TI department since it would depend more on your direct superior rather than the council and you certainly have the skills necessary for it. Jonin rank would still be impossible though. I have no idea what Hiruzen promised you but even he can't push through the council and give you the rank of Jonin without expending quite a bit of his political capital... which he would certainly not do. Not for you." Tsunade shrugged, enjoying the gaping expression of the girl who was inwardly surely cursing like a sailor.

"Why?" Anko weakly asked, not understanding. If what Tsunade told her was true, the Third Hokage made her ruin her career, assigned her to the worst missions for years, and won't be able to fulfill his part of the deal.

"Because you were young, stupid, easily manipulatable, and most importantly, the village just lost quite a lot of troops due to the Kyuubi a few years prior." Rei brutally interjected from his position behind the stove as he cooked. Hearing him, Anko's head snapped to him but he didn't bother looking at her and focused on the food as he continued. "My guess is that the Hokage needed somebody doing the missions Red Listed individuals usually did. He could not red-list people on a whim and even those strong individuals failing somewhat important missions had to be pardoned in fear of losing them on suicide missions, therefore reducing the overall strength of the village. He needed someone expendable for the suicide missions. Someone whose death would not matter but also someone who could pull it off. And damn girl, you did pull off four consecutive years! Talk about real talent." Rei chuckled, not even needing to see Anko's mortified expression to know how she felt.

"You want to tell me I am expendable!?" Anko ground her teeth in anger and glared at Rei's back, only to be stopped by Tsunade's narrowing her eyes and seeping a bit of her killing intent outward. That quickly froze any fiery anger Anko could feel, causing her to involuntarily shiver. She quickly realized her former sensei had nothing on Tsunade when it came to a pure killing intent.

"We will get to that." Tsunade told the girl, releasing the pressure she put on her. "Next on the council are Elders. I believe I don't have to tell you much about them."

"No... they made their hatred of me widely known." Anko tightly squeezed her fists, preventing her anger from resurfacing.

"What they most certainly didn't do, was tell you their hatred of you is totally faked." Tsunade quipped, causing Anko's head to snap in her direction and uncomprehendingly blink at her. "Elders seldom do something based on emotions alone. You can always count that they have some sort of vision or a plan. Especially Danzo. I must admit, I have no knowledge of why they act as if they hated you so I can only give you my guess. You are hated by the general public? They also hate you because it appeals to the masses. I doubt this is the real reason when it concerns you though so you should be always on your best guard around them. At best, they will be neutral to you but there is nothing you yourself can do to make it so. The initiative has to come from them and their emotions can be easily swayed by the political winds." Tsunade amusedly said.

"Another dead end, then." Anko nodded, somewhat accepting now. "The political winds hate me." She shrugged, causing Rei to laugh. "The last part of the council is the Hokage." Anko's back straightened, only to freeze when her eyes met Tsunade's gaze. The sadness in her eyes was something even Anko found hard to deal with. Thankfully, Tsunade started talking soon enough, distracting Anko from these thoughts.

"Anko, you are a Snake Summoner." Tsunade stated, getting a nod from the young girl but when she saw her expression... "You totally don't get it, do you?" Tsunade pointed out with a tired sigh. "Fine... more explanations, then."

(Cliff-kun says hello!)

Chapter 197 - Ch197. Anko Mitarashi 4

"Tell me, Anko, who gave you and is still the main summoner of the Snake Contract?" Tsunade started, continuing with her tactics of leading Anko to the answers rather than outright telling her.

Anko's eyes widened at the question, her mind comprehending the meaning behind it as her lips set into a frown. "You want to tell me the reason why I am distrusted is that I am a Snake Summoner?" She asked a bit miffed.

Tsunade just shook her head, "It's more than that. You see, the Summons are not exactly allied to a village. Let's talk about something famous... for example Toads of Jiraiya. They will listen to him and work for him in exchange for whatever he promised them. But if, hypothetically, someone new performed the Kuchiyose no Jutsu and got into the Mount Myoboku because of his compatibility with toads, the Toads would not refuse him just because he is from Iwa, Suna, or whatever village. The person would probably not become the main summoner of Toads until Jiraiya's death and only in case, Jiraiya doesn't find a worthy successor. Such a person would be in a very similar situation you are currently in."

Anko scrunched her eyebrows as she thought about the implications before a conflicted look appeared on her face, "My snakes will not betray me. I can't command most of them but those I befriended and use I believe are loyal to me." She said.

Anko never thought about it this way but it made sense. If Orochimaru was the main and only summoner of snakes, he had decades to form a trusting, or at the very least, profitable relationship with them. Adding to that the fact snakes are not the most trustworthy animals... yeah, Anko could see why Snake Summons could be a bit of a problem. But she still believed in her snakes!

"Maybe, maybe not, nobody can know for sure." Tsunade uncaringly shrugged, causing Anko to grow irritated. "That's not the point. You should be glad Orochimaru never saw a point in creating a cordial relationship with his summons as I and Jiraiya did. For him, Snakes were tools to use that had a certain price in sacrifices. That was it. And that is the only reason why your own snakes are most likely not spying on you." Tsunade sighed tiredly and Anko looked as if she just ate something sour, "You gotta understand Anko, most ninjas, maybe even some clan heads, do not know nor care about these small nuances of summoning contracts but the Hokage and the Elders certainly do know. In their eyes, the main summoner of snakes is Orochimaru and he had it for decades before you were added. They have no idea or care in the world that Orochimaru probably never formed enough trust for snakes to betray their secondary summoner. For them, you are a constant threat but they can't just get rid of you. That would simply send a bad message and the Snake Contract can, after all, be still useful to the village."

Anko was listening in rapt attention. Orochimaru never really went all that deep into the theory of the contracts. He simply told her to get a few snakes, make a deal with them or beat them in combat. As long as they find her worthy, they will help for a price. Thankfully, Anko didn't always listen to every word and so she managed to befriend several snakes, rather than making them business partners of a sort.

It was when she realized that, her eyes flashed with surprise, "The Hokage is waiting to see if I can get more Snake Summons. He..." Anko stopped in disbelief.

"He hopes you would get enough snakes on your side to be able to spy on Orochimaru. He knows exactly what kind of a man Orochimaru is and what kind of relationship he has with his summons. He also probably grossly underestimated Orochimaru in this particular matter, though. In your place, I would be glad if there is no spy among my own summons rather than trying to subvert animals so deceitful as snakes. Say, are there some snakes who joined you and provided support for you right after Orochimaru abandoned you?" Tsunade trailed off, seeing the answer clearly on Anko's hurt and betrayed expression. In order to prevent the girl from making some kind of hasty mistake, Tsunade quickly added, "Well, there is always a chance they really wanted to help you."

That seemed to calm Anko, if only slightly. By now, she heard enough revelations, suggestions, and logical assumptions about her standing in the village, how others... people who actually matter... see her, and how even her own damn summoning contract can f.u.c.k her side-ways. Anko, while outwardly looking only slightly peeved, was inwardly a total mess.

"I guess that is not the end of it, heh?" Anko bitterly chuckled and put her hand on the left side of her neck. So many reasons people hate her and still, the main one was not even touched upon. She always believed that if there was one reason why the people of Konoha were justified in their actions against her, it would be the Cursed Seal.

"Yeah, but you already knew that." Tsunade rolled her eyes at the self-pitying girl. "I won't give you the spiel about how you are Orochimaru's apprentice and how untrustworthy that makes you. Adding to that the seal on your neck? Orochimaru might as well have branded you as his property and shipped you off to his enemies. Nobody knows what he can do to you through the seal. Can he control you? See through your eyes? Feel what you feel? Gain access to your memories? Seals can do many nasty things and all Konoha knows is that he can easily paralyze you through pain and honestly, that is enough to never send you on a mission pertaining to Orochimaru. You are simply useless against him and he could, potentially, torture you to compliance through the seal." She finished and quieted down, letting Anko process what she just told her.

Judging by the quickly changing twisted expression on Anko's face, the girl finally put her brain to use and understood that nobody ever told her the function of the Cursed Seal. She knew it was supposed to make her stronger. She also knew Orochimaru had fail-safes in the seal. But... she never really thought about it from the angle of, 'what else could be in the seal'. After Jiraiya examined it, he never informed her of his findings, after all. Only that it was impossible for him to erase because it was far too complex.

After three minutes of thoughts and emotions raging in her head, trying to make heads and tails of her current situation, Anko's shoulders slumped down in defeat. "Fine, lay it on me, Tsunade-sama. What do you want from me?" She resignedly asked.

Tsunade was not about to insult the girl's intelligence by denying it. Free lunches were very rare in the world and anyone who survived being a ninja for a certain period of time knows that a seemingly selfless helping hand is usually guided by hidden benefits. Hence, it is very dangerous to accept offered help without knowing what exactly would the other get out of it. Tons of people earned their traitor status by simply believing in the wrong 'samaritan'.

The blonde relaxed and looked at Anko with a knowing smirk that announced her victory. Simply theoretically, Anko could go back to Konoha, pretending nothing ever happened, but it would be hard to act clueless and never slip up now that she knows certain motivations of the higher-ups. Both knew no matter how good of a kunoichi the girl is, she was no long-term infiltrator. She WILL slip up if she refused Tsunade and returned. And once the higher-ups see that Lil' Anko got a bit smarter, that she doesn't fully trust Hokage as she used to... with her current status in the village, Anko wouldn't be surprised if the council thought her new cautious behavior was somehow influenced by Orochimaru and that would be the end of her.

After all, the only good weapon is one who doesn't ask questions. And Anko was not nearly as delusional to believe she is important enough to keep alive if she started showing curiosity and knowledge of things people didn't want her to know.

It was only now that Anko, in her resigned and defeated state, actually understood what Tsunade did. She closed all paths to retreat by informing her of things that will forever bug her and affect her behavior while also giving her a reason to not trust her superiors.

'She played me. Coming back from a mission where I met Orochimaru's subordinates and completely changing my behavior? I would be doomed without even being able to justify the change! I can't really say to the Hokage's face that I now know what a bastard he is.' Anko realized with grudging respect while also feeling a bit betrayed as she motionlessly stared at her clenched hands.

"What if I told you I can resolve pretty much all of your problems?" Tsunade tilted her head, "I am still the head of the Senju Clan, you know? I can give you the much-needed protection of a clan."

"And the price?" Anko whispered, causing Tsunade to grin.

"Mah, don't worry. If anything this will be more beneficial for you than me, girl. I want..."

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Chapter 198 - Ch198. Back in Konoha 1

Anko Mitarashi despondently walked through the main gate of Konoha, briefly stopping in front of the booth with the gate guards who looked at her inquisitively before asking some questions and telling her to sign some papers. Honestly, Anko was glad when they let her go to report to the Hokage ten minutes later.

'Asking me questions about my mission... who the heck do these little shits think they are! The Hokage?' Anko angrily thought.

She was a bit too fed up these days as she could no longer lie to herself and see Konoha as her home. Because of that blunt realization, more and more flaws and small intricate 'traps' became apparent to her senses. It was not like she didn't know about them but more like she refused to believe people did it out of malice toward her. But now...

For example, the gate guards. The position of a gate guard might seem boring and it really is, but it is also a very prestigious one. Not everybody can be relegated to the duty of a gate guard and those that are, are usually there for a long time. It is usually an accomplished chunin with high combat ability, good track record, and the person also must be highly trusted and known in the village. The gate guards have quite a leisure duties, sitting all day near the gate and checking the arrivals and comings of people, but they also must train regularly and have check-ups on their skills. The second their skills start to deteriorate, the gate guard would lose his position. After all, being a gate guard means they are the very first in the line of unexpected attack on the village or the very first people who can spot an infiltrator.

'And yet, these supposedly high ranking and splendid chunins who were awarded the positions of the gate guards show a complete dismissal of the protocols when it comes to me. Heck, do they think I would blab about my mission to them?' Anko seethed as she marched her way through the villages, the civilians and ninjas alike getting out of her way the second they spotted her stormy expression.

It was not like the gate guards acted rudely. They were always polite and good to her. That was why it hurt Anko so much. She thought them to be her friends.

After a very thorough retrospective, Anko came to a single realization. Gate guards were always the good guys in her books. Kind, polite, always joking... But then she realized that every single time she came, they asked, always offhandedly, something about her mission. Every. Damn. Time.

That's not how concerned friends behave. It was simply a trap. The only thing that saved her from falling into this pitfall was, much to her shame, Orochimaru's teaching about when to keep her mouth shut. The only good thing the bastard taught her.

The problem with their behavior was quite simple. When a ninja arrives in the village after completing a mission, he can NOT say ANYTHING about the mission. After all, he can not know what would the Hokage deem as classified information.

If Anko said something about the mission and then the Hokage decided it was classified? It would not be the two 'friendly' gate guards who would have lost their heads for spreading secrets. It would have been her!

That's why the protocols are iron-clad in this. One never reveals parts of the mission before the Hokage declares it finished and decides if some parts of it are supposed to be classified. After that? The non-classified parts are all free game and most likely discussed in pubs to get some bragging rights by exaggerating them.

That's why it never really struck her as odd that the two gate guards ALWAYS asked for information about her missions. After all, they were just fishing for some new rumors, no?

Well, according to Tsunade, apparently not. Gate guards are maybe the only two chunin ranked people in the whole village who have these protocols drilled into their head the most since they deal with it on a daily basis.

Sadly, once Anko considered her memories and experiences from a different perspective, they mostly confirmed what Tsunade told her. Anko spent two days with Tsunade and Rei but these days brought her so many shocking revelations she was exhausted when they parted their ways. Although... she did learn a whole lot about village politics and clan politics. After all, she had to pay Tsunade's price and for that, she needed to know certain things.

Anko involuntarily smiled at how right Lady Tsunade was. The things she wanted from Anko... she really didn't mind doing.

As Anko thought about these things, she didn't even realize how fast she arrived in front of the Hokage Tower. 'I guess, it's time to face the old man.' With a small frown, she entered.

...

"You said four of Orochimaru's subordinates ambushed you and when you were about to be killed, Tsunade saved you?" Hiruzen asked in a slightly miffed tone. He sent ANBU to the Fire Capital with orders to bring Tsunade back to Konoha but they returned with empty hands, lots of colorful words from the Daimyo at Hiruzen's person, and yes, that was something that worried Hiruzen greatly, but still, the inability to contact one of the two remaining loyal Sannin was grating on his nerves.

Imagine his surprise when the message from one of the Daimyo's guards, saying that Tsunade attended the Daimyo's birthday party, reached him. Worse yet, she was married to a foreigner! His heart almost stopped there and then after reading it. Hiruzen needed twenty minutes to calm his erratic breathing which almost killed him through the sheer blood pressure!

Hiruzen shuddered at the implications while assassination plans started forming in his head. The foreigner would simply have to go. For the Will of Fire.

"Yes." Anko politely nodded, enjoying the distraught expression of the Hokage.

"Then why did you not bring Tsunade back to the village, Anko!?" Hiruzen asked, only barely managing to keep most of his frustration out of his tone.

"With all respect... I don't think I could have beaten Lady Tsunade." Anko shrugged. Even the Hokage could not punish her for that. She never received orders to apprehend Tsunade, after all.

Hiruzen clearly knew that as his frown turned sour, partly at her uncaring answer, and partly at how disobedient Anko acted. She was always boisterous and had her own flair but she never once acted disrespectfully towards him. She was too much in his grasp to act out. Further, it was mighty fishy that Anko acted like this after meeting Tsunade. It might be nothing but still… Hiruzen was worried.

"I see, is there anything else, Chunin Mitarashi?" He concluded the debriefing, secretly deciding to assign some more watchers to the young kunoichi.

Anko noted his colder tone and the change in how he addressed her but right now, she only found it funny. Tsunade didn't do much when it came to teaching her how-to in the political field but she made sure to hammer the basics of interaction with Hiruzen and what to look for. By now, Anko was sure she knew all his subtle tactics at manipulating her into feeling various ranges of emotions.

This particular technique was one that should evoke inadequacy and spark in her guilt at being disrespectful to her superior who was always kind to her. After all, he always called her 'Anko', which pointed out some sort of closeness between them.

'A bit colder tone, and Chunin Mitarashi, is it?' Anko's lips twitched.

"In fact... yes." Anko affirmed, causing Hiruzen to blink, not expecting an answer like this. "I do have a letter from Lady Tsunade." She continued with a merry tone that made Hiruzen's eyebrow twitch, his expression as if screaming, 'Then why did you not bring it up sooner!'

Anko simply shrugged and slowly walked towards Hokage's table before putting the letter on it and stepping back. It wouldn't do to make quick movements. Not with her reputation in the village. Not with four ANBU on the ceiling.

As Hokage reached towards the letter with a hopeful expression, no doubt wishing Tsunade would visit the village soon, Anko couldn't help but inwardly laugh her a.s.s off. She knew what the letter said. After all, it was the payment Tsunade promised Anko.

'Oh, I can't wait to see the hope on his mug turn into stunned disbelief!'

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Chapter 199 - Ch199. A letter for Hiruzen

Anko watched the Hokage with bated breath as his eyebrows furrowed in worry at the first sign of the Senju clan insignia on the letter. Outwardly, she was as cool as cuc.u.mber, completely impassive with a mild but restrained curiosity showing in her eyes. Exactly as an obedient ninja should look in front of his Hokage whom he handed a secret missive. Inwardly though? Inwardly, Anko was almost jumping from the sheer anticipation of Hiruzen's reaction. She was also very worried too. Tsunade warned Anko that she would have quite a few problems in the immediate future. Thankfully, she also gave her the necessary tools to mitigate most of it.

While Anko was inwardly gloating, Hiruzen was looking at the insignia with hidden indignation, not liking where this was going. Tsunade he knew would never send him a letter marked like. This was not a letter from Tsunade Senju but the clan head of the Senju clan. That really didn't put Hiruzen at ease.

Nevertheless, inside of him a small hope that it would be just a declaration of her marriage and notice of her impending visit to Konoha sparked in his c.h.e.s.t as he opened the letter and started reading.

--

Hiruzen Sarutobi,

In my capacity as the Head of the Senju Clan, I, Tsunade Senju, notify you that one, Anko Mitarashi, is from hence on a ward of the Senju Clan. As such, I demand in my capacity as the Head of the Senju Clan, Anko's immediate discharge from the Red List.

--

Reading that, Hiruzen's stomach sank. He gave a tentative glance at Anko, noticing her dispassionate visage, and inwardly sighed, realizing she most likely already knew. As if acting clueless could fool him. He started reading again.

--

Sarutobi... you WILL cease all attempts at manipulation, understood? You also will NOT assign any ANBU to watch her. I won't stand for such treatment of one of mine!

--

At this part, Hiruzen winced. He already planned to have ANBU on Anko 24/7. She was Orochimaru's student and now had the zealous backing of the Senju clan. She just became one very dangerous girl. There was no way he could leave her unsupervised. Who knows what kind of mayhem she would have caused!

Unfortunately for him, Hiruzen was aware that the second his ANBU were spotted by Anko, and he was sure they would have been spotted, she would inform Tsunade and Tsunade would cause problems. Problems he did not need in the current political situation with Uchihas rearing their ugly heads.

--

If you are worried about the Snake Summoning Contract, know that I made damn sure to find out which of Anko's snakes are loyal to her and which are not. Right now, none of her summons are disloyal to her. I PERSONALLY made sure of that.

--

'Uh-oh, Tsunade is basically telling me there were some disloyal snakes in Anko's employ before she went through them.' Hiruzen understood the hidden message.

--

My husband, on the other hand, made sure to erase the Cursed Seal on Anko's left shoulder. No longer do you and your old flunkies on the council have to fear Anko suddenly turning traitor because of that. Meaning... I don't want to hear even one word about her not being trustworthy! Just try to manipulate the council in this direction, Hiruzen, I dare you! I will raise hell!

--

And just like that, all plans of discrediting the new ward of the Senju clan crashed in front of Hiruzen's eyes. So far, Hiruzen wasn't worried. Sure Anko gained some political clout. She also gained a reason to distrust him. And she would most likely ever-so-slightly slip his manipulations. But he always had the option of citing her Cursed Seal to get her in line. Now though?

Hiruzen's eyes snapped at Anko's left shoulder, making her instantly aware of which part of the letter he was currently at. She really couldn't help but give him a genuine smile and enjoy as he winced. Tsunade told her that even Danzo would most likely lay off her case now that there was no possibly mind-controlling seal on her.

That day, Rei truly became one of Anko's heroes and her loyalty became ironclad, if not very well hidden fanatical one. After all, he pulled a piece of Orochimaru's soul out of her! Anko was still shuddering at that thought.

Hiruzen, with his plans regarding Anko now completely ruined, continued to read, somewhat miffed but still mostly okay. After all, Anko was still not all that important in the grand scheme of things. Sure, she could make some waves in the village now but he decided to let Tsunade have her way. It would be infinitely worse if the waves came from the Head of the Senju clan rather than an unimportant ward of the said clan.

On another, more important, note, I am fine with you overseeing the lands of Konoha in my stead.

--

Reading that sentence, Hiruzen stilled, his face becoming white as snow.

'She knows.' He thought in untold horror. 'Shiiiiiit!'

--

That said, I will make use of my right to demand changes if I deem them right and I WILL expect you to respect my wishes. The lands on which Konoha is standing are MINE! There won't be ANY argument if I decide to change something. It is my RIGHT.

Such are my demands in accordance with my rights as the Head of the Senju Clan, and the laws of Konoha. If you, for any reason, decide to impede my birthright any further, I will make sure to complain to the Daimyo. Don't misunderstand, Hiruzen Sarutobi. I am perfectly aware of what that would mean for Konoha, and the Sarutobi clan, and I already made sure the Daimyo is fully willing to go along with that.

P. S.: Make sure you remember that, old man. I had a nice long chat with Toyotomi about these things and I must say I am not amused. In fact, I am furious. Don't give me a reason to lash out because I am not trusting myself from keeping calm enough to not cause a disaster for you.

Tsunade Senju, the Head of the Senju Clan, the founding clan of Konoha.

Hiruzen gazed at the letter with unblinking, empty eyes, not knowing if he should be glad or worried. On one hand, Tsunade gave him permission to oversee the lands of Konoha, meaning she was not really interested in them. On another, he was regaled to a glorified manager for her. Arguably, he was always that but now he had somebody looking over his shoulder.

The real problem was the threat Tsunade used and that she didn't mention only him but also the Sarutobi clan. Hiruzen could already see it. A dispute between him, the Hokage who got the village through two shinobi wars, and the Senju clan backed by the Daimyo. It would simply cause a civil war as people would start taking sides. For one, Hiruzen had no illusions about whose side would Danzo join. And there were many clans who didn't exactly trust him. Heck, even Uchihas would most likely join the Senju Clan if it came to that. Hiruzen had to accept that his pupil decided to have her way or start a civil war.

'Why would she be so sure it would lead to a civil war, though?' Hiruzen asked himself. Suddenly, his eyes widened as a realization hit him. He hastily read through the last two paragraphs. His heart almost stopped when he finally understood, 'She knows about her right to become a Daimyo of Konoha if the council is corrupted!'

Panic gripped him. He knew well just how corrupt the current council was. As unsettling thoughts swirled through his head, Hiruzen suddenly heard Anko clear her throat.

"You are dismissed, Chunin Mitarashi." He distractedly said, not paying her much attention.

Anko nodded and turned on her heel, leaving the room. 'Hah, All according to Lady Tsunade's plan. The old man is far too preoccupied with the realization that Tsunade, someone who is not even in the village, can cause mayhem, and completely disregarded me, someone who IS inside the village and on the payroll of Tsunade. Heh, time to do my job, I guess.' She inwardly shook her head in bemus.e.m.e.nt and went on her merry way to finish the first stage of Tsunade's plan.

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Chapter 200 - Ch200. Back in Konoha 2

Anko wearily walked through the streets of Konoha on her way to her most favorite Dango shop in the village. She desperately needed some unwinding and there was no better way to accomplish that than getting stuffed with the food of gods.

When she arrived in the village, it was barely lunchtime but now, it was already late evening and Anko could only grumble that visiting several clan heads took her so much time. Alas, if she wanted everything to go smoothly, she needed to deliver a few messages from Tsunade before Hiruzen got his head out of his a.s.s and stopped focusing on Tsunade who was currently unreachable. Anko simply needed to cover all her bases and safeguard her position.

'God, how I hate politics.' Anko mentally w.h.i.n.ed as she sat at the table near a window and ordered her favorite flavors of Dango before starting to remember her tiring day.

Her very first visit was to Shikaku Nara. This was not a coincidence. Tsunade made sure to choose who to visit first properly.

Shikaku Nara seemed to be deep within the Hokage's backside. He was the Jonin Commander and that meant something. He was one of the most trusted aides of the Hokage in the shinobi matters. Hence, Anko was really surprised when Tsunade wanted her to visit the man first.

Now, that meeting shook Anko to her core. Tsunade didn't explain much about clans but the letter she handed over to Shikaku must have requested an explanation for her if the annoyed and half-whining look the half-asleep man shot her was any indication.

And so, Anko got to know exactly how deep the politics in Konoha reached.

The position of the Jonin Commander was the dream of many ninjas in the village. Tough luck though, since as it appears, only a Nara could ever be appointed as such. The Hokage only made a show of the appointment to keep the masses dreaming as a motivation for improvement.

'Really, how Nara-ish to make a backroom deal with the First Hokage to safeguard a good, well-paying job where the most required thing is good strategic thinking. It actually makes a whole lot of sense considering the job is very easy-going in times of peace. A perfect place for napping the day off while being as important as it gets.' Anko snickered.

The actual damn thing was apparently written in the more obscure laws of the village. A very serious set of requirements had to be met for a non-Nara to become a Jonin Commander, one of which would be no available Nara of jonin level strength smart enough to fill the position. Hence, no matter what Hiruzen did, he HAD TO appoint Shikaku into the position and thus, being a Jonin Commander didn't really show that the Hokage trusted you. Apparently, that was the whole reason why Danzo didn't get the job.

Because of these backroom deals with Hashirama Senju, however, the Nara clan was an ally of the Senju Clan. The clan head of the Senju clan requested the Nara clan to support Anko? Shikaku simply had to do so to honor the alliance.

A good thing that Naras didn't bother with politics beyond what was necessary because they found them boring. The danger of being backstabbed by a Nara or them not honoring an alliance was almost nil.

With the Nara clan on board, Anko had an easy time persuading the Akimichi clan. If instant agreement the second they got to know the stance of the Nara clan and an invitation to dinner could even be called 'persuading'.

Anko had to shake her head in amus.e.m.e.nt at the Akimichi clan. Maybe if she pulled her head out of her a.s.s when she was younger and approached one of these 'big-boned' people instead of feeling pity for herself, she would actually find real friends.

The Yamanaka clan head also easily agreed to give his support to her. Not like the man had any other choice since both the Akimichi and Nara clans already made their stance clear. The Yamanakas were the most neutral clan in the list of people Anko had to approach but Tsunade showed her cunning by ordering Anko to deal with Naras and Akimichis first. Now, if Inoichi did something different, it could potentially make his clan stand against his long-time allies in the village which wouldn't be good for him or the clan. Neutral or not, his side was chosen for him before Anko even knocked on his door.

And that led Anko's mind to reminisce about her last visit. The Hyuuga clan.

Yes, much to her eternal horror, it was these white-eyed assholes who were the closest supporters of the Senju clan. Or... at the very least, who had to lose the most if they didn't support the Senju clan.

Apparently, the Hyuuga clan businesses were very dependent on the Senju clan businesses. In short, the Hyuuga clan patriarch looked almost constipated after Tsunade pulled this card on him. Knowing how legendary their arguments in the council room were during the Third Ninja war... Anko could see that the man didn't expect Tsunade to know about how much influence she had over him and his clan. After all, even if the Senju clan owned the businesses supporting their own, Tsunade did not attend to the day-to-day matters and never showed any knowledge or interest in them. At best, she received her cut and let the businesses run themselves.

Anko could see the gears in Hiashi's head running and the utter bewilderment that Tsunade actually knew something about her family finances other than spending the seemingly unending supply of money flowing into her family accounts. The man sat motionless opposite Anko, staring in shock at the letter from Tsunade for ten whole minutes after reading it.

Naturally, it wouldn't do for assholes to deal with easy problems the easy way. Even someone like Anko, someone hopeless in economy and running of a clan, knew the Hyuugas had no other choice than to give their full support behind Tsunade on her whim. The second Hiashi spotted the special seal of the Senju clan head on the letter, it was as good as an order from Tsunade, someone who could ruin many of their businesses. It wasn't even that Tsunade asked much of the Hyuuga clan. Just show of support which would essentially cost them nothing.

So... what did the cold-faced bastard do?

He naturally called a meeting of Elders and dragged Anko straight into it! An issue that could be resolved in twenty minutes tops, and that was when Anko accounted for Hiashi's ten minutes long shocked state, was now stretched to three hours of debating between elderly men... yeah, Anko had had enough of living by the time she left the Hyuuga Compound with a ringing headache.

Is it any wonder she needed her daily dose of Dango thrice over after such a nightmare?

Worse yet... 'I will have to babysit the white-eyed princess for their support? How the heck did that happen!? Shit, Lady Tsunade will be so disappointed in me for letting them have their way and get compensation for her demands.' Anko mentally w.h.i.n.ed. She knew that promising something in return for their support would show weakness they would no doubt try to exploit later but she was just so damn tired of all the pointless talking.

In hindsight, she fell right into that trap. She should have refused to attend and demanded an answer from Hiashi. Even giving him time to consider it would be a nice power move, showing she had everything under control. It wasn't like the Hyuuga clan could refuse. But no... she just had to do the stupid thing and let them challenge her patience. A battle, she disgracefully lost and promised to train young Hinata in return for their support.

It was then that a commotion outside the Dango shop caught Anko's attention. Naruto Uzumaki was sitting on the ground with an angry shopkeeper hurling insults at the boy before huffily turning on his heel and stomping his way back to his shop.

Shrugging, Anko started tiredly munching on her Dango without any real excitement.

'Mah, the brat endured years of ridicule, he can endure two more days.'

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Chapter 201 - Ch201. Shocking Council Meeting

"Any idea why this meeting was called, Hiruzen?" Danzo asked in his emotionless tone but an underlying curiosity was unmistakable in his eye. Every clan head had a right to call for a council meeting if they had a serious issue to be discussed. Such a call, however, needed the approval of two more clan heads since it was not the Hokage calling it. This rule was actually a nice little way to get around the Hokage.

"I have no idea, my friend." Hiruzen answered as he walked towards the council chambers without a worry. Hiruzen knew the laws of Konoha by heart and as such, he was aware that whatever would be discussed would not be overly important in the grand scheme of things. While the clan heads could bypass him in this way, they would still need his approval for any major change. "My guess is either some dispute between clans or an announcement of a new business venture of the Nara clan." Hiruzen shrugged.

Danzo, though, was very nonplussed by that answer. The whole problem was that it was the Nara clan calling for the meeting. The Nara clan never did things like that. Not once since the founding of Konoha. 'Announcement of a business venture my a.s.s.' Danzo mentally grumbled. 'The whole clan is so lazy they would wait however long until the next scheduled council meeting to announce something like that.' He rolled his eyes, not even deeming it necessary to mentally comment about the stupid idea of the Nara clan being in a dispute with someone else.

It would take a murder or kidnapping of their clansman to get them motivated enough to move their asses. Danzo knew. After all, that was the reason why he purposefully avoided recruiting any Nara into his ROOT. He had enough problems without the motivated Nara clan on his a.s.s. No amount of intelligence and strategic brilliance was worth that.

Entering the council chamber, both Danzo and Hokage were greeted by the entire council already seated. Shikaku Nara, the man who called the meeting, was slouching in his seat with droopy eyes, around him Inoichi Yamanaka and Choza Akimichi, the two clan heads who granted their approval for the meeting. Around them were the clan heads of the Hyuuga, Aburame, Inuzuka, and Uchiha clans.

It pained Hiruzen to see that sorry state.

At the start, there were no less than seventeen clans in Konoha, all with a healthy population. Now? Most clan seats on the shinobi side of the council were empty. Some, like Senju, out of choice, others, like Kurama, out of necessity. While the Senju clan had only one member and thus wouldn't normally qualify for the council seat by normal rules, they were rich, and most importantly, a founding clan. Tsunade could sit on the council if she so wished.

The Kurama clan, however, wasn't nearly as important and because of their abysmal numbers in recent times, their privilege to sit on the council was lost. But the Kurama clan was only the most recent one to lose this privilege. There were Hatake, Mitarashi, Sarutobi, and many other clans that didn't fulfill the membership quota to sit on the shinobi council.

As such, from the initial seventeen, only seven clan heads now sat on the shinobi council. A pitiful state, really.

The civilian side had ten members. Five seats were taken by rich merchants entrenched in very important business fields that provided the village with weapons, food, and other necessities. These seats were quasi-hereditary since the merchants usually gave the seat alongside their business to their progeny when they retired. The next five seats were voted in by the people of Konoha.

Enlarging the civilian council was one of the follies Hiruzen agreed on to lighten his burden during the third war. At first, it was only five seats with the important merchants but now... now Hiruzen actually had a hard time finding a proper excuse to dismiss the five voted-in civilian members.

It certainly was not a fun time, having ten civilians and only seven shinobi on the council.

Not when the last set of seats belonged to the Elders, Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, and Shimura Danzo. That was yet another can of worms that usually gave Hiruzen a headache. The elders' support was very fickle. On one issue, they could support the shinobi council, on another the civilian one. Thankfully, the Elders were quite limited in their influence.

And lastly, there was him, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage. Twenty-one people in total if one didn't count all the ANBU skulking around the shadows in the room.

'So then... what is she doing here?' Hiruzen's eyes trailed towards the cheerfully humming Anko Mitarashi sitting in a guest seat as she waited for the start of the session and suddenly, Hiruzen no longer felt all that worry-free about this meeting.

...

The council meeting started and Anko restlessly waited through all the inane procedures, all the meaningless talks, and making sure everybody was present despite clearly seeing nobody missing. Yup, she really didn't like politics and the formal procedures that needed to be followed. She was dying of boredom despite the patience brutally instilled in her by Orochimaru.

Finally, thirty minutes after the start, Shikaku was given the word. Anko watched the man lift his head from the table and confusedly look around after Choza nudged him before the gears in Shikaku's head started working as he lethargically stood up.

"I called this meeting on the insistence of my clan's long-time allies, the Senju clan." Shikaku slowly let out in a measured drawl that gave everybody ample time to realize why Anko was present. At least, the ninjas did while the voted-in civilians were as clueless as it gets. Anko straightened her back, not due to the clueless and disgruntled glances from the Elders and the Hokage, but due to what was coming next. "The Senju clan asked me to present a case of custody for one, Uzumaki Naruto, to the Senju clan because of his heritage as a scion of the Uzumaki clan and his blood ties to Tsunade Senju through her grandmother, Mito Uzumaki."

The second Shikaku stopped talking and flopped back into his chair, a deafening silence engulfed the room. Not even the ANBU guards dared to breathe after hearing that.

The topic of custody of Naruto Uzumaki was a frequent one a few years back. The clan heads wanted a boy, either to strengthen their clans or simply to give him a home. Even the ever-isolationist Aburame clan tried to gain custody of him, if only because they knew the burden the boy carried. Alas, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the Hokage, and with the help of his Elders and using the hatred the civilian council had for the boy, he made damn sure to block any and all such proposals.

Hiruzen was blindsided by this. He spent the last few days trying to figure out Tsunade's angle. He knew her. She would not be appeased so easily. At the very least, the second she got to know about her birthright, he expected her to storm her way into Konoha and try to yell his brain out while also causing an unhealthy amount of collateral damage to vent her frustration. This... calm and collected letter with a working threat and set of reasonable demands was so far out of his apprentice's modus operandi, Hiruzen was really worried.

'She baited me.' Hiruzen understood. 'She made me waste time on her knowledge of the Konoha Creation Act while...' His eyes coldly stared at Anko Mitarashi, the viper who slithered under his feet without him noticing.

Hiruzen was not stupid. He knew well that Tsunade was the only one who could take care of Naruto even if he disapproved. They shared blood and that meant something. That was yet another reason why her absence in the village didn't bother him much. Unless she was in the village, she couldn't get custody.

But now...

Anko watched with an expertly hidden glee as the Hokage's eyes swept through his fellow councilmen and his lips set in a concerned frown. She felt proud of herself for pulling this off. Especially since it was so obvious neither of the Elders knew what was going to happen in the meeting.

'Maybe this manipulation and blackmail stuff is not all that bad. The process is dull and boring but the result is sweet!' Anko inwardly grinned while outwardly she projected a sweet innocent smile that fooled nobody.

She watched as Hiruzen sat in his seat, most likely mulling over the situation and what he could do to prevent it but in the end, the old man simply sighed and called for a vote.

And so, the council voted.

The five civilians from the important merchant families voted for giving custody to the Senju Clan. Tsunade had far too much blackmail on them for them to not give their vote in her favor.

As expected, the Hyuuga, Yamanaka, Nara, Akimichi, and surprisingly even the Aburame clans voted in the Senju clan's favor.

But the Hokage, the elders Homura and Koharu, the remaining five voted-in civilians, the Uchiha, and Inuzuka clans voted against the proposition.

Only Danzo abstained with a small knowing and calculating smirk.

'Unfortunately for the cyclops wannabe, Tsunade put the matter into the most dependable hands in the entire Konoha.' Anko amusedly observed the relieved looks on Hiruzen's face.

Shikaku stood up and actually smiled. "Naruto Uzumaki is a civilian with a clan heritage. He is not yet a shinobi of the village, hence the votes of the Elders hold no value according to the laws of the village. As expected of Elder Shimura, you know our laws by heart." Shikaku said in a voice laced with amus.e.m.e.nt as Koharu and Homura flushed, Danzo's smirk froze, and Hiruzen's pupils dilated. "As such, the vote is eight to ten in favor of the proposition. Since the child is not yet a shinobi, the Hokage can not overrule this." Shikaku glanced at Hiruzen before turning towards Anko, "Congratulations, Anko Mitarashi. Your and your clan's guardianship of Naruto Uzumaki was approved."

Anko simply hummed and comfortably leaned back into her chair as the screaming contest started as the unhappy civilians realized that the Snake Whore, as they called her, was the only 'member' of the Senju clan present in the village.

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Chapter 202 - Ch202. Naruto's new home

Naruto curiously stared at the woman who caught him during one of his pranking escapades and was currently walking through the village while holding him under her armpit as if he was a sack of potatoes. Admittedly, he would normally struggle but his body felt oddly sluggish, preventing him from moving much. Naruto was not stupid, he recognized when he was beaten with no way out.

Then, in Naruto's opinion, yet another surprising thing happened. The woman walked into a secluded part of the village. A part that Naruto recognized as the Senju compound. To his shock, the woman who kidnapped him only stopped in the backyard of one house and dropped him onto the ground, causing him to groan in slight pain as he impacted the hard surface face-first due to being unable to move his body. Maybe it wasn't that smart to verbally antagonize her during their trip...

"Yo, brat," The woman squatted near him and started talking in a very annoyed manner. "I am Anko Mitarashi, your new guardian as of two hours ago."

Now that was something that sent Naruto into a shocked silence, causing him to choke on his unspoken complaints. His eyes widened and his mouth started opening and closing while his mind was unable to comprehend what exactly was going on.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Shocking, right?" Anko dismissively waved her hand. "Anyway, Lady Tsunade wasn't happy when she got to know her blood relative was treated badly by the village. She couldn't really come back due to the political climate in the village either and that's where I came in. For the foreseeable future, we are stuck together, pipsqueak. Get used to it." Anko grinned, causing Naruto to blanch.

A thousand questions were swirling in Naruto's head all at once but only one was important enough that he found himself voicing it out without even realizing it. "I... I have a family?" Naruto's body shook in... even he didn't know what. Was he relieved? Angry? Sad?

Anko slightly winced. She knew the kid wouldn't take the revelation well. Sighing, she shrugged, "Yeah. Sorry, kid. Your family is not in Konoha and getting to you is harder than you would expect. I suppose Lady Tsunade could get to you at a moment's notice but it would cause a lot of trouble for her. The Hokage would never allow it and even now it took a lot of blackmail for me to become your guardian which put you into the purview of the Senju clan." Anko cautiously added, observing Naruto for his reaction.

And as expected, Naruto hid it well but Anko was not a high-ranked for nothing. The brat already knew his mother's name and... "I am glad you already have mistrust towards the Hokage." She grinned at the widening of Naruto's eyes.

"I have no idea..." He started.

Anko then quickly poked Naruto's forehead, right where the seal placed on him by Ringo was located, instantly silencing him. The very same seal that gave the kid knowledge when he needed it and functioned as a lie detector of sorts. Rei had no idea how would that go but it was an experiment to see how would Naruto grow up if he had something teaching him the important stuff and showing him who is and who isn't trustworthy.

"Oh~, I think you know exactly what I mean, ne, Naru-chan?" Anko's grin widened as the kid realized she knew about his biggest secret.

"You... what... how!?" He exclaimed. The 'thing' giving him knowledge, teaching him, and causing him to know who he should trust was with him for as long as he could remember. It was his most important secret, the only thing he could depend on in his life. While people avoided him, the voice in his head always told him what to do to survive. Always taught him how to better himself. How could the woman in front of him know about it!?

"The seal on your forehead was created by Rei, the husband of Lady Tsunade, when it became apparent you were an Uzumaki and there was no way to help you directly. They couldn't really take you in since you are a jinchuuriki." Anko slowly said, looking for any sign of shock on Naruto's face. When she found none, she mentally nodded. The kid already knew. "Konoha would not allow it, hence, it took them so long to get someone to take care of you."

"Which is you." Naruto slightly narrowed his eyes at Anko who rolled her eyes.

"Yes. You will live with me in the Senju Compound from now on. I will provide necessities for you and I will train you. You will start the academy soon... by the way, a good thing you didn't pester the Hokage for early admission. It would only annoy the teachers there. Lady Tsunade isn't really in a trusting mood so I was made to retire from my kunoichi duties for a few years and will now focus on your and my own training in the time being."

"I will be trained? YATTA!" Naruto jumped up, cheering in a very silly way. Only a shuriken scratching his cheek stopped him in his spot with a 'deer in the headlights expression as he looked at Anko whose eyebrow was twitching.

"Stop acting like an idiot. I know enough to recognize your facade. I have nothing against you using it to fool the idiots outside the Senju Compound but here you will act like yourself. Too much acting can be bad for you, lest you really start believing the act real." Anko admonished, walking forward and ruffling Naruto's hair.

For some reason, Naruto couldn't find it in himself to give her a cheeky retort as he usually would. Nor could he tell her off for treating him like a kid.

'It feels kinda nice.' He thought and blushed as he felt Anko's hand ruffling his hair.

"I too am not very liked by the villagers." Anko said, making the warm mood turn serious, "I know it is easier to show a facade of cheerfulness but it can hurt you if you overdo it. It certainly hurt me, kid." She bitterly admitted, "It took a nice heart-to-heart conversation with Lady Tsunade to show me what I was doing is wrong. I don't want you to one day find yourself so comfortable with your facade that it will become reality."

Naruto briefly pondered Anko's words and had to admit, he didn't want to always be his naive, stupid, cheerful self. When he grew up, he wanted to be able to drop his facade but could he really get so used to it that it would become second nature to him? That was something he really didn't want to experience.

Deciding to change the mood between them, Naruto quickly changed the topic, "So... what will you teach me?"

Apparently, that was a wrong question if the sudden vicious grin Anko gave him was any indication. Not a second after, a wave of a killing intent strong enough to make him stiffen, but weak enough that he could still move, engulfed him.

"I will teach you how to survive."

Naruto only barely dodged the kunai aimed at his shoulder as he thought...

'Maybe staying in my old apartment would be safer?'

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Chapter 203 - Ch203. Stirring in the Kirigakure

"Really, no rest for the wicked." Rei sighed as he recounted the past few days in his head.

He and Tsunade came home three days ago. Tsunade instantly went into his dimension to cuddle with Blondie in order to... replenish her essential dose of fluff... as she called it. Rei also decided to check up on Black, finding out the foxes were already the size of a horse. That was quite a nice growth spur considering they were 'born' only recently.

What was not nice was Pakura coming to his dimension and telling him there was an emergency. Really, he was home not even for ten minutes and there was already some screw-up for him to fix?

Fast forward to the current time, and grumbling Rei stood on a hill located in the Land of Water.

"Inconsiderate prick. Couldn't Yagura start with his genocidal urges a week later? Three freaking days of paperwork, diplomacy, and preparations. Sigh, I really need a proper vacation." Rei lamented, only to get a blank gaze from Ringo who stood to his left, and an amused giggle from Mei who was on his right side.

"You just came from a vacation." Ringo deadpanned, crossing her hands under her c.h.e.s.t.

"That was not a vacation. That was a business trip. No matter if I spent most of it relaxing with Tsunade, official doc.u.ments state it was not a vacation, therefore it was NOT a vacation." Rei defended, causing Ringo to sigh.

"Mah, forget the workaholic. She would not understand what is the use of free time even if you spelled it to her. Honestly, she would never leave her forge if not for the fact she is your wife." Mei decided to donate her two cents to the conversation.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ringo asked crossly.

"Don't give me that look. You only leave your workshop to eat with us, when you have scheduled training or sparring, and for s.e.x with Rei. Even now, you are mostly jealous you had no alone time with Rei before we had to come here." Mei snorted.

"At least I wasn't the one keeping half of the house awake yesterday. How dumb must you be to forgot the silencing seals?" Ringo sarcastically quipped.

"Hey, I resent that. You kno..."

Mei started but Rei's hands suddenly grasped the shoulder of both Ringo and Mei, stopping their tirade. He didn't even need to say a word for the girls to understand the meaning of his gesture. The arguments between Ringo and Mei never ceased and while everybody knew they didn't put much heart into them, Rei really didn't feel like listening to the two bickering women right now.

"They are almost here." He said, causing both Mei and Ringo to straighten up and enter their professional facade.

It took a few minutes but right on the decided time, three Mist ninjas landed in front of Rei and girls, led by Ao, the leader of the resistance, himself. Because of the fact that the Third Mizukage delayed Obito from influencing Yagura, the clans had more time to prepare. Thanks to Rei who warned them what was most probably the plan of Obito and that he would most likely succeed given enough time, many clans took the threat seriously.

Frankly, if Rei was just some unknown chump, nobody would care what he was rambling about. But since he was a famous SS-rank ninja, his word was akin to gospel to them. Really, Rei couldn't help but find it incredibly amusing.

Because of the warning, the second the Third Mizukage was assassinated, the red lights started blaring in the heads of the clan heads. When Yagura finally started pulling anti-clan reforms out of his a.s.s, the clans were prepared the best they could. Hence, the resistance was much, much stronger this time around.

That, however, didn't mean they could just storm Kirigakure and win. Not without heavy casualties, at least. Even with the bolstered numbers and many clans intact, the resistance was still outnumbered 1 to 20. Which is why Rei was currently in the Land of Water despite dearly wishing to be able to laze around in his bed right at the moment. They wanted help and Rei, Ringo, and Mei were the poor sods who drew the shortest straws so they had to listen to their demands and possibly negotiate an agreement with them.

'I am never again playing a drawing game to decide who would deal with something like this.' Rei inwardly grumbled. 'Even my luck is clearly against me.'

"Greetings, Rei-dono. Please, follow us, our hideout is nearby." Ao said in a no-nonsense tone and turned around before starting to run.

Mei, Ringo, and Rei looked at each other before helplessly shrugging and following.

"So... why exactly did they choose you as the leader?" Ringo asked after a few minutes of silent running. She knew Ao and it was obvious the man nor his guards were not content with seeing her. For them, she was most likely a traitor. Not that Rei cared since he called as such too.

"The clans bickered who should lead and in the end, it was decided the leader was to be someone not under the influence of a particular clan." Ao unhappily grunted, showing just how much he loved his current position, "I was just the most skilled guy out of those who joined the resistance and didn't belong to a clan."

"Sucks to be you." Mei snickered, causing even the Ao's guards to join her briefly before they earned themselves a one-eyed glare from their boss. That shut them up good.

"I agree." Ao muttered and the group again fell into silence.

Rei didn't ask his questions in favor of observation. He knew Ringo only started the brief debate in order to give Rei a better picture of Ao. As if she really cared who or why led the resistance. Her questioning however gave Rei a better perspective of what to expect.

'So the clans are not as united as they would like to portray, heh... Well, naturally, they survived with more members than in canon. They were always somewhat entitled and now that nobody humbled them by culling out most of their populace, the clans would naturally bicker who is the biggest fish in the pond. Must be really annoying. No wonder they seek outside help, then.' Rei mentally summed up Ao's situation.

Rei wasn't really happy with what he heard so far. The resistance was outnumbered and the members had a hard time working together. They actually had to give the leadership to a third party to keep a semblance of order in their ranks. Many Kirigakure high-ranking ninjas were members of some clan. Meaning, despite being outnumbered, the resistance should, at the very least hypothetically, be able to win against Kirigakure. Especially if they employed guerrilla warfare which is incredibly suitable for the Mist ninjas. They could weaken the Kiri forces enough that the chances of winning a head-on assault would be greatly in their favour.

And yet, they wanted to pull Yozora into it. 'Somehow, I am starting to have a really bad feeling that they expect some hocus-pocus out of me that would resolve their current problem without any country-crippling bloodshed.' Rei started to realize what exactly the Kiri clans wanted.

This was not a desperate fight for survival for them. Not yet. They weren't reduced to a few members. Not in this timeline. Rei actually cursed when he realized a snag in his plan. This was something he overlooked.

The clans simply wanted to return to their comfortable position of power in Kirigakure. This meant Yagura had to be removed without much infighting that would weaken Kirigakure, and cause the clans having to work overtime to keep their village safe afterward. They simply wanted a fairytale outcome with a happily ever after.

'Oh, well, no matter how ridiculous this is becoming, it's not like this situation doesn't play right into my cards.' Rei mentally shrugged. Eh, he would have to adjust his plans but maybe the current situation would be even more beneficial for him. Rei discreetly looked at Ringo with the corner of his eyes, 'The question is... how pissed will she be when I enact my oh-so evil plan?'

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Chapter 204 - Ch204. Difference

After arriving at the hideout of the Resistance, Rei, Ringo, and Mei marveled at the place. All of them spent years in the service of Kirigakure and yet, neither knew about the place. From the exquisite buildings and the crests on them, it was obvious the village in front of their eyes belonged to a clan which only made their lack of knowledge about it even more impressive. Kirigakure loved to keep track of any place the clans owned, after all.

Rei couldn't help but smirk. It was obvious that some clans didn't trust Kirigakure enough to abandon their previous compounds or reveal their whereabouts upon the establishment of the village. The entire place was quite spacious but it was also masterfully hidden by the local nature, and according to Rei's senses, some quite rudimentary but nevertheless quite effective fuinjutsu.

'Just wow. Kirigakure could run in circles around this place for months considering the serious lack of fuinjutsu experts. The seals perfectly blend with the local nature and cover the village. Quite ingenious, to be honest. Although... it wouldn't work if the clan village was bigger.' Rei wryly thought about how useless these seals would be for him if he tried to hide his own village with them.

His mind quickly stopped this contemplation as he noticed that to his right, Mei was walking with a small welcoming smile while secretly but constantly letting out a bit of her chakra seep into the air around her.

'Already taking preventive measures, eh?' Rei noted.

He was especially proud that he managed to discover Mei's subtle use of her Steam Bloodline only thanks to his Senjutsu enhanced senses. This meant that even Ao who already sported his stylish eye-patch and no doubt monitored them non-stop with his Byakugan, would not get even an inkling of Mei's usage of the chakra because to him, it would simply seem like a natural leakage of chakra into the surroundings that every person, even civilians, had. Mei simply leaked quite a bit more which could be chalked up to her massive chakra reserves.

And there laid the reason why Rei was so proud. It didn't seem as if Mei was using a technique. Not even to Byakugan. And yet, slowly but surely, the air was starting to get thinly saturated with her chakra, drifting away from Ao to different parts of the village so he doesn't get suspicious. It was not as if Mei needed a lot of her chakra in the air in order to do nasty stuff with it either.

Rei's eyes discreetly glanced at Ringo who instantly noticed and her grip on the handles of the swords on her waist slightly tightened, notifying Rei she was ready to act upon being ordered. Her eyes were set in a cold facade and Rei knew if he told her to slaughter every single person in the village, she would do so. It was... reassuring, and yet a bit disturbing. But that was Ringo. After she decided to throw everything away for Rei, her determination only strengthened through the years and not one of his girls showed such unquestioning loyalty to him as her.

Yes, his wives were loyal without a shadow of a doubt but Ringo was in the league of its own, clutching onto Rei after forsaking Kirigakure for him.

Rei simply widened his smile, giving Ringo a signal that no carnage would be happening right about now, which elicited a small, almost pouty frown from the redhead while her grip slightly slackened.

Obviously, the jonins escorting them through the clan village noticed her slight tensing and it created a quite stifling atmosphere which only somewhat eased up after Ringo became more relaxed. Nevertheless, they had no idea what exactly caused the famous assassin in front of them to get battle-ready, and that, even if they didn't outwardly show it... drove many of them scared shitless.

Rei chuckled at the mirth in Ringo's eyes. The minx clearly did it on purpose, giving the ninjas around a warning. And if the small widening of the distance between Ringo and the ninjas who escorted them was any indication, it worked spectacularly. Needless to say, Rei had no illusion that Ringo was simply playing around. She was clearly mapping out the village, remembering any escape route, any important place that could help in a fight... simply, her deeply ingrained cold calculative instincts of an assassin was in full throttle, devising plan after plan while analyzing the situation and the best way to terminate everybody around.

Rei, on the other hand, was also busy with using his chakra to form seals under the soles of his boots as he walked, causing them to sink into the earth. It was quite an advanced technique and getting it to work with his feet rather than hands took a long time but this way, he could simply walk and distribute his seals on the places he set his feet on without being noticed.

From a perspective of a normal ninja, it would be completely mind-boggling that the trio managed to do what they were doing without being noticed despite being surrounded by a Byakugan user and a village full of ninjas.

They finally reached their destination, a well-decorated mansion in the middle of the village. The mansion was the grandest building around and Rei had no doubt the clan heads of clans that formed the Resistance would be just waiting to manipulate him to help them.

Such was the disadvantage of working more with the Third Mizukage and never teaming up with other ninjas from Kirigakure. Sure, the clan heads most likely saw him as a powerful individual but they were people who had power and influence for most of their lives. Rei was really curious just how many of them would take him seriously in this little political game of theirs.

Considering the inactivity of Yozora in recent years...

'This will be a monumental drag, won't it?' Rei wearily sighed as he stared unimpressed at the lavish mansion in front of them.

The group entered and right as they passed the door, Ao turned towards Rei and started talking in an emotionless tone, "I will require you to leave your weapons here. They will be returned after the negotiation. Standard procedure, I hope you don't mind." He swept the trio with his eyes, showing a bit disgruntled expression when he saw Ringo shrug and hand her swords to the ninja slash receptionist slash guard slash whatever else required.

Ringo simply smirked at Ao, causing his eyes to narrow as a weary sigh left his lips. He knew out of the three ninjas before him, Ringo was the most dependent on her weapons and yet she was completely fine with handing her swords over? The Ringo he remembered would lash out and bring hell to the mortal plane if anybody demanded her to give her swords away.

Ao correctly assumed that what he was seeing was a whole load of trouble as his head started to hurt with a profound headache while Rei only amusedly handed over his kunai pouch to the receptionist. Ringo's swords were still the same two chakra blades he gifted her when Kiba was taken away from her. There was only one thing dearer to her in the world than these blades and that was Rei himself. Even Tsunade, Ringo's most favorite person out of Rei's wives, didn't reach the same level as the two blades. But Rei also knew that since she started focusing on her blacksmithing, Ringo made sure to improve the blades immensely.

'By now, she can summon them with but a thought in a span of a split of a second from literally anywhere in the world. It would take a quite strong seal to prevent her to get her swords.' Rei inwardly snorted, knowing Ringo had no problem with handing out her swords only because she could re-summon them anytime she d.e.s.i.r.ed.

Noticing that Mei didn't move to remove any weapons from her person, the guards spoke, "Lady Terumi, could you please hand over your weapons?"

Rei noted how polite they were but... he guessed that was given considering she was the first SS-rank to come from their village... ever.

Mei simply grinned and shrugged, "I have no weapons on my person," She turned to look straight at Ao, getting his full undivided attention, "my chakra is all I need."

The guards didn't know what to do in a situation like this. Mei was an SS-rank kunoichi and offending her would be quite... ahem. They simply turned towards Ao and waited for orders.

By that point, Ao's headache increased. For a second, he had a bad feeling he missed something but in the end, he just nodded at a guard to search Mei.

Seeing how stiffly the guard approached her, Mei chuckled. "Get it over with but make sure your hands don't wander where they don't belong. This," she gestured at her body, "belongs solely to Rei." And narrowed her eyes at the poor sod chosen to search her.

A few very, very uncomfortable moments later for the almost crying guard, the trio was amused beyond belief while Ao was now actively rubbing his temples when he saw how the guard whimpered every time his hands approached Mei's b.r.e.a.s.ts or lower body, causing her to tense up in warning.

"She is clear." The guard said and Rei would even find his even tone impressive if the man didn't have such a fearful expression on his face.

Frankly, Rei found the entire situation exceedingly amusing, especially since Mei threw Ao such an obvious clue. 'Chakra is all I need? Seriously? She couldn't have given him a bigger hint to what she was doing during their walk towards the mansion.' Rei giddily thought, 'I really, really start to see why Itachi and Kisame would stop for a snack in a Dango shop in the middle of Konoha despite both being very notorious rogue ninjas and Itachi being one of the most wanted men from Konoha. It's simply so fun to be surrounded by ninjas, especially elite jonins, the so-called cream of the crop, and seeing them utterly clueless when you do something. Ao having a Byakugan is just a cherry on the top.'

Mei even hinted that she did something right into Ao's face and the man, the former best hunter ninja of Kirigakure, simply couldn't figure it out. 'Then again, if jonins could figure our tricks out, maybe we don't deserve the title of SS-rank.' Rei conceded in his mind.

"Well, if everything is in order, I think it is time to meet the big bad boys." Rei quipped, getting an annoyed grunt from Ao who still couldn't shake off the feeling he missed something.

He was not a happy camper right about now!

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Chapter 205 - Ch205. I want...

Rei, Ringo, and Mei were led into a lavish meeting room where the clan heads and leaders of the Resistance already waited for them, debating about this or that. The second the trio stepped inside the room, everybody quieted down almost instantly and Rei could almost smell the curiosity in the air as the people turned towards them.

The trio simply stared back in complete disregard and disinterest as the gazes washed over them. Rei was indifferent to it, Ringo simply didn't care, and Mei didn't want to get spanked by Tsunade because of letting her discomfort show so she donned an aloof facade.

After all, Tsunade would be very upset if the five hours she spent hammering the political knowledge into Mei's mind were in vain. Especially since Mei's sole purpose in these negotiations was to look disinterested with anything they propose while making sure her mouth stayed shut as Rei handled talking.

Rei's lips quivered as he noticed the gazes linger on Mei a bit more than on him or Ringo. 'Well, I did take Mei with me because she is the last of the Terumi clan and also because she is the very first SS-rank ninja from Kirigakure. Looks like it works like a charm. Their attention is more on her than me.' Rei noted with satisfaction.

These clan heads knew well that he was the 'mysterious' Rei of Kiri in the past. But they knew virtually nothing about him. Ringo and Mei though... Ringo was one of the best assassins Kiri ever produced in its existence and Mei's ranking was too big of a deal. Hence, Rei who was standing a half-step behind the girls was not garnering much attention.

"Welcome," One of the geezers stood up from his seat and amiably greeted the trio, "we awaited your arrival, members of Yozora. I am very glad Miss Terumi and Miss Ameyuri feel enough patriotism to show up in Kirigakure's time of need. My name is Kagerou Yuki and..."

Naturally, by that point, even Rei tuned the man's speech out of his mind. As for Ringo and Mei... Rei doubted they got beyond the word patriotism without mentally snorting in laughter. Both had to be strongly persuaded by Rei to come, after all. Mei hated Kirigakure with a passion due to how she was treated there and Ringo simply stopped caring about the village.

While Kagerou was passionately talking about their dreary situation while introducing this or that unimportant clan head, Rei was getting more and more put off, 'The guy is talking as if he was the Mizukage who was overthrown by discontent children throwing a tantrum and was currently seeking a righteous help. Guess nobody told him to his face that it is he and his clan who are trying to do the overthrowing.' Rei sighed.

Finally, after a lengthy introduction of every person in the room, the man quieted down and Rei took it as his cue to start talking, "Nice to meet you. I am Rei of Yozora, to my right is Mei, and to my left is Ringo. We found a request for help from you and decided to come and listen to your offer. Depending on the reward we will decide if we accept or not." He gave Kagerou a fake smile.

The clan heads in the room looked a bit exasperated when Rei insinuated that his help is not yet set in stone. Obviously, they expected these talks to go smoothly but Rei would have none of that. If they couldn't offer a worthwhile reward, then why should he risk the safety of his people?

"Ah, yes, yes, naturally." Kagerou stiffly nodded and gestured towards seats behind a big round table where the clan heads sat.

As the trio moved to sit down, Rei briefly glanced at Ao who sat a few seats away from their designated seats and looked somewhat bitterly worried. Clearly, the supposed leader of Resistance didn't have much of a voice in the important matters since he didn't speak even once since they entered the room.

"So... let's skip all formalities. I am not very fond of those. Your offer?" Rei suddenly voiced out, stopping Kagerou in his tracks right as he spotted the man about to start babbling again. Many clan heads frowned at such a disregard for the mandatory small talk but Rei would have none of that. He ignored the suspicious mutterings sounding a bit like, 'youngsters these days', and stared at Kagerou with a hard gaze, causing the man to feel a bit out of place.

"As you wish..." Kagerou reluctantly nodded, unhappy his gift of speech would be pretty useless for these negotiations. He was, after all, chosen to be the spokesperson because he was a skilled politician who prided himself in talking his way out or into any deal he wanted. It also helped that it was kinda hard to ignore a hard gaze of a known SS-rank ninja.

Unfortunately for Kagerou, Konan made sure Rei knew about his reputation which enabled him to put a stop to his silver tongue before the real negotiations even started.

"As you know we currently need an aid to bring order back to Kirigakure," At that, Mei gave Kagerou an incredulous look and Ringo rolled her eyes, "but bloodshed would lead to a severe weakening of the village. We seek your services for an assassination of the current Mizukage and subsequent take-over of the village by our forces. As for your reward..." Kagerou slightly shifted in his spot, "We will naturally reward you most generously once the village is back in our hands."

Hearing that, Rei slowly nodded, "So... basically, what you are saying is that you don't have money to afford our help." He started, ignoring how Kagerou's expression darkened alongside the other clan heads while Ao looked as if he just gained a sudden realization and started glaring at the clan heads. "I gotta praise your wording. If I was an inexperienced chunin, I would probably fall in line and agree to help you for not clearly stated reward," Rei continued with a straight face but everyone in the room recognized he was mocking them. "Obviously, people of your… standing don't deal with rogue ninjas much. We don't do things for promises of riches. We don't have an assurance that the village would reward us or give us retirement funds if we get injured. Or did you think if you appeal to our past loyalties towards Kirigakure you will get us to easily help you? Sorry to say but we don't owe Kirigakure anything. We will get involved only once we clearly know what we are supposed to risk our lives for."

Rei was sweetly smiling. It went exactly how Konan predicted. Money was an issue when one ran a rebellion. Plus the civil war was freshly started. The clan heads didn't think it would last all that long and were unwilling to pay a huge price to put a stop to it. It also just so happened that Yozora was inactive for the past few years because the price for them to get involved was very high.

Konan made sure to scout the people behind the Resistance and their situation. Rei came here knowing the circ.u.mstances clearly. Which is why he didn't let them react to his mocking and continued talking, "That said, we do have something we want from you. Something I am sure you would be willing to pay since it won't cost clans all that much."

That stopped the various clan heads short. Out of the people in the room, only Ao looked worried about what Rei meant. He was no fool and knew the clan heads wanted the war to quickly end and get back their comfy positions in Kirigakure. Moreover, they wanted to accomplish this without incurring much cost to the coffers of their clans.

Ao, on the other hand, simply wanted the war to end because he had no illusions how it would affect the village and how much blood would be spilled before it ends. There was a serious possibility Kirigakure would fall short of the other four major hidden villages if the war was prolonged and cost too many losses. The whole situation didn't have any positive outcome for Kirigakure in general. As a loyal Kiri ninja, Ao didn't like that.

Yes... loyal. As stupid as that sounded considering he was rebelling, he believed the removal of Yagura was necessary if Kirigakure was to survive and keep its position in the major five.

That was why Ao was very nonplussed at Rei's wording. Clearly, he wanted something and if the clans wouldn't have to pay, it would naturally be the village who would pay. It was the exact same situation that the clan heads previously propositioned. The money for hiring Yozora was obviously supposed to come from the Kirigakure's treasury after they took over the village. Somehow, Ao doubted that Rei d.e.s.i.r.ed money, which was a whole lot more worrying thought.

"I am sure we can at least hear your proposal out." Kagerou prompted Rei to say what he wanted from them, excited at the prospect of his clan not having to pay anything in order to get help in the war.

Rei smirked and briefly glanced at Ringo. 'Gosh, I can already imagine the argument this will incur... Here goes nothing.'

"I want Ringo Ameyuri to become the Fifth Mizukage." He loudly proclaimed, causing the whole room to fall into a deafening silence while Mei choked and Ringo's eyes snapped to him and slightly narrowed in a cold furious bewilderment.

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Chapter 206 - Ch206. Might makes right

The door closed behind the trio that entered their assigned room and Rei swiftly touched the wall, causing seals to spread through the room, securing it while destroying any surveillance device or Jutsu.

With room secured, silence spread through the room and Rei awkwardly looked at Ringo who had a very telling frown on her lips. Her discontent became almost palpable the second they entered the room and she made sure Rei knew it due to her discreet but intense stare through the entire negotiation.

Ringo knew it wouldn't do to show any form of surprise at Rei's exclamation that he wanted her to become the Fifth Mizukage. Discontent would be even worse than surprise and as such, she simply set her expression into a cold facade and used years of her training to relax the tension in her body and erase any kind of body language that could give her away. She was simply happy she didn't have to talk during the negotiation of terms.

But now the tiring talks were over and she was locked in a secured, sound-proof room with Rei. Ringo's eyes gazed into Rei's and her lips opened, "What the hell was that?"

Rei sighed, knowing he owed Ringo a proper explanation. It couldn't be easy for her to stay indifferent during the hours he negotiated a satisfactory deal with the clan heads. Especially since they were talking about her responsibilities, limitations, and rights once she became the Mizukage and didn't even ask her about her opinion.

"Sorry, Ringo," Rei started, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "but the opportunity was simply far too good to not go for it. I could only choose between you and Mei, and you know how Mei is. She wouldn't be able to get past the first week of being Mizukage without blowing the entire Kirigakure up and calling it an accident."

"Yes! You know how I am, Ringo." Mei teasingly interjected from her bed where she laid with her hands supporting her chin as she stared between Rei and Ringo with great interest.

"You shut up." Ringo snapped at Mei, letting her anger briefly show before she took a deep breath.

It had to be said, Rei was using Ringo's love for him in his favor. He knew she couldn't really argue against him. Mei, however, wasn't so lucky and if she kept talking, she would become an apt scapegoat for Ringo to relieve her stress. Then again, Rei definitely didn't think the Resistance would appreciate having their hideout leveled to the ground.

"Mei, stay quiet." Rei stated, not averting his eyes from Ringo.

"Okay," Ringo took another calming breath and slowly sat down on the side of her own bed. "I would like a more in-depth explanation."

Rei wryly smiled and walked towards Ringo. He sat next to her on the bed and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to him. Only when he felt her relax and lean into his body did he start talking in a calm and soft voice, "I came here expecting many things based on Konan's intelligence. I expected leaving without making any deal which would mean pulling things from the shadows to get things done. I expected a contract of trade agreement highly favoring us. I expected benefits for Yozora. And I expected many other things." Rei noticed Ringo's eyes becoming a bit restless so he decided to go straight to the point, "More importantly, I expected the negotiations to last a few days, hence I would have time to ease you into the idea. Well, that obviously didn't work since the second I saw exactly how much the clans wanted to end the war and how stingy they were about it..."

"You pounced on their greed to get the ball rolling." Ringo nodded in understanding. "But I don't want to be Mizukage. I love you, I love forging, I love swords... I can't do paperwork all day or lead a damn village! I have to agree that Mei would be utterly useless in such a position," A loud 'Hey!' sounded from Mei's general direction, "but I am not much better. If you want me to do this, I can. I will even with great reluctance stop my forging since I won't have the time for it." Ringo's expression showed exactly how painful saying those words were to her. Forging became her hobby after they settled in Uzushio but by now, it was her lifeline not unlike being one of the Seven Swordsmen was her lifeline in her youth. "But even then, I don't think I can do a great job at it. This is Konan's niche. This is something Tsunade was trained for. But me? I am a killer, Rei, not an administrator and definitely not a leader material." She added, lowering her head on Rei's shoulder in resignation.

Hearing Ringo out, Rei chuckled. It was so like her to accept whatever fate he presented her with without any questions. Her assassin training really shone through in this aspect of what made Ringo, Ringo.

"Ah, don't worry. That's what the negotiations were for." Rei playfully said with a knowing smirk, causing Ringo to become confused whereas Mei's eyes bulged out as she burst into almost hysterical laughter.

Enjoying the change of atmosphere from gloomy and resigned to a cheerful one once Mei's laughter filled the room, Rei simply sat back, contently hugging the confused Ringo who was slowly working out the meaning of his words as he c.a.r.e.s.sed her hair.

Few seconds passed and Mei was still giggling, trying to stop herself in vain when astonishment appeared on Ringo's face, "You... The entire time you accepted the terms the clan heads set up. It seemed that as long as I become the Mizukage, you care not if I am but a figurehead without any real power over the village. The talks lasted only a few hours and a deal was struck. Normally, something like this would mean days of arguing but you were oddly accommodating, only asking for some privileges and advantages for me that clans were happy to give. It was all on purpose, wasn't it?" Ringo finished, still in a bit of disbelief.

It wasn't as if Rei threw the negotiations. He secured a LOT of advantages for Ringo. But from the political perspective, he might as well make her into a political eunuch. Once she became the Mizukage, the deal struck today would strip away most of her power over the village. Which also translated into way fewer responsibilities for Ringo.

"You played them!" Mei almost wheezed from her spot on her bed. "The pricks probably think how brilliantly they outsmarted you and secured themselves help for the rebellion for no cost while also getting more power in the village afterward all the while you got exactly what you wanted from the deal!" She snickered, punching the pillow in giddiness.

Rei smiled, lowering his head slightly to look at Ringo who was leaning on his c.h.e.s.t, "Yes... Making sure Ringo doesn't have to deal with the bullshit of being Mizukage was the least I could do for her since I asked her to take the position." Rei said and suddenly could feel Ringo's arms affectionately tightening around his waist. Leaning forward, Rei softly pecked Ringo's lips. "Plus nobody ever said you have to stop forging. Did you already forget we can teleport? All you will have to do is send a shadow clone to Kirigakure every morning and you are free to stay holed up in your forge all day." He shrugged with a mirthful smirk.

Really, the clan heads grabbed more power for their clans and by doing so, they inadvertently took the responsibilities upon themselves. But... "As for you being reduced to a powerless figurehead? That doesn't matter at all. The important part is you holding said position." Rei said before turning towards Mei, "Tell me, Mei, what is Ringo?"

Ringo furrowed her brows, thinking about the answer. She felt a bit stupid for not being able to answer instantly but Rei simply reassuredly squeezed her. He asked Mei because he knew Ringo would take a long time to get the answer since she would have never considered it from the necessary point of view.

"She is an SS-rank ninja." Mei instantly answered, knowing what Rei meant. After all, she had enough bruises from all the sparring against Ringo to get such a thing thoroughly hammered into her brain. Especially since Ringo found a way to counter most of her techniques. Ringo didn't have a special bloodline or some other kind of advantage. She was all about pure kenjutsu with Lightning Release Mastery. "It won't matter if you are a political figurehead, Ringo. Not when you have the power to level the entire village alongside its occupants. The clan heads have no clue what SS-rank means. They probably still see you as someone they could get easily rid of as they do with problematic S-rank ninjas." Mei shook her head in amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Yes..." Rei took over, "Might makes right only applies once one is so much stronger than others that it is not even a fight. That's why Hashirama and Madara could single-handedly change the way of life of the ninjas from the entire continent by just making their own village. Kirigakure never saw first-hand what it means to be an SS-rank. They produced some pretty strong S-rank ninjas but there is a massive difference between S-rank and SS-rank. Hence, once you give Yagura a beat-down of a century, it wouldn't matter what is written on some paper as the limitation of your power over the village." Rei said in a smooth voice.

"You want to take over Kirigakure through me." Ringo understood.

"Not really." Rei light-heartedly denied, "I simply want to have the option to take over Kirigakure at any given moment. After all, Mizukage is a lifelong position unless you decide to retire. And with the nature energy packed into you and your bijuu... you will live a VERY long life. Just lucky that the clans so readily volunteered to take care of the responsibilities for you, eh?"

"Now that's positively evil." Ringo said as her lips curled up in amus.e.m.e.nt, "Somehow, I don't think becoming Mizukage is such a bad thing anymore."

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Chapter 207 - Ch207. Ao's decision

Rei sat alone in the dining room of the mansion, enjoying early breakfast after Ringo decided to cheer his night up after their little conversation about the Mizukage thing. Naturally, that meant Mei decided to join up and one thing led to another...

Hence Rei needed a very big breakfast to get back his energy and due to his schedule as the leader of his own hidden village, he was too used to waking up early to sleep in with the girls who were still deep in their dreams, snuggly hugging each other's n.a.k.e.d form under the sheets.

As Rei was eating his scrambled eggs, suddenly Ao sat opposite him, putting a plate with buttered bread and some kind of fish on the table. Rei looked at him with a raised eyebrow, silently asking Ao what he wanted with his eyes.

"I came to talk." Ao gruffly said, making Rei roll his eyes.

'No shit sherlock.' He mentally grumbled but outwardly he simply sighed and continued eating. There was no harm in letting Ao talk and Rei had to admit he was quite interested in what the big bad rogue hunter wanted with the albeit smaller but certainly 'badder' rogue ninja.

"I had a very long night..." Ao slowly started with an expression that showed how unsure of what to say he was and Rei barely restrained a snort.

"Yeah, me too, buddy. I doubt our reason for staying up late was the same though." Rei mirthfully quipped but Ao simply ignored the jab.

"You see, I was always the guy sent to clean up disloyal pieces of shit like you." Ao indifferently stated. "Find, kill, get rid of the body. That was my job and I was good at it. And now, here I am, calmly talking with a person who could easily be at the top of my kill list. Funny, isn't it?"

"You mean the fact you think you got a chance? Yeah, it sure is." Rei nonchalantly shrugged.

Ao simply sighed in defeat. It was obvious to the man how uncomfortable he was with the current situation. 'It must be quite hard for someone like Ao to stomach not only hiring Kirigakure's rogue ninjas for help but also deciding to make one of them the next Mizukage.' Rei mentally summed up.

"The meeting yesterday... it got me thinking." Ao said in frustration as his shoulders sagged but his eyes didn't stop giving Rei a piercing intense stare even for a second. "I am no politician. I am a hunter ninja. I spend most of my life hunting and know the worth of power. I know exactly what you aim for with making Ringo into a Mizukage."

"Oh?" Rei playfully hummed.

Honestly, the second Ao started showing his feelings openly, Rei knew there is no need to worry about him despite the man clearly hating his situation. If he was really hostile, he would be all cold and glaring. Rei really didn't feel any need to hide his plan from the man the second he showed his frustration openly. It meant he made a decision. Rei had no idea what kind of decision but it was certainly interesting.

Then again, it was not like the clan heads would renege on the contract. It was too good for them to do that.

"I may not care for it but I know how the game is played." Ao started, pulling Rei out of his thoughts. "But it appears that yesterday I was the only one who realized you do not exactly play the same game as the clan heads."

Rei slightly leaned forward with a disarming smile, supporting his chin with his hands, and listened.

"It's sad, isn't it?" Ao bitterly frowned. Before Rei could react, however, he continued. "But I can understand it. The politics of Kirigakure were always corrupted. After so many generations of it, it is no wonder the clan heads simply don't get it."

"Eh, you will have to enlighten me, Ao. I never cared for Kirigakure's politics and definitely never got involved in them despite living in the village for over a decade in the past." Rei said, subtly reminding Ao that he was once Kirigakure's ninja and that he defected. For some reason, Rei really couldn't help himself. He liked the conflicted look in Ao's eyes every time it was brought up.

"Right..." Ao commented quietly but with a lot of sarcasm. "If you had no idea, you wouldn't try to exploit the clan heads' ignorance." Ao added, hating how smug Rei looked. Suddenly, he gained a sad look, "It's really vexing, you know? The clan heads are supposed to know better but... I am not surprised. With the formation of hidden villages, the clan heads became more of political animals, rather than people understanding the importance of pure strength. The heirs to the clans are mostly trained to quickly get jonin rank, getting so much preferential treatment it is not even funny. They no longer put as much importance on personal power as they do on politics. After all, S-rank ninja who normally could not be defeated by them are but a small annoyance once they use politics to make him a public enemy number one. That's why your plan is going to work."

"Yeah, I always found it funny how the clan kids liked to intrude on the academy graduation day, coming there already blooded, trained, and ready to kill while competing against scared kiddies with subpar training compared to them. But I digress... it's all for the prestige of their clan, no?" Rei added, causing Ao to wince.

"I always hated when the clan kids decided to participate in the academy graduation ceremony. Then again, that's one of the reasons why I am fine with what you are doing." Ao explained and Rei lifted his eyebrow again.

"What do you mean?" Rei's demeanor shifted.

"You know," Ao's expression bitterly scrunched, "I always found it wasteful to kill off at the very least fifty percent of the graduating class. So much talent wasted. So many late bloomers killed... and for what? Sure, Kirigakure was raising jonin-level ninjas quickly and efficiently but our numbers were always lower compared to other villages of the big fire. That's also the reason why we are regarded as the weakest of the five despite our numerous advantages. Take Suna for example. They have a cold war between the Daimyo and the Kazekage going on. The Daimyo has had them under an embargo for years now and yet, Kirigakure can still not measure up to Suna. It's pathetic." Ao looked straight at Rei, "Simply put, I am sick of it. Kirigakure needs a change. That's why I betrayed my own village and everything I ever believed in by joining the rebellion. Not because of the clans. These self-important pricks can burn for all I care. Especially after selling the village to you without even realizing it. No... what I want is a better Kirigakure." Ao stopped and took a deep breath as if he was about to make a life-changing announcement. "That's why... I want you to know that no matter how much I hate your traitorous a.s.s, I am willing to work with you as long as you make Kirigakure into a better place."

Saying his piece, Ao stood up and went away while Rei amusedly watched him, 'In short, Ringo is his best shot at Kirigakure being improved after the civil war, huh? Looks like the fifth Mizukage will have her faithful secretary, after all. Who knew? Good for Ringo, at least she will have a person who can fill the paperwork for her!'

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Chapter 208 - Ch208. Talks with the Water Daimyo 1

"Why exactly are we here?" Ao asked as he looked around the lavish meeting room in the castle of the Water Daimyo.

The civil war in the Land of Water was still in its starting phase and so far, probing attacks was all both sides were willing to use. Thanks to that, Rei didn't have to worry about large-scale battles erupting anytime soon. Hence, he and his girls had time to make and enact a good plan.

"We are here to meet with the Water Daimyo, duh." Rei nonchalantly replied, causing Ao to scowl.

"Obviously..." He quietly grumbled and gave up on getting a proper answer. Rei was already working with Resistance for a month and Ao quickly learned that if Rei didn't want to reveal something, it was useless trying to figure it out.

Rei, on the other hand, was also fed up with the Resistance. Or rather, with their leaders. They wanted him to win a war for them and so this last month, Rei threw idea after idea on them only to have each one rejected.

He couldn't just go to Kirigakure and openly deal with Yagura because the clan heads didn't want collateral damage.

He couldn't have Yagura secretly assassinated because apparently, the clans wanted it known it was the Resistance who was behind the deed.

He couldn't simply defeat the Kiri ninjas in outposts across the country in order to diminish the Kirigakure's forces and draw Yagura out because the clan heads didn't want the number of Kirigakure's ninjas to be too small once they took over the village.

He couldn't do this nor that...

Honestly, after the past month, Rei was considering Mei's idea of going for an indiscriminate rampage and destroying both the Resistance and Kirigakure alike. If only Kirigakure wasn't in such a good strategic position...

Only frequent visits to his wives and their foxes in his dimension alongside occasional check-ups on his village made Rei calm enough to not go nuts. Plus he had to admit that Pakura did a marvelous job of running the village in his absence.

'Heh, there's an idea...' Rei hummed before the memories of the past month made him broody again.

There were so many ways to win the civil war fast and somewhat cleanly but every single one of them needed some form of sacrifice the clan heads were unwilling to make. With the amount of rejected proposals, Rei quickly began to see that this job would take years if he did things according to the wishes of the clan heads. Years, he was unwilling to put into the job.

Fortunately for both Rei and the clan heads, a new contract was signed after a practically loud argument. Well, there might have been one or two threats of joining the Kirigakure side if they pissed him off too much...

Anyway, this time, the clan heads stipulated that as long as Rei gets rid of Yagura without 'unnecessary' bloodshed... somehow Rei didn't believe the old geezers yet realized they were at war... and without collateral damage to the village, its forces, and its outposts, he was free to do his job as he deemed right without the clan heads having any say in it.

They basically asked him to win the war without doing any damage. Frankly, even the ever-serious Ao facepalmed after reading the new contract. For Rei, it was all fine though. He only wanted freedom of action.

As for their complaints at a later time... Who cared?

For this clause to be added, the clan heads in return asked for a massive monetary reimburs.e.m.e.nt in case Rei decided to abandon the contract. Yet again... Ao actually dropped his head on the table with a thud and g.r.o.a.n.e.d in disbelief in front of every clan head while Rei signed it with a bit too amused smile.

He simply wondered how they would even go about demanding the payment from him if it came to that... really.

And so... this was where the situation led them. Straight into the Water Daimyo castle. A place where Rei could FINALLY start his plan of winning the ever-annoying civil war.

"The fatass is really taking his sweet time." Mei mumbled, not liking having to wait for the Daimyo who she was sure was making them wait only to feed his ego.

"That's why I signaled Ringo to retrieve him." Rei light-heartedly said while shrugging amusedly, which caused Ao to snap into attention as his eyes instantly widened in pure horror and started hurriedly looking around the room for any sign of Ringo. He was too distracted to notice her leaving the room but now that Rei informed him... he could only fight back a forming headache as he imagined Ringo manhandling Daimyo into the room.

"Unhand me! Do you know who I am, woman!? No! Don't put my smelly sock into my m...mphhhffff!?"

Ao whimpered when he recognized the terrified voice of the Water Daimyo and saw the door to the meeting room open with a bang while Ringo dragged the plump wriggling man by his right ankle while his hands were tied together on his c.h.e.s.t and his mouth was stuffed by a sock. Then suddenly, the Daimyo's head impacted the door frame with a loud bang, causing a whimper to leave the plump man's lips as he instantly quieted down while his tied arms shot to his head.

"Here you go. One Water Daimyo delivered." Ringo indifferently stated as he lifted the man up by the scruff of his robes and sat him up behind the head of the table, ignoring his tearing up expression. She then proceeded to dutifully stand behind Rei, giving the sitting Mei a small whack to the back of her head to make her put her feet down from the table. "Be more respectful to the Daimyo, Mei!" She reproached, earning herself a deadpan stare from the younger woman, Ao, and even the Daimyo himself who still had the sock stuffed in his mouth.

Realizing the situation, Ao quickly stood up and pulled the sock out of the man's mouth, and untied his hands. Surprisingly enough, the Water Daimyo didn't dare to open his mouth again and Rei alongside Mei were greatly amused at how he was shooting Ringo unsure and terrified glances.

"Yeah so... as you probably already heard from your servants, I am Rei," Rei started talking, pointing at himself before snapping his thumb at Mei, "that is Mei, and the woman who dragged you in is Ringo. The dude to your right who is shooting you worried and mothering glances is not important." Rei nodded towards Ao who gave him a brief stink-eye before his gaze returned back towards the Daimyo.

Seeing the Daimyo unsurely nod at him, Rei mentally grinned, 'There is no better way to shut these self-important pricks up than a healthy dose of fear.' He glanced at Ringo with the corner of his eye, well aware that she most likely swiftly took down every guard she encountered while dragging the Daimyo towards the meeting room. After all, there was a reason why they were not interrupted by hordes of guards by now. 'And I gotta admit Ringo learned quite well how to threaten somebody without even saying anything.'

"We are here to request you putting a trading embargo on Kirigakure." Rei smiled at the Water Daimyo whose eyes bulged at the request.

Next to the Daimyo, Ao's jaw dropped. This was the first time he was hearing about it and sure, he knew it would be a very effective strategy since, unlike Konohagakure, Kirigakure was not all that self-sufficient but he also knew the Daimyo would never do this. Rei could as well ask the Daimyo to slit his own throat and be done with it.

"I can't do that!" As predicted by Ao, the Daimyo shrieked in fear after hearing Rei's proclamation, "They will kill me!"

"Right..." Rei slowly nodded, "let me rephrase that." He paused and Mei snapped her fingers, causing the Daimyo to quickly start choking on the air and gnawing at his throat. "The Kirigakure ninjas are not here. We are."

And at that moment, Ao had to take a step back when he saw the completely disregarding way Rei and Mei smiled at the Daimyo while Ringo simply indifferently stared at the ruler of the Land of Water.

'This is utter madness!'

Chapter 209 - Ch209. Talks with the Water Daimyo 2

After a few moments where Ao could only helplessly stare at the ruler of his country choking on air, Mei again snapped her fingers and the Daimyo gasped for the much-needed oxygen while Rei started talking again in a calming tone, "I will make it easier for you. Here, a coupon for a two-month-long stay in Uzushio's best hotel for you and your family. Just put the embargo on Kirigakure and go on a long vacation. By the time you return, the current problem will be dealt with and the country should be peaceful again. It will be again in the most optimal state for leeches like you to exploit people. Ain't we simply the best for making life easier for you?"

The Daimyo gulped, knowing there is no help coming. After all, he saw Ringo manhandle even his strongest guards in two seconds and they were all capable of fighting jonins. He shakily reached towards the coupon and looked at it before his gaze turned back to Rei with an unreadable expression, "It says it will cost me 50 million Ryo." He unsurely half-asked, half-stated, bewildered at the huge price. Such a sum could afford him 50 S-rank missions!

"And you think saving your life would be for free?" Rei threw the Daimyo an incredulous stare which instantly shut the man up. "Just put your most hated cousin, relative, or whatever in charge while you go enjoy yourself and I am sure Kirigakure would get you rid of him for free in a vain attempt to lift the embargo. You can consider that a bonus, pal." Rei dismissively waved his hand.

As terrified as the Daimyo was, he wasn't a new hand at these things. He often hired Kirigakure to do these kinds of 'persuasions' for him when some business partner of his got too stubborn. It was simply the first time the Daimyo was on the receiving end of these things rather than doing the blackmailing. That's why the Daimyo was aware that the man in front of him, Rei, as he called himself, was extremely generous with him. He still had no bone broken and his fingers attached to his hands. More than those on the receiving end of his own ninja's threats could say.

It didn't make the situation any less humiliating but it was the truth. Rei was basically telling him to provoke Kirigakure and then to scram but at least, he didn't choose pain as the persuasion tactic. The Daimyo knew it could be infinitely worse. His shoulders sagged and decided to accept his fate. But he was still curious.

"Why are you doing this?" The Daimyo asked, a bit of his regal aura returning to him.

Rei tilted his head, but after a while, he decided to indulge the Daimyo, "The second you put the embargo on Kirigakure, the Fourth Mizukage will be forced to negotiate with you. But you will not be available, will you? You will be quite unreachable by any means behind the strong sealing barriers of Uzushio. The poor sod ruling in your stead won't be able to lift a direct order from the Daimyo. He will be only a temporary regent, after all. Alas, I have it on a good authority that Yagura will go bonkers and off the guy ruling in your stead anyway." Rei said, knowing that Obito didn't care for anything but causing as much mayhem in the Land of Water as possible. This was revenge for Rin and if he could legally and justifiably make his puppet start an all-out war within the country, he would already do so. This way, Rei was simply speeding up the process. "Whereas we," Rei gestured at himself, Ringo, and Mei, "will be hired for... hmmm, say, fifty million Ryo, by you," He pointed at the disbelieving Daimyo, "to make sure your embargo won't be broken."

'Wait... they want to GET PAID for protecting the embargo they are forcing me to sign off!?' The Daimyo thought almost with tears in his eyes as he realized the man in front of him wanted yet another check worth FIFTY S-rank missions.

"Hence when Yagura orders the assassination of Lord Daimyo's regent, you will be able to challenge him for a battle in the name of the Water Daimyo." Ao finished, understanding the plan, "But... are you sure Yagura would agree? I can't see a reason why he would do such a thing."

"Ah, let me worry about that, will you?" Rei chuckled. 'Ah, Obito will no doubt send Yagura to his death. There is no way he wouldn't after this becomes a political problem where other nations... purely hypothetically, influenced by the Biri-Biri company... start trying to intervene. If that happens, many things could go horribly wrong with his little plan of collecting the nine bijuu. Civil wars are fine but he simply needs the status quo between the nations upheld while making sure the countries won't start allying themselves tightly with each other.'

Rei could only grin. Outwardly, the Resistance asked for help from other countries and even the Biri-Biri company. Everyone refused them, though, on the basis that they are simply rebels. Nobody wants to support rebels... or rather, even the people who would gladly support a rebellion in other countries to gain benefits from it had their own problems at the moment. Danzo, for example, was dealing with a bit of an Uchiha problem.

Therefore Obito should be quite reckless, thinking nobody wanted to intervene in the Land of Water. Rei was almost sure he would go for the assassination of the Daimyo's regent if only to stir the hornet's nest even more. Rei was also certain Obito would curse the heavens once the Biri-Biri company did a complete 180-degree reversal on their non-interference policy after that. Hence, Yagura would be sacrificed in order to calm things down.

"I am quite sure my plan will work." Rei started, "and even if it doesn't there are still other ways how to get what I want. Don't worry, I will deliver this 'improved' Kirigakure you so d.e.s.i.r.e, Ao." He shrugged before looking towards the Water Daimyo, "As for you... as long as you are a good boy and don't obstruct the new Mizukage once the Resistance takes over Kirigakure, you are free to continue living your luxurious life of debauchery." He said mockingly.

"New Mizukage... so they already decided who will get the position?" The Daimyo muttered before unsurely raising his eyes towards Rei, "And... may I ask who will be the new Mizukage?"

Rei's grin only widened at the question that made sweat appear on Daimyo's forehead as a bad premonition appeared in his mind. He didn't like where this was going. Especially when Rei just meaningfully lifted his eyebrow at the question in a very amused manner.

"I look forward to working together." Suddenly a cold voice interrupted Daimyo's thoughts, causing his head to snap behind Rei where... Ringo stood with a small condescending smirk.

Daimyo's eyes widened in horror and despair as he looked pleadingly at Rei, "You must be kidding me... Her!?" He whimpered when Rei simply nodded. The first person who ever manhandled him was to be the next Mizukage. 'God, help me.' The Daimyo thought.

The poor guy could only hope he won't be forced to taste more of his socks for Ringo's amus.e.m.e.nt.

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Chapter 210 - Ch210. Happy home

Rei and his girls stayed in the Water Capital only for two days to make sure the Daimyo and his family left towards Uzushio, leaving behind only a regent whose name Rei really didn't care about who would announce the embargo in two more days.

After they cheerfully sent the resigned Daimyo off, Rei decided to leave the Water Country no matter how much Ao protested.

"It's just a waiting game now. We can't do anything until Ob-, ahem, Yagura moves. Having people from Yozora skulking around the capital would only hinder Yagura from doing the 'right' thing and sending assassins." Rei told the exasperated Ao before teleporting home, leaving the poor guy glaring at an empty patch of land.

The second they arrived Mei instantly rushed off to talk with Yugito while Ringo got this overpowering urge to check on her forge. It certainly didn't have anything to do with the three very concentrated bursts of serious killing intents from Tsunade, Pakura, and Konan focused on the two girls who spent months with Rei.

Poor Rei gave the backs of his two runaway girls a slight glare. He couldn't simply run off to his office. Not with the peeved looks the three girls in front of him were throwing him. 'Damn, I knew telling them we are coming back was a bad idea!' Rei thought in regret.

Surprisingly enough, it was the ever-serious Pakura who angrily marched towards him, causing him to stand rooted in his place, deciding to take it like a man. She came close and stopped only a foot away from him, Rei already preparing himself for a verbal tirade when suddenly, Pakura's lips hungrily landed on his. Before he managed to shake off his shock, Pakura was already hanging on his body, her legs tightly locked behind him.

At first, he was bewildered, not expecting the most reserved of his girls to just jump him but then he decided to not think about it and started kissing her back, his hands snaking around her waist, downwards towards her b.u.t.t, lifting her a bit more.

Seconds slowly ticked away as Rei and Pakura were immersed in their own little world. Finally, their lips separated and teary Pakura whispered, "I missed you. You could have at least visited more often." She lowered her blushing head, still possessively clinging to him. Unlike Konan and Tsunade, Pakura had her hands full with running his hidden village so many times he actually visited in the past month, she was too busy.

Smiling, Rei put his forehead on hers, making her even more fl.u.s.tered. "Sorry. I didn't have all that much free time either. Trying to implement any kind of intelligence into dealings with the Kirigakure clan heads was frankly torture."

Rei only briefly noticed that Tsunade and Konan made themselves scarce and with a content feeling in his c.h.e.s.t, he started pecking Pakura's lips as he marched them towards the bedroom.

Little did he know that neither Tsunade nor Konan gave up and decided to give Pakura at most two hours of alone time. That night, Rei had to satisfy all three of them in what he would later describe as heavenly torture of p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e.

Why was he so stupid to show them how to use chakra in bedroom?

...

The days started blending together as the girls took advantage of having Rei on hand. This was the first time he was away for so long. Sure, he stayed a week in the Land of Fire with Tsunade but a week was much more bearable than an entire month. As such, Rei had to deal with quite a lot of exasperating yet cute drama.

To his utter surprise, most of it came from Konan who didn't like the idea of being separated from him. Only now did it strike home that this was the very first time ever they separated for more than two weeks in their WHOLE life.

That made Rei feel extremely weird when he realized how dependent on each other he and his girls became. Not that the feeling was bad but it certainly cemented his resolve to proceed with his plans. He absolutely refused to have his family live in a world where murder is as common and natural as breathing. Not when the murderers had access to veritable superpowers. In the end, he made sure to follow the only way to attain personal peace for his family and himself.

Hearing a soft hum from above, Rei slightly opened his eyes and squinted at Konan who lovingly ran her fingers through his hair while leaning her back on the side of his sleeping fox, Blackie, who was already the size of an elephant.

Rei petulantly decided to stay lying in Konan's l.a.p despite being awake. He smiled at her, "Hello Konan," He then looked at the small, pup-sized fox happily lounging on the top of Konan's head, messing up her hair, "Hi, Indigo, how long was I asleep?"

The small fox yipped while Konan rolled her eyes, "An hour. I must say, I didn't expect you to fall asleep. Tsunade must have been extremely demanding during the night." She playfully said in a knowing manner but instead of blushing Rei proudly beamed.

"Sure was!" Rei slightly turned his head to the right side where Tsunade was playing with her fox, Blondie. "You know how hard it is to keep up with somebody with Senjutsu." He added with a mischievous wink, knowing this was the only way to make Konan embarrassed. She absolutely resented that it was her who was every time sent to the dreamland through exhaustion when they had s.e.x.

As for Rei... he loved it far too much. Especially since his girls started developing more and more Jutsu that could help them in that regard. Alas, a daily intake of Nature Energy still proved to be superior to whatever they cooked up, hence, Rei had loads of fun while his girls stayed determined to defeat his stamina.

Only Tsunade could keep up with him in the bedroom, no matter how barely... which usually ended with their bed destroyed no matter how many strengthening runes Rei drew on it. Fortunately for him, Tsunade was craving more of an emotional satisfaction rather than a s.e.x.u.a.l one so they usually stopped before the house could collapse.

"The foxes are growing quite fast." Noticing how fl.u.s.tered Konan became, Rei said to her in order to get her to think about something else than their s.e.x life. "Indigo can already change her size at will." He praised, getting another proud yip from the fox on Konan's head.

"Yes, she is very similar to her mistress." Konan proclaimed winningly before her proud smirk faltered. "Though... that might be because I actually spend my time training her. Tsunade tries but Blondie always coaxes her to play rather than train while Pakura is stern but she is far too busy to give Emerald enough training. God knows that both Auburn and Crimson missed Mei and Ringo this past month. Even Blackie missed you despite his grumpy self refusing to show it."

A low grumble could be heard from the fox Konna was leaning on but it was promptly ignored by them, earning them an annoyed huff.

"Yeah... we will have to account for that the next time we have a mission like this. In the end, the foxes are our chakra made bijuu and deem our bodies to be their natural home. It can't feel good to be outside, much less far away from us, for them." Rei stated and immediately sensed Blackie relaxing a bit when he heard him.

Rei smiled. He knew Blackie was considerate when he didn't instantly demand being in Rei's vicinity like Auburn and Crimson did with Mei and Ringo. Blackie instead gave Rei space to first focus on his wives who felt a bit left out after their first month-long separation.

"If it were not for the nature chakra and the growth increase in your dimension, we would love having them inside of our bodies." Konan grumpily said and Rei understood.

It felt weird, seeing his chakra with sentience and outside of his body. Every second in Blackie's presence, Rei had this small almost unnoticeable urge to let him in and he had to prevent himself from doing so. It was an ever-unsatisfiable itch that just refused to go away.

"Just a few more years." Rei tried to sound reassuring. "Anyway... shall we check up on Mei? You know, to prevent her from finding a world-ending Jutsu and then teaching it to Auburn." He joked but was unable to muster a smile when the words left his lips.

After all... Mei already had one or two planet-ending Steam-based Jutsus that could feed on Nature energy after their initial casting. Whenever Mei was close to Auburn, she would get all these crazy ideas of new Jutsus for either Lava or Steam Release.

Hearing him, Konan stiffened. They left Mei and Auburn unattended for a whole hour!

"Now that you mention it..."

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Chapter 211 - Ch211. Chaos in the Land of Water

Pa treon - 36 chapters ahead.

If you want to support me or read ahead:

pa /kasicair

--

While Rei enjoyed his peaceful moments at home, surrounded by his loving wives, and trained the foxes, Ao, on the other hand, had quite a headache-inducing time in the capital of the Land of Water.

After Rei's departure, Ao decided to stay hidden in the city in order to witness if everything would go according to Rei's plan. He was quite doubtful about it, after all. As someone who was the ex-leader of the ANBU Hunter-nin division, Ao knew well that usually, no plan survives the confrontation with the enemy and when Rei actually left the country altogether, relying on his supposed plot to go as he intended without him influencing it in any way than he originally did... Let's just say Ao spent the following day cursing at anything that moved. In his opinion, it was a very stupid move.

Unfortunately for Ao, he witnessed firsthand how Rei threatened the Water Dayimo. That gave him quite an idea of Rei's ways of solving problems. To say Ao was bewildered when the arguably most influential man in the Water Country was manhandled like a small misbehaving child would be an understatement. Three ninjas walked into the Water Palace and when they left, the Daimyo was shaking in his seat while all of his guards were knocked unconscious with almost laughable ease.

That was really the only thing that made him stay in the capital city. He wanted to see firsthand if Rei is really just c.o.c.ky beyond belief or if everything will go as he planned.

...

Days slowly went by and the new Regent of the Water Country proved to be an utter waste of space as expected. The Daimyo chose his seventh cousin, a wholly unpleasant fat man who lived for partying, drugs, and whores. Needless to say, it didn't take even twenty-four hours for the palace to be filled with a lot of... filth.

Ao made sure to sneak around a bit and what he discovered didn't please him. All projects for the following two months were stopped and the budget relocated which honestly disrupted the flow of the whole country. The palace was filled with high-end p.r.o.s.t.i.t.u.t.es and people with a shady background as the bastard playing regent did backroom deals, using the country's money to enrich himself.

Sure, Ao knew the Daimyo did the same. The lengthy meetings that were more about enjoying this or that girl rather than really negotiating were quite well-known in the Kiri ANBU force. Not one female ANBU in the infiltration and assassination department was playing one of these 'easy girls'. But the Daimyo at least made sure the country and its government worked like a well-oiled machine and was moderate in his spendings. Nobody cared about his life of debauchery and lavishness if their own lives were going just fine and the country was actually gaining money rather than losing it.

...

Soon enough, it was already a month since Rei left and Ao could only sadly shake his head at the chaos that erupted in the Land of Water. Only a month passed... it was quite surreal for Ao to witness what a disaster an economical collapse would be. The feudal system was ruthless and many countries had a wide divide between really poor people and really rich people with nothing in between. But the Daimyo's made usually sure the country is stable if only for their own benefit. To witness how quickly the country could collapse and how effective Rei's actions were was quite shocking for Ao who his entire life believed that strength indeed makes right in some sense.

Businessmen were dissatisfied due to the rate at which they were losing their money since the new regent disrupted the economy in the country with his budget allocation. A lot of underground trade was established and deals off the books started to be more common. Smuggling activity also increased since the Kirigarure was put in the trade embargo, making part of it quite pointless.

The real surprise was when the Biri-Biri company completely ignored the embargo and started selling food to Kirigakure openly in exchange for becoming its sole supplier of many commodities and sealing unbreakable trading agreements that would last decades. Ao knew the elders would be unable to break them if they ever got the village back. It was official that the Biri-Biri company showed its support for Kirigakure and for that, the company's word will have a lot of influence in the village, no matter who rules it. Ao feared such a scenario. Especially because the company supported the clan-hating Kirigakure.

Many ministers of the Land of Water were angry with them for ignoring Daimyo's words... they, however, quickly realized the country needed the Biri-Biri company more than the Biri-Biri company needed the country, causing them to promptly shut up.

Kirigakure, on the other hand, fared quite well as far as survival went but the Biri-Biri company refused to sell them any equipment helpful in combat. Despite the company being known for selling offensive seals in the Third War, the only thing they sold to Kirigakure were mundane things. Hence... Ao's much anticipated moment, came just a month and a week into the reign of the new regent.

The man was found dead in his bed, covered in his own fluids mixed with poison. He was butt-n.a.k.e.d with his nightly companion nowhere to be found, only a single message on the bedside table saying the Fourth Mizukage expects the Water Daimyo to lift his embargo or suffer the same fate.

And that's when the real chaos erupted.

...

The biggest supporter of Kirigakure in the past month was out of nowhere and with ruthless fierceness rallying other countries to 'punish' such a horrible injustice as the Mizukage ordering the assassination of the Water Daimyo's regent. It caused such a loud ruckus in the international diplomatic channels that Ao started suspecting if it really was the Mizukage ordering the kill. Only intelligence from Resistance that it was really so made his suspicions subside.

It honestly made no sense!

Why would the company suddenly turn its back on Kirigakure? Right after they secured a very lucrative deal with them?

Unfortunately, the Biri-Biri company was too influential, too big to be stopped by something simple. Its international scale completely prevented any form of interference from Kirigakure's side. They were simply too widespread and numerous for one village to do anything about them. Especially in the territory of other countries and hidden villages. The only thing that could potentially help would be the assassination of the company's owner. There was however a small problem with that.

Anybody with brains realized the man on the official doc.u.ment is not really the one behind the scenes and nobody knew who the REAL owner was.

The finishing blow, however, came when the Uzushio Trading Company put their full support behind the Biri-Biri company. Suddenly the angered Daimyos in the countries surrounding the Land of Water found themselves in a position with even more support and potential financing in case they decided to retaliate against the daring actions of the Fourth Mizukage.

There was a reason why the villages usually didn't take missions to assassinate Daimyos. It was a diplomatic mess that would usually drag any potential gains to a steep negative. Suddenly, Land of Fire with Konoha, Land of Lightning with Kumogakure, Land of Earth with Iwagakure, and dozen other smaller countries with a few small-scale ninja villages were all roped in by either the influence of the two major international trading companies, vision of getting rid of one of the Big Five hidden villages, avenging the death of a noble, or whatever other selfish and greed-filled reason they could have had.

The politicians of the Land of Water, the council of the Kirigakure with the Fourth Mizukage, and even the Resistance and its clan heads... the entire country was on its knees both economically and politically with everybody who mattered pinning for the war that would bring demise to them.

These torturous days... Ao could only silently stare at the wall in his hotel room in utter despair, wondering where did it all go so horribly wrong.

Until he wasn't.

The Biri-Biri company gave Kirigakure an ultimatum.

They would EITHER stop supplying Kirigakure with the merchandise... which would mean the village will be unable to legally buy it from anybody else because of the exclusive trading agreement they signed... and on top of that, they would support the other countries in their quest to decimate the village and take a generous amount of loot from it... which everybody knew would also decimate the whole country just because... OR there would be a battle between the designated proxy of the Biri-Biri company and Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage.

At that, the whole world was forced to blink. It was such a stupid sounding announcement that nobody believed their eyes when they saw it. On one hand, they threatened to support the start of a new Shinobi War, one that would certainly affect the countries to a much bigger scale than the previous ones, and on the other hand, they wanted a freaking duel to resolve it?

Two weeks of constant fear and subtle preparations for war. Two weeks of trembling in the face of what's to come. Two weeks of mentally draining negotiations. And in the end... it all ended with a promise of a duel.

That day, many leaders couldn't help but laugh their way to unconsciousness from the sheer ridiculousness of it all. In the end, no war started and no country really gained anything out of it. Since no conflict really began, neither the Biri-Biri company nor the Uzushio Trading Company was required to give any sort of compensation to countries who rallied behind them in order to curry favors. At best, some deals that mostly helped both sides equally were signed. In hindsight, the Biri-Biri company actually gained from the whole worldwide tension the most as the countries started stocking on combat seals in massive amounts.

The only one who really realized the depth of what just happened was utterly tired Ao as he dumbly stared at the announcement with his jaw dropped, realizing just how f.u.c.k.e.d up Kirigakure really was the second the Resistance asked Rei for help. The name of the Biri-Biri representative was, after all...

Ringo Ameyuri.

--

Author Note... or Just-A-Rant.

My reasons?

Well, they are colorful.

MCs who scream about becoming Hokage of people who actively beat and abuse them... which only makes me feel as if I was reading about a mentally crippled individual...

Self Inserts who JUST DON'T FEEL REAL because they are so freakishly self-less and only focus on befriending Naruto and making his life better, disregarding the fact in around a decade there will be a continent-wide war where the MC will most likely have to face army-killers like Madara, Obito, Juubi, and even maybe Kaguya...

Self-Insert fanfics where MC has these long-ass monologues about how they will save the world because they are Child of Prophecy for no other reason than being inserted into Naruto.

Or where they want to save lives, saying Itachi, Kisame, Konan, heck, even Obito, deserve better than dying because they are essentially the good guys, right!? Sure... it's not as if they, without any real remorse, killed loads of people to get where they are. Why not focus your entire existence to make the lives of people who don't even know you exist better?

Or where they act like a total moron, don't train, don't get better, and just decide to be a comic relief just because they want to follow the plot so they, in their infinite wisdom, decided imitating Naruto's idiocy was the way to go despite it being implicitly stated the SI is 'a.d.u.l.t'.

I mean... really?

So, yeah. My problem is two-fold. Firstly, if I was reincarnated or self-inserted into Narutoverse, my first concern would be, HOW THE HELL AM I GOING TO SURVIVE! HOW WILL I GET STRONGER? Not... playing a punching bag for Konoha. Not... being the whipping boy for bullies at Academy. Not... how I could make Naruto's life better without any benefit to myself. I could guarantee you if most of the authors of these fanfics REALLY got reincarnated or transmigrated, they would not give a shit about Naruto. They would be scrambling to get better at surviving.

Like it or not, Naruto has HO-KA-GE supporting him. He gets away with shit that would see other people in jail, like painting the Hokage monument... or pranking stores, and damaging their goods... or pranking ANBU... or pranking clan compounds... He is also the last Uzumaki and kid of the fourth Hokage, which means, he has or will inherit a fortune in bank accounts, and if he doesn't, something very fishy is going on. Hokage Uzumaki Princess = 0 Ryo simply gives no sense. The money for reparation of the damage he caused with his pranks had to come from somewhere and I doubt it was old man Sarutobi paying for it. If Naruto inherits nothing, then there is a reason to believe the old monkey is really pulling a ninja on Naruto.

I find it actually hard to believe I am writing this next bit but...

In the entirety of team seven, the most talented person there is actually Sakura.

There... I said it. And yes, I am ashamed beyond all belief because of it but that doesn't make it any less truthful.

Why?

Well, let's look at Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto - Asura's reincarnation, Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, Jiraiya as a shitty godfather but one that at least teaches him something, Sarutobi's unreliable support (the guy disregarded the kid stealing one of the most important scrolls in the village... If that doesn't tell you something then...), Senjutsu, Hagoromo giving him power... In short, Naruto went from utter waste of oxygen to a godlike being in under three years. But you gotta admit he had so many cheats stacked and wore plot armor so thick it would be hard not to reach such a stage even for an utter moron like him.

Sasuke - He is no better than Naruto. Sharingan itself is a cheat like no other. Then he gets Mangekyo, Eternal Mankegyo, Hagoromo gives him a boost, Sasuke gets Rinnegan. Sasuke was also taught by Orochimaru, which meant a lot of body-enhancing medicine, experiments, etc. He is the reincarnation of Indra. Honestly, the guy has assured OP-ness. It is in his blood.

Then what about Sakura? She had the tutelage of Tsunade. ... That's all. Her fabled chakra control is nothing because it was caused by her abysmal reserves. Increasing the reserves meant Sakura had to train like crazy to get her chakra control up to snuff. So... I won't call Sakura S-rank ninja for she is definitely not one. She is, however, a solid A-rank and whereas some people try and fail to get there during their entire lifetime, she achieved it in three years. She went from useless fangirl only worth for distracting horny bandits to one of the best medic-nin in Konoha. Sure, compared to Naruto and Sasuke she is still worthless on the battlefield... but who has worth when compared to these cheaters when they face Madara or Kaguya?

Compared to what Naruto and Sasuke achieved since graduating from Academy WITH their cheats and plot armor, Sakura achieved quite a lot WITHOUT any cheat-like inborn or gifted power.

(Well, I still don't like her so let's move on...)

A reincarnated person, on the other hand, would be the unfortunate chump who is most likely an orphan without any money nor people like Jiraiya just waiting to impart their secret knowledge to him. He would be like Sakura in that regard. Would he have time to freaking look after sad and hurt poor little Naruto who has more cheats stuffed up his a.s.s than Kami himself? Or try to befriend Sasuke who could steal all of his effort with naught but a look? Knowing the war was coming? Even if he trained like crazy, he would be the poor lad who has to look over his shoulder and try to stay in the shadows in fear of Uncle Danzo showing up offering candy for eternal servitude.

As for Naruto? With his heritage, Danzo would NOT DARE to even try recruiting him. Too much politics involved. Too much scrutiny. Especially since ROOT should have been disbanded long ago. Honestly, I believe if Danzo really wanted Naruto in ROOT, he would have him there no matter what Hiruzen said. How hard would it be for his professional assassins, infiltrators, and spies to stage Naruto's death and subsequent disappearance? I doubt it would be harder than pulling off the Uchiha massacre. So nope... I believe Danzo is the least of Naruto's concerns. But for an orphan kid who shows himself as a prodigy to some degree? Well, Danzo would be there in a jiffy along with his brainwashing kit for dummies.

And secondly, when I read these fanfictions, I, as a reader, am not interested in MCs long-term plans. Definitely not in Ch1. Why would I when I am almost assured the author will NEVER even reach the stage where his plans begin? There are so many fanfics with MCs having a chapter-long planning session of what they will do later on only for the fanfic to be cut short after ten chapters. I ask... what's the point?

And the best are SI into Naruto that after ten chapters of training with Shadow Clones, with more intelligence than canon Naruto, with the maturity of an a.d.u.l.t still show themselves to be far below canon Naruto skill-wise. Those that after all of that training get almost beaten by bandits. I kid you not, there are fanfics like that. One just has to rub his forehead after reading utter garbage like that. After all the posturing, all the bragging about how the MC is better and more trained than canon Naruto, he gets hit by bandits...

Uh-oh...

Well, I could rant on and on but I will cut this short and end it here.

To say something nice in the end, I will simply state that I understand a lot of bullshit authors write. When you write fanfiction you can't really take everything into account. These slip-ups happen easier than I would care to admit and I am sure I had my fair share of them in my fanfictions. But there is an obvious difference between someone who tries to write something consistent and with some substance and someone who just pulls shit out of his a.s.s and throws it onto the screen, hoping it will form a fun story, completely disregarding common sense or any possible existence of brain.

Well, that's it. I vented my frustration :D. Feel free to simply state what you think about it. Just don't get angry over something I wrote. It's not worth it. At worst, feel free to ignore it.

After all, we all have different tastes.

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Chapter 212 - Ch212. Pre-battle

Ao marveled at the stands set up by the Biri-Biri company. The fight between Ringo Ameyuri and the Fourth Mizukage became a very anticipated event if only due to the tension between nations it would solve.

The Biri-Biri company went all out in preparation and made it into some kind of show, not unlike the Chunin Exams. Except, the arena was the entire region of Kuronami Plains on the eastern side of the Land of Water. It was a very big empty inhospitable area with numerous water surfaces, many boulders, and trees strewn all over it. The entire plains were massive and it only hammered down the fact that the Biri-Biri company prepared well for a fight where one participant is a jinchuuriki.

The entire observatory system was made by seals... that much Ao noticed. He, however, couldn't recognize even one seal and that was a blow to his pride since he was quite proficient in the sealing arts, something the eyepatch covering his Byakugan eye was proof of.

The main stands were in the capital of the Land of Water and many important people gathered to witness this battle, buying overpriced tickets for spots or VIP rooms left and right. Honestly, Ao was getting increasingly tired of getting to know how much was the Biri-Biri company milking the situation for all the profits it was worth.

The stands in the Land of Water were not the sole place for viewing the event either. Every capital city had something similar with seals that could transfer the image in an imitation of cinema. This was the first time a fight would be viewed by every country.

'The provider of the best seals worldwide, huh?' Ao idly mused about the Biri-Biri company's previous boasting. Clearly, they could back it up if they were capable of making an international broadcast of the fight.

"Excuse me, are you Ao from Resistance?"

A voice suddenly snapped Ao from his thoughts, causing him to tense slightly. Only when he noticed it was one of the Biri-Biri employees, did Ao partially relax his body and nodded in agreement while still not letting go of the kunai stashed in his sleeve.

"Please follow me, Rei-sama is waiting for you." The attendant said and turned around.

Ao had only a brief moment to reboot his brain before he numbly followed the man.

...

Ao entered a large luxurious VIP room with a comfortable-looking sofa on one side facing a wall where the plains where the battle was about to start were shown.

"Ah, hello, Ao." Rei's voice interrupted Ao's observation of the room, causing him to switch his sight on the people inside the room.

Noticing the shift in Ao's interest, Rei smiled and started the introduction.

"This is Ao, the supposed leader of the Resistance," He said in a slightly mocking tone that made Ao frown before gesturing to the woman sitting to his right. "This lovely lady is Na Kona, the previous director of the Biri-Biri company. To her left is Nadetsu Jusen, the current director of the company." Rei smiled at a slightly dark-skinned woman who gave Ao such a piercing look it made him momentarily freeze. Seeing their brief interaction, Rei quickly motioned towards the fidgeting elderly man trying to make himself invisible, "This is, as you already know, the Water Country Daimyo."

Ao gave a respectful bow to the man despite hiding a small frown. 'First, he dares to threaten a Daimyo in his own castle and then he invites him to the battle that would decide the future of his own country and on top of that, he put him in a room with people who are so influential they could decide the fate of the Land of Water with a few signatures? No wonder the Daimyo is so jittery.' Ao bitterly thought.

Thinking about Rei and his actions, Ao quickly understood that most of it was a veiled but blatant show of power. From 'persuading' the Daimyo to take a vacation to setting up the battle in some weird Chunin Exam-like fashion. With each action, it will be harder and harder to stand against Ringo once she gets the position of the Mizukage. Rei was simply showing off Ringo's backing to an extent that would make her frightening.

'All he has to do now is show that her own power is even more frightening and the clan heads will be as meek as lambs.' Ao held back a grimace, knowing there was nothing he could do about Kirigakure getting into Ringo's hands anymore.

Rei was observing Ao's reactions to the presence of the Water Daimyo, noting that Ao guessed what was going on in the room. Unfortunately, Mei stayed with Pakura, Maki, Yuriko, and Yugito in the mansion in their hidden village and will be watching the battle from there.

'It would be so much fun seeing the Water Daimyo fearfully squirm in Mei's presence.' Rei sadly sighed. Knowing the sort of person the Water Daimyo was, it would be poetic justice. 'Alas, the girl just had to go and invent another world-ending Jutsu and be grounded by Konan.'

"Anyway, Ao, come and sit. It's actually Kona who wanted you here. She is awfully interested in your future spot as Ringo's confidant." 'secretary', Rei mentally added with a snort.

The bluenette gently smiled at Ao, causing his instinct to start screaming at him he is in danger. "Yes, I simply wanted you to sit with us when Ringo decimates your current Mizukage."

Ao, however, could read between the lines very well. 'I see. I guess this is what I asked for.' He glanced at Rei who raised an eyebrow at him. Sighing, Ao nodded, "I understand. Thank you." And sat down in his designated place next to Rei. 'Damn me and my mouth. I just had to say I wouldn't mind doing anything to better Kirigakure.' His mood somehow sunk. 'Now I am here with people who will get the village in their grasp. I can't even complain since I am sure they will improve the village as I wished.'

Shaking his head, Ao despondently watched the wall in front of him where the image of Ringo approaching Yagura in order to exchange some pre-battle niceties was located. He didn't even notice when Rei implanted a seal that would prevent him from revealing his relationship with either Konan or Tsunade who were in disguise. After all, it wouldn't be nice if the connection between Yozora and the Biri-Biri company was known.

Only then did his hands find their way around Konan's waist and pull her onto his l.a.p before starting to kiss his way up her neck while she made herself comfortable and leaned her back onto his c.h.e.s.t.

"I wonder how long it will take Ringo to finish." Konan started in a purring voice, causing Rei to momentarily stop kissing her neck.

"It's a show first and foremost. She will probably take her time. Plus it's the first time she can test her creations against something as sturdy as Sanbi Jinchuuriki."

Tsunade snorted, "Right. She was oddly excited about the fight. I guess you made sure she looked at the situation from the correct angle, Rei."

"I sure did." Rei cheekily answered before returning his attention to Konan.

To say Ao was bewildered would be an understatement. 'So they are not just business partners. Shit, what did I get myself into?'

Sadly for him, Rei wanted to make sure the man who will run Kirigakure in Ringo's stead is trustworthy so his discomfort went ignored. The man didn't even realize he was being watched and judged.

On the screen, Ringo finally reached Yagura and the people in the room quieted down all thinking the same.

'And so it's starting.'

Chapter 213 - Ch213. Ringo vs Yagura 1

Ringo slowly approached Yagura who was already waiting in the center of the Kuronami plains. As she looked around, she noted that it was really a bleak area with nothing extraordinary in it. Nothing anybody would mind losing no matter how much they wreck the place. Ringo's lips briefly twitched upward at that thought.

"You are taking your damn time, traitor!" Yagura sneered, only to receive a deadpan look from Ringo.

Ringo, on the other hand, was inwardly amused and simply kept her pointed gaze on the Fourth Mizukage chibi in front of her while raising her eyebrow as if he was a misbehaving child. It took a few moments but Yagura eventually noticed and flushed red from anger. Before he could say anything, however, Ringo started talking.

"You really are quite bad at taunting people, aren't you, boy?" Her even voice spread through the plains in a dismissive manner that told exactly what she thought about Yagura. "Traitor? Really? Is that supposed to make me angry or something?" Ringo mused. "For your information, child, I had a good reason to go rogue and I accepted the potential repercussions of it even before you even started attending academy. Not that it matters. In this world, only power matters."

Yagura's sneer increased the more Ringo talked. She not only tried to rationalize her turning traitor but she also had a complete disregard for him! He was a Kage, dammit!

"Fine then! If it's a power you respect, I shall show you exactly that. Let's begin!" Yagura coldly whispered.

Hearing him, Ringo gave him a patronizing smirk, "Stupid boy, the battle started the second we entered the plai-." She cut herself off mid-speech and performed the most casual step backward in the history of ninjas with a bored expression just as three sharp tendrils of water shot upwards impaling the place where she was standing not a second ago.

"I am quite aware." Yagura smirked at Konan who still looked at him impassively.

What he didn't notice, however, was that her right hand was currently pointing downwards slightly in front of her. Lightning suddenly appeared on her outstretched pointing finger and crackled blue before a small beam zig-zagged forward, impacting the puddle from where the tendrils came from. As the Lightning Jutsu met the Water Jutsu, something never before seen happened that had the spectators knowledgeable in the Water and Lighting Chakra natures all over the continent gaping silly.

Yagura's water chakra in the puddle and the water tendrils completely destabilized when it came in contact with Ringo's Lightning Jutsu, causing them to fall apart, back into the puddle.

Yagura's smirk fell as he stared in muted disbelief at what just happened. It was a known fact that Lightning counters Water but that didn't mean Water was powerless against Lightning. It just meant it would take either more water or more water chakra to overpower lightning-based techniques. Considering they were currently in the WATER country, surrounded by many WATER sources that could power up his Jutsu and significantly cut their chakra cost, Yagura wasn't very worried about Ringo and the meager amount of Lightning she would be able to call forth by utilizing only her chakra reserves. The sight of a small, powerless bolt of lightning completely disrupting his Water Jutsu made him rethink his previous assumptions, however. Especially since no matter how he tried, he couldn't take control of the water in the puddle near Ringo again.

"I know." Ringo's voice snapped Yagura out of his reverie but it was far too late as the pointing finger on her right hand was already firmly aiming at his forehead. "Chidori Nagashi."

The whole Elemental Nations, and especially one masked white-haired always-depressed young man, watched in bewilderment as the current of lightning tore its way through Yagura's head near instantaneously while the man's face was set in disbelieving expression. For a moment, the world grew quiet as Yagura just stood rooted in his spot before his tensed body finally slacked towards the ground as his eyes rolled back.

"Oh, well... I told you I knew." Ringo offhandedly noted as her eyes flickered to the left while her left gloved hand balled in a fist jumped up, blocking a tip of Yagura's staff with her knuckles, causing her to be sent sliding on the ground for five meters.

Ringo furrowed her brows as she looked at her right hand, shaking it slowly. "Damn... that slightly stung." She hummed in a content manner while inwardly pondering one of her inventions, her force redirection gloves she was currently wearing.

Yagura watched unnerved, not expecting to be able to send her back only by five meters. Not when he put so much chakra into enhancing that one blow in that ambush.

'What the heck is she made of?' Yagura inwardly screamed as his hands and staff couldn't stop shaking, 'More importantly, what the heck was that lightning Jutsu!? It was damn near instant! My water clone had no chance to even notice it before he was destroyed.' He shivered as a determination to not be hit by it.

It was then Yagura noticed how impassive Ringo looked. She didn't even draw the blades on her waist nor did she take a proper stance. She just stood in her spot, slightly slouched as if it was a bother to even be there as she inspected her gloved left hand with a look of brief annoyance, completely ignoring him.

Anger suddenly sprang up in Yagura. This was not some private duel! This was as much a battle as it was a show to the whole Elemental Nations! He couldn't be seen as weak! Despite that, his opponent didn't even look as if she was even properly paying attention to him!

Yagura knew that Ringo had her senses on him non-stop. He knew she was watching him like a hawk. Any high-ranking ninja knew that. But the wealthy civilians, chunin, and genin-ranked ninjas? The woman was making him look weak!

Yagura sprang forward straight at Ringo whose lips set in a small smile. He brandished his staff at Ringo, his eyes flickering around, trying to find where she will dodge or if she will block. What counter will she use...

And suddenly, the staff landed on Ringo's body as she just indifferently stood in her place with an amused expression, causing Yagura to stop in his tracks for a second.

Yagura stared at Ringo in disbelief.

Ringo stared at Yagura in mirth.

"Is that all?" She suddenly asked, snapping Yagura out of yet another brain freeze as he took a half-step back mostly on instinct and started raining blow after blow on Ringo's body.

Many spectators winced as they watched the brutal beatdown Yagura was currently administering to the crimson-haired beauty.

Shoulder, stomach, collar bone, ribs, t.h.i.g.h, knee, back to stomach... and so it went as the tip of Yagura's staff violently danced all over Ringo's unmoving body until...

Yagura suddenly tried to hit Ringo's head, only for her to lean it to the left, evading the blow. He tried again but the result was the same and so in a fluid motion, his staff once again found purchase on Ringo's shoulder.

The more blows Yagura landed, the more frustrated he was becoming. The spectators couldn't see it but the madwoman was grinning at him! There was not even a speck of pain in her expression. She was still looking at him in that patronizing way as if he was a small kid throwing a tantrum! He was moving at above-jonin speed and hitting her with strength that would flatten average jonins for f.u.c.ks sake and she was acting as if she didn't even feel it!

Suddenly, Yagura's eyes wandered to Ringo's foot and shone with hope. He quickly redirected his staff mid-swing and stomped with its tip onto the center of said foot. The ground beneath Ringo's foot slightly caved in as cracks appeared around him, causing Yagura to smirk in content.

That slight lapse in guard cost him dearly. He was too close to her and stopped his mad onslaught of blows. In one move, Ringo put her hand on the handle of her sword and in one fluid move, she partly unsheathed it while putting a lot of chakra to enhance her blow before driving its pommel into Yagura's stomach, raising his feet from the ground as his body bend in the waist and was sent flying backward for a bit.

Huffing, Ringo rolled her shoulders as she watched the Fourth Mizukage land on his feet, swaying from the blow she just gave him. Her body felt... fine. A bit sore but fine. 'I guess the force redirecting full-body suit is a smashing success.' A sweet smile bloomed on her face.

Seeing such a satisfied and carefree smile on his opponent's face, Yagura's mind rapidly pushed any discomfort and pain from the previous blow away as he snarled, his eyes still looking at Ringo's foot. 'Why isn't it broken!? With the strength I put into that blow, at least some of the small bones in her foot should have snapped!'

Noticing his look, Ringo's smile widened, "I am currently testing a suit that can redirect force through its surface. Meaning, no matter how hard your hit is, I will barely feel a small percentage of its power." Ringo uncaringly shrugged before a sudden thoughtful frown appeared on her face before she added, "Naturally, it requires a special way of molding a Lightning chakra so only I can use it." She lied through her teeth to the entire Elemental Nations so nobody would pester her in order to sell it.

In one particular room in the Capital City of the Land of Water, Konan alongside Tsunade snorted and Ao g.r.o.a.n.e.d at the obvious lie while Rei only thanked god that the lie would be obvious only for those who knew Ringo.

Catching his breath, Yagura straightened up again, "I am done playing with you." He said through his gritted teeth but Ringo only looked at him curiously which drove him even more sparse.

Out of nowhere, his body was coated in a dark orange shroud of chakra, and Ringo's smile dropped, her face for the first time donning a dead-serious expression.

"Damn... I wanted to leisurely test more of my inventions. Give me a break, kid."

Yagura snarled.

Chapter 214 - Ch214. Trying out knick-knacks

Ringo's shoulders sagged as she reluctantly watched one orange tail forming behind the chakra cloak of Yagura. She knew going against a jinchuuriki while fooling around is stupid.

"Since you want to play it that way..." Ringo discontentedly muttered, more for herself than others. Suddenly, the air around her shimmered and her voice reverberated through the plains, "Lightning Susanoo!" Instantly, blue armor similar to what samurai wore made of lightning sprang up around Ringo, covering her lithe form.

The second those words left Ringo's mouth, every Uchiha who ever heard of Mangekyo Sharingan stiffened. It was not only Uchiha's either. Many high-ranking old ninjas who knew about the special ability of the Mangekyo Sharingan had their eyes bulging out after seeing the armor covering Ringo. It might have been only a human-sized armor but it was far too reminiscent of the real Susanoo that sent a shiver through the spines of these people. After all, Ringo Ameyuri was not an Uchiha. Worse yet, she didn't have Sharingan. This moment would cause many doubts and speculations among the higher-ups of the hidden villages.

Yagura didn't wait for the special moment to end. His mind starting to give in to the influence of the bijuu chakra, he instantly lunged at Ringo while she just leisurely summoned a sword through a modified summoning seal on her wrist. Yagura neared Ringo with speed only rarely seen in the Shinobi world, showcasing why he deserved the title of Kage. Ringo simply lowered herself into a basic stance, patiently awaiting her opponent to enter the range of her blade.

No threats or useless banter was exchanged as it was quite pointless at the second Yagura started using bijuu chakra. Now was the time for power to do the talks.

Ringo's sword and Yagura's staff met... but instead of the expected struggle of strength, Yagura's weapon was pushed back by an invisible force upon the clash, throwing his arms a bit off and disrupting his balance.

'Oomph...' Ringo huffed in surprise as the strength she had to put into that single clash was far more than she expected. 'Damn, the kid indeed do pack a punch.' She frowned, unhappy with the performance of the sword she was holding.

Bewilderment momentarily appeared on Yagura's face, only for fury taking its place a second later as he reaffirmed his footing and attacked the patiently waiting and pondering Ringo again.

Violent clashes resounded through the plain, leaving many cracks and small craters on the ground as both combatants had extremely enhanced strength, either due to a bijuu cloak or a full-body elemental chakra armor. Every time the two ninjas clashed, Yagura was pushed back by an invisible force while Ringo's frown was increasing.

Suddenly, after fifty or so exchanges, Ringo's sword cracked when Yagura's staff smashed into it. Yagura's hands were yet again thrown off their intended course, pushing his body backward which gave Ringo the necessary time to do something she did for the first time in their duel. She lifted her left foot and strongly kicked Yagura's gut, sending his body crashing a few hundred meters away while bouncing numerous times off from the ground.

As Yagura was no longer an immediate concern, Ringo set her eyes on the now cracked blade of her experimental sword and wryly sighed. 'It's not really what I expected. I wanted our chunin to have at least a chance against a jinchuuriki with it but the amount of power I have to exert to not be blown away in a clash is not something an average chunin possesses. Not to mention it couldn't really withstand even fifty clashes with Yagura. Nope, this one is clearly a failure.' She let the sword go with disappointment showing on her face just as the blade finally succ.u.mbed to the crack and splintered into many pieces.

Ringo, however, was totally oblivious to the fact that a normal non-chakra metal blade withstanding fifty clashes with a jinchuuriki was abnormal or that expecting a chunin to be able to put up a fight against a jinchuuriki was madness in itself, no matter what tools he had. No... Ringo's experimental sword was something extremely useful as a weapon that could imbalance opponent upon each clash was something ground-breaking in the fights between more evenly matched opponents and could give the user an incredible advantage in the form of an opening. After all, the sword managed to make even a jinchuuriki imbalanced.

Alas, in Ringo's eyes it was simply not good enough while leaders of various villages could only drool as they watched the effects of the sword, many making a note to discuss potential sales with Ringo after the fight.

Curiously lifting her eyebrow, Ringo threw the last dagger near her feet and watched the effect as a seal appeared in the place in between the four daggers, the same place where Yagura was currently standing.

Yagura wanted to throw himself back at Ringo and continue his onslaught. He was now completely assured that leaving the woman time to make plans and prepare would be foolish. He had to push her and force her to make mistakes before capitalizing on them! He still held the edge in physical power and from what he saw speed. Although he wouldn't put it past his opponent to downplay her real speed. She was a Lightning User and Yagura was not stupid enough to not figure out she was most likely much faster than him once she actually decided to go all out. No... he had to use her playful approach towards their battle and score a solid hit.

There was a bit of a problem, however. The air around him stiffened and he was unable to move as a massive pressure landed on his shoulders. Yagura instantly noticed the seal under him and then he noticed the four daggers on the ground that clearly anchored the seal.

'What the heck is with this woman!? How many chakra weapons with special effects does she have? Did nobody bothered to tell her that they are supposed to be rare!?' Yagura mentally grumbled while using his chakra cloak to force himself free from the seal.

Ringo critically watched as the restriction seal created by her four experimental daggers slowly but surely gave out as Yagura's body started to regain its mobility. Sighing she took out a pink rubber duck from her wrist seal before casually throwing it at the still mostly immobilized Yagura.

The entire plains suddenly quieted down as the spectators watched in muted bewilderment when the duck impacted Yagura's forehead... and harmlessly bounced off, only causing his head to whip back, creating an awkward situation.

Yagura's eyes stared upward with utter lack of comprehension of what just happened. Shame started to rise inside of him. 'So... she is not satisfied with using her weird weapons. Now she is even throwing toys at me?' Yagura ever-so-slowly lowered his gaze back onto the amused Ringo who watched him with almost a clinical degree of scrutiny. He had had enough. Clearly, two tails of his bijuu cloak simply won't cut it. It was time to go all out.

And then he froze.

'HOW!?' Yagura frantically screamed as he noticed that he was no longer clad in his chakra cloak.

Ringo watched the spectacle in satisfaction, 'Aha! My anti-jinchuuriki Duckie worked! His connection with the bijuu was cut and the chakra cloak dissipated.' She giddily noted.

Ringo's merry mood didn't last long as Yagura's expression set itself in a cold facade. "I've had enough." He stated, his tone betraying the degree of rage he was feeling. And then... red.

Ungodly waves after waves of chakra sprang up from Yagura, pressing on the land around as earthquake shook the plains. Strong winds swept the surroundings with extreme pressure, making Ringo slightly bend her knees in order to withstand it. Orange chakra seeped from Yagura, expanding and slowly starting solidifying, gaining greyish color.

It took barely a second but Ringo now found herself facing a few stories tall form of the Three-Tailed Bijuu who was glaring at her with all the anger Yagura could muster.

"Er... the Duckie only cuts the connection between the host and the bijuu, not seal it. Hence, the jinchuuriki can reconnect to his bijuu almost instantly. A desperate need for improvement is duly noted." Ringo nodded to herself as she stared at the behemoth in front of her.

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Chapter 215 - Ch215. Ringo vs. Yagura 2

While the whole world gaped at Ringo's Duckie's ability to cancel the bijuu cloak, she took out her two chakra metal blades and promptly covered them in her lightning Susanoo cloaking. Now she really looked like some dual-wielding mythical samurai made of lightning.

Sighing in annoyance, Ringo stared at the massive three-tailed beast in front of her, ignoring the strong whiplash of wind Yagura's transformation caused.

"I am really fed up with this. I am an assassin. Why do I have to fight him head-on like a damned fool? What 'Show 'em your hidden powah, Rin-chan!'? What 'Let's make it into a huuuuuge spectacle!?'? When I am done with this, I am going to strangle Mei for giving Rei ideas. I could simply sneak into Yagura's house at night and peacefully separate his head from his body when he slept but noooo..." Ringo heatedly muttered under her nose.

Just then Sanbi roared and Ringo had to quickly side-step a massive circular compressed few stories tall water blade hurled at her at an almost inhuman speed by the beast, leaving a large trench behind.

Ringo wryly smiled, "So, he is finally using ninjutsu, eh?"

The water rose from the shore a kilometer away from the place where they faced each other, towering above the plains as the angry Sanbi focused his gaze on Ringo whose brows furrowed at the five hundred feet tall wave quickly approaching her at brutal speed, washing away everything in its path.

"Of course, the very first thing Sanbi would do is getting even more water on the battlefield. Because why not?" Ringo cursed their current location. In the past, the Sanbi was almost always sealed while he was lazing around or sleeping because fighting him anywhere near the ocean was a plain suicide what with his complete control of water. Without first shackling him with some restrictive seals, there was no way to win against the lazy turtle. Well, not for ordinary shinobi.

Not a second later, the massive tsunami seemingly crashed into Ringo...

High in the clear sky, the lightning-armor-clad figure of Ringo appeared after barely escaping being swept by the ocean of water. She quickly started molding her normal chakra with her lightning chakra under her feet in order to create a platform in the air where she could stand.

Ringo grimaced as she got a nice look at the surrounding lands. It was only a minute and a few seconds ago when Yagura transformed and yet... the Kuronami plains were already covered in a blanket of water while other massive tsunamis could be seen quickly approaching the area from the not-so-distant ocean, covering the lands in even more water.

Ringo watched the huge turtle turn its head, looking for her. Her shoulders sagged, 'What exactly am I supposed to do here?' She thought irritably.

Lightning was for precise and fast strikes that exploited weaknesses and gaps in the armor of the enemy in order to land ONE devastating killing attack. Water, on the other hand, used volume to both attacks and defend and compression for either cutting or burgeoning offense. As for fighting a massive armored turtle half-covered in an ocean of water under its control as a lighting user? Well...

Cl.i.c.k.i.n.g her tongue, Ringo decided to at least hurl a few attacks at the turtle since finding an exploitable weak spot was quickly becoming a profound challenge. 'Guess, there is really no other way than trying out what does and what doesn't work. It won't be a long time before the Sanbi discovers my position anyway...'

Raising her right blade above her head and gathering her lighting chakra on it, the air around Ringo started quickly cracking and chirping as more and more lightning appeared, concentrating and condensing on the blade which was quickly getting superheated. Ringo waited and gathered, compressed, concentrated more and more lightning chakra on the blade until it was one bright blue beacon visible for kilometers, causing Sanbi to finally notice it.

Unfortunately for the beast, with Ringo's proficiency in Lightning Chakra, the whole process took only two seconds. One blue bright flash of blue with an ear-shattering chirping shriek of lightning deafening the world, and Ringo almost lazily swung her right blade downwards in a wide arc aimed straight at Sanbi.

The world watched as the blue lightning beam crashed in the massive three-tailed beast's carapace in a flash...

Sanbi was hurled back through the water, creating a temporary trench in it as the massive beast's body pushed it away due to the sheer force of the lightning beam which propelled it five hundred meters back before the disoriented Sanbi finally somehow managed to anchor its tails and limbs into the ground while supporting its body with the water behind it in order to resist the pushing force of the slash.

Blue crackling energy battled grey hard carapace, both stubbornly refusing to stop pushing against the other but in the end, five seconds later Ringo's lightning Jutsu lost its juice and slowly dissipated, leaving only the turtle standing on the ground without any water around it for a fifty-meter radius. Only thin water vapor remained as the lightning Jutsu vaporized all the water in the said range. Slowly, the walls of water around the beast where the lightning Jutsu didn't reach started to crash down, again submerging half of the Sanbi under the water surface.

Ringo watched from the sky, scowling. The beast was completely uninjured! Sure, she managed to push it back but the armor stopped her attack from doing literally anything to Sanbi. 'This is such a drag... How am I supposed to injure it? It's not like I can just bypass the... carapace?' Ringo tilted her head while her eyes narrowed as if a light bulb turned on in her head. 'Oh... maybe?'

Before she managed to finish that thought, however, a compressed house-sized ball of water crashed into her at almost the speed of sound, hurling her through the sky.

Stopping herself some hundred or so meters away from her previous location, Ringo cursed. 'Son of a... turtle. Ahem.' She steadied herself before having to jump to the left to avoid yet another house-sized water bullet courtesy of Sanbi. She had only a second to notice how the beast was now sending a water bullet after a water bullet at her covering the entire horizon with them.

Adrenaline coursing through her veins, Ringo started side-stepping, jumping under or above, and evading the water bullets. They may not be able to breach her lightning armor but they still caused her to deplete a bit of her chakra reserve due to the brutal force of impact that came with them. As she was dodging, Ringo also advanced closer and closer towards Sanbi through the air, the closer she got, the more house-sized water bullets she had to deal with and briefly, it made her ponder how much chakra the beast exactly had. Somewhere along her way towards the turtle, Ringo was forced to start cleaving the water bullets with her lightning-clad swords, not having enough space to dodge.

The hail of water bullets suddenly ceased, making even Ringo surprised, causing her to stop for a second before she realized the water under her started to move, as tendrils as thick as Kage Towers started to quickly advance towards her.

"Shit..." Ringo cursed and pushed more of her lightning chakra into her armor, springing herself forward towards the Sanbi in one huge leap now that there was no water blocking her path. The turtle miscalculated and before the water tendrils could reach Ringo, she disappeared via sheer speed and reappeared on the top of the surprised Sanbi.

For all of its crowd control ability, scarily dangerous water control, and almost unreachable defense, the turtle was quite slow and didn't move much during a fight.

Understanding that this was a very rare opportunity, Ringo quickly plunged both of her swords into the carapace of the beast, sinking them halfway through their length. It didn't even breach five percent of the carapace but for Ringo's plan, this was enough. With a zapping sound and bright blue light show, Ringo started feeding the chakra from her armor to her swords.

Sanbi screamed and roared in pain as the nature chakra from the lightning armor mixed with the lightning chakra of Ringo and wave after wave of the stuff entered its carapace, razing its path towards the beast's flesh. Thrashing and bewildered, the beast quickly utilized its tail and smashed it into Ringo, sending her small frame flying while dislodging the two blades from its carapace due to the strong grip Ringo had on her blades. As they were dislodged, the blades shot one last wave of lightning senjutsu chakra into the sky, causing a massive wave of pressurized air to spread through the surroundings, rippling the already raging kilometers of the water surface while Ringo's body crashed a few tens of meter away from Sanbi, plunging deep into the beast-made ocean at breakneck speed, disappearing in it.

For a moment... the battlefield quieted down, leaving only a serene scene of a massive sluggish turtle slowly shaking in pain surrounded by quietly calming water as thin water vapor lazily covered the area while up in the sky, clouds slowly started to form.

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Chapter 216 - Ch216. Ringo vs Yagura 3

Ao watched the screen in shock, shaking in hopelessness as he thought, 'Is Yagura really unbeatable?'

He knew Yagura's Sanbi transformation was powerful but never in his wildest dreams would he imagine it to be so... so invincible! In just seconds he flooded entire plains in the water! That single move could possibly destroy the entire army!

Ao's thoughts darkened as he realized that putting an army against Sanbi was a suicide. Nothing short of a crafty and very powerful single ninja skilled in fuinjutsu could hope to beat the beast. There was simply no winning through sheer force.

Ao's eyes briefly lingered on the spot where Ringo's body disappeared into the depths of the water, causing him to sigh in regret. 'I doubt anyone can survive inside of an ocean of water completely controlled by Sanbi. She must be already crushed to dust.' It was then, however, that he heard a small chuckle from his right side.

Turning, Ao found a very weird scene. Rei seemed amused, Na Kona was half-purring, half-smirking, and Nadetsu Jusen was goodnaturedly rolling her eyes, looking as if she knew some grand secret but found the ignorance of others far too amusing to share.

"He bitch-slapped her..." Rei said, visibly trying to hold back his laughter.

"That he did." Nadetsu confirmed almost giddily.

"En." Kona mirthfully added.

Ao froze at the complete disregard for Ringo, "Aren't you at least a bit worried for your comrade?" He icily asked, turning towards Rei.

Before Rei could respond, Kona spoke with an eye-roll, "That's what she gets for holding back."

"She deserved it." Nadetsu snorted.

"He bitch-slapped her." Rei shrugged, still finding the situation incredibly funny.

Ao was too flabbergasted to give a verbal reply, instead, he simply stared at them in confusion. 'Could Ringo survive tha-'

A loud booming sound suddenly resounded from the screen, causing Ao to whip his head back towards it in astonishment.

Sanbi was calming down as the pain from being almost boiled alive through his carapace started to slowly dissipate. He was still somewhat vigilant but his guard was steadily dropping. He could sense his water and so far it seemed the fight was over. He was about to revert back to Yagura when his senses started screaming at him.

It took only a split of a second but the serene water surface first started angrily bubbling crimson before suddenly bursting with massive pressure as a huge crimson-colored torso of a fox-like samurai armor appeared, crackling with an inhuman amount of crimson-colored lightning chakra. The water slowly cascaded down its helmet and shoulders, sizzling and visibly vaporizing as did the water around the whole armor, covering it in hot water vapor.

The armored titan ever-so-slowly stood up, towering even above the three-tailed beast, causing the ground to shake when its foot landed on it. The air around the figure started shimmering from the sheer heat the special lightning it was made of produced, continuously boiling, superheating, and supercharging it from all the elemental chakra, nature energy, and bijuu chakra packed together. The surface of the massive fox-like armored humanoid samurai was gleaming as if burning with the crimson lightning, betraying what is happening to anyone knowing Rei and his girls' secret.

Ringo... finally decided to stop pulling her punches and started using Crimson's chakra in the fight.

It was not yet a full Bijuu transformation. Crimson was too young and weak for that. No, Ringo was simply mixing Crimson's chakra into her own Lightning Susanoo in order to enlarge and strengthen it, causing the destructive potential of her lightning armor to skyrocket.

Sanbi and the titan stared at each other, one bewildered, the other with gleaming crimson orbs of lightning full of mirth. A second of silence passed between them before they both lunged at the other, both aware their fight will be coming to an end soon.

Sanbi's body flew at the twice as big hulking mass of concentrated lightning chakra and scored a solid blow to its waist with its hardened carapace, causing the titan to slide a bit backward but it was far tougher than the beast envisioned. Water started rising around them, trying to bind the movements of the titan only to evaporate the instant it came in contact with the surface of the crimson lightning armor.

In retaliation, the Lightning Susanoo of Ringo punched the Sanbi hard, sending it crashing back into the water while causing it to scream as it felt the searing heat. Unfortunately for Sanbi, it wasn't made of element or chakra like some of its siblings so its body was quite boilable.

Sanbi wasn't dazed for long and quickly returned the offensive by throwing more waves of water at Ringo's Lightning Susanoo, making it sluggish and preventing its movement with the sheer volume of it. Sanbi knew that Ringo, as a human, didn't have an unlimited amount of chakra, and sustaining such a giant made of special Lightning would quickly deplete her meager reserves. For now, he wanted to make this into a fight of attrition, stay the hell away from her and her damned superheated armor, and outlast her through his chakra reserves.

Ringo also knew she needed to end the fight quickly and be very showy about it. She still had time. Hers and Crimson's chakra would last for a few minutes of an all-out fight but she couldn't really let herself faint at the end or worse, be somehow defeated. After all, this fight was all about showing off for the entire Elemental Nations.

As such, Ringo glanced upward, noticing the angry black clouds. She could feel the lightning acc.u.mulating in them since they were caused by the last wave of her nature energy and lightning chakra when her swords got dislodged from Sanbi's carapace when he smacked her away. These clouds could be partly taken as hers and by now, they were soaked in quite a lot of naturally formed lightning, just waiting to be used by her.

Controlling the massive chakra armor she created, Ringo fought through the mass of quickly evaporating and yet also rapidly amassing water trying to pin her down and raised the searing crimson blade belonging to her Lightning Susanoo above its head in preparation for a swing while taking it into both hands to enhance the final result.

The world seemed as if it momentarily locked itself in that scene. The raging water as if froze. The shuddering air as if stopped. The water as if momentarily calmed. The angry skies as if halted. Even the Sanbi couldn't do more than slightly widen its eyes and start hastily charging a bijuudama before the world as if moved again and Ringo's Lightning Susanoo swung the blade downward. And the heavens roared in rage...

During the slash of Ringo's Lightning Susanoo, the energy from the entire chakra construct was violently redirected into it, resulting in its instant collapse. That, however, also meant, the slash had the energy levels of the whole thing behind it as a crimson lightning slash as big as a skyscr.a.p.er was hurled at Sanbi while the armor disappeared, leaving only Ringo in the air, in her human-sized blue lightning armor.

As the crimson lightning slash approached Sanbi who now finished charging the strongest bijuudama he could, Ringo suddenly smirked. From above, an enormous amount of natural lighting suddenly fell towards the crimson slash mid-flight, colliding with it and enhancing it.

And then, the gigantic slash met bijuudama.

It all happened in a split of a second but the roaring and deafening explosion made even the strongest ninjas sweat as crimson mixed with blue, trying to overpower sun-like orange when the attacks met. In a flash, it was over.

And with it, Yagura in the form of the three-tails and half of the Kuronami plains. Completely disintegrated.

In that moment, the Land of Water lost one percent of its landmass as Ringo coldly stared at the destruction caused by her attack, and the world... irrevocably changed.

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Chapter 217 - Ch217. Reactions to the battle.

Author Note:

Yeah, sorry, guys.

I didn't notice the chapters set on the timer for release ran out so yesterday there was no chapter.

Good for you too, that I actually went to check comments on a spur of a moment otherwise I probably wouldn't notice so soon :D.

Anyway, have fun.

--

"Did you see that, B?" The Raikage quietly asked as the screen in front of him showed the devastation caused by the slash of the massive Lightning Susanoo.

"Which bit do you mean? There was quite a lot to be seen!" B rapped, causing Raikage's eyebrows to twitch in mild annoyance and completely breaking the dreary mood.

"The lightning armor, you idiot! It is obvious that bitch based it on my Jutsu and yet it was manyfold better than my Lightning Chakra Mode!" Raikage yelled.

"Yeah... wicked." B stated, no longer in his usual cheerful manner. His tone was serious and grim, showing he totally understood the threat Ringo could pose to them.

Raikage collapsed into his seat with a difficult expression as a pensive silence filled the room, both B and A pondering about what they just saw.

It took a few minutes before Raikage slowly started speaking in a very tired tone, "I can't believe it." He rubbed his forehead, "Just a few years ago, I could have killed the woman with one punch. ONE PUNCH!" He raised his fist, to emphasize the point while B nodded. Raikage huffed, "And now... the bitch responsible for the death of my fiancee is... that? The world is cruel B. So very cruel." Raikage slumped in defeat.

B had no idea how to console his brother and even Hachibi was unnaturally quiet. They understood... A might have already given up on revenge but that didn't mean his hatred for the perpetrators diminished. But now...

Now Ringo Ameyuri, the woman leading the army that killed his fiance and shamed them into retreating showed she plagiarized A's famed Lightning Chakra Cloak, made it into something much better, much powerful, and on top of all that, she went blow for blow against Sanbi, something only A's father did. That last bit, probably stung A's pride the most as B knew A always secretly admired the sheer power of his father.

Worse yet, when she was a simple rogue ninja, A could always hope somebody would one day drag her dead or still-kicking-but-immobilized body in order to collect the massive reward Kumogakure was offering for her head. Sure, the hope was fleeting but it was still there. Now, however, Ringo would become the Fifth Mizukage of Kirigakure and that meant she was untouchable. Nothing short of war against Kirigakure would provide a chance to get at her.

There was a problem with that train of thought, though...

"She is a damn bijuu level threat." Raikage morosely muttered as B sat rooted in his place, looking at him in sadness. "We will have to... have to, ugh, start negotiating an alliance with Kirigakure." A barely managed to let that sentence out. It was one thing to ignore them, and it was completely another thing to try and befriend them when all he wanted was to destroy them. But... Kirigakure now had Ringo Ameyuri who could go head-on against a bijuu. They also had one jinchuuriki and will have another after Sanbi reforms while the civil war everybody expected to weaken them didn't really cause all that much damage to their ranks. The number of their ninjas didn't drop by much.

In fact, Kirigakure came out of the civil war even stronger than it was before and that was what really infuriated A to no end.

"B... go and call Mabui. I need to start preparations." A grunted, making B nod and stand up.

'Well, I don't think I can comfort him much. Nope... this needs a woman's touch. Tell Mabui I shall, kono yaro, baka yaro!' B walked through the door, stopping in the middle and half-turning his head to look at A. His expression was so serious.

A stiffened in anticipation for what B was going to say. "Brozza... Don't forget to activate the silencing seals this time." He quickly ducked and ran out of the office as a paperweight flew through the place where his head was just a second ago while a loud roar shook Kumogakure.

"B!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

...

Almost catatonic Obito watched the battle from afar, not really believing what he just saw.

'Did that woman just disintegrate the three-tails?' He thought in shock, his body stiff and unresponsive. 'I... this requires more thought. But still...' He suddenly grew regretful.

Obito, knowing it was fifty-fifty, still believed Yagura could win. Then again, he could also lose. But never even in his wildest dreams would he think Yagura would lose in such a manner!

'That girl is dangerous. Maybe I should invite her to Akatsuki? Then again... maybe not. She is now a Kage and if she was not agreeable to the offer.' Obito shuddered. It would take only one competent Kage and Akatsuki would have an incredibly hard time surviving. Fortunately for him, he steered far away from the at the very least semi-competent ones. That's why he mostly worked with Tsuchikage and controlled Mizukage. 'No... we are not yet strong enough to face that kind of... bullshit.' Obito relented. He thought Nagato extremely powerful. Then again... maybe he thought wrong.

"Yozora, huh? Maybe I should start paying more attention to them. Ignoring them just because they disappeared from the spotlight for a few years was clearly a mistake." He spoke in a totally serious voice, abandoning his childish act, tightly clenching his fists in anger, "They foiled my plan to avenge Rin... Years of preparations and manipulations. Do they not understand how hard it was to catch a damned Kage-level jinchuuriki off-guard with my genjutsu?" Suddenly, Obito screamed in rage and started rubbing his hair in frustration as he realized... "I will have to start again from scratch!"

If only the Biri-Biri company didn't hire a member of Yozora to fight for them. His life would be so easy! But no! It just had to be the two most insufferable organizations in existence to band together and completely ruin his plans! He tried to infiltrate or spy on the Biri-Biri company for years and he somewhat succeeded, finding out they were not really a threat. They focused on money and business, hence, they were not direct competition for Akatsuki.

No... Yozora was the problem. Organization much like Akatsuki. An organization capable of acting in the shadows, directing the flow of history according to their wishes. It only now became apparent to Obito they probably manipulated the Biri-Biri company to do their bidding, causing them to insert one of their own into a position of Mizukage. No... Yozora was shaping up to be a big headache for him and his plans.

With a huff, Obito disappeared in a swirl, thinking how he should use his pawns in the Land of Water to set another anti-clan civil war into motion.

Unfortunately for him, he was underestimating the newfound caution of the clan heads who will for all intents and purposes be ruling Kirigakure whenever Ringo couldn't be bothered. Which meant, all the time.

...

Anko leisurely laid on a sofa in the main house of the Senju clan compound in Konoha, her legs on the table and a half-empty bowl of ch.i.p.s on her b.a.r.e belly. She and the brat decided to watch this 'event of the century' as the fight between Ringo and Yagura was advertised by the Biri-Biri company.

She brought the viewing gem, which was according to the brat who had all that fuinjutsu information stuffed in his head, a very nifty seal matrix that connected the viewing seal with the recording seal and then simply caused the viewing seal to produce a genjutsu of the events recorded by the recording seal, and they decided to have a nice afternoon watching the brawl.

She was still not comfortable with the thought of the brat calling her 'mum' and the first time he did that, she showed him why exactly that was a bad idea. Nobody can say Anko Mitarashi was a bad mentor! The kid quickly learned that the only acceptable way to call her is 'sis' or better yet, 'Sensei'. And it took only a few broken bones and a shitload of bruises too!

Then again... the brat was now scared of snakes. Oh, well... Anko decided the best cure for that was to throw even more snakes at him.

They watched as Ringo Ameyuri fought against Yagura, and later Yagura in bijuu chakra cloak, and then a fully transformed Sanbi. The entire time, Naruto had a weird expression on his face and Anko was starting to worry. It was one thing to tell the kid he is a jinchuuriki and he will have a lot of power at his command in the future if he trains it right. It was completely different for him to see exactly what it means to be a competent jinchuuriki. Yagura might have lost the battle but that wasn't because he was weak.

"Will I really be that strong one day?" Naruto quietly asked with his hand on his stomach.

Anko raised an eyebrow at him, still with well-hidden jealousy half-processing how it was possible for a kunoichi to beat Sanbi. "If you are a good boy." She replied teasingly.

What!? Nobody said she had this 'taking care of a kid' down the pat!

Naruto gave Anko a weak smile. He knew she liked him and he loved how... normal his life became since she entered it. She was the first person who actually showed him she cared... even if it was only by making sure he trained a lot and ate well. It wasn't always smooth sailing with Anko but in her own rough way, she showed Naruto she cared about him. It probably didn't help that she was as scarred and clueless as him in that department. Neither really had somebody extremely close to them before they started to live with each other.

"Thank you... Anko-nee." Whispering, Naruto turned around and left the living room, determination swirling behind his eyes. He will get stronger! If only to protect the only person who cared about him!

Anko watched the small back of the child Lady Tsunade dumped into her care and sighed as her expression softened. "Well... so much for motivating the brat." She shrugged, her sight returning towards the destroyed Kuronoami plains on the screen, her eyes hardening. "Maybe... It's time to start training more seriously."

'After all... I don't want to fall behind Naruto too much. That would simply be embarrassing!'

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Chapter 218 - Ch218. Carrot and stick

Yagura slowly opened his eyes and instantly g.r.o.a.n.e.d as he felt the weight of the world press on his beaten body. Or at least, he supposed he was quite trashed from all the pain his brain was registering when he tried to move.

'What the heck happened?' He sluggishly thought, fighting through his increasing headache while his eyes tried to adjust from their sleepy state. Suddenly, his mind stilled as he realized, 'I am... free? The genjutsu was lifted!?' His body instantly sprang up into a sitting position only to jerk in pain a second later, causing Yagura to whimper in even more pain.

"Easy there." An amused voice coming from behind him said before continuing, "Don't make any sudden movements. Your body has many cracked bones and torn muscles. Thankfully, your organs are fine and nothing important is broken but still, from the amount of damage you will be bedridden for some days yet despite being a jinchuuriki. Then again, you did eat a point-blank bijuudama before being zapped by such an enormous amount of lightning it would vaporize you if I didn't pull you out of there in time." An aristocratic-looking blond-haired man said as he finally entered Yagura's sight.

Yagura stared incredulously at the man, so sure he never ever met him that it even temporarily overpowered his guilt at having to watch his genjutsu-ed self order all those atrocities and wreaking havoc in his own country.

"Who?" He rasped.

Rei grinned and sat on a chair near the bed Yagura was placed on and handed him a glass of water. "Name's Rei. I am something like Ringo's boss." He shrugged at casually admitting that Kirigakure was now under his rule by proxy, causing Yagura to do a spit-take. "As you can probably tell, I nicked you before Ringo's attack could completely disintegrate you to smithereens. As for why..." Rei meaningfully paused, enjoying the questioning and wary look on Yagura's face before he grandiosely stood up, spread his arms wide, and exclaimed, "I deemed it beneficial to steal yet another jinchuuriki!"

'What am I? Some kind of toy?' Yagura mentally deadpanned. 'Wait... did he say... another?' His expression turned into an incredulous one.

Before he could continue that train of thoughts, however, Rei chuckled and sat down, continuing speaking in a mirthful manner, "That said... you don't really have much of a choice."

Yagura's back stiffened... and then the man went completely slack as if all tension suddenly left him while his body fell back onto the bed in resignation. His instincts alongside everything ingrained in him by the brutal training Kirigakure put him through were screaming at him to return the threat, to not just quietly take it, to... fight. And yet, his mind was far too exhausted to put up any pretense or participate in a meaningless power-play. After all, if he really discounted his feelings and all that searing self-pity... he really didn't have much of a choice, did he?

"What exactly do you want from me?" Yagura spoke in a resigned tone. "I won't aid you in harming Kirigakure. If that's your goal then you are at the wrong address."

"Funny... From where I stand you were doing a good job of exactly that yourself before we decided to intervene." Rei replied with a chuckle, causing Yagura to grit his teeth. "Don't even try to play a tough guy, Yagura. You are smarter than that. You are the first Mizukage who caused a civil war in his hidden village. And despite it being nipped in a bud, you will be remembered for as long as Kirigakure will exist. You," Rei smugly pointed at him, "are the bad guy."

Every sentence caused Yagura to visibly recoil and despite that, he stayed silent. Everything Rei was telling him was the truth. Both of them knew there was no way to claim being put under the influence of Sharingan. Firstly, the Uchiha clan and Konoha would be quite angry because of that... which would most likely mean Kirigakure would deny any such claim, and secondly, there was no way to prove it now that the Sharingan genjutsu was lifted. This was one of these situations where his rumored strength was playing against him. After all, how could somebody strong enough to become a Mizukage before even reaching eighteen fall for a Sharingan genjutsu? Especially a jinchuuriki who has a bijuu in him? A bijuu that would normally destroy any attempt at mind-control? Heck, even he had no answer for that!

Rei indungingly watched Yagura's expressions change at a fast pace while thinking, 'Poor sod, not even knowing about Mangekyou Sharingan. No wonder he was caught off guard by it.'

"Heh..." Yagura snorted, "Then tell me, what do you want? I am screwed either way." He stubbornly stared at the ceiling. Honestly, he just got out of months of being manipulated by genjutsu and now he had to deal with this shit...

"Technically, you are not screwed. You are simply presumed dead." Rei pointed out, enjoying Yagura's eyes narrow in irritation. "As such, your affiliation with Kirigakure is effectively over. Can't brand a dead man traitor, after all. Do you see what I want from you now?"

"No..." Yagura whispered, realizing why exactly he was having this conversation. "I am not betra-"

"Ah, stuff it." Rei interrupted, "Kirigakure is as good as mine anyway. Yes, I will let the clan heads run it because it is honestly a bother. Yes, I will make sure it is improved and many reforms are passed for the betterment of the village and its forces but I sure as hell don't really care about the village itself so it won't be the best it could. Yes, I am planning to get it up to par with Kumogakure at the very least but then again, that's for my own benefit. And lastly, I can also make a life for everybody in the village infinitely more difficult through Ringo. Let me tell you, any goodwill or sentiment she could have felt for her own village is now drier than the deserts in the Land of Wind." Rei watched Yagura's body subtly reacting to his words and was pleased that he had his undivided attention now. "So... do make this easier for both of us and let's make a deal. You will swear allegiance to me and my village. Naturally, it will be enforced through seals put on your heart. You must understand my reluctance in trusting you without these seals... Mr. Fourth Mizukage." Rei added mockingly. "In return, I will let you keep tabs on Kirigakure and compose reforms you think are needed for the village to improve. You will have a direct hand at making Kirigakure better. Plus, it's not like the loyalty seals have only disadvantages or you lose your free will. I want a capable ninja, not a slave. The seals will prevent you ever again from being manipulated via genjutsu. They will also adjust your bijuu seal and make it infinitely more comfortable for Sanbi which should completely calm him down considering his lazy nature. There are more benefits but, well, they are not really important right now." Rei shrugged and fell silent, letting Yagura digest what he just told him.

Yagura wasn't a novice in coercion and negotiations. He half-expected to be tortured when he declined so having the situation so blatantly shoved into his face was a bit disgruntling but still... 'When he put it that way...' Yagura bitterly thought. 'He was quite literal when he said I don't really have a choice, wasn't he?' Yagura realized. Damned if do, damned if don't. 'Oh, how I regret not becoming a baker rather than a shinobi!' He wistfully reminisced.

The sales pitch was extremely tempting for him in the current situation. He was a criminal on top of being legally dead. Showing his face would simply earn himself a quick addition to the Bingo Book with a high reward whilst causing more problems for Kirigakure as Ringo will either be forced to hunt him down AND present his severed head, or worse, a new civil war would be caused because of that. After all, if the deed propelling Ringo to the seat of the Fifth Mizukage turned out to be fake... yeah, Yagura decided then and there he would rather wear a mask his entire life.

If Ringo or Rei deemed Kirigakure 'not worth the effort', well, let's just say Yagura didn't really want to see how many fools would attempt fighting against Ringo and get slaughtered for it. Considering the average intelligence level of clan heads, the damage to the village would probably be irreparable.

Hence, stick.

On the other hand, Rei was offering him a chance to do the sole thing why he even became a Mizukage. He was offering him a chance to fulfill his dream. A chance to reform Kirigakure according to his wishes. Admittedly, it was not much but in his situation? It was more than he could ask for. And if he did a good job... maybe, just maybe he could alleviate at least some fraction of the guilt he felt inside for what his manipulated self caused.

"Fine." Yagura answered after being quiet for half an hour of considering his options. "I will join you."

Rei smirked, 'All according to the plan. I did promise Ao to improve Kirigakure and I would loathe putting such a task on the shoulders of one of my girls or, god forbid, my own. Nope, getting some poor sod to do it for me is the best option, isn't it? Doesn't hurt that Yagkura would see it as if I was doing him a favor either, right?'

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Chapter 219 - Ch219. New Kiri Council

Two days passed since the Battle between Water and Lightning as the people started calling the clash between Ringo and Yagura. Honestly, it was quickly becoming the stuff of legends on par with Madara and Hashirama. For the first time in history, normal people from all over the Elemental Nations got to witness a battle between high-ranking ninjas from the comfort of their houses.

The various ninja villages were of two minds on the matter. On one hand, people were shown the power of ninjas by someone who was a monster even by their most brutal standards. That could really lead to some unnaturally high expectations from their clients and it would be awfully awkward resolving any misunderstanding if somebody asks them to destroy this or that country. On the other hand, ninjas would be now feared or respected even more which was, yet again, a double-edged blade in itself. Nevertheless, it was more of a useful kind in regards to ninjas.

But one thing was set in stone. After seeing the battle, there wasn't anyone, be it a Daimyo or a Kage, who was willing to antagonize Kirigakure. In fact, the village was flooded with requests for alliances, trading agreements, and so on.

Naturally, all were offered under the assumption that Ringo will be the Fifth Mizukage.

...

The door to Kirigakure's council room suddenly flew open, shutting up a nasty argument between the councilors of Yagura's reign and the clan heads who deemed it their right to become new councilors. All of them snapped towards the door, wondering who is the rude bastard trying to enter the room when they are discussing important matters...

But before anyone could even let out a simple 'eep', Ringo apathetically strode into the room. One look at her eyes and the councilors, no matter whether new or old ones, knew they would be unable to provoke the unimaginably dangerous woman. Most of them averted their eyes, trying to reign in their shudder but there were still some of them who couldn't help but hyperventilate when they remembered the battle between Ringo and Yagura.

The old councilors simply feared for their lives but they didn't have anywhere to go. All of them were Kiri loyalists to the core and as such, if the new Mizukage wanted them dead, they would prefer dying in their village rather than going rogue.

As for the new councilors, the clan heads,... when they hired Yozora to resolve their problems, they never thought Ringo would be so... so... so frighteningly powerful. At best, they thought Yagura would be overpowered by sheer numbers or through trickery but never in their wildest dreams did they think Ringo capable of facing a bijuu head-on. Now they were stuck with her as their Mizukage and slowly, they started to understand why Ao was so cross with them for giving her the position. Who cared if they, according to some doc.u.ment, had a free reign? Ringo raising one eyebrow had more weight than anything they could do or say! It was honestly a very striking reminder that 'might makes right'. One they did not really enjoy.

Ringo steadily walked towards the furthest throne-like chair in the back of the council chamber and flopped into it with a complete disregard for anything even remotely resembling etiquette. She sighed irritably and swept the people in the room with a fed-up stare. "An hour ago, Ao sent me a message that you are bickering like a bunch of little children." 'And damn Rei for giving him a way to contact me...' She mentally grumbled as the message interrupted her forging. "Care to share what is so important I had to be dragged into it?"

The room descended into complete silence. Ringo stared at the councilors, her eyes getting more and more fed-up by the second while the councilors tried to gather courage and their wits to reply.

"Well?" Ringo drawled, her eyes stopping on Ao who stood by the door to the chamber, showing he was not a part of the council.

'Of course, it has to be me... It's so hard to be one of the only two competent people in the room.' Ao wistfully thought before sighing in exasperation, "The clan heads and the old councilors can't decide who shall be the new council under yourself, Lady Ameyuri. Maybe you could state your ruling on the matter?" He added a bit mockingly.

And with that sentence, tension returned to the room. The old councilors looked at Ringo with apprehension while the new ones with hope... causing Ringo to deadpan at Ao, her eyes clearly asking if this is really how leaders and high officials should behave. Much to her chagrin, he simply casually shrugged, letting her deal with the problem.

Rubbing the bridge of her nose, Ringo furrowed her brows, "I am far too young to do this shit." She mumbled and while at the time it peeved her to no end, now she inwardly thanked Rei for giving her an idea of how to avoid running things. If only he didn't decide to do it in the middle of their lovemaking… then again, she probably wouldn't remember it if he didn't choose that exact moment.

"Fine..." Ringo reluctantly started, "As per Yozora's contract with the Resistance, the clan heads will gain the position of councilors." Quiet cheers and smug looks started appearing on the faces of the clan heads before Ringo added, "Do keep in mind the contract clearly stated you are obliged to work for the betterment of the village as a whole, rather than just your clans. If you break that, I will know," And she really would since Rei used his mastery of seals when creating the said contract, "and I will break you."

Now that put an instant stop to the cheers and smugness of the clan heads and the mood turned somber again. Quite a few of them quickly decided it would be in their best interest to stop scheming too as they were reminded that this was still a dictatorship.

"As for the old councilors," Ringo glanced at them, causing them to flinch. This was it. The Fifth Mizukage was about to decide their fate. "They will be put under investigation. If they come up clean and capable, they shall retain their position as a councilor." Ringo shrugged. "Doesn't really matter if there are more seats on the council or not anyway. This way we will have more input, more people working towards the development of the village, and it will also be harder to manipulate votes. Not that I am going to let any who try walk away intact." She nonchalantly added.

The old councilors sagged in relief while the new ones were a bit miffed at people without the status of a clan head becoming councilors or their sudden inability to bribe or blackmail others to get laws passed. Nevertheless, they could do nothing about it. Well, technically they had all the right but not one of them had the courage to speak up. Ao, on the other hand, started to get a bad premonition when Ringo smirked at him.

"As for the person responsible for the investigation..." Ringo's eyes met Ao's pleading gaze, giving him only a cold look, "I think Ao is the least corruptible person in this room. He should do it. Any objections?"

"I object!" Ao weakly tried, getting weird looks of respect from the people in the room except for Ringo who simply lifted her eyebrow amusedly.

"Rejected." She happily said. "I look forward to your report."

Ao g.r.o.a.n.e.d but nodded in understanding. After all, she was now his Mizukage and he would be damned before he failed her.

"And with that, I believe my work here is done." Ringo hummed as she stood up and walked towards the door, "Don't argue too much, kids. I don't enjoy having to come and teach you to behave because your mo-, ahem, Ao gets too annoying. You wanted to rule the village so rule it," She said as she stopped in the middle of the door leading outside the council chambers. The air suddenly turned heavy as killing intent flooded the room, making the occupant sweat, "Properly. Don't let me discover you are ruling it dishonestly. I want to see a clear improvement in the future."

And with that she walked away, the killing intent in the air dissipating.

It was then the various clan heads paled as they understood that they might have screwed up with the contract more than they dared to admit. After all... 'She just dumped all the work on us, didn't she?' Many of them realized. Worse yet, 'What's the point of being in politics if we can't even use it to better our clans!?'

Alas, they were already far behind the point of no return.

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Chapter 220 - Ch220. Start of a beautiful vacation...

"Ah, finally peace and quiet!" Rei exclaimed while enjoying the water in his indoor pool in the mansion in his dimension. He really couldn't stop praising himself for installing one of the Spring Generators in his dimension, enabling him to change the weather at will. Thanks to that, he could have anything from white-covered snowy fields to tropical heats.

"It's not as if you did anything substantial. As far as I know, it was Ringo who did the heavy lifting." Pakura who sat in his l.a.p, leaning her back on his c.h.e.s.t, suddenly spoke.

"Oi... now that's just unfair." Rei dismissively drawled, not bothering to put any strength behind his words. "I negotiated and set up the entire thing. That counts, ya know?"

"I guess I can give you some brownie points for kidnapping the Fourth Mizukage." Pakura noncommittally hummed, snuggling more into Rei. "But... indeed. Finally peace and quiet." She sighed in content. "I was really happy when you gave me the responsibility to oversee our hidden village while you were away." Pakura continued, her eyes half-lidded, "You didn't choose Konan. No... you gave this responsibility to me. It really made my heart flutter." Pakura grimaced, "At least, it did before I realized just how much workload overseeing a village in the height of its development boom without shadow clones means. God, it was hell on earth." Pakura shuddered, causing Rei to snicker at her.

"That said," Rei started while gently stroking her hair, "you developed the Village on The Other Side incredibly well in the past few months. Setting up small Spring Generators in the training grounds so the ninjas can set their own training environment, hashing out the finishing touches upon the organization of our ninja ranks, creating fake misleading alliance doc.u.ments with the Uzushio in case some busy-body decided to check what exactly is going on between them and us, and my personal favorite... your initiative to set up secret forward bases in countries that don't have ninja villages. You saved me a lot of time, Pakura." Rei said and affectionately kissed the side of her neck in a show of appreciation.

"Yeah." Pakura agreed, "I couldn't really leave that project idle. Honestly, that idea of yours to set up booths where locals can issue missions and our troops can respond via teleportation seals... it was golden, it just needed some very precise but strict woman touch to improve all the imperfection. By my estimations, the project should be finished in a few months at the latest and we will have a forward base with teleportation-anchoring seals in most countries."

"I see, but... Woman touch, eh?" Rei amusedly stated, making Pakura giggle as she lifted herself from his l.a.p and turned around, straddling him while leaning into his c.h.e.s.t and letting him feel her soft b.r.e.a.s.ts.

"Yes. I would be delighted to show you what I mean." Pakura replied before her lips softly landed on Rei's, giving him no time to gather his wits as her tongue started asking for entry. He did the only thing possible in that situation and his hands quickly found their way to her bottom, from time to time eliciting soft m.o.a.ns from the woman.

Pakura and Rei made out for a few minutes, enjoying the presence of the other before they finally separated and Pakura laid her head onto Rei's shoulder, contently sighing. Rei simply let Pakura take the lead, knowing she was not one for being overly passionate or hasty. They had the entire day off so there was no need to rush anywhere.

"How is our new resident jinchuuriki settling in?" Rei asked, starting to c.a.r.e.s.s Pakura's back while from time to time stimulating her nerves by sending a flicker of his chakra into it through his fingertips.

Squirming, Pakura whinily breathed out before answering, "He is, ah, go-od." Biting her lower lip, Pakura's hands quickly found themselves around Rei's neck as she started using her wind chakra to produce an effect of a soft, exciting c.a.r.e.s.s all over Rei's body that was above the water surface.

Feeling it, Rei smirked before leaning closer towards Pakura's head on his shoulder and kissed her hair before quietly but smugly chortling into her ear, letting her know he acknowledged her attempt but it was still nothing extraordinary.

Pakura hummed, trying to sound irritated but through the electricizing flickers of Rei's chakra through her back, she really didn't manage it. Then again, she had to admit her control of Wind chakra was not yet good enough. It certainly didn't compare to what Konan could do with hers so Pakura gave up in trying to compare herself with Konan and focused on making her touch as enjoyable for Rei as she possibly could. Plus Rei had an unfair advantage since he could use his Lightning Chakra even underwater without problems while controlling her Wind Chakra was a bit tricky underwater. Yup... there was no need to compete, she grudgingly told herself.

Pouting, Pakura continued speaking about their latest free-loader, "Yagura for some reason made quick friends with Yugito. I guess it is some kind of jinchuuriki compassion or whatever." She let out in one breath before a gasp tore out of her throat when Rei reached her weak spot on her back. "La-last I heard, Yugito refused to help me with, aah, some easy and unimportant paperwork because she was helping him with s-some reforms." She shuddered.

Rei simply smiled at the working ethics of his newest sla-, ahem, worker. The guy was quite good too! Happily doing his job for him and not even knowing it.

Pakura pulled her body a bit away from Rei, looking him straight in the eyes with a small smile decorating her lips, "Enough about work. There are more... enjoyable pursuits we could do during our holiday." She purred, putting her forehead on Rei's. "After all, we do have a few days of vacation in front of us. We wouldn't want to waste them, now, would we?"

'Few days without any research or work does indeed sound nice.' Rei's eyes sparkled as he lightly kissed Pakura, starting an exchange of quick pecks between them as they both got more and more into the mood.

Rei embraced Pakura's body tighter to himself, indulgently smiling at her while his naughty hands reached towards...

The door to the indoor pool suddenly burst open and the disheveled Maki gasping for air spotted Pakura straddling Rei as they sat in the pool, both giving her a bit bewildered but also irritated looks. Not knowing if she should blush due to the situation she found her sensei in or go completely pale because of the looks her sensei is giving her, Maki decided to pretend she didn't see anything and straightened up.

"I-It's an emergency! Anko Mitarashi just reported Uchiha Itachi and ROOT starting to act strange. The Uchiha Massacre is coming!"

Rei and Pakura stared at Maki, both capable of thinking of only one thing. 'For f.u.c.ks sake, the Kirigakure war just ended and now another bothersome situation sprang up!?'

Their vacation was apparently cut short.

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Chapter 221 - Ch221. Uchiha Massacre 1

The night was dreary and the moon shined red as the blood of the members of the Uchiha clan flowed on the streets because of a silent assassin in the form of a 13 years old child. For many, even the most experienced ninjas, it would be a mind-boggling thing, one thirteen years old, who by all means should normally be with one foot out of the academy, slaughtering his entire clan.

Then again, Itachi was smart and the master of genjutsu. But most importantly, he was trusted by the people in his clan. And that... was eventually their undoing.

...

Rei. carefully hidden by the best concealment seals he could put together, watched from the treetops near the Uchiha Compound as Itachi was doing a short work of his clansmen in the eastern part of it. Rei was also very pleased with the Shadow Corps of his village. He knew he had around fifty of them and their leader, Shizuka Kaguya, hidden somewhere around, waiting for his signal to intervene, but for the love of God, he could not find their positions without using nature sensing which meant no normal ninja could discover them. This was incredibly good in Rei's eyes since this outing could be said to be the very first official mass infiltration to a hidden village by his troops. After all, Rei doubted Kumo or Tsuchi could successfully get fifty of their best in the enemy village without anyone being the wiser about it.

Konan suddenly appeared next to Rei in a silent flurry of black-colored paper and whispered, "The radicals among the Uchiha clan are dead."

Rei hummed in acknowledgment. He was not happy about it since most of these were high-ranked ninjas but he knew he couldn't have everything. "Good job, Konan. Shizuka, the Shadow Corps is free to start collecting the Uchihas." Rei ordered and instantly noted the shadows briefly flickering as the ninjas of his village got to work.

Wryly smiling, Konan spoke, "I could have them bound in paper coffins with stasis seals in under twenty minutes."

"Maybe but our ninjas need the practice." Rei nodded, knowing Konan was completely right. Her paper technique was extremely good at covert operations during the night and considering she could color her paper black and put knock-out, stasis, and teleportation seals on them... well, it could be almost called foolish to let the Shadow Corps do the job. Then again, Rei made a village so he wouldn't need to do everything himself. Maybe in a few years, he could comfortably sit in his living room while the village ran itself? Well, one could dream.

"Meh, you just want to see our ninjas work and feel proud of yourself." Konan rolled her eyes at him.

"I can't argue with that." Rei smirked. Sure, it was more of Shizuka Kaguya's achievement that the Shadow Corps were efficient and well trained but... unimportant details.

Konan chuckled, correctly deducing Rei's train of thoughts, and decided to change the topic, "Shall we go? Itachi and this self-proclaimed Madara are still massacring our would-be kidnapping victims."

"Yeah... I guess it would be prudent to put a stop to that endeavor. Honestly, there is no courtesy amongst thieves in this world." Rei dramatically sighed and stood up.

Soon, both were on their way to intercept their respective targets.

...

Izumi Uchiha desperately ran for her life as her heart thumped wildly in her c.h.e.s.t. She was confused and frightened, not understanding what was happening despite her fully m.a.t.u.r.ed Sharingan coloring her eyes red. The only thing she understood was that...

It was really just sheer luck she spotted a small flicker in her peripheral vision and turned towards it which allowed her to notice her assailant in time, making her able to dodge the attack. Izumi quickly understood the hooded man in black clothing was far above her paygrade. As such, she did the logical thing and turned tail as if her life depended on it.

As she ran through the Uchiha compound, Izumi could notice a few instances where Uchiha ninjas tried to resist but they were quickly and most importantly, SILENTLY taken down before they could alert other clansmen. From what she briefly noticed, their attackers played dirty, never really going one versus one against her clansmen and usually attacked from the back.

Izumi contemplated using Fire Release: Great Fireball to give others at least an inkling that something is wrong but every time she slowed down in preparation for the Jutsu, a chill ran through her spine which made her forsake her plans and run even faster through the shadow-covered night.

'How? We are in Konoha! Who could attack our clan? We are supposed to be safe here!' She frantically thought as she quickly ducked into a side-alley as her eyes spotted shadows flicker before Tadako Uchiha, her former classmate from the academy, suddenly fell backward as if she was paralyzed. It completely scared her out of her mind. She had her Sharingan activated! She should be able to see clearly even in the dark! And yet she simply failed to notice the attacker through the veil of night!

Disbelief, shock, confusion, and hopeless desperation filled the mind of the recently promoted chunin. She wanted nothing more than to get out of there alive. She wanted nothing more than to reach the house of her grandma and make sure she was fine. She wanted...

Izumi finally ran out of the side alley into the street near her grandmother's house before the sight in front of her made her freeze in her tracks. In front of her stood her budding crush, Uchiha Itachi, clad in his ANBU gear and holding a katana with blood-stains on it.

'Ita...chi?' Izumi, in utter disbelief, slowly moved her sight towards the opened door to the house of her grandma, the woman who raised and cared for her after she lost her parents. What really made her rooted in her spot, however, was the body of her beloved grandmother on the porch in the puddle of her own blood. 'No... Itachi wouldn't! No! Not my grandma!' Tears started streaming down Izumi's cheeks as she fell to her knees. It was then, Izumi really understood why Sharingan was deemed to be a curse.

The smallest signs of guilt on Itachi's cold face. The droplets of blood falling onto the ground from his katana. The unrelenting and ruthless yet sorrowful look in his eyes as he looked at her. His posture that told a story in itself...

No... no matter what Izumi wanted to tell herself, her Sharingan mercilessly gathered all information for her and made the scene burn into her mind with complete clarity. The boy she dated... loved, killed the most precious person to her.

"I am sorry Izumi. It was necessary." Itachi evenly said, taking a step towards her. "I didn't want you to witness this." He said sadly, "I at least wanted to give you a fulfilling life before sending you off."

Grief, betrayal, pain... hatred, as if something broke within her as she dearly wished what she saw was just an illusion. As the raw emotions filled her head to the point it felt painful... her eyes morphed.

Itachi only managed to widen his Mangekyo Sharingan as two voices reverberated through the street, one in disbelief and another in grief, "Tsukuyomi!"

The standing Itachi and the kneeling Izumi absently stared at each other for three seconds before Izumi fell head-first onto the ground, unconscious as tears of blood wet her cheeks while Itachi staggered backward, still in utter disbelief as his hand subconsciously reached towards his head due to the sudden headache.

'She almost fought me off right after awakening her Mangekyo?' Itachi thought with wide eyes, gulping for air as a small tinge of jealousy made itself known in the back of his mind at what Izumi Uchiha just accomplished. He quickly squashed that thought though. He knew Izumi was extraordinary but this... He wasn't even able to implant the illusion of a happy lifetime into her mind with her own Mangekyo so ferociously fighting his. Yes, letting Izumi see the corpse of her grandmother was certainly a mistake.

"Such a pity." Itachi whispered before sighing and started walking towards the unconscious form of Izumi. "I am so sorry." He prepared to stab his katana into her when suddenly a bored and leisure voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Eh... don't worry. She will get better."

Itachi's head whipped in the direction of the voice, only to see a smug-looking blond man assessing him, no... Izumi as if she was a particularly interesting research project.

"I think," The man started talking again, his lips stretching into an excited grin. "I just found a girl I really, really want to kidnap."

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Chapter 222 - Ch222. Uchiha Massacre 2

Rei stood and waited for the thirteen years old Uchiha kid to finally comprehend that someone not of the Uchiha clan just caught him slaughtering the Uchiha clan in the Uchiha district after he was reassured by the Konoha higher-ups that no non-Uchiha will be present for the so-called Uchiha Massacre. Rei had to admit, Itachi really froze in a totally Uchiha-like way.

It didn't take even two seconds but Rei recognized that Itachi was already over his shock and on guard. It wasn't his expression. Far from it. His face stayed cold and expressionless despite the boy's shock. So much that Rei was sure Danzo would praise the boy to the high heavens in his heart. No, it was the small, almost unnoticeable twitch of Itachi's fingers gripping the handle of his katana that gave him away.

"Who are you?" Itachi coolly asked, the only sign of his unnerved state being his tight grip on his weapon.

"Does it really matter? All members of the Uchiha clan who wanted to rebel are dead except your father. I am here simply because I don't want to see the Uchiha clan dead because some albeit skilled but still foolish prepubescent child decided to listen to barmy old men's idiocy." Rei dryly said. He meant every word too. He simply omitted that his vision of the Uchiha clan's survival meant removing them from Konoha for good.

In fact, there was no way Konoha could slaughter every single Uchiha even if they rebelled. First, they were a founding clan and had an important bloodline. Second, there were a lot of non-combatants and killing those would create a very dangerous situation for Konoha once the Daimyo heard of it. Third, with its reputation, Konoha could not afford to seem like a village that executed innocents and there were a lot of innocent Uchiha ninjas who knew nothing about the rebellion.

In short, Itachi was simply the naive but too-skilled-for-his-own-good kid who got manipulated by empty threats into doing the deed for a hateful old man who couldn't do it himself without causing a lot of problems for Konoha.

Sad… really.

Rei watched as Itachi started considering what he told him. Itachi's eyes first showed surprise before a small flicker of hope shined between the cracks but was quickly squashed. Itachi's gaze lingered on Rei and slowly, the emotions within halted, only a deep cold determination remained as Itachi made his decision and his eyes narrowed.

'So... this is the way this event will ensue, eh?' Rei thought in amus.e.m.e.nt, slowly unsheathing his sword. It was all too obvious the boy decided to kill him first, ask questions later. 'Ah, well. I did want to test him, didn't I?'

Itachi only narrowed his eyes further, this time in wariness as he realized Rei's gesture of unsheathing his weapon was simply telling him that his opponent could read him despite the extensive body language control training. At first, he wanted to end it in one fast surprise strike but that was now impossible.

Suddenly springing into action from his semi-relaxed stance, Itachi slashed at Rei in a wide arc, aiming for his neck, causing him to block the slash with his own sword. Itachi expected this and slightly crouched down, pushing his sword a bit away from his body, which also pushed Rei's sword away since they were locked in a clash, and then Itachi's free hand struck at Rei's ribcage, easily grasping a kunai which flew into it mid-swing from Itachi's sleeve.

As he sidestepped the kunai and forced Itachi to retreat due to an attempt at striking his chin, Rei had to admit the kid had skill. From this single exchange, Rei understood Itachi's preferred way of handling things. Misdirection and precise quick strikes to vital areas seemed to be the crux of Itachi's style.

Itachi watched the blond man in front of him with a small frown on his lips. He didn't like this initial exchange at all. Naturally, he didn't expect to kill a warry opponent with one strike. That said, he definitely didn't expect the man shrugging off his illusions.

Itachi always had to rely on precision and timing to breach the distance between him and a.d.u.l.t ninjas. When he first attacked his opponent, he used his Sharingan to make his actions seem a bit delayed from his foe's perspective. He also cast it at the last possible moment. It should have either made his opponent delay the block enough to allow Itachi's sword a clear passage towards its target or it should make his opponent need at least a split of a second to dispel it, giving Itachi much needed time to perform his follow up before his opponent could even realize it. And even then, he actually cast another illusion when he was about to strike with the kunai. One that made his strike seem aimed at the gut, rather than ribcage, two targets close enough that he could simply deviate his arm a bit from the previous trajectory so the illusions would be hard to spot in a reasonable timeframe, much less counter. With his timing, it should have been downright impossible to have time for dispelling the illusion.

Hence, Itachi would have understood if his enemy jumped back. But the blond man simply shrugged both illusions off as if they didn't exist! He did that while looking straight into his Sharingan the entire time! This combo worked against most jonins when they were c.o.c.ky enough to underestimate him and didn't dodge. Even then most were smart enough to try avoiding his eyes. To think someone could counter him while looking straight into his Mangekyo that had an even better effect for enhancing illusions than three tomoe Sharingan...

Needless to say, Itachi instantly understood just how outmatched he currently was since his strongest skill, his illusions, and his biggest advantage, his frightening timing and precision, were easily countered.

'Nevertheless, it doesn't seem as if the man took me seriously. Is he simply testing me? To what end?' Itachi analyzed when he saw his opponent not moving from his spot, simply waiting for him to do his next attack. 'Stalling? No... Fine,' He sighed, 'I guess there is no other choice.'

Itachi crouched in preparation for an attack... Honestly, he started feeling a bit of respect for his foe. If only because not for a second did their eyes separate during the fight. 'Let's see how you will react to...'

Casting three illusions on his enemy, Itachi turned around and ran away as fast as he could, bolting into a side alley to make it even harder for Rei to follow.

Rei blinked at the silent, dark, and empty street where only he and the unconscious form of Izumi were left as a chilly breeze mockingly swept through it... It took his brain three seconds to reboot enough to realize what happened before he chuckled in amazement.

"The kid actually ran?" Rei rubbed his forehead with his hand but his lips refused to stop smiling, "No wonder he went places. He quickly assessed there is no way to win and retreated. Smart kid, I guess." Rei amusedly shrugged.

Honestly, he felt a bit cheated but he had to give praise where it was due. Most ninjas Rei met so far in his long career were total crazed idiots not capable of correctly assessing their enemies from a brief controlled exchange. Most would at least try to fight, hoping for him to make a mistake they could capitalize on. The problem with that was that during the said process, they usually got injured enough that retreating suddenly stopped being such a viable alternative.

As such, Rei could respect Itachi for briefly testing waters and then retreating when he realized that this is not really a fight he is capable of fighting. The only thing Itachi could really do was another Tsukuyomi since that could be called cheating in the ninja world.

'Then again, if he did that and I broke free out of it, which from Itachi's point of view was most likely a slight possibility since I could shrug off his Sharingan illusions, he would be done for.' Rei thought. He knew that Itachi was not yet his older Akatsuki self. The kid was thirteen! Rei actually felt a bit like a bully, facing him. Moreover, casting one Tsukuyomi to protect himself from Izumi's Tsukuyomi should have been quite hard for Itachi. Another Tsukuyomi shortly after that would probably take him out of the fight, no matter if his enemy resisted or not. Yeah, he could really respect Itachi's call to retreat.

Shaking his head, Rei put Izumi's body on his shoulder and created a shadow clone that took the corpse of Izumi's grandmother. It was time to go.

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Chapter 223 - Ch223. Uchiha Massacre 3

Konan materialized right in front of Obito who was finishing off an Uchiha chuunin with a stab straight through his heart.

Obito slowly blinked and tilted his head, trying to comprehend where the heck did all that paper appear from and who was the woman in front of him. Honestly, he was confused as heck. "Er... Tobi is a good boy?" He weakly tried as the body of the chuunin fell lifelessly onto the ground.

"Obviously." Konan patronizingly nodded but her tone was totally sarcastic as her eyes glanced at the dead Uchiha between them.

It didn't take Obito long to realize that something went horribly wrong with this straightforward operation. As such, he decided that useless banter was unnecessary and quickly sprang into an attack.

Crossing the distance between himself and the patiently waiting woman, Obito lashed out with a kunai and gleefully watched as Konan tried to parry, only for her kunai to pass through him. To Obito's surprise, the only sight of shock on Konan's face was an almost pleased widening of her eyes. He didn't have a long time to see her expression though and even less to contemplate it. He quickly passed through her body in his intangible state and the second he finally separated from her, he quickly spun on his heel and plunged his kunai deeply into her upper back, aiming straight for the heart.

Obito watched his kunai enter Konan as brief satisfaction filled him and thoughts of continuing with his mission sprang up in his head. It was only the sheer primal instinct honed for years of preparation to fight against the fabled Yellow Flash that caused Obito to rapidly let go of the kunai embedded in Konan's back and switch into his intangible state just as the Konan in front of him burst into paper slips and a very sharp tip of folded tessen suddenly poked out from his c.h.e.s.t, causing him to numbly stare at it.

'That would go straight through my heart.' He realized how close to death he came as cold sweat drenched his forehead. 'I didn't even realize when she got behind me!' He slightly inclined his head to the side and instantly saw Konan standing there, lazily holding the fan still stabbed through his intangible form while she was wearing an amused expression with one of her brows mockingly lifted upwards.

It was an expression that reminded Obito of Kakashi's condescension in his early years and for some reason, when he saw it on the deadly bluenette, it really irked him somewhat fiercely. Gritting his teeth, Obito spun his body in a burst of speed and sprang again towards Konan, aiming to engage her in hand-to-hand combat as that would provide him the most advantage considering his intangibility.

His fist neared the calm Konan and Obito expected her to block. That's why he was very surprised when she didn't react at all and his fist burrowed into her c.h.e.s.t all the way to the middle of his forearm. That's why he was even more surprised when Konan's body let out a small hiss as she briefly glowed orange before a resounding boom shook the street as numerous explosive tags in the paper clone reduced everything in their proximity to ash.

"That almost got me." Obito murmured as he appeared a few feet from the small, newly-made crater in the middle of the street, holding his right arm that sported nasty burns through the tattered sleeve. He only barely managed to switch with a clone but the explosion still somewhat got him. His arm was half-buried in the paper clone and therefore his intangibility was useless at that moment.

"Obviously." Konan's leisure voice sounded from the crater and Obito, much to his shame, actually gaped for a second as she stepped out from the smoking crater, as fresh as daisies, ready for the second round.

Quickly pulling himself together, Obito reassessed the threat the woman posed to him. Frankly, there were not many people he feared but the bluenette in front of him was doing quite a good job at making it into his personal 'don't cross' list all the while looking almost sinfully bored. Obito shuddered.

'She clearly knows how to counter my Mangekyo. I have to be careful in further confrontation.' He thought and decided to attack again.

For the next thirty minutes, Konan and Obito fought back and forth, playing an odd game of cat and mouse with their roles reversing after every strike. When Obito struck, Konan's figure burst into paper and Obito usually found himself skewered from behind as new Konan always appeared there, no matter how prepared for it he was. It was supremely irritating, in his humble opinion. When Konan struck, Obito simply relied on his intangibility to both avoid damage and get an opportunity to strike back. Now that he was extremely cautious, his opponent was clearly having as much difficulty landing a meaningful attack as he was since he was under the intangibility most of the time. Now if only he knew why the bluenette had such an amused and smug smile plastered on her face...

Obito slashed his kunai through Konan's neck, not at all surprised when his target burst into paper. He was already in the process of spinning around, expecting new Konan to appear from behind... only for his instincts to mockingly scream DODGE at him, causing him to jump away just as the thrice-damned tessen of Konan passed the spot his neck was just a second ago.

Obito's eyes widened as he slid to halt when he noticed that the Konan whose throat he slit was still there, her slit throat made of slips of paper, clearly not injured at all as her throat reformed in matters of seconds.

'So... not only she can burst into paper and appear behind me, now she can even disregard lethal damage by turning into paper? Isn't this just plain cheating!?' Complained the sole ninja who could go intangible at will without any significant restriction.

That singular lapse in judgment was enough for Konan, however.

A sharp pain suddenly erupted from Obito's c.h.e.s.t as blood burst from his mouth. He could only briefly note that he was alive because he subconsciously leaned his body to the right and as such, the spike made of paper missed his heart. He fell on one knee, gritting his teeth at the satisfied expression of his opponent. "How?" He rasped in disbelief that he was caught off guard.

"I counted... Obviously." Konan snorted and rolled her eyes at the wide eyes of Obito. Inwardly, however, Konan was a bit sullen that she couldn't make the paper spike from exploding tags. Unfortunately for her, during the fight, she found out that Obito was far too s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to chakra and had almost inhuman instincts so she was severely limited in her offensive means. That's why she didn't even bother using wind chakra in the clash. With her opponent's chakra-sensing ability, it would be a waste of chakra.

'Counte-, SHIT!' Obito mentally cursed and spat the blood that pooled in his mouth as he realized with no small amount of horror the woman in front of him somehow grasped the limit of his intangibility in their short fight. Suddenly, something clicked in his mind and he couldn't help but shudder. 'So that's why she fought with me for the last thirty minutes! She was trying to gauge the limits of my abilities!' Obito wanted to berate himself for his carelessness. The limit of his Mangekyo Sharingan was the only weakness he had considering he wasn't losing his eyesight thanks to the Hashirama cells implanted in him. To think somebody would so easily deduce it during a fight!

Yes, the woman in front of him was definitely getting on his 'feared' list.

Grimacing, he curiously looked at the dangerous bluenette in front of him and asked, "Aren't you going to finish me?"

Konan pointedly looked at him as if he was a total idiot. "You would just go intangible again."

"Fair enough." Obito painfully chuckled. In fact, he was very happy he decided to keep some of his abilities secret and didn't use his mokuton in the fight because he was half-suspicious the woman in front of him would pull out some unexplainable shit… again. He half-expected to be turned into paper at this rate. But… that was delusional even for him. right?

In fact, Konan still tried to control the paper spike skewing his c.h.e.s.t but the chakra Obito was pushing into it was causing quite an interference. He definitely knew what he was doing, she mused.

"Well, Tobi had enough! You are not a good girl! You cheating piece of… ahem." Obito slipped into his cheerful persona, not minding the winces he did mid-speech before he went serious again, "Next time we meet, I will be prepared." And with that, he disappeared in a swirl, making Konan chuckle at the empty threat.

"Such a drama queen..."

Chapter 224 - Ch224. Uchiha massacre 4

Rei gave the unconscious Izumi and the corpse of her grandmother to the members of his Shadow Corps and they quickly set to work, pulling out a scroll with two corpses of bandits. The members of Shadow Corps then drew a bit of blood from both Izumi and her grandmother's corpse and used a special sealing technique that would mimic the appearance of the person keyed to the blood seal.

It didn't take even two minutes for the Shadow Corps members to produce two flawless replicas of both Izumi and her grandmother's corpse. Naturally, both came with the added bonus of having their eyes damaged so nobody could find out these replicas were not Uchiha corpses. Rei really wondered how Danzo would react to that little surprise.

It would take blood tests to find out these bodies do not belong to the members of the Uchiha clan. Alas, the last component the Shadow Corps added to these replicas of the Uchiha members' corpses was a special creation of Tsunade that completely dissolved an injected body precisely six hours after the administration. It was a pity it only worked on dead bodies but for the current situation, it was golden.

It wouldn't take long for the 'massacre' to be discovered. After that, it will most likely take at least two hours to clean up and transfer the bodies into a morgue or, in case of the bodies taken by Root, wherever Danzo would order his cronies to bring them. Rei completely banked on the chaos effect such an event will have on the village. He believed nobody would immediately go and draw blood samples for tests since the corpses will be found in the Uchiha compound and will look like the Uchiha clan members. By the time somebody decided to take blood samples... the bodies would be long ago dissolved.

Even if somebody did take the blood samples of one or two bodies in a timely manner, it wouldn't matter much as there will be no actual proof of any kind of foul play. At least, nothing that could be factually proven. At best, there would be some unclean speculations that could easily be written as non-Uchiha visiting the compound during the fateful night.

As for the dissolution of bodies... Rei was fully intending to let Konoha make their own assumptions. His bet? He believed Konoha higher-ups would simply write it off as a secret way of the Uchiha clan to prevent their bodies from falling into the hands of Konoha. After all, they did plan a rebellion in a few days so having a way to prevent such a thing would be sensible. Considering the Uchiha clan liked to burn their deceased... it wouldn't be such a stretch.

Naturally, it didn't really matter to Rei if the Konoha higher-ups assumed as such or if they came with their own theory. He didn't intend to leave any proof that someone not from Konoha intervened.

Done with replicating the bodies, Rei watched as Izumi's body was put into stasis before being sealed into a prisoner scroll while the corpse of her grandmother was put into a storage scroll.

"And they thought me mad when I said we are going to relocate most of the Uchiha clan overnight." Rei snorted as he remembered the expression of his Shadow Corps commander, Shizuka Kaguya, and many more division leaders of his village when he told them about the goal of this mission.

Infiltrating Konoha with fifty ninjas was one thing... stealing the entirety of the Uchiha clan without leaving any proof and putting the blame on the back of Itachi Uchiha was quite another kind of crazy.

"And yet... here we are." Rei heard Konan's voice from behind and smirked.

"Indeed, dear, indeed. Well, nobody said it would be a voluntary relocation." Rei shrugged, "I assume you were satisfied with your... outing?" He turned towards Konan before putting his hand around her shoulder, letting her snuggle into him as they watched their ninjas do their job while the duo simply lazed around. After all, there were certain advantages to being the leaders.

"I must confess, I had no idea what you meant when you said I should go and 'play' with the stronger one." Konan sighed, "To think you just wanted me to experience how you feel when you fight against me..." She shook her head in exasperation. "But yes, I now see how fighting against somebody almost impossible to hit could be frustrating."

Rei heard her indifferent tone but deep inside of it, he noticed a slight undertone of annoyance. Reassuringly putting his hand onto Konan's head, c.a.r.e.s.sing her hair, he coaxed, "I simply wanted you to gain inspiration. You are already almost impossible to hit without highly destructive area of effect attacks. The guy you fought though? He could easily survive those. Sure, he had other weaknesses but still!" Rei explained. 'No way am I admitting I simply wanted her to know how frustrating it is fighting against her.'

"Right…" Konan good-naturedly rolled her eyes at him, not believing him but decided to change the topic. "How was our little scapegoat? You wanted to test him yourself. Was he any good?"

"Oh, Itachi? Well, he was certainly a sensible kid. Retreated when he realized he doesn't have a chance and is quite disadvantaged. To be honest, he was impressive for a thirteen-year-old kid. We had only one exchange and yet, it was very informative about his preferences and style." Rei hummed before pausing slightly in order to recollect his thoughts. "I think... he was a bit hyped up in rumors though. He is a technical fighter who depends on precision, subtlety, and speed. Considering he is a kid, it is smart he decided to develop speed and dexterity rather than strength. Again, considering his age, there is no wonder he decided to go the route of the genjutsu user since it takes the least amount of chakra but requires incredible control. Rather than being a prodigy, he is simply having something called common sense and a usable brain. Since he couldn't become a ninjutsu-heavy fighter because of his kiddy reserves or depend on his body strength, he decided to develop in a way where his young age would not be detrimental. I will be putting together a file for him after we get back home and you can get a better picture. But yeah, he will be a good scapegoat. I doubt Konoha will catch him anytime soon." Rei shrugged.

Konan giggled. "Poor guy. He kinda deserves it too though. Choosing to slaughter his own blood when he could simply ask the Daimyo for help." She snorted.

"Eh, you know these political moves are not widely known. He probably didn't even realize there IS a Daimyo. Most ninjas don't after being brainwashed by this fabled Will of Fire." Rei snarked. "Well… their loss, our gain."

It was then Shizuka Kaguya approached the duo, "We are finished, Rei-sama, Konan-sama."

"Results?" Konan asked, quickly snapping into her serious mode.

"We packed the clan library, money, and valuables. We substituted every corpse or living Uchiha with replicas, and made sure to erase every clue about our presence here tonight. Uchiha Itachi was let through as instructed but he managed to kill his parents before escaping. As for the Uchiha clan members... we are only missing the youngest son of the Clan Head, Uchiha Sasuke."

Konan and Rei looked at each other at that. Neither expected any Uchiha missing. The only way he could not be accounted for is if he was not present in the Uchiha compound. Rei could only wryly smile as a decision had to be made.

"I guess that's all we can do for tonight." He said, more for Konan rather than Shizuka.

"Yeah... better forget the kid. Konoha will take care of him. We can't afford to be discovered just because he decided to not be present for his execution." Konan said, amused. Sure, she and Rei probably could take Konoha on but their Shadow Corps would be obliterated if they tried to fight. Fifty-two versus the entire village were not good odds. Not at all.

"Okay, Shizuka. Good job. Give the order for retreat." Rei ordered before smiling mischievously at Konan, "Well, I for one am very curious how Ringo fared on her little assignment."

Remembering what Rei made Ringo do... Konan suddenly found herself in a fit of unstoppable giggles.

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