Naruto SI: Kaito Red Lightnin Chapter 157
His thoughts were interrupted as he saw Mangetsu retreatinghe fled toward the forest. and Yagura was right behind him.
"I need to save him." Kaito said as he flickered off the tree
Kaito appeared at the scene in an instant.
Mangetsu was barely standing, gripping his severed arm, his face twisted in pain.
Yagura stood atop a tree, his Bijū cloak pulsing, the chakra swirling violently as he began shifting into Version 2.
Without a second thought, Kaito—still in his Kiri shinobi disguise—appeared in front of Yagura.
Before the Mizukage could react, Kaito's foot crashed into his jaw with immense force, sending Yagura flying backwardthrough the air.
His leg was wrapped in chakra chains, hidden under a genjutsu to prevent recognition of the Uzumaki technique.
The moment Yagura was sent flying, Kaito Body Flickered and vanished.
He reappeared beside Mangetsu, who barely had time to react before Kaito placed a hand on his shoulder—
And teleported them out of there.
Yagura charged into the clearing, his V2 cloak flickering violentlyas his eyes scanned the surroundings.
But there was no signof his opponent.
His chakra slowly powered down, the burning cloak dissipating as he rubbed his jaw, still feeling the force of the hit.
Frowning, Yagura muttered to himself, "Who was that?"
…
In a snow-covered clearing, a tri-pronged kunaistood alone in the center, half-buried in the frost. The moonlight hung over the forest, casting an eerie glow across the silent landscape.
Just then, Kaito—still in his Kiri shinobi disguise—appeared beside the with him were around twenty unconscious people, including babies, all carefully wrapped and suspended in chakra chains, carried gently through the air.
A second Kaito cloneappeared, carrying more people. Then another. One after another, clone after cloneflickered into the clearing, each bringing more and more rescued civilians, their numbers growing by the second.
As the last few clones arrived, a silence settledover the clearing, broken only by the soft whistling of the cold wind.
One of the Kaito clonessighed, crossing his arms. "So now what? We can't just drop them in the snow and leave, ya know."
Another clone nodded, looking down at a small bundled babyfloating in his chakra chains. "Yeah… there are babies here, ya know."
A third clone, standing beside them, scratched the back of his head. "Yeah… we really didn't think this through, huh."
Another clone shook his head. "We couldn't just leave them to die, ya know."
One of the clones rubbed his chin, thinking. "We could take them to a town nearby."
Clone 14 gave him a blank stare and replied flatly, "And then what? They'd just be hunted down and killed."
Clone 12 nodded in agreement. "The Land of Water isn't safe for them."
Clone 3 frowned, deep in thought. "Plus, Orochimaru is lurking around."
Clone 9 spoke up. "We can take them back to Konoha, ya know."
Clone 4 chuckled. "Lady Tsunade's reaction would be really funny if we suddenly showed up with a bunch of Kiri clan members."
Clone 2 shook his head. "Be serious. We can't take them all to Konoha unless they're willing to go. We can't just force them to join, ya know. And think about global politics—if Konoha started taking in Kiri clans, it might just spark a war."
One of the clones, gently cradling a Yuki clan baby, spoke up while stroking the child's cheek. "We could take the Yuki clan members. They were treated poorly in the Mist, so they might be open to the idea of living in Konoha as long as they're treated well. Most of them are civilians and children… there are only sixty of them. We could just say they came seeking refuge."
He glanced over the Yuki clan membersand noticed their ragged clothes—worn, torn, barely fit for the cold. His grip on the baby tightened slightly.
"They deserve better. ya know"
Among them were thirty small children, around the ages of three to five, twenty-two women, ranging from twenty to forty-five, and fourteen babies. The women looked frail and weak, their bodies worn down from years of mistreatment.
The other clansthey had rescued had around one hundred Genin each, since their Genin were kept out of the coup battle. There were fifteen Chūnin per clan, all of whom had been guarding the civilians. Among the non-combatants, there were about a hundred children, also between the ages of three to five, along with forty to fifty women, ranging from nineteen to forty years old. The clans also had ten to fifteen eldersamong them.
Clone 11 spoke up. "We could take them all to the Land of Teaor one of the other neutral countries."
Clone 5 shook his head. "I doubt they'd want to stay there, especially the Terumiand Hōzukiclans. And even if they did, if word got out that members of their clans were hiding there, the Raikagewouldn't just let them be. He'd force them into Kumo, turn them into Jōninand—" he grimaced, "—breeding stock." His expression darkened. "And let's not forget Danzo. He'd kill off the adults and recruit the kids into Root."
Clone 1 rubbed his face in frustration. "This is a mess. You know what the best part is? The boss doesn't even know what we did yet."
Clone 7 sighed. "Whatever we do, we need to decide soon, or they might freeze to death."
Clone 14 let out a breath. "One of us has to dispel ourselvesand inform the boss."
Everyone nodded. Clone 6 carefully transferred the unconscious people he was carrying to the others, ensuring they were all secured. Once everyone was safely handed off, he dispelled himselfin a puff of smoke.
Clone 13 shrugged. "Well, all we can do now is wait."
Just then, the lead clonearrived in the field—with someone in tow.
Clone 5 threw his hands in the airand groaned. "Oh, come on!"
…
In a snow-covered town, the streets were illuminated by softly glowing lanternsas people went about their daily lives.
Inside a yakiniku shop, Kaito sat in a booth alongside Hotaru, Haku, Kimimaro, and Guren. The warmth of the restaurant contrasted with the cold outside, the scent of sizzling meat filling the air.
A serving ladyapproached their table, carefully placing their order down. "Here you go," she said with a polite smile.
Hotaru noddedand said, "Thank you. Come on, everyone, let's eat!" She clapped her hands together, eager to start.
Haku looked at the grill, then at Kaito. "Umm… so we just place the meat on the grill and eat it?"
Kaito nodded. "Yeah, just wait for it to cook, then you can eat."
Hotaru smiled. "Here, let me make them for you three." She placed some pieces of thinly sliced meatonto the hot grill, the sizzling sound filling the booth.
Kimimaro watched curiously as Hotaru flipped the meat and asked, "Why are you flipping them?"
Hotaru glanced at him and replied, "To cook the other side."
Once the meat was done, Hotaru placed a piece onto their plates. "Here, try it."
Guren poked the meat with her chopsticks, her expression uncertain. "Is it cooked?"
Kaito nodded. "Yeah, it's cut thin, so it cooks fast. Go on, try it."
Haku clasped his hands. "Thank you for the food," he said before picking up a piece with his chopsticks and eating it. His eyes brightenedas he hummed in satisfaction. "It's good."
Kimimaro silently took a piece and ate it without saying anything, his face neutral as he chewed.
Guren, seeing the others eating, took a small nibble, still skeptical.
Hotaru leaned in slightly, watching her. "So? How is it?"
Guren nodded. "It's good."
Hotaru smiled. "You can eat it with rice or wrap it in lettuce leaves too."
Kaito took a piece of meat, bringing his chopsticks to his mouth—
Then suddenly froze mid-bite, his eyes widening in shock.
Hotaru immediately noticed and, using the communication seal, asked, "Kai-kun, what happened?"
Kaito internally groanedbefore responding through the seal. "I have to take care of something. You guys finish up, and when I come back, we're leaving."
Hotaru's face turned serious, but she simply nodded. "Just be careful."
Kaito quickly stood up and sighed. "Oh, shit, I forgot to buy something. I need to get to the shop before they close," he said, making an excuse.
Hotaru nodded. "Oh, okay. Be back soon."
Kaito gave her a quick nod before rushing out of the shop.
Kaito slipped into an alleyway, making sure no one was following him.
He let out a frustrated groan. "Stupid clones," he muttered before channeling chakrainto his communication seal, trying to contact Kakashi—but there was no response.
He sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. 'Why isn't Kakashi answering?'
Taking a deep breath, Kaito muttered to himself, "Okay, I need to calm down and think."Closing his eyes, he steadied his breathing.
"I can't blame them. I would have done the same thing…. Now what should I do?"
Just then, another wave of memoriesfrom his clonesflooded into his mind.
Kaito sighed, already knowing this was going to be a created a shadow clone, and both of them teleported away using Hiraishin.
…
Back in the clearing, Mangetsuinstinctively jumped backthe moment he arrived. His eyes darted around, scanning his surroundings.
The Kaito clonewho had brought him there dispelled, sending all its memories to the original.
As Mangetsu took in the surroundings his eyes widened. Dozens of Kiri shinobistood before him—no, not shinobi. all wore disguises, and from their backs, golden chakra chains extended, restraining unconscious recognized his brother, his Hōzuki clan members, and among them, the Terumi and Yuki clans.
His gaze landed on Mei Terumi, knocked out among them.
Then his eyes snapped to the chakra chains. His expression hardenedas recognition hit him.
"Those chains… Uzumaki."
Just then, the original Kaito arrived, landing right beside the Hiraishin markerin the clearing.
Mangetsu immediately pointed Hiramekareiat the group, his stance aggressive. "What do you think you're doing, Uzumaki?" His voice was sharp, demanding answers.
Kaito sighed, barely sparing him a glance as he looked over the scene. "What does it look like? I saved your ass from getting killed."
Mangetsu's arm reformed, the water-like consistency still unsteadyfrom his earlier injury. He clutched his sword with both hands, eyes narrowing further. "Why are you in the Land of Water? And why the hell do you have themhere? Explain."
Kaito exhaled, rolling his shoulders lazily. "Relax, would you? I'd rather not explain this twice."
He turned just in time to see Mei Terumi stirring.
She groaned, rubbing her head as she blinked herself awake. The last thing she remembered—the genjutsu, the sealing technique, and that Kiri shinobi…
Her eyes snapped open fully, shinobi instincts kicking in instantly. She took in her surroundings, her breath sharpeningas she immediately righted herself into a defensive stance.
The Kaito clonekeeping her restrained released her from the chakra chains. The moment she was free, she jumped away, distancing herself from the group.
The Kaito clonereleased Mei from the chakra chains. The moment she was free, she jumped back, eyes scanning the surroundings frantically.
"What did you do?! Where are we?!" she demanded.
Kaito sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Would you bothcalm down?" His tone remained calm but firm. "As for where we are—this is one of the smaller islands near the Land of Water. And as for whywe're here? I saved you all from getting wiped out."
Mei's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by 'saved us'?"
Then her eyes widened, as a terrifying thought hit her. "You said Yagura knewabout the coup d'état?"
Kaito noddedbefore glancing at Mangetsu. "As you might've noticed by now, Yagura was expecting it."
Mangetsu's expression darkened. Lowering his sword slightly, he nodded. "He was waiting for us… It was a trap."
Kaito crossed his arms. "Exactly. As for why I'm here, it's part of a mission—I was sent to assess the situation in the Land of Water. While gathering intel, I witnessed the Kaguya clan incident. I didn't think the Mizukage would wipe out the entire clan, but he did… and I knew that if I didn't do anything, many more lives would be lost."
Mangetsu's eyes narrowed again. "Why would you risk a war just to help us? How do we know you weren't the one who informed the Mizukage?"
Kaito shrugged. "I couldn't let literal childrendie, just because they're from another village. If I wanted to betray you, I could've just let Yagura kill you and taken the kids back to Konohamyself."
Mei's gaze sharpened. "Then why didn't you warn us beforethe coup?"
Kaito raised an eyebrow. "And risk a full-scale warbetween Konoha and Kiri? Or worse, be labeled a rogue shinobi? Even if I had told you, would you have even believed me?"
Mangetsu looked at the restrained civilians and gestured to them. "Then why haven't you let them down yet?"
Kaito smirked slightly, raising an eyebrow. "And what? Drop them in the snow?"
Mei sighed, rubbing her head. "If Yagura planned this whole thing, then we just gave him a reason to exterminate the clans."
Kaito's expression turned seriousas he crossed his arms. "There's anotherthing you both should know."
Mei looked at him cautiously. "What?"
"The Mizukage isn't himself," Kaito said firmly. "He's being controlled."
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