I'm Screwed, I'm Surrounded by Kirigakure!

"Those are the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains!"

The Masked Man, watching from the shadows, suddenly cried out in disbelief. Obito Uchiha had seen his master's wife use that powerful Ninjutsu to subdue the Nine-Tails at close range on the Night of the Nine-Tails. He was sure he couldn't have mistaken it!

"Whoa! Red hair! Is that kid from the same clan as Nagato?" White Zetsu let out an exaggerated cry as well.

"He managed to beat the Three-Tails at his age. Even you couldn't have done that, right, Obito?"

As the idiot White Zetsu stared intently at him, Obito Uchiha recalled that he'd still been the Ninja Academy's dead last at that age. Might Guy could knock him out with a single kick in Taijutsu class, and the gentle Rin would drag him off to have his injuries treated. His face reddened for a moment, but his mask kept anyone from noticing.

"Hmph, nothing special!" Obito said scornfully. But a trace of regret and killing intent flashed through his heart. He had planned to take this chance to unleash a Night of the Three-Tails and destroy Kirigakure, only for some kid to ruin it.

"He actually ruined my plan!" Recalling those unbearable memories, Obito Uchiha gave off an icy aura. "I'm going to kill him!"

"Hey, wait, Obito!" White Zetsu, however, seemed to have received some information. He grabbed Obito and passed on Black Zetsu's orders.

"Black Zetsu thinks members of the Uzumaki Clan are rare commodities now. He might be able to replace Nagato someday!"

A trace of displeasure flashed in Obito's eye, but he stopped nonetheless, settling for a resentful glare at Dōmeki.

"You little brat from the Uzumaki Clan, I'll remember you!"

After sealing the severed Three-Tails tail in a scroll, Dōmeki suddenly shuddered and instinctively glanced around. But even with his sensory abilities, he found nothing unusual.

"Could that guy Obito be cursing me?"

Dōmeki stuffed the sealing scroll back into a summoned snake's belly and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Never mind. Blaming that man is always a safe bet. Isn't that right, Danzo!"

"Plop!"

A bloodstained hand grabbed Dōmeki's ankle. He looked down at Yagura, who had already left Tailed Beast Mode but was at death's door, and nearly jumped.

"Mr. Yagura, you're not about to write the word 'tragic' on my leg, are you? I think you should leave that for the Uchiha."

"Cough, pfft."

Yagura coughed and spat blood, his breath faint, but his eyes had cleared.

"Kid, thanks to you, I've finally escaped that man's Genjutsu!" Yagura chuckled. "As the Mizukage, I regained my senses with the help of the person who killed me. How ironic."

"Hey, I did warn you not to use Tailed Beast Mode, Mr. Yagura! As for getting beaten to death..."

Feeling guilty, Dōmeki took a few steps back, putting some distance between himself and Yagura.

"Cough!" Yagura spat out another mouthful of hot blood, yet he seemed a little more alert.

"Don't worry. I just have a few things to ask of you!" Yagura stared intently at the boy.

"Um, should I call Zabuza over?"

Dōmeki muttered, but Yagura ignored him and spoke in a low voice.

"Please tell the Mist Ninja that after I die, Genji is to serve as acting Mizukage for the time being, and as for the Fifth Mizukage..."

Ninja after ninja whom he had driven away or killed flashed through Yagura's mind. Zabuza and Kisame had defected from the village, while Mangetsu and Ameyuri were gravely ill. The only one of the next generation likely capable of bearing the responsibility was probably that young kunoichi, Mei Terumi. A wave of sorrow welled up in his heart.

"Mei Terumi will become the Fifth Mizukage once she has matured!" Yagura spat out blood again. "Tell the Mist Ninja to be especially wary of the Uchiha and the Akatsuki org-"

But before he could finish, the life abruptly left him.

"Hey, Mr. Yagura, wake up!" Dōmeki shook the suddenly deceased Mizukage, shouting, "How could anyone possibly believe me if I pass on your last words?"

Just then, an urgent shout interrupted Dōmeki.

"Let go of our Lord Mizukage!"

Dōmeki looked up to find countless Mist Ninja glaring fiercely at him with bloodshot eyes. The barrier Orochimaru had set up to block Kirigakure had disappeared at some point.

The boy looked down at Karatachi Yagura's corpse, then at the many Mist Ninja, some drawing weapons and others forming Hand Seals. His heart sank.

"I'm screwed, I'm surrounded by Mist Ninja!"

"Kid, I never expected you to be the one who killed Lord Mizukage."

The mature Mei Terumi stepped out of the crowd and stared in surprise at the boy she had met once before, gritting her teeth. "No wonder you were with that traitor Zabuza earlier..."

"Um, if I told you Zabuza did it and I had nothing to do with it, would you believe me?"

Dōmeki tried to guiltily shift the blame, but someone cut him off.

"Kid, did you really kill Lord Mizukage after Zabuza ran away?"

Ringo Ameyuri, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and a witness to everything that had happened that night, appeared among the Mist Ninja and stared at the handsome boy in disbelief.

A sharp glint flashed in Mei Terumi's eyes. She grabbed Ameyuri and asked what had happened earlier.

Ameyuri truthfully explained how she had unintentionally learned that Kisame had sided with the mastermind controlling the Mizukage, how Zabuza had tried to assassinate the Mizukage, only to be defeated in one blow and flee, and how the unknown boy had stayed behind to fight the Mizukage.

"Where did Kisame Hoshigaki go?" Mei Terumi frowned. No one could have imagined that Kisame, who had always been the perfect Mist Ninja, was a traitor.

"Konoha's Kakashi and I stopped Kisame from going to the battlefield where the Mizukage and the kid were fighting. Kisame was badly injured, while Kakashi exhausted too much Chakra and passed out."

"Before I could capture Kisame, a mysterious masked man suddenly appeared out of thin air. He seized both Kisame and Kakashi and vanished."

"A masked man? Who was he?" Mei Terumi was troubled. Because Zabuza had acted on his own, she and the others had failed to discover the mastermind's true identity.

"Um, I know!" Dōmeki suddenly raised his hand and shouted.

"You?" Mei Terumi knitted her delicate brows.

"Before Mr. Yagura passed away, he told me quite a few things. Little things like who the mastermind was and who the next Mizukage should be..." Dōmeki narrowed his eyes. "Mr. Yagura was clearly grateful to me, yet you've falsely accused me of being Zabuza's accomplice. What am I supposed to do about that?"

Mei Terumi thought for a moment, then spoke clearly. "Kid, as long as you tell us Lord Mizukage's last words, I swear in Kirigakure's name that I'll let you leave!"

"Lady Mei Terumi!" The surrounding Mist Ninja erupted in protest, but she raised a hand to quiet them.

"Oh?" Dōmeki rubbed his chin. "All right, then!"

"Mr. Yagura said the person controlling him was an Uchiha, and there's a secret organization behind him!"

"An Uchiha! Just as I thought..." Mei Terumi recalled Lord Genji's words.

"Then that old man named Genji is to act as the next Mizukage temporarily, before handing the position over to..."

Everyone's hearts leaped into their throats at the boy's words.

"Then hand it over to Miss Mei Terumi!"

"Me?!"

Amid the uproar, Mei Terumi pointed at herself in disbelief.

"That's right!" Dōmeki said with a smile. "I've passed on his last words. I can leave now, right?"

Mei Terumi composed herself, then said with a smile,

"I certainly have no objection, but it looks like the others want to keep you here and give you a proper welcome, kid!"

"Do it!"

At Mei Terumi's command, countless Water Release techniques and Kunai shot toward Dōmeki in an instant.

Dōmeki sighed. "I knew it. Is there any trust left in the Shinobi World?"

Just as the Ninjutsu were about to engulf the boy, all the ninja stared in astonishment as he rose into the air.

As Mei Terumi gritted her teeth in frustration, the red-haired boy vanished into the night sky in an instant, leaving only his laughter echoing behind him.

"Good thing I can fly!!!"