Secrets

Water Release: Wind Blade Torrent!

The thin silver line silently swept across waist height, tracing a narrow fan shape in mid-air.

Considering the neutral ninjas nearby, Sakura Haruno didn't unleash her attack horizontally, sweeping across the entire training ground—if she did, given the density of ninjas in the training ground, the Mist Ninja would lose almost half of their fighting strength!

She merely used water jets to slash across the area, carefully limiting the range of the water blades; even so, it still caused terrible damage!

Almost instantly, several ninjas on the Elder's side were cut in half and died a gruesome death on the spot!

A strong stench of blood instantly filled the arena.

A terrifying Water Release!

The ninjas from the Elder's faction were visibly shaken; it was the first time they had ever witnessed such a formidable Water Release!

Is this the strength of Kage Level? The elder's face turned ashen. He had hidden himself the moment the Chakra fluctuations occurred, thus escaping unscathed. However, the ninjas beside him were not so lucky; they were instantly cut in half at the waist, their warm, crimson blood splattering all over the elder's face.

Sakura Haruno Body Flicker Technique appeared on the field from off-field.

The moment she stepped onto the battlefield, the ninjas from the Elder's faction immediately distanced themselves from each other, watching her warily.

"Was that move just now... Water Severing Wave?" The Grand Elder stood at the front and said coldly. The chakra for the Substitution Technique Chakra was ready, and he could hide instantly as soon as the opponent made any move.

"More or less." Sakura Haruno glanced lightly across the battlefield and said casually.

The Grand Elder silently removed his white robe, revealing the combat suit he had already donned.

Both sides drew their weapons, splitting into two opposing groups, tacitly preparing for battle.

The neutral ninjas watching from the sidelines were somewhat at a loss. Everything had happened too fast. The Konoha envoy was not dead, and the Mizukage and the Grand Elder had already revealed their true intentions!

Mei Terumi waved them away, saying without any politeness, "You all step back!"

Their presence here is only a hindrance; if they wanted to take sides, they should have stepped forward already...

The neutral ninjas exchanged glances, and finally stepped down, giving up their positions to the Mizukage and the Grand Elder, waiting for the traditional ninja method—a life-or-death battle—to determine the victor, and then pledge their loyalty to the winner.

The Grand Elder didn't make things difficult for them, but simply watched them leave indifferently; if they won, as the stronger ones, they would naturally gain the loyalty of the remaining ninjas, but if they lost, then all talk was over.

Soon, the neutral ninjas retreated far away, leaving only the two opposing groups on the field.

"Looks like you expected this all along..." Mei Terumi glanced at the elder's tight-fitting clothes and said coldly, "After all these years of smuggling, it's rare that you haven't forgotten you're a ninja!"

Both sides had their own plans and made many careful preparations, but ironically, in the end, they still ended up back where they started.

We've returned to the fundamental principle of letting strength speak for itself.

Ultimately, both sides will have to fight openly, and the winner will get everything; this is the tradition of ninjas!

Of course, the shameful ninja clans that overestimated their abilities and rebelled, only to have their entire families slaughtered by two people, are not within the scope of this discussion.

"Smuggling is just for profit... Ninjas aren't merchants or politicians; they're clearly not suited for too many schemes and tricks." The Grand Elder wiped the blood from his face and said calmly. Everyone present knew the inside story, so he didn't shy away from the topic of smuggling. "You're also plotting something, aren't you? I can guess... But in the end, the deciding factor is still the strength of the ninjas. After this battle, the winner will gain all of Mist Ninja and the Land of Water!"

"I'm surprised you can still think this through. I thought you were blinded by the profits of smuggling, but I didn't expect you to have even a sliver of clarity in your head!" The Fifth Mizukage sneered.

"But we're still not clear-headed enough... Including the envoy from Konoha, we have two Kage Level ninjas on our side, giving us an overwhelming advantage!"

"One must eat one bite at a time, and to deal with you, one must also proceed step by step," the First Elder said quietly.

As they spoke, fog rolled in.

While the elder was speaking, he used the Hidden Mist Technique.

In the thick fog, so dense that one couldn't see their own hand in front of their face, the figures of everyone in the arena gradually disappeared.

Within seconds, the entire venue was transformed into an area where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face!

"Is that so? Then if you think that a mere Hidden Mist Technique can deal with me, you are sorely mistaken." Sakura Haruno snorted coldly, looking at the Elder who was vaguely visible in the mist.

She was no longer the girl who trembled in fear under Zabuza's Zabuza Hidden Mist Technique...

To think that one could use the dense fog to ambush her was Zabuza but a pipe dream, even if Zabuza Silent Killing Technique, were alive!

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

As she spoke, Sakura Haruno clasped her hands together in front of her chest and swiftly Hand Seals to unleash Ninjutsu!

The raging storm dispersed the fog, restoring the hazy training ground to its original clear visibility; the verbal sparring between the leaders was still going on, and the ninjas on both sides patiently stood behind the Mizukage and elders, not in a hurry to start a fight.

"See, I've broken your Ninjutsu!" Sakura Haruno smiled faintly, a slight curve to her lips.

The elder's Ninjutsu was countered before the battle even began, rendering his efforts futile.

Moreover, he poured too much Chakra into the mist, and now it was all wasted. The elder was already old and weak, and his Chakra could not withstand such waste!

Sakura Haruno could clearly see him panting heavily, his face covered in large beads of sweat.

But he still managed a smug smile.

"I originally thought the fog would somewhat obstruct your vision, making it harder for you to see others and causing you to hesitate to use that Water Severing Wave technique..." the Grand Elder said slowly, "But it doesn't matter now."

He stared intently at Sakura Haruno and her group, saying, "You've only cracked my first Ninjutsu..."

"It should be about time by now!"

"Playing tricks!" Mei Terumi coldly, already impatient with him! She clasped her hands together, preparing to Hand Seals, when suddenly her expression changed!

"Chakra... can't be extracted?" The red-haired woman's eyes widened in disbelief.

Sakura Haruno was startled and tried to mobilize her Chakra to use Ninjutsu, but found that her body was sluggish and she couldn't mobilize her physical energy no matter what she did, so she couldn't synthesize Chakra!

It wasn't just the two of them who were affected; the group of ninjas beside Mei Terumi also instantly changed their expressions, and the Chakra fluctuations they created became extremely weak.

Without Chakra, a ninja can hardly fight!

"Poisonous!" someone shouted in panic.

Mei Terumi's face was so gloomy it seemed like it could drip water. "How do you possess such a potent poison?"

"No, it's not poison, it's pollen. I used the Hidden Mist Technique as a cover, but actually I was spreading a special kind of pollen in the air..."

The Grand Elder, feeling confident of victory, was in high spirits and explained with a smile.

They won: without Chakra extraction, even "Kage" level ninjas couldn't unleash their full fighting power!

"Aren't you curious?" Elder Suikazan continued, a hint of smugness in his aged voice, "Why would I underestimate the strength of your Kage Level ninjas? Why would we, the Suikazan Clan, dare to do such a thing if we didn't have a ninja capable of contending with the two of you?"

"Why?" Sakura Haruno asked in a calm voice, following his words.

"It's very simple," the elder said, "Because we are the family that has controlled the Fourth Mizukage! When you have a Kage under your control for ten years, you will lose your fear of the so-called 'Kage'..."

"This is impossible!" Mei Terumi exclaimed, "The one who used Genjutsu to control Karatachi Yagura was clearly Madara Uchiha!"

The elder sneered.

"My Mizukage, please use your brain for a second," he said.

"No matter how powerful Madara Uchiha's Genjutsu is, it's impossible for one technique to completely change a person, especially a 'Kage' level ninja!" the elder said, pacing back and forth. "However, Lord Madara can't stay in Kirigakure forever, so he entrusted us with maintaining the Fourth Mizukage's Genjutsu!"

"What?!" Mei Terumi was suddenly shocked. The Suikazan Clan had become the biggest traitor to Kirigakure more than a decade ago?

She said fiercely, "Accomplices to evil! No wonder your strength has expanded so quickly, so fast that you've gone from a clan to the most influential and powerful clan in the Mist Ninja Village!"

This explains many of the questions!

"Heh heh," the elder said, not ashamed at being Madara Uchiha's lackey, but rather proud. He continued boastfully, "Back then, my father was a very discerning ninja. He recognized Lord Madara's strength at first glance, and that's why our clan received Lord Madara's special attention!"

"Traitor!" Mei Terumi gritted her teeth and said, enunciating each word clearly.

"Do whatever you want." The old man didn't care about her insults and continued to reveal a secret he had kept hidden for decades, "The thing that can paralyze your bodies is actually a kind of pollen. It was created by Lord Madara using the 'Advent of a World of Flowering Trees' technique! Even Kage-level ninjas are not immune to its power!"

"After Madara left, he left us this powder, which our clan used for a long time to paralyze the Fourth Mizukage's body, making him unable to resist Genjutsu; a 'Kage' without Chakra is nothing more than fish on a chopping board!"

He glanced at Mei Terumi, who was kneeling helplessly on the ground, and gave her a strange smile.

"Now, it's the Fifth Mizukage's turn to experience this feeling of being powerless!"

With a wave of his hand, the elder, Tomoaki Aono, who was standing behind him, understood and walked towards Mei Terumi.

"Mei Terumi," Tomoaki Aono Earth Flow to the Fifth Mizukage, grinning maliciously, "No, Mei Terumi..."

He crouched down, intending to lift Mei Terumi's chin, but she suddenly raised her head, her hand holding a seal!

"Lava Release: Lava Release: Melting Apparition Technique!"

A highly corrosive liquid spurted from Mei Terumi's mouth and poured directly onto Tomoaki's head!

Amidst a pitiful scream, Mei Terumi slowly stood up.

"Don't underestimate the power of the Mizukage! Without Madara Uchiha's Genjutsu, do you think you can control the Mizukage with your lowly foes?" Her voice was still a little strained, but it was still full of imposing manner!

Beneath their feet, Tomoaki's body had vanished, leaving only a pool of yellowish slime!

(Second update! Guaranteed update/. The cultivation novel is finally finished. It's been revised more than five times, and the original draft was already six or seven thousand words long. My head is spinning. Due to health reasons, the writing may not be as good as it could have been recently. Please forgive me, I will adjust as soon as possible.)

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