Third Hokage Becomes Suspicious

Most of the Yuki Clan's Core Area had been reduced to ruins, littered with broken corpses everywhere.

Many Kaguya clan members and Yuki clan ninjas were tangled together, having perished together, their bodies barely distinguishable.

Watching the hellish carnage before him, the Third Mizukage and the Anbu Elite quickly took control of the situation.

Only a few Kaguya clan members could still barely stand, but most were covered in wounds, their bone swords and armor shattered and worn.

Kaguya Kengenin turned his head to look at the belated Third Mizukage, a strange smile on his face—mocking yet tinged with a hint of relief.

"Third! The Yuki Clan has gone too far. The Kaguya will not tolerate such humiliation!"

Roaring out this final slogan, under the Third Mizukage's stunned gaze, Kaguya Kengenin suddenly thrust a bone spike hard into his own chest.

The light in his eyes dimmed rapidly, his body swayed, but he stubbornly refused to fall, though his breath had already ceased completely.

Seeing this, the remaining Kaguya clan members followed suit. Even those too weak to extend bone spikes resolutely drew kunai and stabbed them into their own hearts without hesitation.

They completed their revenge against the Yuki Clan in the most brutal way, drawing a bloody end to their own actions and their clan.

Looking at the devastation of the Yuki clan grounds and the countless corpses, the Third Mizukage's face darkened as if it might drip water.

After this battle, the Yuki Clan had suffered heavy losses among their elites, and the very foundation of their bloodline had nearly been severed.

"Clean up the scene. Treat the injured. And launch a full investigation! Find out exactly what drove these madmen into a frenzy again!"

The Third Mizukage was deeply puzzled. Armed rebellion was an unforgivable capital crime in any village.

He had shown leniency, executing only the ringleaders and sparing the majority of the clansmen who had followed Kaguya Naoto in the revolt. Even the subsequent punitive measures should not have driven the Kaguya Clan to such madness.

There had to be a reason behind this that he had yet to uncover.

The turmoil and investigation continued until dawn the next day, and clues were quickly gathered.

The Kirigakure Anbu discovered a tattered letter stained with blood on Kaguya Kengenin's body.

The handwriting was sloppy, and the paper was the most common type in the Mist Village, making it impossible to trace the source.

Then, based on an analysis of the letter, a breakthrough was made in the search of the Yuki clan grounds.

Inside the abandoned house marked on the letter, they found fierce signs of battle—scratches from Shikotsumyaku resistance on the walls and floor. More crucially, the Mist Anbu found the Kaguya ninja whom Namikaze Yoru had redeemed. By then, he had likely died from the fighting.

But the marks of Ice Release erosion and frost damage on his body and internal organs were strikingly obvious. Everything seemed to have been "clearly revealed."

The Third Mizukage frowned deeply as he looked over the gathered clues.

All the signs and on-site evidence pointed to the Yuki Clan having secretly imprisoned and tortured this Kaguya ninja, who had gone missing some time ago.

And this matter had been leaked to Kaguya Kengenin by someone with ill intent, triggering the Kaguya Clan's extreme retaliation.

The few surviving Yuki elders trembled all over upon hearing this and quickly cried out for justice.

"Our Yuki Clan would never do such a thing! We beg Lord Third to investigate thoroughly!"

"This is a frame-up! That house has been abandoned for years. Why would we imprison anyone there?"

But even they could not explain why this man had appeared on their clan grounds, and the traces of Ice Release torture on his body left them unable to defend themselves.

Too coincidental.

The Third Mizukage's sharp eyes swept over the various "ironclad evidence" his subordinates had gathered. Instead of dissipating, the suspicion in his heart grew heavier.

It was as if an invisible hand was precisely pulling the Kaguya Clan's sensitive nerves. Whether it was the Yuki Clan's earlier surveillance or the current scene of their secret imprisonment.

The method was flawless, but it was precisely this flawlessness that kept the Third Mizukage from fully believing it.

He was almost certain that someone was exploiting the Kaguya Clan's stubbornness and madness to stir up conflict between the Yuki and the Kaguya.

With just a single sketch letter, they had severely crippled or even wiped out two of the Mist Village's bloodline clans.

The Yuki Clan had suffered heavy losses, their elite ranks nearly broken. The Kaguya Clan had lost all their core members overnight, leaving only the old, weak, women, children, and some young servants—completely insignificant.

Who could it be?

But for now, the priority was to stabilize the village and deal with the rest gradually.

The Third Mizukage took a deep breath and made his decision:

"Although the Yuki Clan is the victim in this incident, your clan's negligence in overseeing your own grounds indirectly led to this tragedy.

From today onward, the Yuki Clan will cooperate with the Anbu in an investigation and undergo internal restructuring."

He paused, then his tone grew even colder: "All surviving members of the Kaguya Clan are to be thrown into prison and kept under strict guard."

With these words, he effectively ended the Kaguya Clan's glory and future in the Mist Village, showing no mercy whatsoever.

This ruling seemed to split the blame evenly, but the Third Mizukage had secretly ordered the Anbu to continue digging into the source of the anonymous letter and the possible mastermind behind it.

Meanwhile, Namikaze Yoru was still moving quietly amid the chaos.

After all the effort he had put into orchestrating this, it was now time to reap the rewards.

Because the investigation was not yet over, the bodies of the fallen ninjas were first brought back to the Mizukage Building and not returned to their clans.

This gave Namikaze Yoru an opportunity to fish in troubled waters.

Using the Mind's Eye of the Kagura's keen perception of Chakra, he trailed far behind a squad that was escorting "evidence" and ninja corpses.

Even though the defenses in the core area of the Mizukage Building had not slackened, the frequent comings and goings for transport inevitably created gaps.

Sensing that the Kaguya Vegetable Corpse had been confirmed dead and moved to a barrier he could not perceive, Namikaze Yoru knew the opportunity he had been waiting for had arrived.

"Shwoosh"

With the activation of the Flying Thunder God Jutsu, Namikaze Yoru successfully infiltrated the depths of the Mizukage Building.

This place was likely located underground beneath the Mizukage Building. As a village that had inherited a vast legacy from the Land of Whirlpools, the entire room was protected by layers of seals and barriers.

At this moment, Namikaze Yoru found himself in what appeared to be a morgue. Numerous shinobi who had died in battle were laid out on wooden beds, the scene somewhat eerie.

Yet, faced with such a sight, the corners of Namikaze Yoru's mouth involuntarily curled upward. If anyone else had seen this, they would surely think he had a psychological disorder.

"Pawn."

[Scan complete. Pawnable items detected as follows:]

[Ding! Kaguya Clan Member Remains (intact)*13... Valuation: 80 Points/body]

[Ding! Kaguya Clan Member Remains (damaged)*37... Valuation: 40 Points/body]

[Ding! Mizunuki Clan Remains (intact)*17... Valuation: 50 Points/body]

[Ding!