Coup

Land of Waterfalls, Daimyo Palace.

"What? There's been no word from Takigakure?" Kakuzu stared at the woman seated at the head of the room in disbelief.

"It must have been those people causing trouble after we left. What else could it be?" Ruri replied. There was no need to think too hard about it. If something had happened in the village, it could only have been Kubi Ichiro and his people.

"Mm. The people I sent out haven't returned yet. That should be it."

"Should we head back now?" Kakuzu asked urgently. Sitting before this woman put him under immense pressure.

The seductive woman was Linglong, the Daimyo of the Land of Waterfalls and the only female Daimyo among all the nations.

"So the great Kakuzu, known as the Demon of Ninjutsu of the Land of Waterfalls, is actually this timid?" Linglong teased. Her relationship with Kakuzu and Ruri was anything but ordinary; after all, she had only become Daimyo with their full support.

"Enough, stop bullying Kakuzu. Wasn't it just that your ninjutsu went a little wrong back then? We were planning to catch up, but something like this happened instead. What a pity. Once we settle Takigakure's affairs, we'll come again." Ruri clapped his hands and stood up.

"Come again? Brother, can I stay behind in the village to guard it? What if something like this happens again while you're gone..." Kakuzu's expression changed.

"...Why are you afraid of her to this extent?" Ruri was thoroughly baffled. Linglong was clearly easy to get along with, and she devoted herself wholeheartedly to the development of the Land of Waterfalls. Every day, the streets echoed with residents praising her.

"You're quite confident. Looks like you've gotten stronger again, powerful man..." Linglong licked her lips as she spoke, making Ruri turn his head away. "Oh, right. A little girl said she escaped from Takigakure to deliver a message, but I've never seen her before."

"You haven't seen her? Then there's probably a problem." Ruri and Kakuzu left the room. He knew Linglong's capabilities well. Aside from the ninja, Takigakure's residents had all been relocated there from across the Land of Waterfalls. Linglong had personally handled the matter, and she remembered the appearance of every villager, including the children.

"I'll go see that child. Takigakure's situation will be resolved soon enough."

After leaving the Daimyo Palace, Ruri and Kakuzu followed Linglong's instructions to an inn.

"Who is it?"

The inn room had the sort of door that slid open from both sides, with no lock. The moment Ruri gently slid it open, he heard a crisp young girl's voice. She sounded very young.

"Takikage." Ruri frowned and stepped closer. Something was indeed wrong. He had deliberately softened his footsteps and opened the door quietly, yet a child had still noticed him.

"Is... is that Lord Takikage?!"

The girl sounded excited. Before long, she appeared in front of Ruri.

The girl wore the expression of someone who had survived a disaster, and Ruri could not see the slightest flaw in it.

"Brother..." Kakuzu murmured beside Ruri. Though he could not say what was wrong, he had a feeling that this girl was unusual.

"I... I finally found you..." As she spoke, the girl actually began to cry, as though she had suffered something deeply heartbreaking.

"Don't rush to cry. Tell me about the village first." Though he suspected the girl, Ruri still took some tissues from the table and handed them to her.

After wiping away her tears and snot, the girl calmed down and began to speak. "On the night you left, a coup broke out in the village. It seemed to be led by the Hagane Clan. They were dissatisfied that you had stripped their clan head of one arm, so in order to seize power, they joined forces with the Fuma Clan from another village and launched a rebellion..."

A coup? Seizing power? Would a little girl use such words? And how did she know that he had crippled Hagane Maomori's hand? Only a few days had passed. If even ordinary children knew the reason for the coup, then the secrecy involved was far too poor for them to accomplish anything.

"What's your name?" Ruri asked quietly.

"I..." The little girl seemed a little frightened. "My name is Do... Doma Chie."

Doma? None of the village's ninja had the surname Doma. If she really was called Doma Chie, then she was merely an ordinary civilian and could never have come into contact with such matters.

Though Ruri could not remember the names of every resident in Takigakure as Linglong could, he could at least remember the names of its few ninja.

Everything Chie had said now had to be questioned. The only certainty was that a coup had indeed occurred in the village. Ruri felt that the Hagane Clan was unlikely to be the main force behind the rebellion. As Takigakure's only Kekkei Genkai clan, they would not lose their status no matter who came to power. There was no need for them to take such a huge risk and stage a coup.

Instead, another clan Chie had not mentioned—the Kubisaki Clan—was far more suspicious. Kubi Ichiro had been the one to take the lead in causing trouble during the previous meeting, and Ruri had even crippled one of his legs to make an example of him. It was only natural for him to harbor resentment and collude with outsiders.

[Name: Tsuchigumo Chie]

[Overall Strength: Genin]

[Talent: Elite Jonin]

[Attributes: Wind, Fire, Lightning]

[Special Ability: None]

[Evaluation: The young lady of the Tsuchigumo Clan possesses astonishing talent and three chakra attributes, yet she is not valued by her clan.]

Well then, Chie was definitely lying. And the ones who had invaded Takigakure were not the Fuma Clan—it seemed to be the Tsuchigumo Clan!

Ruri did not expose Chie's lie on the spot. Instead, he comforted her and brought her back to the inn with Kakuzu. She might prove useful later.

Masashige had also finished washing up at the inn and put on the mask Ruri had bought for him. He believed he would not need to wear the mask forever. His teacher would surely find a way to remove the poisonous gas from his body and allow him to breathe normally again.

Masashige was only mildly surprised by Chie's appearance. Mature beyond his years, he did not ask any questions. Because of the poisonous gas within him, he instead kept his distance from the girl as much as possible. Ruri and Kakuzu were both powerful ninja, but this ordinary little girl certainly could not withstand his poison gas.

Before long, Ruri and Kakuzu returned to Takigakure with the two children. Aside from the missing guards at the entrance, the entire village seemed unchanged.

"Lord Takikage has returned!" Just as Ruri approached the office building, Kubi Ichiro came forward to greet him, followed by two clansmen at the Chunin level.

"Where are the guards at the entrance?" Ruri asked with a frown. The farther inside he went, the stronger the thick smell of blood became. There was not a single villager on the streets, and all of Takigakure carried an air of desolation.

"It's like this. While you were away, Hagane Maomori joined forces with the Fuma Clan and launched a rebellion. We were caught off guard, and many people died. Fortunately, under my leadership, everyone fought desperately to resist them. We have now imprisoned those people." Kubi Ichiro looked smug, as if boasting about what an extraordinary thing he had done. It had to be said that if Ruri had not used the system to see through Chie's identity, he would probably have been fooled.

"Where are the villagers?" Ruri ignored Kubi Ichiro's stream of nonsense and asked anxiously.

"Some died during the fighting. I issued an order that the rest were not to leave their homes until you returned. Anyone who came out would be killed as a rebel."

Kubi Ichiro's indifferent tone nearly made Ruri explode. Did he regard the villagers as livestock? Even during the Warring States Period, ninja would not lay hands on civilians. If Ruri had returned a few days later, these confined villagers would likely have died from a lack of food and water!

Ruri forcibly suppressed the anger in his heart. The urgent priority was to rescue the Hagane Clan first. He said, "Take me to see those imprisoned rebels."

"Yes, Lord Takikage."

Let's see how long you can keep acting so smug. Takikage? Go be Takikage in hell! Kubi Ichiro respectfully walked ahead to lead Ruri, but inwardly, he was secretly delighted. He felt that the day he became Takigakure's leader was not far away.

Unfortunately, news of Ruri's battle with Hashirama had spread too slowly. Otherwise, even if Kubi Ichiro had ten times the courage, he would not have dared to launch a coup. The ignorant truly knew no fear.