Planning

"May I ask Lord Musashi to reveal his identity?" Fujiwara Shizume asked quietly.

Ruri was startled. He had never thought the identity of a black-robed, masked warrior could remain hidden for long. Those violent chakra fluctuations just now could never have come from a mere warrior.

"That isn't part of the Black Market Exchange's rules," Ruri Responded coolly. Even if he could no longer hide it, there was nothing they could do. The gap in strength was right there; they had no choice but to accept it.

"If you tell me your true identity, I can also tell you what our caravan is escorting and our true purpose. I'm sure you would like to know. I only wish to know your true identity for peace of mind," Fujiwara Shizume offered as a trade.

Eh? Ruri truly was curious about what they were doing. After a brief moment of thought, he approached Fujiwara Shizume, removed his hat, and peeled away his mask.

"This... bandages? Could it be... the legendary ninja, the Tsuchikage's guard, Lord Mu of Iwagakure?!" Fujiwara Shizume exclaimed. Why would someone like that go to the Black Market Exchange to take on a mission?

"I merely intended to use your caravan to infiltrate the Land of Artisans. Besides, this is a classified mission of Iwagakure. If you do not wish to be hunted by Iwagakure, you had best keep your mouth shut," Ruri said harshly. Takigakure was right beside the Land of Earth, and the two villages interacted frequently. Iwagakure had nothing significant going on lately and could not possibly have dealings with the Land of Artisans. Mu was also supervising the Ninja Academy's development and had no time to spare, so Ruri was not worried in the slightest about being exposed while using Mu's identity.

"Understood..." Fujiwara Shizume withdrew. It was not as though he had not doubted Mu's identity, but that face wrapped in bandages was far too distinctive to mistake. Given Mu's status, how could an ordinary person dare impersonate him so casually? Though Fujiwara Shizume was a warrior who had failed to transition into a ninja, it was precisely because of that failure that he understood chakra deeply. There were not many ninjas in the entire Shinobi World with chakra at that level. Aside from Mu, no one else could possibly have appeared here.

After resting for a while, the caravan set out again. This time, only a dozen or so lower-rank warriors and three mid-rank warriors remained. If Ruri did not intervene and they suffered another attack like that, they would likely be wiped out.

As agreed, Fujiwara Shizume told Ruri everything along the way. Although he had still concealed his strength, even counting himself, there was only one additional upper-rank warrior. Moreover, he was old and frail, lacked endurance, and had certain flaws after retraining in Kenjutsu following his failed transition. If he did not tell the truth, they would find it difficult to reach Takumigakure relying on their own strength alone.

What they were transporting was the Cursed Blade Muramasa, a cursed sword famed alongside the Three Great Blades. The Fujiwara Clan had served for generations as the guardians of the cursed blade, living in seclusion on a mountain somewhere in the Land of Fire.

Their clan had originally consisted of far more people than this, but information had leaked when they left their residence. Konoha's ninjas intercepted them once, costing them nearly half their men. That was also why they had thought to post a mission at the Black Market Exchange and seek help.

Fujiwara Shizume also told Ruri the purpose of transporting the Cursed Blade Muramasa. Seimei, the leader of Takumigakure, had developed a method for forging special ninja tools, but lacked materials. He had therefore set his sights on these legendary blades, intending to melt them down and forge the legendary ninja tools.

According to Fujiwara Shizume, with the identity of Mu, the Tsuchikage's guard, Seimei would certainly not come into conflict with him. Since he had safely delivered the Fujiwara Clan to Takumigakure, he could be considered to have helped Seimei. When the time came, Seimei might even give him a copy of the method for forging the legendary ninja tools in order to befriend Iwagakure.

Ruri naturally scoffed at that notion. In the original story, Seimei had been resurrected in order to destroy the Five Great Nations and prevent them from joining forces to oppress smaller countries. How could he possibly look favorably upon a ninja village from the Land of Earth, much less offer help? Still, Ruri now understood why the Three Great Blades and the Cursed Blade Muramasa had been so famous during this era, yet were never mentioned in the original story. Seimei had melted them all down into ninja tools.

Those ninja tools Gaara destroyed with a single spear had no reason to exist... Compared to the Three Great Blades, they were inferior by far. Ruri gained another reason to kill Seimei. How could he allow him to squander such treasured blades?

A day passed, and the caravan arrived near Takumigakure.

Fujiwara Shizume did not lead the caravan into Takumigakure. Instead, he set up camp nearby, intending to stay the night before entering the village. This made Mitsunosuke and Shizuka breathe a sigh of relief. If the caravan entered Takumigakure directly, they would have no choice but to risk their lives to seize the Cursed Blade Muramasa, or they would lose their chance.

"Lord Musashi... we..." Mitsunosuke and Shizuka approached Ruri's cloak, but they were interrupted before they could finish.

"You want to seize the Cursed Blade Muramasa, don't you? And you want to use its power to defeat Seimei, thereby completing the Miike Clan's revenge?" Ruri, who had been concentrating on refining chakra on the ground, suddenly opened his eyes and spoke.

"You... how did you know?" Mitsunosuke was horrified. He had not revealed any flaws along the way, so why did the other party not only know his objective, but also know his identity so clearly?!

Could the young mistress have told him? Mitsunosuke thought back. Ruri had indeed spent time alone with Shizuka under the pretext of practicing swordsmanship. Shizuka was inexperienced in the ways of the world, and with her immature temperament, she might very well have told him everything in order to gain his assistance!

"Stop looking at her. The little girl will get embarrassed."

"Please, Lord Musashi, lend us your strength. I beg you!" Mitsunosuke was decisive. He dropped straight to his knees, then tugged at Shizuka, who was still at a loss. Only then did Shizuka understand and kneel beside him.

"Senior Musashi, please!"

Ruri thought for a moment before asking, "What do you plan to do after your revenge succeeds?"

Mitsunosuke and Shizuka froze. Even if they managed to seize the Cursed Blade Muramasa, they had embarked on their revenge prepared to die. As for what to do after avenging themselves, they had never considered it.

"We will obey Lord Musashi's commands." Mitsunosuke quickly understood. The strong did not show mercy unless one could demonstrate sufficient value in exchange for their help. And the only thing about him that could still be considered valuable was his life.

"Make Shizuka the leader of Takumigakure."

"What?" Mitsunosuke's face was full of disbelief.

"You will assist her and make Miike Shizuka the leader of Takumigakure. I will eliminate every obstacle in one stroke," Ruri repeated. This was the arrangement most beneficial to Takigakure.

Certainly, Mitsunosuke's swordsmanship and the Miike Clan's forging techniques in Shizuka's possession were both things Takigakure needed. But compared to those, their identities were more useful. Once everything was done, the Sanjo Clan would relocate to Takigakure, leaving only Miike Shizuka and Mitsunosuke among the Three Great Families of the Land of Artisans.

After Seimei died, Takumigakure could not possibly be abolished, and the leader's position could not remain vacant. Of the Three Great Families, Shizuka, as the sole remaining member, would naturally be the best nominal choice. With Mitsunosuke, who possessed the strength of an upper-rank warrior, assisting her, controlling all of Takumigakure and influencing the Land of Artisans would not be difficult.

Of course, that was contingent on Ruri being able to kill Seimei, along with everyone in Takumigakure who could threaten Shizuka's rise to power.