By this point in the battle, these pursuers—strictly disciplined, highly skilled, and far superior to the other "ragtag units"—had finally exposed their identity amid the fighting.
The moment the signature Hidden Mist Technique and the notorious Silent Killing Technique appeared, Black Zetsu could identify these Mist Ninja's origins without even investigating closely...
As the only unfortunate one among the Five Great Nations currently in a state of semi-exile, they had been crushed within their own homeland by the first wave of benefits unleashed by Konoha's technological revolution—the Mother Nest Fleet kept them so suppressed they could barely lift their heads.
Ever since the Third Hokage made his final contribution on the Land of Water battlefield and personally crippled the Third Mizukage, the entire Land of Water front had completely devolved into a security war.
Having lost the ability to organize large-scale military operations, the Land of Water could only watch helplessly as Konoha exploited its air superiority to gradually erode the territory under its actual control, methodically reducing the Land of Water's influence over its homeland.
Even more terrifyingly, as key resources across the country fell one after another, the Mist Ninja's ability to replenish their ranks began to plummet—this strategy of weakening an enemy nation at its roots, combined with the system of indirect rule proposed by Director Yamada during his lifetime, was causing the Land of Water to gradually lose its legitimate great-power seat among the Five Great Nations!
Once this trend crossed a certain threshold, the Mist Ninja, who had once ruled the overseas islands, would be reduced entirely to a mercenary group like those of the Land of Waterfalls and the Land of Hot Water... This was something no Mist Ninja could accept!
Therefore, with regard to the case of Yamada Soji's stolen corpse, the Mist