Hozuki Mangetsu

Harden!

He didn't have time to think. He immediately activated a Pokemon move.

In an instant, a faint glow enveloped his entire Paper Person body. The paper had already been exceptionally tough thanks to the Ox Talisman, and now it became even sturdier, its defensive power reaching the maximum.

Aragaki Yasushi simply didn't dodge. He charged straight into the incoming bone bullets.

Clang, clang, clang!

A rapid series of crisp clangs rang out as the high-speed bone bullets struck him. They didn't leave so much as a white mark, and all bounced away.

Seeing this, Kaguya Taro immediately drew a gleaming Bone Blade from his left arm, gripped the hilt, and slashed viciously at Aragaki Yasushi.

Aragaki Yasushi drew Kiba with his free hand and lightly blocked the strike, stopping the Bone Blade dead.

Silver-white lightning instantly spread from Kiba and raced along the Bone Blade toward Kaguya Taro's arm.

Kaguya Taro's pupils contracted again. He hurriedly let go of the Bone Blade and retreated several steps.

"I'm done."

He waved a hand, still looking somewhat reluctant to stop.

"We're launching our rebellion at dawn tomorrow. I need to get some rest and be in peak condition when we make our move."

"That was a pretty satisfying warm-up, kid. You're quite good."

Aragaki Yasushi frowned. "What? You don't want to cooperate with Konoha anymore?"

Kaguya Taro waved a hand, his face full of arrogance. "It's not that we don't want to cooperate. We just don't need to trouble you."

"Our Kaguya Clan can take down that usurper with our own strength!"

"Once we win, we'll naturally be willing to make peace with Konoha and leave each other alone."

At that, he snorted, his voice full of disdain. "If you insist on discussing cooperation, go find Karatachi Yagura. That fellow might be interested."

"But there's no need to go to all that trouble. After tomorrow, the usurper will be dead, and Kirigakure will belong to our Kaguya Clan."

He waved them away. "All right, off you go."

"The Mist Anbu are watching us nearby. Don't let them discover your whereabouts."

After a pause, Kaguya Taro sneered. "Though it doesn't matter. They've only got one more day to throw their weight around. Tomorrow, no one will be able to control us."

Seeing this, Aragaki Yasushi rolled his eyes. He didn't say anything more and left the Kaguya Clan's compound with an annoyed-looking Uchiha Inabi.

The Kaguya Clan were complete idiots, refusing help when it was offered.

They even said they didn't need help. They were unbelievably arrogant.

Still, they weren't completely stupid. At least they hadn't pushed Konoha into the Third Mizukage's camp. They had some brains.

Looks like he could only try contacting Karatachi Yagura.

Aragaki Yasushi weighed the options in his mind.

From the way Kaguya Taro had spoken, Karatachi Yagura was probably also opposed to the Bloody Mist Policy.

And he held a fairly high position among the rebels. He might even be a reliable partner.

That fit with Aragaki Yasushi's earlier guess.

The two slipped out of the Kaguya Clan's compound without a sound, avoiding the Hidden Mist Anbu lying in wait nearby.

They hadn't gone far when Uchiha Inabi couldn't help asking, "Where to now? Should we go back to the inn and check for orders from the village first?"

Aragaki Yasushi replied casually, "We'll go back to the inn and check for orders first, then try to contact Karatachi Yagura."

"And we can see how things go with the Kaguya Clan tomorrow."

Uchiha Inabi frowned and couldn't help asking, "Do you think the Kaguya Clan can win?"

Aragaki Yasushi sneered and answered without a moment's thought. "They can't."

"The Kaguya Clan is far too arrogant. Do they really think they're invincible?"

"With the strength of their clan alone, taking on all of Kirigakure is near impossible, even with the Third Mizukage having lost everyone's support."

At his words, Uchiha Inabi's expression darkened. He didn't look pleased.

The Uchiha Clan also had a group of hardliners who were always clamoring to rebel against the village and seize power.

Though Uchiha Inabi believed the Uchiha Clan was far stronger than the Kaguya Clan, Konoha was also far stronger than Kirigakure.

What's more, the Third had tremendous prestige. He was nothing like the Third Mizukage, who had lost everyone's support.

Could the hardliners in his clan really be right?

Was this path truly unworkable?

Aragaki Yasushi opened his mission panel.

The mission was still incomplete.

Could it be that those Kaguya Clan idiots didn't count as actual rebels?

Looks like he still had to contact Karatachi Yagura. Maybe they were the ones the system recognized as Kirigakure's rebels.

As for the Kaguya Clan, they were probably just a bunch of losers destined to fail in their rebellion.

The two stopped talking and quickened their pace, soon returning to the inn where they were staying.

As soon as they opened the inn room's door, Uchiha Shisui hurried over, looking somewhat anxious.

Seeing him, Aragaki Yasushi got straight to the point. "Shisui, have orders come down from the village?"

Shisui quickly nodded and spoke at a rapid pace. "They have. The village leadership wants us to join forces with Kirigakure's rebels and launch a rebellion."

"They want us to overthrow the Third Mizukage's rule as quickly as possible, end the war with Kirigakure, and free up our forces to deal with the Kumogakure front."

At that, Shisui paused, then added, "Yashiro also sent new intelligence about the Kumogakure front."

"Iwagakure launched a surprise attack on Kumogakure. The Third Raikage held off tens of thousands of Iwa Ninja all by himself to give his comrades time to escape. They fought for three days and three nights before he finally died of exhaustion."

Shisui looked impressed, his voice full of astonishment.

"Iwagakure gained nothing from it and suffered catastrophic losses. The casualties are countless."

At his words, Aragaki Yasushi's eyes shifted. So it had happened after all.

In that case, Iwagakure was out of the running for good.

Though Kumogakure had lost a Raikage, and it looked like a terrible blow, their actual losses weren't severe enough to cripple them.

Besides, Kumogakure hadn't been left without a new generation to take over. The AB Duo, A and Killer B, were already renowned throughout the Ninja World, and were powerful enough to hold their own.

Iwagakure, on the other hand, had lost a large number of ninja, especially jōnin. Quite a few had died.

Iwagakure had always relied on unity and sheer numbers, favoring large-scale battles and overwhelming their enemies with manpower.

Losing so many ninja at once was naturally a devastating blow.

Looks like the village intended to focus most of its attention on the Kumogakure front.

Just then, Hyuga Homura suddenly emerged from the room next door, his expression especially grave.

The veins around his eyes bulged, and his eyes had turned completely white. He had clearly activated his Byakugan.

"You're being followed."

Hyuga Homura's serious warning instantly broke the silence in the room.

Aragaki Yasushi's brow furrowed at once.

He'd only just become a jōnin, so he really was short on experience. Sensing wasn't his strong suit either, so it wasn't too surprising that someone had followed him.

But then he glanced at Uchiha Inabi beside him.

It was one thing for him to be careless, but Uchiha Inabi was a veteran jōnin. How had he failed to notice someone following them too?

Under Aragaki Yasushi's gaze, Uchiha Inabi looked uncomfortable, his face immediately showing a hint of embarrassment.

He cleared his throat and demanded stiffly, "Who? Who's following us?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, water seeped slowly through the cracks in the floor. It gathered in the middle of the room, took shape, and finally transformed into a white-haired boy.

Aragaki Yasushi took a closer look and immediately recognized him.

It was Hozuki Mangetsu.