Village of the Bloody Mist

"Master, I have finished mapping out the distribution of the bloodline families within Kirigakure. After comparing it with the data from the Fourth Mizukage, I can confirm it is essentially accurate."

Inside the Mizukage's office, Shimura Danzō, wearing a spiral mask, was reporting the results of the past five months to the figure seated above him, Karatachi Yagura.

Oh, no—Danzō's true audience was not the Karatachi Yagura sitting in the chair, but the pair of scarlet eyes behind him.

"There are seven bloodline families residing within Kirigakure, and with the four others in the Land of Water, that makes a total of eleven bloodline families," Danzō said, meticulously organizing the documents in his hands.

"The Taketori clan, which you are particularly focused on, currently has one hundred and thirteen members. Among them are seventeen jōnin and thirty-nine chūnin. The current clan head is Taketori Nihi, an elite jōnin. It is said that his Shikotsumyaku has reached the level where he can project his bones outside his body to form an exoskeleton armor."

"However, while their clan is powerful, they lack brains, much like the Uchi—" Realizing he had let something slip, Danzō quickly cut himself off.

"It's fine, I understand." Even Shisui, as a member of the Uchiha, sometimes felt helpless regarding the intelligence of his own clan.

The Taketori clan had become Shisui's first target after taking control of Kirigakure. He was desperate to understand why, when he had already possessed the Indra Bloodline while plundering the Shikotsumyaku, his body had still developed such an intense craving for other types of bloodlines.

Theoretically, different bloodlines should be incompatible.

"Well done." Danzō was startled to hear Shisui's voice emerge directly from the mouth of the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura.

"No need to be surprised; just a small trick of genjutsu."

To better control Kirigakure, Shisui had made some minor optimizations to the control techniques used by Uchiha Madara, making the controlled subjects appear more natural.

"This is only what I should do," Danzō said, his tone somewhat unnatural.

When Shisui used Kotoamatsukami on Shimura Danzō, he did not alter Danzō's past memories. Instead, he used his immense ocular power to forcefully bend the object of Danzō's loyalty.

The former Danzō was loyal only to his dream of becoming Hokage; now, that position was simply occupied by Shisui.

Consequently, Danzō suffered constant mental torment, his body acting against his will to complete tasks for the very Uchiha he hated most.

This was far more agonizing than simply killing him.

As the wielder of Kotoamatsukami and Danzō's master, Shisui could naturally perceive this psychological shift.

"You don't need to be so dejected."

Shisui's seductive voice echoed in Danzō's ears.

"Back in Konoha, all sorts of rules and regulations restricted your actions. Even if you had eventually become Hokage, you would have only been imitating Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Although he knew Shisui spoke the truth, Shimura Danzō could not suppress the resentment and anger in his heart.

The reason he had been so obsessed with the position of Hokage was to prove that he was no worse than Hiruzen Sarutobi, and to prove that his teacher, Tobirama Senju, had made the wrong decision back then.

Danzō had harmed countless people in his life, but in a sense, he was merely a pathetic wretch trapped by fate.

"I can feel the resentment in your heart, but here, in Kirigakure, you can unleash your abilities without restraint. There will be no one behind you telling you what you can or cannot do."

Shisui continued.

"In Kirigakure, I will grant you the highest level of authority."

"How high? Do you mean for me to serve as an advisor to the Mizukage? Like I did in Konoha?" Danzō asked in return.

If he were an advisor to the Mizukage, he could finally put some of his ambitions into practice.

But Shisui's next words made Danzō's heartstrings tremble violently, nearly causing him to lose his breath.

"An advisor to the Mizukage? I mean the Mizukage himself, of course."

Shisui had actually promised Danzō the position of Mizukage.

"Cough, cough, cough... The position of Mizukage, for me? Are you serious, Master?" At that moment, Danzō realized that the word "Master," which had been so difficult to utter before, now rolled off his tongue with ease.

"Yes, you heard me correctly. It is just that, for now, Karatachi Yagura remains the Mizukage in the public eye. As the true controller of Kirigakure, you can issue your commands through him." After all, Shisui's control over Kirigakure was far from sufficient at this stage; if the secret of Karatachi Yagura's control were exposed, he would have no chance to rule the village for a long time.

"Enough, that is more than enough," Danzō said excitedly.

Ever since he was controlled by Shisui's Kotoamatsukami, he had never imagined he would one day wield such immense power.

While there was regret in not being the public Mizukage, becoming the puppet master of Kirigakure and wielding power effectively equal to a Kage was something Danzō had never dared to dream of.

"With this opportunity, I possess power equal to Hiruzen Sarutobi. Konoha, let's see if your Hiruzen Sarutobi's grand-student is more capable, or if I, Shimura Danzō, am better suited to be a Kage," Danzō thought excitedly.

At this moment, Danzō was as thrilled as a young man in his twenties. His competitive spirit was reignited; he wanted to see whether Minato Namikaze managed Konoha better, or if his own controlled Kirigakure would surpass it.

"Sarutobi, our contest is far from over," Danzō whispered to himself.

"Do your work well. When the time is ripe, I will let you truly sit in the seat of the Mizukage and become the Fifth Mizukage." Once Shisui's control over Kirigakure reached a certain level, he wouldn't mind letting Danzō truly take the title.

"Yes, Master." This time, Danzō said "Master" with genuine willingness.

"To better control Kirigakure, we need to weaken the influence of those bloodline families. You are skilled at this, just as you were in Konoha." Shisui certainly wouldn't tell Danzō the true reason for his plundering of bloodlines, but this was a task Danzō happened to excel at.

"Master, I will draft a plan as soon as possible and present it for your review." Having received a reward beyond his expectations, Danzō quickly immersed himself in his role.

"Good, I trust in your ability." Shisui believed that professional matters should be left to professionals.

"As for the name of this plan, let's call it the Village of the Bloody Mist."

This was the very same bloody policy implemented in his previous life when Kirigakure was under the control of Obito Uchiha.

Under the "Village of the Bloody Mist" policy, students at the ninja academy were forced to kill one another, and only those who survived could become ninjas.

Comrades could kill each other simply because they didn't like one another, or to prevent the other from surrendering and leaking secrets.

It was a dark era, bloody and terrifying, which was why Kirigakure under this policy became known as the Village of the Bloody Mist.

"Village of the Bloody Mist? A fine name. Why didn't I think of that?" Danzō patted his head, looking genuinely annoyed.

Watching Shimura Danzō suddenly start fawning over him, Shisui felt that this world had become incredibly bizarre and unfamiliar.