Mizukage Admits Defeat, System Rewards Arrive

The happy times passed quickly.

Everyone enjoyed the Second Uzukage's cooking, bowl after bowl, until their bellies were bloated and they lay on the ground.

The Mist Ninja had not eaten yet. Watching the others eat with grease all over their mouths, their stomachs growled loudly with hunger.

Mizukage Hozuki Gengetsu slowly woke up at this moment. Lying on the ground with his eyes open, he recalled his battle.

The aroma of food drifted directly toward him, and the Mizukage raised a hand to cover his eyes.

"Damn it."

The war had been lost, and now his stomach was protesting too.

The Uzushio Ninja finally finished eating and got up to serve food to the Mist Ninja.

A genin from the Land of Whirlpools brought food over to the Mizukage and carefully handed it to him.

Mizukage Hozuki Gengetsu abruptly sat up from the ground, startling the genin. He snatched the food away and began wolfing it down.

The food was delicious. Mizukage Hozuki Gengetsu ate with tears streaming down his face.

When Uzumaki Shori saw Tsunade sit back down, he immediately flashed her a sweet smile.

At the sight of that handsome smile, Tsunade's face instantly turned red.

Just then, a genin ran over.

"Report, sir. Our side has finished eating, and the captive Mist Ninja have finished their meal as well."

Uzumaki Shori could only murmur to Tsunade in frustration.

"Next time, it'll just be the two of us. No outsiders to interrupt us."

Tsunade's face reddened even further with embarrassment, and she hurriedly pushed Uzumaki Shori away.

Uzumaki Shori looked up at the sky. There was only a light breeze, the sun was bright, and the weather was perfect for setting off.

As he watched the Uzushio Ninja gradually recover physically and emerge from their low spirits,

discussions about when to return to the Land of Whirlpools grew more frequent.

He quickly stood up and clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.

Uzumaki Shori said to several jonin,

"You few, arrange for them to board the warships in an orderly manner."

"And you few, board last after everyone else has boarded."

"Keep a close eye on the Mist Ninja. Don't let your guard down just because they're tied up. They've eaten their fill, so don't give them any chance to cause trouble."

After being captured, the Mist Ninja were deeply dejected. One after another, they lined up and boarded the ships.

The Mizukage was among them. His chakra had been sealed by the Five Elements Seal, and when he saw Uzumaki Shori ahead of him, he immediately clenched his fists tightly.

As the Mist Ninja moved forward and drew closer, his clenched fists gradually relaxed.

He straightened his clothes so that he would not look so disheveled.

Taking a deep breath, he fixed his gaze on the other man and sighed.

"Uzumaki Shori, it seems we lost this battle. But in my view, we did not lose to the Land of Whirlpools. We lost to you."

"I heard your ninja say that you only became the Second Uzukage before the battle. That is truly impressive."

Uzumaki Shori looked at the man's sighing expression. You're right. In the original history, the Land of Whirlpools would have vanished here. But now, under my hands, it will gradually rise to glory.

"Mizukage, you simply underestimated the Land of Whirlpools. I merely made the Land of Whirlpools more united."

The Mizukage shook his head without saying anything and boarded the ship.

"Ding. The Land of Water, Kirigakure, and the Mizukage have admitted defeat. Congratulations to the host's Land of Whirlpools for achieving victory. Reward: Puppetry Mastery."

With the system's ding, a vast amount of puppet-related knowledge appeared in Uzumaki Shori's mind.

A Puppeteer could attach chakra threads to puppets for combat and could also create all kinds of puppets: offensive, defensive, and reconnaissance types.

The techniques for making puppets were transmitted into his mind along with Puppetry Mastery.

After the system finished transmitting the knowledge, he let out a breath and sorted through the new knowledge in his mind.

He had originally thought the system would reward him once he defeated the Mizukage. He had not expected it to require a complete victory.

But why would the system reward Puppetry Mastery? This was not Sunagakure, and the Uzushio Ninja of the Land of Whirlpools did not know how to use puppetry.

Could it be that I have to train Puppeteers from scratch? If Sunagakure finds out, won't they come after us? The Land of Whirlpools still lacks the strength to contend with two major ninja villages.

It seems I'll have to invent weapons suited to the Land of Whirlpools, just like sealing techniques. That way, I can strengthen the Land of Whirlpools without making Sunagakure hostile toward us.

Seeing that Uzumaki Shori seemed unwell, Tsunade hurried over, grabbed his wrist, and checked his pulse.

Uzumaki Shori's head merely felt heavy from the sudden influx of knowledge.

His own store of knowledge was still insufficient. The sudden influx had taken up a great deal of space in his mind, making his complexion look a little poor.

"Tsunade, I'm fine. There have just been a lot of things to handle today, and I haven't finished yet. I'm only a little tired. I'll be fine after I finish up and get some rest."

Tsunade rolled her eyes at Uzumaki Shori, but she continued examining him carefully, unaffected by his words.

After checking him thoroughly, she found only slight fatigue and no other problems.

The heart she had been holding tight finally settled.

She immediately breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed he understood his own condition well; she had simply worried too much.

Uzumaki Ashina walked over and shook his head when he saw Tsunade examining his son.

"You're so young, yet your body is already this weak. Look at me—I fought two battles in a row, and I'm still full of vigor."

"When we get back, you need to train properly. Otherwise, when you get married in the future, you'll be a weakling. Tsunade, you need to keep an eye on Uzumaki Shori too."

Tsunade blushed slightly at his words, while Uzumaki Shori directly pushed his father away, unwilling to let him continue spouting nonsense.

"I'll make sure to push you to train properly from now on."

As soon as Tsunade finished speaking, she ran away.

Uzumaki Shori froze in place, realizing there might have been a major misunderstanding. But when he came to his senses and thought of her saying she would push him to train properly from now on, he decided to clear up the misunderstanding himself later.

Uzumaki Shori looked around to see whether anyone had been left behind. Finding no one, he finally shouted,

"Is there anyone who hasn't boarded yet? We're setting sail soon."

The Uzushio Ninja instantly fell silent and looked around to see if anyone would respond.

No one responded. Uzumaki Shori was the last to board the warship.

"Looks like everyone is here. Return to your positions and raise the sails!"

"Our families are waiting for us to return home in triumph in the Land of Whirlpools!"

Everyone suppressed their excitement and quickly hauled up the anchors and lowered the sails. The warships slowly set off, and as the sea breeze blew, they gradually picked up speed.

Standing on the deck at the bow with one hand on the railing, he watched the sun slowly descend. Its light struck the sea, casting streaks of golden radiance.

Uzumaki Shori quickly called Tsunade over to enjoy the seascape with him.