Karatachi Yagura's Ambition

"Shut up!" Ao raised his kunai, pressing it against the other man's neck while pulling out a thick stack of bills with his other hand. "This money is yours. Perform a minor surgery for me..."

In the dead of night, nine figures descended upon the small town.

"Takashi, how is it? Is this the place?"

Hyuga Takashi, his face stern and his forehead bare, sensed the area for a moment before nodding slowly.

"No mistake. That guy is hiding in this town!"

"Search! Tear this place apart if you have to, but find him!"

On the outskirts of the town, Hyuga Takashi and eight branch family ninja dispersed without a sound.

The town was small, consisting of only a few dozen households, but the terrain was complex with a labyrinth of intersecting alleys. Finding a hiding spot in such a short time would not be easy.

"Split up and search," he whispered. "Remember, our goal is to retrieve the Byakugan and eliminate anyone who has seen it. If necessary, the entire town can be..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood his meaning.

The Hyuga clan never allowed the Byakugan to fall into outside hands; it was an ironclad rule. Furthermore, the theft of this Byakugan had been kept under strict secrecy, and they could not allow a single soul to know of it.

The nine figures vanished into the silence, slipping into the night like nine hunting leopards.

Meanwhile, inside a dilapidated clinic.

Ao pressed against his freshly bandaged right eye socket, the intense pain causing cold sweat to bead on his forehead.

Although the surgery had been crude, the Byakugan was successfully transplanted. Now, he only needed a period of recovery before he could begin to unravel the mysteries of the Byakugan.

"You... you can go now," the town doctor stammered from the corner, his voice trembling. "I won't... I won't say a word to anyone."

Ao glanced at him, saying nothing.

Let him go?

Impossible.

He stood up slowly, his right hand reaching for the kunai at his waist.

Just then, he suddenly realized that the perimeter alarms he had set around the town had been triggered.

Ao's movements froze instantly.

"Damn it..."

He didn't bother finishing his business, vaulting out the back window and disappearing into the night.

Moments later, the door to the clinic was kicked open.

Hyuga Takashi rushed in, activating his Byakugan to scan the room.

The doctor sat paralyzed on the floor, his lips quivering, unable to speak.

"Where is he?"

"He... he ran out the back..."

Hyuga Takashi gritted his teeth and waved to his companions behind him: "Pursue!"

Before leaving, Hyuga Takashi casually dispatched the doctor cowering in the corner with a single strike...

In the dense forest, Ao fled for his life. The searing pain from his right eye socket blurred his vision, but the instinct to survive drove him to grit his teeth and press on.

As long as he could run east all the way to the coast, he would have a way to evade his pursuers and make a clean escape!

At the same time, Hyuga Akira, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, and Shisui had joined forces to successfully break through the Kirigakure defensive line. To their surprise, Karatachi Yagura, the commander of the Kirigakure army, was nowhere to be found among the ranks. Furthermore, the Kirigakure army was remarkably weak, and the assault had proceeded smoothly without much resistance.

"Damn it!" Shisui realized. "I'm afraid he went to hunt down Naoki and the others!"

"That crazy?" Sarutobi Shinnosuke was stunned. "He's abandoning his own troops?"

"Perhaps Naoki and the others really did kill someone of great importance... I cannot sit by any longer. Since the Kirigakure army has been scattered, you two can lead the others to mop up the remnants. I have to go save Naoki!"

"Wait," Sarutobi Shinnosuke blocked Shisui. "If you charge in blindly, do you even know where to go?"

"Do you have any advice?"

"I'm telling you, head east! They don't know that we've crushed the Kirigakure forces here. At this moment, the east is the only direction they can possibly flee toward!"

"Thank you." Shisui nodded heavily, then turned and left.

On a small hill in the east, Karatachi Yagura stood with his arms crossed, gazing out at the eastern sea.

A Kirigakure jonin hurried up the hill.

"Lord Yagura, the frontline army has been broken."

"Follow the plan. Have the prepared teams cross the sea as quickly as possible and return to the country in secret."

"Yes."

The subordinate nodded and turned to leave, but suddenly, he turned back to look at Karatachi Yagura.

With his back to his subordinate, Karatachi Yagura asked, "What is it, Kazama Mujuku? Is there something else?"

Kazama Mujuku was silent for a moment before speaking.

"Forgive my presumption, Lord Yagura, but if we return to the country after such a crushing defeat, will the Mizukage hold us directly responsible for the failure..."

"Mujuku, how many years have you been with me?"

"Seven years. I have been your subordinate since before the Third Shinobi World War began."

"We have weathered many storms together over these seven years; you can be considered my confidant. I will tell you the truth.

The Mizukage is nearing his end. As long as I can bring the elite forces currently stationed in the Land of Fire back home, I will be the next Mizukage!

When that time comes, who would dare to judge me?"

Kazama Mujuku understood and nodded.

"Now that you know, go and do your job well. Once we return to Kirigakure, I will not treat you poorly."

Kazama Mujuku was overjoyed.

After his subordinate left, Karatachi Yagura began to calculate his plan piece by piece, pondering whether there were any oversights.

From the moment he learned that Hozuki and Meido had been killed and the transport team burned to ashes, he knew the situation in the Land of Fire was a total defeat. Any effort he made afterward was merely to stall for time. As someone who had always aspired to the position of Mizukage, he could not afford to waste his time in the Land of Fire. Thus, that night, with a mix of genuine and feigned emotion, he had angrily ordered his men to capture the culprits.

Why do this?

The reason was simple. Although the Kirigakure army had been scattered by Konoha once before, many elites remained. To bring these elites back to the country, he had to put on a performance. After all, the Kirigakure army he had reassembled was a mixed bag, and various factions might have planted spies within it. If he revealed his intention to retreat, Konoha would press the attack, leaving him trapped.

Under the guise of hunting down the Uchiha, he continuously pulled the elite forces from the front lines and transferred them to the rear, preparing to ship them back home.

Although Konoha's sudden launch of a full-scale offensive was somewhat unexpected, his plan was already complete; the forces the Konoha army defeated were nothing more than a group of the old, weak, sick, and disabled.

As long as he returned to the country, this elite army—which he had brought across the sea and personally gathered—would be the greatest asset for his ascent to the Mizukage throne!

Thinking of this, Karatachi Yagura recalled those fellows in the village who fought amongst themselves while leaving thousands of soldiers in the Land of Fire to fend for themselves.

"How can one govern a country well when surrounded by such insects!" Clenching his fists, Karatachi Yagura said coldly, "Once I become Mizukage, I will sweep away all those who occupy high positions but fail to perform their duties!"

The war with Konoha was about to come to an end, but before leaving, Karatachi Yagura had one more thing to do... he would take the heads of Naoki and the others to pay tribute to his two fallen confidants!