Reaper Death Seal, Perishing Together

Though the Third Mizukage was blind, wherever he faced, silence fell.

The Uzumaki Ninja all watched the Mizukage warily, unsure how he would enter the battlefield.

The Mist Ninja's movements grew increasingly cautious as they deliberately widened the distance between themselves and the Uzumaki Ninja.

The Cloud Ninja retreated even more slowly.

When a Kage Level Ninja appeared, everyone on the battlefield, enemy or ally alike, had to be careful.

If they were caught up in a Kage Level Ninja's technique, they could die without even knowing why.

The Great River running through the center of Uzu Hidden Village suddenly churned.

A massive lobster burst from the water and sprayed foam at the Third Mizukage.

The Uzumaki Clan had hidden a gigantic Summoned Beast in the river.

Hearing the commotion, the Third Mizukage raised a hand.

The entire river was nearly severed. A section of river water rose into the air, transforming into an enormous sphere of water that engulfed the giant lobster.

Water Prison Technique?

The Third Mizukage's Water Prison Technique was immense, trapping the gigantic Summoned Beast to death.

Unfortunately, before the foam could reach the Mizukage, it was swallowed by the Water Prison Technique.

The water sphere, dozens of meters in diameter, filled every Uzumaki Ninja with despair.

The Third Mizukage formed Hand Seals with both hands, and a dark cloud appeared above his head.

The dark cloud rapidly rose and expanded, becoming a mass of storm clouds that blanketed the entire Uzu Hidden Village.

A light drizzle began to fall.

Yagami nearly crushed the binoculars in his grip. The scene before his eyes sent a chill through his entire body.

If I were down there, I'd definitely die...

The dense raindrops fell, and every drop that struck a living thing transformed into a Water Prison Technique!

With an attack covering such a vast area, even the fastest Body Flicker Technique could not evade it.

Every Uzumaki Ninja, along with the gigantic Summoned Beast, was trapped inside a Water Prison Technique.

Even some villagers who had been cut down and lay on the ground, still barely breathing, were detected as living beings by the technique and imprisoned in Water Prisons as well.

For a time, fighting vanished from the village, leaving behind only water spheres of all sizes.

One Uzumaki Ninja after another struggled futilely inside the spheres.

They flailed their arms and legs, but could do nothing. They could not even touch the boundaries of the Water Prisons.

Some tried to form Hand Seals, but that too was futile. They could not break the Third Mizukage's Water Prison Technique.

Inside the Water Prisons, the Uzumaki Ninja spat bubbles, gulped down mouthfuls of water, struggled and convulsed, their faces turning crimson from holding their breath.

Yagami clicked his tongue inwardly. The Third Mizukage's attack range was too vast—it actually covered an entire village.

This was the Kage Level Ninja of legend, capable of destroying a village alone.

Not only that, the Third Mizukage could control it with precision, using Water Prison Technique to trap only the Uzumaki Ninja while leaving the Mist Ninja and Cloud Ninja untouched.

With that kind of deterrence from the Third Mizukage, no wonder Danzo hasn't moved. Maybe he doesn't dare.

Just when Yagami thought the Third Mizukage was already terrifying enough, the Third Mizukage opened his eyes.

Those eyes that had remained shut for decades opened!

There were no eyeballs in their sockets, only dark-red, ominous fluid rapidly swirling within.

A scarlet fan-shaped beam shot from the Mizukage's eyes.

Every Water Prison sphere touched by the red light glowed crimson, and the Uzumaki Ninja inside instantly burst apart, dissolving into bloody water.

This... being a ninja is far too dangerous. You can die just like that.

With just one opening of his eyes, he had killed half the Uzumaki Ninja.

One more glance, and every man of the Uzumaki Clan would be dead.

Without Konoha's support, this ninja clan, ranked among the top three in the ninja world, was utterly helpless before the Five Great Hidden Villages.

In this era of one village, one nation, no matter how powerful a ninja clan was, it could never stand against a ninja village. A ninja clan that betrayed its village had only one fate: destruction.

The Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan had both been wiped out in turn, yet neither had ever considered leaving Konoha.

Leaving Konoha would only mean dying faster.

The Mizukage turned his head!

He looked toward the other half of the Uzumaki Ninja!

It was over. This ninja clan was finished.

Yagami looked toward Danzo, unable to understand why he still had not moved.

Could it be that the Mizukage's appearance had truly scared him into not daring to act?

Danzo was very afraid of death. Until he became Hokage, he would never put himself in danger.

Just as the Mizukage slightly opened his eyes and a glint of red appeared, a massive lizard suddenly materialized!

This was one of Nagato's future Summoned Beasts, the Invisible Lizard.

The lizard appeared by the riverbank and opened its mouth toward the Third Mizukage.

Inside its mouth was the old clan head of the Uzumaki Clan, Uzumaki Mito's elder brother.

The old man's red hair had long since turned white, and he looked frail and withered by age.

Before appearing, the clan head had already completed his Hand Seals inside the lizard's mouth.

A translucent Shinigami appeared above the Great River!

Reaper Death Seal!

Without forming Hand Seals, the Third Mizukage erected a Water Wall Jutsu behind himself.

Yet the Shinigami ignored all physical matter. Its translucent arm, covered in curse marks, passed through the Water Wall Jutsu and seized the Third Mizukage's head.

Or rather, it seized the Third Mizukage's soul.

His soul!

Was pulled out by the Shinigami!

The Third Mizukage struggled for an instant before collapsing in swift defeat.

His body withered instantly, like a rotting corpse that had been dead for a long time.

The Reaper Death Seal differed from ordinary ninjutsu. It completely surpassed a ninja's understanding and directly attacked the soul.

At the same time, the Uzumaki Clan Head also fell from the lizard's mouth.

The Shinigami's sealing was complete. The Third Mizukage's soul was sealed away, while his own soul became the Shinigami's sacrifice.

The clan head's face was filled with satisfaction.

He had offered everything for the Uzumaki Clan.

A man was innocent, but his treasures invited disaster. The Uzumaki Clan's secret sealing arts were coveted by every ninja village; even Konoha's Danzo had demanded that they share their Sealing Jutsu.

What a pity. Hashirama Senju only knew how to curry favor with the other four great hidden villages. For the sake of his damned dream of peace, he had ignored the Uzumaki Clan's need for a tailed beast.

If not for the Senju Clan's demands, perhaps the Uzumaki Clan would have possessed a tailed beast as well.

Now, it seemed that having the Uzumaki Clan serve as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and reside permanently in Konoha had been a terrible compromise.

The Third Mizukage and the Uzumaki Clan Head had perished together.

"Clan Head!"

Inside the Four Violet Flames Formation, the women of the Uzumaki Clan cried out.

Uzumaki Yuka looked toward Konoha. Why had Konoha still not sent anyone?

All the Mist Ninja were dumbfounded. Some even dropped their ninja swords to the ground.

Their Kage had actually died?

He was a powerful man who had attended the Five Kage Summit alongside the First Mizukage.

Though he was old, his strength was formidable. How had he died just like that?

The Cloud Ninja looked at one another. Invited by Kirigakure to fight a major battle against Konoha, they had originally intended to create chaos behind Konoha's lines and strengthen the advantage on the main battlefield in the Land of Hot Water.

Now Konoha had not come, and the Mizukage was dead?

Several Captain Commanders exchanged looks, then all turned toward the Uzumaki Clan's Ancestral Hall.

They could not let so many people die for nothing. Since Konoha had not shown up, they would seize the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu!

The Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu was too powerful. A ninja like the Mizukage had been sealed to death without any chance to resist.

With such Sealing Jutsu, why would they need to worry about lacking a Perfect Jinchuriki?

As for the Mist Ninja, they had completely gone mad, charging at the Uzumaki Clan's ninja without any order or formation!

Their eyes were bloodshot as they sought only to take revenge on every Uzumaki clansman!

Anyone with red hair deserved to die!

The Mizukage's Water Prison Technique had been too powerful. The Uzumaki Ninja who had just emerged from the water prisons coughed from suffocation, each struggling to breathe.

One Uzumaki Ninja after another died miserably at the hands of the Mist Ninja.

Yagami lowered his binoculars. Danzo should make his move now, shouldn't he?

The Mizukage was dead, and so was the Uzumaki Clan Head.

Uzu Hidden Village was covered in casualties.

Danzo rose to his feet.

Three Captain Commanders hurried forward to receive his orders.

The Captain Commanders then went to their respective Squad Commanders, and orders were relayed down layer by layer.

The Black Gorilla Squad found its three Squad Leaders.

"Charge toward the Four Violet Flames Formation at top speed! Fox and I will be in the center, while the other two squads take the flanks. Charge in a wedge formation! Do not stop!"