Konoha, Hokage Office.
Looking at the list of supplies laid out on the table, Uchiha Mirai smiled with satisfaction.
"Even Kumogakure would be severely damaged if they gave up so many resources, let alone Konoha. That guy A must be furious right now!"
The so-called exchange of Jinchuriki was a lie he fabricated from the very beginning, and it had no possibility of ever happening.
Uchiha Mirai isn't stupid.
Two Jinchuriki, one of whom is the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki —with such immense value, how could he possibly just send them back so easily?
The Tailed Beast hold special significance for him, and he would never easily give them up unless it was for some purpose.
The reason he sent the letter to A to discuss exchanging Jinchuriki was simply to make one last quick buck and extort some money from Kumogakure.
As for whether Ai will fall for it...
A hint of disdain crept into the depths of Uchiha Mirai's eyes.
His letter perfectly replicated the essence of telecom fraud from his previous life.
It incorporates psychological scams such as sunk costs and high-return inducements, easily manipulating the victim's psychology.
It can't compare to a certain Dian, but bullying a simple-minded Ai with all his might is still a piece of cake.
However, after all this, he had completely severed ties with the Kumogakure.
A faint, cold smile played on Uchiha Mirai's eyes.
No, it should be said that when the Kumogakure plotted against him, they had already broken off all pretense of civility.
He was a person with an extremely strong desire for revenge.
The numerous events during Third Great Ninja War already revealed this point; the reason for holding back was simply to wait for the right opportunity.
Now that the two main forces are in his hands, and he has plundered so many resources, the value of Kumogakure has basically been squeezed dry.
A glint of light flashed in Uchiha Mirai's eyes.
It's time to move on to the next step!
Kumogakure.
Ai, in the Raikage Chamber, looked unusually haggard, as if he had aged more than ten years in an instant. His back was hunched, and the few bright red blood vessels at the corners of his eyes added to his current appearance, making him look even more weathered.
Since becoming the Raikage.
No! He's never fallen into such a huge pit since he was born!
Yugito couldn't be saved, his younger brother was lost, and he suffered such a huge loss of supplies, leaving him with almost no face to continue serving as Raikage.
And that is indeed the case. A series of wrong decisions caused such a great loss to the Kumogakure, and the village elders were very dissatisfied with him.
They are preparing a joint impeachment to force him to step down.
This was the darkest day in the history of Kumogakure.
It's all because of that man!
Ai clenched her teeth, and bloodshot veins shot out from her eyes in an instant.
His hatred for Uchiha Mirai is beyond words!
Only by swallowing its flesh and drinking its blood can the pain be relieved!
"Hey, stop torturing yourself like this, get some rest."
A sigh came from behind, causing Ai's shoulders to tremble slightly, and a hot tear uncontrollably rolled down her cheek.
In the village, only one person calls him that.
Dodai.
He served as a retainer of the village during the reign of his father, the Third Raikage, holding a position comparable to Danzo of Konoha.
For so many years, she has been his pillar of support, silently contributing to the village.
Ai turned around, looked at the slightly aged face on the Dodai, and asked in a hoarse voice.
Was I really wrong?
He was met with a brief silence.
This is a question that the Dodai cannot answer.
Honestly, if he were in Ai's position, could I handle things better than him?
The Uchiha Mirai is suffocating them.
The Dodai could only respond with silence.
The Raikage's chamber fell silent for a moment, the air still as if frozen.
A self-deprecating smirk appeared on Ai's lips.
He's probably the most unsuccessful Raikage in Kumogakure, isn't he?
Father, if you are watching from heaven, do you regret passing the position of Raikage to me?
A hidden cave somewhere in the Land of Lightning.
The dark entrance was protected by special methods, so that even passersby would not notice anything unusual without careful observation.
The interior is a huge space, filled with sophisticated experimental equipment, and wooden shelves are filled with bottles and jars soaked in liquid, containing all sorts of strange organs and tissues.
The pale-skinned boy pushed up his slipping glasses, staring intently at the experimental data in his hand. After a while, he finally looked at the man sitting in a wheelchair beside him.
"Lord Orochimaru, the experiment data is correct, and everything is progressing as expected."
Upon hearing the boy's report, the man in the wheelchair finally smiled with satisfaction. Coupled with his pale skin and his face, which looked as if it had been burned and had not yet healed, the scene appeared somewhat sinister and eerie.
"Well done, Dou."
Orochimaru's voice was rough, like sand being used to grind the bottom of a pot. His voice was already hoarse, but now it sounded even more inhuman and strange.
"It is my honor to serve Lord Orochimaru!"
Upon hearing Orochimaru's praise, the boy named Kabuto showed a hint of excitement, as if he had received immense recognition.
Orochimaru observed this without saying a word. Kabuto was an outstanding genius he had discovered in the orphanage and had been secretly nurturing him.
Since leaving the Akatsuki, he has brought Kabuto to this hidden laboratory, which was established in the early years, to conduct secret experiments.
Unlike Kabuto when he first appeared in the original work, the current Kabuto is much younger and still looks like a teenager, but he has already developed that venomous snake aura that is the same as Orochimaru's.
The eyes behind the metal glasses always gleamed with a serpentine light.
"Lord Orochimaru, are you alright...?"
Seemingly noticing Orochimaru's change in mood, Kabuto looked at his current body and asked with some reluctance.
He still remembered what Orochimaru looked like when he found him.
That was the first time he had ever seen Orochimaru in such a miserable state; his originally pale skin was now covered in blood blisters, and his hair and flesh were falling off one after another.
The most serious damage was to his mouth, which was burned inwards along with the cheek, leaving it a bloody mess. All his teeth had fallen out, and his entire mouth had become a foul-smelling, indistinguishable cavity.
Kabuto had never seen Orochimaru like this before. He even doubted that the man in front of him was the Lord Orochimaru he worshipped every night. He was so frightened that he froze on the spot.
He only snapped out of his fear when Orochimaru called out to him.
This horrific injury also caused irreparable damage to Orochimaru's vocal cords.
This added an even more eerie quality to his already hoarse voice, making it sound almost inhuman.
Once he came to his senses, Kabuto quickly began treating Orochimaru's injuries.
He tried to ask how the injury had occurred.
Orochimaru simply shook his head.
Dou saw an unprecedented madness in his eyes.