Encounter with Mei Terumi! A Helping Hand in Desperation, the Light of Hope in Her Eyes!

Mist shrouded the remote training ground, and the clash of metal tore through its usual dead silence.

Kamizuki Yu appeared like a phantom atop a drenched giant tree, looking down at the chaotic battlefield below.

"Just as I sensed. Things are pretty intense."

He recognized the familiar yet chaotic chakra source—it was Mei Terumi.

Her hair was disheveled, her breathing ragged, and multiple wounds covered her body as she struggled to fend off the siege of more than a dozen Hidden Mist ANBU.

Every one of the ANBU wore standard masks. They moved in perfect coordination, their attacks vicious and aimed at vital points.

"Lava Release: Melting Apparition Technique!"

Mei Terumi spat out a powerful acid that forced back several ANBU charging from the front. The corrosive liquid sizzled against the ground.

Yet before she could catch her breath, two ANBU had already closed in from her flanks, their kunai shrieking toward her ribs.

"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!"

High-temperature steam burst from her body, forming a dense mist over a small area. It temporarily obstructed the enemies' vision and attacks, though it also caused an unnatural flush to rise across her skin.

"Pfft!"

One of her trusted subordinates took a blade through the chest while shielding her, blood spraying everywhere.

"Damn it!" Mei Terumi gritted her teeth, fury burning within her, yet she was powerless to turn the tide.

Her chakra had been heavily depleted. Though Boil Release and Lava Release were powerful, she was stretched thin against so many well-trained enemies who fought without fear of death.

Some of these ANBU moved with an unnatural stiffness, as if controlled by some force, knowing only how to attack madly.

"Give up, Mei Terumi! By Lord Yagura's order, all rebels are to be killed without mercy!" an ANBU captain barked coldly, his voice devoid of emotion.

"For such a misguided policy, you'd raise your blades against your own comrades?!" Mei Terumi shot back, but the water whip in her hand slowed for an instant.

A strange red glint flashed through the ANBU captain's eyes. He suddenly accelerated, and the poisoned dagger in his hand became a streak of black light, tearing through the defense of Boil Release steam.

The dagger went straight for Mei Terumi's heart.

Her pupils contracted. She tried to dodge, but her body had grown sluggish after the continuous battle.

It's over...

At that very instant, a figure abruptly appeared before Mei Terumi.

He was so fast that it seemed like teleportation.

The newcomer extended two fingers and casually pinched shut.

"Clang!"

A sharp metallic screech rang out.

The poisoned dagger was firmly caught between his fingers, its sharp tip less than half an inch from Mei Terumi's clothes.

A tremendous force traveled back along the blade. The ambushing ANBU captain felt a searing pain in his wrist, as though it were about to snap, and the dagger could no longer advance even an inch.

"What?!" The ANBU captain was horrified.

Mei Terumi and her surviving subordinates were equally stunned.

Kamizuki Yu turned his head and glanced at Mei Terumi's pale face.

"Not bad reflexes. Too bad you were still a little slow."

He did not even look back at the ANBU captain. He merely flicked his wrist lightly.

"Crack!"

The sound of breaking bone was unmistakable.

The ANBU captain let out a muffled groan and dropped his dagger. His entire body flew backward as if struck by an invisible sledgehammer, smashing through several trees thick enough for two people to wrap their arms around before finally stopping. It was unclear whether he was dead or alive.

The surrounding ANBU froze for a moment, then rushed forward even more frantically.

"Deal with the rebel!"

"Kill him!"

Kamizuki Yu did not even furrow his brow. He casually waved a hand.

An invisible, immense force spread outward from him.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The charging Hidden Mist ANBU were like fallen leaves swept up by a gale. One after another, they were blasted dozens of meters away, sprawling across the ground and instantly losing their ability to fight.

Throughout the entire process, Kamizuki Yu had not moved a single step, much less used the Boil Release and Lava Release he had just mastered.

To him, these opponents did not even count as a warm-up.

For a moment, an eerie silence fell over the training ground.

Only heavy breathing remained.

Mei Terumi and her few subordinates stared blankly at the young man's back.

The aura he gave off was powerful and tranquil, yet it carried an undeniable authority. It was completely different from the cruelty and suffocating oppression ingrained in the Bloody Mist Village.

"Who... are you?" Mei Terumi barely steadied herself, her voice hoarse and wary.

Kamizuki Yu turned around and examined her.

She had long auburn hair and emerald eyes. Though she looked bedraggled now, neither her beautiful features nor her resolute bearing could be concealed.

"So you're Mei Terumi." His tone was calm.

"I am Kamizuki Yu, an advisor from the Hidden Leaf. At the request of the Water Country's daimyo, I've come to investigate some... unusual developments in the Hidden Mist Village recently."

A Hidden Leaf advisor? Sent by the daimyo?

Doubts filled Mei Terumi's heart, but the strength he had displayed and his mention of "unusual developments" made her temporarily lower her guard.

Kamizuki Yu's gaze swept over her severely wounded subordinates.

"Those are serious injuries."

He slowly approached a Hidden Mist ninja whose abdomen had been slashed open so deeply that bone was visible.

The ninja tried to struggle, but his companion held him down.

Kamizuki Yu extended a hand. A gentle green glow appeared in his palm and covered the wound.

[Improved Mystical Palm Technique]

Visible to the naked eye, the gruesome wound began to squirm and close rapidly.

In mere moments, aside from the torn clothing and bloodstains, the wound had completely vanished without leaving even a scar.

"This... this is..." Feeling vitality return to his body and comfort spread from his injury, the wounded ninja was shocked beyond words.

Mei Terumi's eyes widened as well. She had never heard of medical ninjutsu this refined.

"The Hidden Leaf's medical ninjutsu truly lives up to its reputation," she murmured, her vigilance fading a little further.

This man was not only unfathomably powerful, but also possessed such superb healing skills.

"Think nothing of it." Kamizuki Yu treated the remaining wounded as well.

The Hidden Mist ninja who had been on the verge of death quickly regained the ability to move, though it would still take time for their depleted chakra to recover.

Their expressions as they looked at Kamizuki Yu were filled with gratitude and awe.

"Thank you for saving us, sir!" Mei Terumi bowed solemnly.

Had this man not appeared in time, they likely would not have escaped disaster today.

"You're welcome." Kamizuki Yu waved a hand. "Since I accepted the commission, I naturally can't stand by and watch the Hidden Mist Village continue to rot."

He paused. "You must have felt Yagura's recent behavior firsthand as well, haven't you?"

At the mention of Yagura's name, Mei Terumi's expression darkened.

"More than firsthand!" She clenched her teeth. "Starting several months ago, Lord Yagura became increasingly... brutal and unreasonable. Nearly everyone in the village who objected to his policies was purged. This time, we were targeted because we opposed the indiscriminate cleansing order he had just issued..."

Her words confirmed the documents Kamizuki Yu had seen in the Mizukage's office.

"About when did these changes begin?" Kamizuki Yu pressed.

Mei Terumi frowned as she recalled, "It's hard to pinpoint the exact time, but the large-scale purges and unreasonable mission assignments began escalating around three months ago. Before that, although the Bloody Mist policy was still cruel, there were at least... patterns to follow. It wasn't this insane."

"Three months..." Kamizuki Yu had an idea. That was likely not far from when Obito marked Yagura with the Flying Thunder God Technique.

"Do you think Lord Yagura... still has any chance of returning to normal?" Mei Terumi asked, a faint, barely detectable trace of hope in her voice.

After all, Yagura had once been the village's hero—the perfect jinchuriki.

Kamizuki Yu shook his head.

"Once someone is deeply controlled by an outside force, the chances of recovering their mind are extremely slim."

He looked at Mei Terumi. "Combined with what you just told me and some evidence I've gathered, it can basically be confirmed that the current Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, is nothing more than a puppet."

"A puppet..." Mei Terumi swayed, and a chill ran through her at those words.

If the Mizukage was a puppet, just how terrifying was the mastermind behind him?

"Then we..."

"The next step is naturally to pay this 'puppet' Mizukage a visit." Kamizuki Yu spoke casually, as though discussing something trivial.

He turned and looked toward the Mizukage Building.

"And while we're at it, drag out the rat controlling him."