A Fist Shatters the Mizukage Dream

Ye's pitch-black eyes instantly lost their original color, crimson rapidly flooding his gaze.

Three black tomoe emerged from the depths of his pupils, then spun at high speed, merging together before finally settling into an intricate, eerie pattern.

Mangekyō Sharingan.

Ao, standing closest, widened his Byakugan, his taut visual nerves suffering an unprecedented shock.

In his vision, the chakra within the black-clad youth ahead had completely changed.

The vast, majestic senjutsu chakra that had once brimmed with life had now entirely transformed into a violent, icy dark purple. Its quality and density far surpassed Ao's understanding, causing ripples to form even in the surrounding air.

Large beads of cold sweat seeped from Ao's forehead and rolled continuously down his cheeks.

Terrifying accounts from Kirigakure's classified scrolls flashed through his mind one after another. The bloody legends between those lines finally took on a clear shape.

Madara Uchiha.

The Asura of the Shinobi World who could command the Nine-Tails with nothing but his eyes and trample the Five Great Nations beneath his feet.

"Fall back!"

Ao shrieked harshly, nearly losing control as he staggered several steps back.

"Lady Terumi Mei, retreat!"

In his panic, Ao caught his foot on rubble and nearly fell. He no longer cared about looking pathetic; he only wanted to get everyone out of the range covered by that dark purple chakra.

Unfortunately, it was already too late.

The hand seals were complete. The water- and fire-natured chakra within Terumi Mei rapidly fused and surged toward her throat.

She could no longer stop the technique, nor did she have any path of retreat. Against a monster of this level, turning and running would merely offer him her back.

Her red lips parted, and Terumi Mei violently exhaled scorching chakra.

"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!"

An attack even more violent than her previous Lava Release erupted forth. Billowing white mist carrying immense heat and powerful acid filled the street ahead in an instant.

The temperature around them rose rapidly. The stone pavement began to soften and boil the moment it touched the mist, soon dissolving into pools of murky sludge that gave off a pungent odor.

The corrosive power of this acidic mist defied all reason. It could forcibly dissolve even intangible chakra.

The rapidly spreading white mist churned through the air, sealing off the surroundings as it sought to swallow Ye and everyone around him.

Zabuza gripped Kubikiribōchō tightly, the intense heat already making the heavy blade scalding hot.

Kabuto Yakushi raised a hand and adjusted his glasses. Their lenses had long since fogged over, while the chakra in his body had been pushed to its peak, ready to raise a defensive barrier at any moment.

Ye neither formed hand seals nor tried to evade.

The Mangekyō pattern in his eyes turned faintly.

A violent gale suddenly rose from the ground. Dark purple chakra erupted completely from Ye's body, and a pillar of light shooting into the sky tore apart the thick white fog covering the street.

Vast energy intertwined and converged rapidly in midair, gradually forming the upper body of a towering, terrifying skeleton.

The colossal figure revealed only its ribcage and one arm, yet its crushing pressure had already blanketed the entire street. Everyone present felt their chests tighten, and even breathing became difficult.

Susanoo.

Faced with the scorching acidic mist sweeping toward him, Ye did not use any ninjutsu to defend himself.

A massive purple skeletal arm over ten meters long rose into the air. Its five fingers spread, and it casually swung down at the boiling white mist ahead.

There was no chakra nature transformation, only brute force savage enough to crush everything.

The giant palm slammed through the air, and a muffled sonic boom tore down the entire street. The violent wind pressure formed an invisible wall, sweeping rubble ahead of it.

Before it could even reach the edge of Susanoo, the Boil Release acidic mist, hot enough to melt steel, was scattered by the head-on wind pressure and hurled back at several times its original speed.

The storm swept down the street, collapsing ruined walls one after another and sending shattered bricks and stones tumbling toward both sides.

"Spread out!"

Chojuro's shout had completely changed in pitch.

He rushed in front of Terumi Mei, tore the bandages from the twin blades Hiramekarei on his back, and poured massive amounts of chakra into them, trying to use their swelling blade aura to split the acid mist rushing back at them.

The blade aura crashed headlong into the white mist, and Chojuro's prized ninja blades were instantly engulfed by the searing acidic fog.

A scalp-numbing hiss of corrosion rose from Hiramekarei's surface, and wisps of white smoke soon began to emerge from its hard metal shell.

Chojuro's arms burned with unbearable pain. The moment his sleeves touched the edge of the mist, they burned into ash. His exposed skin rapidly swelled and reddened, becoming covered in large scorch marks in the blink of an eye.

Ao crouched low and scrambled across the ground, barely avoiding the direct impact of the acid mist by taking shelter behind half a ruined wall.

Even so, the clothes on his back were completely corroded away. The scorching acidic vapor burned through his flesh, leaving large patches of blackened, curling wounds.

Several Anbu members at the perimeter failed to dodge in time. The instant their bodies were caught in the acidic mist, they melted into pools of blood within the churning white smoke before they could even scream.

Using the half-second Chojuro had bought her, Terumi Mei cast the Substitution Technique repeatedly and finally escaped the range of the acid mist.

She landed atop a broken wall, her chest heaving violently. Her neatly arranged reddish-brown hair was now utterly disheveled, damp strands clinging to her sweat-soaked cheeks. Not a trace of composure remained.

The gale ravaging the street gradually subsided.

Ye dismissed Susanoo, and the vast dark purple chakra receded with it.

With both hands tucked into the pockets of his black trench coat, he walked through the charred ruins toward Terumi Mei at an unhurried pace.

His leather boots stepped over rubble scattered across the ground, their clear footsteps ringing out one after another. The lingering heat and acid along the way failed to damage even the corner of his clothing.

Stopping three steps before Terumi Mei, Ye looked down at the renowned genius ninja of the Land of Water. The disdain in his crimson eyes was entirely undisguised.

"Dual Kekkei Genkai are indeed impressive. Barely worth looking at."

Ye's tone was calm, but every word struck at what Terumi Mei was proudest of.

"Unfortunately, your vision is far too narrow."

As he looked at Terumi Mei's current state of disarray, his words showed not the slightest mercy.

"With such little strength, you think you can command the winds and rain in the Land of Water?"

Terumi Mei clenched her molars. The pride of a Mizukage forced her to try and retort, but when those Mangekyō Sharingan entered her sight, her throat tightened, and she could not utter even half a word.

The gap between them was already so vast that there was not the slightest chance of victory in sight.

His gaze swept past Ao, who faced him as if confronting a great enemy. Ye tilted his head slightly and looked toward Terumi Mei again.

"You hide in the gutter, painstakingly plotting some coup while dreaming of overthrowing the Fourth Mizukage."

He stepped half a pace closer and watched Terumi Mei's breathing falter.

"After fighting for so many years and losing so many subordinates, you still haven't even figured out where your true enemy is hiding."

His voice sank several degrees, and the remaining members of the rebel faction along both sides of the street held their breaths.

"This absurd Bloody Mist Village policy, the strange isolationism, and the repeated orders to purge his own trusted followers—have you never wondered why?"

The color slowly drained from Terumi Mei's face, and the hand hanging at her side clenched uncontrollably.

"The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, had long since been stripped of his consciousness by Mangekyō genjutsu. He is now nothing more than a puppet at another's mercy."

Without giving her a chance to catch her breath, Ye's next words fell immediately after.

"You self-proclaimed clever rebels have been trying to outwit a dead man all this time. How pitifully stupid."

Terumi Mei's eyes abruptly widened, the last trace of color vanishing from her face. Her legs gave way, and her body swayed as she nearly fell from the broken wall.

Chojuro hurriedly reached out to support her. Only when his palm touched her arm did he realize that her skin was icy cold, almost entirely devoid of warmth.

Ao suddenly let out a shrill cry, clutching his head tightly with both hands. His bloodshot remaining eye had turned red.

The information Ye had revealed filled in the final gap, linking together all of Ao's investigations and doubts from these past years.

The chakra fluctuations that often appeared within Yagura, those cruel orders that utterly defied common sense, and the strange occasions when the Perfect Jinchūriki lost control—all of them now had an answer.

If Yagura had fallen under some supreme ocular technique that was difficult to detect, then every doubt from the past could be completely explained.

"Th-this is impossible..."

Her voice shook violently, yet Terumi Mei still struggled to deny the information that could destroy everything she had upheld for years.

"A Perfect Jinchūriki is immune to genjutsu. That is common knowledge in the Shinobi World!"

Steadying herself against Chojuro's arm, Terumi Mei's breathing became ever more frantic.

"Besides, the Mizukage possesses that kind of power. Who... who could turn him into a puppet?"

"Common knowledge can usually only restrain the weak."

Ye shattered her last remaining hope right before her.

"Ocular techniques capable of controlling a Perfect Jinchūriki are indeed rare, but they do exist."

The mysterious pattern within his crimson pupils slowly revolved. Terumi Mei's eyes fell upon it, and she could no longer look away.

"For example, others of the same kind as the eyes before you."

Terumi Mei stood atop the broken wall without speaking for a long time. White smoke rising from the surrounding ruins drifted continuously past her pale face.

Years of endurance, the sacrifices of countless companions, and all the blood spilled to overthrow tyranny had lost their original weight with this truth.

They had pointed their blades at the Mizukage, another victim like themselves, without even knowing who the true mastermind was.

The internal strife that had lasted for years had been nothing but an absurd farce manipulated by another from beginning to end.

The remaining rebel Anbu members on either side of the street were likewise deathly pale. Their hands holding their weapons dropped one after another, and the morale they had just gathered instantly dissipated.

Ye had no interest in what these defeated soldiers were thinking.

He withdrew his gaze and turned around, raising his right hand to point toward the end of the long street.

Standing there was a tall, strangely designed building, the symbol of Kirigakure's highest authority.

"Follow me."

Ye did not look back. His command allowed no room for refusal.

"Since you understand nothing, open your eyes and see clearly."

His arm slowly lowered as he began walking toward the Mizukage Building.

"I'll show you how a real reckoning is done."