Recruiting the Rebels, Yaksha's Might Descends upon the City

Chojuro's eyes were bloodshot as all ten fingers clamped tightly around the twin blades Hiramekarei. The cloth strips around their hilts stretched taut against his palms, leaving deep crimson marks.

The black-clad youth before him had not only destroyed Hidden Mist Village's defenses, but had also denied Terumi Mei's dignity and years of hard work in front of everyone.

As Terumi Mei's guard, he had long sworn to protect his leader with his life. His ears rang and his chest heaved violently; he could no longer care about the disparity in their strength.

He drove every last shred of chakra in his body into motion. First, the bandages wrapped around Hiramekarei's surface came loose, followed by pale blue chakra rising up and illuminating his flushed face.

Even if only once, he had to charge forward and preserve his leader's last shred of dignity.

But before his foot had moved even half a step, a faint sound brushed past his ear, and Chojuro's neck abruptly tensed.

There was no leaking chakra, nor could he hear the rustle of robes cutting through the air. The only thing that entered his vision was a ghastly white afterimage.

A jade-like bone blade glimmering with a crystalline sheen pressed against his throat. If its edge moved forward another half inch, it would slice through his skin and sever his windpipe.

Kimimaro stood at Chojuro's side with an indifferent expression. His browless eyes stared at him, and the bone blade in his hand did not tremble in the slightest.

Chojuro's entire body went cold, his breathing catching. The chakra aura around Hiramekarei rapidly dissipated, and he did not even dare move the fingers gripping his blade.

The bone blade pressed against his skin was freezing cold. The stabbing pain in his throat steadily intensified, spreading down the side of his neck.

The gap was far too great.

Ye did not even need to act personally. One of his subordinates alone could take Chojuro's life in a single exchange.

"Chojuro, stop."

Terumi Mei's slightly hoarse voice came from behind him.

She walked to Chojuro's side, raised a hand to press down on his still-trembling shoulder, and applied gentle pressure to signal that he should put away his weapon.

She had forcibly suppressed her initial shock and loss of composure. What returned now was the reason that a politician and leader had to possess.

She saw the current situation with perfect clarity, and she knew exactly what continuing to resist would bring.

If the man called Ye wanted to kill them, he would not need to do it himself at all.

Samehada had been destroyed in a single strike, and Boil Release had been scattered with a casual wave. That pair of despair-inducing Mangekyo Sharingan alone was enough to kill them all in an instant.

The other side had never dealt a lethal blow, and had even personally exposed the truth that the Fourth Mizukage had been manipulated. That meant they still had value as witnesses to what came next.

"I understand."

Terumi Mei lowered her gaze, avoiding Ye's oppressive back, and withdrew all the pride belonging to the Mizukage.

"Since you truly have a way to end the Blood Mist... then fine. We'll listen to you for now."

Just a few words had transferred command of the entire group into Ye's hands.

Ye gave no response to this submission. He did not even turn back to look at them again.

Once he started walking again, he stepped over shattered stone slabs, his black boots heading straight for the Mizukage Building.

As he moved, the entire group swiftly changed formation.

Ye remained at the very front and center. His black trench coat swept past the ruins on either side, while everyone else naturally fell half a step behind and advanced with him.

Kimimaro withdrew his bone blade and took one side, while Zabuza, carrying the Executioner's Blade, took the other. Their gazes continually swept over both sides of the street.

The mockery on Zabuza's face was undisguised. His eyes passed over Terumi Mei and the others one by one, and he let out a cold snort through his nose.

After adjusting his round-framed glasses, Kabuto Yakushi let several scalpel blades spin between his fingers, standing guard at the rear alongside Haku, who was ready to use Ice Release at any moment.

Terumi Mei and the others, who had originally been imposing and ready to launch a coup, could now only rein in their edges and silently follow at the rear of the group. Even their breathing had become much quieter.

There were only a dozen or so people advancing along the broad avenue.

The clouds that had hung over Hidden Mist Village year-round finally split apart. Sunlight fell upon the devastated streets, making everyone squint slightly.

Large stretches of buildings had collapsed on both sides of the road, with bricks and stones scattered everywhere. The once-prosperous district now held not the slightest sound of human life.

As the Mizukage Building drew nearer, more and more attackers hidden in the dark emerged.

Those Anbu ninja who had yet to understand the situation and remained loyal to the Fourth Mizukage began appearing one after another from all around the streets.

Several lay in wait atop ruined rooftops, while several more hid in dim alleyways. Their kunai and ninja blades had already been drawn, awaiting only a chance to assassinate this group of unknown origin.

Several sharp whistles suddenly came from above as poisoned senbon needles shot straight at Ye's face.

Facing the attack from the shadows, Ye did not stop walking. Both hands remained in his trench coat pockets.

After raising his head slightly, his scarlet eyes swept toward the direction the senbon had come from.

The black pattern of the Mangekyo Sharingan spun rapidly within his eyes.

There were no hand seals and no sound of chakra being released. His domineering ocular power had already crossed the long street and directly acted upon the hidden attackers' consciousness.

The three Hidden Mist Anbu on the rooftop shuddered at once. Before they could see their enemy's movements, the nerves in their brains responsible for transmitting signals were forcibly cut off by his ocular power.

Their vision suddenly went black, and their consciousnesses were severed as well. The mental defenses they had painstakingly built did not last even a moment.

The three bodies falling from the high rooftop crashed one after another onto the stone slabs at Ye's feet, their dull impacts echoing down the street.

There was no struggle, no scream, and not even time to assume a defensive stance. Foam already spilled from their mouths as they sank into deep unconsciousness, completely losing their ability to fight.

Terumi Mei and the others walking behind witnessed all of it, and their expressions immediately turned even uglier.

He did not need physical contact, nor did he need to meet his targets' eyes. A casual glance alone could make three elite Anbu lose consciousness simultaneously.

Such abnormal mastery of genjutsu made Ao's scalp tingle, and cold sweat quickly seeped from the palm hidden beneath his sleeve.

At this moment, he was incomparably grateful that Terumi Mei had stopped Chojuro in time. Otherwise, if they had truly enraged this monster, they likely would not even know how they died.

The group continued onward, and similar scenes began unfolding one after another throughout the long street.

Any resister who dared show themselves would lose consciousness in an instant the moment they entered Ye's field of vision, their bodies going rigid before collapsing.

Before long, unconscious Hidden Mist ninja lay all along both sides of the lengthy street.

The group of only a dozen or so continued forward, their footsteps always orderly and steady. Hearing those sounds, the Hidden Mist ninja hiding in the shadows no longer dared reveal themselves carelessly.

Only after they passed through the final street did the view before them completely open up.

Only a broad bluestone plaza remained between them and the Mizukage Building.

The towering building stood at the far end of the plaza. Stone steps leading to the position of Mizukage rose layer upon layer, stretching all the way to the tightly shut main doors.

Blocking the only route to the building was a chilling force positioned at the center of the plaza.

Nearly a hundred elite guards clad in the uniforms of the Hidden Mist's direct Anbu stood in a neat square formation. The ninja blades in their hands reflected sunlight, their edges flashing with cold gleams.

No one spoke, and there were no unnecessary movements. Even the breathing of nearly a hundred people maintained the same rhythm, every body moving under a single will.

Their eyes were hollow. Their faces held neither fear when facing a powerful enemy nor the slightest hint of solemnity.

Terumi Mei stared intently at the formation, her chest tightening as the cold air entering her lungs stung her throat.

This state of having completely lost their individual wills had already confirmed everything Ye had said before.

The direct guards responsible for protecting the Mizukage had long since been controlled along with everyone else by the person behind the scenes, becoming death warriors without pain, without fatigue, and capable only of obeying orders.

This hundred-man formation was the final barrier Obito had placed before the Mizukage Building.

Ye stopped. Wind swept across the plaza, lifting the hem of his black trench coat.

Looking at the hundred-man formation ahead, he did not turn back. He merely gave the people beside him a brief order.

"Leave none alive. Clear the way."