More than half a day passed before the group returned to the foot of the Land of Snow's towering fortress.
Cold winds howled. The massive fortress walls blotted out the sky, radiating an oppressive, murderous atmosphere.
Nadare Rōga stopped and turned toward Fubuki Kakuyoku and Fubuki Fuyukuma, speaking gravely.
"I'll go inside first and report to Lord Dotō."
With that, Nadare Rōga darted away, leaping into the fortress in a few bounds.
Fubuki Kakuyoku and Fubuki Fuyukuma stood quietly outside, watching the group with relaxed expressions.
Naruto shivered from the cold, Sakura kept rubbing her hands, and Sasuke leaned against a wall with his eyes closed, looking aloof. Kakashi, meanwhile, remained alert. This was someone else's headquarters, after all, and he didn't want his people walking into danger.
The film crew chatted in small clusters and occasionally took pictures. Miki Yūya was equally bored out of his mind.
With nothing to do, he raised his right hand and stared blankly at his middle finger.
After mouthing off all along the way, frantically drawing hatred to farm stats, he had let the system pile up his Haki until it underwent a qualitative transformation.
His old Armament Haki had been extremely subtle, completely invisible to the naked eye. At most, it made his body a little tougher-a strictly low-profile cheat.
But things were different now!
He gently activated it, and the nail and skin of his entire middle finger instantly took on a deep, pitch-black sheen!
Glossy black and solid, it was genuine Armament Haki, clearly visible to the naked eye!
Miki Yūya's eyes lit up. He felt fucking fantastic!
"Holy shit! It actually changed color!"
Previously, when he insulted and bullied people, he could only spew abuse and shove them around. That was low-level humiliation, utterly lacking in class.
But things were different now!
I've got an Armament Haki middle finger!
A pitch-black, imposing middle finger to shove in people's faces!
This is art! This is refined bullying! This is rising above vulgar tastes!
The longer Miki Yūya looked, the more excited he became. He repeatedly flipped off thin air, imagining glorious scenes of himself roasting all sorts of ninja and powerful fighters, his grin sleazy and arrogant.
Just as he lost himself in the joy of refined humiliation-
BOOOOM!!!
An earthshaking explosion suddenly erupted from the very top of the fortress!
Flames shot skyward, rubble tumbled, and the entire fortress shook violently!
Huge chunks of stone and broken walls came crashing down toward the foot of the fortress.
A boulder the size of a millstone plummeted straight toward Miki Yūya's head!
Miki Yūya ducked in fright, scrambling and rolling aside as shards of ice splashed all over him.
The moment he steadied himself, he already had a mouthful of curses ready to unload.
But a figure shot down from the breach high above! Other ninja also emerged from the fortress, fleeing in different directions.
The one coming down toward Miki Yūya was Nadare Rōga, who had only just entered the castle!
Nadare Rōga staggered upon landing. His armor was cracked, his breathing was ragged, and his face was deathly pale. He opened his mouth and roared:
"Disaster!! Lord Dotō has been kidnapped!!"
The instant those words fell!
Miki Yūya, who had been primed to start cursing, instantly changed his expression!
In a single second, he redirected his fire, stepped beside Nadare Rōga, and seamlessly shifted the blame. Pointing straight at Kakashi, he shouted with righteous conviction:
"I knew it! This was definitely your doing, Kakashi!"
"Konoha ninja love pulling this kind of underhanded shit!"
"This has absolutely nothing to do with me!"
At that moment, Fubuki Kakuyoku's and Fubuki Fuyukuma's gazes sharpened, locking firmly onto Kakashi.
The incident in the Land of Waves was still fresh in their minds!
Konoha's unauthorized meddling in other nations' politics was already a notorious stain on its record.
Kakashi's mouth twitched violently. This was bad-he really was taking the blame now. He raised his hands and pleaded his innocence:
"Please don't jump to conclusions. I haven't done anything out of line this whole time. The one standing here has always been my real body.
"There must be some misunderstanding. It really wasn't me."
How could Miki Yūya let Kakashi off? He believed Kakashi had done it, so he struck while the iron was hot and kept blasting him.
"If it wasn't you, who was it?!"
"You didn't give me the crystal earlier or later-you shoved it into my hand at that exact critical moment!"
Mostly, Miki Yūya himself couldn't figure out why Kakashi had given him the Hexagonal Crystal.
But now it all made sense. Kakashi had used him to manufacture an alibi, proving that Konoha's ninja had no interest in the Land of Snow's internal affairs.
Miki Yūya wasn't about to take the fall for anyone.
Just then, Nadare Rōga took a deep breath and spoke again, forcibly interrupting his performance:
"It wasn't Kakashi!"
"Sandayu joined forces with rebel Snow Ninja inside the castle! They launched a coup and abducted Lord Dotō in a surprise attack!"
Those words fell.
Dead silence descended!
Naruto was dumbfounded, Sakura was stunned, Sasuke's eyelid twitched wildly, and Kakashi froze completely.
None of them had ever imagined that the mastermind would be Sandayu, who had been playing the loyal retainer all along!
As for Miki Yūya, having his showboating tirades interrupted twice in a row made him lose his shit on the spot!
But he reacted quickly, immediately moving from Nadare Rōga's side to Kakashi's.
Who gives a damn about your coup!
"This is fucking hilarious!!"
"That loser Kazahana Dōtō is unbelievably pathetic!"
"He ruled the Land of Snow for ten years, only to have some useless bastard sneak into his own base and kidnap him?"
"That's all he's got? He can't even handle an old man like Sandayu?"
"Let me tell you the truth. Even an ordinary Konoha villager like me could beat that Sandayu until he was on his knees, howling for mercy!"
His face filled with contempt as he mocked them relentlessly, unleashing the full force of his verbal barrage:
"Just what I'd expect from a tiny backwater country!"
"Third-rate backwater ninja! A third-rate useless ruler!"
"And you actually wanted to frame us ninja from the Land of Fire? Ha!"
[Ding! Conqueror's Haki +9] [Ding! Conqueror's Haki +8]
Those words shattered the three Snow Ninja's last shred of restraint!
Fuck, weren't you the first one to jump out and say Kakashi did it? What the hell does that have to do with us?!
They had endured his insults, his bullying, and his demands that they admit fault!
But now he was publicly heaping abuse on the ruler they had served for ten years. That was intolerable!
Nadare Rōga's eyes turned bloodshot, while Fubuki Kakuyoku's and Fubuki Fuyukuma's killing intent surged!
All three instantly formed hand seals. Their armor roared as they charged furiously at Miki Yūya, intent on teaching him a lesson!
"Everyone!!"
At that critical instant!
Kakashi, Naruto, and Sasuke stepped forward at once, raising their hands to form hand seals and intercepting the three Snow Ninja!
Sakura stepped sideways, positioning herself directly in front of Miki Yūya to keep him from being ambushed (escaping)!
The atmosphere instantly became explosive!
Surrounded on all sides, Miki Yūya stared at Sakura in disbelief. Damn it, I was right earlier. These ninja are all rotten inside.
With a grave expression, Kakashi spoke firmly:
"Enough. Stop fighting among yourselves."
"Our immediate priority is rescuing Kazahana Dōtō."
"We had no intention of interfering in the Land of Snow's internal affairs, but our Konoha group is here right now."
"If the ruler dies and the coup succeeds, all the blame and suspicion will fall on Konoha in the end!"
"Let's rescue Kazahana Dōtō first."
Upon hearing Kakashi's words.
Nadare Rōga and the other two forcibly suppressed their anger and nodded.
Without further hesitation, Kakashi led Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and the three furious Snow Ninja toward the battlefield at full speed!
Everyone left, except Miki Yūya, who remained rooted to the spot.
Are you kidding?
I'm just an ordinary Konoha villager!
Ninja battles, coups, struggles for the throne-what the fuck do they have to do with me?!
Unfortunately, the film crew, who had been watching the drama from the sidelines the entire time, found Miki Yūya rather irritating as they looked at him.
"Tsk, tsk. You were talking so big earlier, but now that something's actually happened, you've chickened out?"
"A Konoha villager? Looks more like some out-of-town punk trying to ride its fame!"
"Since when did Konoha have such cold-blooded, selfish villagers? Konoha's always sticking its nose into other people's business!"
"You said you could easily stomp Sandayu, but when trouble comes, all you do is hide. A classic all-talk champion!"
"You really think visiting Konoha makes you one of its people, better than everyone else? At the end of the day, you're just a bottom-rung commoner with neither strength nor connections!"
One sneer after another, one contemptuous remark after another, poured into Miki Yūya's ears!
[Ding! Observation Haki +1] [Ding! Observation Haki +3]
Their jabs sent Miki Yūya's rage shooting straight to the top of his skull!
Unbelievable!
Fine, ninja bullying me is one thing!
But you random nobodies from a film crew dare bully Konoha's resident troublemaker too?!
Do you really think all I can do is mouth off, not throw punches?!
Miki Yūya raised his head, his gaze utterly vicious!
Without wasting words on anyone, he raised his pitch-black, Armament Haki-coated middle finger at the crew members who had mocked him!
"A bunch of ignorant nobodies, and you dare judge me?"
"What, getting mad? Didn't you just say you could easily beat Sandayu senseless? You?"
"Come on, then! Hit me if you've got the balls!!"
A young man carrying a camera stepped out, looking down disdainfully at Miki Yūya. So what if you're handsome?
You're still a useless bastard who can only talk, not act. With that scrawny body, you probably couldn't even carry my camera.
But in the next instant.
Thud!
A punch connected, clean and decisive!
The cameraman went straight down.
"Who's next?"
Miki Yūya looked at the others. His fists were the perfect cure for stubborn mouths!
I can't beat Tsunade, but you think I can't beat you?
Meanwhile!
On the frozen battlefield in the Land of Snow Treasure Secret Realm.
This was the heart of the treasure passed down through generations in the Land of Snow. Granted, it hadn't been passed down for all that long, but the winds were bitter, the icy air cut to the bone, and the terrain was open-an ideal place for a decisive battle!
At the very center of the battlefield, atop a towering platform of ice and snow!
Kazahana Dōtō's hands were bound with thick iron chains.
Spikes had been driven through his legs, forcing him to kneel and pinning him firmly to the platform.
The wounds were hideous, the blood frozen into crimson shards of ice!
Kazahana Dōtō was battered and in pain all over, yet his gaze remained defiant!
Wearing Chakra Armor and a Kazahana Family pendant, Sandayu stood before the platform, looking down from above with a cruel, triumphant smile.
Watching Nadare Rōga and his two companions hurry over with Kakashi and the full Team 7, Sandayu laughed loudly:
"You three ninja finally arrived!"
"Want to save Kazahana Dōtō? It's simple!"
"Hand over the Hexagonal Crystal, and I'll spare his life immediately!"
Nadare Rōga gritted his teeth and roared:
"Sandayu! Keep dreaming!"
The crystal wasn't in the three Snow Ninja's possession, but none of them mentioned that.
Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke stepped forward together, bristling with anger!
Naruto clenched his fists until his knuckles cracked:
"Sandayu! You're despicable!"
"This was your scheme from beginning to end! You used us and plotted against us!"
Sakura's eyes turned icy.
"Stop your coup immediately and release Kazahana Dōtō!"
Hostility surged in the depths of Sasuke's eyes as he stared coldly at Sandayu, concealing murderous intent.
Kakashi spoke in a deep, serious voice.
"Sandayu."
"You are using Konoha Ninja in an attempt to usurp power; this matter will not be easy to resolve."
"If the lord of the Land of Snow dies here today, even if it is an internal affair of another country, Konoha will never condone this!"
Facing pressure from everyone, far from being afraid, Sandayu laughed even more wildly and uninhibitedly!
"Hahaha!! Condone?!"
"What right do you Konoha people have to interfere with me?!"
"This is an internal affair of the Land of Snow! What the hell does it have to do with you Five Great Nations!"
With a sinister look in his eyes, Sandayu spoke fiercely.
"Kakashi, if you insist on meddling today, then die on this snowfield!"
"When that happens, I can completely announce to the outside world that Kazahana Dōtō and the Snow Ninja rebel army killed the Konoha Ninja!"
"As for me, I executed the rebellious ministers, quelled the internal strife, and avenged the Konoha Ninja!"
"Dead men tell no tales anyway! Who in the Shinobi World will know the truth then?!"
"If you know what's good for you, get out of the Land of Snow immediately!"
"Otherwise, you will all be buried here!"
Sandayu was wary of Konoha and did not want Konoha to interfere in this matter.
If Kakashi and the others left now, once his coup was completed and he subsequently propped up Kazahana Koyuki to ascend to the throne, Konoha would be unable to do anything to him either.
But the next second!
Naruto completely blew his top and roared.
"I don't care about any truth! I will never let you get your way!"
"You're just a bad guy who plays dirty tricks and uses everyone!"
Sakura nodded firmly.
"We must stop him!"
Sasuke took out his own Fūma Shuriken directly and spoke.
"Enough nonsense, let's make a move."
Sandayu completely lost his composure and suffered a total mental breakdown; he had already given them an out.
"Damn it, are you kidding me?! Do you Konoha Ninja have something wrong with your brains?!"
"Tazuna in the Land of Waves cheated you out of your hard-earned money and scammed you on your mission-he's a hundred times shadier than me! And you guys could tolerate that!"
"The other day I begged you to intervene, and you refused every bit of it!"
"Now that I'm launching a coup myself, and this is the Land of Snow's own business, you're forcibly interfering instead?!"
"Do you people reason at all?!"
Completely broken down, vicious light flared brightly in Sandayu's eyes!
"Since you insist on courting death, don't blame me for being merciless!"
His shout fell!
Hum-!!
Frigid qi surged from all directions!
Densely packed, fully armed, a hundred rebellious Snow Ninja burst out from the snow and appeared on the battlefield.
Right behind them!
Hundreds of samurai clad in Chakra Armor also appeared on the battlefield.
The function of the Chakra Armor was to perfectly make up for the samurai's shortcoming of lacking chakra, instantly elevating the combat power of ordinary samurai to the level of ordinary Genin.
A massive sea of people blanketed the entire battlefield!
"Kakashi!!"
Nadare Rōga looked at Kakashi. Ten years ago, they were enemies; ten years later, they were able to fight side by side.
"Charge!!"
Kakashi let out a low shout.
The three Snow Ninja and all of Team 7 charged onto the battlefield, and a fierce battle was on the verge of breaking out!
Before you continue