Make Kirigakure great again

Before long, Mei Terumi and the other three were brought in one after another.

When they saw that Mei Terumi, Gonbei, Ao, and Chojuro had all been captured,

Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu were overjoyed.

"Ahahahaha..."

"Genji's trusted aides have all fallen into our hands!"

At the sight of the Blood Mist leadership, Mei Terumi and the others were both shocked and furious.

Still, although this outcome was unexpected, it made sense.

Karatachi Takiichi belonged to the same clan as the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, while the Hozuki Clan had close ties to the Karatachi Clan.

Moreover, Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu were both influential elders in the village.

Unless the Blood Mist leadership consisted of figures of their stature, how could it contend with Genji?

Furious, Mei Terumi looked at those two old men, Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu, and demanded,

"You're village elders too. Why are you doing this?"

"Hasn't the Blood Mist Policy brought enough suffering to the village?"

"Kirigakure is getting better every day. Can't you see that?"

Mei Terumi was about to continue, but Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu were already trembling with rage.

"Shut up!"

Karatachi Takiichi cut her off, then continued,

"What do you know?"

"You and that self-righteous old man Genji are making a complete mess of the village!"

"The young are growing weak. The village has lost its fighting spirit, like a beast stripped of its fangs and claws!"

"Only the Blood Mist can make Kirigakure great again!"

The more Karatachi Takiichi spoke, the angrier he became, until he broke into a fit of coughing.

That did not stop them, however. Hozuki Mugetsu was every bit as stubborn as he was.

Without giving Mei Terumi a chance to argue, Hozuki Mugetsu picked up where Karatachi Takiichi had left off.

"You've allowed the village to freely interact with the outside world."

"You've let dangerous men like Uzumaki Shixia and Kisame walk openly through our village."

"If we'd stayed the course established by the Bloody Mist Village, how could these dangerous elements have entered Kirigakure so easily?"

Mei Terumi had to admit that Hozuki Mugetsu's argument was difficult to refute.

Yet she still wanted to point out that, against a ninja of Uzumaki Shixia's caliber,

even digging up the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, and posting him at the village gates would not be enough to defeat Uzumaki Shixia.

At that thought, Mei Terumi found her argument falling into place.

She parted her lips and said, "This is merely an exceptional case. It has nothing to do with the village's direction of development."

"Uzumaki Shixia is a ninja on par with a Kage. Cooperating with him will only improve the village!"

"Today's Kirigakure is worlds apart from the Kirigakure of the past."

"The villagers' lives are improving, and they're smiling more often."

"Under Lord Genji's leadership, every aspect of the village is steadily improving."

Everything Mei Terumi said was true.

Facts spoke louder than words!

No matter how eloquent Hozuki Mugetsu was, he could not tell outright lies about these things.

Yet they still refused to accept Genji or the current Kirigakure.

In the past, the Blood Mist had been the village's supreme authority.

Its ruthless, iron-fisted policies had granted them absolute power!

They had wielded the greatest power in Kirigakure and reaped the greatest benefits.

That decrepit old man Genji's series of measures had torn the Blood Mist's arrangements to pieces.

Neither the villagers nor the village's ninja were as easy to control and manage as they had once been.

How could they let this continue?

Karatachi Yagura and Hozuki Mugetsu had both heard about what had happened to the Uchiha Clan in Konoha.

Because the clan had failed to seize the village's highest authority and hold firmly on to that power,

that great clan, one of the two titans born in the Warring States era, had gradually been marginalized in Konoha and ultimately wiped out!

They absolutely could not let the Karatachi Clan and the Hozuki Clan suffer the same fate as the Uchiha Clan!

So Genji had to die!

As for Mei Terumi and the others, if they refused to submit, death was their only option!

Hozuki Mugetsu stopped trying to reason with Mei Terumi, because he had no sound arguments to offer in the first place. He was merely twisting the facts.

He revealed his true intentions outright. "Mei Terumi, do you want to live or die?"

At Hozuki Mugetsu's words, the expressions of Mei Terumi and the others shifted.

Although they knew Uzumaki Shixia was nearby, Hozuki Mugetsu and his people were so close to them.

If Uzumaki Shixia failed to rescue them in time, Hozuki Mugetsu and the others could kill them at any moment.

Mei Terumi answered Hozuki Mugetsu's question with a cold snort.

Seeing her attitude, Hozuki Mugetsu and Karatachi Takiichi naturally understood her choice.

Hozuki Mugetsu then looked at Gonbei and the others. "Mei Terumi has a death wish. What about you? Have you had enough of living too?"

Gonbei erupted in anger. "I will never betray Lord Genji!"

"Only Lord Genji is truly working for the village's development!"

"Under Lord Genji's leadership, every aspect of Kirigakure is improving little by little!"

"Only by steadfastly following Lord Genji can Kirigakure have a better future!"

"As for you, all your lofty rhetoric boils down to nothing more than self-serving opportunism!"

Gonbei's words had undoubtedly struck a nerve with Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu.

That was indeed their motivation.

They were willing to do something for the village, so long as they could take as large a slice of the pie as possible.

After all, the village had been founded jointly by great clans like theirs.

Now that the village had prospered, why should so many commoners be allowed into its leadership to take a share of their power?

Hozuki Mugetsu wasted no words. He drew a kunai and told Gonbei,

"You're at death's door, and you're still running your mouth!"

Gonbei glared straight into Hozuki Mugetsu's eyes without the slightest fear.

His stare unsettled Hozuki Mugetsu, who could only order Kondo Takashi,

"Kondo Takashi, kill him!"

"Yes!"

Kondo Takashi did not hesitate. With a metallic ring, the ninja blade on his back left its sheath.

He walked up to Gonbei and, without another word, raised his blade to send Gonbei's head rolling.

Bang-

But Kondo Takashi's raised blade never came down.

Instead, a figure suddenly appeared and sent Kondo Takashi flying with a brutal impact backed by absurd strength.

Crash!

A moment later, Kondo Takashi smashed Hozuki Mugetsu's desk to pieces.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The sudden commotion brought numerous Blood Mist ninja into the room using the Body Flicker Technique.

They immediately moved to shield Hozuki Mugetsu and Karatachi Takiichi.

The figure who had suddenly appeared and knocked Kondo Takashi away was a red-haired ninja wearing a Black Sky, Red Clouds Robe.

It was none other than Uzumaki Shixia.

Clang-

A blade rang out as Uzumaki Shixia brought it down.

He then struck Mei Terumi and the others with several palm strikes.

As his palms landed, he effortlessly undid the sealing formulas on their bodies.

In the blink of an eye, the ropes binding Mei Terumi and the others fell to the floor.

Their sealed chakra was restored at the same time.

Once he had finished, Sixia spoke with a cheerful smile.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Uzumaki Shixia, a ninja from Amegakure."

"I've accepted a long-term commission mission from Kirigakure to provide strategic deterrence against any scoundrels who threaten the village."

Karatachi Takiichi and Hozuki Mugetsu understood exactly what Uzumaki Shixia meant.

Karatachi Takiichi's expression darkened. "You go back on your word after accepting a mission? Is that your idea of professional ethics?"

Uzumaki Shixia tilted his head, looking utterly indignant, and pointed at Karatachi Takiichi as he loudly protested:

"Don't make things up! I'll sue you for slander!"

"Kakuzu was the one who accepted the bounty mission. What does that have to do with me, Uzumaki Shixia?"

"All I did was lend Kakuzu a little hand while he was capturing them."

"I have no mission-related arrangement with you whatsoever."

Karatachi Takiichi angrily pointed at Kakuzu. "You're obviously working together! You're even wearing the same clothes!"

Uzumaki Shixia spread his hands nonchalantly. "What? Can't we happen to wear the same outfit? Keep slandering me, and I'll stop being nice!"

Uzumaki Shixia's tirade left everyone present in silence.

You could actually do that?

Kakuzu was dumbfounded.

Every time Kakuzu thought he had seen the depths Uzumaki Shixia would stoop to, Uzumaki Shixia shattered his expectations all over again.

Was this why he insisted on going through the formalities before every mission?

Was this part of your plan too?

Uzumaki Shixia!