Longsword: Nuibari

Although Liumu had long heard of the Bloody Mist's reputation, seeing a Kirigakure ninja act this way with his own eyes still left him instantly furious.

Had he not been on a mission, Liumu would never have let this beast in human form go.

"Who's there!"

Just then, the ninja on the mound suddenly drew his weapon from his waist and slashed toward Liumu.

Startled by the shout, Liumu immediately concealed his speck of light in the lake's reflections.

So it was him!

Seeing the man's signature weapon, Liumu immediately recognized him.

Longsword: Nuibari, Kushimaru Kuriarare!

Kushimaru Kuriarare was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, and his weapon was the needle-shaped longsword, Nuibari.

In the original story, Kushimaru Kuriarare, Jinin Akebino of the Blunt Sword: Kabutowari, Munashi Jinpachi of the Exploding Blade: Shibuki, and Hozuki Chiba of the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei were killed by Might Duy after he activated the Eight Gates Released Formation.

But now...

Liumu had never expected the first Kirigakure ninja he encountered on his visit to the village to be an expert like this.

Kushimaru Kuriarare's sensory abilities had to be exceptional; otherwise, he would never have noticed Liumu in his elemental form.

Yet even though the lake remained silent, Kushimaru Kuriarare stood there holding the infant, watching for a long time.

With a sharp whoosh, a dark figure suddenly appeared beside Kushimaru Kuriarare. Looking at the infant in his arms, the newcomer asked him, "Since you've found it, why are you still lingering here?"

Kushimaru Kuriarare did not answer. After a brief silence, he left with the dark figure.

Liumu remained perfectly still, lurking in the lake. He watched with an amused smile as Kushimaru Kuriarare reappeared behind the mound.

Kushimaru Kuriarare had not detected Liumu's presence, but his lingering doubts had brought him back. Only after seeing that the lake remained unchanged did his suspicions ease, and he finally left for good.

That was close!

Liumu muttered to himself, committed the lake's location to memory, and only then headed for the next body of water.

Outside Kirigakure, Minato finished positioning his Flying Thunder God shuriken and began observing the patrols at the village entrance.

Just then, several familiar figures appeared. The Kirigakure group that had traveled to the Land of Lightning for the Chunin Exams had finally returned to their village.

"It's them!"

Minato glanced over and muttered, immediately recognizing Han.

Although Han did not know Tsunade and the others, she had fought Liumu. If she saw what Liumu looked like during this reconnaissance mission, his identity would certainly be exposed.

Looks like I'll have to tell Liumu about this.

Tracking down Isobu was not difficult. Capturing the Three-Tails in the end would be the hardest part.

Although Kirigakure's ninja were not as powerful as those of Konoha or Kumogakure, they possessed their own unique Water Release Ninjutsu. Moreover, the fighting strength of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist could not be overlooked. Even with Tsunade and Orochimaru present, their group could not let its guard down.

At the temporary rendezvous point outside Kirigakure.

When Minato arrived, Katsuyu greeted him from in front of Tsunade, then vanished in a puff of white smoke with a pop.

Tsunade told Minato, "Konoha's Chunin Exams team has made it back to the village safely."

"Then the information in the intelligence report wasn't reliable?"

Minato glanced over and crouched in front of Tsunade. "Did the Land of Wind's ninja not ambush Konoha?"

Tsunade shook her head slightly at his question. "Jonin Hatake should be in the Land of Wind right now. We'll probably have to ask him before we know what's happening there."

The feud between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire went back a long way. Orochimaru and the other two had secretly protected the Chunin Exams team under the guise of Sound Ninja precisely because they had received advance intelligence that the Land of Wind would send ninja to the Land of Lightning to ambush Konoha's group.

But the Land of Wind's ninja had never appeared, even by the end of the exams, which had also allowed Orochimaru, Tsunade, and the others to begin the Kirigakure mission.

"Did you find anything unusual on your end?"

Minato replied, "Yes. I observed the guard rotation times at Kirigakure's entrance, and I've finished positioning my shuriken as well."

Seeing his hesitation, Tsunade asked, "Out with it!"

Minato pulled his lips back, thought for a moment, then said, "I just saw Kirigakure's Chunin Exams team return. They know Liumu, so..."

Hearing Minato's words, Tsunade immediately understood his concern.

"I didn't expect them to be so fast!" Tsunade lowered her head in thought and bit her finger. "We'll discuss this once they get back."

According to the intelligence Jiraiya had given Tsunade about Liumu, even Jiraiya could not explain his methods.

There had been the extreme strength and extreme speed he had displayed during the Chunin Exams, and now Liumu had turned out to possess the Light Release Kekkei Genkai as well.

No one knew what his next hidden card would be, but...

"He's Master Jiraiya's student!"

Minato's voice suddenly roused Tsunade from her thoughts.

She considered Minato's words...

At last, a short while later, Tsunade's brow gradually relaxed, and she murmured with a smile, "Yes, he's Jiraiya's student. He's one of Konoha's own."

Two hours later.

Orochimaru and Liumu returned to the rendezvous point together.

The two immediately shared the intelligence they had gathered with everyone.

"I recorded three lakes in Kirigakure where Isobu could hide. I marked their exact locations on the map Jonin Yuhi gave me." After speaking, Liumu picked up a cup of melted snow and tipped his head back to drink it.

Orochimaru's brow tightened slightly at this, and he said hoarsely, "Liumu's line of investigation was correct. However, although I found no tailed beast chakra in any of the underground prisons I investigated, I did find the training ground Kirigakure uses to cultivate Kekkei Genkai."

"Training? Kekkei Genkai?"

Tsunade frowned at his words. "Can Kekkei Genkai be cultivated too?"

Orochimaru nodded, pulled a bloodstained scroll from inside his clothes, and spread it out among them.

"They gather the descendants of Kekkei Genkai users together with ordinary children for training. By stimulating their innate talents and making them kill one another, they develop the children's combat experience."

Crack! Crack!

Two sharp cracks rang out in succession. Killing intent filled Tsunade's eyes as she snapped, "Utterly inhuman!"

"Tsunade! Don't forget our mission!"

Orochimaru focused his gaze on Tsunade as he reminded her.

"I know."

Tsunade gave a low, angry growl, rose, and left.

Yuhi Shinku, who was responsible for updating the map of Kirigakure's surroundings, had not yet returned, so Tsunade and the others could not leave for the time being.

From a distance, Liumu watched Tsunade's back as she sat in thought beneath the moonlight. With a sorrowful sigh, he walked over and quietly sat beside her.

He took a few tissues from inside the front of his clothes and slowly offered them to her.

Tsunade's beloved and her younger clansman had died in war one after the other. Seeing Kirigakure still training killers for war, the hatred in her heart had presumably left her thoroughly disgusted with the ninja world's current state.