Noon.
At the main gate of Kirigakure, two Kirigakure Anbu, seemingly on an urgent mission, rushed in without waiting for a search, leaving behind only a permit to leave the village, personally signed by the Mizukage, that floated slowly down.
The two Kirigakure Ninja guarding the entrance received the permission to leave the village, glanced at the signature, and then their eyes turned strange.
"It's the Fourth Mizukage's signature. It seems these two Anbu brothers have been away on a mission for too long and are unaware of what happened in Kirigakure."
"Yes, it's fine if they submit to the new Fifth Mizukage, but if they choose to remain loyal to the Fourth Mizukage... then what will become of them..."
The two Hidden Kirigakure Ninja the gate simultaneously shivered, then focused intently on their duties, no longer daring to chat idly, as if mentioning the new Fifth Mizukage would lead to something extremely terrible.
The soon-to-be Fifth Mizukage, that woman named Mei Terumi, thoroughly cleansed Kirigakure, inside and out. Blood flowed like rivers; it took three days just to clean up the bloodstains...
The two Anbu belonging to the Fourth Mizukage were just a minor incident and didn't stay in their memories for long. After all, the dead don't need to be remembered. Their real job was to receive nobles from various countries who visited Kirigakure, and incidentally... check whether these nobles had been replaced by ninjas.
These two unassuming Kirigakure Ninja are, besides the Byakugan ninja Ao, currently the most skilled sensory ninjas in Kirigakure.
A luxurious carriage appeared at the end of the road, and the two lazy Kirigakure Ninja instantly perked up, because this was their job.
"That's a bit strange. Why does this noble family only have one warrior guarding them? Shouldn't nobles always be surrounded by dozens of people when they travel?"
Another, more mature Kirigakure Ninja shook his head and then instructed:
"You haven't gone out of the village on missions enough. This is the normal situation in the Land of Water. They probably had a big battle with the bandits along the way. It's already a miracle that they made it to Kirigakure alive. But they deserve it. It's the Daimyo's fault for not allowing Kirigakure to take on more missions in the Land of Water. Otherwise, these bandits wouldn't exist."
"I see, thank you so much, senior!"
The older Kirigakure Ninja waved his hand casually and said:
"It's nothing. By the way, remember not to take the inspection of these nobles too seriously later. Outsider ninjas infiltrating Kirigakure at this time are just asking for death, but if they clash with the real nobles, you'll be the one who suffers."
The young Kirigakure Ninja was still a little resentful, but the harsh realities of life had taught him a lesson: it was best to heed the advice of his seniors, because they might be the very pitfalls they had fallen into before...
As the carriage drew closer, two Kirigakure Ninja stood on either side of the road to greet it. Meanwhile, the nobles disguised as Naoki Senju and his companions dismounted from the carriage about thirty meters from the Kirigakure gate and began a short walk.
The Kirigakure Village respects the status and privileges of the nobles of the Land of Water, and the nobles of the Land of Water also respect the strength of the Kirigakure Ninja. Although it's all just a formality, it still has to be done properly.
Orochimaru expertly straightened his collar, then raised his head and walked arrogantly toward the gates of Kirigakure.
The ninjas of Kirigakure were used to it; these nobles, especially those who held some power, all seemed to think they were above everyone else.
However, the high-ranking official from the Land of Water whom Orochimaru was impersonating seemed to be quite famous in the Land of Water of Land of Water. The two Kirigakure Ninja, who had initially ignored him, were surprised and somewhat reluctant to greet him after recognizing Orochimaru's identity.
" Kamishiro, welcome to Kirigakure. The Lord Mizukage is currently handling some important matters and is unable to come. Would you like me to take you to see her?"
The older Kirigakure Ninja were very adept at receiving the uninvited 'unwelcome guests,' which explains why they were chosen to entertain nobles from various countries.
The younger Kirigakure Ninja diligently carried out the task assigned to him by the Fifth Mizukage, secretly trying to determine whether the three were ninjas from other villages in disguise.
He could detect the most basic Transformation Technique in an instant. The most troublesome thing was the secret disguise techniques kept hidden in each village, which required very careful perception to find the flaws.
Tsunade and Naoki were somewhat surprised. The identity Orochimaru had chosen seemed more conspicuous than they had imagined, yet they dared not look at Orochimaru and could only maintain an arrogant and irritating expression.
Orochimaru was actually somewhat surprised. He had been careless and hadn't investigated thoroughly enough... He had originally thought that getting the attention of the Kirigakure higher-ups would be enough, but who knew it would escalate to the point where the Fifth Mizukage would have to personally greet them? The Daimyo of the Land of Water was nothing special after all...
But Orochimaru remained outwardly calm, waving his hand dismissively with an imposing and unyielding air:
"No need. Since Lord Mizukage is so busy with official duties, it's best not to disturb him further. It's a good thing that Kirigakure has ended the ' Bloody Mist ' policy, and the Daimyo is very pleased."
The two Kirigakure Ninja couldn't hide their joy. Since the Daimyo of the Land of Water was so optimistic about the reformed Kirigakure, and even sent Kamishiro to attend Mei Terumi's Mizukage inauguration ceremony, this undoubtedly reassured everyone in Kirigakure. It wasn't impossible for them to relax some policies in the future...
"I see. Kirigakure will certainly not let down Kamishiro and Lord Daimyo's trust."
Orochimaru smiled and nodded, but didn't say another word.
The experienced and composed Kirigakure Ninja understood and stepped aside, respectfully saying, " Kamishiro, Miss Chiba, Kaede Shiin, please."
"They recognized all our identities in such a short time. It seems that the real guards Kirigakure arranged were this shrewd ninja, not another young ninja who is currently using his reconnaissance abilities..." Naoki Senju thought calmly.
Orochimaru smiled and nodded, Kirigakure Ninja forced smiles in return, somewhat fearfully. Naoki and Tsunade, going with the flow, disguised themselves as Orochimaru's juniors, maintaining their aristocratic pride as they walked into the Kirigakure with their heads held high.
Only after the three of them and the carriage driven by Kabuto Yakushi had completely entered Kirigakure did the older, more worldly Kirigakure Ninja give his companion some instructions:
"I'll leave this place to you for now. I need to report to the Lord Mizukage immediately about Nobunaga Kamishiro's entry into Kirigakure."
"Yes, senior."
On the way to the Mizukage Building, the Kirigakure Ninja looked somewhat solemn, unable to help but recall how credible Nobunaga Kamishiro's words were.
What exactly brought Nobunaga Kamishiro, the Chiba Clan, and the Kaede Shiin Clan together?
No matter how hard the Kirigakure Ninja racked their brains, they couldn't have imagined that the three had only one thing in common: they were all victims, and if nothing unexpected happened, they had all already gone down the same road to the underworld.