Kumogakure.
"Knock knock."
"Come in."
A middle-aged man with a bare, tanned upper body frowned as he looked at the Kumo-nin who entered. He said flatly, "What is it?"
"Lord Raikage." The Kumo-nin bowed slightly and said, "The mission failed."
"It failed?" Hearing this, the Raikage paused, then sighed. "What about the Kumo-nin?"
"They all died." The Kumo-nin's face showed anger. "Konoha is going too far."
"Lord Raikage, should we declare war on Konoha?"
How dare they kill Kumo-nin? Konoha must be looking for death. Surely the Raikage would avenge them.
"I see." After a moment of silence, the Raikage waved his hand. "You may leave."
"Yes." The Kumo-nin nodded and withdrew.
"Konoha." The Raikage's eyes turned cold as he stared at the map of the shinobi world. "As expected, it failed."
Though he never thought the success rate would be high, he didn't expect all the Kumo-nin sent to be wiped out. Konoha truly lives up to its reputation as the strongest village.
But...
"Was that Mangekyō user really in the Land of Lightning for the legendary weapon?" The Raikage frowned, deep in thought. "And is the intel from Iwagakure accurate?"
After all, the story about stealing the weapon was just a rumor he spread. He didn't actually know the Mangekyō user's real objective.
"If the Mangekyō user truly came for the weapon..."
"Then that weapon might be a sword!"
"A legendary sword belonging to the Land of Lightning!"
Otherwise, why would only the Land of Fire and the Land of Water have such legendary swords? The Land of Lightning must have one too.
"Mangekyō..." The Raikage's gaze darkened as he stared at the Five Great Nations. "What is their purpose in collecting these weapons?"
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were always Kirigakure's assassination squad, a terrifying organization of seven killers. In a way, these shinobi were irredeemable scum.
But in this shinobi world, as long as you had a good sob story—tying your crimes to "peace" or giving yourself a tragic backstory—there would always be people wiping away tears and shouting, "I forgive you! It's not your fault, it's the world!"
That's right.
In this world, nothing is beyond redemption.
And they weren't entirely wrong. This world...
Was indeed flawed.
So for Hoshigaki Fuguki and Pakkun Jūzō, the best punishment was execution, to uphold Uzushiogakure's laws. But...
Jōnin-level shinobi were still invaluable to Uzushiogakure.
"This land is today's objective." A Uzu-nin looked at the Kiri-nin with disdain. "So you must finish the work today. If you slack off, you won't eat."
"You leave when the work is done."
Lord Jun was too kind, giving these heinous Kiri-nin a chance. In his opinion, these criminals should be cut a few times to bleed them out, then thrown into the ocean as fish food. That was what they deserved.
Especially the leader, that sharp-toothed Kiri-nin...
Pakkun Jūzō!
He remembered him well—he was among the Kiri-nin who invaded Uzushiogakure back then.
Though he wanted nothing more than to chop them into fish paste...
Since Lord Jun had decided this, they had to follow orders.
"Don't let me catch you slacking." The Uzu-nin viciously cracked his whip in the air. "If I do, don't blame me for being merciless."
These bastards didn't deserve kindness. If they weren't going to be killed, they should work for Uzushiogakure until they dropped dead!
With that thought, he turned and sat on his lounge chair, basking in the warm sun.
Spring afternoons were truly comfortable.
"Captain Jūzō, what should we do now?" A Kiri-nin looked at the hoe in his hands, resentment on his face. "Do we really have to work?"
Though they didn't mind labor...
The fact that they were working while that Uzu-nin lounged around was unbearable.
"Hmph!" Pakkun Jūzō said angrily. "Work? Why should we?"
"We're Kiri-nin!"
Building for Uzushiogakure was bad enough, but now they had to farm?
What would happen to the reputation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?
If they did this, how could they command respect back in Kirigakure?
What would the Mizukage think of them?
"No!" Pakkun Jūzō threw his hoe to the ground. "We're finding a spot to rest too."
"But if we don't work, we won't get food." A Kiri-nin asked, "What do we do then?"
"Eat, eat, is eating all you think about?" Pakkun Jūzō said in frustration. "Shinobi can go a day or two without food."
"Is food more important, or Kirigakure's honor?"
Even if I, Pakkun Jūzō, starve to death, die in Uzushiogakure, or jump off a cliff, I won't eat a single bite of your food!
I'm sure Hoshigaki Fuguki feels the same. After all...
He's a hero who loves Kirigakure deeply!
"So good!!" Hoshigaki Fuguki scooped up a stewed fish. "Old man, you cook really well."
"Right?" The old cook grinned. "I've been stewing fish for decades." His face turned nostalgic. "Back then, Uzushiogakure wasn't like this, with big meals every day."
"If we caught one small fish a week, my whole family would celebrate for a year." He held up a finger to show the size. "A fish that small was precious to us. The whole family would gather around it, thinking of how to cook it best, how to avoid waste."
"That's why my skills are so good now."
"Mhm!" Hoshigaki Fuguki gave a thumbs-up. "In all my years, I've never tasted better stew."
"Haha!" The old man nodded in satisfaction. "Try the braised pork next. Lord Jun's recipe—it's even better."
Though he'd been terrified of these Kiri-nin at first, after a few days together...
They weren't so bad.
But he didn't understand...
Why were they so desperate to return to their village? Was there somewhere better than Uzushiogakure?
Impossible!
Uzushiogakure was the best.
"Really?" Hoshigaki Fuguki's eyes lit up. "Let me try!"
Looking at the fragrant, perfectly cooked braised pork, Hoshigaki Fuguki sighed inwardly.
'So this was the mission the organization gave me...'
He...
Suddenly realized he loved missions. Truly, deep down, Hoshigaki Fuguki was a hardworking shinobi!