Seimei collected his thoughts and stopped overanalyzing. Instead, he refocused his attention on the four people before him.
Even though they were just four insignificant figures, thanks to his advantage of "foresight," he had already pieced together the truth of the situation in his mind.
"So, should I go even deeper?"
The thought surfaced in Seimei's mind.
But he quickly made up his mind—yes, he would go.
It wasn't just confidence in his own deductions; at the end of the day, they were still just guesses. To truly confirm them, he needed to investigate further.
Besides, if he wanted to execute his plan, he had to infiltrate Kirigakure (Hidden Mist Village) from the inside.
So, leaving now simply wasn't an option.
The Next Target
If there was anyone in Kirigakure who would be the first to come into contact with the revived Sanbi (Three-Tails), it had to be the Anbu ninjas.
As the most trusted subordinates of Yagura Karatachi, they were the ones most likely to be assigned the task of searching for the Three-Tails.
Additionally, they were also the ones most likely to know why Kirigakure had enforced a complete lockdown of its borders.
That made them the perfect targets.
With that thought, Seimei didn't waste another second. With a swift motion of his hand, the throat of one of the Kirigakure ninjas was cleanly slit by his Chakra Scalpel.
Shhk—Shhk—Shhk!
In the blink of an eye, the other three met the same fate.
Seimei glanced at the four corpses on the ground, then activated his Byakugan to scan the surroundings.
After confirming that there were no other people within a one-kilometer radius, he formed a hand seal and performed a jutsu—
Fire Release: Pure Burn Technique!
Fwoosh—Fwoosh—Fwoosh!
Flames erupted, swiftly engulfing the bodies.
Thanks to his precise chakra control, the fire didn't spread beyond the intended area, minimizing any unnecessary disturbances.
Before long, the corpses were reduced to nothing but ashes.
Seimei waved his hand, channeling his chakra into Wind Release, generating a gust of wind that carried the ashes far away.
Now, even if someone noticed their disappearance, it would take a long time before they could confirm their fate.
And as for tracking him down?
Impossible.
Unless… they could pull the souls of the dead back from the Pure Land.
But without the Edo Tensei (Reanimation Jutsu), such a thing was impossible—unless the Sage of Six Paths himself intervened.
And that was simply not happening.
"Hahhh…"
Exhaling softly, Seimei didn't linger any longer.
He casually left a Flying Thunder God marker on a nearby tree and concealed it before dashing deeper into Kirigakure, guided by the memories he had extracted from the four ninjas.
His next destination—the Anbu division of Kirigakure.
This time, he had to be extra careful.
---
Half an Hour Later
Using his Byakugan's x-ray vision and the stealth ability of "Heavenly Dominion", Seimei finally located a lone Anbu member.
Well… calling him "lone" wasn't entirely accurate.
Because at that moment, the Anbu ninja was tailing and monitoring another Kirigakure shinobi.
Judging by that shinobi's behavior, he wasn't exactly a law-abiding citizen either.
"A spy? Or an internal traitor?"
Seimei pondered.
But without any solid intel, he couldn't make a definite judgment based solely on speculation and gut feeling.
That said, he didn't have to wonder for long.
The two men soon left the crowded area of the village and entered a secluded pathway.
Now, Seimei could take them both down.
Once he extracted their memories, he'd have all the answers he needed.
Time to act.
Seimei activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, channeling the ability of his left eye—"Heavenly Dominion".
In an instant, he vanished from his position.
Then, moving at blinding speed, he pursued the Kirigakure Anbu.
As he got closer, the Anbu suddenly tensed up, glancing around in suspicion.
Too bad—mere instinct wasn't enough to detect Seimei.
The moment the Anbu ninja turned his back, Seimei materialized behind him and placed a gentle palm on his shoulder.
To an outsider, it might have seemed like a harmless touch.
But the Anbu ninja's expression changed drastically—his body instantly froze as he tried to fight back.
Too late.
Before he could react, countless intricate sealing markings spread from Seimei's palm, wrapping around his entire body like chains.
This wasn't just any jutsu—it was the Self-Cursing Binding Seal, a technique he had stolen from Danzo Shimura.
And thanks to Seimei's mastery, it was even stronger than when Danzo himself used it.
The Anbu ninja struggled to break free, but when he realized he couldn't, he prepared to use a desperate last-ditch method—signaling an alarm.
Unfortunately for him, Seimei's Byakugan and Sharingan made it impossible to miss his subtle movements.
With a single flicker step, Seimei appeared in front of him.
The moment their eyes met—
"Genjutsu: Sharingan!"
In a heartbeat, the Anbu ninja froze, his mind completely trapped in an illusion.
Leaving him there, Seimei swiftly pursued the other Kirigakure shinobi.
Just as he was about to strike, the shinobi suddenly turned around and cast a genjutsu on him!
Clearly, the struggle from the Anbu ninja had alerted him.
He reacted instantly.
But it was useless.
Seimei had already seen through his hand seals with his Byakugan.
Just as the genjutsu was about to hit him, he activated—
"Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change!"
The illusion rebounded onto the shinobi with full force.
Under normal circumstances, the Uchiha clan couldn't reflect an illusion instantly unless they had witnessed the entire casting process.
However, Seimei's Byakugan compensated for that weakness.
His ability to counter illusions was significantly stronger than the average Uchiha.
Now, looking at the middle-aged Kirigakure shinobi, who was trembling in fear within his own genjutsu, Seimei knocked him unconscious with a single strike.
Then, he returned to the Anbu ninja, knocked him out as well, and carried them both.
Focusing on the Flying Thunder God markers he had previously set along his path, he locked onto a hidden location and teleported away.
---
A Hidden Underwater Cavern
The world around him shifted in an instant.
The next moment, Seimei and his two captives appeared inside an underwater cavern.
It was a secret spot he had discovered earlier while using his Byakugan.
The cavern connected to a river that ran through Kirigakure, and to ensure he had an escape route, he had previously left a Flying Thunder God marker there.
Now, it had come in handy.
Time to get some answers.