"Madara Uchiha?!" Biwa Juzo's hand trembled. For many ninja, this name was like a nightmare — a legendary figure said to rival the First Hokage in power. Most importantly, Madara Uchiha was known for his ruthless nature in legends. "Is he actually still alive?!"
"The masked man called Tobi within our organization claims to be Madara Uchiha!" Itachi Uchiha delivered this shocking news that nearly made Biwa Juzo lose his mind.
"That's impossible!" Biwa Juzo immediately dismissed the possibility of Tobi being Madara Uchiha. How could that clown possibly be the legendary demon god?
"He's definitely not Madara Uchiha, but he did learn a lot from him!" Sakura, who knew Obito's identity, didn't say it outright.
"Not Madara then, good!" Biwa Juzo felt relieved. If Tobi were truly Madara Uchiha, he would've had a complete mental breakdown — the person's behavior was completely opposite to his legendary reputation.
"How do you want me to play my part?" Yagura asked.
"It's simple. You'll return with half of the Cleaver Sword, claiming you killed Biwa Juzo at the cost of your own injury. Then someone will probably try to assassinate you soon enough. When that happens, you can just pretend to die. I'll come to get you afterward, and you can lay low in the Land of Snow for a while."
Sakura recalled Zabuza, the very ninja who once tried to kill the Mizukage. Without Zabuza, Terumi Mei wouldn't know where to go. To keep things running smoothly, she had to make Yagura a 'dead man' — sacrificing his reputation for the plan.
"What about Kirigakure?"
"When did I ever die by his hand?"
Yagura and Biwa Juzo spoke simultaneously.
"You can entrust Kiri to Terumi Mei. She'll make a perfect Mizukage. And you can subtly let her know beforehand that you're faking death to avoid capture by Akatsuki Organization who seeks the Three-Tails. Anyway, once we've disbanded Akatsuki in the future, you can come back openly. This period of hiding will also help clear your reputation from all those past misdeeds. Otherwise, if you continue serving as Mizukage, that masked man will surely trouble you again. Tailed Beasts simply can't resist the Sharingan!"
Deep in her heart, Sakura felt the Tailed Beasts were truly tragic — so powerful yet utterly helpless against the Sharingan. "Of course, you can choose not to cooperate with me, but let me remind you, this world contains more than just that masked man who uses genjutsu to control people. I'm perfectly capable of doing the same."
"All right, I agree!" Yagura wore an expression of bitterness, as if deeply insulted. "I'll return pretending to still be under control, waiting for this assassin of yours to appear, okay?!"
"Don't take it so hard. Look on the bright side — if you don't fake your death, that masked man will just control you again. And this time, life would be unbearable!" Sakura comforted him while transferring some chakra into her Inner Space.
"Sigh, what about me? I've supposedly been killed. How am I supposed to return to Akatsuki?"
Biwa Juzo wore a look of deep resentment on his face. He got it—there was no way around cooperating with her plan now.
"I'll send you to the Land of Snow," Sakura said. "Forget about joining the Akatsuki Organization; there's not a single normal person there. Someone your age should retire early!"
Sakura gave him an eye-roll. Though Biwa Juzo wasn't weak by any standard, in the Akatsuki Organization he would barely be considered cannon fodder.
"Hey, how old do you think I am? Kakuzu is even older than me!" Biwa Juzo protested. He was much younger than that seemingly immortal Kakuzu, after all.
"What difference does it make if you're younger? Can you beat him?" Sakura shot back sharply. "You haven't forgotten how Might Guy—the green-clad one—nearly wiped out the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, right?!"
Biwa Juzo fell silent. He really couldn't beat Kakuzu, and Sakura's words brought back memories of Might Guy—the green-clad man who had nearly annihilated the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.
"I'll inform the shinobi world about this attack," Yagura said coldly toward Itachi Uchiha and Biwa Juzo. As for Akatsuki, he decided he must gather evidence so that when he made his return, he could shift blame for his past actions onto them—it wasn't like he had been acting freely under the genjutsu control anyway.
"You'd better talk to the Fifth Mizukage first to get an alibi ready," Sakura reminded him. "Otherwise, shifting the blame won't be easy. And when you go back, be careful—don't kill Zabuza when he tries to assassinate you next time!"
Without genjutsu controlling him, Yagura was far stronger than Zabuza. If he accidentally killed Zabuza, everything would be ruined.
"Momochi Zabuza? I understand." Yagura's expression flickered. He wondered why Sakura specifically mentioned this Zabuza—could there possibly be something special about him?!
Chapter 84: The Secret Soul Memory of Rasengan Formation [Part One]
After finalizing their plans, they each went their separate ways. Sakura took Biwa Juzo to the Land of Snow, while Yagura returned to Kiri with half of the Cleaver Sword. Before leaving, he deliberately injured himself to appear as though he had just survived a fierce battle. As for Itachi Uchiha, he headed alone back to the Akatsuki Organization to report Biwa Juzo's death.
Not long afterward, news spread across the shinobi world: the Fourth Mizukage Yagura had been assassinated and died from his wounds. Momochi Zabuza stole the Cleaver Sword and officially became a rogue ninja, plunging Kiri into chaos over selecting the Fifth Mizukage.
Meanwhile, the supposedly dead Fourth Mizukage Yagura had already been sent to the Land of Snow. The moment Yagura laid eyes on that group of Byakugan-wielders, a chill ran down his spine. A jinchuriki surrounded by so many Byakugan carriers—who would be helpless if anything happened? Moreover, hadn't there been rumors in the ninja world that the Uchiha clan had been wiped out? Then where did all these Byakugan people come from?!
Sakura had no idea about Yagura's mental shifts. She'd been burying herself in the experimental data left behind by The Second, trying to get her own project off the ground as soon as possible.
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