On the eastern side of Kirigakure, water flowed gently.
A clear stream wound its way through the area.
But now, terrifying ripples spread continuously across its surface.
Beside the stream stood a wooden house.
Inside it gathered the true core of Kirigakure's authority—
Elder Genji.
And several white-haired elders.
Aside from the Fourth Mizukage himself, they were the people who truly held power within the village.
At this moment, however, all of them were seated around an enormous Water Mirror Technique.
The mirror rippled.
Within it was a crystal-clear image of the devastation unfolding in the center of the village.
A gigantic dark-red turtle, as large as a mountain, rampaging wildly.
Watching the scene, Genji's aged hand tightened around his serpent-headed cane.
It trembled slightly.
For one of the few times in his life, hesitation appeared upon his deeply wrinkled face.
"What should we do, Lord Genji?"
"Should we intervene?"
"Yes! If we don't act soon, the village may suffer a catastrophic disaster!"
Hearing the elders' questions, Genji's brow twitched.
Or rather—
He tried to frown.
Unfortunately, he was simply too old.
There were too many wrinkles.
After moving them slightly, he gave up.
"The Three-Tails' rampage..."
"May not necessarily be a bad thing for us."
"Hm?"
One of the white-haired elders suddenly raised his head.
His cloudy eyes instantly sharpened.
"In that case, those still loyal to the Fourth Mizukage will no longer be able to sit still."
"At that point, Yagura's faction may finally be uprooted entirely."
"And Kirigakure..."
"May finally recover."
"Even if we must rebuild afterward..."
As he spoke, Genji slowly lowered his head.
The back that had remained straight his entire life bent ever so slightly.
He had devoted everything to the village.
Yet in his final years, he found himself considering sacrificing part of it to secure its future.
The room fell silent.
The atmosphere grew even heavier.
Bang!
Suddenly, hurried footsteps sounded outside.
"Lord Genji!"
"Lord Genji!"
The door burst open.
Ao rushed inside, drenched from head to toe and covered in blood.
His Byakugan was bloodshot from overuse.
Fresh blood still trickled from the corners of his eyes.
But he had no time to care about that.
The moment he entered, he immediately shouted:
"Something's happened in the village center!"
"The Akatsuki!"
"Four people claiming to be members of the Akatsuki have appeared!"
"And—and there are also two ninja from Konoha!"
"The Fourth Mizukage..."
"Lord Yagura..."
"He was slapped by one of the Konoha ninja!"
"His legs were broken too!"
"And Lady Mei!"
"Lady Mei is there trying to stop everything!"
He spoke rapidly, almost stumbling over his own words.
The room's frozen atmosphere exploded instantly.
"Konoha ninja?"
"They broke Yagura's legs?"
One elder shot to his feet.
His chair nearly toppled backward.
Unlike Ao, they had only been observing through the Water Mirror Technique.
They had seen the Three-Tails' rampage.
But they had not witnessed everything leading up to it.
All they knew was that some kind of barrier had appeared in the village center.
Now it seemed events had developed far beyond their expectations.
"Why would Konoha ninja be here?"
"And this Akatsuki organization..."
Genji tapped his cane lightly, signaling everyone to calm down.
Then he waved his hand.
A curtain of water flew out and landed upon Ao's body.
"Take your time."
"Explain everything from the beginning."
"Tell us exactly what happened."
"Hu..."
The water entered his body.
Ao immediately felt strength returning.
Every cell seemed to awaken.
The turmoil in his heart gradually settled.
Taking a deep breath, he began recounting everything.
From the appearance of the Akatsuki.
To Yagura regaining consciousness.
To Mei Terumi's intervention.
To the arrival of the two Konoha ninja.
After hearing the entire story, Genji's brows twitched several times before finally lifting.
He stared at Ao.
His aged voice carried obvious disbelief.
"You're certain?"
"One of them was merely a ten-year-old Konoha child?"
"Absolutely!"
"He looked very young."
"But he was incredibly powerful!"
"Just hearing his name was enough to make Kisame kneel and beg for mercy!"
"What?!"
"Kisame knelt?!"
The elder who had stood up earlier immediately rushed forward.
"You're certain it was Kisame?"
"Not someone else?"
Kisame's betrayal had been a tremendous blow to Kirigakure.
Among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, he had been one of the most highly anticipated talents.
Everyone present knew exactly how powerful he was.
Ordinary Kage-level fighters would struggle against him.
Even Tailed Beasts weren't necessarily beyond his reach.
That was why he had earned the title—
The Tailless Tailed Beast.
And now—
Such a man had knelt?
They couldn't believe it.
Not just them.
Even Genji became interested in this mysterious Konoha youth.
"Our village..."
"Has been isolated from the outside world for far too long."
"To think Konoha has produced another genius of this caliber."
A trace of nostalgia appeared in Genji's eyes.
"The First Hokage."
"Uchiha Madara."
"Tobirama Senju."
"Hiruzen Sarutobi."
"The White Fang."
"The Sannin."
"The Yellow Flash."
"Kakashi the Copy Ninja."
"Shisui of the Body Flicker."
"In every generation, Konoha somehow produces individuals capable of changing the course of history."
"And our proud Seven Ninja Swordsmen..."
He sighed deeply.
His voice was filled with bitterness.
The previous generation of Seven Ninja Swordsmen had once been reduced to three survivors by a single, unknown Konoha genin.
How was anyone supposed to compete with that?
Seeing the elders getting increasingly distracted, Ao became anxious again.
"No!"
"This isn't the time!"
"Please, we need to save Lady Mei!"
"Don't keep discussing this!"
"Don't worry."
Genji nodded.
"I will handle—"
His voice stopped abruptly.
The Water Mirror changed.
Within the image, the gigantic Three-Tails Isobu suddenly moved.
Its enormous crimson-and-gold eye lowered toward the ground.
Locking onto several tiny figures beneath it.
"Lady Mei?"
Ao's face lit up.
But before he could finish speaking—
He froze.
Not only him.
Everyone in the room.
Every elder.
Even Genji himself.
All seven people shot to their feet simultaneously.
Within the mirror, Mei Terumi—who had previously maintained some distance from Isobu—
Suddenly began running forward.
Straight toward the two Konoha ninja standing beneath the beast.
More specifically—
Toward the shorter of the two.
The child.
She moved with absolute determination.
Without the slightest hesitation.
Step.
Step.
Step.
She stopped before the boy.
Then—
With a loud thud—
Dropped to her knees.
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> [email protected]/SorenSwiftTL (replace @ with a)