Chapter 74: Danzo: Is the Third Mizukage Plagiarizing Me?

This news is truly astonishing.

In the shinobi world, it's been a long time since a ninja clan was almost completely wiped out.

The Hagoromo Clan from before the era of the ninja villages could be considered one.

The Uzumaki Clan, feared by other ninja villages for their Sealing Jutsu, could be considered one.

There are also some other small ninja clans...

But, that's all in the past.

What's even more shocking is that the almost extinct Kaguya Clan was not brought to near annihilation by outsiders, but by one of its own, Kaguya Neko.

Bearing the surname of the Kaguya Clan, flowing with the blood of the Kaguya Clan, yet responsible for the slaughter of so many of the Kaguya Clan's members.

Such a thing is simply incomprehensible.

"Is this Kaguya Neko even human?"

"I'm neither a member of the Kaguya Clan nor of the Hidden Mist Village, but even I find Kaguya Neko's actions outrageous!"

"This is something that a normal person wouldn't do."

"No affection in their heart, no friendship, no family, no village... What kind of existence is this?"

In a moment, Kaguya Neko became a despised figure throughout the entire shinobi world.

However, some focused their attention on the Dragon-Bone.

"The demonic sword, Dragon-Bone, grants power by killing loved ones?"

"Named a demonic sword, could this Ninjato be affecting Kaguya Neko's sanity?"

"When did the Hidden Mist Village acquire such a Ninjato?"

"Previously it was the Kiriichimonji, now it's the demonic sword, Dragon-Bone."

"Has the Hidden Mist Village produced a new Great Blacksmith again? Otherwise, there's no way to explain the appearance of these consecutive Ninjato."

"And moreover, both these Ninjato are very strong."

"Among the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords, they would rank at the forefront."

A ninja from Konoha remarked, "Kaguya Neko fleeing with the demonic sword, Dragon-Bone, might actually be a good thing for us in Konoha. Otherwise, who knows how much blood of Konoha ninjas would stain that Dragon-Bone blade."

"One person almost wiped out a Clan, that Dragon-Bone must be incredibly strong!"

Many in Konoha take pleasure in the misfortune of the Hidden Mist Village and the Kaguya Clan.

After all, the two ninja villages are currently at war.

The tragedy of the enemy is comedy in one's own eyes.

With the exception of the Hyuga Clan.

Hyuga Hizashi has long since returned to Konoha.

An elderly Hyuga sighed.

"This matter is probably not so simple."

"Wiping out a Clan by oneself is not easy. Even if that Dragon-Bone is extraordinary, it's still impossible. Among the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords, is there any blade capable of such a feat?"

"None."

"Kaguya Clan was nearly wiped out. It's highly likely that the true perpetrators were the entire Elders of the Hidden Mist Village."

"It was us who caused harm to the Kaguya Clan."

"Hizashi, how did the Kaguya Clan respond to you?"

Hyuga Hizashi bowed his head and said, "The people of the Kaguya Clan told me that they will do their best to help investigate. They also know the importance of the Byakugan to us Hyuga."

Another elderly Hyuga said, "Our relationship of over a hundred years coerced the Kaguya Clan."

"But, we never imagined that in the Hidden Mist Village, the Kaguya Clan would actually do such a thing as betraying the village."

"And the Third Mizukage, he's such a tyrant."

"Once he finds out, he will definitely not spare the Kaguya Clan."

"Kaguya Neko is just a scapegoat."

Hyuga Kazuo surveyed around and said, "The Kaguya Clan suffered greatly because of my Hyuga Clan. From now on, we Hyuga ninjas, on the battlefield, when encountering Kaguya Clan ninjas, will not kill."

"Except for Kaguya Clan ninjas, ninjas from the Hidden Mist Village will all be enemies of my Hyuga Clan."

"Is that understood by everyone?"

The crowd exchanged glances.

"Understood."

Hyuga Hiashi suddenly raised his hand.

Hyuga Kazuo nodded slightly.

"Hiashi, do you have something to say?"

"We, the Hyuga Clan, lost the Byakugan. While it's true that there was fault on the part of that main family member, there were also many other Konoha ninjas involved at the time. This is also the village's fault."

Hyuga Hiashi said somewhat defiantly, "Why does the village put all the pressure on our Hyuga Clan?"

Hyuga Kazuo fell silent for a moment.

"Hiashi, you can say such things in front of me, but absolutely not outside, never let outsiders hear, or it will only bring trouble to our Hyuga Clan."

"The situation of our Hyuga Clan in Konoha is not ideal."

"In this world, things are not simply right or wrong."

It's not just the Hyuga Clan who realize that something is wrong.

In fact, the Elders of various ninja villages, as well as some individuals from the Hidden Mist Village, including a few from the Kaguya Clan, also realize that something is amiss.

However, it is a fact that Kaguya Neko killed many members of the Kaguya Clan.

This is something everyone witnessed with their own eyes.

Therefore, compared to the Hidden Mist ANBU directly targeting the Kaguya Clan, the current approach has caused much less impact on the Hidden Mist Village.

Openly, within the Hidden Mist Village, no one will question this matter.

And most people believe that it was Kaguya Neko who nearly wiped out the Kaguya Clan.

"Father, have you heard?"

Uchiha Itachi's figure swiftly entered the tent.

"Itachi, what's wrong?"

"Father, Kaguya Neko of the Hidden Mist Village obtained a Ninjato called the demonic sword, Dragon-Bone. In order to gain power, He actually attacked his own people, killing many members of the Kaguya Clan."

"I heard."

Uchiha Fugaku nodded.

"There must be more to this matter. After all, how could such a world exist where one would harm their own kin, and kill so many?"

"Impossible."

"Unless this person is not human, but a beast."

Uchiha Itachi showed a pensive expression.

On the other side, Uchiha Shisui gazed towards the direction of the Land of Water, falling into silence.

Uchiha Shisui had some understanding of the Kaguya Clan's situation.

To Uchiha Shisui, there were many similarities between Konoha's Uchiha Clan and the Hidden Mist Village's Kaguya Clan.

The Uchiha Clan was one of the founding ninja families of Konoha.

The Kaguya Clan was also one of the founding ninja families of the Hidden Mist Village.

The Uchiha Clan had considerable strength, possessing the Kekkei Genkai such as the Sharingan.

While the awakening of the Kekkei Genkai of the Kaguya Clan was difficult, their strength in the Hidden Mist Village was still considerable.

Some members of the Uchiha Clan had extremist personalities.

Hence the moniker of inherently evil Uchiha.

Some members of the Kaguya Clan had even more violent tendencies.

Thus, there's also the moniker of inherently evil Kaguya.

Both are major ninja clans, both have conflicts with their respective ninja villages.

And now, such a thing has suddenly happened within the Kaguya Clan.

"Is it that Kaguya Neko has gone too far in wickedness, slaughtering the lives of fellow clan members, or is there another reason?"

"Will future Uchiha also experience similar events?"

A hint of worry appeared on Uchiha Shisui's face.

At the Hokage Building, two figures stood behind the window.

They looked out at the building outside.

Not far away was the Hokage Rock.

"Danzo, let's temporarily put the matter of the Byakugan to rest. Continuing to pressure the Hyuga Clan may not yield any good results; they have already done their best."

Danzo didn't respond to this statement, but asked instead.

"Hiruzen, it seems you also believe that this event wasn't created by Kaguya Neko, the true mastermind behind it should be the Third Mizukage, right?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.

"It's impossible to wipe out a clan single-handedly, or overnight, no matter how you look at it."

Danzo said, "Indeed, but that Ninjato called the demonic sword, Dragon-Bone, even if it's not as strong as rumored, it must still be formidable. Suddenly, Hidden Mist Village has acquired two such powerful Ninjato. We must be vigilant."

"One might be a Ninjato that Hidden Mist Village had hidden away before, but two is less likely."

"More likely, Hidden Mist Village has produced a new Great Blacksmith."

"This Great Blacksmith might likely craft even more Ninjato."

"This means the number of elite ninjas in Hidden Mist Village will undoubtedly increase."

"The previous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist did suffer a crushing defeat against Might Duy, but what they don't know, and what we do, is that Might Duy was only one person, and he's already dead."

"We can't expect another Might Duy to appear in a short time."

"As for Orochimaru, Jiraiya, Minato, they all have their own responsibilities."

"A single group of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist has already caused us quite a bit of trouble in Konoha."

"If another one were to come..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned.

"We received a letter from the Hidden Sand Village saying they can provide us with some assistance, and there has been some withdrawal from the Hidden Rock Village."

Danzo's eyes gleamed slightly.

"If we can move all the ninjas from the Hidden Sand Village to the battlefield against the Hidden Mist Village, then we in Konoha can breathe a sigh of relief and even proceed with some other plans."

"Hiruzen, I believe it's necessary for us to assemble an elite ninja team to infiltrate the Land of Water, investigate the situation of that Great Blacksmith. If we can recruit him, we will. If not, we can't allow him to continue crafting Ninjato for the Hidden Mist Village."

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.

"This matter, Danzo, I'll leave it to you to arrange."

"Understood, but I'll need some manpower."

"Who?"

"Kakashi..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted directly.

"Impossible. Kakashi is Minato's disciple. I can't assign him to you from the ANBU."

Danzo shrugged.

"In that case, I'll need to select a few ninjas from the Yamanaka Clan and the Aburame Clan. Otherwise, this mission will be difficult to accomplish."

"As you know, infiltrating the Hidden Mist Village is already challenging."

The locations of all ninja villages are strategic.

Hidden Sand Village is built upon a fertile oasis in the Land of Wind.

Even though the oasis can't keep up with the growing population, it at least provides the water needed for survival.

The location of Hidden Rock Village is easy to defend and hard to attack.

Unless it's an aerial assault.

But there's a problem: there aren't many ninjas in the entire shinobi world who possess aerial capabilities.

And the ninjas from Hidden Rock Village who are skilled in this make up a large portion.

Earth Release, Ultralight-Weight Rock Jutsu, can suspend people in mid-air.

The location of Hidden Cloud Village is very secretive, shrouded in clouds, like another world.

The position of Hidden Mist Village is within the sea. There's only one direction close to the Land of Water.

To reach Hidden Mist Village, one must either traverse the entire Land of Water or navigate around from the sea.

The entire environment is surrounded by seawater, greatly empowering Water Release ninjas.

It can be said that the defensibility of Hidden Mist Village is on par with that of Hidden Rock Village.

"Good."

With Sarutobi Hiruzen's response, Danzo left satisfied.

Even his footsteps seemed to quicken a bit.

"That Third Mizukage, what a misnomer for tyranny."

"If I were this Mizukage, I wouldn't let a single member of the Kaguya Clan survive."

"But now, not only have many members of the Kaguya Clan survived, but there's also someone like Kaguya Neko, a flaw wandering in exile."

"Soft-hearted and indecisive."

"Only the Bloody Mist Policy is worth mentioning."

"However..."

"This Bloody Mist policy is extremely similar to my approach to training in the Root."

Danzo's eyes flickered for a moment.

"Could this Third Mizukage be plagiarizing me?"

Danzo hadn't suspected this before, but now, seeing how Hidden Mist Village handled the Kaguya Clan situation, this suspicion arose in his mind.

While almost everyone was condemning Kaguya Neko, there were also those with different thoughts.

Some people inherently possess genes predisposed to destruction, crime, and wrongdoing.

"Kaguya Neko Senpai is really too strong!"

"One person, one night, one blade, wiping out an entire clan."

"So cool!"

"This is the real criminal!"

"This is the real powerhouse!"

"I've decided, I want to do the same thing as Kaguya Neko Senpai, and then follow Kaguya Neko Senpai!"

In an unnamed corner, a young boy made this declaration.

There were also others interested in the Dragon-Bone.

"If I get the Dragon-Bone sword, then, can I also have the same power as Kaguya Neko?"

An existence that looked like a young man licked his lips.

...

Uehara Soma returned to Forging Island, feeling a bit tired.

Even though Uehara Soma had no involvement in the entire process.

He just watched from the outside.

Listening to Ao's report to Third Mizukage.

But, he couldn't help feeling tired.

Uehara Soma didn't know why.

Two days later, Uehara Soma emerged from his tired state.

He opened his eyes and looked at the semi-transparent panel in front of him.

[Name: Uehara Soma]

[Comprehensive Strength: Chunin]

[Swordsmanship: Skilled (5300)]

[Body Modification Technique: Familiar (2000)]

[Forging Technique: Good (Proficient—Forging Island bonus, God's Hand bonus)]

[Task Item: Thug Recruitment Token X1]

[Blacksmith Reputation: 2387]

[Evaluation: As a Blacksmith, the foundation is decent. Due to having his own forging site, forged equipment, the Forging Technique is boosted, with a chance of crafting ninja tools above premium quality.]

[As a Ninja, the strength is worrying. In war, you can only be considered as advanced cannon fodder.]

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