Chapter 158: The Root of All Evil

If small-scale conflicts between ninja could lead to another war between Konoha and Kumogakure or Iwagakure, then the Third Hokage would certainly need to weigh the consequences carefully. But if the conflict was with Kirigakure, things were much simpler.

There was no need to overthink it. Kirigakure had attacked first; they couldn't blame Konoha for retaliating.

Fortunately, Habara was a reasonable and kind person. They were just here to return the Three-Tails; there was no need to create unnecessary complications. Therefore, after a brief "probing" of each other, and roughly confirming their respective strengths, Hoshigaki Kisame and Hozuki Mangetsu obediently led the way.

Meanwhile, within Kirigakure…

"Have the identities of the Konoha ninja transporting the Three-Tails been confirmed?"

"We just received a message from the front. It's the trio that previously assassinated the Fourth Kazekage, led by Kakashi of the Sharingan. The other two should be named Habara and Tenzo."

"To prevent any unforeseen circumstances, the Mizukage should not meet with this Konoha team."

"Mm…"

After the brief exchange, silence fell once more.

Under the Bloody Mist, the Mizukage maintained a mysterious style; who would dare speak loudly?

An hour later, Habara and his team finally left the sea and set foot on the Land of Water. After another half-day's journey, the trio stopped.

A six-man ninja squad appeared before them. Four were clearly guards, while the two in front were old men. Judging by their positions, they were likely advisors or elders.

When Habara's group stopped, Hoshigaki Kisame and Hozuki Mangetsu continued forward, taking positions behind the two elders.

"Konoha's envoys, thank you very much for coming to the Land of Water. If possible, please complete the transfer of the Three-Tails here," the leading elder said in a trembling, thin, and weak voice.

This old guy looked like he had no combat ability whatsoever, like he was just waiting to die.

Habara looked around. Transfer the Three-Tails in this wilderness?

Well, of course, they wouldn't let them just bring the Three-Tails into Kirigakure. That was the logical thought process of any normal person; no one could guarantee that the Konoha group wouldn't release the Three-Tails directly inside Kirigakure.

Habara tilted his head. "Senior Kakashi, do as they ask."

Kakashi nodded. He took the container holding the Three-Tails from Tenzo and, without another word, began forming hand seals, preparing to release the seal.

This idiotic behavior startled the Kirigakure ninja, who quickly retreated. Releasing the Three-Tails right here?

The Kirigakure ninja prepared for battle. In the next instant, the Three-Tails' massive body appeared before them.

"Prepare…"

Kirigakure was about to order an attack on the Konoha ninja, but Kakashi preempted them, saying, "Don't worry. This guy hasn't regained consciousness yet."

The released Three-Tails indeed made no unnecessary movements, looking like a hibernating turtle. So, the Kirigakure ninja were halted by Kakashi's voice.

Of course, Konoha could only hand over the "bare machine." If they gave Kirigakure the sealing container as well, wouldn't that lead to the leakage of the Uzumaki sealing techniques? No one would make such a losing deal.

Several Kirigakure ninja circled the Three-Tails' massive body. Then they returned to the elder and whispered, "Elder, it is indeed the Three-Tails, but… its chakra is exceptionally weak right now. Also, it's missing a tail."

Habara quickly spoke up, "Ah, yes. This Tailed Beast had some… developmental issues during the revival process, and occasionally displayed self-harming tendencies. We had no choice but to use a large amount of sedatives when we captured it."

If Konoha had captured the Three-Tails, they would certainly have conducted some minor, insignificant experiments on it. Extracting chakra was the most common practice. But as long as the Three-Tails was still the Three-Tails, everything was fine.

"The Three-Tails is weak? Developmentally stunted? Unconscious? No matter. This is a good thing. Yes, a good thing."

An elder was an elder for a reason. Having an old treasure is like having a wise one; he hadn't lived this long for nothing – the Three-Tails' lost chakra would recover over time, and a weakened Three-Tails couldn't cause any damage to Kirigakure. Its unconscious state also made it easier for Kirigakure to reseal it. Therefore, Konoha's treatment of the Three-Tails was a good thing.

What did it matter if it was missing a tail? Even if this old turtle had no tails at all, what of it? In the ninja world, Tailed Beasts had no rights, and animal rights activists or environmentalists couldn't gain any traction.

The Kirigakure ninja were surprisingly easygoing, which made Habara nod in approval.

Since Kirigakure had no intention of inviting the Konoha ninja to the village, Habara was ready to take his leave… He himself wanted to go to Kirigakure to gather information, to see what the Bloody Mist was really like, and if possible, to meet "Uchiha Madara." Alas, Kirigakure had no hospitality.

"In that case, our mission is complete. We'll take our leave now," Habara said.

He didn't even bother to confirm whether the ninja in front of him were truly Kirigakure ninja. As long as they left the Three-Tails in the Land of Water, their mission was accomplished.

"Thank you very much. We apologize for the poor reception. If you have time… er, never mind."

The Kirigakure side expressed their gratitude again. However, as Habara was taking his leave, the atmosphere suddenly tensed up again. The Kirigakure ninja began to exchange frequent signals, and only after the leading elder shook his head slightly did they calm down.

The elder was still able to grasp the key point. This wasn't the time to cause trouble; handling the Three-Tails was the top priority. Three Konoha ninja were insignificant in comparison. If they rashly attacked the Konoha ninja, who's to say they wouldn't make the Three-Tails, which could become impaired and faint, become energized and wake up?

There was no need for formalities, so after a brief farewell, Habara and his companions began to head back. Out of caution, he activated his sensory mode and found that the Kirigakure ninja remained around the Three-Tails, with no one pursuing them… Habara had originally wanted to use this trip to gather more information about Kirigakure, but unfortunately, he had learned nothing. He could only confirm that the Bloody Mist had begun and was ongoing, a very general piece of information.

As they gradually distanced themselves from the Kirigakure ninja, their tension eased slightly.

The climate of the Land of Water felt somewhat similar to the Land of Rain. Habara and his team were currently walking along a dam several kilometers long. On the right side of the dam was a reservoir with a water level almost reaching the top, and on the left was a river flowing from north to south. As they walked on the dam, the rumbling sound of water discharge was constant.

Looking at the foggy environment, Habara couldn't help but remark, "Is it foggy here all year round? This isn't the Land of Water; it's the Land of Twilight."

Fortunately, it was approaching noon, and the surrounding fog was very thin, barely interfering with their vision.

"The Land of Water's natural environment is different from the Land of Fire's. Surrounded by the ocean, isolated overseas, it's a closed-off country," Kakashi replied casually.

Just as Kakashi finished speaking, Habara suddenly stopped. Following his gaze, Kakashi and Tenzo also turned around, and they saw two people walking towards them on the surface of the water to their right.

Who were they?

Habara narrowed his eyes and then made out the appearances of the approaching figures.

It was the Fourth Mizukage and Suikazan Fuguki.

Several thoughts flashed through Habara's mind. These two appearing here was certainly not a good sign. However, the Fourth Mizukage had absolutely no reason to personally come out and intercept Konoha ninja. So why was he doing this?

The answer was obvious: Uchiha Obito.

Because Rin had died at Kakashi's hands, Kakashi was despised by Obito from then on. This time, they had ventured deep into enemy territory; perhaps Obito would try to eliminate Kakashi, since he considered Kakashi useless anyway.

Habara didn't think Kakashi was useless, but Kakashi was indeed a teammate killer. Kakashi was the root cause of the Fourth Mizukage's appearance here – some people subconsciously ignored the fact that he had almost blown Uchiha Obito's head off with a kick.

It was true that the Fourth Mizukage had no reason to personally intercept Konoha ninja. It was also true that the Fourth Mizukage's presence here was likely due to Uchiha Obito's genjutsu. However, who was Uchiha Obito's primary target on this trip? Kakashi? Habara's judgment was debatable.

His experience during the Nine-Tails incident might have made Uchiha Obito aware of who had the potential to disrupt his "world peace plan" in the future.

Nipping a bad seed in the bud was something everyone would consider. Whether or not it could be nipped was secondary… Anyway, it cost nothing; why not give it a try? If he won, everyone would be happy; if he lost, he wouldn't lose anything.

"Habara!" Kakashi prompted.

"Prepare for battle," Habara said.

The teammate killer was indeed a teammate killer. There had been no problems on the way here or during the most dangerous handover. Who would have thought that a problem would arise during the relatively safe return journey?

"Water Style barrage!" Tenzo then shouted.

Actually, there was no need for anyone to remind anyone else. The three of them were all watching the Fourth Mizukage's movements. And now, the Mizukage, at a distance of seventy or eighty meters from Habara's group, had already begun to cast a technique.

The Mizukage certainly wasn't stupid. Even if he were stupid, he wouldn't cast a technique from outside its range. Therefore, it was obvious that he was about to unleash a super-large-scale ninjutsu:

Water Style: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave.

A massive amount of fresh water from the reservoir was swept up. In an instant, the sea raged, and giant waves piled up, quickly climbing to a height of over a hundred meters. Then, in the blink of an eye, this colossal wave surged towards Habara and his team.

"Tenzo, Kakashi!"

At this point, Habara didn't care about respectful or disrespectful titles like "senior" or "brat." He forcefully shoved Tenzo, who was beside him.

Under Habara's unrestrained force, Tenzo immediately lost his footing. Then he heard a bird's cry, and his floating feet felt like they had stepped on something solid. He looked down and saw that he was on the back of a giant gray eagle.

"Kakashi!"

Kakashi reached out and grabbed Tenzo's hand. The giant eagle soared into the air, almost skimming the curve of the crashing wave.

The wave, carrying enormous mass, slammed onto the dam. Then, Habara seemed to hear two popping sounds distinct from the sound of water, and then he saw the dam beneath his feet begin to crumble.

Damn it, a trip to the Land of Water, and of course, he couldn't escape a streak of bad luck, like a curse.