Chapter 173: A Real and Unspoken Suspicion
Chapter 173: A Real and Unspoken Suspicion
With Kakuzu dragging a battered Hidan away, the two immortal monsters finally retreated. After paying a hefty price, the alliance of the three great villages gained almost nothing. Especially for Sunagakure—it lost two jōnin and gained nothing in return. Worse, the chaos caused by Shukaku had to be cleaned up by other villages. The original plan to capture Sasori backfired, ending with him incinerated by Mizuki and Shukaku's combined efforts. What was supposed to be a gain ended in a net loss. No one in the Sand Village forces could feel good about that. They hadn't even played a significant role in repelling the Akatsuki. If anything, unleashing Shukaku was their biggest "contribution"… though whether that was helpful or harmful was debatable.
To Mizuki, however, the departure of Kakuzu and Hidan didn't mean it was time to relax. The greatest threat now was still the raging Shukaku pinned beneath his energy claws. If he couldn't re-seal the tailed beast and end the chakra resonance, Mizuki's condition would only deteriorate further over time.
As Shukaku continued to struggle violently, Mizuki slammed his fist into the beast's plump belly, causing a pained roar. Another blow to the throat shut it up altogether.
Mizuki then controlled his red energy claws like blades and thrust them into Shukaku's massive sand-formed head. With a slicing motion, he tore away a large mass of sand, exposing a deep cavity.
"Is Gaara really hidden this deep? Am I going to have to dig a whole crater to find him?"
The shortcut was waking Gaara up—this was no time to hold back.
Just as Mizuki was about to strike again, he was stopped.
"Please wait, Mizuki-dono," Maki from the Sand Village hurried over. "Let us handle Gaara now…"
"You?" Mizuki asked skeptically. They didn't even have the strength to suppress Shukaku, and now they wanted to handle Gaara?
"Don't misunderstand. We still need your help with suppressing Shukaku, but we'd prefer to take care of the specifics ourselves…"
"Oh, I get it," Mizuki replied with a faint smile. They clearly didn't like his "rough" approach—probably worried he'd hurt Gaara. "Fine. Just be quick. I can't hold this thing forever."
With that, Mizuki tightened his grip, keeping Shukaku under control while Maki approached.
"They're not just afraid I'll hurt Gaara. They're afraid I'll tamper with him or the tailed beast… Heh, can't blame them for being cautious."
Indeed, Mizuki had revealed too much during the fight. No one could explain how he did what he did, but everyone saw Shukaku relentlessly targeting Mizuki. Combined with the tailed beast chakra resonance and Mizuki's bizarre red cloak that mirrored Shukaku's form… It was impossible to believe he hadn't tampered with the tailed beast in some way.
That was the only logical explanation.
Since Maki didn't say it outright, Mizuki didn't push either. If Sunagakure didn't bring it up, there was no need to dwell on it. If anyone asked, Mizuki could spin any tale he liked.
And truthfully, Mizuki had done something. But it wasn't with ill intent—Gaara hadn't suffered any real loss. The only reason he even stepped in was because ignoring the chakra resonance would've caused serious harm to himself.
Maki climbed atop Shukaku's massive sand body, summoning sharp wind blades. She skillfully fended off sand attacks and began slicing open Shukaku's head, trying to locate Gaara.
Her strength wasn't lacking, and with Shukaku weakened, the task wasn't difficult—but she lacked Mizuki's raw brute force. Her efficiency was disappointing. Mizuki watched, shaking his head.
"If they keep wasting time like this, I'll take over. My body can't wait for their pride."
As the fighting waned and even Shukaku seemed to be subdued, others began approaching the battlefield.
"Mizuki, how are you holding up?" Yamashiro Aoba arrived and paused at the sight of Mizuki's abnormal state. But instead of asking, he pushed down his doubts and moved forward—only to have his arm scorched when he touched the red energy field surrounding Mizuki. He recoiled in pain.
"Don't come closer. It's dangerous," Mizuki warned.
Natural energy alone was already volatile. Mixed with Shukaku's chakra, it became even more unpredictable. Had Mizuki not been in Sage Mode, he'd be severely injured by now.
"I guess that answers my question," Aoba said with a wry smile. "You definitely don't look normal."
"I'm… managing," Mizuki replied with a strained smile. "As best as I can."
"Anything we can do to help?"
"Actually, yes." Mizuki glanced at Aoba and Hyūga Neji behind him. "Find Gaara fast and wake him up. Neji's Byakugan will help locate him. Aoba, I'll need your genjutsu and mental jutsu expertise to stabilize his mind—his seal's been forcefully broken, and he'll be in bad shape."
"Understood," Aoba nodded and turned to Neji. "We're counting on you."
Neji activated his Byakugan and quickly scanned the sand beast.
"I've found him," he announced.
"That's great!" Aoba said, clearly relieved. "Alright, let's go."
He turned to Mizuki for confirmation.
"Go," Mizuki nodded. "Just be careful. If anything goes wrong, grab Neji and run. I'll handle things here."
"Got it. We're off."
…
As they left, Mizuki turned to Aburame Shino, who had been silent.
"Well, Shino? First S-rank mission—what did you think?"
"A real eye-opener," Shino said, staring at the remains of Shukaku and the others working to extract Gaara.
"That's all?" Mizuki asked, grinning.
"And a sense of crisis," Shino added.
"You don't say much, huh?"
Shino wasn't actually the quiet type—he just didn't talk casually with people he wasn't close to. But deep down, he had a fiery spirit.
"Well, from my perspective, you and Neji actually did pretty well."
Shino nodded silently.
"The difference in absolute strength means you couldn't do much this time—but that's not your fault. I didn't pick you expecting front-line combat power. You've already helped a lot. And no, it's not because you're weak—it's just a matter of youth. Give it a few more years."
"Two or three years?" Shino muttered. "But Shikamaru is already a chūnin. Does that make him stronger than the rest of us?"
"What do you think?" Mizuki smiled. "Chūnin rank reflects overall ability—not just strength. It includes leadership, teamwork, battlefield awareness… You think Shikamaru got promoted just by being strong?"
Shino fell silent.
"Ambition is fine, but don't rush. You'll only get hurt."
After a pause, Shino asked, "Why did you choose me? With Neji here, wasn't another recon/support type redundant?"
"Not at all. Your insects were key—more useful than Neji's Gentle Fist at times," Mizuki replied. "Besides, the way your bugs coordinate with Neji's strikes could be very effective."
"Effective how?" Shino asked.
"Hard to say for sure." Mizuki shook his head. "But let me ask you this—if you suddenly lost a lot of insects in a short time, would it hurt you?"
Shino frowned. "In the short term, no. But it would reduce my combat ability and cost a lot of chakra to replace them."
"Good. Just be ready. You might come in handy soon."
Just then, Shukaku let out an unwilling roar, and its massive sand form began collapsing. Within moments, it disintegrated into a heap of sand. From the swirling dust, Maki emerged, carrying a battered and unconscious Gaara. Behind her were a grim-faced Aoba and Neji.
As she approached, Mizuki dismissed his red energy claws.
"How is he?"
"Thanks to you, he'll live. I'll care for him now. We may need your help healing him later, Mizuki-dono. Thank you for everything."
"You're welcome. Do as you need."
…
As Maki walked away, Aoba muttered bitterly, "These Sand shinobi… no gratitude at all. We risked so much for them, and they act like we're thieves."
"Did Maki offend you?" Mizuki asked.
"You didn't see his face—it was all polite words with cold eyes…"
"Let it go, Aoba. We've done our part."
And truthfully, Mizuki knew he was the reason for the suspicion. He'd shown too many cards today.
"You're the leader—your call."
"Thanks. Now, it's time to deal with our own problem. More specifically—mine."
Mizuki's cloak of tailed beast energy hadn't disappeared. Though it had stopped expanding, he still had no idea how to shut it down.
With his natural energy nearly depleted and what little chakra he had left precious, he couldn't afford to waste any more. The Curse Mark still needed containment. Sage Mode would soon collapse. Fortunately, Shino—his contingency plan for a Sage Mode failure—might finally have his chance to shine.
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