Chapter 102: Countdown

Leaving the southern border of the Land of Water.

Yagura boarded a steamship bound for the Land of Artisans.

The waves hissed as the ship sped forward, the engine rumbling with a steady roar. Thick black smoke billowed from the chimney, dispersing into the sky.

The summer mist over the sea was much lighter than usual, allowing the sun's radiant light to pierce through the clouds and shimmer on the water's surface.

Leaning against the ship's railing, Yagura felt the sea breeze against his face.

[Isobu: Glug glug glug...]

[Yagura: Isobu, can you snore a little quieter? I can't sleep.]

[Isobu: What does that have to do with me? Also, do you humans sleep standing up now?]

[Yagura: You're sleeping in the room I rented to you, so of course it concerns me.]

[Isobu: Oh... glug glug glug...]

Knowing that his little Jinchūriki was feeling down, Isobu decided not to provoke him further. After floating on the surface for a moment, he simply sank back underwater.

Being human—what's so great about it, anyway?

Being a carefree Tailed Beast was much better.

[Yagura: You're just a turtle.]

[Isobu: You're the turtle! Your whole family's turtles!]

...

A few days ago, after a disagreement with the Third Mizukage, Yagura was effectively exiled from Kirigakure under the guise of an external mission.

His attempted reforms had barely begun when the Third Mizukage put an abrupt stop to them.

Expelled from the Mizukage's office, Yagura had no choice but to watch as the Mizukage continued to enforce his own will, strengthening Kirigakure's alliance with Iwagakure and standing in direct opposition to Konoha.

Since last year, the Third Mizukage had sensed that Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage, was planning something big. He had been secretly using village funds to prepare for war, stockpiling enough supplies to sustain Kirigakure's forces for over a year.

Onoki masterfully leveraged the disappearance of the Third Kazekage as a political tool, playing it to perfection.

Even the Third Mizukage had to admit—the brat had grown up. He was no longer the kid who used to cry behind the Second Tsuchikage.

By the forty-second year of Konoha's founding, the diplomatic landscape among the Five Great Nations had shifted:

Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure stood united against Konoha and Sunagakure.

The second, third, and fourth strongest ninja villages had joined forces against the first and fifth. This precarious balance ensured an uneasy peace—at least on the surface.

But the Third Kazekage's sudden disappearance was an unexpected variable that no one in the ninja world had foreseen.

Seizing the opportunity, Onoki launched a decisive strike against Sunagakure, which was left leaderless and had most of its forces stationed at the Konoha border.

If his gamble succeeded, he could eliminate Sunagakure entirely.

Even if it failed, Onoki still wouldn't suffer much loss.

At the perfect moment, he pulled back, forcing Sunagakure into an unfavorable peace treaty—effectively shifting the balance from 3 vs. 2 to 4 vs. 1.

Under these conditions, the Third Mizukage believed Konoha had no chance of victory.

With war imminent, Kirigakure's stockpiled resources were finally put to use. Troops were deployed to the western borders.

"Onoki's tactics are truly impressive."

Bored aboard the ship, Yagura had spent his time catching up on recent events, finally understanding the grand strategy the Third Tsuchikage had put into motion.

Yet, for all of Onoki's careful calculations, there was one factor he had failed to anticipate:

Namikaze Minato.

A single man who could turn the tide of war.

People make plans, but fate has the final say.

...

None of this really concerned Yagura anymore.

After just a few months in the Mizukage's office, he had gone from overworked official to unemployed drifter.

Falling from the clouds straight into the abyss.

No more paperwork, no more stress. Time to celebrate. Cheers to freedom.

Maybe, just maybe, the old Mizukage had finally realized that child labor was illegal.

Making a kid handle paperwork from dawn till dusk was simply unreasonable.

"It's my fault..."

Now, away from the center of power, away from Kirigakure, Yagura finally had a moment of clarity. The sea breeze helped clear his mind, and many things suddenly made sense.

For decades, Kirigakure had suffered under high-pressure policies and the Bloody Mist tradition. Their resources were nowhere near as abundant as those of Konoha, Kumogakure, or Iwagakure.

A three-year war would drain Kirigakure dry, no matter which side they took. At best, they'd be competing with Sunagakure to see who collapsed first.

But Kirigakure's geographical location gave them a chance at neutrality—just like America in World War I and II, or Britain's opportunistic maneuvering in European conflicts.

Yagura wanted to use this war to replicate their success.

Like the U.S., which rose by stepping over Britain's war-torn economy.

Like Japan, which quickly recovered and reemerged after the war.

"Fortify defenses, stockpile resources, and wait for the right moment to rise."

That was why he didn't want Kirigakure to participate in the war.

Back in Kirigakure, he had been blinded by power and prestige.

The Third Mizukage and the elder council had humored him, letting him believe he was stronger than he actually was.

But he wasn't.

Whatever he could think of, the Third Mizukage and the elders had already considered.

Did they want war? Maybe, maybe not.

They understood Kirigakure's situation far better than Yagura did.

Yet, as the Third Mizukage had once told him, no nation would allow a neutral power to grow strong enough to threaten them.

Kirigakure, ranked fourth among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, did not have the luxury of neutrality.

This wasn't like the Second Shinobi World War, where Hanzo of the Salamander had kept Amegakure safe—Amegakure didn't even share a border with the Land of Water.

This war was between the major villages themselves.

If Kirigakure wanted to avoid the battlefield, they needed a feasible alternative.

Without one, exile was the only option.

Yagura laughed bitterly at himself.

Looking back, this past year had been smooth sailing for him. Maybe too smooth.

He wasn't even as capable as he had been a year ago.

Back then, he had convinced the Third Mizukage to abandon the Tailed Beast project by offering a more attractive and viable alternative—his ability to tame the Six-Tails just as he had tamed Isobu.

Only then had the Third Mizukage relented.

Exhaling deeply, Yagura fell into thought.

Even if he had a strategy to break the cycle, he had no idea how to persuade the Third Mizukage—or any of the great villages—to let Kirigakure remain uninvolved.

The Third Mizukage had his own considerations.

Understanding this, Yagura could only blame himself for not being skilled enough.

He had no choice but to take things one step at a time.

...

A flock of seagulls soared just above the ocean surface, then flapped their wings and climbed higher, cutting across Yagura's line of sight.

Shielding his eyes from the glaring sun, he squinted toward the horizon.

There, on the edge of the sea, an island was coming into view.

They were almost there.

His S-rank mission's destination—the Land of Artisans.

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