Strongest Hidden Mist Village [138]

If there was someone in this world who was most actively seeking the tailed beasts,

It wasn't Madara who was determined to implement the Eye of the Moon plan, nor was it Pain who wanted the world to feel pain, or Obito who couldn't hide his tears with Kamui.

It was Black Zetsu!

In order to save his mother, Black Zetsu had waited for thousands of years, finally guiding the descendants of Indra and Asura bit by bit into their current form.

Now the Rinnegan had appeared, and Pain as the vessel was developing in the direction he had envisioned. All that remained was to absorb the nine Tailed Beasts to resurrect the Ten-Tails' power and rescue his mother.

It could be said that at this moment, Black Zetsu was ready in all respects, just waiting for the final push.

However, no matter how hard he searched, he just couldn't find a single one of the remaining five tailed beasts!

"According to the information left by Madara, the Three-Tails and Six-Tails were once in the hands of Hidden Mist. If we could infiltrate Hidden Mist, we might discover something."

"Do you think I don't know that?" Obito looked at Zetsu as if he was an idiot. "Didn't you just say that the entire Hidden Mist village is covered in a barrier? Forget about infiltrating, even your spores can't penetrate it at all."

"...Special methods may not work, but conventional methods might not be impossible."

Black Zetsu suppressed his anger, continuously self-hypnotizing, 'This guy Obito's intelligence stat is only 2 on his ninja card. Calm down, calm down.'

"The Hidden Mist has opened its borders, haven't they? We can enter as official Hidden Sand representatives, under the guise of communication, cooperation, and mutual benefit, to gather information."

"Oh?!"

Hearing this, Obito's eyes lit up.

This was indeed a good idea.

The reason he listened to Madara and took control of the Hidden Sand was precisely to facilitate his future plans. Now was the time!

"But... who should we send?"

Obito's gaze was deep.

Since the main purpose was to gather intelligence, they naturally couldn't send just anyone. That Yuki Yoru was quite skilled, and if they sent ordinary people, it would be extremely difficult to uncover anything.

But the Hidden Sand Village currently had pitifully few capable talents, much like the Hidden Mist during its Bloody Mist era. The vast village was barely sustained by the Kazekage, the master of gold dust, and a few old timers.

"Karura would be a good choice, with sufficient status and strength, and she's very smart, but she's pregnant..."

"Wait, Obito."

The silent Zetsu suddenly spoke up, interrupting Obito.

"Hm?"

"Hidden Mist shinobi... are outside the village..."

"What?"

...

As the first person from Hidden Mist to ever set foot in Hidden Sand village, Hozuki Mangetsu, who came as an envoy, received quite grand treatment. Not only did the Fourth Kazekage personally greet him, but Chiyo, Ebizo and other Hidden Sand higher-ups all attended. They even held a banquet at Hidden Sand's most luxurious restaurant to entertain him.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes,

Hozuki Mangetsu smiled at the Hidden Sand leaders before him.

"Lord Kazekage, and everyone from Hidden Sand, your hospitality truly makes me feel honored. We, too, must not be outdone..."

"Please, Lord Kazekage and everyone from Hidden Sand, take a look at this."

Saying that, Hozuki Mangetsu took out a scroll from his robes and handed it to the Fourth Kazekage Rasa.

Rasa curiously opened it, and its contents immediately caused the Golden Dust user to show a look of surprise.

"Looking at the ninja world, Hidden Sand village and our Hidden Mist village are in the most similar situations."

"We are surrounded by vast oceans, while you reside amidst endless yellow sands. We both face extreme conditions compared to the Hidden Leaf, Hidden Cloud, or Hidden Stone. In terms of population and ninja numbers, we are inherently at a disadvantage."

"In the Third Shinobi World War, the evil Konoha caused us great damage. Because of this, our Fourth Mizukage was deeply moved and specifically sent me here."

"Our Hidden Mist village hopes to cooperate comprehensively with Hidden Sand village. Our Fourth Mizukage has proposed projects including building a super cross-sea bridge, transport station bases, west-to-east water diversion, constructing rivers, reservoirs, and so on, aiming to establish a friendly and harmonious alliance environment between Land of Wind and Land of Water, and jointly create a beautiful harmonious world!"

"..."

Rasa stared blankly at Hozuki Mangetsu in front of him, then passed the document in his hand to Chiyo, Ebizo and other Hidden Sand leaders beside him.

The leaders looked through it one by one, all showing incredulous expressions on their faces, even somewhat unable to believe all this.

"The Mizukage really wants to cooperate with us Hidden Sand?!" Chiyo's tone was full of doubt, her eyes fixed on Hozuki Mangetsu.

"Of course."

Hozuki Mangetsu nodded and smiled, "Much of the content in this scroll was personally stated by the Mizukage, but the specific cooperation details still need to be discussed by both sides."

"The Land of Wind and the Land of Water are vastly separated. Cooperation between us would be extremely difficult."

"That's not a problem. The power of ninja is immense. As long as both sides have the intention to cooperate, our Mizukage can even first change several harsh ecological environments for Hidden Sand." Hozuki Mangetsu said with a full smile, while pausing slightly in his speech: "Even if the Land of Wind has a scorching climate, please believe in our Mizukage's power. After all, those ice sculptures on Higashimatsuyama still haven't melted completely."

At these words, everyone present was stunned.

Yuki Yoru's terrifying combat power was well known during the Third Shinobi World War. If nothing else, just the fact that Yuki Yoru single-handedly made Konoha surrender had already made history.

The Hidden Leaf, established for fifty-one years, had only fallen to Yuki Yoru alone. This alone was enough to prove the Fourth Mizukage's terrifying prowess!

"I see written on this scroll that the Mizukage wants to build a super bridge from Land of Water to Land of Wind, and also construct a water resource transportation system..." Rasa suddenly spoke up, pointing at the contents on the scroll and asked: "I'm very curious, wouldn't the routes for these projects have to pass through several other nations?"

"Yes."

Hozuki Mangetsu nodded: "The Mizukage's intention is to link up with the Land of Fire, going from Wave City to the Land of Fire, then to the Land of Rivers, and finally entering the Land of Wind."

"The idea is good, but I fear it might be restrained by the Hidden Leaf..."

"The Land of Fire has already signed a peace treaty with the Land of Wind, and our Hidden Mist is an ally of the Hidden Leaf. As long as Kazekage-sama agrees, these plans will have a high success rate."

In the shadows.

Looking at Hozuki Mangetsu talking confidently, Obito and Zetsu exchanged a strange glance.

Hidden Mist actually taking the initiative to come and cooperate was truly beyond their expectations.

For so many years since the formation of the ninja world, the Land of Wind and the Land of Water were geographically worlds apart—one on vast oceans, the other in barren deserts. It was almost impossible for them to interact, yet the Hidden Mist had sought them out under these circumstances...

There's something fishy!

"I see the Mizukage-sama's full sincerity for cooperation, but these cooperation projects are enormous. Our Hidden Sand has just lost the war and paid a lot of money to the Hidden Leaf. I'm afraid we're willing, but unable," Rasa said, a red glint in his eye.

"Kazekage-sama jokes. With your abilities, the Land of Wind surely wouldn't lack money."

Hozuki Mangetsu smiled, "What you might not know is that our Hidden Mist's 'Economic Development' plan has already signed agreements with the Land of Fire, Land of Earth, Land of Hot Water, Land of Iron, Land of Waterfall, Land of Demons, and other nations. If the Land of Wind could also become a partner of our Hidden Mist, it would bring immense convenience and benefits to both our sides

So it's for money!

Obito and Zetsu exchanged glances again, realizing the truth.

They had long known that Yoru Minazuki was a complete money-grubber.

After becoming the Fourth Mizukage, this genius young man, a war hero, had immediately overturned the Third Mizukage's Bloody Mist policy, fully opening the Hidden Mist Village and vigorously developing industry, commerce, and fishing, constantly doing business with various forces and nations across the ninja world.

Among all the Kage throughout history, he was truly an oddity!

However, Obito and Zetsu were pleased to see this outcome. If Yuki Yoru was killing all day long and crazily devouring souls, they would be more worried.

Now it seemed Yoru Yuki had sent Mangetsu Hōzuki all the way to the Land of Wind because he was eyeing Rasa, the master of gold dust!

"What do you plan to do, agree or refuse?"

Zetsu looked at Obito.

Currently Hidden Sand village was under Obito's control and had entered the Bloody Sand era.

The entire Hidden Sand was almost completely isolated. If they cooperated with the Hidden Mist now, the current 'Bloody Sand' state of the village might face a degree of uncontrollable influence.

"Why refuse?"

Obito snorted, "If it were anyone else, it might indeed be a bit troublesome, but the partner is the Hidden Mist."

"The Hidden Mist, transitioning from the Bloody Mist era, entered a period of super-rapid development. So what would the Hidden Sand ninja be thinking at this stage?"

"They'll believe that as long as they endure the 'Bloody Sand' era, the entire Hidden Sand Village will also enter a period of super-rapid development, just like the Hidden Mist. This unsolicited cooperation will only lead the Hidden Sand further down the 'Bloody Sand' path, sinking deeper and deeper."

"Makes sense..."

...

"If Hidden Mist is truly sincere, then as Kazekage, I'd of course like to see this kind of cooperation succeed—for the good of both our nations. But a project of this scale involves a lot of details. We'll need to go over everything carefully."

"For example, some project contractors, management rights, usage rights, costs for each project, and so on..."

He took the bait!

Mangetsu Hōzuki grinned, watching the smiling Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, speak continuously. "Kazekage-sama's right; these matters indeed require thorough deliberation and discussion. And as the initiator of this cooperation, our Hidden Mist naturally hopes to secure a larger share."

"According to our Fourth Mizukage's wishes, for the first ten years after these projects are implemented and completed, eighty percent of all profits will belong to the Hidden Mist. After ten years, we can split the profits fifty-fifty..."

"What?!"

"Don't rush to refuse, Kazekage. If you're willing to agree to this point, we Hidden Mist have another big gift for you."

"Big gift?" Chiyo's face darkened, completely losing her previous welcoming smile.

Since both sides had already decided to cooperate and started discussing some of the details, they should fight for their own interests without giving an inch.

They thought the Hidden Mist was sincere, but now they were asking for eighty percent for ten years, leaving Hidden Sand with only twenty percent.,

Add in the Hidden Leaf's and other small countries' cuts, and their twenty percent would probably barely cover costs!

What's the point of cooperating then? Don't rush, there's still a big gift. What gift could be worth Hidden Sand's massive economic development for ten years?!

"Sasori."

A name suddenly came out of Hozuki Mangetsu's mouth, and everyone present fell silent.

"What did you just say?" Chiyo's voice was almost breaking as she couldn't help asking: "Can you repeat that?"

"Sasori, Sasori of the Red Sand, your Hidden Sand village's S-rank rogue-nin."

Hozuki Mangetsu spoke softly, saying words that shocked everyone present.

Obito in the shadows suddenly narrowed his eyes, and Zetsu's expression also became quite strange.

"Our Hidden Mist elites unexpectedly encountered an ambush from Sasori of the Red Sand and another rogue ninja during an operation. After our Hidden Mist's desperate struggle, we successfully defeated those two rogue ninja and captured them."

"Out of respect for Hidden Sand village, our Fourth Mizukage decided to hand over the right to deal with Sasori of the Red Sand to you, so what do you think..."

Chiyo's hands clenched tightly, her entire body trembling uncontrollably. Her dim yellow eyes now gleamed sharply.

Ebizo tightly grasped her sleeve and hand, preventing this wife of the First Kazekage from losing composure in front of outsiders.

After a long while, Chiyo finally calmed down and looked at Rasa beside her.

No matter what, the current Kazekage was Rasa. This matter concerned Hidden Sand's future, so he needed to make the decision.

Rasa hesitated for a moment. "This matter... we can talk about it."

Hozuki Mangetsu smiled. "That's precisely why I came, Kazekage-sama."

...

"Take your time, no rush..."

From beneath his white mask, Yoru looked at the crumbling, leaning towers in the yellow sand before him, his lips curling upwards.

Sending Hozuki Mangetsu to this Hidden Sand, besides genuinely wanting the Hidden Mist and Hidden Sand to cooperate, his biggest reason was to draw Zetsu and Obito's attention, allowing him to complete some special plans.

Specifically, the place Yoru currently stood: Rōran!

In the ninja world, there were many terrifying energy concentrations. The Land of Snow's chakra he obtained was one, the Priestess and Mōryō were another. And now, within the ruins of the ancient country of Rōran, an extremely terrifying energy was also hidden.

That was the Ryūmyaku (Dragon Veins).

The Ryūmyaku's power was immensely strong in the Naruto world. Its strength was easily comparable to the Land of Snow's chakra or the Priestess Miroku's Mōryō, and perhaps even greater.

However, this power was extremely unique in the ninja world. Just like Mōryō could only be sealed by the Priestess, the Ryūmyaku's power could only be utilized by the Queen of Rōran.

But Yoru wasn't too concerned about that claim. The Queen of Rōran was simply more compatible with the Ryūmyaku's power to a certain extent. To say she truly "controlled" it was a vast overstatement.

If anyone in this world could truly control such natural energy, which was even more terrifying than the Tailed Beasts, it would probably only be an existence of the Six Paths Sage's caliber.

"That Minato Namikaze really has a good wife from the Uzumaki clan. Her sealing jutsu foundation is quite something."

Looking at the collapsing towers, Yoru scoffed. Even at this close distance, he couldn't sense even a hint of energy radiating from whatever was beneath the ground. This showed just how sturdy Minato Namikaze's original seal on the Ryūmyaku was.

To apply such a level of sealing to power he couldn't control or utilize himself...

He wondered if it was truly out of goodwill, or to ensure no future troubles...

Yoru sneered, stepping into the Rōran ruins, carefully observing his surroundings. In his perception, this area was barren, with no signs of life, indistinguishable from the surrounding sandy lands. It had clearly been abandoned for a long time.

Before long, Yoru arrived at the place where Minato Namikaze had sealed the Ryūmyaku.

Dense sealing formulas covered the entire altar, and a special kunai was plunged into it. With just a glance, Yoru could tell how strong Minato Namikaze's seal was.

"Based on the Four Symbols Seal, combined with multiple layered seals... This completely blocks the Queen of Rōran's possibility of using the Ryūmyaku's power!"

A single Four Symbols Seal was enough to seal a Tailed Beast. But from Yoru's observation, the seal on the Ryūmyaku consisted of at least three different sealing jutsu, including even a Contract Seal!

A Contract Seal could sever the contractual relationship between a target and their summoned beast, preventing the summoned beast from being controlled or summoned by that target.

The connection between the Ryūmyaku and the Queen of Rōran was well-known. If Minato Namikaze had simply wanted to prevent the Ryūmyaku's power from being coveted, he only needed to strengthen the seal. So what was the meaning of adding a Contract Seal among these seals?

Was it fear that the Queen of Rōran might be threatened or controlled by criminals, who would then use her to control the Ryūmyaku?

More likely, it was those guys from the Hidden Leaf, especially that old geezer, the Third Hokage, who wanted to completely eliminate the enormous threat of the Ryūmyaku!

"I wonder if you'll sense it from a thousand miles away after I break these sealing jutsu."

"However, the remaining descendants of the Queen of Rōran are still in the ninja world. If I tamper with the seal and release the Contract Seal, it might... Oh well, it doesn't matter."

"Seal Release!"

Yoru's hand glowed with chakra as he brought it down heavily on the sealing formulas.

With Yoru's low command, the sealing formulas on the Ryūmyaku seal rapidly faded. In an instant, more than half of them dissipated, but a few sealing techniques still remained. Yoru didn't completely release all the Ryūmyaku seals at once; not because he couldn't—with his current foundation in sealing jutsu, apart from Six Paths level seals, other sealing jutsu posed almost no pressure to him.

He left some sealing techniques intact out of caution.

The Ryūmyaku's power was incredibly impressive in the original series. As a prime example of the ninja world's infinite chakra, capable of even causing time reversal and dimension travel, Yoru couldn't be too careful.

"Whoosh..."

As the Ryūmyaku seal weakened, fierce winds suddenly swept through the area, roaring and kicking up countless yellow sands. Shattered rocks around them were caught by the hurricane, swirling like a tornado around the altar, attempting to sweep away and obliterate everything.

The ground began to tremble.

Cracks appeared, spreading rapidly outwards. In moments, the entire ground cracked like a turtle's shell, breaking into pieces.

Wild chakra overflowed from within. Even in the middle of a sandstorm, such a massive energy signature would surely be detected.

But Yoru didn't panic. He calmly watched the Ryūmyaku about to burst forth, slowly raising his hand. A dark, peculiar crystal appeared in his palm.

"Just a little longer... a little longer..."

The scene before him resembled an apocalypse, yet Yoru's expression was serene, like a patient fisherman waiting for a bite before the catch.

The raw energy grew stronger and stronger. The surge of the Ryūmyaku's power even caused the remaining seals, which Yoru hadn't released, to gradually crumble.

"BOOM!!"

As the last few sealing formulas disintegrated, a soul-stirring dragon's roar echoed from the abyss beneath the altar. At that exact moment, the Flying Thunder God kunai, the core of the Ryūmyaku's seal, was flung from the altar.

A colossal amount of chakra erupted from the abyss, forming a violent pillar of chakra that shot straight into the sky, illuminating the world!

And in that very instant, the dark energy crystal in Yoru's hand suddenly activated.

Dark space-sealing chains erupted from it. In a flash, they enveloped the surging chakra and the entire Ryūmyaku altar.

As the seals overlapped, within mere breaths, the entire Ryūmyaku was completely swallowed by the dark space-sealing, vanishing from its original location. Yoru's figure vanished with it.

At that very moment, in the Hokage's office in the Hidden Leaf Village in the Land of Fire, Minato Namikaze, who was reviewing documents, suddenly frowned, looking gravely in the direction of the Land of Wind.

And within a village in the Land of Wind, not far from the Rōran ruins...

A graceful woman held a baby in her arms, humming a lullaby to soothe it to sleep.

Suddenly, the woman's song ceased, her movements froze, and she abruptly stood up, looking incredulously towards the Ryūmyaku's sealing grounds.

The unfretted baby began to wail, and outsiders, hearing the commotion, rushed in.

"Your Majesty, what happened?!"

The Queen of Rōran's eyes held a hint of shock, a touch of terror, but more than that, disbelief and confusion.

"I felt the Ryūmyaku's power."

"But only for an instant..."

The Queen of Rōran looked towards the Rōran ruins, her voice strained. "Then it disappeared!"

PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin