"Master, you admire me?" Mizunami's face lit up with ecstatic joy. Even the young Kimimaro had proven to be a formidable opponent; he had no
"Master, you admire me?" Mizunami's face lit up with ecstatic joy.
Even the young Kimimaro had proven to be a formidable opponent; he had no chance of winning a fight. If he could gain Uchiha Kai's favor, becoming a renegade might be undesirable, but it would save his life.
"Of course, I admire you," Kai said, his smile widening.
He changed his tone. "However, you're no longer of any use."
Mizunami was taken aback by Kai's sudden shift in demeanor.
Looking at Kai's amiable smile, he felt a wave of mockery wash over him.
He reached for a stack of explosive tags, intending to detonate them and take Kai down with him.
But in that instant, inky black veins burst from the earth, piercing his hand and seizing the explosive tags.
Blood spurted.
The black veins quickly bound Mizunami like a mummy.
He could only see the newcomer's face, and he cried out in shock.
"Y-you're… the renegade, Kakuzu, the Earth Grudge Fear!"
"Shut up!" Kakuzu said coldly, turning to Kai. "Boss, you've picked up another good one.
He seems quite strong."
"If you think so, it means my judgment isn't failing me yet," Kai chuckled. "Any news?"
"Yes, but I was too late. I killed the vanguard, but Suien got away with Itachi Uchiha," Kakuzu said, looking at Kai.
Mizunami, bound like a package, looked incredulous.
The vanguard had been larger and more elite than his own team. Yet, Kakuzu had defeated them single-handedly, reminding Mizunami of the terrifying legends surrounding Kakuzu from decades ago.
Takigakure, second only to the Five Great Nations, should have held significant influence in the shinobi world, like Amegakure.
But Kakuzu's massacre of Takigakure's leadership had created a power vacuum, forcing Takigakure to retreat behind its waterfalls and close its borders for recovery.
Now, Uchiha Kai, the infamous Konoha renegade and Blood-Colored Asura, had this terrifying figure under his command.
Mizunami's nerves were on edge, wondering what Kai would do about Suien's actions.
"It seems you're still useful," Kai said, turning back to Mizunami. "Tell Suien to release Itachi Uchiha unharmed, or I'll personally visit Takigakure. You have three hours."
"Personally visit Takigakure?" Mizunami's face paled. "Master, it's a long way from here. Three hours is impossible!"
"Impossible?" Kai looked at Kakuzu. "Is it impossible?"
"Sufficient," Kakuzu said calmly. "If it's impossible, he doesn't deserve to live. I'll go take a look myself. It's been a while since I've walked through my beloved village. I wonder if the soil is still red."
Those few words felt like an invisible hand squeezing Mizunami's heart.
Under Kakuzu's gaze, Mizunami forgot his hesitation.
Whether it was three hours or two, as long as there was a sliver of hope, he would rather die of exhaustion than by Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear.
The images of Takigakure's leaders, drained of blood and hanging like corpses from trees, their blood staining the earth, were still vivid in his mind.
"Yes, I don't need three hours. I'll deliver your message," Mizunami said hurriedly.
Kakuzu looked at Kai, who nodded in agreement.
Kakuzu coldly released the Earth Grudge Fear, leaving only a single black vein embedded in Mizunami's arm, stopping just short of his heart.
"Go. If you exceed three hours, you'll be impaled through the heart. This is a communication scroll," Kakuzu said chillingly.
"The timer starts now!"
Mizunami, utterly bewildered, took the scroll and fled, running as fast as he possibly could, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
"Kakuzu, you didn't have to do that," Kai said, touching his nose.
He'd only meant to scare him with the three-hour deadline. Now, it seemed he had to take it seriously.
"Boss, you're still the same," Kakuzu said coldly, producing a scroll. "Two days have passed since the Five Kage Summit. This is what happened."
"Oh?" Kai was surprised. "Kakuzu, your intelligence gathering is impressive. You even have informants in the Land of Iron. But I'm not interested in the Five Kage Summit."
Kai saw only two possible outcomes: a successful alliance or a failed one.
Regardless, he would obtain the tailed beasts.
Time passed, and the system hadn't triggered any new side or main quests. But a strange voice echoed in Kai's mind, guiding him to gather the tailed beasts.
He didn't care about the ultimate outcome; he only cared about the chase.
"Boss, you're still the same," Kakuzu said, putting away the scroll. "But there's something you should know."
"Minato Namikaze's strong opposition to your sudden attack on Kumogakure caused significant disagreements among the Kage, leading to the failure of the alliance. The Fourth Raikage vowed to fight you to the death. Killer Bee is still in the village. What should we do? Should we gather our forces and confront them?"
Kakuzu believed that since Kai had already attacked Kumogakure once, a second attack needed no justification.
If Kai gave the order, they would obey without question.
Especially Kakuzu, an old madman to the core.
"Heh, Kakuzu, you're not cut out to be a king. If a dog bites you, you don't have to bite back. Let it tire itself out.
The look on its face when it realizes how foolish it was will be priceless," Kai said, patting Kakuzu's shoulder.
"Let's deal with Takigakure first. I want to know who's in that other Konoha team pursuing Itachi. Did you find out anything?"
Seeing that Kai wasn't interested in dealing with Kumogakure, Kakuzu didn't press further. He organized his thoughts and revealed everything he knew about the pursuing team.
Kai was surprised when he heard the names of the three members.
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