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In the Land of Water…
Beneath the heavy veil of mist, the moonlight shimmered faintly, casting a hazy, dreamlike glow across the landscape.
Within the village hidden in the mist, the deep night had already silenced all activity. Shops had long since shuttered their doors, and the lights lining the streets had quietly gone out, swallowed by the ever-present fog.
Only a faint whisper of wind moved through the village, brushing gently past the buildings. Everything was wrapped in an eerie stillness.
WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH—!!!
Yet just then, the silence was broken. One after another, dark figures appeared upon the deserted streets.
These figures, silent as phantoms, moved fluidly through the thick mist. Their destination was clear—they were heading straight for the Mizukage's building.
Awooooo—!
Moments later, a piercing alarm resounded throughout the entire village.
The shrill wail of the warning sirens tore through the tranquil night like the first cry of rebellion.
"Enemy attack! We're under attack!"
"They're rebelling! Protect the Mizukage!"
"Idiot, the Mizukage is the true curse upon this village!"
Shouts, curses, and the roar of exploding tags and ninjutsu rose in waves, colliding with the high-pitched howls of the alarm. The Hidden Mist Village had been thrown into complete chaos.
"How terrifying."
Jiraiya stood shrouded in the darkness, eyes fixed on the chaos unfolding before him. The ferocity of the mist shinobi made even him swallow hard, unable to conceal his unease.
He had long been aware of the unrest brewing in Kirigakure and hadn't been surprised by the eruption of violence. Yet the sheer brutality of what now unfolded before his eyes left him momentarily speechless.
He had seen war before, plenty of times. But to witness a village tearing itself apart from within like this—this was a first.
It wasn't just him. Even Kakashi, a man who had once been forced to participate in a plot to 'assassinate the Hokage,' was taken aback by the sheer madness of the scene.
These mist shinobi had lost all sense of reason. They no longer saw one another as comrades. It was as if some deep madness had taken hold.
And the scale of the fighting had already reached the level of open warfare!
"Hmph. If only they had been like this back then, would I have ended up where I am now?"
Zabuza's gaze was distant, almost dazed. He had once led his own rebellion, only to have it crushed.
What lay before him now was the very scene he had once longed to see with his own eyes.
But he quickly came back to himself. This chaos belonged to others—it had nothing to do with him anymore.
Besides, his life still hung by a thread, held firmly in someone else's hands.
"What exactly do you people want from me?"
Zabuza lifted his head and looked squarely at Jiraiya and the others, his voice low and steady.
"I've already done what you asked. I led you into the Land of Water. I even brought you into the Hidden Mist. What more do you want?"
He drew a slow breath, eyes sharpening.
"If you plan to kill me now, then at least make it quick. I'm not afraid to die, though I'd prefer not to. Still, I've seen all I wanted to see. That's enough for me."
Beside him, Haku lifted his head as well. His gaze, filled with worry and guarded tension, shifted to the Konoha group.
Though they had treated him and Zabuza decently along the journey, Haku had once served in the ANBU. He knew very well the sort of cold efficiency that lay beneath their surface.
"Gen, can you pinpoint the curse mark's location now?"
Jiraiya ignored Zabuza's outburst. He turned to Kitagawa Gen and asked in a hushed voice. Kakashi leaned in as well.
"I can."
Gen gave a slight nod and raised his hand to gesture in a particular direction.
"It was too far away before, and I could only sense it vaguely. But now, I can tell exactly where it is. It's right over there."
"There?"
Kakashi followed the direction Gen pointed to, then turned his head toward Zabuza.
"What's in that area?"
"Hmph."
Zabuza snorted coldly but followed their gaze. He frowned slightly, then let out a dry, humorless laugh.
"There? That's an ANBU corps base. If I remember correctly, the one running it is that fat bastard Fuguki—Hoshigaki Kisame's master, Fuguki Suikazan."
Fuguki Suikazan...
At the mention of that name, Gen's eyes narrowed. A flicker of realization passed through his mind. He instinctively turned to look at Zabuza.
That glance, for reasons unknown, made Zabuza shiver despite himself.
"You, who once carried out so many filthy missions for this village, only to be cast aside in the end—you alone truly understand the world is nothing but a lie."
The battle within the Hidden Mist Village had fully erupted. Meanwhile, within the depths of that ANBU underground base, Hoshigaki Kisame had just slain Fuguki Suikazan.
He had expected to slip away quickly afterward, but to his surprise, he was stopped—by the Fourth Mizukage himself.
Kisame had braced for another grueling fight. Yet what met him was not hostility, but quiet affirmation. And the Mizukage's words struck him deeply.
"When I killed my comrades, I too realized that truth."
Hoshigaki Kisame spoke in a low voice, though there was a trace of bloodshot red in his eyes.
"I've spent my life as a mist shinobi, killing others who bore the same headband as me. But what does that make me? A friend? An enemy? What am I even fighting for? What is my goal, my position in this world?
Where am I supposed to go? Where can I finally find peace? All I've ever truly felt... is the falsehood of my own existence."
"Then allow me to free you from that falsehood and the pain it brings. I will build a place where you belong."
Just then, a voice suddenly echoed from behind the Fourth Mizukage. The voice was clearly not his. It carried a completely different tone, calm yet chilling.
"Who's there?"
Kisame's eyes flashed as he instantly reached for the great blade strapped to his back, the Samehada.
"Let us begin with this land."
A figure slowly emerged from behind the Fourth Mizukage, his face still hidden in shadow. The darkness cloaked his features, preventing anyone from seeing him clearly. But he paid no mind to Kisame's readiness to strike.
"All this time, you've been fighting in the name of killing your comrades. So let everything begin here."
"Let it begin here."
Kisame's gaze grew strange—contemplative—yet his heart stirred at those words. When he had made his move, he had known the village's situation was turbulent. That was precisely why he had chosen this moment.
Could it be that everything… had been orchestrated from the beginning?
Still, Kisame forced his thoughts back to the mysterious man before him. Focusing, he asked in a low voice.
"You seem to trust me a great deal. Yet I don't even know who you are."
The mysterious figure gave no reply. He merely opened his eyes ever so slightly, revealing a pair of glowing crimson irises that pierced through the shadow.
"Eyes that shine in the darkness."
In that instant, a revelation dawned upon Kisame.
"So that's it. The person I always thought was the Fourth Mizukage... it was you all along. You've been using the Sharingan to control him from the shadows."
Having said that, Kisame suddenly laughed.
"This world truly is a lie. To possess eyes that can manipulate the Fourth Mizukage, the Jinchūriki of the Three-Tails… you must be an Uchiha."
BOOOOM—!
Before he could finish speaking, the wall to the side was suddenly blown apart with a thunderous crash.
Three figures rushed in through the breach, their eyes quickly scanning the room—until they all locked onto the same person cloaked in shadow.
"We've finally found you, Uchiha Obito."
Kisame blinked in surprise.
Uchiha Obito?
Who the hell is that?
Wasn't this man Uchiha Madara?
Meanwhile, the expression on Obito's face darkened. His gaze had already confirmed the identities of the intruders.
Jiraiya. That damned brat from last time. And—
"Kakashi."
He couldn't understand it. Why did these people have to show up now of all times? Why did they have to interrupt him at this exact moment?
Ever since he had encountered that little brat, it felt as though his luck had taken a turn for the worse.
"Obito."
Kakashi's eyes remained locked onto him. After a long silence, he finally spoke in a hushed voice.
"It's really you, isn't it?"
"..."
Obito stood still, quiet. He wanted to curse, to scream—but when he opened his mouth, the words came out differently.
"Kakashi. You really haven't changed at all. Still the same pathetic failure. How utterly disappointing."
"Why…"
Kakashi drew a deep breath, his voice trembling with emotion as he stared intently at Obito.
"If you were still alive, why didn't you return to the village? Why did you become this? You…"
"Does any of that matter anymore?"
Obito slowly spread his arms, his tone indifferent, devoid of care.
"And if you must have a reason… then Rin's death. Is that enough for you?"
That single sentence was like a hammer to the chest, leaving Kakashi breathless.
Kisame looked on with a guarded yet curious expression. Jiraiya let out a quiet sigh. But Kitagawa Gen's gaze fell not on Obito, nor on the tension rising in the room.
His eyes were fixed upon the Fourth Mizukage, who stood motionless like a lifeless puppet.
For in that man's presence, he felt something eerily familiar—the same strange sensation he had felt when he first encountered Naruto.
"The chakra of the Three-Tails…"
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[Chapter End's]
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