But before departing—
Shigure still needed to meet Mei Terumī. After all, the fact that she sent someone to deliver a scroll meant she wanted to see him.
"Kuji, get ready. Take twenty people and pack your things—we're going to Konoha."
Kuji nodded immediately. He wanted to ask if Shigure required anything else, but before he could speak—
Shigure transformed into a streak of light and vanished.
Kuji stared blankly at the fading trail.
Lord Shigure's Ninjutsu… truly unbelievable.
Mizukage's Office
Mei Terumī had a headache.
Danzō was threatening Shigure's relatives in Konoha. If she didn't step in, Shigure might develop resentment toward Kirigakure.
But if she did intervene, it would mean violating one of the most serious rules in the shinobi world—
Never interfere directly in another village's internal affairs.
Even when other Villages tried to influence events, they only did so from the shadows.
They avoided official statements at all costs.
Yet Danzō's request openly demanded that the Hidden Mist stand behind him.
Even a simple declaration would put Kirigakure in a dangerous position.
Suddenly, a beam of light flashed in the office.
When Shigure materialized in front of her—using a technique she had never seen—Mei Terumī was stunned.
"What kind of Ninjutsu was that?"
"A new one. Don't worry about it."
Don't worry about it?
He had literally turned into light—moving faster than even his Water Release Body Flicker—and he said not to worry?
"It requires a bit of charging time," Shigure added casually, "and it can only move to a predetermined point within a sensed range. Not very practical. It's fine inside the village, but in real combat, it's basically useless."
Mei Terumī stared at him, speechless.
This kid… was a show-off.
For an ordinary shinobi, developing even one new Ninjutsu was nearly impossible.
But Shigure was complaining about one that allowed near-instantaneous movement across the village.
Maybe it wasn't good for one-on-one fighting, but on a battlefield?
Being able to reinforce allies instantly—possibly across entire territories—
That would be terrifyingly effective.
But now wasn't the time to discuss war.
"Have you read the scroll Danzō sent?" Mei Terumī asked.
Shigure nodded. "I have."
"What do you plan to do?"
"There's no way to refuse. Didn't we already discuss this?"
Mei sighed. "But openly interfering with another village will trigger strong backlash."
Other villages would stay quiet. They wouldn't involve themselves.
But Konoha and Kirigakure would instantly become enemies.
And even if Danzō became Hokage, Mei knew his type—he'd immediately distance himself from the Mist, then turn around and blame them for everything.
He would shift hatred onto Hidden Mist Village.
A completely thankless job.
But because Shigure's family was involved, they couldn't ignore it.
They simply had to minimize the damage.
"Isn't strong resistance exactly what we want?" Shigure replied calmly.
Shigure smiled.
"Hidden Mist Village wants to take Konoha's place as the strongest ninja village. We're going to be enemies sooner or later, no matter who becomes Hokage. There's no way to stay friendly with Konoha forever."
"And precisely because we'll be enemies… certain things become far easier to handle."
Mei Terumī hadn't expected Shigure to already be thinking about seizing the title of strongest village.
But when viewed from that perspective, his reasoning made sense.
Falling out with Konoha would indirectly increase goodwill from Kumogakure and Iwagakure. Previously, because Mist and Konoha had grown close, Kumogakure had begun provoking the Mist in an attempt to suppress them.
Now, distancing themselves from Konoha might ease tensions with Kumogakure.
And between Konoha and Kumogakure, the latter mattered far more—the Mist and Kumogakure had clashed many times over maritime control.
"Alright," Mei Terumī nodded. "Then our only choice is to publicly support Danzō."
She gestured for Shigure to leave so she could prepare the statement.
"I'm going to Konoha."
The moment she heard it, Mei Terumī stood up sharply.
"Why would you go to Konoha at a time like this?"
"First, Ringo's illness still isn't cured."
"Second, I'm going to pick someone up. I won't tolerate being threatened like this ever again."
Her eyes widened.
He intends to take the entire Gekko Clan? Move them to the Mist?
That wouldn't be a bad idea. Even if the clan members weren't particularly strong, removing that weakness would protect Shigure's future.
But Mei Terumī misunderstood.
The people Shigure planned to bring back weren't only the Gekko Clan.
And there was no need to tell her yet.
At the same time, he also intended to eliminate Danzō and remove future trouble…
"But Shigure," Mei said seriously, "if you head to Konoha now, while we release a statement supporting Danzō as Hokage, won't that create—"
"Then don't rush," Shigure interrupted calmly.
"Once I arrive in Konoha, I'll speak with Danzō myself."
He wanted to handle this part personally.
Mei hesitated.
"…You? Alone?"
"No. I'm bringing twenty people—Kuji and the others."
With escorts, things were different. Clearly, Shigure had a plan.
And it wasn't the kind of plan where he left the Mist and never returned.
Mei Terumī nodded. "Alright."
"I have nothing more to tell you—just be careful."
Shigure nodded. "Don't worry."
Mei looked at him again, her voice quieter.
"And… I'll be waiting for your return."
"…?"
Shigure froze for a second, then walked out with a strange expression.
The sentence seemed normal at first—but when he thought about it, something felt off.
After meeting up with Kuji, Shigure immediately departed for Konoha.
There was no need to rush on the Flying Nimbus this time.
He intended to let the situation in Konoha settle for a few days.
The Jinchūriki from Takigakure—Fū—had also been sent back home.
If he calculated correctly, news would reach Konoha two or three days after his arrival.
At that point…
Danzō's downfall would be perfectly timed.
Not long after Shigure left the village,
Mei Terumī received unexpected good news.
Kumogakure had temporarily withdrawn from the island dispute.
It seemed that the sudden return of the four major Bloodline Limit families to the Hidden Mist had pressured Kumogakure enough that they chose to pause their confrontation.
The symbolism behind the conflict was more impactful than the actual fighting.
If Kumogakure appeared weak now, regaining momentum in the future wouldn't be easy.
Mei Terumī's mood improved considerably.
But elsewhere—
In Kumogakure, the Fourth Raikage's expression was thunderous.
"That damned Hidden Mist… they managed to bring back those Bloodline Limit families we thought were gone. How? What does the Mist have that attracts those people?"
His secretary, Mabui, adjusted her glasses.
"Lord Raikage, I believe we should pay closer attention to that boy—Shigure—from the Yuki Clan who returned to the Mist from Konoha."
"Yuki Shigure, huh?"
The Raikage clenched his fists.
"I'll remember that name."
...
TN:
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