Yako followed Captain Yellow Dog until they were about twenty meters from the village elders.
The presence of Yellow Dog signaled that ANBU had an urgent report for Danzo.
Yako glanced at the assembled higher-ups, gauging their expressions.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, sat on a rock in his armor, calmly smoking a pipe.
On one side sat Senju Rinju, clan head of the Senju, and the elite jōnin Kato Dan. On the other side were Mitokado Homura and Shimura Danzo.
It looked like the Third Hokage was acting as a mediator between the two parties, trying to settle their differences.
Senju Rinju's face was ashen, but his expression radiated pride, showing no intention of backing down.
On the other hand, Mitokado Homura, clearly worn out from arguing, took a sip of water.
Danzo, as usual, remained silent.
In these sorts of meetings, it was typically Homura who spoke on behalf of the others, expressing the group's stance.
It seemed the Senju clan and the higher-ups were deeply divided—perhaps over the placement of Princess Kushina, or maybe the ownership of Uzushio Village's sealing scrolls.
Both the Senju and the village itself were eager to seize control of the Uzumaki legacy.
When Danzo saw Yellow Dog, he walked over.
Yellow Dog immediately reported:
"Lord Danzo, Captain Black Ape's unit has obtained critical intel.
The Uzumaki elder chose eight final survivors of the clan and sent them off toward the Land of Waves, using the Eight-Winged Crow.
Also, before their death, the Uzumaki elder took out a sealing scroll and entrusted it to them.
Black Ape is doing his best to pursue the Eight-Winged Crow."
Danzo's eyes sharpened at the report.
If the sealing texts of Uzushio Village couldn't be retrieved, obtaining the elder's sealing jutsu would serve as a temporary substitute.
Danzo issued orders:
"Yellow Dog, many in your unit perished. Reorganize the remaining members into a single platoon and locate Black Ape immediately.
You and Hippo will select and train a new ANBU division from among the two thousand Konoha shinobi present. Get them battle-ready as soon as possible.
Once two full squads are assembled, you and Hippo are to hunt down the remaining Uzumaki and bring them—or the scroll—back to Konoha."
Yako thought to himself, 'That or really does all the heavy lifting.'
What Danzo meant was: if the Uzumaki survivors could be brought back, then dissect them at leisure. If not, then forget the people—just make sure the elder's scroll comes back.
Yellow Dog nodded repeatedly and left with Yako.
Danzo turned and glanced at Senju Rinju.
The Senju clan had deep roots; many village policies couldn't be carried out without their approval.
Like this time, when a new Nine-Tails jinchūriki was being chosen, the Senju wanted total control of the new host.
How could the safety of the village be entrusted solely to the Senju?
Yellow Dog and Yako returned to the unit.
"After that grueling mission, we've got less than twenty left in our squad.
Ironstag, I'm appointing you as the platoon leader. Assemble a full-strength team and head for the Land of Waves. Fox has the temporary cipher code assigned by Black Ape.
Your mission is to locate the remaining Uzumaki and their inheritance scroll, and keep them occupied.
Be careful. The Uzumaki clan's secret arts are no joke, and they've got large summon beasts. Captain Hippo and I will follow soon with two full squads to handle the capture."
Yako departed with Captain Ironstag.
After a long wait, there was no sign of disguise gear for impersonating Hidden Cloud shinobi—it seemed they wouldn't be using it after all.
Back when the Uzumaki were still around, you had to disguise yourself as a Cloud ninja to even consider killing one.
Now that the clan was destroyed, no disguises were needed. Kill on sight. ANBU wouldn't leak secrets—no one would ever know.
The full moon hung like a silver disc; moonlight poured down like pale frost.
When they reached the seaside, it was already the night of the full moon.
From here on, things got a bit easier—Yako had one revival chance.
He glanced at Captain Ironstag. What kind of nice gift would he receive after this resurrection?
Once inside the Land of Waves, ANBU operatives searched carefully for markings left by Black Ape, while discreetly inquiring about sightings of a three-legged giant bird.
Several days passed with no sign of the Uzumaki survivors, but they did uncover something new.
After the death of the Third Mizukage, the Fourth had yet to be chosen. A village elder named Gensui had taken over as temporary head of Kirigakure.
As the month neared its end, ANBU finally located Black Ape's coded message.
It pointed toward the capital of the Land of Waves.
Captain Ironstag gathered the squad leaders to assign missions. He said:
"Now that Uzushio Village has fallen, the mission slots for both the Land of Whirlpools and the Land of Waves are up for grabs.
The daimyō of those lands have long been vassals of the Fire Country's daimyō.
While operating in the capital, avoid unnecessary bloodshed—too much killing would hurt future negotiations over mission quotas.
There are still many Uzumaki remnants in the capital. For instance, among the guards protecting the Whirlpools' daimyō, there are known Uzumaki ninja."
The ANBU all disguised themselves as ordinary merchants, carrying only kunai, and entered the Land of Waves' capital.
The Land of Waves sat at the junction of three great nations: the Lightning Country to the northwest, Fire Country to the west, and the Water Country to the east. The situation here was complex, similar to that of the Rain Country during the Fourth Great War.
Yako moved through alleys, checking every trash bin and tree trunk.
He carefully hid the kunai strapped to his back.
A kunai was the mark of a shinobi. If a civilian saw it, his cover would be blown.
Shinobi lived comfortably within their villages—but outside? They were hated by civilians everywhere.
There were countless records of shinobi massacring towns and countries. To the average civilian, shinobi were monsters.
Too many killings, too fast—that was why civilians hated and refused to cooperate with them.
After days of searching, Yako finally found Captain Black Ape.
"Captain, you…"
Black Ape's unit was hiding in a cramped storage room. His left arm had been severed at the shoulder.
When he saw Fox, Black Ape's tense muscles relaxed, and he let out a long breath.
"Not only did we witness the Uzumaki elder take out a scroll—Mist ninja saw it too. I chased the survivors here, and so did they.
Leaf Monkey is dead. I lost an arm.
Juzo Biwa is too strong—I was no match for him."
Yako was stunned. He hadn't expected one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen to be here in the Land of Waves' capital.
"Captain, what about the survivors?"
"No idea. They went into hiding with the help of the daimyō's guards. I lost track of them."
A flicker of relief welled up in Yako's heart—Yuka Uzumaki must still be alive.
"Captain, I'll take you to Captain Ironstag. His platoon was the first reinforcement. Two more squads will follow."
Black Ape and Yako met up with Captain Ironstag.
After the two captains discussed their options, they decided to split the ANBU into pairs and search the capital for Uzumaki remnants.
They had to find the female Uzumaki shinobi before the Mist did.
Black Ape and Yako operated as a team.
Black Ape was extremely cautious—he always kept to Yako's right side.
He'd lost his left arm, and his right hand never let down its guard around Yako.
Did he really look that much like a traitor? Or was Black Ape just this paranoid by nature?
The capital was massive.
After several more days of searching, Yako spotted a bird landing beside a small lake in one of the city's parks.
A white egret. It was a white egret.