Chapter 185: White Zetsu Confronts
Thud!
The resolve they had just regained shattered once more as a figure slammed into the ground. Terumī Mei and the other Kirigakure shinobi gathered around the mangled, bloody heap. From the torn clothing, they could still recognize who it was—and all of them were shaken to their core.
"Mizukage-sama…"
Dead.
No one had expected the Mizukage's death to come so suddenly, so unexpectedly.
They still didn't even know the identity of the attacker—and just like that, Mizukage-sama had died right before their eyes.
"Bastard!!!"
"Don't run!"
The fury of Kirigakure exploded. No one could stand by and watch an enemy who had just killed their village's Kage escape unharmed—no matter how strong the enemy was, they felt no fear.
Terumī Mei's heart was also burning with anger as she joined them in pursuit.
"Stay here and watch over Mizukage-sama's body. Leave the enemy to us."
An older Kirigakure shinobi—mentally stronger—understood the power gap between them and the enemy. The younger shinobi here were the village's future—they couldn't be sacrificed recklessly.
Though Mei and the others were reluctant, they could only comply and stay behind to guard the Mizukage's body.
Even in death, Mizukage-sama's remains were vital to the village and had to be protected at all costs.
"Uncle, the Kirigakure shinobi are chasing us," Yuzu said from mid-air, glancing back in warning.
Li Yao didn't need the reminder. He smiled, "It's fine."
Poof!
Li Yao created a shadow clone, which immediately jumped down.
The Kirigakure shinobi caught up quickly.
"Formation—"
The middle-aged ninja leading them had just begun giving orders when his consciousness was abruptly pulled into the mental void. All of them collapsed mid-run, as if they had become mindless husks.
Li Yao's shadow clone calmly walked over, lifting them one by one and absorbing their chakra.
After draining each one, he crushed their skulls and incinerated the bodies with Fire Style.
Meanwhile, Li Yao's main body arrived at White Zetsu's location.
White Zetsu, seeing Li Yao arrive with Uzumaki Yuzu , didn't react—he simply jumped onto the clay bird.
"To the Land of Rain," he said coldly.
"No problem." Li Yao chuckled and turned the bird toward Amegakure.
"Let's circle around through the Land of Rivers instead of flying over the Land of Fire," White Zetsu added, changing his mind.
He didn't want to risk this lunatic causing another incident while passing through the Fire Country.
Now that he had calmed down, he understood—Li Yao truly wasn't afraid of death, or perhaps he simply didn't care about consequences when his limits were crossed.
So it was best not to give him the opportunity to stir up trouble.
"Then you lead," Li Yao replied. He knew the general direction of the Land of Rain, but not the precise route through the Land of Rivers.
"This way." White Zetsu pointed left, and Li Yao steered the bird accordingly.
Once they were 5,000 meters above the ground with no one nearby, White Zetsu could no longer hold back.
"I told you from the beginning not to cause a scene and bring trouble to Lord Madara."
"Why did you annihilate the entire Daimyō clan of the Land of Water and create a disturbance that shook the entire shinobi world?"
Huh... Li Yao blinked in surprise, his face practically forming a "???" expression.
He'd expected White Zetsu to grill him about the attack on Kirigakure or killing the Mizukage—but apparently, wiping out the Daimyō clan was considered the bigger offense.
Something didn't feel right.
Once again, Li Yao sensed the distortion of this world.
He quickly composed himself, buried the thought deep in his mind, and gave a relaxed smile. "Don't worry. I didn't reveal my identity. I used jutsu I've never shown before—no one will connect it to me."
Anyone who could have recognized him or seen him use his black iron chains was already dead—either reduced to ashes or, like the Mizukage, left with a body but a scrambled brain, making memory probes impossible.
"That still doesn't make it acceptable."
White Zetsu's expression remained cold. He stared at Li Yao and warned, "If you do this again, Lord Madara will kill you."
Hmm… Hearing someone threaten Li Yao's life made Yuzu 's eyes sharpen instantly. A wave of killing intent surged as she glared at White Zetsu.
She glanced at Li Yao—if he gave her even the slightest signal, she would kill this white-skinned clown who dared to threaten her uncle.
To be fair, White Zetsu did look like a creepy clown.
White Zetsu ignored her look entirely, still focused on Li Yao.
"Got it," Li Yao shrugged.
Clearly, he needed to tread carefully until Madara was dead. Provoking a dying old man wasn't the best move.
Luckily, after reading the Mizukage's memories, he had successfully acquired the Hydrification Technique and copied the special Black Water chakra.
He no longer needed to head to Sunagakure. He could always copy the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release in the future.
And just like that, Li Yao—who had originally planned to get revenge on the other Daimyō as well—was stopped.
On the surface, White Zetsu's intervention seemed perfectly logical.
But the fact remained: Li Yao's campaign against the Daimyō had been halted.
Intentions aside, the outcome was what mattered—and it led Li Yao to a new suspicion.
The structure of the shinobi world might not have formed naturally—it could very well have been artificially shaped.
It was as if someone had deliberately boxed all the ninja in, forcing them to fight each other and preventing them from spreading outward and influencing the world too much.
Who could subtly manipulate the entire ninja world like that?
The toad sages of Mount Myōboku, with their ability to foresee the future, were one possibility.
But Li Yao suspected someone else even more strongly: the Sage of Six Paths, hidden in the Pure Land.
After all, all chakra originated from him.
In a sense, everyone carried a piece of his chakra.
At that thought, Li Yao's brows furrowed.
Another issue came to mind—ninja souls entered the Pure Land after death. But they didn't reincarnate. He had never seen anyone's soul be reborn. The Pure Land didn't seem to have a reincarnation function.
Then how was it...
That the Sage's two sons had been reincarnating and fighting each other for a thousand years?
Could it be... that the Sage deliberately withheld his sons' chakra and souls from entering the Pure Land, forcing them to endlessly reincarnate and battle?
If so, the Sage of Six Paths might very well be the puppet master behind the constant warfare in the shinobi world.
But why?
Why would someone like him—who wielded the Rinnegan, inherited the blood of the Ōtsutsuki, and could use Sage Arts—die at all?
The toads of Mount Myōboku were still alive today. Why would the Sage be dead?
Actually... he wasn't.
His soul was still intact in the Pure Land. In fact, it seemed like he had created the Pure Land himself.
But to what end? Why collect only the souls of ninja and not of ordinary people?
The more Li Yao thought, the more unanswered questions filled his heart.
He had a feeling—the Sage of Six Paths had a secret agenda.
And what that agenda was… well—
He would have to wait until he had the power to uncover it.
(END CHAPTER)
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