Between the Land of Waves and the Land of Fire lay a narrow strait—so narrow that a single bridge could span it.
Although the Land of Waves was geographically closer to the Land of Fire, all missions in the region had long been under the jurisdiction of Uzushiogakure.
After crossing the strait into the Land of Fire, Captain Yellow Dog summoned Yorimitsu.
The captain gave him a quick once-over before saying, "Only you survived from Brown Bear's squad. You're not strong enough to lead a team, so I'll assign you to Captain Black Ape's unit."
Yorimitsu nodded. He glanced at the burly Black Ape—tall, muscular, clearly a taijutsu specialist. Yorimitsu couldn't help but wonder what ability he might draw from this captain if he died.
From Captain Antelope, he'd drawn the Shadow Clone Technique.
From Captain Brown Bear, he'd obtained the Body Flicker Technique.
The ANBU were truly walking treasure chests.
When he joined Black Ape's unit, the captain had him operate solo for the time being.
Since Yorimitsu had been a squad leader, it wasn't easy to assign him under another. The other teams had suffered heavy losses and weren't willing to share their remaining men.
As the group continued forward, the mist around them grew thicker and thicker.
"Captain Black Ape, is this natural fog—or…"
"This is the Land of Fire," Black Ape replied coolly. "Even if Mist-nin are here, we have full confidence we can defeat them."
Yorimitsu looked at the exhausted survivors around them and wondered where that confidence came from.
Uzumaki Yuka summoned her giant white heron, ready to take Kushina away at a moment's notice.
The air grew heavier, the tension unbearable.
Within the dense mist, visibility dropped to just two or three meters.
Yorimitsu adjusted his mask to widen his field of view beyond the narrow eyeholes.
He could see a tree two meters ahead—beyond that, only blinding white.
The damp fog clung to his skin, making his body itch.
Then—
A sharp whistle sliced through the air behind him!
His scalp prickled; Yorimitsu dove forward instinctively.
A kunai grazed his hair, embedding itself deep into a tree trunk ahead.
He rolled and turned, eyes locking onto the thick fog behind him.
But he saw nothing.
This time, the Mist-nin weren't using Silent Killing up close—they were harassing from a distance with thrown kunai.
With visibility so low, dodging upon sight was impossible.
Better to rely on hearing than sight.
Screams erupted around him—Uzumaki shinobi struck by kunai.
The ANBU, in contrast, were hardened; even when impaled like hedgehogs, they uttered no sound.
Boom!
Now it wasn't about endurance anymore—the Mist-nin had started using explosive tags.
Mist-nin, known for their Water Release, were breaking out their precious explosives. They must be desperate.
In the blast's fiery glare, one ANBU was swallowed by smoke and flame, his mutilated body crashing down before Yorimitsu.
The man was dead—his legs gone from the thighs down, white bone exposed where flesh should be.
Just then, Yorimitsu felt a chill.
A cold wind.
Then—violent pressure!
Without thinking, Yorimitsu pressed himself against the trunk of a large tree.
A nearby tree, too thin to withstand it, snapped in half and fell toward him.
Yorimitsu quickly formed seals and sank into the earth with the Underground Submersion Technique.
When he resurfaced, the dense fog was gone.
One Wind Release jutsu—
And it had blown away hundreds of meters of mist.
Weaker trees had been torn from their roots.
Looking up, Yorimitsu saw Shimura Danzō, hands still poised from his jutsu.
He had arrived—with two aides in tow.
For the first time, Yorimitsu felt an overwhelming sense of safety from Danzō.
Danzō's narrow pupils glared at the distant Mist-nin.
Upon recognizing him, Jūzō Biwa and Jinpachi Munashi of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen immediately retreated without looking back.
Danzō glanced at the two decimated ANBU battalions and gave no order to pursue.
The surviving ANBU leapt from among the shattered stumps, gathering behind him.
Captains Yellow Dog and Blue Sparrow stood at attention, awaiting his word.
The Uzumaki shinobi arrived as well.
Their sealing squad captain sighed in relief. "Minister Danzō, I didn't expect you to come personally. Only you could disperse such a massive mist barrier set by the Mist-nin."
Danzō nodded and turned toward Kushina. "Princess Uzumaki… This doesn't look like a Jinchūriki. Did the operation fail?"
The sealing squad captain lowered his head. "We lost many men around the wild Three-Tails' location—Mist-nin outposts everywhere. We couldn't seal it."
Yorimitsu crouched at the back, pretending to rest, but his sharp eyes caught Danzō's clenched fist, knuckles pale.
So—he wasn't calm at all. He was furious.
That emotionless face rarely betrayed anything. One wouldn't know he was enraged until it was too late.
If Kushina had become the Three-Tails' Jinchūriki, all of Konoha's arrangements for the Nine-Tails would've been ruined.
The Nine-Tails was one of Konoha's foundations—and Uzushiogakure's secret mission had almost thrown everything off balance.
Seconds passed in silence.
No one dared speak.
Little Kushina hid behind Yuka, trembling—this cold, shadowy man was terrifying.
Finally, Danzō said slowly, "The remnants of the two ANBU battalions will continue escorting Princess Uzumaki back to Uzushiogakure."
Then he turned and left with his aides.
Yorimitsu frowned.
Konoha was determined to claim Kushina as their Jinchūriki—so why not seize her now?
Could it be they wanted her to come willingly?
The two ANBU battalions resumed their mission, escorting the princess toward the Uzumaki Peninsula.
Along the way, Yuka occasionally looked toward the ANBU ranks—her eyes always finding the fox-masked one.
Each time, she quickly looked away to avoid suspicion.
The fox hid well—indistinguishable from any other ANBU.
If there were more than forty left, he'd blend in even better.
The Senju truly chose their spies well.
When the group neared Uzushiogakure, a massive Yatagarasu soared overhead.
Its shadow blanketed the ground, and Yuka's smaller heron tucked its neck in fright.
"Don't be afraid," Yuka said softly. "That's our village's guardian summon. It won't hurt you."
At the village gates, the ANBU handed off the Uzumaki escorts, exchanged brief farewells, and left.
Yorimitsu exhaled in relief.
This mission had dragged on far too long.
He wanted nothing more than to return home—and preferably never leave again.
The outside world was too dangerous.
I just want to go home.
But as they left, he realized something was off.
Captain Yellow Dog wasn't heading toward Konoha—but toward a nearby mountain overlooking Uzushiogakure.
Four ANBU captains began forming seals—summoning a vast transparent barrier over the mountain peak.
From outside, it looked like nothing had changed—but inside, the captains vanished from sight.
When the ANBU stepped through, each disappeared one after another.
An invisibility barrier?
Yorimitsu followed suit and entered.
Inside, Captain Yellow Dog began assigning tasks.
Black Ape gathered three squad leaders, including Yorimitsu.
"Three shifts. You'll take turns keeping watch on Uzushiogakure through binoculars."
Yorimitsu was assigned the first shift.
Lying behind a rock, he peered through his scope at the distant Uzumaki village.
The full moon shone like a silver disk, bathing the world in white frost.
At last—the night of the full moon had come.
Three days later, Danzō returned—this time bringing a full ANBU battalion.
He entered the barrier and waited quietly.
For days, he sat there, patient and unmoving, as though waiting for something inevitable.
Under Danzō's silent watch, everyone in the barrier grew increasingly tense.
It was clear now—
The calamity of the Uzumaki Clan could no longer be avoided.