[After the First Mizukage passed away, Gengetsu Hōzuki succeeded him as the Second Mizukage.]
[The Mizukage succession tradition prioritized strength above all.]
[Since most of Hidden Mist Village's decisions were handled by the elder council, only those with true Kage-level power were qualified to take on the title.]
[This confirmed that, during his time, "Little Mustache" (Gengetsu) was without a doubt stronger than the Third Mizukage.]
[While in office, Gengetsu promoted Hidden Mist Village's policy of absolute secrecy, aiming to prevent any intelligence leaks.]
[With the Mist Village's natural defenses and the elders managing governance, being Mizukage was quite... "enjoyable" for him.]
[However, after Hashirama Senju's death, the peace treaty between the Five Great Nations gradually crumbled.]
[The First Great Shinobi Cold War erupted — and the battlefield was now in the hands of the Second Kage generation.]
[Due to the long-standing friction between the Second Mizukage and Second Tsuchikage, the two perished together.]
[In their hearts, they acknowledged each other as worthy opponents. Their "love-hate" rivalry reached its climax. Their deaths came suddenly, but not without preparation.]
[At the very least, it paved the way for Onoki and the Third Mizukage to rise smoothly.]
At this point, everyone watching was... left speechless.
From the footage, it was clear:
Gengetsu Hōzuki hadn't really made any notable contributions to his village.
Even the conservative policies he implemented had ended up being exploited later on.
Gengetsu himself began to feel ashamed.
He had always thought himself exceptional...
But the footage played all the way to his death, and still didn't highlight any real accomplishments.
Thankfully—
Aside from the usual back-and-forth roasting from Mu, the Second Tsuchikage,
No one else in the chat mocked him.
The two kept bickering, falling back into their usual nicknames:
"Little Mustache" and "Bandaged Freak."
The footage continued.
[The next time "Little Mustache" appeared was during the Fourth Great Ninja War.]
[Along with the Third Raikage and Fourth Kazekage, Gengetsu was revived using Edo Tensei.]
[They retained their memories and personalities, but their actions were partially restricted.]
[The four of them advanced together and clashed with Gaara's Division Four.]
[During the battle, Gengetsu thought Orochimaru was the one who used Edo Tensei and wanted to kill him. His "buddy" Mu agreed.]
Group Chat:
[Gengetsu Hōzuki]:
Excuse me?! What do you mean "buddy Mu"?! Weren't we just "rivals" or "CP"?! Are we best friends now? Which is it? What do these terms even mean!?
[Mu]:
This is so weird. I actually agreed with Little Mustache? That doesn't feel right.
[Gengetsu]:
Bandaged Freak! Just admit I was right — why can't you agree with me for once?
[Mu]:
You were wrong! The Edo Tensei wasn't cast by Orochimaru — it was by that guy, Kabuto!
[Uchiha Madara @ Shikamaru]:
Hey, clever kid — what's your take on the word buddy in this context?
[Shikamaru]:
I think it means the same thing as CP, Lord Madara. What do you think?
[Uchiha Madara]:
Makes sense to me.
[Tobirama Senju]:
No way. They're clearly not the same.
And by the way — your CP explanation from earlier was wrong too.
Look at those two — still bickering non-stop.
They're obviously rivals, not a couple. Where do you get "romantic pairing" from that?
[Tobirama Senju @ Hashirama Senju]:
Big Bro! Tell them! You definitely support me on this, right?
[Uchiha Madara @ Hashirama]:
Hashirama! I wanna know too. Whose side are you on?
[Hashirama Senju]:
Ahem! Madara! Tobirama! Since you two disagree, what we need is a fair, impartial judge. And who better than me?
[Uchiha Madara]:
Hashirama! I'm not asking you to be a judge — I just want to know who you support!
[Tobirama Senju]:
Yeah, Big Bro! Pick a side!
[Hashirama Senju]:
Cough, cough! Don't you both trust me to be a fair and just judge?
[Uchiha Madara]:
Of course I trust you, Hashirama!
[Tobirama Senju]:
I trust you too, Big Bro!
[Hashirama Senju]:
Then let's just keep watching the footage, shall we?
The footage resumed.
[Gaara made a stylish entrance, while Rasa looked like he'd swallowed a lemon for personal reasons.]
[Gengetsu grinned with pride, clearly pleased to see such an impressive successor.]
[After Gaara sealed Rasa, Gengetsu willingly accepted being sealed too — but his body started oozing water.]
[The water dissolved the sand, breaking the seal.]
[Gengetsu and the Third Raikage broke free from Gaara's sand and rejoined the battlefield, killing a number of shinobi.]
[With full consciousness, Gengetsu revealed his techniques to the remaining soldiers and summoned his giant clam — Maboroshi.]
[The Third Raikage, fearing the army might not stand a chance, left the area.]
[Gengetsu secretly sighed in relief — because fighting alongside the Third Raikage would've meant a slaughter for the Allied Forces.]
[Gengetsu, not wanting to kill anyone, mentioned that his giant clam could create large-scale genjutsu, manifesting medium-sized mirages.]
[He asked Gaara to seal him again — but Gaara went after Bandaged Freak Mu instead.]
Group Chat:
[Childish Brat, Not as Good as Lady Tsunade]:
Second Mizukage-sama, you're so noble!
[Fourth Raikage A @ Third Raikage]:
Father, you too! You were amazing!
With Mei Terumi and Fourth Raikage speaking up, more people began praising the two.
Despite being resurrected through Edo Tensei, both still fought with their village's future in mind.
But just as the group was pouring on the praise — and Gengetsu was humbly downplaying it...
Uchiha Madara suddenly tagged him.
[Uchiha Madara @ Gengetsu]:
Hahaha! "Should be praised," you say? What a joke.
If you really cared about your village, why didn't you release Edo Tensei yourself?
Can't even do that — and still accept their praise with a straight face?
[Uchiha Madara @ everyone]:
And the rest of you! The more you praise him, the more you're insulting him! HAHAHA!
Gengetsu and the others were furious.
But they had no idea how to refute it.
Because...
Madara had a point.
He had released Edo Tensei on his own — effortlessly.
The footage continued.
[One reckless ninja called Gengetsu "Little Mustache," triggering his rage.]
[The giant clam unleashed a mist, and Gengetsu warned the Allied Forces not to die like fools.]
[He was then seemingly skewered by dozens of weapons — but it was only an illusion.]
[Gengetsu even offered tips and created time for the soldiers to retrieve their weapons, suggesting they use explosive tags to defeat the clam.]
[But no one landed a hit. Gengetsu sighed in frustration — these guys were hopeless.]
[The Allied Forces started clowning around, until one particularly brain-dead member insulted Gengetsu.]
[The rest of the army was horrified, and under pressure, the guy blushed and apologized.]
[Moral of the story: Joke around all you want — but never joke about the mustache.]
[Gengetsu kept knocking soldiers around but continued to cheer them on.]
[Due to Hidden Mist Village's secrecy policies, no one in the army actually knew how his abilities worked.]
[Eventually, he lost control again and launched a water bullet assault.]
[Gaara intervened, but the sheer water pressure was too much — he could only protect them for a short while.]
[After Gengetsu's massive AoE attack, most of the army was wiped out.]
[As Gaara struggled to defend and strategize, he realized Gengetsu used oil-based Water Release — which severely countered sand techniques.]
[Gengetsu, being a classic tsundere, complained: "You sealed the Bandaged Freak first? So I'm not even worth your attention?!"]
[Gaara quickly complimented: "Second Mizukage-sama, appearances are deceiving — you're incredibly strong!"]
[During the exchange, Gaara sensed the clam's location using his sand.]
[Onoki wanted to use Dust Release — but was out of chakra, so he used Earth Release Fist Slam instead.]
[Gengetsu's real body taunted him, calling him a "stinky brat," unintentionally boosting Onoki's morale.]
[Fired up, Onoki put his old back on the line and smashed the clam.]
[Gengetsu was impressed, even offering his praise — though he did lament Onoki's age.]
[But then, Gengetsu's body acted on its own again — firing a water bullet that struck down Onoki, who was already crippled by back pain.]
[As Gengetsu mourned the loss of a key opponent… Onoki crumbled into a pile of sand.]
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