Kirigakure, Mizukage's Office
"Kiyosuke, Konoha really went too far this time!"
Ao slammed the desk with his palm, his voice sharp with anger.
"Damn it, didn't I come here to explain? I already told you—Hiruko isn't one of us! He was struck off the record ages ago. Back when the Sannin were still kids, that old bastard had already been wanted. He has nothing to do with Konoha anymore! Ao, don't you go pinning this shit on us!"
Kiyosuke and Ao were shouting back and forth inside the Mizukage's office. Mei pressed her fingers to her temple and sighed.
"Alright, that's enough, you two. Kiyosuke, how does Konoha plan on dealing with this? The daimyō of the Five Great Nations are all pressuring the Hokage together right now."
"Your Kirigakure's Dark Release is beyond saving. You've heard the reports—Hiruko has already absorbed the kekkei genkai of four different villages. Even for me, that guy is trouble to deal with."
Kiyosuke rubbed his forehead with frustration.
"There were already so few kekkei genkai users left in Kirigakure," Mei muttered helplessly. "Dark Release only had that one bearer left. And now… gone."
Because of the Bloody Mist era, the number of kekkei genkai shinobi in Kirigakure had been drastically reduced. Now, hardly any were left. Dark Release had a chance to survive, but with this, its legacy was broken.
"It's not just your village. The other three villages suffered losses too. And as for us in Konoha… we might lose Kakashi."
Kiyosuke snorted.
"But I won't let things go their way."
"The Copy Ninja, Kakashi? So they're after his Sharingan?" Ao narrowed his eyes.
"I see… a fusion technique. That's… terrifying."
Realizing the hidden danger behind Hiruko's plan, Ao felt a chill run down his spine. If Hiruko got hold of Kakashi's Sharingan, it would be a disaster for the entire shinobi world.
"What are you going to do, Kiyosuke?" Mei turned to her lover.
"I came to Kirigakure mainly to reassure you," he said. "But now, I have to return to Konoha. I'll follow Kakashi to wherever Hiruko is, and then we'll wipe them out."
"That is one way," Mei nodded.
At that moment, a Kirigakure Anbu appeared, kneeling on one knee and delivering a scroll. Mei opened it, her expression sinking.
"The Sixth Kazekage was ambushed by Konoha on his way to the Land of Wind's border to meet the Hokage. The situation is extremely tense, blades are drawn—it's about to turn into war."
"Damn it! Where's Pakura? Isn't she keeping Sunagakure stable?"
"The Fifth Kazekage is already heading to the border," Mei replied grimly. "The situation doesn't look good. There's no telling if Kumogakure or Iwagakure will take action."
"One against four? Hah, it's not like I haven't done that before."
Kiyosuke snorted coldly.
"Mei, hold Kirigakure steady. I'm heading back to Konoha immediately."
"I understand," Mei nodded.
"Good."
Without another word, Kiyosuke set off. Once outside Kirigakure, he soared into the sky.
...
In the Mizukage's office.
Ao frowned.
"Mizukage-sama, now that Konoha has become everyone's target, what should we do?"
"For now, we can only observe. Things are too complicated. Unless absolutely necessary, Kirigakure must not get involved."
Kirigakure's current strength couldn't endure another shinobi world war. If they did, it wouldn't just mean defeat—it could mean annihilation. As Mizukage, Mei had to put the survival of the village first.
"Kiyosuke… do your best. Go save the world."
...
Kiyosuke's speed was incredible. By the latter half of the night, he had already returned to Konoha.
He went home and rested until morning, only to notice Naruto was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Naruto?" he asked Karin, who was making breakfast.
"Huh? That guy didn't come home last night," Karin replied.
Dressed in ANBU gear but without a mask, Haku stepped out of the room. His features were delicate, almost too beautiful—beautiful enough to be mistaken for a girl. Unfortunately, he was a boy.
"Kiyosuke-sama," Haku said. "Naruto was imprisoned last night for breaking Tsunade-sama's lockdown order."
"What?! A lockdown? Since when?!"
"The moment you left that day, Tsunade-sama declared martial law. Naruto tried to leave the village and was detained," Haku explained, slipping his mask back on. "But don't worry. He'll be released after some time."
"And Kakashi?"
"Captain Kakashi? I was off duty yesterday and didn't see him. I only heard about Naruto's arrest from my ANBU colleagues."
"Damn it… something's wrong!"
Kiyosuke rushed out of the house and went straight to Kakashi's place.
Hanare answered the door.
"Kiyosuke-sama, is something the matter?"
"Where's Kakashi?"
"Oh, he said something about a mission last night and left suddenly. Do you need him for something?"
"No… it's fine. I have other matters. I'll be going."
Leaving Kakashi's house, he went to the Hokage's office—only to find Tsunade gone. That confirmed his fears.
He immediately ran to Konoha's prison. Ignoring the ANBU guards, he freed Naruto.
"Where's Kakashi?"
"Kakashi-sensei was acting really strange last night. He knocked out the two guards and ran off. Shikamaru stopped me from chasing and even had me locked up. Kiyosuke-san, what's going on with Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked urgently.
"Tch… trust Shikamaru to do something like that. I left without giving Kakashi a proper heads-up, and now this mess…"
Kiyosuke sighed.
"Go round up Sasuke, Hinata, Kiba, and the others. Tell them I have a mission—we're going to rescue Kakashi."
"Got it!"
Naruto dashed off.
Kiyosuke went searching for Asuma and Guy, but they were gone—already deployed to the border after Gaara's ambush. With war brewing between Konoha and Sunagakure, Tsunade had reassigned them.
With no reinforcements available, Kiyosuke finally headed to Konoha's front gate. There, six shinobi and a dog stood ready, fully equipped.
"We only have one mission," Kiyosuke said firmly. "Bring Kakashi back. Got it?"
"Got it!"
The team nodded, Akamaru barking in agreement.
They set out immediately.
Naruto and the others had already gathered intel: Hiruko was in Mount Shumisen at the border of the Lands of Grass, Fire, and Earth.
That made it easy. Kakashi wouldn't go there of his own will. Hiruko's puppet curse would drag him there. Tracking them down wouldn't be hard—the enemy was already waiting.
Leading the squad, Kiyosuke charged ahead, determined to bring Kakashi back.
How could he not?
Could he really stand by and watch his friend become nothing more than fuel for another man's power?
That was not Kiyosuke's way.