Menma, who had already left the room, naturally had no idea that Mizuno Satoru was already standing at death's door. The elder was truly surviving on nothing more than his final breath. The vigor he had displayed earlier was nothing more than the last flicker of life before the flame went out.
The medical-nin attending him had already warned that, if he rested quietly, he might still survive for another day or two perhaps even longer. However, the intense emotional strain from the conversation earlier had exhausted what little vitality he had left. Otherwise, if Mizuno Satoru had been able to endure just a little longer, then with his personal appearance alone, the remaining shinobi of Takigakure would undoubtedly have rallied behind Shibuki without hesitation.
It was precisely because Mizuno Satoru understood that he no longer had the strength to do so that he entrusted everything to Menma.
It was not a matter of choice.
He simply had no alternatives left.
Menma could vaguely infer part of this truth, yet he still believed the elder was intentionally pushing him forward to stabilize the situation within Takigakure. Menma was a sensory-type shinobi, not an iryō-nin, and he could not accurately determine a person's remaining lifespan.
Besides, there were many people in the shinobi world who could cling to life through sheer willpower alone at the very end.
Because of that, Menma's judgment was slightly off.
He genuinely believed Mizuno Satoru had deliberately arranged for him to step onto the stage and intimidate the wavering factions within the village. Still, regardless of the elder's true intentions, the outcome remained unchanged.
At this moment, Menma's thoughts were entirely focused on the coming confrontation.
It had taken nearly an hour to arrive here.
Calculating the timing carefully, even accounting for the earlier delays, Shibuki should already be leading his faction toward the outskirts of Takigakure.
Although events had diverged slightly from Menma's original expectations, his discussions with Shibuki and especially with Elder Mizuno Satoru had progressed far more smoothly than anticipated. The first step of his plan could already be considered a complete success.
'Next… it's time to deal with Shibuki.'
Leaping onto the upper section of the village's main gate, Menma spread out his sensory perception.
A massive wave of chakra awareness expanded outward instantly.
Within moments, he clearly sensed Shibuki leading dozens of subordinates rapidly approaching from not far away.
At the village entrance, Shibuki had already arrived with the only ten shinobi who remained absolutely loyal to him, standing directly at the forefront.
Within Menma's sensory range, there were no civilians nearby, nor were there any wandering shinobi in the surrounding streets.
Clearly, Shibuki had already evacuated the area in advance.
The Takigakure shinobi accompanying him were all visibly confused, especially after noticing the cold, unusually stern expression on their leader's face. The atmosphere only deepened the unease in their hearts.
A blue-haired Taki shinobi standing closest to Shibuki seemed about to ask something.
But at that very moment
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
Dozens of figures suddenly flashed across the path leading toward the entrance.
At the very front was Shibuki.
The instant the group came into view, the expressions of the surrounding Taki shinobi changed dramatically.
"Shibuki!?"
"He actually came back!"
"How is that possible!?"
"Didn't the leader say Shibuki was seriously injured!? Wasn't Ajun already leading people to hunt him down!?"
"What exactly is happening here?!"
Shock spread through the group like wildfire.
"Leader?"
"Lord Shibuki!"
At that moment, everyone instinctively turned toward Shibuki standing at the front.
Farther within the village, many Taki shinobi had also sensed the disturbance. Some hesitated, uncertain whether they should come over. Others remained determined to stay neutral until the very end.
Yet regardless of their thoughts, the situation before them appeared unmistakable:
Shibuki stood with barely a dozen loyal followers.
Opposite him was Shibuki's large force.
The disparity alone was enough to shake morale.
Shibuki himself, however, paid no attention to the wavering emotions of the others.
The instant his eyes landed on Shibuki, he stepped forward calmly and said in a cold voice:
"So you finally came back. Are you planning to kill me now?"
"Hah! It seems our weak little leader has finally grown a backbone for once?"
Shibuki sneered arrogantly.
"The moment you expelled me from the village, you should've already foreseen this outcome, Shibuki. This was always going to be your fate."
"It's already come to this, and you still want to keep pretending?" Shibuki shouted sharply. "Why you defected from the village… you know the truth better than anyone!"
"Pretending?" Shibuki laughed coldly. "No. I've always been exactly like this. Everything happened because of you and because of those old fools!"
His expression twisted violently with resentment.
"How am I inferior to you!? How can a weakling like you lead a shinobi village!? Just because you're the grandson of Chief Kagerō!? Don't make me laugh! You were never qualified for that position!"
Shibuki's face darkened immediately.
"So that's all this was about? The position of village leader?" he demanded angrily. "You would betray the village, collude with outsiders, and start a rebellion for something like that!? Have you no shame before Elder Satoru!?"
"Shame?" Shibuki's face became increasingly savage. "The ones who wronged me first were those old bastards! That's right I did all of this for the position of village chief! Shibuki, if you know what's good for you, then kill yourself right now. Otherwise, I'll make you wish you were dead!"
"Boom!"
A violent burst of chakra erupted outward.
The pressure instantly chilled the surrounding atmosphere.
Objectively speaking, Shibuki truly was a powerful shinobi. Even if he were merely an ordinary jōnin, that alone already placed him among the upper tier of the shinobi world. Every one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages only possessed a limited number of Kage-level fighters.
Jōnin represented the true backbone of high-level combat strength.
"Heh… looks like I underestimated him."
Perched cross-legged atop a nearby building, Menma Uzumaki raised an eyebrow slightly, a trace of surprise appearing on his face.
"But thinking about it, that makes sense. He's one of Takigakure's senior figures. It would've been stranger if he were weak."
"And don't expect Elder Satoru to save you either," Shibuki continued viciously. "I already sent people to deal with that old relic. You're completely finished now, Shibuki!"
The moment those words were spoken
"What!?"
"No way…!"
The expressions of the Taki shinobi behind Shibuki changed drastically.
Only Shibuki himself remained calm, as though he had never heard the threat at all.
"If that's the case…" Shibuki slowly stepped forward, his gaze becoming sharp and resolute. "Then since you want the position of village leader so badly, I'm standing right here. Kill me, and the title is yours."
His chakra surged outward as well.
"Do you dare face me directly, Shibuki!? A fair fight, one-on-one!"
The declaration stunned everyone present.
Even Menma Uzumaki, who had originally planned to intervene later, froze momentarily.
'Wait… this isn't how the script was supposed to go.'
Menma's eyes widened slightly as he stared at Shibuki below, unable to stop himself from complaining inwardly.
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