"This guy… he's a total monster!"
Ringo Yuuri, usually a fiery and impatient girl, couldn't help but shrink her neck as she muttered under her breath.
Around her, the Mist shinobi—Hoshigaki Kisame, Jinpachi Munashi, Terumi Mei—were all frozen in awe. What they felt now wasn't just respect… it was something deeper.
As for fear?
Ringo had never known that word. She was a Mist prodigy—never afraid of heaven or earth. Not even the Mizukage could make her bow her head.
But right now, for the first time in her life, she felt fear.
"You're right," Aoiha murmured beside her. "He really is a monster."
Naruto's strength had once again exceeded anything she could comprehend. It was downright terrifying.
A tailed beast—one of the ultimate weapons of the ninja world—had just been defeated with a single punch.
Since when had these legendary creatures become so… weak?
"Ha! You idiots are surprised already? The kid hasn't even gone all out yet. If he did, your eyes would probably pop out of your heads!"
Inside the sealed space, Kurama burst out laughing, his tails swaying with amusement.
"Hah! Yagura, you fool—this is too good! I haven't had this much fun in ages!"
As the Three-Tails' chakra faded, the unconscious Mizukage, Yagura, appeared on the ground.
Naruto stared down at him, his eyes glimmering with interest.
"Lord Kira, please… spare him," Terumi Mei said urgently. She could tell from Naruto's thoughtful gaze that he was considering something.
"Oh?" Naruto raised a brow, smiling faintly. "And who exactly are you to speak for Kirigakure?"
Terumi Mei froze—unable to answer.
"I can speak for the village."
An elderly, bald man stepped forward from the crowd, leaning on a serpent-shaped staff.
"Master Genji," the Mist shinobi whispered respectfully. Even Terumi Mei lowered her head before him.
Naruto nodded slightly. "Good. I won't ask for much."
"First, I want to freely walk around Kirigakure—see the sights, meet the people. No one is to interfere."
Master Genji exhaled quietly in relief. That request was easy enough to grant.
At this point, this man—Kira of the Red Sun Society—was a being like the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, or Uchiha Madara. An unstoppable force.
No matter how strong Kirigakure was, they couldn't resist him. Their only option was to agree and pray he left soon.
Genji suddenly understood how the Third Hokage of Konoha must have felt. The intelligence reports had not exaggerated at all.
"Second…" Naruto pointed his finger at Ringo Yuuri. "That girl—she's coming with me."
Ringo blinked, stunned.
She hadn't expected to become part of the deal.
"Uh…"
Master Genji hesitated. Losing a genius like her would be a heavy blow to the village. But looking at the defeated Yagura, he sighed deeply.
"Since that's your request, I'll agree on behalf of Lord Mizukage."
Naruto smiled in satisfaction. "Good. Those are my only two conditions. Since we're friends now, I'll even help you deal with a small problem."
Before anyone could react, Naruto vanished.
He reappeared beside a random Mist shinobi and grabbed him by the neck.
"Lord Kira!" Master Genji panicked, thinking Naruto meant to kill him.
But in the next instant, the shinobi's body twisted and changed—turning into a pale, featureless humanoid creature.
"What the—?!"
"I thought he was one of ours!"
"Could there be more of these things hiding in the village?!"
The Mist ninjas recoiled in horror. Terumi Mei and the other elites exchanged shocked glances—the unease they'd felt about the village suddenly made terrible sense.
"It's you again," Naruto muttered, frowning. "Always spying. Don't you ever learn?"
He casually tightened his grip—and the creature disintegrated into dust.
Then, without warning, Naruto punched the air.
BOOM!
The entire village trembled. Space itself rippled like water, and a swirling vortex appeared before tearing open—revealing another dimension beyond.
Inside that space stood a man in a spiral mask.
He froze, panic flashing across his single visible eye.
He couldn't believe it. Naruto had found him—even through Kamui's separate space.
"This guy again," Naruto said coldly. "Didn't you learn your lesson in Konoha? Still daring to show your face here? You must have a death wish."
Naruto threw another punch.
The masked man tried to retreat, the vortex spinning frantically as he attempted to vanish—
But he was too slow.
Naruto's punch tore through space, the shockwave slamming into him.
BOOM!
The masked man was flung across the barren Kamui dimension, slamming into the ground hard. Blood poured from his mouth as his mask shattered again.
"Damn it… damn it… damn it…" he cursed weakly before blacking out completely.
As he slipped into unconsciousness, tears streaked down his scarred face.
"Rin… the Infinite Tsukuyomi… it's over…" he whispered before falling silent.
Back in Kirigakure, everyone stood in stunned silence.
Not only had there been an infiltrator among them—but someone had been spying on the entire battle through space-time ninjutsu.
It was terrifying beyond words.
"Time-space ninjutsu…" one murmured. "It's nearly impossible to defend against."
"Could the strange behavior in the village lately be because of that man?" another asked.
"Maybe even Lord Mizukage was being controlled…"
Kisame and Zabuza exchanged glances, their expressions grave.
Naruto dusted off his hands, looking completely calm—as if he hadn't just torn open dimensions with his bare fists.
"Hey, little girl," he said casually to Ringo Yuuri. "You're with me from now on, got it?"
"Why should I?" she snapped back, baring her sharp, shark-like teeth.
Naruto smirked. "Because your village elders already agreed. You don't plan to disobey orders, do you?"
Ringo glared but said nothing, lowering her head. Leaving her home made her uneasy—but her adventurous nature stopped her from resisting.
"Good girl," Naruto said, turning to Master Genji with a grin. "Now, old man, let's take a look around your village."
With that, Naruto, Aoiha, and Ringo Yuuri walked straight into Kirigakure like they owned the place.
"Master Genji…"
"Spread the word," Genji ordered sharply. "No one is to touch them. Let him see what he wants."
"But—"
"No buts!" Genji slammed his staff down, releasing a wave of chakra that silenced everyone. "Keeping the village safe is the top priority. Do you want Kirigakure destroyed?"
The room went dead quiet.
Moments later, a messenger rushed in. "Master Genji! Lord Mizukage has regained consciousness! He's summoned the elite Jōnin for an announcement!"
Genji frowned. "Now, of all times…"
Soon, the top shinobi of Kirigakure gathered inside the Mizukage's chamber—Terumi Mei, Kisame, Zabuza, Jinpachi, and others. All wore dark expressions.
They had no choice but to accept what had happened. They hadn't been defeated by tricks or strategy—just pure, overwhelming power.
"What is Lord Mizukage planning to announce?" one whispered.
"Hopefully not another fight. We can't take any more," another muttered.
"Yagura-sama wouldn't do that… not now," Terumi Mei said, though her tone carried uncertainty.
Then Yagura stepped forward, rubbing his temple and looking pale.
"Everyone," he began softly, "I owe you all an apology."
The room fell silent.
"I've done terrible things these past years," Yagura said. "I gave cruel orders and brought suffering to the village. I was unworthy of my title as Mizukage."
He bowed deeply.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
"I must confess," Yagura continued. "Everything I did was under someone else's control. I wasn't acting of my own free will. I was trapped under the illusion of a man wearing a spiral mask—cast by his Mangekyō Sharingan. That control… finally broke when Isobu was defeated."
His words hit like thunder.
The entire hall went silent, every face frozen in disbelief.
No one moved.
No one spoke.
The truth had finally been revealed—and it was more terrifying than they had ever imagined.
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