Chapter 46: We're All Ticking Time Bombs
"They didn't catch up?"
The Great Sword Samehada opened its abyssal maw and expelled Suikazan Fuguki with considerable difficulty. Clearly, Fuguki's corpulent body wasn't easy for Samehada to swallow or regurgitate.
Covered head to toe in wet, sticky mucus, Suikazan Fuguki wiped his face and surveyed his surroundings. He saw coconut trees and beaches, rocky shores and waves, and an endless azure ocean stretching before him.
They were now at some beach location.
"No."
Hozuki Mangetsu crouched beneath a coconut tree, saying lazily, "They didn't pursue us at all!"
"They didn't?"
Suikazan Fuguki scanned the area. Besides himself and Hozuki Mangetsu, a dozen or so remaining subordinates had also gathered nearby.
"Heavy losses!"
Suikazan Fuguki sighed.
"You brought this on yourself, didn't you?"
"That's right. I underestimated that brat called Hyuga Ritsu. I didn't expect that not only does he possess two bloodline limits, but his chakra reserves are also enormous. This time, my judgment was flawed."
Suikazan Fuguki didn't shirk responsibility. He directly acknowledged that his erroneous judgment had needlessly cost those subordinates their lives.
However—
He gripped the Great Sword Samehama's hilt tightly, gritting his teeth. "But next time, I'll make him join my subordinates underground!"
Hozuki Mangetsu pursed his lips.
Technically speaking, Suikazan Fuguki's faulty judgment had led to the deaths of so many Mist comrades—he should bear corresponding responsibility. But in reality, many things didn't follow logic and rules.
This matter would just end here.
Could they really make things difficult for Suikazan Fuguki, one of the village's top jonin, over a bunch of dead people?
Next time, Suikazan Fuguki would still lead large forces in operations just the same.
"And although the losses were unexpectedly high, it wasn't entirely without gain. We did collect intelligence on Hyuga Ritsu. Simultaneously possessing both Byakugan and Shikotsumyaku bloodline limits—I believe both Mizukage-sama and those battle-crazed Kaguya clan members will find this interesting!"
Suikazan Fuguki calculated. "When we hunt Hyuga Ritsu next time, we can have Mizukage-sama dispatch several jonin. Ideally, Mangetsu, you should be among them. We can also have the Kaguya clan send some jonin. That lineup should have no problem dealing with Hyuga Ritsu."
"Assuming there is a next opportunity!"
Hozuki Mangetsu couldn't help throwing cold water on the idea. "You caused such a huge commotion this time. Unless Hyuga Ritsu is an idiot, he'll definitely notice something's wrong. Getting another opportunity like this will be difficult."
"That's not something you or I need to worry about. Certain people in Konoha might be even more desperate than us to eliminate Hyuga Ritsu. They'll naturally work hard to find a way. What we need to do is gather our forces and strike immediately when news arrives."
Suikazan Fuguki didn't care about Mangetsu's pessimism. He believed those people in Konoha Village wouldn't disappoint him.
Especially Shimura Danzo—that old bastard would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. They'd cooperated before, more than once, and had taken the opportunity to kill more than one Konoha shinobi.
Hearing this, Hozuki Mangetsu immediately fell silent.
After a moment, he finally said, "We should still go find Mizukage-sama first! This matter requires Mizukage-sama's decision."
---
Before the precarious earthen fort at the summit, watching the eight Konoha shinobi who remained stationed here along with the medical ninja named Yamanaka Kaito cleaning up the battlefield below and collecting the Mist shinobi corpses.
Uchiha Shisui pressed his lips together, his eyes dull and lifeless. He muttered unconsciously, "Ritsu-senpai, the fact that the Stone Drum Mountain defense line has held out until now is simply a miracle!"
This was clearly sarcastic.
"Indeed, quite miraculous."
Hyuga Ritsu nodded.
Given the Mist's combat strength, breaking through the Stone Drum Mountain defense line could literally have been accomplished in minutes. Yet the defense line remained precarious but never fell, stubbornly holding on until their arrival.
Undoubtedly, this was a trap.
A trap targeting himself... Wait!
Ritsu suddenly looked at Uchiha Shisui. This Uchiha clan's number one genius wore a gloomy expression and depressed mood, as if he'd been betrayed.
His eyes immediately shifted as an idea formed in his mind. He spoke up, asking, "Shisui, who do you think dragged whom down—you or me?"
"Eh? Ritsu-senpai, what do you mean?"
"Don't tell me you haven't realized this is a trap. Someone colluded with the Mist, sold out our intelligence, and set this trap waiting for prey to jump in on their own. It's just unclear whether the prey is you, me, or if we're both their targets."
Uchiha Shisui fell silent, unable to speak.
Previously, all his energy had been focused on combat with no time to think about what was really going on today. But now that the Mist had retreated and there was no need to concentrate his energy and keep his nerves taut, he could no longer ignore this abnormal situation.
After over ten seconds, Uchiha Shisui forced a smile onto his face. "Ritsu-senpai, this might just be a coincidence! How could anyone collude with the Mist?"
"Why not? Shisui, don't deceive yourself! Politicians have no bottom line whatsoever. To achieve their objectives, they'll do anything."
Ritsu stared at those cleaning up the battlefield below. "This time, we were lucky. The Mist underestimated our strength, so we turned the tables and broke the trap. But next time, if the Mist knows our movements in advance and sets up an inescapable net, do you think we can survive?"
Uchiha Shisui remained silent.
"However, I think this time I probably dragged you down. Certain people in the village probably want me dead, so they sold my intelligence to the Mist. They specifically dispatched the Hozuki clan prodigy to be a nuisance. If not for you, Shisui, I would have either died in battle here or failed the mission and faced accountability upon return."
Ritsu didn't continue pressing. Instead, he took a step back, proactively helping clear Shisui of involvement by attributing the cause to himself.
But this actually made Uchiha Shisui's eyes widen. He wanted to speak but hesitated. Finally, he couldn't hold back and asked, "Ritsu-senpai, you—you mean—who in the village would want to harm you?"
"You should have heard about how I became the clan head of our Hyuga clan, right?"
"This—this..."
"The higher ups in the village don't like my method of rising to power. They think I'm an uncontrolled ticking time bomb like your Uchiha clan—that they want to defuse me just like they're trying to defuse you Uchiha. Isn't that perfectly normal?" Ritsu said with a smile.
Uchiha Shisui's eyes widened. Was this self-deprecating humor from Ritsu-senpai, or was he sarcastically mocking the Uchiha clan?
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