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Kawakita Makoto let out a cold snort.
"Miss Kawakita, you seem dissatisfied," Mangetsu asked.
"Don't call me 'Miss.' I'm well aware of my age. Call me 'Makkun' or just use my name. I'm not a child, and I don't need to hide my thoughts. That's right, I'm different from most of you here. I'm just a country woman. Before this, I made a living by fishing. If my daughter hadn't died, I wouldn't have come this far. I have no grand ideals or ambitions. I only know one thing: whoever killed my daughter, I'll take my revenge on them.
"And what was it just now? That ninja named Mei Terumī can't contact us because she's being watched? Hey, Hōzuki boy, listen to that, does it sound like something a responsible person would say? We're not even afraid of death, but she's afraid of being caught? What kind of nonsense is that? Can she really be relied upon?"
Makoto crossed her arms, a fierce glint in her eyes.
After losing her only family, Makoto had grown increasingly radical.
As long as she could charge into Kirigakure and take her revenge, everything was negotiable. Otherwise, she'd rather go it alone.
This temperament made her sharp and formidable, but her hatred for Kirigakure had also gradually earned her prestige among the rebels, making her a representative figure for the "Kekkei Genkai" faction.
Seeing Makoto state her position so clearly, Mangetsu felt somewhat helpless.
Getting everyone present here to reach a consensus wouldn't be easy. Achieving perfect cooperation would be even harder.
"Makkun, saying things like 'I understand you' in this setting is completely meaningless. Moreover, I have no right to ask you to forget the past. However, we always have to look forward. Among those sitting here, everyone has lost many important things—not just you. And the reason we choose to fight is partly for our own revenge, but also for those comrades who haven't yet lost anything. Otherwise, why would these people become part of the resistance?"
Makoto's mouth twitched slightly, words on the tip of her tongue swallowed back.
If she weren't representing all those with "Kekkei Genkai," she would definitely have slammed the table and asked bluntly what any of this had to do with her.
But many people had placed their hopes in her. She couldn't be as reckless as before.
Even so, she still felt deep resentment towards this person named Mei Terumī.
Though his expression remained neutral, Mangetsu inwardly felt weary.
Having few people or poor conditions wasn't the real problem. What was truly frightening was that compared to Kirigakure, they were already at a disadvantage in terms of strength. If they weren't even united, the path ahead was almost certainly one of failure.
He had to stay calm.
Mangetsu took a deep breath and asked, "What else?"
"'Aki'... we didn't manage to locate her. So, it's unclear whether she received the message," Hinizumi Ayamaru said.
"'Aki'?" Mangetsu looked at Zabuza in surprise.
"Her... position seems rather sensitive," Zabuza reminded.
"I know," Mangetsu shook his head. "But Kirigakure is practically under lockdown; hardly anyone leaves. And this island is only the size of a palm. Setting aside whether we need to contact her or not, even if we did, it shouldn't take very long. Which means... if Ayamaru stayed in Kirigakure long enough, he should have been able to meet 'Aki.'"
Makoto curled her lip, inwardly sneering again.
No need to say it—this "Aki" was definitely some ninja known only to a few here, and she wasn't among those in the know.
"Who is Aki?" Suigetsu suddenly spoke up.
Mangetsu immediately shot him a sharp look. Suigetsu scratched his head, giving an awkward grin. "I was just asking casually. Pretend I'm not here..."
"Wait, are you saying Kirigakure is taking action?" Zabuza asked.
"Mmm. So, the reason for their departure becomes particularly crucial," Mangetsu said gravely.
Makoto suddenly stood up, looking at Mangetsu. "My presence probably isn't needed here. Moreover, all these people you're talking about, these 'actions'... I don't really understand them. In short, my thinking is simple: the sooner we act, the better. And you all definitely have different opinions."
She paused for a moment, pointing at her own temple. "Me, I'm not very smart. Things like formulating strategies... I'm completely useless at that. You guys come up with the plan, then just tell me."
With that, without waiting for Mangetsu's response, she pushed the door open and left.
Zabuza tilted his head, looking at the just-closed door. "What do we do?"
He drew a line across his neck with a hand-chop motion.
Mangetsu glared at Zabuza. "We're comrades."
"I just think, if she acts like that, it doesn't feel very comradely," Zabuza sneered.
"I can actually understand her," Ayamaru said. "Although we've gathered together, to put it bluntly, the reason we're huddled here isn't because of some shared ideology, but for 'mutual warmth.' How long we stay united doesn't depend on how Kirigakure targets us, but on when the 'fire' we've gathered around goes out. That 'fire' is probably the 'combined force' that brought us together, right? There are many factors, but don't forget: each person in this group plays a different role and has different needs."
"Can you say that more plainly?" Zabuza disliked convoluted speeches.
"What I mean is, we were never of one mind to begin with. You admit that too, right? Under these circumstances, the rebels gathering relies entirely on a certain 'momentum.' Once that momentum dissipates, the rebels will naturally fall apart. If we drag things out too long, even if Kirigakure doesn't come after us, we'll collapse from within. So, my view is simple: take action as soon as possible. Don't wait until morale has completely disintegrated," Ayamaru explained.
"Your point makes sense too, but I still have some concerns," Mangetsu said. "If 'Aki' has been gone for so long, it means there must be some change inside Kirigakure. Taking rash action without knowing what that change entails isn't revenge; it's suicide."
"That can be handled too. Haku is still in Kirigakure. Once he meets Akimoto Ruri, he should be able to gather relevant intelligence."
"Mmm. Then I'll leave it to you... Go and make contact with Haku," Mangetsu said.
Ayamaru left. The steward remained outside the door, leaving only Zabuza and the Hōzuki brothers in the room.
Mangetsu took several ragged breaths, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
"You should be the most anxious one, right?" Zabuza frowned.
Although Tsunade had treated the poison in Mangetsu's body, the illness in his blood was extremely difficult to cure. It required prolonged research by Tsunade, and even then, a cure wasn't guaranteed.
What Mangetsu lacked most was precisely time. So, once Zabuza brought news from Kirigakure, he had rushed back from Konoha without hesitation.
Before he died, he had to accomplish the most important thing—kill Igawa and restore Kirigakure to what it once was.
"Anxious?" Mangetsu took a deep breath. "Being anxious won't help. If the opportunity is right, even delaying will only affect me personally. But if we act too hastily, all the rebels will die. We have to consider every factor. So, we must wait for Haku's intelligence."