Chapter 164: Mui's Little Moves
"Hehe, I hope so."
Kisame sneered noncommittally.
From the moment he entered the vicinity of Hozuki Castle, he had already noticed something was amiss.
Mui had not only hired their Akatsuki organization but also some bounty ninja of varying skill levels.
Even more, among them were some unfamiliar individuals with hidden identities.
"Can this guy really afford the hiring fees?"
Although some suspicion inevitably arose in Kisame's heart, this was his first mission since joining Akatsuki.
He really didn't want to go back empty-handed on his first mission.
At that time, he would surely be mocked by Hidan and A Fei.
"Itachi-san?"
Kisame looked towards Uchiha Itachi beside him, who wore a bamboo hat.
Uchiha Itachi just nodded lightly.
When the two raised their arms,
"Fire Style: Heavenly Prison!"
With a soft cry from Mui, his palm, glowing with a fire-like light, pressed onto the abdomens of the two.
Scorching hot Fire Release chakra instantly formed track-like markings on their bodies.
This ninjutsu embeds chakra-restraining chains into the target's body, limiting the target's ability to gather chakra and making them unable to perform ninjutsu.
If one attempts to escape from Hozuki Castle, the Heavenly Prison curse formula will also instantly seal the chakra in their body, turning into fiery chains that burn the target's body.
Since Hozuki Castle was established, very few prisoners have been able to escape from it, largely thanks to this ninjutsu.
For most people, this move alone was enough to make them submit.
But clearly, for Kisame and Uchiha Itachi, it was meaningless.
"Hehe, this mission isn't simple."
Kisame walked into Hozuki Castle, a ferocious smile on his face.
They had chanced upon this bounty mission at a money exchange station.
The mission requirement prioritized those with large amounts of chakra, which was a perfect fit for Kisame, the "Tailless Tailed Beast."
But looking at it now, there seemed to be some problems.
"However..."
Kisame drew Samehada and slung it across his shoulder, his tone playful: "No matter what they want to do, they can't possibly trap us. At worst, we'll just slaughter everyone in this whole castle."
With that, he quickened his pace.
Uchiha Itachi looked at Kisame's back, remained silent for a moment, then also followed.
As more and more people began to enter Hozuki Castle, even the number of guards inside began to increase.
Mui even, contrary to his usual practice, directly opened the main gate of Hozuki Castle, only allowing entry and no exit.
Some people who wanted to leave after entering were directly branded with the Heavenly Prison seal by Mui, unable to use their chakra and imprisoned within Hozuki Castle.
This display had already made some of the more sensitive people notice that something was wrong.
"Why have so many people come in today? What on earth does that bastard Mui want to do?"
"Never mind them. The more people, the better. It'll be more convenient for me to fish in troubled waters then!"
But besides Mui and his confidants, no one knew what was about to happen.
These extremely vicious prisoners, incarcerated in Hozuki Castle, were single-mindedly looking for a chance to escape.
And those who had just entered Hozuki Castle were also silently waiting.
...
Meanwhile.
Menma in the distance had taken in all of this.
"Truly an unexpected discovery, to actually run into the Akatsuki here."
Menma rubbed his chin, thinking to himself: "Is this Kusagakure's decision, or Mui's alone?"
Uzumaki clan members, the so-called "Tailless Tailed Beast" Kisame, and these miscellaneous bounty ninja present...
"Could it be for the Box of Ultimate Bliss?"
In Menma's memory, the Box of Ultimate Bliss could only be opened after absorbing enough chakra.
On the surface, it was said to be able to grant the opener's wish, but its true function was to release a monster named "Satori."
Although the timing was a bit off, considering the influence of the butterfly effect and the like, Menma couldn't rule out this possibility.
"Genjutsu - Kyōka Suigetsu (Flower in the Mirror, Moon on the Water)!"
Chakra surged within Menma's body, the air around him rippling like waves.
This genjutsu could erase his own presence; as long as he wasn't detected by sensory ninjutsu, he would be very difficult to discover.
Soon, Menma silently blended into the prison cells of Hozuki Castle.
The air inside the prison was very damp and filled with a foul stench.
"Looks like this is the place."
Menma frowned the entire time as he walked through the prison, until he came to a closed iron door.
This was the location his Kagura Shingan had sensed. If there were no surprises, there should be over a dozen Uzumaki clansmen inside.
Click~
Menma gently opened the door, but it still made a crisp sound.
The light from the torches in the corridor shone into the cell, allowing Menma to vaguely make out the situation inside.
Although there were men and women, old and young, they all wore heavy shackles on their feet and hands.
And all of them had an emaciated, pale, and miserable appearance, their bodies also emitting an unbearable stench.
Their originally vibrant red hair had now become dry and gray.
Menma took a few steps forward, coming before these people.
Upon seeing him enter, a few children subconsciously hid behind the adults.
The others all showed looks of tension and unease.
"I never thought the survivors of the Uzumaki clan would be reduced to such a state."
Menma said in a low voice: "If you don't want to die here, then leave with me immediately."
As soon as these words were spoken, the Uzumaki clansmen present were instantly stunned.
But as they looked at each other, hesitation and timidity appeared.
Ever since the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, they, the Uzumaki survivors, had become homeless.
Their straightforward personalities had led them to suffer many hardships in the process.
Finally, they were even abducted to the Land of Grass to become "medical supplies."
Originally, there were twenty-three of them, but now only fifteen remained.
Now, a person suddenly popped up, saying he would save them.
They simply couldn't believe this masked man.
Seeing this, Menma fixed his gaze on the oldest man among them.
"You should be the elder Kana mentioned, right?"
Saying this, he took out Uzumaki Kana's token and tossed it to the Uzumaki elder.
Looking at the "Uzumaki Kana" engraved on the token, the originally calm Uzumaki elder was instantly stunned.
"This is... Kana's token..."
Immediately, he seemed to understand something.
He abruptly looked up at Menma, his originally cloudy eyes suddenly glowing with light.
"You... sir... are you really here to save us?"
The other clansmen also snapped back to reality upon hearing this.
Since the elder said so, then it means...
Everyone thought of the same thing in unison, their eyes looking at Menma filled with hope and longing.
It was the hope for life.
"Follow me."
Menma turned around, his tone calm: "You won't be able to participate in the battle to come."
(End of Chapter)
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