Chapter 131: Captured
"Captain, is this the one we're after?"
Not far from the fierce battle between Uchiha Kei and the Mist nin, deep within the forest, a group of masked Mist Anbu were swiftly retreating.
One of them had a girl slung over his shoulder—Nohara Rin.
They were the ones responsible for Rin's abduction.
In truth, they had noticed Kei's battle quite early on, and had used it as the perfect distraction to sneak closer and execute their mission undetected.
There were more than a dozen of them, and their objective was highly classified:
Capture this Konoha kunoichi, seal something "interesting" inside her, and send her back to Konoha… where chaos would erupt.
They didn't fully understand why she had been singled out, but that wasn't their concern.
They were Anbu.
Especially Mist Anbu.
And they knew better than to question orders.
Their duty was to carry them out.
"Yes," the Mist captain nodded. "She's the target. I don't know exactly why the Mizukage gave this order, but our grudge with Konoha justifies the risk."
"True," another Anbu chimed in. "There's no way we can let Konoha keep winning without any setbacks."
Some murmurs of agreement followed.
"But… the elders don't seem to fully trust us," one of them added, then hesitated. "Otherwise—"
"Enough," the captain cut in coldly. "Focus on your mission.
And don't forget the genjutsu. We can't let her commit suicide."
"…Poor girl," one Anbu muttered under his breath. "No idea how long she can keep it together…"
But the moment the squad captain shot him a glare, he quickly shut up.
"Understood. We'll handle it properly."
---
Meanwhile—
"Not bad… two kekkei genkai, huh?"
Uchiha Kei slowly drew his blade from the woman's shoulder.
The woman—who did indeed appear to be Terumi Mei—was completely paralyzed by his Raikiri technique.
Her entire body was overwhelmed by lightning chakra.
She couldn't move.
Couldn't speak.
She was finished.
Uchiha Kei was now certain—the woman before him was indeed Terumi Mei, the future Mizukage who would one day end the nearly decade-long period of leadership vacuum in the Hidden Mist.
But one thing puzzled him:
Why was she here?
It didn't make sense. Could his own appearance in this world have inadvertently become the flap of a butterfly's wing, altering history in unforeseen ways?
Still, Kei didn't dwell on it. Whether she lived or died didn't concern him. Mizukage or not, it made no difference.
If Terumi Mei died, someone else would simply rise to take her place.
Just like how Obito had been chosen by Madara Uchiha—partly by chance, partly by necessity. It wasn't fate. Just contingency.
After all, the Fourth Raikage was preparing to convene the Five Kage Summit, and the former Mist elder was no longer fit to rule.
Kei stared coldly at the woman before him. Although her back was still to him and her face was obscured by a mask, he could easily imagine her current expression—pale, grim, and likely filled with dread.
Once Kei fully withdrew his blade from her back, he casually twirled it before resting the edge against her neck.
By now, the thick mist had begun to dissipate—likely because the Mist nin responsible for maintaining it had all been killed. With no one left to sustain the jutsu, the fog was naturally vanishing.
"Speak. Why are you here?" Kei asked calmly.
Still, his senses remained on high alert. After all, Obito could show up at any moment.
"Humph!" Terumi Mei snorted coldly. She was clearly despairing, but she had no intention of answering him.
"Stubborn, are we?" Kei gave a faint, amused smile. "That's fine. I've got a bit of patience left—especially for someone with two kekkei genkai. I'm very... patient when it comes to rare bloodlines."
"Kill me. I won't say a word," she replied, her voice weak from paralysis, but still firm and resolute.
Kei's smile deepened.
Did this woman really think he wouldn't kill her?
He already had a clear idea of their purpose here—it was all for Obito's Mangekyō awakening. Whether Terumi Mei spoke or not didn't really matter.
Looking at the kneeling woman, Kei felt no pity.
Sure, it was a shame she'd taken this mission, but her fate was already sealed.
Dead is dead. Whether by his hand or Obito's—what difference did it make?
In fact, Kei preferred clean solutions. And when it came to problems, his approach was simple:
Eliminate them completely.
People like Kitsuchi had simply been lucky to survive multiple encounters with him.
Just as Kei was about to end it painlessly, a sudden shout rang out:
"Stop!"
Kei frowned slightly. Though his blade remained pressed against Terumi Mei's neck, he did pause.
Looking up, he couldn't help but chuckle at the sight—Ao, of all people, was approaching with Hyūga Ayaka at kunai-point, using her as leverage.
But Ao knew better than to get too close. He stopped about twenty meters away, maintaining a safe distance to avoid any unexpected retaliation.
"Let her go," Ao said coldly. "Or I'll kill your comrade."
Kei raised an eyebrow in amusement. "What's wrong with you?
Do you really think I'm that easy to fool?"
His voice was mocking as he smirked.
"You want to trade a Hyūga branch family girl for a Mist ninja with two bloodline limits?
Did you hit your head this morning?"
Ao's face darkened. He couldn't deny it—no one with half a brain would agree to such a trade.
Internally, he cursed Terumi Mei for revealing her kekkei genkai in the first place. But truth be told, if she hadn't, she would've been dead by now.
Ao had been using his Byakugan the entire battle.
He knew just how dangerous these "teenage brats" from Konoha truly were.
Judging from the state of their squad—only he and Terumi Mei were left alive—
The rest of their team had been completely annihilated.
That Mist ninja who'd been slashed open by Kei had finally succumbed to blood loss and died in agony.
You could say they'd been careless. Or you could say Konoha had dispatched a group of monsters. Either way, their operation was a complete failure.
Now, Ao's only goal was to preserve their most valuable asset—Terumi Mei.
"Release her," Ao said with a deep breath. "And I'll release the Hyūga girl. I swear I won't attack you."
"Oh? That's quite the generous offer," Kei tilted his head, but his hand subtly shifted.
"But tell me—what makes you think you can defeat me?
Your Byakugan?"
As he spoke, Kei's blade dragged slightly against Terumi Mei's neck, leaving a fine red line as blood began to bead along the cut.
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