Chapter 34 Discovery of the Rogue Ninja Kurosuki Raiga
Lately, Kirigakure had been unsettled. Many civilians often caught sight of unfamiliar shinobi leaping across rooftops—something rarely seen before.
At the same time, rumors quietly spread among the common people, though most did not believe them.
Some said that the highly respected Elder Genji had stepped down, and the new elder was a young man.
Others whispered that a mysterious young man had moved into the Mizukage's residence.
Compared to civilians, the impact on Kirigakure's shinobi was far greater.
Every jonin vaguely understood just what kind of existence the young man now sitting in the elder's position truly was.
Yet while their hearts stirred, they deliberately kept this information hidden.
Yuto's true identity was classified as the highest-level secret in Kirigakure. Only jonin had the right to know; chunin and genin were completely unaware.
Meanwhile, another secret order had spread from the Mizukage's office: all high-ranking officials and jonin were to prepare in advance for war.
But the moment they learned Lord Yuto's identity, they had already been ready.
After all, the reason he had once been sealed away was known across the entire ninja world.
Unifying the ninja world had always been the greatest dream of every hidden village. Yet to this day, none had succeeded.
For most people, the word "war" carried rejection. But for two villages, it did not.
The first was Sunagakure. Their land was far too poor, and the only path to development was expansion. That was why they had never been fully reliable.
The second was Kirigakure. From the First Great Ninja War onward, the village had always been targeted. Especially the humiliation of the Fourth Mizukage being controlled—this was the greatest shame in the hearts of its shinobi, a flame burning within them all.
As for the other three villages: the Raikage of Kumogakure, A, was fiery and hawkish by nature.
Onoki of Iwagakure, an old relic who had lived until now, was not exactly a hawk, but he certainly was no dove either.
And Konoha? The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was an unwavering dove. His political style was far too soft, even allowing Danzo to build his own faction. Two voices existed within one power.
Danzo's faction was tolerated by Hiruzen, yet that was also the reason Danzo looked down on him the most.
As for theories like "roots underground, leaves above"—to Yuto, such talk was nothing but a joke.
Every power had both a bright side and a dark side. But Sarutobi Hiruzen only wanted to place himself in the light, pushing all the darkness onto Danzo.
Such a bizarre leader was never a true one.
And Danzo, in Yuto's eyes, was just as strange—one too good to be decisive, the other too evil to be thorough.
In the history of Konoha, Yuto believed only two had been true leaders: Senju Tobirama and Namikaze Minato.
Though their personalities differed, both shared the same decisiveness in action.
The ninja world now seemed calm, yet relations between villages had grown delicate. Decades had passed since the Third Great Ninja War, and every village had nearly restored its full strength.
What was missing was a spark.
In the original history, Akatsuki had served as that spark. But later, figures too overwhelming had appeared, forcing the Five Great Villages to unite.
Otherwise, once Akatsuki was defeated, the next step would have been chaos among the five villages themselves.
—
On a tall cliff.
"Akatsuki is too uncontrollable, and it's not the right time to approach them. A spark, then?"
Yuto sat at the edge, legs dangling, his eyes reflecting deep thought.
Suddenly, his gaze brightened, as if a new idea had struck him.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
A faint gust of wind came from ahead, and a palm-sized, water-blue butterfly fluttered before Yuto. After circling him a few times, it dissolved into a mist and vanished.
"Looks like news has arrived." A faint smile appeared on Yuto's face as he spoke with a chuckle.
The next moment, his figure disappeared.
—
Mizukage's Office.
Terumi Mei sat at her desk, brows furrowed as she sifted through reports, her expression tinged with worry.
"Well now, what could trouble the Mizukage so much?"
A teasing voice drifted into her ears.
Her eyes brightened with joy. She quickly looked up and saw Yuto, already seated casually on the sofa. "Lord Yuto, you're here!"
Yuto nodded, casually picking up an apple from the table and taking a bite. "Has there been word from that side?"
Terumi Mei lifted a scroll from the desk and tossed it to him.
As Yuto caught it, she spoke softly.
"According to the intelligence you provided, our people did find a village on the border between the Land of Water and the Land of Fire, where the number of funerals is unusually high."
"Our Anbu used genjutsu to control a villager and extracted information. Based on that, the rogue ninja Kurosuki Raiga is in that village."
Her face showed a trace of happiness. Among the former Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, only Chojuro remained loyal in the village. The others were either dead or had become rogues.
Now that Raiga's whereabouts had been discovered, it was truly good news for her.
Yuto glanced at the scroll. As expected, Raiga was still the same as in the original history—obsessed with funerals.
But these funerals were not for the naturally dead. They were for those Raiga personally killed, after which he would hold a funeral and weep bitterly.
It had to be said, Raiga was twisted in this regard.
"By the way, Lord Yuto, how did you know Raiga would hide in a village where funerals are common?"
Terumi Mei's eyes were filled with curiosity as she looked at him.
After all, they had sent countless people searching for rogue ninjas with no results. Yet a single word from Yuto had directly revealed Raiga's location.
"Nothing special. A few days ago, while reviewing his records, I noticed Raiga often attended funerals. So I simply thought of it."
Yuto replied calmly, not a hint of guilt in his voice.
(End of Chapter)
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