When Biwa Juzo and Itachi finally made it through the forest and reached the real Land of Water, both of them hesitated for a second.
This place looked more like some kind of fancy vacation resort.
It was nothing like the Land of Water Juzo remembered!
No "Bloody Mist Village," no terrifying punishments, no thick fog. None of that.
The place had a calm, peaceful vibe. The streets were full of people and shops, loud and crowded.
Even though the two of them had traveled to a lot of places, they had never seen anything this big and busy.
Juzo's brow ridge — even though he had no eyebrows — was almost twisted into a knot. He stepped forward, then stepped back into the shade of the trees.
The shadows moved across his face, making his expression shift with the light.
Juzo took a deep breath and muttered with doubt,
"What's going on? Did we come to the wrong place?"
"How could a reform go this far? Whoever's in charge must've been hit in the head at least three times."
Itachi had never actually been to the Land of Water before, but that nickname "Bloody Mist" wasn't just made up.
They'd also heard during earlier missions that Kirigakure had started offering shelter for people being targeted for assassination.
Still, this wide-open, welcoming vibe didn't make sense at all.
You could even just pay a fee and walk right in.
Seriously, what other ninja village is this easy to enter these days?
"No, it's the right place."
Even though Itachi was suspicious, the sign at the entrance clearly showed that they were at the Daimyo's separate residence—not far from Kirigakure.
"To be honest, I'm kind of curious about this place now."
"Whoever took over as Mizukage after Yagura died, they sure managed to turn things around fast."
Juzo raised an eyebrow with real interest. He had originally left Kirigakure and become a rogue ninja because he couldn't stand the cruel rule there.
Life hadn't been easy since, but at least he wasn't stuck in the village waiting for someone to kill him.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen used to be under the direct command of the Mizukage and took on extremely dangerous missions.
Most of them ended up leaving the village because of how crazy Yagura's leadership was.
But if the village was being run like it looked now, people would be rushing to get in—not trying to escape.
Still, they were just passing through. Their job came first.
After a brief look around, the two of them followed the mountains and silently snuck into the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Water.
Assassinations usually happen at night, after all—when no one is watching.
Not long after sunset, Itachi and Biwa Juzo began to move.
A few Kirigakure Anbu were standing outside, but before they could say anything, Itachi's Sharingan knocked them out cold.
The sharp smell of blood quickly filled the wooden house, but no one along the way even had time to let out a proper scream.
Only a few muffled groans were heard before everything went quiet again. The two of them completed the mission almost without any trouble.
...
While Itachi and Biwa Juzo were sneaking into the Daimyo's residence, Hozuki Mangetsu received the photos collected by the Anbu.
Because of the distance and other issues, the photos were a bit blurry and shaky.
A big sword in hand, a huge X-shaped scar on the right side of his face, and red markings faintly visible on the lower half of his face.
Although Hozuki Mangetsu hadn't been Mizukage for long, he could still recognize the missing-nin from his own village.
He hadn't removed the rule Yagura had set back then—there was still a squad for tracking and killing rogue ninjas. The moment any of them returned, info would be gathered and they'd be eliminated.
"I'll go follow those two myself."
"Also, give these photos to Teacher Satoru—he'll probably have something planned."
Sending only Anbu to tail those two was not much different from sending them to die. After all, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were still a big deal.
But Hozuki Mangetsu didn't remember much about them. Back when they worked for the Mizukage, he was still just a little kid.
After finishing the mission, Itachi and Biwa Juzo slipped into a nearby forest, planning to lay low for a bit before heading into Kirigakure to look for info about the Three-Tails.
They had barely taken a few steps when the sound of light footsteps suddenly came from behind.
Ting ting clang clang. After a few faint sounds, Kunai suddenly shot out and pinned down the branches they had just stepped on.
"Even with all the reforms, this part hasn't changed at all!"
Biwa Juzo quickly turned to look. Behind them was a group of masked Anbu—there was no mistaking who they were.
Kirigakure's squad for hunting rogue ninjas.
"Kirigakure's—!?"
Just as Biwa Juzo landed and was about to blow out a thick mist, something yanked hard on his ankle from below, catching him off guard.
Before he could even use his jutsu, he was pulled straight to the ground.
Right by his foot, in a small puddle, a hand reached out from the water!
"Itachi! Tactic C!"
Biwa Juzo shouted sharply, and the Kirigakure Anbu froze for a moment.
Right then, Itachi slashed Biwa Juzo across the waist with a Kunai.
Blood splattered everywhere as Itachi's Sharingan spun wildly—he glared fiercely at the surrounding Anbu.
At that moment, the hand from the puddle suddenly gave a childish-sounding warning:
"Don't look into his eyes!"
But it was too late—some of the Anbu had already looked at the badly injured Biwa Juzo. Snapping out of it at the shout, they quickly turned away and started attacking Itachi.
But once you've looked, it's already done. The moment Itachi turned his eyes slightly, several of the Anbu dropped to the ground with a thud, completely unconscious.
The Biwa Juzo that had been cut in half turned into a puddle of water in an instant.
The hand reaching from the water grabbed nothing but air.
Itachi dodged the shuriken thrown at him by nearby Anbu, lowered his stance slightly, and quickly pulled out a Kunai, throwing it straight at the hand.
Just as expected, the moment the Kunai hit, the hand shattered and melted back into the water.
The real Biwa Juzo had already taken down a few of the Anbu who hadn't fallen under genjutsu and was now standing next to Itachi.
Another hand started to rise again from the puddle, but Itachi raised a hand to his mouth and suddenly breathed out a blast of fire.
"Fire Release! Fireball Jutsu!"
A huge, blazing red fireball instantly swallowed the small pool of water completely.
Biwa Juzo tugged at his clothes, still a little shaken—that fireball had nearly roasted him too.
"Didn't get him."
Itachi watched as the flames shrank, frowning slightly in discomfort.
This kind of Ninjutsu that moves through water was probably a special technique only used by Kirigakure Village.
"How could a fireball like that possibly kill me?!"
A young, childlike voice rang out. Not far away, under a tree, a splash of white liquid quickly came together, forming the shape of a person.
"A kid?!"
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