Becomes a Rebel Ninja After Annihilating the Hyuga Clan
Chapter 121

"It seems like Terumi Mei… has been spotted outside the village…"

Fuguki Suikazan had already heard from the Mizukage's advisor that Terumi Mei was likely a traitor. Everything they were arranging in the village was to defend against her potential invasion—even though she hadn't arrived yet, the rising tensions had made the entire Mist Village feel the impending storm.

The arrival of a Mist Anbu operative confirmed their worst fears.

"So, she’s finally come…" Suikazan sneered, his expression darkening.

Although both Suikazan and Terumi Mei were elite jonin of the Mist Village, Suikazan, a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, couldn't compare to Terumi Mei, who was a candidate for the title of Mizukage.

That woman might appear charming and alluring on the surface, but in reality, she was already thirty years old—a veteran of the previous three Great Ninja Wars and someone with deep roots in the Mist Village.

She also possessed two incredibly rare Kekkei Genkai, and among the younger generation of the village, only the Jinchuriki like Yagura and Fuguki could match her in a one-on-one battle.

However, because of differing ideals and conflicts of interest, despite her power and experience, Terumi Mei was not fully supported by the Mist Village elders and other ninja clans. As a result, her aspirations for the Mizukage title seemed a long way off, likely requiring another decade or more of waiting.

This was one of the reasons why Terumi Mei was so eager to push for war against Konoha during the Fourth Great Ninja War.

She had the experience. She had the strength. But she still lacked the accomplishments.

Particularly because the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, had caused chaos with his Blood Mist policies, resulting in internal unrest within the village. Many Mist Village shinobi had been forced to flee, and Terumi Mei was one of those caught in this turmoil.

However, where there is chaos, there is also opportunity.

If Terumi Mei could achieve victory in external conflicts, she would have the chance to assert her voice within the Mist Village. Many who could no longer tolerate Yagura's brutal policies would rally behind her, creating a significant force to oppose him. This was not hard to foresee, especially since most of the 200-plus ninja who had followed her into battle were already disillusioned with Yagura.

Nevertheless, Terumi Mei had underestimated the ruthlessness of internal Mist politics. Information about her forces leaving the village had been leaked to Konoha by spies, leading to the defeat of her troops in the Land of Waves.

"That failure of a woman… she actually dares to show her face here again?" Suikazan cursed, pushing open the door to the advisor’s room. "Advisor-sama, how many people has she brought this time? I'll go kill her right now!"

Though Suikazan knew he couldn’t defeat Terumi Mei—especially after recently losing his Samehada sword to the rogue ninja Kisame—he still wanted to show his loyalty to the advisor.

"She dares to conspire with outsiders to overthrow our village? I, Suikazan Fuguki, will be the first to stop her!"

Inside the room stood the advisor and his attendants, along with a blue-haired boy wearing glasses.

Hearing Suikazan’s words, the boy’s face shifted from shock to fear. He immediately stood up.

Suikazan glanced at him sideways, noticing the boy trembling, but the boy still mustered up the courage to speak, “That’s not true… Lady Terumi Mei would never conspire with outsiders!”

Suikazan raised an eyebrow. Seeing that the advisor wasn’t reacting, he grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt, lifting him off the ground as though he were a small chick. “And how would you know? Unless… you’re one of those traitors too?”

“N-no! I’m not!” the boy cried out in fear.

“Coward,” Suikazan snorted, tossing him back onto the floor. He knelt down, poking the boy’s forehead with his finger and saying mockingly, “I know who you are. Chojuro, one of the survivors of the Battle of the Land of Waves. I heard Terumi Mei saved you, huh? So now you think it’s your duty to speak up for her, is that it? Is that why they sent you to beg on her behalf?”

Chojuro was dumbfounded. He had never faced such intimidation before. Under Suikazan's sharp words, he couldn’t even manage to stammer out a “no.”

According to Suikazan’s twisted logic, anyone who defended Terumi Mei was clearly a traitor. And if they weren’t proven guilty yet, that just meant they were better at hiding it.

“He’s a good kid, just following the wrong person. Don’t scare him too much,” the advisor finally interjected, trying to calm the situation.

“Regardless, I’ll keep my eye on you,” Suikazan growled, glaring at Chojuro and making a throat-slitting gesture before standing up and plopping down on a nearby sofa.

Relieved from the immense pressure, Chojuro muttered under his breath, “I believe in Lady Terumi Mei,” while dusting himself off and standing up. However, seeing that the only seat had been taken by Suikazan, he awkwardly stood to the side.

In the midst of the tension-filled room, Suikazan finished his tea in one gulp, the cup clinking on the table as he asked calmly, “Advisor-sama, what is it you need me to do?”

“Terumi Mei has already left,” the advisor replied softly, not directly answering Suikazan’s question. “But she will return.”

Suikazan frowned. He had expected a fight. Why would she come and then leave so quickly?

“What does that mean? Why did she appear just to leave?” he asked, confused.

“She left before our people could reach her,” the advisor said, his voice heavy with coughs. “It seems she had no intention of meeting with us.”

“Then why show up at all?” Suikazan was even more baffled now.

“She left a message for the first Anbu who encountered her,” the advisor’s assistant explained, handing a folded letter to Suikazan.

As Suikazan scanned the contents of the letter, his eyes widened in fury. He slammed his fist on the table, shouting, “That wretched woman!!”

The letter contained nothing but a photo of the Fourth Mizukage Yagura, bound in chains, suspended over a dark abyss.

Because Yagura had fallen at the hands of Hashirama Senju, the photograph all but confirmed that Terumi Mei was being backed by the Leaf Village and, more specifically, by the Senju Clan.

This revelation validated the advisor’s suspicions: Terumi Mei had indeed become a pawn in an external plot to destabilize the Mist Village.

For a long time, the Mist had been divided between isolationists and those advocating for more openness. Isolationism had been the village’s tradition since its founding, while openness was a more radical idea introduced by the Second Mizukage, Gengetsu Hozuki.

However, after the Third Mizukage’s reign, the village had reverted to its isolationist ways, which reached their peak under Yagura’s brutal leadership. But Yagura’s bloody policies had garnered significant opposition, and the open faction, led by Terumi Mei, had once again gained support.

This was why, when rumors of Terumi Mei’s planned uprising began to spread, many within the village started making subtle moves, eager to see the tides of change.

Though not all these individuals were spies for Terumi Mei, many were aligned with her ideologically, hoping to support her once the revolution began.

By appearing and leaving a photo behind, Terumi Mei was intentionally provoking the isolationists while rallying the open faction, creating pressure within the village and setting the stage for a large-scale confrontation.

“No matter what Yagura has done, he is still the Mizukage of this village,” the advisor said, shaking his head. “By humiliating him in such a crude way, Terumi Mei has made a grave mistake. Even those who were neutral or sympathetic to her cause may now turn against her.”

Suikazan’s eyes lit up. “Shall we make the photo public?”

“No, we can’t afford that kind of disgrace. The open faction may not care about their reputation, but we do. They’ll lose face, and we’ll have to clean up the mess. Take this photo to the Hozuki Clan leader instead,” the advisor instructed.

The Hozuki Clan, from which the Second Mizukage had hailed, had always been staunch supporters of the open faction. The advisor wanted them to understand just how reckless their chosen leader, Terumi Mei, truly was.

“Is that all?” Suikazan asked.

“One more thing,” the advisor said after a moment’s thought, gesturing to Chojuro. “Next time she appears, I want you to be there immediately… and bring this boy with you.”

Suikazan frowned. He understood the need to be there quickly in case Terumi Mei attempted another stunt, but why bring the kid?

When Suikazan asked, the advisor replied simply, “If things go wrong, you can use him as leverage to keep yourself alive.”

“…”

Suikazan glanced at the bewildered Chojuro, then nodded reluctantly.

It made sense. If he got into a fight with Terumi Mei, using this boy as a hostage might actually save his life.

Although

Suikazan believed he could hold out against Terumi Mei long enough for reinforcements to arrive, it didn’t hurt to have a backup plan.

“You’re coming with me from now on!” Suikazan growled at Chojuro, who trembled like a frightened lamb. Given that the advisor himself had issued the order, there was no way for Chojuro to refuse.

“Any other orders, Advisor-sama?” Suikazan asked.

The advisor thought for a moment before muttering, “How is the ritual for Utakata's promotion progressing? We can’t delay his ascension any longer.”

Suikazan blinked in confusion, glancing at the assistant before bowing his head. “I’m not sure, Advisor-sama. I’m not responsible for that…”

The advisor stared at Suikazan for a long moment before nodding with a tired, “Oh,” as if finally remembering. “I apologize. I must be getting tired, my memory is slipping. That’s all for now, you may go…”

As Suikazan and Chojuro left the room, Suikazan paused just outside the door, placing his hand over Chojuro’s mouth. He quietly returned to the door, peeking through the crack to observe the room.

He made a quick hand seal, activating a Genjutsu Release.

Nothing changed. He watched for a long time, but there were no signs of anything unusual. It wasn’t until Chojuro bit his hand, gasping for air, that Suikazan finally left.

Out in the empty street, Suikazan glared at the bite mark on his hand, then at Chojuro. His expression was dark and menacing.

“You little brat, you almost caused a scene!”

“You… you were spying on the advisor…” Chojuro panted, glaring at Suikazan.

Suikazan stared at him for a moment, then snorted, lowering the fist he had raised to strike. “What do you know?”

“You accused Lady Terumi Mei of betrayal… and then you tried to harm the advisor!” Chojuro accused, trembling.

When did I accuse Terumi Mei of betrayal?

When did I try to harm the advisor?

Suikazan’s expression darkened even more, almost dripping with malice.

He muttered an insult under his breath but ultimately said nothing. He could understand how his actions might have been misinterpreted by someone like Chojuro, especially in such tense times.

After all, the advisor had mistaken Suikazan for someone else earlier. Perhaps his mind really was starting to slip…

Suikazan turned his thoughts elsewhere as he examined the photo once more. The mist around them gave the image a strange, ghostly glow.

Taking Chojuro with him, Suikazan arrived at the Hozuki Clan’s compound. Under the wary gaze of the clan’s guards, he explained his purpose and handed over the photograph.

“I hope this will wake them up…” Suikazan muttered. The Hozuki Clan held great influence within the Mist Village and beyond. Though they supported the open faction, their power was such that even the advisor hesitated to challenge them.

In the Mist Village, their importance was akin to the Hyuga Clan’s role in Konoha—a cornerstone of the village’s strength.

After waiting for a while, Suikazan wasn’t granted an audience with the clan leader. Instead, the guard returned, his expression unreadable.

“This photo… are you sure the advisor sent you with this?”

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