Watching the two who had disappeared, the scorpion-faced one was expressionless, but his hands were slowly and methodically preparing poison, getting ready for the upcoming battle.
Lately, Juzo had been acting a bit strange, Hoshigaki Kisame was probably sent to keep an eye on him.
Everyone in the organization harbored ulterior motives, the most pure among them was actually Kakuzu.
Even Kakuzu was sharp-minded; after all, he had lived so many years, and he was aware of the surface-level unity within the organization.
But after all, it was a rogue ninja organization. Basically every member was a bloodthirsty maniac.
An organization as stable as Akatsuki was already very rare. As long as Pain was around, this organization would not fall apart.
Zetsu moved silently, emerging from a tree, "This time, what are you planning to do?"
Obito sat on a tree branch, looking at the still-lit village of Konoha in the distance.
"The Uchiha's counterattack this time was completely unexpected and disrupted all my plans."
"But it's hard to approach the Uchiha now, so I have to go somewhere else."
Zetsu didn't ask much more. Anyway, as long as Obito didn't run into Uchiha who could counter his space-time jutsu, he was still pretty safe.
"Kisame was sent by you?", Zetsu asked.
Obito shook his head, "After he joined the organization, I haven't contacted him. He probably discovered something on his own."
"Konoha is quite lively now," Obito chuckled lightly, then entered the Kamui space.
Zetsu muttered to himself, "Did we ever tell him that Kakashi's eye was gouged out?"
He spoke again, his tone a bit frivolous, "Probably not, and he didn't ask."
Zetsu let out a mocking laugh, 'Fine, I'll tell him next time.'
———
Juzo moved continuously under the cover of night, occasionally stopping to look at the Kirigakure markers.
Although the Akatsuki organization was acting jointly this time, its control over members wasn't very strict.
Juzo simply used an excuse of gathering intelligence to come out.
Whether or not the organization suspected him, he didn't know.
But this time he couldn't worry about that, because the Fourth Mizukage had come in person.
After arriving at a location, Juzo formed hand seals.
Immediately, a large amount of mist filled the air, and the surroundings turned into a white haze.
In the middle of the night, as long as there were low-lying puddles in the forest, such fog was very normal.
But Juzo was using this jutsu to signal that he had arrived.
From the thick fog, two figures, one tall and one short, slowly walked out.
"You still came, Juzo," Karatachi Yagura hadn't changed much from back then. Green hair, purple eyes, a scar resembling a suture mark under his left eye, and a stick-shaped, flower-decorated weapon on his back.
Looking at Yagura, Juzo showed a somewhat complicated expression. He deeply loved his homeland.
But Yagura had pushed the Land of Water into an abyss; now the Land of Water had become incredibly weak.
Yet no one had expected that it wasn't Yagura's true will, he had been controlled.
Juzo fell silent for a moment, then spoke, "Long time no see, Fourth."
As one of the first generation Seven Ninja Swordsmen, they had all been subdued by Yagura.
Naturally, the two had some history.
Yagura didn't bother with much pleasantry, he simply said, "Right now, the Land of Water is extremely weak. This is a time when we need people."
"If you're willing to return, I'll pardon all your crimes."
Juzo gave a cold snort, "Fourth, isn't it a bit too late to say this now? Kirigakure is already finished."
Yagura slightly shook his head, "This is actually a great opportunity. As long as the scale of battle here expands, Kirigakure will still have time to develop."
Juzo looked surprised, "Fourth, you want another Shinobi World War?"
Yagura didn't reply, but he agreed with silence.
As someone who had defected from Kirigakure, he knew just how weak it was.
Now that Kirigakure was isolated from the world, it was hard for other villages to infiltrate with spies.
Otherwise, whether it was Konoha or Kumogakure, Kirigakure wouldn't be able to hold them off.
Yagura's method was simple and direct. Just trigger another Shinobi World War, and no one would care about Kirigakure.
After all, the most fertile land was the Land of Fire.
Whether it was Sunagakure or Kumogakure, they had long been eyeing that land.
Iwagakure wasn't harmless either. Onoki had lived through the First, Second, and Third World Wars, a long-lived Tsuchikage.
If given the chance, he too would bite a chunk out of the Land of Fire.
Only Kirigakure, isolated on the sea, could stay out of the mess.
"Fourth, you didn't just bring this junior with you, right?", Juzo looked at Momochi Zabuza beside Yagura. He recognized this man.
More accurately, most people from Kirigakure recognized him.
Back in Zabuza's childhood, the graduation requirement of the blood mist era ninja academy was mutual slaughter among students. Classmates who learned together, discussed dreams, and helped each other had to pick up weapons and fight to the death.
This inhuman and cruel system had lasted for who knows how long, and likely would've continued. At that time, the nine-year-old Zabuza stood out and slaughtered over a hundred examinees of that year's class.
With an even more extreme method, he forced Kirigakure to change its graduation rule.
Zabuza was clearly someone with ideals and action.
And back when Yagura was controlled, Zabuza even attempted to assassinate the Mizukage, trying to save Kirigakure again.
But he failed. Though gifted and skilled in assassination, the gap between him and a Jinchuriki of the Three-Tails was too great.
Zabuza could only flee from Kirigakure.
Fortunately, Obito had been killed once by Rengoku, allowing Yagura to escape the genjutsu control.
Because of the situation with Uchiha and Konoha, Yagura made up his mind and caught up to Zabuza.
Having learned the full truth, Zabuza still wanted to give it another shot with the Mizukage.
Even though it was very dangerous, Zabuza still followed.
For someone who loved his homeland this deeply, Juzo was actually already quite gentle toward Zabuza.
But for Zabuza, who was titled "Demon of the Hidden Mist," he was still somewhat rebellious.
"Juzo, you talk too much. If you're willing to come back, I'll call you senpai."
"If you're not willing to come back, then leave the Executioner's Blade(Kubikiribocho). That thing isn't your property."
Zabuza had always lacked a handy weapon, and his eyes had been circling Juzo's Executioner's Blade strapped to his back.
Yagura glanced at Zabuza, "I have my plans. Having Zabuza is enough."
After being controlled for so many years, the youthful spirit from when Yagura had first become a Jinchuriki was long gone.
His eyes were as still as dead water, faintly carrying the aura of death.
It was as if he wanted to do something for Kirigakure one last time before dying.
Juzo neither agreed nor refused, "Let me think about it."
Yagura was unaware that Juzo had joined the organization.
He didn't even know that the ones who had defeated him before, Konan, Pain, and others, were from the organization Juzo had joined.
"Konoha will be quite chaotic this time. Don't die," Leaving those words, Yagura took Zabuza and disappeared into the mist.
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