Chapter 792 : Losing a 'few' hairs (Patreon)

Konomi's eyes twitched as she insisted, “Yes, them. You know what I am talking about!”
Fujin indifferently answered, “I really don't know.”

Speechless at Fujin's indifference, Konomi could only stare at him continuously. It was almost as if she wouldn't leave until Fujin answered her. The situation was too serious to be ignored in her opinion. Finally, Fujin sighed and said, “Tell me, were they cremated?”
Konomi nodded.
Fujin replied, “Good, were their ashes dispersed?”
Konomi nodded again.
Fujin asked again, “Were our ninjas involved in the matter warned?”
Konomi answered, “Yes, they know about the consequences if they open their mouths.”

Fujin instructed, “Good, you should forget about it too then. Don't mention it in any reports and delete it from your brain. You shouldn't stress yourself over such pointless matters. Now go back to your subordinates. They need their general to lead the way.”

Without waiting for her response, Fujin just flickered away. While he understood her concerns, he had no reason to worry about that issue. That was Shikaku and the Hokage's job, and Fujin had zero intention of forcefully taking either of their jobs.

Unaware of his true thoughts, Konomi was left dumbfounded. She couldn't help but wonder, ‘Is it really that simple? I know they have their issues, but would merely feigning ignorance be enough?’
Her mind refused to accept that it was. However, she wasn't the commander. She couldn't refuse a direct command from Fujin. If she did, she could face the same consequences as others despite her rank.



The Konoha army finally entered the Land of Fire and moved towards the Fire Capital. Hoka's and Illumi's divisions were also headed in that direction. Meanwhile, on the eastern borders of the Land of Rice, a force stayed with solemn expressions on their faces.

C muttered in a grave tone, “It has been quite some time since we sent the orders. Yet, 206 ninjas have still not returned…”

Darui and Samui stood silently. They were still in disbelief that Kumo suffered another massive loss in such a short span! Yugito said, “Maybe they were held back for some reason. They might return in a few more hours.”

Even though she said that Yugito didn't have much confidence in her words. It would have been understandable if a few squads were held up. However, nearly two-thirds of the ninjas being late spelled trouble. There was no doubt that something bad had happened. However, it was a scenario they just couldn't accept.

Samui muttered, “Yes, let's wait…”

Nobody opposed her suggestion. Unfortunately, it wouldn't matter how long they waited. Even if they deployed Kumogakure's entire army in the Land of Rice, they wouldn't even find the ashes of the remaining ninjas. Those Kumo ninjas were simply unlucky to encounter Konoha's forces long before Kumogakure received the news of Fujin's expedition in the Land of Rice. Had it been someone else, they might have avoided conflict, but Fujin didn't see any reason to not accept the offerings from Kumogakure.

Combined with the deaths caused by Kimimaro, Kumogakure lost another 222 ninjas! In the span of a month, Kumogakure had lost 1036 ninjas! Ay was about to face another internal storm inside his village.



On the opposite side of the continent, a few more important developments took place. Due to Mangetsu's intervention, the Mizukage faction's main forces were spared from a devastating defeat. The two main armies fought and suffered equally before withdrawing. The rebel's plans to deliver a crushing blow had failed. However, there was another crucial development, one that would play a huge role in future conflicts.


Mei took deep breaths. She looked completely exhausted and her chakra reserves were almost dry. Her clothes were in tatters and the flesh on her left arm was mangled badly, almost as if several explosive tags had exploded on her arm. Deep cuts were visible on her abdomen, showing how difficult her battle was.

A rebel Jounin flickered behind her and respectfully said, “Lady Mei, the Mizukage faction has retreated. We need to treat you right away.”

Mei didn't move and asked, “How is Ao?”
The Jounin answered, “His condition has stabilized. He isn't in danger any more.”

Mei relaxed slightly but still didn't accept his help. Instead, she looked at a melting corpse in front of her. She let out a tired sigh and muttered, “Did you have to fight me until such a stage? Why didn't you accept my offer?”

The unrecognizable corpse in front of her was none other than Hozuki Mangetsu, a ninja who had mastered all seven swords of the Mist!

Mei sighed again and grabbed four swords that floated towards her. She muttered, “Spread the news. The Mizukage faction's last Swordsman of the Mist is dead. I will revive the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist! Also, destroy his body. Someone like Orochimaru shouldn't get his hands on it.”

Among the seven swords, Samehada was with Kisame, Kubikiribocho was in Konoha, Kiba blades were secretly with Fujin and the last four swords were with the Mizukage faction. In the absence of any suitable members, Mangetsu carried all the swords with him. Considering that he was the strongest ninja after Yagura and could use all four swords, no one opposed him. However, with his death, all four swords landed in Mei's hands.

The news of Mangetsu's death and the loss of the swords soon spread among both factions in the Land of Water. The Mizukage faction was demoralized. While Yagura was the leader of the Mizukage faction, Mangetsu was the one who led their forces. And, he was the only one who could match Mei on the battlefield. His loss was a huge blow to the Mizukage faction!

On the other hand, the rebel camp was even more tense and demoralized. Even Mei wasn't happy. While Mangetsu's death was definitely good news, they all were worried about what followed. So far, Yagura hadn't joined the civil war. However, Mangetsu's death would force him to join the frontlines. Every single rebel was worried about facing his rampage on the battlefield!

The rebel leaders were no exception. None of them had any confidence in going against Yagura. Even though Mei won against Mangetsu, her victory was hard fought. There were several instances when she almost died. In addition, her subordinates were much stronger than Mangetsu's underlings. They helped her by ganging up on him. Without them, she could have been the one to lose her life. As such, she knew that she didn't stand a chance against Yagura.

The battles in the Land of Water stopped temporarily as both camps waited to see how the Fourth Mizukage would react. While they waited, news spread throughout the ninja world.



In Iwagakure, Onoki read several reports and thought, ‘The civil war in Kiri is finally in the ending stages. It'll be interesting to see how this ends. The Fourth Mizukage is a perfect Jinchuriki. Even without the Tailed Beast, he's a formidable shinobi. Do the rebels have the means to defeat someone like that?’

Onoki thought a bit before shaking his head, ‘It doesn't matter. As long as the two factions don't unite, Kiri would be severely weakened. Even though they have lost the most among any great village, their ninjas are also the most prepared for a war. So, despite their lower numbers, they could cause trouble to any major village. However, if a faction is completely wiped out, that would no longer be the case.’

Onoki shifted his gaze to another report and a puzzled expression appeared on his face. He wondered, ‘What is that Ay brat up to? Why are Kumo's forces so erratic? It almost feels like he's up to something, but it doesn't feel like he's preparing for war. Did he suffer some loss again?’



Just like the reports stated, panic had gripped Kumogakure. Ay was facing endless headaches and he couldn't even lash out in rage for the blame lay with him once again! 16 ninjas had died and 206 went missing. Kumogakure became the first village in the history of the ninja world to have 864 ninjas classified as ‘missing’ at the same time, breaking their previous record of 658 ‘missing’ ninjas!

Sitting on his desk, Ay couldn't help but wonder, ‘Even though he didn't have any proof, Darui said that he believed Suzuki Fujin was involved in the previous incident. This time, he is definitely involved. I can understand if my ninjas die. I could accept responsibility and take revenge. However, what do I do when they go missing? How do hundreds of ninjas even go missing???’

The more he thought, the more enraged the Fourth Raikage became. Fujin's actions had completely infuriated him. Unfortunately, he couldn't act. The internal politics were a complete mess! He couldn't afford to take a step outside the village.



While Ay lost more than a few hairs due to the headache, Suna's council met once again. In front of them was a scroll. Everyone looked at it solemnly. Finally, Goza muttered, “Konoha finally sent an official message. They want to talk with us in the Fire Capital.”