Naruto: I, the villain template, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 99 Madara's Miscalculation: An Unexpected Pawn (Seeking Monthly Tickets!!)

The Land of Water.

As far as the eye could see, there was only a vast expanse of white mist, which completely obscured the faint light of day.

Looking into the distance, only a blurry black shadow could be seen hidden beneath the clouds, its misty outline melting into a hazy, milky white.

Kirigakure is always shrouded in mist, with even the towering water tower hidden in the fog.

It looked as if they were shrouded in a white curtain, and the villagers walked in the fog, turning up their collars to cover their mouths and noses.

Perhaps they always believed that when the wind came and the fog cleared, the sun would shine.

But the wind never came; if it had, the fog would have dissipated long ago.

It's as if the noisy winds of the outside world, having traveled a long way, leave behind all the noise and disturbances along the way, leaving only quiet solitude.

Therefore, no matter what happens in this village, the ninja village of the great nation living on the mainland can hardly hear the wind blowing from Kirigakure, and can only ever hear "as usual".

However, this time, they encountered an exception.

The noisy wind outside blew into Kirigakure, and the wind in Kirigakure also blew elsewhere, as if the entire ninja world was filled with the sound of wind.

"Lord Third Generation, Suigetsu Hozuki and Setsukatsuki's operation has failed."

The Third Mizukage simply stood in front of the only window of the Mizukage Building, looking down at the slightly dimly lit Mizukage in the thick fog, and at the crowd crawling on the ground like ants below.

In the village shrouded in white mist, a lingering, bloody stench gradually seeped into the Water Shadow's office, eventually filling the entire space.

"fail?"

After a long silence, the Third Mizukage, who had been keeping his eyes closed, seemed to look away and gaze at Yagura, whose forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat.

"Yes, Lord Sandai."

Even though the other person's eyes were still closed, Yagura felt a chill when they looked over. He instinctively lowered his head further and whispered, "I've received word that the intrusion operation failed."

"..."

A flicker of pain seemed to cross the Third Mizukage's deathly still face, but he quickly fell silent and listless once more.

It was a very brief and subtle change, but Yagura, who had just slightly raised his eyes, took it all in, and his brows furrowed unconsciously.

"That's truly amazing news."

The Third Mizukage slowly turned around, looking out the window with his back to Yagura, and said, "So, where are Suigetsu Hozuki and Setsukatsuki now? Have they lost the courage to face me?"

Upon hearing this, Yagura cleared his mind of its jumbled thoughts, replaced by a deeper and more complex feeling of frustration.

"I apologize, Lord Third Generation."

Even though he had been horrified before coming, Yagura's expression was still unusual when he brought it up again. He said in a deep voice, "They may not be able to come to you in person to report on their duties and admit their crimes."

"Because the decapitation squad led by Suigetsu Hobuki, which included Miyajo Mamoru, Kurihara Kushimaru, Kurosuki Raiga, and Murashi Jinpachi, as well as the main force led by Setsukatsu... have all died in the Land of Whirlpools."

"Furthermore, based on our current intelligence, no survivors have been found!"

After saying that, he slightly raised his eyelids again, but this time he only saw the back of the Third Mizukage.

Yagura, however, felt that sense of unease growing stronger.

"...What happened?"

The Third Mizukage paused slightly before continuing in a calm tone, "Even if Konoha intervened in time and caused the mission to fail, they couldn't all have died in the Land of Whirlpools."

Yagura naturally understood what he meant. Given Suigetsu Hobutsuki's shrewd nature, he would have run away as soon as he noticed anything unusual.

Even if everyone else were sacrificed by him, he would not die in the Land of Whirlpools for no reason. He would not care about the success or failure of the mission, nor would he care about the life or death of his so-called companions.

Because he was the Third Mizukage's right-hand man, at most he would be questioned by the higher-ups after his return. The Third Mizukage would only give him a symbolic punishment, and no one would dare to oppose the Third Mizukage's current decision.

"Perhaps in the teacher's eyes, the importance of Suigetsu Hobutsu has already surpassed that of me," Yagura thought to himself.

But now, Suigetsu Hozuki is dead...

"Based on the evidence and intelligence we have gathered, it appears that someone knew about our operation in advance and carried out a targeted ambush and attack."

At this point, Yagura paused suddenly and said in a low voice, "I received news from the underground money exchange that many bounties against Kirigakure have been claimed, including those of Suigetsu Hobuki and his gang."

"Furthermore, based on the traces at the scene, we concluded that perhaps, possibly, or probably not the work of Konoha, but rather an unknown force."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding air seemed to quiet down.

"..." the Third Mizukage repeated, "Not the work of Konoha? An unknown force?"

Let alone the old man hiding in the shadows, Yagura himself began to doubt his own speculation.

With the secret guidance and assistance of White Zetsu, the intelligence department had already thoroughly investigated the background of those few old, weak, sick, and disabled people in the Land of Whirlpools.

Unless Konoha is truly sincere and willing to risk everything to aid the Land of Whirlpools upon receiving intelligence of Kirigakure's unusual movements, it is unlikely they can stop Kirigakure's attack.

Otherwise, with only the two or three people from the Land of Whirlpools, who were already indulging in a false peace, they would be completely unable to deal with the premeditated actions of the Hidden Mist Village.

But reality is just that absurd...

"Although we did not find the body of Suigetsu Fuguki, the bodies of the others who had their heads cut off have been recovered."

Yagura lowered his head, utterly perplexed, yet still truthfully stated, "Based on our calculations of the battle traces at the scene in the Land of Whirlpools, even if we find it hard to believe, the conclusion remains the same."

Those marks certainly didn't seem to be the work of Konoha.

Because Konoha can't find another "White Fang".

After recounting his and others' deductions, Yagura seemed to sense something and slightly raised his head.

Upon seeing the Third Mizukage, whose aura was chilling, his terrifying chakra had materialized and flowed like water across his body.

The atmosphere in the entire space gradually became incredibly heavy, making it difficult for Yagura to move or breathe.

"I don't want to hear about anyone's death right now. Those who failed in their mission deserve to die."

The Third Mizukage turned his head slightly, seemingly looking at Yagura, and said with a hint of coldness in his originally calm tone, "I just want to know how many Uzumaki clan members have survived, and where those survivors went."

Since Suigetsu and the others are already dead, and things are beyond repair, it no longer matters.

Moreover, the Third Mizukage didn't care about the life or death of his "tools".

If a good "tool" breaks, you can just replace it with a slightly inferior one.

The most important thing now is...

Where did this pawn suddenly appear from to cause trouble behind the scenes, managing to evade the eyes of Uchiha Madara, the player of the game?

Not only did it completely disrupt his plan to wipe out the Uzumaki clan, but it also put his "Third Mizukage" pawn in a brief and embarrassing situation where no one was available to use him!

(End of this chapter)