I, Naruto Uzumaki, don't need your approval.

He had considered dealing with the masked man, but his abilities only allowed him to go so far. He could only use the conflict between the masked man and Payne to free the village from its manipulated fate.

As for dealing with the masked man and the Akatsuki organization, that's definitely not something he could do alone.

As a rogue ninja, he was destined to be unable to gain the trust of the higher-ups. Now that Naruto has joined the party, things might take a turn for the better, but the possibility of a trap cannot be ruled out.

Ever since he was deceived by the masked man once, he has found it difficult to trust anyone else.

Naruto gave Kirigakure time to think for himself and looked towards the direction of Kirigakure. Many Kirigakure ninjas were heading towards the village, and the leader of them was Zabuza Momochi.

Upon spotting Naruto, Zabuza quickly signaled his subordinates to stay put and jogged over to Naruto.

Upon seeing the weakened Juzo Biwa and the broken Executioner's Blade, he hesitated before asking, "Lord Menma, is this rogue ninja Juzo Biwa one of your subordinates? He just attacked the village."

Naruto shook his head slightly: "He is not my subordinate, but the masked man's subordinate. However, he betrayed the masked man and risked his life to attack Kirigakure, just to make you notice the abnormality of the Fourth Mizukage."

Hearing this, Zabuza's gaze softened considerably as he looked at Juzo Biwa, but he still said, "In that case, could I take him back to the village? The information in his mind is very important to me and Mangetsu."

"Yes, you can take the Executioner's Blade with you, but it's best not to kill him or let anyone know he's still alive, otherwise it will be very troublesome for your Kirigakure."

Zabuza nodded and then walked to Juzo Biwa's side: "Senior Juzo, although I don't know whether you are a traitor or a loyalist, please come with me. We need information about your organization."

Juzo Biwa glanced at the Three-Tails raging in the distance, then sighed softly and followed behind Zabuza.

Zabuza had his subordinates find the corpse of a fallen Kirigakure ninja, placed it on the spot where Juzo Biwa was injured, destroyed it with Water Release, and then returned to Naruto's side.

"Lord Menma, we entrust the Fourth Hokage and the Masked Man to you. Mangetsu and I will provide satisfactory compensation."

Naruto glanced at Zabuza, who seemed a little guilty, bent down to pick up the Akatsuki ring, and looked at the Three-Tails in the distance, saying nonchalantly, "Don't worry, I can finish this battle in half an hour."

Chapter 109 The Pressure from the Three-Tails

What are the criteria for becoming a Shadow?

Whether it's becoming a disciple of the previous Hokage, gaining the villagers' approval, or simply passing the torch from father to son, those are all standards of Konoha, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure.

The criteria for Kirigakure are actually quite simple: defeat all competitors and possess the strength to suppress tailed beasts.

The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, rose to power in this way and led Kirigakure out of the quagmire of war, ending the battlefield with Sunagakure.

The awkward thing is that after the Fourth Mizukage became a manipulated puppet and was reduced to an opponent.

Kirigakure had no strong enough individuals to fight the Fourth Mizukage. Whether it was Ao with the Byakugan, Man-chan, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, or Mei Terumi with her dual bloodline limit, they were all elite Jonin, but none of them could defeat the rampaging Three-Tails.

After creating a chakra bullet using flounder, Hozuki Mangetsu slammed the Three-Tails into the lake. Mei Terumi, standing nearby, used Boil Release to heat the lake water, and soon bubbles began to rise to the surface.

Under the influence of the high temperature, the Three-Tails had no choice but to resurface and face the Hidden Mist Army on the shore.

Seeing that the strategy worked, Hozuki Mangetsu smiled easily and said to Terumi Mei, "Jonin Terumi Mei, I didn't expect you to be so strong. Have you considered becoming my subordinate? Kirigakure's future needs strong people like you."

Mei Terumi snorted coldly: "The Fourth Hokage isn't even dead yet, and he's already so eager to express his ambitions."

Hozuki Mangetsu retorted without any politeness: "Although the Fourth Mizukage was manipulated, someone has to be held accountable for the policies implemented over the years. He will definitely have to resign. The only candidates left to run for the Fifth Mizukage are you and me. Could it be that Master Genshi is going to come out of retirement again and serve as the interim Mizukage?"

Mei Terumi didn't give Hozuki Mangetsu a friendly look, and said in a low voice, "Let's try to keep the Fourth Hokage calm and prevent him from being manipulated again. The ninja controlling him is definitely nearby."

Hozuki Mangetsu chuckled, "You don't need to worry about that. I've already found someone to handle this. With his strength, he'll definitely be able to buy us time to defeat the Fourth Hokage."

"Who did you contact? The Kage from another ninja village? This is a matter for Kirigakure."

Mei Terumi frowned and reminded him.

“He is not the Kage of the other four great nations, but his strength is in no way inferior to that of the Five Kage. When we first met him, Zabuza and I suffered some hardships. However, he has no ambition to manipulate Kirigakure.”

At this point, Hozuki Mangetsu was also somewhat uncertain, but he could only choose to believe.

The uncertainty surrounding Hozuki Mangetsu made Mei Terumi's expression even more unpleasant, but she couldn't worry about that right now, as the Three-Tails launched another attack.

This time, the three tails curled up into a ball, transforming into a giant spinning top that spun and moved continuously within the forest. Finally, it used a hillside to launch itself, its massive body, tens of meters tall, soaring into the sky and casting a huge shadow on the ground.

With a deafening crash, the Three-Tails slammed into the ground, creating a massive crater. Trees and rocks were all crushed into dust, including those Kirigakure ninja who couldn't dodge in time.

After the wheels stopped rolling, the three-tailed beast coiled in the middle of the lake, a tailed beast ball gathering in front of it.

Upon witnessing this scene, many Hidden Mist ninjas fell into despair. They did not know how to defeat the Three-Tails, nor how to survive the upcoming attacks.

Mei Terumi said anxiously to Mangetsu Hozuki, "Jonin Hozuki, why haven't your reinforcements arrived yet?"

Hozuki Mangetsu was also very anxious, looking around for Naruto's figure. Although the Three-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball might not kill him, if the village suffered too much damage, even if he became the Mizukage, it would just be an empty shell.

A few breaths later, the Three-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball condensed and shot out like a cannonball.

With a deafening roar, a violent explosion resounded across the lake, sending up waves tens of meters high that surged relentlessly toward the shore.

The bewildered Mist Ninja in the lake were surprised to find that they were not dead, and they all looked towards the center of the lake.

The original island in the middle of the lake had vanished, replaced by a huge mushroom cloud.

Could it be that the Fourth Hokage regained consciousness at the crucial moment and changed the direction of the Tailed Beast Ball? A sense of doubt arose in the mind of the Mist Ninja.

Mei Terumi and Mangetsu Hozuki, who had jumped to the treetops to escape the flood, witnessed everything. From their perspective, a mysterious person wearing a black fox mask suddenly appeared and changed the direction of the Tailed Beast Ball with an invisible 'net'.

Finally, the Tailed Beast Ball exploded next to the Three-Tails. The violent explosion caused the Three-Tails to faint and drift around on the lake.

Mei Terumi opened her mouth in disbelief and said, "Hozuki Jonin, is this the outside help you found? Isn't his strength a bit too strong? He's much stronger than the Mizukage."

Hozuki Mangetsu scratched his head: "I don't know either, but the problem of defeating the Mizukage should be solved. We should try to awaken the Fourth Hokage so that he can step down sooner and the village can elect the Fifth Hokage sooner."

Mei Terumi looked surprised and said somewhat uncertainly, "I don't think the Fifth Boss's matter is very urgent. Let's think about how to entertain this foreign aid gentleman first."

"But what exactly did you promise to get such a foreign player?"

Hozuki Mangetsu said dismissively, "It's more like an alliance treaty between Konoha and Sunagakure. Kirigakure must also do its utmost to help Menma-sama establish a new ninja village."

"The alliance treaty between Konoha and Sunagakure..." Mei Terumi glared at Mangetsu Hozuki.

The alliance treaty between Konoha and Sunagakure is hardly an alliance; it's practically a treaty between two vassal states. You kid sold out your village to get this aid.

Hozuki Mangetsu shrugged and said with some helplessness, "Compared to the Fourth Hokage being manipulated, these conditions are already very good. At least we can discuss things with Menma-sama instead of being forced to accept everything."

Mei Terumi was somewhat speechless, but she had to admit that Mangetsu Hozuki was right.

However, these are not decisions that the two of them can make; they also need to consider the opinions of the Fourth Hokage and Master Genji, who are the actual rulers of Kirigakure.

At that moment, Hozuki Mangetsu pointed at the Three-Tails and said solemnly, "Look, the masked man who was controlling the Fourth Hokage has appeared. He has regained control of the Three-Tails and is fighting against Menma-sama."

Mei Terumi followed Hozuki Mangetsu's gaze and saw two masked figures facing off. She couldn't help but say, "Mangetsu, do all these powerful figures hidden in the ninja world like to fight while wearing masks...? What kind of taste is that?"

"..." Hozuki Mangetsu never expected that Mei Terumi, a Jonin, would be so preoccupied with these things.

At their level of strength, identifying ninjas is no longer based on appearance and physique, but on secret techniques to identify scent and chakra, especially the latter, which is extremely difficult to disguise.

However, he did recall some rumors about Mei Terumi.

This young and beautiful girl has never had a boyfriend because of her bloodline limit, so she especially likes strong men, and Menma-sama seems to fit her criteria.

Chapter 110 Three-tailed Isobutsu

Stepping on the gently rippling water, Naruto ignored the giant turtle lying on its back and stared intently at the masked man in front of him, his wind blade ready to strike.

The masked man... perhaps it shouldn't be called the masked man, but rather the Sharingan Itachi would be more appropriate.

In the matter of cooperation, Obito ultimately deceived him, not showing up in person to put on a good show, but instead sending Itachi Uchiha to appease him. However, he also deceived Obito and saved Juzo Biwa.

There was no trust between the two sides from the beginning; mutual scheming was the norm.

As Naruto stared at Itachi, Itachi was also sizing up Naruto. Naruto was the masked man's partner, taking over Kirigakure in place of the masked man, while Naruto's mission was to help him obtain Kirigakure's identity as an enemy.

This task wasn't difficult for him, but the relationship between the other party and the masked man was somewhat puzzling.

After a moment of silence, Naruto chuckled and said, "I didn't expect the masked man to keep his word. You must be one of his men? The Uchiha Itachi who was rumored to have attacked his own clansmen?"

After his identity was revealed, Itachi Uchiha's expression changed slightly, but he still nodded calmly and said, "Madara sent me. What should we do next?"

Naruto sneered and said, "He's not Uchiha Madara, he's just a turtle who loves to impersonate Madara. You'd better be careful working for him, or you might get sold out without even knowing it."

"As for cooperation, it's simple: use wide-range ninjutsu as much as possible, and leave as soon as you run out of chakra. Just be careful not to die in the Hidden Mist Village's encirclement."

After saying that, Naruto created a swirling wind blade in his palm, which he then threw, flying towards Itachi Uchiha at an extremely fast speed.

Sensing the destructive power of the wind blade, Itachi Uchiha dared not be careless in the slightest. After dodging to the side, another tear appeared in his already tattered Fire Cloud Robe, which was in danger of falling off at any moment.

After landing on the water, Itachi no longer held back and formed hand seals to unleash a Fire Release ninjutsu.

In an instant, enormous wind blades and fireballs appeared on the lake's surface. The scene of wind and fire intertwining was reflected on the lake, dazzling the eyes.

Both are ninjas with abundant chakra, so it's unlikely that they would run out of chakra in a short period of time.

Outside the battlefield, the Hidden Mist Village members, who had recovered from the aftershocks of the Tailed Beast Ball, looked over and began to speculate about the identities of the two sides, since Naruto and Itachi Uchiha were clearly not Hidden Mist Village ninjas.

Hozuki Mangetsu and Terumi Mei approached Genji and explained under his questioning gaze, "Genji-sama, the two people currently fighting are, one is the mastermind controlling the Fourth Hokage, and the other is reinforcements that Mangetsu has invited."

"The mastermind and reinforcements?" Yuan Shi looked at Hozuki Mangetsu suspiciously, hesitating to speak.

Although he was somewhat curious about how Hozuki Mangetsu had managed to summon reinforcements, now that they had arrived, he couldn't let them leave so easily, as their strength was insufficient to deal with the Fourth Mizukage and the masked man.

Now all we can do is take it one step at a time. After all, although this is the Hidden Mist Village, they are not the players who decide the outcome.

In the nearby forest, Obito and White Zetsu were also watching the battle between Naruto and Itachi.

For Obito, cooperation with Naruto was not important at all, and he did not believe that the two could become partners after only meeting once.

The reason he agreed to Naruto's request and sent Itachi Uchiha on the mission was simply to gather information about the two of them.

After all, neither Naruto nor Itachi Uchiha have shown their full strength yet.

As the battle continued, Obito gradually frowned. He realized that the two were really faking the fight, and he couldn't glean any useful information from them. The only thing he could confirm was that the two possessed chakra levels equivalent to elite Jonin.

However, chakra quantity is not a decisive factor in battle, especially for an Uchiha like Itachi.

What he wanted to know was Itachi's eye technique, so he could prepare a countermeasure in advance.

Having made up his mind, Obito used Kamui to reach the bottom of the lake, where he found the sleeping Yagura Karatachi in the flesh and blood of the Three-Tails. He then activated his Sharingan genjutsu to regain control of the Fourth Mizukage and the Three-Tails.

After completing these steps, Obito manipulated the Three-Tails to awaken while disappearing into the lake.

Naruto, who was fighting on the lake, noticed the movement underwater. He quickly ran across the lake to avoid the water cannon attack, then glanced coldly at the forest on the lake shore. After sensing Obito's location, he condensed the Rasengan in his hand and threw it directly at him.

Spiral Wheel Fist is an area-of-effect ninjutsu, second only to the Tailed Beast Ball in power.

After a flash of white light, the earth trembled. Obito was also affected by the Spiral Wheel, and blood seeped from his body. His gaze toward Naruto was now filled with fear.

He had fought quite a few Jinchuriki and Kage, but this was the first time he had ever seen someone who could use a technique similar to the Tailed Beast Ball. No wonder the other party was able to subdue Uchiha Shisui; it turned out that he already possessed strength comparable to the Hokage.

Itachi Uchiha was equally shocked. He understood why the unruly masked man had chosen to cooperate with Naruto—it was because of their strength.