Chapter 112: Sudden Wealth, Aftermath

Chapter 112: Sudden Wealth, Aftermath

Returning home to his traditional-style house, Izayoi took a quick shower, warmed a pot of sake, and switched to outdoor mode. Wearing only swim trunks, he stepped into his private hot spring pool.

Sipping sweet rice wine, he summoned his Light Screen to check tonight’s gains.

[Points: 281,379]

"Tch, what a shame", Izayoi muttered, staring at the number without celebration. "Without Blood Mist Village, Hidden Mist would’ve been the real jackpot."

In any world, war always meant wealth.

Six years at Ninja Academy, including Hinata Hyuga, Sasuke Uchiha, and their entire class, had only earned Izayoi 20,000 points.

Now, a single Hidden Leaf Destruction Plan and Akatsuki’s attack on Kumogakure had skyrocketed his points from 10,000 to 280,000.

Of course, half the casualties in Kumogakure were caused by Wood Clones’ Meteor Rain and Almighty Push.

While those techniques triggered numerous guaranteed drops, their yields paled compared to Human Puppet Legion’s loot rate.

Kumogakure’s reliance on taijutsu stemmed from their extreme scarcity of bloodline limits. Most ninja started as white or green-ranked entries, maxing out at blue-ranked.

Dissolving a blue-ranked entry only gave random three-digit points.

Izayoi’s current haul came purely from quantity.

This made him think of Hidden Mist Village.

Among the Five Great Ninja Villages, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure were all bloodline-poor nations. Only Hidden Leaf and Hidden Mist boasted abundant bloodline limits and secret techniques.

Unfortunately, both "wealthy villages" had been destroyed—by internal strife and Obito Uchiha.

Hidden Mist suffered worst.

Once the village with the most bloodline clans, its bearers were now hunted as monsters within their own country.

Now this great ninja village ranked dead last in strength—Sunagakure surpassed them.

Without Blood Mist Village, Izayoi couldn’t imagine how lucrative attacking Hidden Mist would’ve been.

Bloodline limit entries were purple-tier. Dissolving them gave random four-digit points.

If he’d targeted Hidden Mist’s bloodline clans tonight, his gains would’ve doubled.

But no use crying over spilled milk.

Now Izayoi faced only two paths:

Either find red-inherited traits to dissolve, or start wars where enemies were preferably killed by Human Puppets.

Tonight’s battle revealed Human Puppet Legion’s flaws.

Stiff bodies, no vitality, poor focus—even controlling multiple Wood Clones simultaneously couldn’t make them reach full potential. They couldn’t even defeat a half-strength great village.

Using Human Puppet Legion for massive point farming required either chaos like the Hidden Leaf Destruction Plan or significant improvements.

"The butterfly effect’s completely rewritten the plot", Izayoi chuckled, raising his warmed sake. "Wonder where things go next..."

A door slid open.

"Karin, still awake?" Izayoi smiled without turning—he knew who it was.

"Yep! My energy’s been amazing lately. I cleaned the entire garden with Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu and didn’t feel tired at all." Karin knelt behind him, refilled his cup, then placed her hands on his head, massaging gently. "I’ve been learning massage techniques from Hinata and Hanabi Hyuga. Let me work on your shoulders!"

"Thanks, but come sit beside me. It’s getting cold." Izayoi smiled, noticing Karin wore the same Gyarados-patterned school swimsuit as Hinata but kept her figure perfectly. He pulled her into the hot spring.

"Turn around and rest on the edge—I’ll start with your head!" Karin said eagerly.

"Alright."

---

Like the Uchiha Clan Extermination, Hidden Leaf Destruction Plan, and Wood Release ninja incidents before it,

Akatsuki’s attack on Kumogakure and complete destruction of Lightning Country’s military base spread across the ninja world like wildfire. Even Summoning Animals carried news overseas to Hidden Mist Village in Water Country.

The entire ninja world erupted.

Following Hidden Leaf and Sunagakure’s examples, Kumogakure openly released all Akatsuki intelligence, exposing their transgressions.

Kumogakure was the victim!

Superior to Sunagakure’s Puppet Technique, Akatsuki’s method transformed corpses into Human Puppets—retaining their bloodline limits and abilities, even mastering jutsu they couldn’t use in life. Sasori of the Red Sand’s bounty skyrocketed to 548 million ryō the same day Lightning Country released their report—second only to Pain (Deva Path).

Asuma Sarutobi’s bounty didn’t even match his decimal points.

The top bounty? Pain (Deva Path), the Rinnegan-wielding monster who erased Kumogakure in one move—ten billion ryō flat.

Lightning Country went all-in, terrified.

This organization broke every rule.

Today they rained meteors on Kumogakure—tomorrow they might target a daimyō’s palace.

Compared to these threats, the newly graduated Wood Release ninja seemed utterly insignificant.

---

"Phew..."

In Amegakure, Kakuzu approached Sasori of the Red Sand, who’d gathered for a meeting. Breathing heavily, he asked, "Scorpion, since you’ve turned yourself into a Human Puppet, could you transfer your heart? I’ll help modify your body with Earth Grudge Fear for free."

"Get lost!" Sasori’s voice growled from Third Kazekage’s body.

Kakuzu sighed, then turned to Pain (Deva Path). "Leader, can I switch partners? I think Scorpion’s actually my ideal teammate."

"What the hell are you saying? Am I not good enough?!" Hidan snapped.

"Back off, Sasori’s my partner!" Deidara added.

The two loudmouths completely missed Kakuzu’s intent.

"No." Pain (Deva Path) replied coldly.

Kakuzu glanced between Sasori and Pain, eyes filled with regret.

After his blunt refusal, Pain swept his gaze across all members except Obito Uchiha. "I’ve gathered your physical bodies here to clarify one thing. Lightning Country’s report is false. Both the Hidden Leaf Destruction Plan and Kumogakure’s destruction were caused by a mysterious figure with a Rinnegan like mine."

"This person aims to ignite war across the ninja world, weakening Akatsuki through the Five Great Villages—and possibly targeting me directly."

"Therefore, all of you must act cautiously. Except for myself, Sasori, Itachi, and Kisame, the rest of your identities remain secret. I permit you to remove your Akatsuki robes and hide. If danger arises, use the Rings to contact me."

The other S-Rank missing-nins shrugged. Unless facing overwhelming elite numbers or element-countering opponents, few ninja world figures could threaten them. Most were high-ranking officials—unlikely encounters.

Kakuzu’s eyes gleamed. "So Akatsuki’s become public enemy number one? Meaning bounty hunters will come hunting us?"

Pain (Deva Path) stared silently ahead.

Nagato, hidden behind the scenes, felt utterly drained but still manipulated Pain (Deva Path) to continue speaking: "There’s a second reason I summoned you all. Kumogakure will undoubtedly retaliate for this incident. According to intelligence gathered by Zetsu, Kumogakure possesses both the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails Jinchūriki—perfect Jinchūriki capable of full Tailed Beast transformations and launching Tailed Beast Balls. They also wield the space-time technique Heavenly Sending, which could potentially deliver Tailed Beast Balls directly to Amegakure."

"Additionally, they may escalate this into full-scale war."

"For now, remain in Amegakure and assist in setting up defensive Barrier arrays."

The Akatsuki members’ expressions darkened. They weren’t afraid of punitive ninja squads—but facing the full might of one of the Five Great Villages was another matter entirely.

"Leader", Kakuzu interjected, "are you considering relocating our base?"

"Not at all", Pain replied coldly. "A mere village like Kumogakure isn’t worth such caution. If that mysterious individual can achieve this, so can I."

Recalling the intelligence reports and photographs circulating earlier, the Akatsuki members felt a chill. They’d clearly underestimated their leader. Two Sage’s Eye wielders? This was practically a new era defined by a "Ninja God" and a "World Asura." Had the Sage’s Eye become the ultimate weapon of this age? Would history repeat itself with a climactic "Valley of the End" battle?

---

"Deidara, is this the kind of dangerous organization you’ve joined?"

Ōnoki of Iwagakure scrutinized the report in his hands, his expression grim. "I thought the Wood Release was the greatest threat to emerge in recent years. Yet this era hides figures far more dangerous than I imagined. What are Akatsuki’s true objectives?"

Normally, news of Kumogakure’s devastation would’ve prompted Ōnoki to invade Lightning Country immediately. The Third Ninja World War began when Kumogakure discovered Sunagakure’s Third Kazekage had vanished, using it as pretext to invade Wind Country. If losing a single leader like the Kazekage could spark global conflict, then the annihilation of an entire Great Village like Kumogakure—with catastrophic casualties—was the perfect opportunity to strike.

Yet now, even Ōnoki and Sunagakure—once victims of Kumo’s invasions—and Konoha, which had clashed with Kumogakure nine years ago during the Cloud’s humiliating assault, hesitated to exploit this weakness.

The rise of new, godlike forces like the "Ninja God" and "World Asura" had changed everything. No one understood the terror of such power better than the Five Great Villages. Tailed Beasts alone were terrifying enough; even loyal Jinchūriki were feared and ostracized. Now, history repeated itself with a force capable of obliterating villages—or even entire nations. Lightning Country wasn’t the only one trembling. The other three great nations were equally paralyzed.

Ōtsutsuki, Ōnoki’s son, asked, "Father, should we contact Deidara? Perhaps he could leak intelligence on Akatsuki or gauge their leader’s intentions?"

"Pointless", Ōnoki shook his head. "Such overwhelming power breeds commensurate ambition. This isn’t a foe that ‘allies’ can influence."

Turning to his aide, he ordered, "Summon the Perception Squad, Barrier Team, and Science Division immediately. We must reinforce our village’s defenses before Kumogakure’s fate befalls us."

"Yes, sir!"

As Ōtsutsuki turned to leave, a knock echoed through the Tsuchikage’s office. A Iwa ninja entered, bowing respectfully. "Lord Tsuchikage, an envoy from Kumogakure requests an audience."

Ōnoki’s eyes flickered. "Ōtsutsuki, handle the reception."

"Yes, sir."

---

"The balance of power has shattered", Chiyo murmured, the weight of Sunagakure’s vulnerability pressing heavily on her. Among the Five Elders, she alone felt helpless. Kumogakure had its AB duo and Two-Tails Jinchūriki. Iwagakure had Ōnoki and two Jinchūriki. Konoha still boasted the Legendary Sannin and Wood Release users. But Sunagakure? Only herself and her aged brother, plus Gaara—a Jinchūriki still growing into his power.

If war erupted now, Sunagakure would be defenseless. Her only solace was her grandson’s survival—and his rise as the greatest Puppet Master in history. Yet she couldn’t ignore the truth: creating Human Puppets from corpses, she suspected her grandson might’ve been involved in the Third Kazekage’s disappearance.

Her thoughts drifted to a forbidden technique she’d been developing. Would its completion be enough to redeem him?

"Elder Chiyo", Ebizō spoke, "we may need to seek Konoha’s aid. During the Whirlpool Country crisis, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure seized Barrier scrolls. Sunagakure received nothing. Without large-scale defensive Barriers, Meteor Rain could destroy us—even worse than Kumogakure’s fate. Fire Release amplifies Wind Release… our elemental weakness could turn their attack into an unstoppable inferno."

Chiyo sighed. "Let’s hope Lady Tsunade can set aside old grudges and help us."

Gaara listened, his resolve hardening. He needed strength—now more than ever.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The sound echoed through the Kazekage’s office.

---

In Konoha’s Hokage Office, Tsunade frowned at the report. "That mysterious figure has struck again—Kumogakure this time." She glanced at Izayoi, who was studying the Forbidden Scroll. "Sorry, but my grandfather’s Wood Release techniques weren’t preserved. I can’t help you there."

Izayoi grinned. "No problem, Lady Hokage. Just being allowed to study the Forbidden Scroll satisfies me. Compared to the First’s Wood Release, I’m more interested in the Second’s forbidden techniques."

Tsunade shrugged. "Fine by me. Those techniques’ll end up in your hands eventually anyway. You see anyone stopping you? Besides, in times like these, we all want you stronger."

Her words revealed her choice between Naruto Uzumaki and Izayoi. Though Naruto had helped her overcome her blood phobia, Tsunade’s duty as Hokage came first. Konoha’s stance on the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki versus the Wood Release wielder had already decided her allegiance.

Izayoi nodded confidently. "With my current chakra, I could single-handedly deploy the Four Violet Flames Formation. Even Meteor Rain wouldn’t breach it."

Tsunade chuckled. "Reassuring as always." Suddenly, she leaned forward, mock-threatening, "Now get out there and finish missions! I’m ordering you to become Jōnin by next year—or I’ll investigate your finances and seize your assets!"

"Then I’ll report you for embezzling public funds for gambling", Izayoi shot back.

"Who said I embezzled? Got proof?"

"Then do you have proof?"

"I’m Hokage! In Konoha, my word is law. Disagree? Take my job!" Tsunade smirked triumphantly.

"Hmph… You’ll regret this, Tsunade!"

Izayoi slammed the Sealing Scrolls onto the desk and stormed out, door slamming behind him.

Tsunade scratched her cheek, puzzled. "That kid’s attitude… feels familiar somehow."

Shizune and Karin exchanged glances. "Actually, Lady Hokage", Shizune ventured, "you said something similar to Izayoi last time."

"Oh right", Tsunade nodded, then frowned. "Wait—that’s not the familiarity I meant."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end