https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-497-The-Unexpected-Whirlpool-Clan/12558747/
Chapter 498: Mu Yue's Plan
Chapter 498: Mu Yue's Plan
"Let's consolidate the information we've gathered." Mu Yue said to her team.
"Our group scouted the defensive capabilities of the Grass Ninja Village leader's office building. It's unclear if the Grass Ninja leader is overconfident in his strength, but there aren't many ninja guards there." Nara Suzaku took the lead and said.
In fact, their group collected intelligence mainly through Aburame Shigui's secret techniques, but since Aburame wasn't a talkative person, Nara Suzaku acted as his spokesperson and helped him with the report.
Nara Suzaku then handed Mu Yue a sketch of the Grass Ninja office building, detailing its structure and the functions of various rooms.
From what she could see, Sarutobi Hiruzen seemed determined to deal with the Grass Ninjas seriously. The teammates he had chosen for this mission all had unique abilities and couldn't be considered ordinary Jonin.
And this was just the first day; they had almost figured out the entire office building.
"Even though there aren't many ninjas guarding the office building, we don't know their strengths. I suggest we locate the Anbu base; it might contain confidential information that we need." Nara Suzaku proposed.
If their mission was simply to attack the Grass Ninja Village, they wouldn't need such intricate strategies. They could just infiltrate the office building and engage directly. However, they first had to ascertain if the Grass Ninjas had formed an alliance with the Stone Ninjas.
"Good work," Mu Yue nodded in approval.
Nara Suzaku's line of thinking aligned with hers. The Anbu, as the most secretive department in a ninja village, would almost certainly be involved in such covert matters.
Obito scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed.
The other groups sounded so professional, and their findings were extensive.
Suddenly, Obito felt that not being a group leader had its perks; at least he didn't have to give a report and could avoid this momentary embarrassment.
"Our group first investigated the main urban area of the Grass Ninja Village and found that the Grass Ninjas have been unusually busy lately, undertaking high-intensity missions.
Moreover, when we went to the suburbs, we noticed that the Grass Ninjas seemed short-staffed. Despite having to manage over a thousand refugees, they only deployed a handful of ninjas." Kakashi reported earnestly.
"This makes the Grass Ninjas highly suspect," analyzed Nara Suzaku. "It's likely that they've dispatched their more elite members to support the Stone Ninjas on the battlefield, leading to a shortage of personnel and increased mission pressure in the village."
The mere number of guards at the office building wasn't enough to draw conclusions, as they could still be an elite force.
However, combined with Kakashi's observations, the Grass Ninja Village's actions became highly questionable. It was unlikely that all these occurrences were mere coincidences.
"Additionally, we discovered a refugee who is highly likely to be a survivor of the Uzumaki Clan. The Grass Ninjas tried to expel her, but the Grass Ninja leader intervened for some unknown reason and kept her there. To avoid exposure, we didn't make contact." Kakashi continued.
"A refugee from the Uzumaki Clan?" Maruxing Kosei exclaimed in surprise.
As the oldest ninja on this mission, he was well aware of the relationship between the Uzumaki Clan and Konoha.
The most orthodox sealing technique of Konoha was actually the Uzumaki Sealing Technique, as Konoha's sealing skills had evolved from the Uzumaki Clan's. Years ago, the Uzumaki Clan leader had personally come to Konoha to teach their sealing techniques to the ninjas.
To commemorate this friendship, the Konoha ninja uniforms bore the crest of the Uzumaki Clan.
"Perhaps the Grass Ninja leader wants to obtain the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques?" Nara Suzaku suspected that the Grass Ninja leader had malicious intentions.
The powerful sealing techniques of the Uzumaki Clan were coveted not just by ordinary ninja villages like the Grass Ninja Village but also by the great ninja villages among the Five Great Shinobi Countries. Only Konoha, having formed an alliance with the Uzumaki Clan, could remain unmoved. The Uzumaki Clan's downfall was largely due to their coveted sealing abilities.
"Your caution is warranted," Mu Yue said after some thought. "Since the Grass Ninja leader personally intervened to keep the Uzumaki refugee there, he must have an ulterior motive."
He guessed that the Uzumaki refugee was most likely Kushina, Minato's mother, as depicted in the original story.
Based on the timeline and their location in the Grass Country, he could only think of her.
With the available intelligence, Mu Yue could surmise that the Grass Ninja leader's intention was likely to feed Kushina to the Gedo Statue.
For a statue capable of absorbing chakra, a person with powerful chakra like those from the Uzumaki Clan would be the perfect offering.
Desperate to open the statue, the Grass Ninja leader wouldn't pass up the opportunity presented by such a convenient source of chakra. Therefore, it was likely that Kushina was being monitored, making direct contact inadvisable.
Obito looked at Kakashi, who was speaking confidently, and then at Mu Yue, who seemed to agree with everything Kakashi said. He was bewildered.
So, their small team had gathered so much intelligence without him even realizing it? How was he so out of the loop?
Or had the Kakashi who had been with them all this time been a shadow clone, and the real Kakashi had gone off on his own to gather information?
Although Obito was full of questions, he knew this wasn't the right time to ask them.
Doing so would make him seem less intelligent, and it would be like admitting that he hadn't been paying attention to their group's activities.
"The Uzumaki Clan is an ally of Konoha," Mu Yue finally said. "Even though the Uzumaki Clan has perished, we cannot ignore the friendship that once existed between them and Konoha. We will help the survivor of the Uzumaki Clan, as long as it doesn't interfere with our mission."
Maruxing Kosei nodded inwardly, developing a more favorable impression of Mu Yue.
Mu Yue's handling of the situation was both considerate and in line with Konoha's regulations.
Regardless of how deep the friendship between the Uzumaki Clan and Konoha had been, if Mu Yue were to abandon their mission for the sake of someone he had never met, it would prove him to be an unqualified ninja and, more severely, an irresponsible teammate.
Strictly speaking, Mu Yue had already completed the investigation task for the day and could now move on to the next step of teaching the Grass Ninjas a lesson.
Through Wu Chang's memory, he had gained access to a wealth of information about the Grass Ninjas, including the moment when the Rock Ninjas and Grass Ninjas formed their alliance.
However, Mu Yue couldn't directly reveal this information as he didn't want to explain the secret technique that allowed him to view memories.
He certainly couldn't claim that he was a ninjutsu prodigy who, after just a glance at Yamanaka Ryo, instinctively mastered the secret technique of the Yamanaka clan.
Of course, this wasn't the main reason why Mu Yue chose not to disclose all the information. Even without revealing what he knew from Wu Chang's memory, Mu Yue could easily find evidence of the Grass Ninjas' collaboration with the Rock Ninjas.
The main reason Mu Yue withheld the information was that he had a better solution in mind.
If he revealed the intelligence, the next course of action would be for Mu Yue and his team to capture and interrogate the Grass Ninja leaders, killing them if necessary to establish dominance. This might also involve forcibly eliminating some Grass Ninjas if conflicts arose.
Ultimately, the Grass Ninjas would be forced to sign a treaty with Konoha, agreeing to compensate for their losses and provide military support.
On the other hand, if Mu Yue kept the information to himself, he could guide Kakashi and his team to gradually uncover the truth while also reaching out to the Grass Ninja leader's political rival, Grass Flower.
When Mu Yue presented the evidence to Grass Flower, he believed that the conservative Grass Flower would strive to minimize the losses for the Grass Ninja Village.
However, the current Grass Ninja leader, desperate to turn the situation around, would likely take a gamble with the Extreme Bliss Box in hopes of gaining power.
The Grass Ninja leader's wish would come true—the box would grant him strength, but at the cost of turning him into a murderous monster.
Finally, as the Grass Ninja leader transformed into a monster and went on a rampage, Mu Yue and his team, as agents of justice, would step in to "save" the day.
They would defeat the monstrous Grass Ninja leader and install Grass Flower as the new leader, bringing about a change in the Grass Ninja Village's aggressive policies.
Even with the death of the mastermind, the Grass Ninjas would still need to compensate for the harm caused to Konoha.
At that time, no Grass Ninja would find the reparations unreasonable. They would acknowledge the wrong they had done to Konoha, and the fact that the Konoha ninjas had saved them would make the compensation seem fair. Helping to counter the Rock Ninjas would be seen as a fitting form of atonement.
Compared to directly revealing the intelligence, the second option was clearly more elegant and in line with Konoha's interests.
Of course, what was even more meaningful to Mu Yue was the opportunity to mentor his disciples and study the Extreme Bliss Box and the enlightenment within it.
The Grass Ninja Village was much safer than the battlefield, and Mu Yue was confident that he could handle any situation that arose there without any mishaps.
Even the Uzumaki survivor, whom he had yet to meet, would be guaranteed safety.
After all, the ninja guarding the Extreme Bliss Box had been replaced by Mu Yue's shadow clone, and the real Wu Chang was hidden away safely.
"In that case, we can start attempting to infiltrate the Anbu tonight," Mu Yue said.
Nara Suzaku's face lit up at Mu Yue's words, and he thought to himself that Mu Yue truly lived up to his reputation as a ninja on par with the Yellow Flash. To gather such crucial information on his own on the very first day was impressive.
Kakashi's team remained expressionless, as they were accustomed to Mu Yue's exceptional abilities. Unless he completed the mission in a single day, it would be difficult for them to be surprised by him anymore.
After sharing their intelligence, Mu Yue and his team had dinner before setting out on their next moves. The groups that wanted to continue their operations received Mu Yue's approval and set off.
After seeing them off, Mu Yue continued with his own plans.
...
That evening, Long Fei strolled through the main urban area of the Grass Ninja Village after finishing his dinner.
"I wish we could continue to develop like this peacefully," Long Fei said with a sigh as he looked at the bustling commercial street in the main district.
He remembered the humble beginnings of the Grass Ninja Village when it was first established—back then, there were barely any nice houses in the main district, let alone the suburbs. Functionality had been the primary concern.
As the village developed and its population of residents and ninjas grew, the Grass Ninja Village thrived.
"Why is it that the more we try to stay out of the conflicts between the major ninja villages, the more we seem to get entangled in them? Why do more people support Grass Core's aggressive stance?" Long Fei thought of the current situation in the village, and his initially good mood soured.
His concern wasn't for the decline of his own faction but for the future of the Grass Ninja Village as a whole.
First and foremost, Long Fei considered himself a ninja of the Grass Ninja Village, and only then the leader of the Grass Flower faction.
He genuinely believed that in such turbulent times, a more conservative approach was necessary. He advocated for using diplomatic means to negotiate with the neighboring powerful countries and preserving their strength while biding their time for better opportunities.
With a heavy heart, Long Fei cut his stroll short and returned home.
As he stepped into his house, he quickly reached into his ninja tool pouch and warily eyed the blond-haired stranger sitting on his living room sofa.
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Long Fei asked in a low voice, brandishing a kunai.
"My identity isn't important," Mu Yue replied with a smile as he turned to face Long Fei. "What's important is that you know what your Grass Ninjas have done."
"Ryoyo Mue?"
Long Fei's hand, which was holding a kunai, trembled slightly, and his forehead broke into a cold sweat as he frantically tried to decipher the meaning behind Mu Yue's words.
"It seems my reputation precedes me in the Land of Grass, at least you didn't mistake me for the Yellow Flash." Mu Yue joked amicably.
Due to the early fame of Namikaze Minato, Mu Yue had often been mistaken for him in the past, as had happened with Ye Cang.
"You're too humble, Lord Mu Yue. Your fame as the Fierce Yang isn't limited to the Grass Ninja Village or the Land of Grass; it resounds throughout the entire ninja world. How could any ninja not know of you?" Long Fei flattered, taking a deep breath.
Despite being much older than Mu Yue, he didn't feel the need to assert his seniority; he knew better than to act condescending towards a powerhouse like Mu Yue.
"It seems some Grass Ninjas have offended you, Lord Mu Yue. What are their names? I'll have them captured and investigated immediately," Long Fei continued.
He had a vague suspicion that Yokawa Tsuto might have done something to infringe upon Konoha's interests.
While he could sense the recent anomalies in the Grass Ninja Village, Yokawa Tsuto had hidden his actions well, preventing Long Fei from uncovering the reason.
"Yokawa, I really should have competed with you to the bitter end back then," Long Fei regretted inwardly.
For the renowned Fierce Yang Mu Yue to take action personally, Yokawa Tsuto must have done something significant.
"You dare to collude with the Rock Ninjas and directly attack our Konoha ninja forces, yet you worry about offending me?" Mu Yue's smile remained warm, but his words sent a chill down Long Fei's spine.
Long Fei slowly wiped the sweat from his forehead, cursing Yokawa Tsuto a thousand times in his mind.
This was the worst-case scenario. If Konoha's ninja forces weren't temporarily occupied elsewhere, they might not have needed Mu Yue at all. Konoha's forces in the Land of Grass could have easily razed the Grass Ninja Village to the ground.
"Lord Mu Yue, all of this is due to Yokawa Tsuto and his faction, the Grass Core, acting on their own. Many Grass Ninjas are innocent, and we in the Grass Flower faction had no idea they were plotting such vile deeds in secret," Long Fei explained hastily.
Although he wanted to tear Yokawa Tsuto into a thousand pieces, Long Fei's brain hadn't completely shut down. Since Mu Yue was sitting in his living room with a friendly demeanor, there was still room for negotiation.
If Mu Yue truly intended to take action, he could have killed Long Fei several times over in the time they had been talking.
Long Fei never underestimated powerful ninjas like Mu Yue, as they were the kind of existence that a small ninja village like theirs could never hope to cultivate.
"As long as you give the order, Lord Mu Yue, I'll gather my companions from the Grass Flower faction and get to the bottom of this with Yokawa Tsuto. I will not tolerate such an evil person continuing as the leader of the Grass Ninjas," Long Fei said, essentially offering to side with Mu Yue against Yokawa Tsuto.
Long Fei's underlying message was simple: they could take down Yokawa Tsuto, and in exchange, he hoped that Konoha would forgive their trespasses. The Grass Ninjas would then become Konoha's subordinates and serve their interests.
"There's no need to go that far. Konoha has no shortage of ninjas capable of carrying out missions," Mu Yue refused.
Through his Byakugan, he observed that the chakra within the Extreme Bliss Box had accumulated to a certain extent. With a little more effort from Yokawa Tsuto, the box would soon be opened.
With such a useful pawn to exploit, Mu Yue saw no reason to kill him just yet.
He would only cut down the tree after he had plucked its fruits.
Mu Yue had to admit that Yokawa Tsuto's efforts had prolonged his life a little longer.
If it weren't for the fact that the Extreme Bliss Box was almost ready to be opened, Mu Yue wouldn't have bothered waiting and would have simply followed the standard procedure to complete the mission.
After all, there would be other opportunities to train his disciples, and even if he opened the box, he might not discover anything useful to him.
However, since it was a task that could be accomplished conveniently, the cost-benefit ratio became much more favorable, especially since he was already there.
"What you need to do is find solid evidence of the collaboration between the Rock Ninjas and the Grass Ninjas, and then be prepared to become the leader of the Grass Ninjas," Mu Yue instructed.
In truth, Mu Yue didn't need Long Fei's help with the former; he could obtain such evidence whenever he wanted. Mu Yue wanted to test Long Fei's character.
If Long Fei chose to help them find concrete evidence and overthrow Yokawa Tsuto even without knowing if they had any proof, it would show that Long Fei had a clear mind and might be useful in the future.
On the other hand, if Long Fei decided to communicate privately with Yokawa Tsuto and reveal Mu Yue's presence in the Grass Ninja Village, Mu Yue would find a smarter person to become the new leader.
It wasn't a matter of whether Mu Yue could find the evidence or not; during wartime, Konoha might not even need such concrete proof. A simple pretext would suffice.
"I will get it done as soon as possible, Lord Mu Yue," Long Fei assured him.
Hearing Mu Yue's words, Long Fei breathed a sigh of relief.
Now that Konoha had chosen to support him, the leader of the Grass Flower faction, the Grass Ninja Village would be spared from complete annihilation.
However, some weakening of their power was inevitable, and the high-ranking members of the Grass Core faction would likely face severe consequences.
In Long Fei's opinion, this was still a favorable outcome. At least it was better than Mu Yue slaughtering all the high-ranking Grass Ninjas in the office building and then launching an indiscriminate attack on the entire village.
PS: It seems my recovery is going well. At least I can write for longer periods without my eyes giving out. I'll try to increase the word count back to 8k for future updates.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
