"Those three bastards, Nadare Rōga and the others, still haven't sent back any word?!"
"Damn it, they can't even handle something this simple."
Inside the palace, Doto Kazahana paced back and forth in agitation.
The moment he learned that Koyuki had entered the Land of Snow, he had immediately sent Nadare Rōga, Fubuki Kakuyoku, and Mizore Fuyuguma to capture her.
To make sure the operation was foolproof, he had even equipped the three of them with the latest Chakra Armor.
He had originally thought the matter would be over quickly, but to his surprise, an entire week had already passed, and there was still no news from them.
"As long as I get the Hexagonal Crystal Pendant, I'll be able to open the treasure of the Land of Snow. Once that happens, my research will never lack funding again."
"And once every ninja in the Land of Snow is equipped with Chakra Armor, who in the entire ninja world will be able to stop me?"
At that thought, a dark expression appeared on his face.
"Brother, don't blame me for being ruthless. You were nothing more than a hypocrite who squeezed the people dry and left the treasure behind for your own descendants."
Just as Doto was about to send out more men to investigate, a sudden commotion erupted outside the palace.
"How dare you make such a racket here?!"
He had just turned to see what was going on when the palace doors were violently kicked open from the outside.
The first to walk in were three "snot-nosed" brats.
After them came Koyuki and Sandayu.
And then came a man who looked very familiar.
"Kazahana Doto, weren't you looking for me? Well, here I am."
As Koyuki stared at the man who had murdered her father, her eyes turned icy.
Though she was only a frail-looking woman, the killing intent she gave off was anything but weak.
Doto's attention was drawn to her, and instead of being alarmed, he looked delighted.
"Koyuki, no matter what, I'm still your uncle. How can you be so rude?"
"As long as you hand over the Hexagonal Crystal Pendant, I'll guarantee you a lifetime of wealth and glory."
At that, Sandayu sneered.
"Kazahana Doto, you power-stealing, treacherous piece of filth. Today is the day you die!"
Doto burst into laughter and couldn't help mocking them.
"It seems you are quite confident in the helpers you found this time. Otherwise, how could a pack of strays like you, who've been hiding for over a decade, suddenly find this kind of courage?"
"But..."
"Aren't you underestimating me a little too much?"
His eyes turned cold. He directly threw his cloak to the ground, revealing a powerfully built body and... a complete set of Chakra Armor.
In this era where ninjas ruled above all else, no matter how much money Koyuki spent, at best she could only hire a Jōnin.
If this had been in the past, he might have been wary.
But now, his Chakra Armor had already been completed. Even a Jōnin wouldn't stand a chance against him.
Unless they had somehow hired a Kage-level expert, he feared no one.
But a mere actress hiring a Kage-level powerhouse to deal with him, the ruler of an entire nation...
Was that even possible?
With that thought, Doto immediately circulated the chakra within his body.
"Ice Release: Twin Dragon Blizzard!"
Two enormous ice dragons appeared, instantly dropping the temperature inside the palace to freezing levels.
With a thunderous roar, their spiraling bodies shot toward Koyuki and the others at astonishing speed.
But in the very next second, two massive skeletal hands appeared and seized the ice dragons in their grip.
Crack!
With the slightest squeeze, the dragons shattered into countless fragments.
Yuzuru had appeared before Doto without anyone noticing, one hand wrapped around his throat as he lifted him into the air.
"Ghk..."
Doto swallowed hard, an overwhelming fear of death rising from the bottom of his heart.
His voice trembled.
"I-I am the ruler of the Land of Snow. If you kill me, you'll bring down unimaginable trouble on yourself."
Yuzuru smiled faintly.
"Funny enough, trouble is the one thing I'm never afraid of."
A pair of scarlet Mangekyō Sharingan appeared, and Doto's face twisted in sheer terror.
He stared in disbelief.
"Y-You're... Uchiha Yuzuru?!"
"Y-You've got to be kidding me!!!"
Why would someone like him be here?!
But no one was going to answer him. As a ripple of Dōjutsu Power spread out, his consciousness was swallowed by darkness.
A short while later.
Yuzuru casually tossed Doto's body onto the floor.
He had already extracted and recorded all the information in Doto's mind related to Chakra Armor, so the man had lost whatever little value he had left.
Turning to Koyuki, he asked softly,
"Koyuki, what do you want to do?"
She slowly stepped forward, a kunai in hand.
This enemy who had murdered her father had appeared in her dreams more times than she could count.
She had wanted to kill him every moment of her life, to avenge her father with her own hands.
But now that Doto was truly lying there, helpless and unable to resist, she found herself unable to go through with it.
The kunai hovered over his throat. She clenched her teeth again and again, but no matter what, she couldn't bring herself to stab down.
No matter how many times she had rehearsed it in her mind, only now, at the moment she truly had to kill someone, did she understand the difference between imagination and reality.
Seeing this, Yuzuru took the initiative and said,
"Do you want me to help you with it?"
Koyuki immediately nodded and handed him the kunai.
Without wasting a word, Yuzuru plunged it straight through Doto's heart, then tossed the corpse into the Kamui space.
Although he had already obtained the data related to Chakra Armor, there was always a chance the body itself might still prove useful.
Giving it to Orochimaru was probably better than just burning it.
Koyuki looked at Yuzuru gently and said in a low voice,
"Lord Yuzuru... you really are a kind person."
Yuzuru shrugged.
"Doto kept saying you should hand over the Hexagonal Crystal Pendant. What exactly did he mean by that?"
Koyuki didn't hesitate. She removed the necklace from around her neck and handed it over.
She explained,
"This was a birthday gift my father gave me back then. He said it was the key to opening the greatest treasure in the Land of Snow."
"It's just that... before my birthday ever came, my father was already murdered by Doto."
At that, Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara all showed interested expressions.
"Auntie Koyuki, when are you going to open the treasure? Can you take us with you too?"
The idea of treasure hunting was simply irresistible to boys.
Seeing the anticipation in their eyes, Koyuki smiled and nodded.
"Of course. I already promised Lord Yuzuru that once Kazahana Doto was dead, I would offer up the Land of Snow."
"So naturally, the treasure of the Land of Snow won't be an exception either."
"I'll take you there right now to open it!"