Yōkō charged forward while forming hand signs.
"Wood Release: Wood Spikes!"
Tobi loved using Wood Spikes the most.
Yōkō threw a single wooden spear. To increase its attack range, he made it burst open mid-flight.
The wooden spear instantly blossomed, like a spiked club with extremely long points.
Yōkō frowned.
Mitokado Homura leaped high into the air.
Jumping recklessly during a ninja battle was dangerous. One couldn't leverage strength mid-air unless... unless they were extremely confident.
Mitokado Homura flipped in the air, dodging the Wood Spikes.
Simultaneously, he yanked his scroll open.
White smoke burst forth continuously from the scroll.
From within the smoke, kunai shot towards Yōkō like a sudden squall.
Yōkō, fully immersed in his role as Tobi, widened the White Zetsu's Sharingan eyes behind the mask, using the insight of the Sharingan to continuously dodge left and right through the dense rain of kunai.
His movements were exceptionally agile, not a single leaf touching him amidst the hundreds of dense kunai.
One kunai after another grazed his clothes and shot into the river valley behind him.
Mitokado Homura's technique was somewhat similar to Tenten's from the original story.
Tenten also fought using weapons stored in sealing scrolls.
At a certain moment, Yōkō's eyebrows shot up sharply.
A single explosive tag was tied to the handle of one kunai!
Yōkō twisted aside to avoid this kunai, but it grazed his chest and exploded!
Boom!
After the first explosion came a succession of others!
Many of the kunai were tied with explosive tags.
Dense explosions erupted, but Yōkō had long since submerged into the ground.
Tobi mastered Wood Release and also had the White Zetsu's Sharingan.
Who wasn't a patchwork monster these days?
Beneath Yōkō's mask were two Three Tomoe Sharingan.
The continuous barrage of explosive-tag-tipped kunai made Mitokado Koshi and his wife look pleased.
Father's explosive tag kunai had overwhelming suppressive power.
However, when they looked at their father again, they found Mitokado Homura's expression unusually grave.
Mitokado Homura formed hand signs with both hands and slapped them onto the scroll.
After a puff of white smoke, five weapons stood embedded in the ground!
Mitokado Koshi's heart surged with excitement. They've appeared! The First Hokage's inherited five blades!
These were important weapons of the Senju clan, each renowned in the annals of the Senju's history.
The Senju Broadsword, the Giant Fūma Shuriken, the Chakra Metal Ninjato, the Assassination Black Blade, and the Nine-Sectioned Staff.
Mitokado Homura, holding the Senju Broadsword in one hand and the Chakra Metal Ninjato in the other, with the other gear on his back, charged forward.
The enemy with the spiral mask emerged from the earth.
A muffled voice came from behind the mask: "So the Fifth Hokage's five blades are with you?"
"Mitokado Homura, these are weapons that once crossed paths with Lord Madara. Someone like you... are you worthy of wielding them?"
Mitokado Homura's eyes narrowed grimly. So Tobi really is Uchiha Madara's subordinate, to recognize these weapons.
Had Uchiha Madara told Tobi the stories from decades ago?
If so, then weapons like the Assassination Black Blade and the Nine-Sectioned Staff might not serve as surprise attacks.
Yōkō, holding a wooden spear, charged at Mitokado Homura.
His Three Tomoe spun rapidly as Yōkō and Mitokado Homura clashed in taijutsu.
Mitokado Homura's taijutsu was extremely refined, his strong suit; he excelled at using ninja tools.
The half-meter-wide Senju Broadsword felt incredibly light in his hands, attacking, defending, and parrying with effortless ease.
Even with Yōkō's taijutsu, he couldn't achieve victory immediately.
Yōkō retreated.
He had to force out Mitokado Homura's trump card.
The three tomoe in his right eye rapidly merged.
Through the mask, Mitokado Homura saw Tobi close his left eye, as if concentrating all his chakra into his right eye, where a Mangekyō Sharingan appeared!
Mitokado Homura was utterly serious. One misstep, and he could be killed by an instantly activated Mangekyō ocular technique.
He didn't hesitate to use his trump card! He grabbed the Giant Fūma Shuriken from his back!
The shuriken, over a meter in diameter, flew with extreme speed.
Seeing Mitokado Homura's new move, Yōkō aborted the Mangekyō technique.
He quickly jumped, turning his body horizontally in the air to dodge the Giant Fūma Shuriken.
As the Fūma Shuriken passed beneath him, Yōkō's eyes suddenly trembled.
In the center of the shuriken was an iron ring, and in the center of that ring, spinning along with the shuriken, was a single explosive tag.
The Sharingan captured the details of this tag.
Special curse patterns were drawn on the explosive tag!
He looked up and saw Mitokado Koshi and Mitokado Nozomi leaping into the distance.
The couple seemed to be avoiding something.
Mitokado Homura formed a hand sign: "Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique!"
The specially made explosive tag inside the Fūma Shuriken detonated!
The Fūma Shuriken's mechanism disengaged, transforming into four flying blades that shot out in all directions.
Yōkō dodged one flying blade, but he couldn't avoid the subsequent, continuous explosions.
In an instant, thousands of explosive tags detonated one after another around Yōkō.
Yōkō took one last look at Mitokado Homura.
The Fifth Hokage's inherited five blades, the Second Hokage's Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique... both were passed to Mitokado Homura.
Mitokado Homura's taijutsu was superb, and he had a trump card like the Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique.
No wonder Mitokado Homura needed to control the Land of Rivers' mission share; the Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique required vast financial and human resources.
In the relentless explosions, Yōkō's body was torn apart.
Two minutes later, the final explosive tag blew up, and the explosions finally ceased.
Mitokado Koshi waited anxiously, staring at the thick smoke.
Finally, at a certain moment, his father Mitokado Homura relaxed his shoulders and straightened up as if nothing had happened.
"Tobi is nothing special after all. Before the Second Hokage-sensei's technique, he was vulnerable," Mitokado Homura said.
"It's just a pity about the Mangekyō Sharingan. I wonder if Danzo will be heartbroken when he hears I blew one to bits? Haha."
"Koshi, go retrieve the four blades of the Giant Fūma Shuriken. That weapon is very precious; the four blades can be reassembled."
—
Yōkō's vision went black, his perspective shifted, and he returned to the previous full moon night.
He appeared in a corner of the Office of the Chief Treasurer.
[Mochizuki's Arc activated!]
[The host has only one resurrection opportunity per month, reviving on the previous full moon night after death.]
[Reward: One draw opportunity:]
[1- Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique (Beginner);]
[2- Ninja Tool Proficiency;]
[3- Kage-level Chakra Reserve (Stackable).]
Reward one was the Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder Technique, powerful but requiring massive resource investment.
A technique exclusive to ninja nobility and the wealthy; useless for an ordinary ninja who learned it, as they lacked the resources to pile up its power.
Reward two was Ninja Tool Proficiency, useless for Yōkō.
He chose the third option, Chakra Reserve.
His chakra reserve became 3.2 times the Kage-level.
The growth in chakra soothed his mood.
Tomorrow morning, Mitokado Homura would arrive outside the capital.
He already knew Mitokado Homura's arrival point; there was no need to stake out Mitokado Koshi early.
Yōkō entered Chisa's bedchamber.
It was the latter half of the night. In the chamber, their son was sleeping soundly in his small bed.
Sliding into Chisa's bed, Yōkō whispered, "It's me."
Chisa almost cried out. Hearing it was Fox, she quickly pulled him under the covers.
Chisa's red lips breathed warm puffs of air as she leaned close to Yōkō's ear and said, "Keep it quiet tonight... don't wake our son..."
After a night of passion, Chisa lay limp on the bed.
Yōkō whispered, "Chisa, your Daimyō brother isn't ill. I suspect he's been poisoned by Suna-nin."
"Iwagakure is interested in the Land of Grass's mission share, and Sunagakure is the same, wanting the Land of Rivers' mission share. They're starting to test the waters."
"The Suna-nin poisoned the Daimyō, causing his comas."
"This toxin is new. The intermittent consciousness and comas... I haven't heard of a poison like this before. It won't be easy to cure."
Chisa was shocked, looking at Fox with fear.
After receiving Fox's confirmation, Chisa thought, Could the Suna-nin be planning to assassinate the Daimyō?
Even if the Wind Daimyō found out, he wouldn't permit Suna-nin to assassinate the Land of Rivers' Daimyō, right?
When the rabbit dies, the fox mourns. No Daimyō wants to see another country's Daimyō killed by ninja.
Yōkō continued, "I've also uncovered your nephew's, the First Prince Koishi Genro's, goal."
"Koishi Genro covets the control of the three hydroelectric power plants in your hands. He wants to seize them from you."
"He knows he can't take them by conventional means, so he's decided to use special methods: hiring Konoha ninja to assassinate you both."
Koishi Chisa's expression instantly changed, killing intent surfacing.
In front of Fox, Koishi Chisa was a delicate noble young wife, but the woman who could control the Land of Rivers' treasury and three hydroelectric plants never lacked resolve.
"Fox, Koishi Genro..."
Yōkō finished Chisa's sentence: "Don't worry. Koishi Genro is a dead man walking. I will kill him."
"However, I need to wait until Mitokado Koshi leaves the Tenshu Castle to make my move. They will go outside the city during the day to meet Mitokado Homura."
Yōkō took out a vial of poison. "Konoha's ANBU has collected many toxins from Sunagakure, always ready to do something and frame Suna for it."
"I'll take care of the First Prince, Koishi Genro."
"Chisa, does your brother have any Second or Third Princes? Should we send them off too, so you can become the female Daimyō?"
"No, no!" Koishi Chisa quickly grabbed Fox's wrist.
"Brother only has two sons. There is a Second Prince, but he's still young and has a good relationship with me."
"I just want to protect my son. If the First Prince didn't want me dead, I wouldn't resort to this... this strife among family."
Chisa felt Fox was being a bit extreme.
Yōkō said, "I'll listen to you. If you want anyone else removed, just let me know anytime."
"I don't know medical ninjutsu, so I can't save your brother. But I am the Deputy Commander of Konoha's ANBU. There's no one in the Land of Rivers I cannot kill."
Leaving the Office of the Chief Treasurer, Yōkō infiltrated the Tenshu Castle.
Seeing Mitokado Koshi and his wife leave the Tenshu Castle gates with three Guardian Ninja, he stealthily made his way towards the First Prince's palace.
In a hidden spot, he unsealed a Suna-nin flak jacket and forehead protector and changed into them.
He pressed his hands on the ground, and some wood grew from the earth.
The wood swayed unsteadily, finally forming a six-armed wooden puppet that resembled a marionette.
Since he was framing someone, he might as well go all the way.
This wooden puppet looked far too much like a Suna puppet.
In a large hall on the east side of the Tenshu Castle, the scene was one of disarray.
The First Prince lay unconscious on his bed, surrounded by over a dozen pure silver liquor pots. Besides the Prince, four naked maidservants were also on the bed.
A series of clacking sounds rang out.
The four maidservants woke first, screaming in terror at the sight of a Suna-nin standing by the bedside!
Next to the Suna-nin was a puppet, infamous throughout the ninja world!
Amidst the screams, the maidservants, wrapped in sheets or scarves, ran out of the room.
The First Prince woke in a daze.
The moment he opened his eyes, he saw a sharp spike piercing his chest!
The wooden puppet extended a mechanism; the spike pierced through his chest and emerged from his back.
Black-purple poison dripped from the spike's tip.
Around the wound, the flesh rapidly turned black-purple.
When pierced by a spike, a person initially feels no pain, becoming numb and dull due to the overwhelming stimulus.
The First Prince slowly raised his head to look at the Suna-nin opposite him.
A few seconds later, the Prince finally asked, "You... who are you..."
"You were looking for Koishi Yakata's father, weren't you? I'm here. Did you need something?"
The First Prince tremblingly raised his hand, clutching futilely at the spike.
What do you mean, 'did you need something'?
Is that a question a person can ask?
You're about to kill me, and you're asking if I need something?
Just then, samurai rushed into the hall.
They only saw the retreating back of a Suna-nin and a wooden puppet disappearing.
The samurai gave chase for a few steps, but the Suna-nin had long since vanished.
"An incident! A Suna-nin has assassinated the First Prince!"
Among the samurai, a Suna spy stared in horror at the First Prince's corpse.
He had just gained the First Prince's trust and was preparing to win him over for the village... How could the First Prince have been killed by a fellow Suna-nin?
At that moment, the Chief Treasurer, Koishi Chisa, arrived and immediately ordered the palace sealed and the Tenshu Castle locked down.
As she issued commands, she glanced in the direction outside the city.
Buying Fox a little more time, so he can deal with Mitokado Homura and the others more comfortably.
***
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(Chapter End)