Chapter 186: Make Us Stay as Forced Labor? Don't Be Ridiculous!
Oborotsuki had originally pretended he was going to lead his subordinates to reinforce the ANBU prison.
But after only a few steps, he suddenly stopped.
"No—this won't do. If we all leave and these guys just run away, getting compensation from them won't be so easy anymore!"
"You go ahead. I'll stay here and have a little 'talk' with them."
With that, Oborotsuki turned and walked back.
"I'm coming with you!"
Kushina immediately stepped forward, determined to stand beside Oborotsuki against the Kage and forces of the four ninja villages.
At this point, she no longer cared what Konoha thought.
By going with him, she could prevent Oborotsuki from acting too extremely and causing irreparable harm to her former comrades.
More importantly, in such a crisis, she wanted to face it together with her man.
Seeing Kushina step up, Konan and Yūhi Kurenai immediately followed: "We're going with you too, Oborotsuki!"
The other ANBU and elite Kirigakure ninja all stopped and turned back to look at them.
But Oborotsuki shook his head: "There's no need for you to come. I can handle this alone."
"I'm just going to have a friendly little negotiation—make sure they don't run off."
"Don't worry—I'll be fine."
Oborotsuki gave his wives a gentle, confident smile.
Seeing that smile and hearing him call it "just a friendly negotiation," the women reluctantly nodded.
"Then be careful, Oborotsuki…"
Konan reminded him with concern.
"Don't worry!"
Oborotsuki smiled and waved at them, then turned and headed back the way he came.
At that moment, the Fourth Raikage, Ōnoki, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Rasa, and the others were discussing how to extract useful information from Obito.
Ōnoki suggested: "We should withdraw from here first. Once we're in a safer location, we can sit down and interrogate him slowly!"
"Since we've got him in our hands now, with a bit of torture we'll get everything we need!"
Ōnoki's proposal quickly gained approval from the other Kage.
They all realized they had committed a grave mistake by offending someone as terrifyingly powerful as Hōzuki Oborotsuki.
They had also clearly heard his earlier warning.
But asking them to obediently stay behind now and let Kirigakure dictate terms?
Absolutely impossible!
Even the usually indecisive Hiruzen wasn't that noble.
The four ninja villages quickly reached consensus.
They immediately prepared to order a full retreat from Kirigakure.
Once back in their own lands, they could slowly figure out how to deal with Akatsuki.
However, just as they were about to leave, Oborotsuki returned.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Have you gotten any useful information out of this guy's mouth yet?"
Oborotsuki stood in their path with a half-smile, blocking their way as he asked.
Hearing this, Hiruzen, Ōnoki, and the others looked awkward.
The Fourth Raikage—with his explosive temper—immediately stepped forward:
"What happened today isn't entirely innocent on your Kirigakure's side either!"
"We need to find a suitable place to interrogate this guy properly!"
"Once we get the full picture, we'll naturally give Kirigakure a satisfactory explanation!"
"And when exactly will that be?"
Oborotsuki asked back, looking straight at him.
The Fourth Raikage's lips moved, but for once he had no reply.
"Hōzuki Oborotsuki, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Ōnoki asked hesitantly, a cunning glint in his eyes.
He had already sensed trouble earlier—that's why he suggested they withdraw first.
He never expected Oborotsuki to catch up at this exact moment.
"I think you should all just stay put. Interrogating him? There's plenty of time for that."
"We at Kirigakure can provide you with a place to do it."
"Until your villages pay us sufficient compensation, you can stay here in Kirigakure for a while."
"And look…"
Oborotsuki smiled and turned back, gesturing toward the ruins behind him.
Because of the fierce battle earlier, most of Kirigakure now lay in rubble and devastation.
If not for the invasion by these four villages, how could things have ended up like this?
"From now on, you'll help us rebuild the village."
"Don't worry—we'll make sure you get one meal a day and a place to sleep and rest."
Oborotsuki turned back around and spoke calmly to the shinobi of the four invading villages.
"What did you just say? Have you lost your mind?!"
The Fourth Raikage exploded with rage the moment he heard this.
His fists clenched tightly—but he didn't dare strike.
Oborotsuki gave a cold laugh and glanced meaningfully at the Raikage's clenched fist:
"Any objections?"
"Of course we have objections! Hōzuki Oborotsuki—you're treating us like prisoners!"
"Exactly! You want to keep us here and force us to do hard labor? What are you thinking?!"
"Damn it! You think we're slaves?!"
"…"
The surrounding ninja finally realized what was happening. One after another, they gritted their teeth in fury.
Asking them to stay behind, giving them only one meal a day, and forcing them to rebuild the destroyed parts of Kirigakure—until their home villages paid enough compensation?
This was textbook forced labor—no, outright slavery!
"When you attacked Kirigakure, didn't you consider this possible outcome? That was extremely unwise."
"Now if you're unhappy—keep it to yourselves."
"Anyone who disagrees is welcome to step forward."
Oborotsuki folded his arms and looked leisurely at the group of enemies.
Although earlier they had been full of complaints and dissatisfaction with Oborotsuki's threats,
now—after hearing his words—not one of them dared make a sound.
Step forward? They'd have to be insane!
Who hadn't just witnessed him single-handedly take on the Kage of four villages and defeat them in just a few moves?
No one here could possibly beat this guy!
"If we're going to stay… you must at least provide necessary medical assistance…"
Shisui, Hiruzen, and the rest of Konoha quickly conferred among themselves.
They soon reached consensus.
Konoha had been wrong—they had misunderstood Oborotsuki as the true culprit behind the Nine-Tails attack. They couldn't afford to make another mistake now.
Moreover, the other side's strength was overwhelming. Continuing to fight head-on would only bring disaster to Konoha—so they had no choice but to endure.
Hearing Shisui's words, Oborotsuki glanced toward the gravely injured Hiruzen:
"We don't have any particularly outstanding medical ninja in our village. Whether he can be fully healed—I can't guarantee it."
"That can be handled."
Kakashi immediately stepped forward.
"What do you have in mind?"
Oborotsuki asked, looking at him.
"We previously received intelligence that Lady Tsunade may be active somewhere within the Land of Water… If you can locate her, she will definitely be able to heal Lord Third."
Kakashi answered.
-------------------------
Support us on Patreon and gain access to 100 chapters in advance!
patreon.com/inkroxx