Drip! —
Water droplets from the cave ceiling fell, hitting the glass jar with a soft ping.
Motomu reached out and flicked the side of the jar.
The Hozuki Jonin sealed within opened his mouth wide, baring sharp fangs.
Roar! Roar!
So fierce!
It looked like he was trying to bully me for being an honest person.
Motomu raised an eyebrow and turned the Lightning-dial up a notch.
Intense electrical currents crackled and buzzed.
The Hozuki Jonin's expression became contorted with pain.
"I... won't... tell you... anything!"
"There is a boy in your team named Hozuki Mangetsu."
"He is quite talented."
"Just an ordinary clansman."
Motomu ignored the reply and continued indifferently.
"The Hozuki clan supports Yagura just so they can push that kid to become the next Mizukage, right?"
"I don't know what you are talking about."
"In that case, what is the Third Mizukage doing right now?"
"As his political rivals, aren't you afraid?"
The Hozuki Jonin sneered at the question.
"Lord Third is forming the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Does Konoha's intelligence network not even know that much?"
Motomu watched the man's face and nodded.
"I see. You aren't worried about his success."
"Because what the Third Mizukage wants to do is too difficult—so difficult that he will most likely die."
The Hozuki Jonin's watery face completely dissolved, clearly unwilling to let Motomu extract any more information.
"Thanks."
Bang! —
The water-man slammed hard against the glass jar with a loud thud.
After turning the current up one more notch...
...the Hozuki Jonin completely shut down.
However, this bit of information was enough for Motomu.
On the surface, the Third was out to capture the Great Sword Samehada to form the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
In reality, his goal was most likely to seal the Three-Tails and become its Jinchuriki, gaining unparalleled power.
But the extremely high mortality rate and risk of failure associated with sealing a Tailed Beast...
...allowed the Hozuki clan to see an opportunity to reclaim the seat of Mizukage.
Sensing an opening, they allied with commoner ninjas and Karatachi Yagura, planning to seize power the moment the Third Mizukage died.
This power struggle gave Motomu the perfect chance to play both sides for his own benefit.
Using the pursuit of Hozuki Mangetsu as an excuse to stay behind...
Motomu wasn't actually planning to silence anyone.
He had never forgotten about the Tailed Beasts.
Whether the Third Mizukage's sealing succeeded or not, the Tailed Beast would inevitably enter a period of weakness.
As long as he found the location where the sealing began, Motomu would have a way to challenge the Tailed Beast Gym.
Looking at the Arbok, which lacked a tracking nose and was useless for hunting, a disappointed Motomu retracted his gaze.
For now, finding the Third Mizukage's location required a more brute-force method.
Under the Third Mizukage, there were only a handful of elite ninja clans and an unknown number of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
These were all highly recognizable targets.
To ensure maximum safety, the Third Mizukage would surely station all his powerful subordinates around him.
Currently, if he could find any traces of the Ninja Swords, the Yuki clan, or the Kaguya clan, it would prove he was nearing the Third Mizukage and the Tailed Beast.
The plan was set.
Find the Third Mizukage's subordinates, confirm the target location, wait for the Tailed Beast sealing to begin, and most importantly...
"Reverse summon that person."
Hearing this, the Arbok nodded its head.
Poof! —
A cloud of smoke exploded.
Orochimaru's voice echoed faintly.
"Is it done?"
"A Jonin? Good efficiency."
A long-haired figure in black robes emerged from the smoke, his golden snake-like pupils sweeping over the bottled Jonin on the ground.
A wicked smile curled on Orochimaru's lips.
"Master, your disciple has a request."
"What reward do you seek, my pupil?"
Motomu presented a scabbard with both hands and spoke slowly.
"Your disciple asks for your sword to slay the demon."
He wants my Kusanagi Sword?
As long as it wasn't the Totsuka Blade, it shouldn't be a problem.
He had other Kusanagi Swords anyway.
Orochimaru agreed after a brief moment of thought.
Orochimaru's jaw unhinged, and a snake slithered from his throat, regurgitating a blade into his hand.
The Kusanagi Sword, coated in a trace of saliva, was slid into the scabbard.
Feeling the weight in the scabbard...
...Motomu knew that his plan was halfway to success!
After emerging from Ryuchi Cave...
...he stood once again in the forest.
Motomu used one hand to remove the Big Eyeball from his right eye socket.
The miniature Big Eyeball flew higher and higher, only stopping once it nearly touched the storm clouds in the sky.
Rumble! —
Amidst the low rumble of thunder, the heavy clouds that had been brewing for days could no longer hold back the rain.
A torrential downpour poured from the sky.
A custom-made white swirl one-eyed mask, inspired by demon masks, appeared in Motomu's hand.
He put it on gently.
The blood-red Sharingan flickered in the rain.
...
The Land of Water was filled with thick fog.
In the heavy rain, visibility was even worse.
Fortunately, with the Big Eyeball guiding the way, Motomu could maintain a straight line while searching for traces of his target.
The wind gradually slowed down.
Motomu swallowed a Soldier Pill.
Feeling a warm current rising from his stomach as his chakra began to recover, he leaped forward to continue his journey.
Every day wasted now meant more variables in his plan.
Searching the entirety of the Land of Water was, of course, impossible.
Using the Big Eyeball, Motomu had already narrowed it down to several suspicious areas.
These were his primary targets.
He had already scouted two coastal locations yesterday and found nothing.
The plan was showing no progress.
On the contrary, the tails behind him were growing in number.
Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!
A water dragon as tall as a two-story building reared its head from the rain.
Motomu used Psychokinesis to accelerate his legs, appearing in the distance as if using the Body Flicker Technique.
With a thunderous crash, the tree he had been standing on was snapped in half by the water dragon.
"Stop right there."
"Don't run! Where is our Clan Elder?!"
When their attack failed and they saw Motomu jump out from the other side, they shouted and continued the chase.
Motomu looked back at the Hozuki clan members.
He felt quite helpless.
In a heavy downpour, it was as if these people were using cheats.
Unless someone knew Lightning Style, there was virtually nothing anyone could do against them.
Over a dozen Hozuki ninjas clung to Motomu's heels like rabid dogs.
As if Motomu had killed their father.
"You bastard! What did you do to my dad?!"
Heh, he actually did.
Amidst the cursing, Motomu increased the intensity of the Psychokinesis on his legs.
His speed surged, and in the blink of an eye, he left several of his pursuers behind.
Once he had put enough distance between them...
Motomu's vision synchronized with the Big Eyeball in the sky.
His Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun as he looked toward a distant ninja camp. On the ground, Motomu adjusted his direction and rushed toward it at full speed.
Boom! —
In the night sky, lightning streaked across the firmament. With a burst of chakra, Motomu leaped out of the woods.
The green tents of the ninja camp appeared before him.
There was no time to waste.
Motomu's hands blurred as he wove signs.
Snake → Ram → Monkey → Boar → Horse → Tiger
A Great Fireball, barely four meters in diameter, slammed into the camp, trailing billowing steam.
The fireball ignited the tents, illuminating half the forest.
With a series of whooshes, several figures emerged from the camp.
The leader, wielding a weapon that looked like a useless oversized club, knit his brows on his baby face.
The four pairs of hostile eyes fell upon the mysterious figure wearing the white swirl mask, who had just violently demolished their home.