Chapter 131: The Little Tavern in Kirigakure
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Soon, Uchiha Douhuan obtained from Black Zetsu the pupil power control technique for the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, becoming Kirigakure's underground shadow ruler.
Then, Black Zetsu summoned several White Zetsu clones and introduced them to Uchiha Douhuan: "These are creatures produced by the special abilities Uchiha Madara gained after summoning the Gedo Statue. You can call them White Zetsu."
"Salute Lord Douhuan!" Among the five White Zetsu that appeared, one who looked particularly abnormal glanced back at his four companions after appearing, then raised his hand and shouted loudly, "Loyalty!"
Seeing this, the other four White Zetsu followed suit, raising their hands in salute: "Loyalty!"
Uchiha Douhuan: ...
"Hehe, they usually operate in the outside world, so they've learned some etiquette," Black Zetsu said with an awkward laugh. "They are very useful for infiltration and intelligence gathering, and can also move quickly underground."
"I see. The letter delivered to my house previously was sent by them, correct?" Uchiha Douhuan said.
"Yes. You can command them in the future," Black Zetsu replied.
"I understand. Thank you for the ancestor's gift," Uchiha Douhuan chuckled, then turned, preparing to leave.
"Wait a moment, descendant," Black Zetsu suddenly stopped Uchiha Douhuan.
"Ancestor, is there something?" Uchiha Douhuan turned back and asked.
"You haven't mentioned your plan yet, descendant," Black Zetsu reminded him. "I wish to know how you intend to collect the Tailed Beasts from the other four great ninja villages, so that I may better coordinate with you."
"Does that even need saying?" Hearing this, Uchiha Douhuan revealed a crazed smile, then declared, "Of course, it's to unify the entire ninja world! This ninja world is so small; one country is sufficient! And in this process, after defeating the other ninja villages, we can naturally collect all the Tailed Beasts easily. Then, rely on the Infinite Tsukuyomi to usher in eternal peace! Hahaha! Ancestor, how is my plan?"
Uchiha Douhuan threw his head back and laughed long and loud. Black Zetsu felt his scalp tingle instantly upon hearing this. Uchiha Douhuan's level of madness surpassed his expectations; even Uchiha Madara back then hadn't said anything like the ninja world only needing one country.
"By the way, how long does it take to bring me from here to Kirigakure?" Uchiha Douhuan turned his head and looked at a White Zetsu beside him.
"Reporting to Lord Douhuan, it only takes two hours for us to take you underground to Kirigakure!" the White Zetsu who had led the salute earlier reported.
"Very good. How should I address you?" Uchiha Douhuan nodded and then asked.
"Lord Douhuan, just call me Tobi," Tobi said respectfully.
"Can a shadow clone be brought along?" Uchiha Douhuan asked.
"Of course," Tobi nodded.
Uchiha Douhuan immediately created a shadow clone. Upon appearing, the shadow clone directly spoke to White Zetsu Tobi: "Now, take me to Kirigakure."
"As you command," Tobi nodded, transforming into a pool of white substance that wrapped around Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone, then submerged into the ground with the clone.
"What do you intend to do?" Black Zetsu quickly asked.
"Naturally, I'm going to Kirigakure to see how they are developing," Uchiha Douhuan said. "How about Ancestor comes along with my shadow clone?"
Black Zetsu fell silent for a moment, then also burrowed into the ground, following the steps of Uchiha Douhuan and White Zetsu Tobi.
Two hours later, Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone was brought to Kirigakure by Black Zetsu.
Uchiha Douhuan sized up the village with great interest. Although he had killed many Kirigakure ninjas during the Third Great Ninja War, this was his first time actually visiting Kirigakure.
Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone's nose twitched slightly. The air in Kirigakure had a very distinct character: the salty, damp sea breeze carried a heavy scent of blood. It wasn't even evening yet, but the residents throughout the village had already tightly shut their doors and windows. The entire street was deserted except for a few ninjas still wandering about.
Under the disguise provided by the White Zetsu covering Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone's surface, Uchiha Douhuan currently looked like a very ordinary Kirigakure ninja.
At this moment, beside Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone, a figure emerged from the ground. After Black Zetsu merged with the White Zetsu he possessed, his face also began to transform into a human-like form.
"It seems Kirigakure has had an interesting few years," Uchiha Douhuan came beside a pool of blood near the wall, examined the stain carefully, then said, "Left here two hours ago. Judging by the scene, it was likely formed by blood spurting out after being directly stabbed through the heart from behind with a kunai. Using ninja tools for killings directly within the village? Kirigakure is even more chaotic than I imagined."
"Ancestor, is this the backup plan Lord Madara left behind?" Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone turned back and asked.
"Yes. To weaken the strength of the other major ninja villages, your predecessor Uchiha Madara left backup plans in all major villages. And in Kirigakure, the plan he left was to control the Mizukage through the Three-Tails' pupil power imprint, implementing the Bloody Mist policy targeting the village's Kekkei Genkai ninjas."
"That doesn't seem right?" Uchiha Douhuan's eyes narrowed slightly at this point. "I remember Lord Madara died in the great battle with Lord First in Konoha Year 9. But this Bloody Mist policy in Kirigakure seems to have only been implemented in recent years. Could it be that Lord Madara was actually still alive before?"
"Of course not. Uchiha Madara definitely died in Konoha Year 9," Black Zetsu wiped non-existent sweat beads from his brow, his brain working rapidly, trying desperately to patch up the loophole he had accidentally created. "Although Uchiha Madara died, he had already anticipated the possibility of his defeat and death before his great battle with Senju Hashirama. Therefore, he left numerous backup plans throughout the ninja world and entrusted me to transfer these preparations to his next successor who inherited our clan's ultimate dream – which is you."
"So, this Bloody Mist policy was actually created by you, Ancestor, wasn't it?" Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone narrowed his eyes and said softly.
Uchiha Douhuan's words made Black Zetsu's heart tighten. Forcing a calm demeanor, he asked, "Is there a problem?"
"The efficiency is too low!" Uchiha Douhuan's shadow clone clapped his hands and said.
"Eh?" Black Zetsu was also momentarily stunned. He didn't understand why Uchiha Douhuan would say that.
"Ancestor, I understand your methods somewhat. You intend to provoke conflict between Kirigakure's Kekkei Genkai ninjas and common ninjas, thereby inciting internal strife in Kirigakure? This line of thinking is not wrong, but the method is incorrect," A slightly crazed smile appeared on Uchiha Douhuan's face. "Simply relying on the Mizukage's orders to carry this out will have effects in the short term. However, once this reaches a certain point, the remaining ninjas will spontaneously rise up and resist the Mizukage's orders. In the end, the effect will actually not be very good."
"Is that so?" Black Zetsu hesitated. Did Obito think this much when implementing the Bloody Mist policy before? Wasn't he simply seeking revenge against Kirigakure for killing the little girl he loved?
"Then, if it were you, what would you do?" Black Zetsu asked.
"The identity disguised by White Zetsu should be fine, right?" Uchiha Douhuan asked back.
"Rest assured, Lord Douhuan. The people we disguise ourselves as are all ninjas who went missing during missions. We directly replaced their identities. As long as we don't fight, no one will notice anything unusual," White Zetsu Tobi's voice sounded near Uchiha Douhuan's ear.
"Is that so?" Uchiha Douhuan's expression flickered slightly. It seemed that after finishing things here, he would need to thoroughly check the personnel back in the village upon returning.
"In that case, Ancestor, follow me. Let me tell you how to incite their conflict from the bottom up," Uchiha Douhuan chuckled lightly, walking towards the inner part of Kirigakure.
Black Zetsu hurriedly followed. The two traversed the streets of Kirigakure at night together. Before long, they found a tavern in the central district of the village.
"According to intelligence, almost everyone who comes here are ordinary ninjas from the village, correct?" Before entering the tavern, Uchiha Douhuan confirmed with the attached White Zetsu.
"Correct," White Zetsu Tobi replied.
Uchiha Douhuan nodded, directly pushed open the tavern door, came to the bar counter, and sat down swaggeringly, then surveyed his surroundings.
This small tavern wasn't very large, but the room was already full of people. Everyone inside, regardless of age or gender, wore a Kirigakure headband in various ways. In other words, at this moment, this tavern was filled entirely with ninjas.
Uchiha Douhuan noticed that although everyone present had a guarded look in their eyes, they all tacitly kept their weapons stowed away. Occasional conflicts that arose were resolved only with fists, without involving life or death. This was completely incompatible with the scenes Uchiha Douhuan had witnessed outside.
[So, this place is something like a recognized safe zone within Kirigakure?]
"What'll you drink?" Just then, from behind the tavern bar, a woman with brownish-red hair came beside the person Uchiha Douhuan was disguised as and asked.
Uchiha Douhuan turned his head and glanced at the newcomer's appearance, his expression freezing slightly. The waitress who came to talk was none other than the future Fifth Mizukage, Terumi Mei.
The current Terumi Mei was only in her early twenties. Although her figure hadn't reached its future peak, the potential was already beginning to show.
However, seeing her here did make Uchiha Douhuan very surprised. After all, according to the intelligence provided by Tobi, this tavern was one of the gathering spots for Kirigakure's non-Kekkei Genkai ninjas. If a ninja like Terumi Mei, possessing two Kekkei Genkai, revealed her identity here, it would likely instantly provoke a siege from the ninjas inside the tavern.
"Little brother, why are you staring at me like that?" Terumi Mei chuckled lightly.
"No particular reason, it's just that you look very much like an old acquaintance of mine," Uchiha Douhuan gently shook his head.
"Has anyone ever told you your pickup line is really old-fashioned?" Terumi Mei smiled. "What would you like to drink?"
"Your best sake here!" Uchiha Douhuan took out a stack of banknotes from his person, slapped it on the bar counter, and then shouted loudly.
Uchiha Douhuan's words almost instantly attracted the attention of the entire tavern.
Terumi Mei behind the bar then spoke up, reminding him, "Our best sake isn't cheap. Looking at your attire, little brother, you probably haven't reached Jounin yet, right? Better save your money to exchange for ninjutsu. After all, in our village, if your strength isn't sufficient, you might die any day."
"Save money to exchange for ninjutsu?" Uchiha Douhuan chuckled upon hearing this. "What's the point?"
After speaking, Uchiha Douhuan suddenly raised his voice and asked, "Miss, do you know how much a C-rank ninjutsu costs in the village?"
Although Uchiha Douhuan was asking Terumi Mei, he had already turned to face the crowd inside the tavern who were now looking at him.
"Five hundred thousand Ryo! A full five hundred thousand Ryo!" Uchiha Douhuan extended five fingers. "And that's the price for the most basic Hidden Mist Technique in the village! This much money requires a Genin to complete two hundred missions without eating or drinking! A Genin fresh out of the Academy could die at any moment during this process!"
"But what about the ninjas from the Kekkei Genkai clans?" Uchiha Douhuan slowly walked towards the center of the crowd. "They are born with powerful Kekkei Genkai ninjutsu! The jutsu we risk our lives saving up for is worthless in their eyes! But what have they done? To prevent us from having the ability to threaten them, they firmly control access to ninjutsu, making us risk our lives countless times just to obtain the most basic technique! And even then, they still expect us to be grateful to them!"
"Not only that!" Uchiha Douhuan clasped his hands before his chest. "When facing war, clearly they, who have mastered Kekkei Genkai ninjutsu, are stronger! But they send us to die on the battlefield! They hide in the rear, afraid to face Konoha's Azure Death God Uchiha Douhuan, yet they send us, batch after batch, under the blade of that bloodless sword!"
"Who made our village like this? Was it the Land of Fire? Was it Konoha? Or was it that Azure Death God Uchiha Douhuan? None of them! Then who exactly brought our village to its current state? And who should be responsible for this?" Uchiha Douhuan stood in the center of attention, loudly questioning.
"It's those Kekkei Genkai clans!" Just then, a person infected by Uchiha Douhuan's words stood out from the crowd and shouted loudly.
"Right! It's those Kekkei Genkai clans!" Uchiha Douhuan shouted loudly!
"The ones who built this village were us commoner ninjas with mediocre talent!" Uchiha Douhuan clenched his fists. "However, they occupy the high positions! They enjoy the fruits of our hard labor! Yet we, for even the most basic ninjutsu, have to wag our tails and beg for pity from them to obtain it! Is this reasonable?"
"Unreasonable!" The atmosphere in the entire tavern became increasingly fervent under Uchiha Douhuan's incitement.
At this moment, Terumi Mei behind the bar was completely stunned, while Black Zetsu, who had followed Uchiha Douhuan, felt his scalp tingle even more.
...
(End of Chapter)
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