The tension in the air was palpable as the shinobi of Takigakure stared at Uchiha Mirai, their expressions a mixture of fear and disbelief.
"Shakusui agreed," Mirai said slowly. "Takigakure will submit to me."
"From now on, your village falls under my jurisdiction. I will send people to take over all matters related to Takigakure."
"Do you understand?"
The Takigakure shinobi were stunned into silence.
They had anticipated that hiring a powerhouse like Mirai would come at a hefty price, but none of them had imagined that Shakusui, their leader, would agree to such a condition.
"How could this happen? Why would Lord Shakusui agree to such terms? This is no different from the destruction of Takigakure!"
As a village that once held the power to claim a tailed beast, the shinobi of Takigakure carried a deep-seated pride. Though their former glory had long since faded, a noble arrogance still ran through their veins.
To hear that their leader had surrendered them to an outsider was simply unacceptable.
Whispers of discontent spread among the shinobi. Mirai let out a low chuckle, his voice laced with amusement.
"Oh, there's a difference," he said. "The difference is that you're still alive."
"If I hadn't intervened, you'd all be corpses by now."
The weight of his words settled over them, and realization dawned on their faces.
It was true—if not for him, they would have all been slaughtered by that man known as Sasori of the Red Sand. Not only them but the villagers too. No one would have escaped.
Yet, despite this reality, one defiant voice rose above the crowd.
"Shakusui had no right to make such a decision on his own!"
"We will never submit to an outsider!"
"If we had known the price of your so-called 'rescue,' we would rather have died in battle!"
Mirai wasn't surprised.
People were always like this.
In the shinobi world, fear often outweighed gratitude.
But it didn't matter. He had the power to crush any resistance.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the defiant shinobi by the throat and lifted him off the ground.
"If you wish to continue struggling, I'll grant your wish."
Crack!
He snapped the man's neck effortlessly and tossed the lifeless body to the ground.
Several other shinobi glared at him with barely contained rage.
"Why did you kill him?!"
"Weren't you supposed to save us?!"
Mirai ignored their outrage. He simply raised one hand and covered his eye.
"Amaterasu."
Black flames erupted, swallowing the dissenters whole. No matter how they flailed—whether rolling on the ground or plunging into water—the flames did not relent.
The rest of the Takigakure shinobi stood frozen, their expressions shifting from fury to horror.
This man was far crueler than they had imagined.
When the bodies were reduced to ashes, Mirai spoke again, his tone indifferent.
"You seem to misunderstand something. If I have the power to save you, then I also have the power to end you."
"If you think I'm some naive do-gooder who helps people for free, you're gravely mistaken."
"So take my words as orders. I'm not here to negotiate."
With the example set, the remaining shinobi quickly fell in line. A middle-aged man stepped forward, leading Mirai and Kisame into the village.
The villagers, huddled together in fear, looked up at them with wary eyes.
The man spoke loudly, trying to calm them.
"There's no need to worry! The man behind me has saved our village."
"Perhaps you don't know yet, but this man is none other than the Hokage of Konoha—the one who has unified the Five Great Shinobi Villages, Uchiha Mirai."
"From now on, Takigakure will serve under his command."
On the way here, the Takigakure shinobi had heard many things from Kisame.
Stories of Mirai's feats—tales so legendary they seemed impossible.
And now, standing before the man himself, they were filled with nothing but fear.
They had dared to resist someone like him?
How many had already fallen to his hands? Tens of thousands? More?
Perhaps they were only alive because he had chosen to be merciful.
Yet, when the villagers heard the announcement, confusion flickered across their faces.
Serving a Konoha shinobi? What did that mean?
The middle-aged man quickly continued, worried someone might speak out and provoke Mirai's wrath.
"This decision was made after discussions with Lord Shakusui and the rest of us."
"If anyone has questions, you can speak with me in private."
He had no desire to see anyone else die for their foolishness.
Just then, a young boy, no older than four, came running from the distance, his voice urgent.
"Something's wrong! Suien-sensei—he…"
The man immediately tensed. "Shumoku, what happened to Suien?"
The boy gasped for breath before blurting out, "Suien-sensei stole the Hero Water!"
"What?!"
The Takigakure shinobi erupted in shock.
Before leaving to fight Kisame and Sasori, they had prepared for the worst, retrieving the Hero Water from its sacred vault and entrusting it to Shumoku for safekeeping.
Suien had volunteered to stay behind and guard it.
But now… he had betrayed them?
The middle-aged man, now identified as Shuto, turned to Shumoku. "Explain everything."
Shumoku spoke rapidly. "Shuto-san, after you left, Suien-sensei suddenly attacked me! He said the Hero Water was too valuable to be wasted on you all. He knocked me out and took it!"
"I just woke up and ran here as fast as I could!"
Shuto's face darkened. "We need to go after him. Mirai-sama, may I take some men—"
"No need," Mirai interrupted, shaking his head.
He had no faith in their abilities.
If he let them handle it, they'd only make things worse.
Closing his eyes, he expanded his senses. Within moments, he pinpointed Suien's location—several dozen miles away, already fleeing the village.
"Takigakure belongs to me now. That Hero Water isn't going anywhere."
"Yomotsu Hirasaka."
A dark portal opened before him, rippling like liquid shadow.
Without hesitation, Mirai reached into it, extending his hand across space…
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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