radicalducati Chapter 122 Failure is called rebellion, success is called revolution!
Chapter 122 Failure is called rebellion, success is called revolution!
Chapter 122 Failure is called rebellion, success is called revolution!
Makoto Karatachi has always suspected that the Third Mizukage was controlled by Madara Uchiha.
Only in this way can we explain the various brainless decisions made by Kirigakure during the Third Shinobi World War, including the Seven Ninja Swordsmen infiltrating the Land of Fire and sending Rin Nohara the Three-Tails.
Everything behind these brainless decisions was for Obito Uchiha.
For his descent into darkness.
For his growth.
So that he can better control the Hidden Mist!
At this moment, this speculation was completely confirmed in Qingbai's eyes!
"Captain, what exactly is going on—"
"We'll talk about it when we get back."
Gouju Cheng interrupted him, remaining outwardly calm and even nodding to an elder who offered congratulations, as if everything he had learned was nothing more than idle gossip.
"Lord Mizukage, cousin Yagura, I must take my leave now."
Goji Makoto walked to the front of the platform, waved, and said to the two of them.
"Go, Makoto, get some rest." Mizukage nodded gently, her eyes kind.
Yagura patted him on the shoulder: "I'll come find you later."
Gouju Cheng smiled and agreed, then turned and left.
Qing silently followed.
The two remained silent and quickly returned to the clan's territory, to Makoto Karuta's residence.
Close the door and create a soundproof barrier.
"Captain, what exactly happened?" Ao finally couldn't help but ask, "Lord Mizukage—who—"
"It's not certain yet."
Makoto Koji shook his head, his tone grave: "But one thing is certain: the Mizukage has been under long-term influence in some extremely sophisticated and covert way."
"It could be a high-level illusion, a special curse or secret technique, or something else entirely. We still don't know what their purpose is or who's behind them."
"By the way, how's my cousin's brain?"
"Lord Yagura has no problem."
Qing shook her head, feeling a sense of relief.
If Lord Yagura had also been controlled, then Kirigakure would truly be finished. Fortunately, there's only one Mizukage left.
What a load of rubbish!
The supreme leader, the capital of the village, has been controlled by someone else's illusion for who knows how long, and has become a puppet. Fortunately!
"Qing, you are my most trusted subordinate. There are some things you really should know."
Seeing the restless Qing, Makoto Goji said in a deep voice, "The reason I asked you to observe Lord Mizukage is because I sensed an extremely familiar feeling about him."
"Familiar?" Qing was taken aback.
"Um.
""
Makoto Kujira nodded, pointing to his eyes: "That feeling is somewhat similar to the chakra fluctuations that remain in the other person's body when I use the Sharingan's power, especially when I use certain high-level genjutsu or mental interference."
Blue's pupils constricted sharply: "The captain means—it's the Sharingan?! He's from the Uchiha clan?!"
"It's not just an ordinary Sharingan."
Gouju Cheng took a deep breath, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
"Ordinary Sharingan cannot achieve that level. Although the Mizukage is old, his strength is extremely powerful. How could he be controlled by ordinary Sharingan?"
"Only the Mangekyou Sharingan, above the three-tomoe Sharingan, can achieve this! Only eyes of this caliber can subtly influence a powerhouse like the Mizukage!"
"Kaleidoscope Sharingan —"
Qing's voice trembled slightly.
Who could use the Mangekyou Sharingan to control a Kage-level powerhouse, the highest leader of Kirigakure, so secretly and for so long?!
"Could it be... Fugaku Uchiha from Konoha?" Ao immediately thought of the fierce-eyed man who had already been killed by their captain: "He definitely had the Mangekyou Sharingan! He was the one who secretly targeted the Mizukage—"
No, it wasn't him.
Gouju shook his head in rejection.
"First of all, the timing doesn't match."
"Based on your observation, the abnormal chakra is highly integrated with the Mizukage's own chakra, and its existence time is probably far longer than the span of the Third Shinobi World War. It is more likely that Fugaku Uchiha's Mangekyou Sharingan was awakened recently, and since he has been active on the front lines, it is difficult for him to have had the opportunity to have long-term contact with and control the Mizukage."
"Furthermore, Fugaku Uchiha may have ambitions, but he is first and foremost the head of the Uchiha clan and a ninja of Konoha."
"If he could truly control the Mizukage, then Konoha's war on the eastern front should have ended long ago, and even Kirigakure might have been completely defeated or manipulated by Konoha. But the fact is, the war is still fierce, and although Kirigakure's decisions sometimes seem—strange, overall they are still fighting to the death against Konoha."
"Furthermore, I have copied Fugaku's Mangekyou Sharingan. Although both are Sharingan eye powers, they are still different."
""
"—Who is that?"
Qing's forehead was covered in cold sweat from tension and shock.
This is even more terrifying than the Flying Thunder God Technique and the Tailed Beast Ball!
"A guy hiding in the deeper darkness." Makoto Karatachi didn't go into details: "The Mangekyou Sharingan is powerful and rare, there are only a few pairs in the entire history of the Uchiha clan, but don't forget, besides Fugaku, I also replicated a pair on Azumari Island."
"That guy controlling the Mizukage is probably a third pair of Mangekyou Sharingan hidden in the shadows!"
Qing gasped.
This Uchiha is really freakish. On the surface, he doesn't have a single pair of Mangekyou Sharingan, but in reality, he has three pairs!
In the past, Madara Uchiha used only a pair of Mangekyou Sharingan to intimidate the ninja world. If three pairs of Mangekyou Sharingan were gathered together, what chance would other ninja villages have?
"So what should we do?"
Ao couldn't help but ask, "Should we immediately expose them and tell Lord Yagura and the other elders? Wouldn't that be too risky?"
Although the Hidden Mist is a political system where the strong rise and the weak fall, as long as you are strong enough, you can rule over everything.
The Second Mizukage came to power for this reason.
At the first Five Kage Summit, all the Kage's bodyguards were their future successors. However, the Second Mizukage stood out from the crowd and snatched the position from the Third Mizukage.
If the Second Mizukage hadn't perished so early, dying alongside the Second Tsuchikage in World War I, the position of Third Mizukage would never have been his.
But now that the war has just ended, if they openly question the Mizukage, whether it's true or not, it will inevitably cause huge turmoil and suspicion within Kirigakure!
"No rush, my cousin should be here soon."
Within half an hour, familiar footsteps could be heard outside the courtyard.
"Ah Cheng, are you there?"
""
It was Yagura's voice.
Makoto Karatachi removed the barrier, opened the door, and welcomed Yagura in.
Yagura walked into the courtyard with a look of relief and satisfaction on his face, clearly still pleased with Makoto Karatachi's performance and achievements on the front lines.
But as the door closed and the soundproof barrier was re-established, his smile gradually faded when he saw the unusually serious and solemn expressions on the faces of Gouju Cheng and Qing.
"What's wrong?"
Yagura sensed something was wrong and frowned slightly: "What happened? Has there been any change at the front lines, or is there a problem with how the pufferfish was handled?"
Makoto Karutachi did not answer immediately, but gestured for Yagura to sit down and personally poured him a cup of tea.
"Cousin, don't panic. The Fugu Demon incident was handled cleanly, the evidence is conclusive, and his henchmen have been mostly dealt with; they can't cause any more trouble. Samehada is temporarily sealed in the Sealing Squad, and we'll deal with it once we find a suitable person. These are not problems."
"I'm going to tell you something even more important, and more dangerous."
"It concerns the life and death of Kirigakure, and also—the Mizukage."
Yagura paused slightly in his teacup, his eyes instantly sharpening like knives.
"What's wrong, Lord Mizukage?"
Makoto Goji took a deep breath and slowly said, "At today's celebration, I had Ao use his Byakugan to carefully observe Lord Mizukage."
Yagura's gaze immediately shifted to Ao.
Ao nodded gravely and spoke in a deep voice, "Lord Yagura, I sensed an extremely unusual and concealed chakra deep within the Mizukage's brain. This chakra is deeply intertwined with his original chakra, like a persistent, malignant infection, and it is exerting a certain—indescribable—effect on his mind."
"What?!"
Yagura suddenly stood up, his expression changing drastically. The teacup in his hand crashed to the ground and shattered.
"How is that possible? You mean the Mizukage-sama—"
"I've been controlled for a long time using extremely sophisticated methods," Makoto Kuraki said slowly. "It wasn't direct control, but rather a subtle, eroding influence through methods like mental suggestion."
"No, that's impossible!"
"Lord Mizukage is a Kage-level shinobi. Who could control him silently and for so long, and moreover, we never even noticed!"
"Because the other side is using this thing."
Gouju Cheng raised his hand and pointed to his eyes.
"The Mangekyou Sharingan!"
"The reason I was able to win the war on the front lines was because I used the Mangekyou Sharingan to control the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
"This power can even be controlled by tailed beasts, let alone humans."
Yagura was struck dumb, staggering back half a step before grabbing the table to steady himself. His face was drained of color, and his eyes were filled with disbelief and shock.
Yes, those eyes can even control the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, let alone a human!
But Yagura still couldn't believe it.
"Acheng, are you sure?"
Yagura stared intently at Makoto Karatachi, his voice hoarse: "This is no joke. Mizukage-sama, the Third Hokage has led Kirigakure for so many years. If he were truly controlled by someone, then Kirigakure's policies and war decisions over the years—"
He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.
If the Mizukage is truly under control, then what has happened to Kirigakure all these years—
No, upon closer reflection, the Misty Village has indeed made far too many seemingly unreasonable or even self-destructive decisions over the years.
Leaving aside the blood mist and such, there were already many strategic deployments during World War III that even Yagura himself couldn't understand.
The most obvious example is the gift of three tails!
With the Six-Tails Jinchuriki, Uta, still young, the Three-Tails was Kirigakure's only nuclear weapon at the time.
As a result, this nuclear weapon was sealed inside a Konoha ninja, ultimately leading to the death of the Three-Tails!
If the Three-Tails were still alive, they would still have a fighting chance against the combination of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and Minato Namikaze. Why would Makoto Karatachi have to take such a big risk and go alone to cover the rear?
"Cousin, I think you've noticed something's wrong yourself, haven't you?"
Looking at Yagura's ever-changing expression, Makoto Karatachi slowly said, "I don't know when the Third Generation was controlled, but I sensed something was wrong some time after the end of World War II."
"Before and after the First Shinobi World War, the strength of Kirigakure was so great that even Iwagakure and Kumogakure had to be wary and give way."
.
"Although the Second Hokage sacrificed himself in the battle against Iwagakure, the foundation and fighting spirit of Kirigakure remain. When the Third Hokage took over, he also showed enough courage and skill to reorganize internally and be tough on external forces, which once brought Kirigakure back to its glory."
"But everything changed after the Second Shinobi World War."
"Our policies became radical, and the various struggles within the village intensified, even among the children at the ninja academy—"
Yagura closed his eyes, pressing his fingers hard against his temples until his knuckles turned white.
How could he, in his high position, be completely unaware of these suspicious points and inconsistencies?
Previously, he attributed it more to the Mizukage's poor decision-making, or the consequences of internal factional struggles, or perhaps—for some longer-term plan that he couldn't understand at the moment.
But now that Makoto Karatachi has laid out all these things one by one, and brought up the possibility that the Mizukage might be controlled, everything seems to be connected, forming a chilling web.
But who did all this?!
"Of course, we can't be completely sure who this person is yet." Makoto Karatachi looked at Yagura with an extremely serious expression: "But what is certain is that he possesses the Mangekyou Sharingan, is incredibly powerful, acts discreetly, and harbors immense malice towards Kirigakure."
"Cousin, the current situation is that our highest leader in Kirigakure, the Third Mizukage, may have been secretly controlled by an enemy with the Mangekyou Sharingan for more than a decade, making a series of decisions that have damaged the fundamental interests of Kirigakure."
"This is no longer a simple domestic or strategic mistake; this is—war! A slow murder of Kirigakure, launched from within!"
Yagura's body trembled slightly, but he was, after all, Yagura Karatachi, the man destined to become the Fourth Mizukage.
After a brief moment of losing his composure, he forced himself to calm down.
"Acheng, Qing, do you have any solid evidence for what you've told me?"
"Besides the Blue-White Eye's perception, are there any other supporting evidence? With just these, it would be difficult to convince the village's higher-ups and the major ninja clans, let alone take action against the Mizukage."
Ao gave a wry smile and shook his head: "That chakra was hidden extremely well, almost fused with the body. If I hadn't been paying special attention and observing for a long time during today's celebration, I probably wouldn't have been able to detect it. It's almost impossible to obtain more direct evidence, such as finding the caster or capturing the specific control commands."
Upon hearing this, Yagura's expression darkened.
But Gouju Cheng snorted lightly, unconvinced.
"We don't need any evidence, cousin."
"It's difficult to convince all the elders and Jonin based solely on Ao's Byakugan observation and my senses. If we alert them, the person controlling the Mizukage might act desperately, directly destroying the Mizukage's mind, or even causing more serious consequences."
Yagura frowned, then nodded.
What Goju Cheng said makes sense. Moreover, if the other party can really control the Water Shadow for a long time, they may have other informants or backup plans within the Hidden Mist Village.
Acting rashly is too risky!
"So, are we just going to do nothing?" Qing couldn't help but ask.
"No, we can accelerate the change of power and make the Mizukage abdicate on his own!"
"Natural abdication?"
Yagura and Ao both looked at him at the same time.
"right."
Gouju Cheng's lips curled into a meaningful smile.
"Lord Mizukage is getting old and has been overworked in recent years due to the war, so he is unwell and has decided to abdicate early, passing the position of Mizukage to the well-deserved successor, which is you, my cousin."
"You were originally a candidate for the Fourth Mizukage. The Third Mizukage stepped down, and the Fourth Mizukage took over. That makes perfect sense, doesn't it?"
"this----"
Yagura frowned slightly.
"That's true, but the Mizukage is currently being controlled. How could he possibly offer to abdicate? And those who control him wouldn't allow it."
Instead of answering directly, Makoto Kuraki asked, "Cousin, what do you think is the ultimate goal of that guy who controls the Mizukage?"
Yagura pondered for a moment: "The purpose of secretly controlling a village's Kage for a long time is nothing more than a few things. To steal Kirigakure's secrets, to influence the course of the war, to weaken Kirigakure's strength, or to make Kirigakure make decisions that are favorable to him at crucial moments, or even—to pave the way for some larger conspiracy."
"That's right."
Makoto Koji nodded. "The other party spent more than a decade, like a spider weaving a web, slowly and patiently eroding the Mizukage's spirit. This was definitely not a short-term act, but a long-term strategy."
"But the war is over."
A sharp glint flashed in Makoto Goji's eyes.
"We defeated Konoha, and Kirigakure's morale is soaring, with internal cohesion stronger than ever before. And cousin, you and I, as heroes who led Kirigakure to victory in this crucial battle, enjoy unparalleled prestige. Your succession as the Fourth Mizukage is the will of the people, a sure thing!"
"In this situation, what will the controller lurking in the shadows do?"
Ao thoughtfully continued, "He will feel uneasy. Yagura-sama's rise to power means the establishment of a new power core. His years of painstaking covert control over the Mizukage may be exposed or rendered ineffective due to the power transition."
"In fact, after Lord Yagura takes office, he may very well re-examine and scrutinize many of Kirigakure's past decisions and intensify internal investigations—which would greatly increase the risk of him being discovered."
"So he only has two choices."
Gouju Cheng spoke calmly.
"First, we must maintain control over the third generation and try to obstruct or delay the transfer of power. However, the war has just ended, and our prestige is unmatched. Forcibly obstructing it will only backfire and arouse suspicion."
"second----"
Makoto Goji looked at Yagura and spoke slowly and deliberately.
"Before and after the power transition, they shift control to other entities to maintain their control over Kirigakure!"
Yagura's expression changed drastically!
"Makoto, you mean the person secretly controlling the Third Hokage might try to harm me?!"
"It's not a possibility, it's a certainty." Makoto Karatachi's tone was resolute: "If it were me, I would do the same. I've controlled Kirigakure for decades; do you think I'd be willing to just hand it over like that?"
"So what we need to do is strike first and freeze our hands!"
"Here's what I'm thinking, cousin. You prepare everything for taking over, and I'll use my Mangekyou Sharingan to forcibly remove the chakra from the Mizukage's brain."
"If we can succeed, that would be the best outcome. This way, we can not only eliminate the hidden dangers but also preserve the third generation."
"If we fail, cousin, you can still take over directly, minimizing the impact as much as possible!"
"hiss----"
Qing gasped. He knew his captain would do something, but he hadn't expected Gouju Cheng to be so decisive.
No wonder they didn't consult with any elders; no wonder they said they wanted to minimize their influence—they're preparing to strike at the heart of the enemy!
"Captain, are we rebelling or plotting a treason?"
"What a joke!" Makoto Kuraki's expression turned serious. "My cousin is the only candidate for the Fourth Hokage. It's perfectly reasonable for him to take over. How can that be called rebellion and treason!"
"Moreover."
"Failure is what constitutes rebellion."
"If it succeeds, that's called a revolution!"