Hagoromo lowered his head slightly, concealing the flash of surprise that crossed his eyes.
In that instant, his thoughts raced.
So… what exactly has happened to the Mizukage?
But no matter what conclusions he reached, when he raised his head again, his expression was calm and unreadable.
"Envoy of Konoha,"
the Mizukage asked, looking down at him,
"for what purpose have you come to Kirigakure?"
The Mizukage, huh?
Let's assume he is one.
Do important figures always like asking questions they already know the answer to?
"Purpose…" Hagoromo replied evenly.
"To realize peace between our two great villages. As Konoha's envoy, I now present the Third Hokage's letter to the Third Mizukage."
As he spoke, he reached into his robes and took out a scroll.
He briefly entertained the idea of simply tossing it toward the Mizukage, just to see whether the man would dare catch it—but the moment the scroll appeared, an ANBU of Kirigakure (special forces) materialized in front of him.
With no choice, Hagoromo handed the scroll over.
Just imagine it—if he had swapped the Hokage's letter with a Four Symbols Seal and thrown it instead…
That would've been a sight.
Even though it was a Hokage's letter, before allowing it to reach the Mizukage, Kirigakure's ANBU carefully unsealed and inspected it, checking for any traces of fuinjutsu or hidden mechanisms.
Only after confirming that it contained nothing but ordinary writing did they pass it on.
The Mizukage accepted the letter and read through it quickly.
The contents were simple and formulaic: an overview of the current war, an argument that peace was inevitable, and a recommendation that Kirigakure move quickly to achieve peace with Konoha.
After finishing, the Mizukage's face darkened.
"The hatred between Kirigakure and Konoha cannot be erased by a single sentence from the Third Hokage saying that 'peace is inevitable.'"
That was it?
That was his reaction?
"And you, Konoha jōnin Uehakuseki," the Mizukage continued coldly.
"Momochi Zabuza and Fuguki Suikazan died by your hand. Yet you still dare to come here openly as an envoy. Do you truly believe that under such circumstances, you can leave Kirigakure alive?"
The atmosphere instantly tightened.
Hōzuki Mangetsu's hand went to his blade. With one more word from the Mizukage, a coordinated assault would erupt.
"War inflicts equal damage upon both nations," Hagoromo said calmly.
"Shinobi did not originally slaughter each other out of hatred. But the more killing there is, the deeper the hatred grows—and the deeper the hatred, the more killing follows."
"But emotions like hatred are irrational. For individual shinobi and for villages alike, they are liabilities. Shinobi should be rational. A Kage even more so."
"From a rational standpoint, the war has reached its limits. Financially. Militarily. For every great nation."
"An end is inevitable. Either after one final, all-in gamble by both sides—or before that point."
"So I ask: does further killing, right before peace, truly have meaning?"
"That judgment depends entirely on the will of the Third Mizukage."
"Konoha seeks only peace. And in the end, peace itself is the only thing either side can gain. Nothing more."
Hagoromo was unmoved by the threat.
Everything he said was something the Mizukage already knew. And the Mizukage was also right—this war would not end simply because the Hokage said so.
In terms of status, Hagoromo had no right to speak on equal footing with a Kage. He was merely a messenger delivering the Hokage's words—
provided he had no intention of causing trouble in Kirigakure.
Yes. Provided.
Even so, he spoke.
And having spoken, he stopped. The decision lay with the Mizukage alone.
But Hagoromo already knew something.
No matter how intimidating the Mizukage appeared, the man before him could not make a decisive judgment on the spot.
"Third Mizukage-sama…"
After a long silence, one of the advisers behind him finally spoke up.
"…Envoy of Konoha," the Mizukage said at last.
"I have received the Hokage's letter. Kirigakure's stance on the war—whether to continue fighting or pursue peace with Konoha—will be decided by us alone."
"As for you, your fate will also be decided later."
With that, the Mizukage turned and left, the four advisers departing with him.
In moments, only Hagoromo and the two shinobi guarding him remained.
"White Yaksha,"
said the fifteen-year-old with the face of a fifty-year-old—Hoshigaki Kisame,
"please come with us."
"Understood," Hagoromo replied.
Despite facing an undefined "judgment," there was no anxiety on his face.
On the contrary—based on his deductions, he felt quietly confident.
When Hagoromo was returned to his room, Terumī Mei arrived again with her four-man squad.
This time, they were clearly on full alert.
But Hagoromo spoke first, intent on seizing the initiative—even here, in Kirigakure.
"We just met, didn't we?"
"And now you're already here to inform me of my fate?"
His words made them pause.
Mei's pupils narrowed.
"What do you mean by that?"
She had not appeared before him at all earlier. By all accounts, this should have been their first meeting in three days.
The room was of moderate size. Hagoromo stood at its center, while Mei's squad formed a loose encirclement.
Ignoring her question, Hagoromo continued calmly:
"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist have been wiped out."
"Yagura… has just died."
Those two statements struck like thunder.
Kirigakure had already suspected something was wrong—but nothing had been confirmed.
Was it really true?
"And worse," Hagoromo continued,
"the Third Mizukage himself is compromised."
"In this state of crisis, do you truly intend to fight both Konoha and Kumogakure at the same time?"
Almost the instant he finished speaking, Mei's kunai was at his throat.
Hagoromo did not dodge.
He raised both hands in a clear gesture of surrender.
"I have no intention of fighting."
"The Seven Swordsmen—five of them—are truly dead?" Mei demanded coldly.
"And Yagura and his interception squad as well?"
"All true," Hagoromo replied.
"The Seven Swordsmen fell a month ago. As for Yagura's squad… the fact that I arrived on time, while they never returned, should be explanation enough."
"Besides," he added,
"Yagura wasn't even on your side. You were enemies. His death should be good news for you—"
"How do you know about the Mizukage?" Mei cut in sharply.
Hagoromo shrugged.
"Earlier, I wasn't certain. But now? I am."
"You reacted too strongly."
Her response confirmed his suspicion.
It was a risky bluff—borderline manipulation of an inexperienced leader—but in the shinobi world, once enemies were defined, such methods were entirely acceptable.
Mei realized it immediately.
She had overreacted.
And that reaction had validated his conclusion.
But at least—he was still in Kirigakure.
"We once considered peace with Konoha," Mei said coldly.
"But now that you've discovered the Mizukage's condition, that option is meaningless."
"You cannot be allowed to leave alive."
No matter what, she could not let information about the Mizukage leak out.
"I told you," Hagoromo replied calmly,
"I have no intention of fighting. But don't mistake that for weakness."
"Even here, in Kirigakure, mutual destruction is still possible."
"Mutual destruction?" Mei scoffed.
"Here? With me? You?"
"No," Hagoromo said evenly.
"You misunderstand. That would be too small-minded."
"Think bigger."
His hands were still raised—but lightning began to crackle around his body.
Mei instantly retreated, preparing for his Lightning Release.
But Hagoromo did not attack.
He was threatening—nothing more.
Perhaps none of them understood fuinjutsu, but that didn't matter.
There was a Byakugan present.
Even if they couldn't read the formulas, they could certainly sense the scale of the power involved.
You don't show nuclear weapons to cavemen.
But you do show them to people who understand what annihilation looks like.
Iron sand poured from the gourd on Hagoromo's back, branching upward and filling the room's vertical space like metallic tree limbs.
At the ends of those branches, "fruit" grew—
Dark red scrolls.
With a series of hand seals, the scrolls expanded dozens of times in size, unfurling slightly to reveal fragments of densely packed sealing formulas.
Hagoromo spoke lightly, almost teasingly:
"I'm not talking about mutual destruction with you."
"Or even with all of you."
"I'm saying… I can take all of Kirigakure with me."
"For a better world—"
"Uzumaki Secret Technique: Four Symbols Seal."
"×20."
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