Promoting the Konoha threat theory, and talking about the Hidden Mist Belt!

"I am the daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools, and the patriarch of the Whirlpool Clan! If you want to die, you are not qualified to be ranked before me!" Takumi Uzumaki waved his hand and pushed all the other elders aside.

Hozuki Zangetsu and Yukina, who had vaguely heard of the power of the Uzumaki clan's forbidden techniques, exchanged a glance, nodded, and immediately began to control the Five-Tails.

"Water Release·Exploding Water Wave!"

"Water Release·Water Crush Wave!"

Led by Hozuki Zangetsu, and taking advantage of the flowing river, many Hozuki clan ninjas once again unleashed their Water Release ninjutsu, and the overwhelming waves engulfed the Five-Tails, Kokuou.

hold head high!

Before the Five-Tailed King Mu could react, he was drenched in the river water.

Ice Release: Absolute Zero!

"Ice Release: Ice Storm!"

Similarly, under Yukina's leadership, the Yuki clan ninjas also unleashed Ice Release, recreating the control chain from before.

Instantly, chunks of ice appeared on the body of the Five-Tailed King Mu. Soon, the ice chunks connected together, sealing the entire Five-Tailed King in solid ice, like an ice sculpture.

Under the sunlight, the ice sculptures shimmered and radiated a myriad of colors.

Hozuki Zangetsu and Setsuna both looked at Uzumaki Takumi. Whether they could subdue the Five-Tails depended on this forbidden technique of the Uzumaki clan!

Seeing this, Takumi Uzumaki took a step forward, casually taking off his cloak to reveal his blood-stained armor underneath.

Wow!

As his robes fell to the ground, Takumi Uzumaki gradually straightened his back, his hunched figure slowly grew taller, his steps became more bold, his head was held high, and a strong aura suddenly emanated from his body.

This momentum stems not only from confidence in their own strength, but also from the pride of the Uzumaki clan, a thousand-year-old ninja clan!

"The blood of any king will end with the sword!"

This old man, who had lived a life of luxury as a daimyo for many years and had long been detached from the life of a ninja, seemed to have returned to the moment when he first stepped onto the battlefield.

"Uzushio Village lost, but my Uzumaki clan did not lose!"

Takumi Uzumaki slowly formed hand seals, as if his hands weighed a ton.

The Uchiha clan's emphasis on honor is not unique to them; the Uzumaki clan is no less so!

Throughout their long history, the Uzumaki clan has always stood proudly at the pinnacle of the ninja world!

The village of Uzumaki may be destroyed, but that does not mean the Uzumaki clan will admit defeat!

It is precisely for this reason that he did not use the Vajra Chains, but instead chose the "Corpse Demon Sealing Technique".

He wanted to use the blood of this clan leader to declare to the world: the Whirlpool Clan will never be slaves!

Forbidden Technique: Corpse Demon Sealing!

As the hand seals were completed, a gigantic phantom of the Grim Reaper appeared behind Takumi Uzumaki, facing the Five-Tails directly.

Click!

At the same time, the ice sculpture standing on the ground finally gave way, and with ice blocks flying everywhere, the five tails finally broke free.

hold head high!

Before the enraged tailed beast could retaliate against the enemies who dared to imprison it again, it felt a strong gaze upon it, and at the same time, a feeling of unease filled its heart.

It looked up and saw a tall, white figure resembling a demon raising a short dagger and slashing it across the chest!

hold head high!

A scream rang out as the Five-Tails transformed into a flowing mass of chakra, continuously surging into Takumi Uzumaki's abdomen along that mysterious connection.

With the sealing marks appearing one after another, the Five-Tails Kokuou was successfully sealed inside Takumi Uzumaki's body.

"Grandpa Chief!"

Kushina Uzumaki cried out and rushed into his arms.

As Hozuki Shingetsu's fiancée and the crown princess of the Hozuki clan, she had been watching the battle from a safe place until now.

"Death is but a great journey, and I will watch over you all silently." Takumi Uzumaki raised his hand to touch Kushina Uzumaki's head, gently wiping away the tears on her face, and then passed away peacefully with a smile.

Chapter 54 The End

With the death of Takumi Uzumaki and the dissipation of the Five-Tails, the Uzumaki clan won the battle, officially thwarting the Raito Alliance's plan to seal the Uzumaki clan's Tailed Beast Jinchuriki.

"Is everything alright with Shingetsu?" Yukina looked at her group of ninjas cleaning up the battlefield, then glanced at the Uzumaki clan members who were still immersed in grief, and suddenly thought of Shingetsu.

Despite feeling regretful that her daughter had failed to defeat Hozuki Shingetsu, as the hope of the current alliance between the Hozuki and Yuki clans, Hozuki Shingetsu absolutely could not be allowed to die.

"Although I know that child was prepared, he is still Modibi after all! He is the adopted brother of the current Raikage, and he is not so easy to defeat, is he?" After thinking it over, Yukina was still a little worried.

He wasn't worried about not being able to catch up; his main concern was that the young players might get too cocky, start celebrating in the first half, think they had the game in the bag, and then try to outmaneuver their opponents, only to give Mudiby an opportunity at the last moment, allowing him to pull off a last-minute comeback.

"Don't worry!" Hozuki Renge said calmly.

"Regardless of how slick that brat is, he would never do something so out of character. Besides, have you forgotten about Dongyan?"

"I knew it, why didn't that guy show up during the fight... then there's definitely nothing wrong with him."

Yukina woke up with a start, only then realizing that he had overlooked the existence of one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

"Yes! So, the next step is to prepare for welcoming that brat, and then discuss how to deal with our Mizukage!"

Hozuki Zangetsu glanced at Kushina Uzumaki, whose eyes were red, and grew to like the girl more and more, thinking that his son truly had good taste.

With this marriage alliance, the Uzumaki clan had no choice but to oppose Ren, even if they didn't want to. However, since the Uzumaki clan joined Kirigakure, Ren had no reason to object, whether from the perspective of increasing combat power or controlling the tailed beasts.

Even if he and the Kaguya clan opposed it, they were no match for the alliance led by Genji, Hozuki, and Yuki. Unless he wanted to completely escalate the conflict, he would have to swallow this bitter pill. His only leverage was that the Hozuki and Yuki clans had mobilized their forces without permission. However, with Genji's intervention, it was likely that the matter would be minimized, and he would at most relinquish some of his gains.

And since the Uzumaki clan joined Kirigakure, the meat they spat out could just be given to the Uzumaki clan! Anyway, the meat would just rot in the pot.

Besides, they can get all that stuff back sooner or later.

What if the benefits gained by the Uzumaki clan don't match their status? It's simple, just use that as an excuse to force Ren to lift the village's blockade!

The Uzumaki clan has been backed by the Land of Whirlpools for so many years, and has occupied the maritime trade hub in the east of the continent for many years. Wouldn't it be perfect to let them take charge of their original business of foreign trade?

The Uzumaki clan traveled thousands of miles, leaving their homeland to come to your Kirigakure, and even helped your Kirigakure solve such a big problem as sealing the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki. In the end, they didn't even get the treatment that matched their status and position. Are you even qualified to be the Mizukage?

Didn't you know that Hozuki is in charge of all propaganda affairs in Kirigakure?

"Phew...finally took this thing down."

Hozuki Shingetsu took a breath and exchanged a glance with Yukinagi and Yagura, who were equally exhausted beside her, still feeling lingering fear.

To be fair, Modibi truly deserves the title of the modern-day "AB combination." Even after being repeatedly outmaneuvered by Hozuki Shingetsu, and with most of his physical strength depleted and his mind exhausted, the three of them still managed to defeat him by using every trick in the book when they attacked together.

Hozuki Shingetsu sighed as he glanced at Moody, who lay unconscious on the ground, his body covered in broken ice shards and riddled with holes from the Water Gun Technique.

"Our current strength definitely needs to be improved!"

Despite being a formidable opponent for his age at twelve, Hozuki Shingetsu was still outmatched by a top-tier Jonin like Moody.

In the recent battle, most of the wounds on Modibi's body were caused by his Water Gun Technique. His Spirit Slash couldn't hit Modibi at all—he simply couldn't keep up with Modibi's movement speed, even after activating that half-finished Water Release Chakra Mode.

Fortunately, there was a clone of Modibi created by Yagura's Crystal Technique, Mirage of the Mirage, and Yukinagi's Ice Release slowing down the situation. As time passed, Hozuki Shingetsu finally seized the opportunity and used his Spirit Circle Slash to slash Modibi's stomach, which was the most serious wound on his body.

clap clap!

Just then, applause came from the cave exit behind them, along with a shout of praise.

"New Moon, your strength is much greater than mine was back then. You've probably caught up with Lord Huan Yue's strength at the same age."

A young Mist Ninja carrying a giant sword shaped like a door panel on his back walked over. Seeing the barely breathing Modibi and the three panting men, as well as the battle traces in the cave covered with ice shards and puddles, he couldn't help but sigh.

Tachibana Higashihiko, an elite Jonin, was one of the first Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist formed under the personal orders of the Second Mizukage, Hozuki Gengetsu, and is the user of the twin swords Hiramekarei.

In addition to this, he also has another identity: he is the only ninja among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist who stands on the side of the Hozuki clan.

Although the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were formed under the orders of Hozuki Gengetsu, and all seven members were personally selected by him, Hozuki Gengetsu's goal in forming the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist was very clear: to be a special team directly under the Mizukage, dedicated to completing high-difficulty missions for the Mizukage.

In other words, in terms of their identities, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist are staunch supporters of the Mizukage. They do not pledge allegiance to any particular figure, but are only responsible to the current Mizukage.

This is why the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist did not side with the Hozuki clan. However, besides this, Tachibana Touhiko has another special identity—he was an orphan who was promoted by Hozuki Gengetsu to his current status.

That's why he's standing here.

"In that case, you should have come out earlier, instead of just standing around watching the show." Hozuki Shingetsu was not at all surprised by Tachibana Touhiko's arrival.

If he didn't have a foolproof guarantee, why would he have led the two of them on such a long and arduous journey to chase after Modibi?

Do you really think Moody's is something to be trifled with?

"If I come out, how will you have the opportunity to train?" Tachibana Touhiko said with a squinty eye, completely unconcerned about Hozuki Shingetsu's tone.

He came here to protect Hozuki Shingetsu, and he wouldn't appear until Hozuki Shingetsu was in mortal danger.

After catching up briefly with Tachibana Touhiko, Hozuki Shingetsu turned his attention back to Moody.

"Now, there's hope for the completion of the Water Release Chakra Mode."

Chapter 55 Whirlpool Enters the Water

Hozuki Shingetsu never expected that while Sage Mode was still unresolved, Water Release Chakra Mode would have the opportunity to be completed first.

He originally planned to wait until the news of the whirlpool entering the water spread, and then use it as an opportunity to undermine Konoha's credibility, so as to take advantage of the Second Shinobi World War to undermine the Tsuchigumo clan and use his cheat ability to obtain the Sage Mode entry ticket.