Escaping the Mist Ninja starts with backstabbing your teacher.

The Hidden Cloud Village in the Land of Lightning also received this intelligence.

The Fourth Raikage, having served for less than a year, was at the peak of his thirst for power. He held the intelligence report in his large, broad hand, a look of interest on his face.

The Cloud Ninja desperately desired the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan. Ever since they learned that the Mist Ninja had successfully obtained one, they had been itching to do so.

Possessing the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, each Raikage is an exceptionally skilled bodybuilder, and their taijutsu is unparalleled in the ninja world.

If it weren't for Konoha having "Yellow Flash" Minato Namikaze, the title of the fastest ninja in the world would definitely belong to the Raikage.

However, the only drawback of this technique is that even if the dynamic vision of one's own eyes is enhanced, it cannot keep up with one's own speed, thus preventing it from exerting its full power.

That speed exceeded the limits of reaction time, so speed had to be limited to the reaction range. Only with higher insight and dynamic vision could the upper limit be raised.

Although the Uchiha clan possessed excellent eyes, the inability to close them and the constant consumption of chakra led them to abandon them.

Moreover, the Uchiha clan is full of madmen, and there are many powerful individuals among them. The infamous Uchiha Madara still awes the ninja world.

Therefore, the Byakugan, which possesses a 360-degree field of vision, as well as farsightedness, X-ray vision, and the ability to perceive chakra, is the eye they desire most.

The Hyuga clan doesn't have any famous strong members, and the Byakugan doesn't have the flaw of being unable to be turned off, making it the best choice.

The only regret now is that the success of the Mist Ninja has prevented the main family of the Hyuga clan from stepping onto the battlefield, while the branch family's Byakugan will be destroyed at the moment of death due to the "Caged Bird" technique.

This caused the Cloud Ninja the most grief. It was such a waste of talent. If those eyes had been given to them, they would have unleashed power far greater than that of the Hyuga clan.

"Hahaha, the Mist Ninja are truly useless. They managed to get their hands on the Byakugan, and now they've lost it. It's only right that it falls into the hands of our Cloud Ninja."

"However, the Land of Rivers? That's a troublesome place. It seems we can only send a small team to carry out a covert operation."

The Fourth Raikage, A, slammed the intelligence report on the table. No matter what, the Cloud Ninja had to get involved in this matter.

That's the Byakugan! Even just one of those eyes would definitely make him stronger, and then he could teach those Iwa ninjas a lesson they deserved.

The death of the Third Raikage still lingered in the hearts of the Cloud Ninja, a burning resentment within them.

Soon, an order was issued, instructing the intelligence department to keep a close watch on the rogue ninja and seize the Byakugan.

……

Within the Land of Fire, Izumi, who had previously disguised himself, was now dressed as a wandering samurai, while Yekura had also changed into ordinary attire.

The two had no idea that because of the Byakugan that Izumi had seized, coupled with the bloodline of the Shikotsumyaku, he had become a coveted prize for all sides.

It can be said that throughout the entire ninja world, of the five great ninja villages, only the Iwagakure village has not reacted much so far; the other four villages have their eyes on him.

"Where are we now?" Yecang poked at the campfire in front of him with a branch, on which several fish were skewered and roasting.

Izumikawa held a map and carefully compared it with the places they had passed through, discovering that they had been hiding and advancing, and had already entered the heart of the Land of Fire.

"We're deep now. We're almost at the Fire Temple. We used to see ninjas occasionally on the way, but now we hardly see any anymore."

Putting the map away, Izumi looked around at the scenery, especially the vast farmland below the distant cliffs, and couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of the Land of Fire, it is indeed a rich land."

Ye Cang looked down at the distant farmland, a puzzled expression on his face. There was no sandstorm, no scorching sun, and no extreme temperature difference between day and night.

Everywhere there are forests, various creatures, fruit trees, streams, and vast tracts of land suitable for cultivation.

There is no war, no shortage of water or food, and one can easily survive anywhere.

"After all, the Land of Fire occupies the best land in the world and has the most powerful village, Konoha Village."

"Other villages can only scheme against each other and seize resources on barren land."

Seemingly thinking of the Sand Village high-ranking officials who disgusted her, Yekura's expression turned somewhat unpleasant, and there was even a murderous aura between her brows.

Hearing her words, Izumi chuckled, then sat down opposite Yekura, picked up a grilled fish, sprinkled some seasoning on it, and began to eat it heartily.

"That's just human nature. To put it bluntly, humans are just intelligent animals; their underlying logic is still that of beasts."

"Only those who possess power and strength can possess the best things; all other words are pale and powerless in the face of power."

"Of course, you were betrayed by politics. Although you were strong enough, you were not strong enough to be superior. As an outcast in Sunagakure, you were ostracized and eliminated by the group."

He held the grilled fish in his mouth, picked up another one, sprinkled it with seasoning, and handed it to Yecang in front of him, gesturing for her to take it.

Yekura remained silent, simply taking the grilled fish, taking a large bite, and continuing to eat, which made Izumi Kawa laugh heartily.

"Yes, that's how we eat heartily. Living is the most important thing; once you're dead, there's no need to talk about anything else."

"Have you always wanted to ask me why I defected from Kirigakure?"

"The reason is simple: I want to live, to live well."

His words surprised Ye Cang. Was that really the reason?

Why?

"Although the Mist Ninja are on an island, their situation shouldn't be worse than that of the Sand Ninja Village."

Izumikawa slowly shook his head and explained, "It's not the geographical environment or resources, but the human environment."

"You've probably heard of the 'Bloody Mist Village' policy, haven't you?"

Yecang nodded slightly. She had heard about the Third Mizukage's policy before; it was a very cruel one.

It was precisely because of this policy that the Mist Ninja became cold and brutal, and at the same time, their strength increased, but at a high cost.

The increasing number of rogue ninja, unable to endure the cruelty of this policy, defected to Kirigakure.

"Was it because of this policy that you ultimately chose to flee?"

"It's part of it, but not the main thing. The main thing is the atmosphere of the entire Hidden Mist Village, the environment, which is oppressive, cold, and ruthless."

"Do you understand a village where everyone is wary of each other, and might even kill each other?"

A cold glint appeared in Izumi's eyes as he said with a hint of sarcasm, "That's the kind of village Kirigakure is; you wouldn't dare trust anyone or make friends with anyone."

"Because you never know when you might become the target of a fight, stabbing your friend in the chest with a kunai, or being stabbed by him."

Despite her calm tone, Yecang felt a chill run down her spine. There was actually such a village. No wonder the Mist Ninja she killed didn't care about the lives of his teammates.

They were like machines that only performed tasks, devoid of any personal emotions.