They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 69 Zhao Gao of the Ninja World?

Killed the daimyo?

Hozuki Shingetsu stared in shock at Kusaka Masato in front of him, thinking he had misheard.

"That's right, just as you thought, the one who killed the castle tower, now the daimyo of the Land of Water, Mizu Keita." Kusaka Masato repeated his words once again.

"Killed the daimyo... I wonder why you killed the daimyo, sir?" Hozuki Shingetsu said, while feigning politeness with Kusaka Masato. He then gave a wink to Karatachi Yagura, who immediately understood and quietly blocked Kusaka Masato's escape route.

Whether Kusaka Masato is fishing for information or genuinely intends to do so, it's absolutely not the right time for Hozuki Shingetsu to get involved. His main objective is to resolve the conflicts between the daimyo, swindle some funds, and then return to dealing with Ren. It's not wise to create unnecessary complications at this time.

So Hozuki Shingetsu decides to use illusion magic to erase Kusaka Masato's memory and make him forget what happened last night.

Kusaka Masato, however, seemed oblivious, still gazing at Hozuki Shingetsu.

After receiving confirmation from Yagura that no one was outside, Hozuki Shingetsu was about to make his move when Kusaka Masato spoke up: "If Captain Hozuki thinks he can control me with illusions, he is underestimating me."

"Now that I know you have such methods, wouldn't it be incredibly naive of me to come here without taking any precautions?"

Kusaka Masato looked at Hozuki Shingetsu and smiled slightly. "Before this, I had already written down all my speculations in a secret memorial and left it in the castle tower. Anyone who wants to enter the castle tower must pass a mental test by the Yanagisawa clan to prove that they are not under mental control before they can enter."

Kusaka Masato looked at Hozuki Shingetsu, took out his pocket watch from his robes, and showed it to him. "Unless you can get past the Yanagisawa clan's defenses and retrieve that secret letter from the castle tower within forty minutes, it will fall into the hands of the daimyo in forty minutes."

Kusaka Masato spread his hands, looked at Hozuki Shinju, and smiled confidently. "Considering the time needed to get to the castle tower from here and for me to retrieve the secret report, we have about ten minutes to talk. So, can we have a proper chat now, Minister Hozuki?"

Upon hearing this, Hozuki Shingetsu paused for a moment, but then continued to form hand seals and cast illusions without hesitation.

Now that things have come to this point, we can no longer rely solely on Kusaka Masato's side of the story. Whether what he says is true or false can be determined simply by using illusion magic to interrogate him.

As Kusaka Masato watched Hozuki Shingetsu's movements, there was no sign of panic on his face. It seemed that he had expected this all along, and he quietly waited for the illusion to descend.

Soon, as the illusion was cast, the smile on Kusaka Masato's face vanished, and his eyes gradually became dull.

"Is the arrangement you just mentioned true?" Yukinagi quickly asked.

She was ashamed of her earlier panic, and seeing that they had been manipulated only fueled her anger. At this moment, she desperately hoped that Masato Kusaka's words were false.

However, her hopes were dashed.

"It's true." The calm words from Kusaka Masato shattered Yukinagi's delusion.

"You said you wanted to cooperate with us to kill the daimyo, is that true?" Hozuki Shingetsu grabbed Yukinagi and continued to ask.

"It's true."

"What's the reason?"

More than whether Kusaka Masato's plan was true, Hozuki Shingetsu was curious about his reasons for wanting to kill the daimyo.

According to the information Hozuki Shingetsu gathered, Kusaka Masato's current position, which was promoted from a mere courtier, can be said to be entirely due to the daimyo's promotion. The daimyo never hides his extraordinary favor towards him in any situation.

It was precisely for this reason that Hozuki Shingetsu and Ren sought his help, and he proved with facts that he did indeed have the ability to influence the daimyo's judgment.

Therefore, under these circumstances, he was very curious as to what could have caused such a favored minister to disregard the bond forged in the battle and harbor such deep resentment towards the daimyo, to the point that he would seek out an unrelated outsider to kill the daimyo.

Masato Kusaka opened his mouth and slowly stated his reason.

A down-on-his-luck noble boy, through a family connection, gets the opportunity to enter the palace to serve a daimyo, and his outstanding appearance earns him the daimyo's appreciation.

The young man, in turn, received the daimyo's favor and enjoyed all kinds of riches and honors. Excited, he thought that the time was right to revive his family and began to prepare for marriage and having children.

Hozuki Shingetsu nodded. From this perspective, it's still a story of a fallen nobleman revitalizing his family, but if nothing unexpected happens, something unexpected is about to happen.

Sure enough, on the night of the young man's wedding, the daimyo went in.

At this point, Kusaka Masato, who was being controlled by the illusion, trembled all over, as if he had returned to that shameful night.

The reason the daimyo did this was quite simple: he felt that his plaything was starting to have thoughts of escaping his control. So, he gently extinguished Kusaka Masato's hopes.

After suffering such humiliation, the bride immediately chose to commit suicide, while the surviving Kusaka Masato harbored thoughts of revenge.

He never married, fawning over and carefully serving the daimyo, constantly seeking an opportunity until today.

Yeah, a really melodramatic story.

Hozuki Shingetsu commented on this.

"So, you're avenging your wife?" Yukinagi asked, feeling quite moved. This kind of soap opera-style love story resonated with her.

"Wife? No, I've long forgotten what she looks like." To everyone's surprise, Kusaka Masato denied it outright.

"Perhaps I was indeed doing it for that woman at first! But things changed later. I realized how ridiculous I had been, because that guy acted as if nothing had happened, still taking whatever he wanted from me, without any change whatsoever! Someone so important to me, someone I hated so deeply, and he was completely indifferent to it?"

At this point, Kusaka Masato's face twisted, and his eyes revealed extreme resentment towards the daimyo.

Upon hearing this, Hozuki Shingetsu understood that Kusaka Masato's resentment towards the daimyo was not due to his wife's death, but rather because he could not bear the thought that his deep-seated hatred was insignificant to the daimyo, and he could not bear the humiliation of enduring it like a clown.

"From that moment on, I decided that I would work hard, step by step, constantly climb higher, and take control of my own destiny! For this, I can also pretend that incident never happened, forget everything that happened, and still remain extremely respectful to Shui Jingtai!"

Masato Kusaka expressed his thoughts, a deep ambition flashing in his empty eyes, though the light in his eyes quickly faded.

"But I soon discovered that no matter how high I climbed, no matter how prestigious I seemed in the eyes of others, there was always someone above me. As long as he existed, his presence constantly reminded me of the shame of my past. This shame constantly reminded me of what I had gone through, constantly reminded me that everything I had now was nothing but the favor of others, something I had gained through the death of my wife!"

Kusaka Masato's face twisted once again. "So I want him to die. I want him to experience the ultimate humiliation in this world and die in agony. Only in this way can I wash away my shame."

(End of this chapter)