Ninja World: I, Kisame Hoshigaki, am no longer human!

The solitary confinement cell had walls on three sides, with only a window about the size of a human face on the outer wall. On moonlit nights, a sliver of moonlight would stream in through the window, serving as its light source.

When prisoners stood at the window, they could see the moon hanging high in the night sky and the distant sea, as if freedom was only a wall away, within easy reach.

But this one wall separates us from the world, making us feel even more desperate.

Many prisoners are put in solitary confinement, and after a few days there, they develop serious psychological problems, or even suffer mental breakdowns.

In short, this is a place no prisoner would ever want to come back to a second time.

Kisame is an exception.

"Although the conditions are a bit poor, at least it's a single room, which is really nice."

He thought to himself, then lay down on the spot, put his hands behind his head, and crossed one leg over the other.

He looked completely at ease.

95. The Ambition of a Demigod

While Kisame was serving time in the Hozuki Castle prison.

The Rain Ninja who had "escorted" him have already returned to the Land of Rain.

The Land of Rain is a small country nestled between several major powers. Historically, it has been plagued by internal strife and constant warfare.

It wasn't until the arrival of the mighty Hanzo of the Salamander, who unified the entire Amegakure with his immense strength and led his ninjas to resist invasions from various nations, that the hard-won peace was finally restored.

Hanzo himself was hailed as a "demigod of the ninja world," reaching the pinnacle of the ninja world and becoming a living legend.

The Land of Rain is perpetually rainy, and it never stops.

Therefore, the country's architecture is quite distinctive, primarily constructed of gray-black steel, resembling towering spires. The exterior of the buildings is encased in pipes of varying sizes for drainage.

It has created a unique landscape.

After returning, the Rain Ninja headed straight for the tallest building in the center of the village.

In an office there, Hanzo, the leader of Amegakure, was waiting for their message.

"Reporting to Lord Hanzo, the person has been successfully delivered to Hozuki Castle. We have also left two people on the island to lie in wait outside the prison to receive messages. We believe that intelligence will be sent back soon."

The group arrived at the office and respectfully reported to Hanzo.

"Yes, you did a good job."

Hanzo, who was over fifty years old, sat in a large, comfortable leather chair and gave a few casual compliments to his subordinates, a glint of light flashing in his cloudy eyes.

It turns out that the prisoner "Scarface" being escorted this time was not being punished for resisting Hanzo, which is why he was sent to Hozuki Castle Prison.

On the contrary, Scarface was always Hanzo's most trusted subordinate, an elite member of the Rain Village's ANBU, and was known as Hanzo's "left hand".

Hanzo sent his left-hand man to Hozuki Castle as an undercover agent.

To gather intelligence on the rumored "Box of Elysium".

"If there's nothing else, you can go and rest now," Hanzo said, waving his hand after hearing their report.

"My lord, there is one more thing."

The group hesitated, exchanged glances, and finally reported to Hanzo truthfully, "We encountered a person named Kisame Hoshigaki..."

Oh?

When Hanzo heard about Kisame's act of sneaking onto the prison van, he couldn't help but frown, feeling puzzled.

He was a naturally suspicious person, and upon hearing this, he immediately ordered his subordinates: "Investigate this Kisame Hoshigaki immediately, and put all his information on my desk within a day."

"Yes."

The subordinates dared not delay and immediately sprang into action.

Just then, two more Rain Ninja rushed into the office to report to Hanzo: a new organization has recently appeared in the Land of Rain.

It is named "Xiao".

Information about Akatsuki members was handed over to Hanzo, among whom the most noteworthy were the leader Yahiko and two other core members—Konan and Nagato.

"So young! He looks like he's not even fifteen."

Hanzo couldn't help but sigh. When he saw Nagato's information and photo, his expression turned even more astonished. "This child's red hair... he's actually a descendant of the Uzumaki clan? And those strange eyes..."

He didn't recognize the Rinnegan, but his intuition as a top-tier expert made him sense a strong, hidden threat in Nagato's eyes.

"Send someone to keep an eye on them and continue to gather more intelligence."

After a moment of contemplation, Hanzo cautiously issued an order.

Soon, all his subordinates left, leaving only Hanzo in the office.

He stood up and looked out at the rain through the huge floor-to-ceiling window in his office.

Hanzo of the Salamander was once a hero who dared to challenge the five great ninja villages single-handedly. His wish was to facilitate peace talks between the five great nations, thereby achieving peace and unification of the ninja world.

However, even heroes grow old.

Hanzo is 55 years old this year. His body is inevitably aging, and the fire of his inner belief is gradually dying out. Many people have begun to doubt whether he can still live up to the title of "demigod".

Does this man still have any power?

Amidst these discussions, the aging Hanzo grew increasingly anxious and power-hungry, constantly suspecting that someone wanted to harm him.

He arranged for himself to be guarded around the clock, and frequently suppressed emerging forces within the Land of Rain, sparing no effort to suppress any individuals or groups that might threaten his rule.

But that alone is not enough.

Hanzo yearns to return to his youth and to one day regain his peak strength.

Therefore, when he happened to hear that there was a magical box of bliss in the Grass Ninja Village that could grant any wish, he couldn't help but be tempted.

After years of intelligence gathering.

Hanzo became increasingly convinced that the legendary Box of Bliss truly existed and was hidden by the Grass Ninja Village in the prison of Hozuki Castle.

So he sent Scarface to infiltrate and gather intelligence.

Hanzo was determined to obtain the Box of Bliss.

Once the intelligence is relayed back, he will personally take action.

……

Hozuki Castle Prison, Solitary Confinement Cell.

In the stillness of the night.

This is the second day that Kisame has been confined.

In the darkness, he sat cross-legged, attempting to gather chakra. Sure enough, the Heavenly Prison Technique on his body activated instantly, transforming into burning chains of flame that scorched his body.

Kisame ignored him and forcibly completed the hand seals.

With a whoosh.

A wall of water slowly rose up, covering Kisame's entire body, and quickly extinguished the fiery chains.

If Kisame had continued to maintain his chakra, he could have removed the Fire Release: Heavenly Prison seal from his body in just a few minutes, but he did not do so.

In order not to arouse Wuwei's vigilance and suspicion.

For Kisame, even without using ninjutsu, he still has the ability of the ninja sword; if even the ability of the ninja sword cannot be exposed, he can still use pure taijutsu.

After all, Kisame's physical strength is strong enough, and with the aid of unrestricted physical skills, he is very suitable for performing well in a place like a prison.

During the period of confinement.

Kisame was calm and collected, practicing prisoner-style fitness and meditation daily, and eating and sleeping on time.

Three days later, when he came out of the confinement room, he showed no signs of weakness. On the contrary, his eyes were bright and his physical and mental state was excellent.

It means that you have been conserving your energy and recharging.

The prison guards exchanged glances and whispered among themselves—this Kisame Hoshigaki kid is no ordinary person.

Kisame was taken back to his cell.

"It's you?"

Upon returning to his cell, he discovered that his new cellmate was an old acquaintance.

That's right, it's that Scarface prisoner from Amegakure.

"Lord Kisame, you're back."

Scarface approached with a fawning expression. He showered Kisame with flattery, uttering obsequious words while massaging and rubbing his back.

Like a loyal younger brother.

Kisame learned from the other person that Scarface had bribed the prison guards to be assigned to the same cell as him.

The reason is quite simple.

Scarface had long known that Kisame was a ruthless person, so he wanted to join the latter in hopes of gaining Kisame's protection and thus surviving in this cruel prison.

96. The "Prison Break" Plan

"Lord Kisame, my name is..."

"I'm not interested in your name, you can just be called Scarface," Kisame said, thus accepting Scarface's allegiance.

However, he became somewhat wary, feeling that the other party was being a little too enthusiastic.

Two days passed like this.

On the third night, before the prison lights were turned off.

Scarface finally couldn't hold back any longer and revealed his true purpose in approaching Kisame.

"What did you say, a prison break?"

Kisame narrowed his eyes.