Who are you calling a stable boy?!

"..."

"I'm sorry, Old Zheng, but I do have some serious business to discuss with Chief Ashina this time."

Zheng Jing remained silent, then fell backward onto the ground, his eyes vacant, muttering, "I'm so stupid."

How could this happen?

He, known as Jiang Liuer of Zhuangyuan Street, has actually met his end...

He clearly secretly activated [Touchable Six Paths] to raise his intelligence attribute to 19 points before leaving the game.

Why am I still getting beaten like a teaching team by Old Blue...?

"Please sit down, Chief Ashina."

While tidying up the chess pieces and board, Aizen gestured for Ashina Uzumaki to sit down in front of him and Zheng Jing.

After Itachi took the chess pieces and board, left the house and closed the door, Ashina Uzumaki, sitting upright, turned his gaze to Zheng Jing, who was still lying down.

"Ok?"

Zheng Jing tilted his head back.

"Hey, Ashina-kun, you want to play a game with me too?"

"Old Zheng."

"Okay, okay, let's lighten the mood a bit. Look how nervous Ashina is."

Seeing Zheng Jing sit up, Aizen looked at Ashina Uzumaki: "Chief Ashina, it seems you've made up your mind."

"...How can I trust you...Qi Tian Mansion?"

Upon hearing this, Aizen chuckled softly.

“It seems you’ve misunderstood something, Ashina clan chief.”

Aizen pushed up his glasses, maintaining his smile, his eyes immediately obscured by the reflection from the lenses.

"It was Qitian Prefecture that chose you, not the other way around."

Ashina Uzumaki remained unmoved.

But his silence can be seen as a form of expression.

Aizen smiled and shook his head upon seeing this.

"Of course, Ashina clan chief, thanks to Old Zheng, you and the Uzumaki clan also have a choice. To accept or to refuse."

"Accept the choice of Qitian Prefecture, and all the problems you, your country, your people, and all the problems you face today will be resolved. We do not mind that you continue to exist as the Whirlpool Kingdom, and we can also help you build Whirlpool Village better. The only price you have to pay is to learn to abide by the rules of Qitian Prefecture."

Is there anything difficult about this?

"It's like sowing in spring and harvesting in autumn..."

"All life under heaven, in order to survive, will always follow the laws of nature and seek advantage while avoiding harm."

"For you, this is just something you do every day. It's not as difficult as you imagine, Chief Ashina."

Ashina Uzumaki remained silent.

He was older than Minato, but the Uzumaki clan not only lived long lives, but also aged much more slowly, so at first glance, he might even look a little younger than Minato.

Sitting here with his mouth closed, he really does look like a teenager who has lost his way in life.

"Old Lan."

Zheng Jing suddenly spoke up: "The Whirlpool Clan is indeed not easy, and they can be considered loyal and courageous."

"Here's what you're doing, Ashina. Tell me what's troubling you right now, and as long as it's not against morality, I, Old Zheng, will help you out. Don't worry, if I can't help, it's just that I, Old Zheng, haven't done enough. If I do help, you don't need to give me any reward."

"..."

Ashina Uzumaki glanced at Zheng Jing, then at Aizen.

Upon noticing that Aizen had closed his eyes and seemed to have no intention of objecting, he hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"We have always been on the front lines helping the Land of Fire and Konoha fight against the Hidden Mist Ninja. The Land of Water and the Hidden Mist Village have always posed the greatest threat to us. In fact, even after the Third Shinobi World War ended, the Hidden Mist Ninja still frequently harass us on the border."

"However, about eight months ago, there have been no more incidents of incursions caused by the Hidden Mist Ninja on the border."

"If that were all, I could still assume that the Land of Water and Kirigakure were under pressure from the Land of Fire and Konoha. However, our spies planted in Kirigakure have completely disappeared..."

"The unknown is the most dangerous."

At this point, Ashina Uzumaki bowed his head toward Aizen and Zheng Jing.

"Gentlemen, please ask Qitian Prefecture to help us investigate the current movements of Wuyin Village!"

"hiss."

Zheng Jing scratched his head and cheeks a few times.

"I wonder if Master Men beat that kid who poops everywhere to death..."

After muttering this, he nodded to Ashina Uzumaki: "Okay."

"I, Old Zheng, will just make a trip to Wuyin Village."

Chapter 210: You're asking for it, aren't you?

Although Kirigakure rarely directly intervened in the ninja world's wars due to the special geographical location of the Land of Water, the ninjas of Kirigakure were still able to communicate with the outside world in a relatively free manner in the past.

However, everything changed about eight months ago when Yagura suddenly ordered the village gates to be locked.

Not only did they exhibit extreme xenophobia, but they also imposed a bloody and oppressive rule on the ninjas within the village.

Unlike Konoha, Kirigakure cannot set up a barrier technique that can cover the entire village.

As a result, the number of patrolling ninjas permanently stationed inside and outside Kirigakure has surged.

"Captain Zabuza, it's almost time for your shift to change."

Upon hearing his subordinate's reminder, Zabuza Momochi, the youngest captain of the Kirigakure assassination squad, nodded slightly.

His eyes remained fixed on the Shuiying office not far away.

The Hidden Mist's assassination squad was established by modeling itself after the assassination tactics created by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

Previously, during the Third Shinobi World War, because the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, provided enough support, Kirigakure had intervened multiple times to help Iwagakure stretch Konoha's lines.

During this period, the Hidden Mist Assassination Squad demonstrated its skill and prowess, and the young Zabuza also shone brightly during this time. Before he was even twenty years old, he became one of the squad leaders of the Hidden Mist Assassination Squad based on his solid combat achievements.

At that time, many people in Kirigakure believed that the young and promising Zabuza would surely become a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

In fact, Zabuza at that time did indeed aim for the throne of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

...until the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, changed.

The village changed along with it.

Like the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the assassination squad is a special unit directly under the Mizukage.

Therefore, eight months later, this team has long since become the butcher's knife that Yagura of Karatachi stirs up blood mist.

Zabuza knew that his comrades in the village secretly referred to their assassination squad as the "Decapitation Squad."

—A beheader who specializes in killing his own comrades.

Perhaps sensing Zabuza's thoughts, the Captain-Commander assigned the recent mission of clearing out rebels to several other squad leaders, while entrusting the protection of the Fourth Mizukage to Zabuza.

The idea was probably to use this arrangement to calm Zabuza down and stop him from overthinking.

Little did he know, the closer Zabuza observed Yagura now, the deeper his doubts became—

"Ok?"

Zabuza's deep contemplation did not make him lower his guard against his surroundings.

So when he noticed a familiar figure at the entrance of the Mizukage's office building, Zabuza frowned.

-

"Don't move."

The kunai, which had been quietly extended, was pressed against the neck of the man who was climbing the stairs.

Staring at the man who suddenly stopped in his tracks and raised his hands, Zabuza, who had somehow entered the Mizukage's office building, asked in a deep voice, "Who are you?"

"Are you from the assassination squad? Don't be nervous, it's me, Hiroshi, Jonin Nohara Hiroshi. I have a special situation here that I need to report to the Fourth Hokage. I've already informed the gatekeeper, and the Fourth Hokage is waiting for me..."

"Jounin Nohara Hiroshi?"

Upon hearing this, Zabuza remained silent for a few seconds before withdrawing the kunai that was pressed against Hiroshi Nohara's skin a few inches.

"I remember you. How are your family members doing since we last met?"

"..."

Hiroshi Nohara didn't say anything, but scratched his cheek with his back to Zabuza.

"Don't pretend?"

"That's strange. My transformation is so perfect, how did you notice something was wrong?"

"Nohara Hiroshi is going to escape the village today, so there's no way he'll come back at this time, let alone come here."

"hiss......"

Zheng Jing gasped.

"Damn it! I was wondering why that kid was so weak. I hadn't even taught him the technique yet, and he was already spilling all sorts of information like he was popping beans."

Hearing Zheng Jing's mutterings, Zabuza pressed his kunai against Zheng Jing's neck again.

"The game is over. Confess honestly, who are you? What is your purpose in infiltrating here?"

Zheng Jing sighed.

"I'm serious, can't you just pretend you didn't see it? Doing so would be better for you and for Yagura Karatachi."

Such nonsense caused Zabuza to lose his last bit of patience.

He had studied interrogation, but there were professionals in the village specializing in it. Instead of wasting time on this, it would be better to arrest this suspicious person and let the professionals handle it.

Having made his decision, Zabuza raised his free left hand and slapped Zheng Jing on the back of the head.

"Oh!"

"Well?!"

The unexpected touch and pain caused even someone like Zabuza to let out a soft groan involuntarily.

He felt as if his palm had struck steel that had been forged through countless hammer blows.

Then he saw Zheng Jing raise his right hand, as if to turn around.

Startled by the feel of the weapon, Zabuza instinctively took a step back, trying to distance himself from Zheng Jing.

Unfortunately, the stairwell was only so big, and no matter how far he retreated, he was still only a few steps away from Zheng Jing.

Fortunately, Zheng Jing did not retaliate.

He simply scratched the back of his head, and when he turned around, he had already deactivated his transformation, looking at Zabuza with his true face.

"Hey? You look familiar, buddy."

Zheng Jing blinked, then clapped his hands suddenly.

"Zabuza Lily!"

Zai Buzhan remained silent, only carefully scrutinizing the gleeful stranger before him.

Who exactly is this person?

"That's true. You seem to be about the same age as Kakashi, so you're from the same generation."

With his arms crossed, Zheng Jing nodded and looked Zabuza up and down, not yet appearing as bitter and resentful as he would later become.

"I'm telling you, Zabuza, I only sneaked in here because I thought that old bastard Yagura was really unlucky and I wanted to save him some face. Don't make things worse, okay?"

"...What do you mean? Explain it more clearly."

In the past, Zabuza wouldn't have paid any attention to such nonsense.

Despite his young age and extensive experience, he could clearly feel that he was "locked up".

Fortunately, this was the Water Shadow's office building, so he didn't need to have a one-on-one confrontation with this mysterious man in front of him.