The next day, at noon.
"Ugh, this pile of snakes is seriously disgusting. That bastard from Konoha—if I ever see him, I swear I'll cut him down!"
"No kidding. Who the hell sends a bunch of snakes to attack a castle? You should've seen Lord Hanzō's face."
"All right, enough chatter. Get to work. If we don't clean up these snake corpses, the whole village will be affected."
A group of Amegakure shinobi had been reduced to laborers, hauling out the snakes that had attacked the castle during the night. They hadn't slept a wink and had been working nonstop, but there were just too many snakes.
Hanzō of the Salamander hadn't slept either—not because he didn't want to, but because he simply couldn't.
His fury burned too hot for rest. His mind was consumed with murderous intent toward that little bastard Kazuyama Gekkō.
"Lord Hanzō, all the snakes in the castle have been cleared."
"The patrol squads have also started searching for Kazuyama Gekkō, but there's still no trace of him."
Hanzō's expression darkened. He knew what Gekkō was capable of and didn't take it out on his subordinates.
A man who could turn invisible and use Space–Time Ninjutsu wasn't going to be easy to find unless he revealed himself.
"Expand the search. We have to find him."
He clenched his teeth. No matter what, that bastard had to be found. Who knew what he might do next?
Hanzō wasn't afraid of such tricks, but having a poisonous snake like that lurking around was not a pleasant feeling.
Just then, a shinobi rushed over.
"Lord Hanzō, we have a new situation."
Already in a foul mood, Hanzō was interrupted again. His eyes widened with fury as he barked, "What now?! Don't tell me those damn snakes came back to life!"
The shinobi flinched under Hanzō's rage but still delivered the report:
"Lord Hanzō, the snakes are dead, but some of their corpses are still releasing poison. Quite a few of our men have already been affected."
"Also, several traps have been triggered—every single one laced with poison."
"From what we can tell, some kind of jutsu was engraved into the snakes. The area where the corpses lie is now under lockdown."
"What are your orders?"
Hanzō's brow twitched violently. That bastard really was too much.
Using snakes to attack the castle was one thing—but he'd left traps too?
Spreading poison through the corpses? Embedding traps in summoned creatures? Kazuyama Gekkō had a seriously twisted mind!
...
Far away in the Land of Birds, Kazuyama Gekkō sneezed as he enjoyed a fine meal.
"Eh? Is that old bastard Hanzō cursing me or something?"
"I just left a few surprises behind, that's all."
Yes, the snakes had indeed been rigged with tricks—some crafty little traps Gekkō had picked up from Orochimaru.
Like engraving specific jutsu onto them and storing poison inside? He'd fallen for one of these setups himself back when he broke into Orochimaru's lab.
Now, he was just putting those same tricks to use in Amegakure. Hopefully, Hanzō appreciated the gift.
"Boss, another order, please. Your omelet rice is way too good."
"And throw in three more servings of takoyaki!"
While Kazuyama was happily feasting, Hanzō was nursing a splitting headache.
"Use Earth Release to trap the snakes, then burn them all to ash with Fire Release!
Not a single one is to be left!
Go now!"
His subordinates nodded immediately and rushed out.
Once they were gone, Hanzō stomped down hard, smashing a large hole in the floor.
"You little bastard! If I catch you, I'll feed you to the Salamander myself to avenge Ibuse!"
Ever since Ibuse's death, Hanzō had been burning with rage. He was training a new salamander, but no matter what, the bond he had built with Ibuse over the years was irreplaceable.
Even another salamander couldn't take Ibuse's place.
Not to mention, the new one couldn't store nearly as much poison or produce as lethal a gas as Ibuse.
"That brat from Konoha—go back and tell Danzō I accept his plan.
As long as it forces that brat to show himself, I'll kill him with my own hands. I'm willing to cooperate!"
After a night of toxic chaos, Hanzō had only one thought left—kill Kazuyama as soon as possible. Everything else could wait.
Aburame Tatsuma gave a faint smile. He had expected Hanzō to agree. Kazuyama was simply too dangerous. Not only had he troubled Lord Danzō endlessly, but even Hanzō couldn't escape the poison he left behind.
"Very well. I'll return to the village at once and bring a team to Amegakure to discuss how to deal with Kazuyama."
"As for countering his Flying Thunder God Technique, I'm sure Lord Danzō has a plan."
Leaving behind a promise to return, Tatsuma set out directly for Konohagakure.
Hanzō's gaze turned cold. If he had a choice, he would never work with someone like Danzō. He knew full well what kind of man that was.
They didn't call him the 'Darkness of the Shinobi World' for nothing—Danzō had no lines he wouldn't cross.
"Someone, send word to the patrol teams. Expand the search radius to one hundred miles outside the village, and keep watch on the sky."
"That little bastard can turn invisible—and he can fly."
"Stay alert. If he's spotted, report immediately."
Hanzō was being cautious, but he had no idea what Kazuyama was really up to.
...
Three days after the initial assault, Kazuyama hadn't returned to Amegakure at all.
He was at Orochimaru's lab, munching on snacks while watching Orochimaru scurry around.
"How come you have time to visit me?"
"Had a mission, but it's on hold for now."
"Oh?"
"Nothing big, just went to mess with Hanzō. By the way, what's in that giant glass tank behind you? Water?"
Orochimaru glanced at the container, a faint smile forming on his lips as he replied calmly,
"That's Mangetsu Hōzuki, the one you sent me before."
"I've been keeping him there to study the physical structure of his clan."
Kazuyama popped the last of his snack into his mouth and casually tossed the wrapper aside. Orochimaru's eye twitched at the sight.
Kazuyama didn't care in the slightest. Clapping his hands clean, he walked up to the massive tank and gave it a knock.
The water inside rippled sharply, and a human silhouette gradually came into view.
The moment he saw Kazuyama's face, it twisted with fury.
"Yo, bro, looks like life's treating you well. You've even put on some weight."
"Seems handing you over to my sensei was the right call after all."
Shrimp and pork heart. Absolute betrayal.
Mangetsu was nearly driven mad with rage, but he was completely helpless. Being at someone else's mercy was a cruel and bitter feeling.