Inside a secret cabin in the Hidden Mist Village.
Genji stood up and personally shut the door. His face was gloomy as he returned to his seat, took a tinderbox from his sleeve, and lit the oil lamp in the center of the table.
With a soft crackle, the lamp flared to life. Yellowish light spread through the previously dim room, outlining the shadows of many people. Genji, Mei Terumī, and Ao were fully illuminated.
"Everyone, speak freely," Genji said slowly, his voice carrying a faint tremor.
"Is it better to invite Uchiha Ran and remove the three unstable elements within the village, or continue dragging things out like this—waiting for our controlled Fourth Mizukage to eventually press a blade against our throats?"
Mei Terumī's pupils shrank slightly.
Something was wrong.
Genji was usually the most decisive and proactive among them, yet today he looked unusually dispirited. And the implications of his words were deeply unsettling.
Ao, however, didn't immediately sense the danger. Given his position, he was the first to respond.
"Lord Genji, aren't you being overly alarmist?" Ao said in a steady voice.
"Although the Fourth Mizukage is under control, all he does every day is suppress rebels and let people within the village kill each other."
"Our location is extremely well hidden. Without a traitor, there's no way we'd be exposed. How could the Fourth Mizukage possibly threaten us directly?"
His reasoning was calm and logical, and several people nodded in agreement.
Only one person trembled.
Because of the limited range of the lamplight, the movement went unnoticed by most. He quickly forced himself to calm down, telling himself that nothing had been exposed yet.
Then he looked up at Genji.
And in that instant, his pupils constricted violently.
Genji's aged face was unreadable—but his gaze was fixed directly on him.
The others didn't realize anything, assuming Genji was simply deep in thought. But the traitor knew.
He had been exposed.
Fear surged through him. Knowing he couldn't sit and wait for death, his hand shot toward the ninja tool pouch on his back—
Slash. Slash.
Two flashes of cold steel.
His arms were severed cleanly at the shoulders, blood spraying across the floor.
Ao's blades returned to their sheaths.
"Ao, I'm not here to argue," Genji said coldly.
"What I'm saying is this: there is a traitor among us. Our previous plans have already been discovered by the Fourth Mizukage—Yagura Karatachi."
"That means we no longer have a retreat. There is only one path left: ally with Uchiha Ran. Otherwise, survival itself will become a luxury."
His words were calm, but they carried unmistakable killing intent.
Two Hidden Mist ninja stepped forward and dragged the armless man into the center of the room.
Without his arms, his balance was gone. He collapsed to the floor with a dull thud.
Genji lifted his foot and stepped directly onto the man's head.
"Speak," Genji said coldly. "Ibara Kumaji."
Aside from Mei Terumī, everyone reacted in shock.
"Lord Genji, that's impossible! Kumaji was one of the first to follow you!"
"Yes! Lord Genji, there must be a mistake!"
The room erupted in disbelief.
It was understandable. Ibara Kumaji had always had an excellent reputation—gentle, kind, respectful, frugal, upright. He embodied every virtue one could name.
No one could believe he was a traitor.
Including Ao.
He and Ibara Kumaji had always been especially close. Seeing him now, both arms severed and blood pooling beneath him, Ao's eyes turned bloodshot with rage.
"Lord Genji!" Ao roared.
"If you're dissatisfied with me, say it directly! Why drag an innocent person into this?!"
Genji was silent for a moment.
He genuinely couldn't understand how someone like Ao had become a Mizukage guard. Other than loyalty, he seemed to lack any capacity for thought.
Had he never bothered to look back?
How many times had Genji taken action only after absolute confirmation?
Which of their negotiations, which of their survivals until today, hadn't been arranged by Genji himself?
Genji looked down at the man beneath his foot.
"Will you speak yourself, or should I speak for you?"
"Think carefully. When I act, I do so with absolute certainty."
"If you confess, I will kill only you. If I have to expose everything myself—your entire family, down to the last dog and chicken, will be wiped out."
He spoke the cruelest words in the calmest tone.
Ibara Kumaji clenched his teeth.
"I'll talk… I'll tell you everything," he said hoarsely.
"It was me. I told the Fourth Mizukage the contact location. A ninja unit has already been dispatched—they're coming to kill all of you."
"What?!" Ao froze, then raised his hand high, eyes blazing, ready to smash Ibara Kumaji's head.
Seeing this, Ibara Kumaji couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
So this was brotherhood—calling each other brothers one moment, trying to kill him the next to prove innocence.
At that moment, Mei Terumī spoke.
"Ao. Stop. Stand down."
Her voice cut through the room.
Everyone turned to look at her.
The corner of Genji's mouth curled slightly. As expected—Mei Terumī was sharp.
She stepped forward and crouched in front of Ibara Kumaji. As she moved, her chest swayed slightly. She parted her lips and spoke softly, her breath faintly fragrant.
"Ibara Kumaji," she said gently, "tell me why you betrayed us."
"If your reason can move me, I may consider sparing your life. Otherwise, I'll hand you over to Lord Genji."
She smiled faintly.
Ibara Kumaji's heart trembled.
Handed over to Genji?
He knew Genji's methods far too well. Falling into his hands meant that death would be a mercy.
Genji never let traitors die easily. He would keep them alive, torment them day after day, until they experienced every conceivable form of suffering and their minds completely collapsed—only then would he allow them to die.
And from his eighty-year-old mother to his newborn child, not a single one would be spared.
There had once been a rule: children shorter than a carriage wheel were not to be killed.
Genji had sneered and said, "Lay the wheel down. Problem solved."
This man was a devil.
Don't be fooled by his immortal-like appearance or gentle demeanor. When Genji became ruthless, he was more terrifying than anyone.
Because of this, Ibara Kumaji knew he could never fall into Genji's hands.
Mei Terumī was his only chance.
Everyone knew she was gentle and kind—and the future Fifth Mizukage. Her word carried absolute weight.
So he spoke.
"My son… gambled," Ibara Kumaji said bitterly.
"He owed the casino fifty million ryo. I'm a jōnin, but there was no way I could gather that much money."
"After our last meeting, the casino came to my door to collect the debt. I couldn't pay."
"That's when the Fourth Mizukage stepped in… and paid it for me."
He lowered his head.
"So… I'm sorry. I failed everyone."
Everyone present knew of his son—Ibara Dingzhen.
A notorious wastrel, skilled in eating, drinking, whoring, gambling, smoking, cheating, lying, and stealing.
Relying on his father's status, he ran wild, piling up massive debts again and again—each time leaving Ibara Kumaji to clean up the mess.
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