"Mist ninjas do not become prisoners!"
Kisame's face twisted with determination as his sharp gaze locked onto Raiden. Without hesitation, he attempted to bite down on his own tongue to take his life.
However, Raiden, who had been keeping a close watch on both captives, moved swiftly. Raising his right hand, he sent a surge of chakra through Kisame's body, instantly freezing his muscles in place.
At that moment, Kisame could do nothing but sit there with his mouth open, unable to act on his final resolve.
"As expected, you're exactly the kind of man I like."
"Your name is Kisame, right? I've heard of you."
Raiden looked at the frustrated swordsman with a light smile. He didn't bother explaining how he knew Kisame's identity—there was no need to give unnecessary information to a captive.
"Don't waste your time thinking about suicide. Now that you're in my hands, life and death are no longer up to you."
"Whether you want to live or die is not your decision anymore."
With a casual tone, Raiden turned his attention away from Kisame and toward Terumi Mei.
"Now, I have a question I'd like answered. Who ordered you to die?"
Instead of pressing Kisame for answers, Raiden focused on Terumi Mei. He knew Kisame was a hardened warrior—extracting information from him would be time-consuming. Compared to him, Terumi Mei, despite being a capable kunoichi, might be easier to crack.
As he spoke, Raiden released part of the curse seal that bound Terumi Mei, allowing her to speak freely.
"Hmph!"
She noticed the change in the seal immediately. Meeting Raiden's eyes, she simply tilted her head and let out a soft scoff, choosing to ignore his question.
"So, Mist Anbu are quite tough."
"But tell me, does your boss even care about your loyalty?"
"He's already sold you out, and yet here you are, still counting the money for him."
"If he saw you now, he'd probably be sad. After all, he's losing two devoted fools."
Raiden glanced up at the sky, speaking nonchalantly as if the answer didn't matter.
Of course, he knew that direct questioning would be useless. However, planting a seed of doubt was another story entirely.
Sure enough, Terumi Mei's expression shifted subtly. Though she said nothing, her reaction told Raiden everything he needed to know—his words had made her think.
Compared to her, Kisame remained completely unmoved. He had shut his eyes the moment Raiden restrained him, displaying complete indifference to the conversation. His willpower was clearly leagues above Terumi Mei's.
But Raiden didn't mind.
Seeing that neither of them was ready to talk, he simply smiled. Then, after confirming Uchiha Itachi and the others' location, he hoisted his captives and headed toward them.
By the time Raiden reunited with Itachi and the rest of his team, they had already set up a defensive barrier around their position.
Seeing Raiden approach, they all froze for a moment before their faces lit up with relief.
"Master! You're here!"
Uchiha Itachi ran up to Raiden, wrapping his arms around his waist without hesitation. Only now did he allow himself to relax.
"Itachi, what's up with you, kid?"
Raiden ruffled his hair with a smile. It was rare to see Itachi showing his emotions so openly. The calm, intelligent, and composed boy he knew had momentarily let his guard down.
This was entirely different from the deep-thinking and reserved Uchiha Itachi that Raiden had in his memory.
"Nothing… I was just worried about you, Master."
After a brief pause, Itachi turned his attention to the two floating figures behind Raiden—Terumi Mei and Kisame, both tightly bound by golden chains.
"Master, is the battle over? Who are they?"
"Yeah, it's over."
"And these two… well, they're my captives. Interestingly enough, you and one of them are quite fated."
Raiden glanced at Kisame, but Itachi tilted his head in confusion, not quite understanding his meaning.
Behind Itachi, Kakashi stepped forward, his eyes scanning the captives.
"Lord Hokage, our carriage was lost. We'll have to walk the rest of the way."
"Do you want to bring these two with us, or…?"
Though Kakashi didn't say it outright, the implication was clear—executing them here would be much more convenient.
Even though Kisame and Terumi Mei weren't afraid of death, their expressions shifted slightly at Kakashi's words. Both of them turned their eyes toward Raiden, waiting for his response.
"It doesn't matter if the carriage is gone. It wasn't that comfortable anyway—walking is fine."
"As for these two, we're bringing them along. They're useful to me."
"Don't worry—it won't slow us down."
Raiden tightened his grip on the chain holding Kisame and slung him over his shoulder with a grin.
"This bastard!"
Kisame cursed internally, humiliated by his current state.
Raiden chuckled, sensing his frustration. Compared to Kisame, Terumi Mei was much calmer, watching the scene unfold without reaction.
With that, Raiden released part of the seal on Terumi Mei's body, allowing her to move her mouth freely.
"Were you setting traps just now? That's enough—we're moving out."
Raiden waved at Kakashi.
At his command, Obito and Rin quickly retrieved the tools they had placed for their defensive setup, while Kakashi unfolded the map and pinpointed their current location. With a quick leap onto the branches, he led the group forward.
Obito and Rin soon followed, disappearing into the forest.
For Raiden's team, the Mist ninja ambush was nothing more than a small episode.
It hadn't disrupted their mission in the slightest.
Two days later, at dawn...
After traveling at full speed, Raiden's group finally arrived at Konoha's frontline camp in the Land of Rivers.
Inside the main command tent, a high-level strategy meeting was taking place when an Anbu burst into the room, interrupting the discussion.
"Lord Nara Shikashin! The Fourth Hokage's team has arrived!"
For a brief moment, silence filled the room.
Then—
"He's here!"
"Lord Raiden has finally arrived! With him here, we can push back Cloud's forces!"
"This is great! Now we finally have a fighting chance!"
The commanders erupted into cheers, all traces of tension vanishing in an instant. Even Nara Shikashin, the leader of the operation, exhaled deeply in relief. The oppressive atmosphere in the tent vanished as he allowed himself a rare smile.
"Where is he?! Bring him to the meeting room immediately!"
A second later, however, Shikashin frowned.
No—that wasn't right.
"Forget it—I'll go myself!"
He stood up abruptly and strode out of the tent. The rest of the commanders quickly followed behind him.
Guided by the Anbu, they soon spotted Raiden and his team approaching the camp entrance.
"It really is him!"
From a distance, Shikashin immediately recognized the bright red hair of the young Hokage. Seeing that familiar face, a heavy weight lifted from his chest.
Without hesitation, he rushed forward, stopping directly in front of Raiden before lowering his head in a formal bow.
"Lord Hokage!"
Behind him, the assembled commanders dropped to one knee in unison.
"..."
Raiden blinked in surprise.
"Oi, why are you guys being so formal?"
He scratched his head, completely caught off guard by the overwhelming display of respect.
(End of this chapter)