- I apologize, but no information on that has been received," the jonin bowed slightly.
- It would have been a good chance to hurt Konoha by killing an up-and-coming genius and avenging the recent retaliation debacle," the Mizukage murmured, thinking out loud rather than to his subordinate, "Put a ten million ryo bounty on it, maybe one of the oinin teams will get lucky.
The loss of two of the seven great swords and the failure of their return, along with Hatake's revenge, had put a stain on Kirigakure's reputation, raising whispers that he was no longer the same and forcing him to look for an opportunity to get even.
Personal power means a lot among the shinobi of Kirigakure, but clans will not forgive failures indefinitely, and sooner or later they will oust the unwanted leader, given the mores of the village - bloodily and with a guarantee.
The Kaguya were already causing a lot of trouble, showing their contempt and forcing them to tighten the screws to be able to control a bunch of bloodthirsty lunatics.
- It will be done, Mizukage-sama!
- How's the current operation going?
- The teams, along with the three Swordsmen, have already been dispatched to the Sunovan's designated location and are ready to eliminate the target, and confirmation of the plan has been received from Sunagakure. Even if the desert dwellers lied, they will pay dearly for their treachery!
- Well done! - Mizukage leaned back in his chair with satisfaction. - Keep me informed.
- Yes, Mizukage-sama.
He waved his hand, releasing the shinobi, and without looking at the bowed shinobi, turned to the window.
The jonin left the office and the ruler of Kirigakure plunged into thought. The current operation to eliminate the strong S-class kunoichi had been worked out to the smallest detail, the location for the ambush had been chosen, all the strengths and weaknesses of the target had been taken into account by a series of attacks during which the observers had learned Pakura's basic techniques.
A dozen teams with a jonin at the head of each team and the support of three of the seven swordsmen would have to do the job even if things didn't go according to plan.
One could only wonder at the idiots willing to write off a fighter of this caliber when all the Great Villages are preparing for an imminent war and Blood Mist is not averse to further weakening a neighbor that lost the last world war, especially now that Suna is an ally of Konoha.
When the operation was over, it would allow for a sigh of relief, shutting up the clans and allowing time to develop plans to weaken them if the third shinobi world war couldn't handle it. He'd gnawed his way to power with his teeth, not shying away from eliminating his rivals by any means necessary, and he wouldn't just remove himself, no matter what the clan heads thought, preferring to strike preemptively.
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