Ino chuckled softly, finding it a bit difficult to respond to the comment.
At the same time, she carefully observed the person in front of her. The Second Mizukage had died during the First Great Ninja War, and now the leader of Kirigakure Village was the Fifth Mizukage.
This guy must be similar to the Chakra Minato Namikaze left within Naruto—just a remnant of the Second Mizukage's Chakra preserved through special circumstances.
Ino didn't know exactly how it had been preserved, but she understood that this was a rare opportunity. This Chakra wasn't perpetual; like the Yin-Yang Power the Sage of Six Paths gave to Naruto and Sasuke, it would diminish with use.
From this perspective, Kirigakure Village had indeed paid a significant price for this operation.
The man with the small mustache's frustration came and went quickly. In the blink of an eye, he acted as if nothing had happened: "You can leave. I won't teach Konoha ninjas!"
"Senior, it was Elder Motoyoshi who allowed us to come here and take the test."
The man with the mustache made an exaggerated pouting expression: "Who's Motoyoshi? Oh, I see, you mean Moto? That loser dares to order me around? I'm the Second Mizukage! No one can force me to do something I don't want to do!"
"Senior, don't you think your actions will make Kirigakure Village lose credibility? Kirigakure won't be able to hold its head up in front of other ninja villages."
The man crossed his arms and tilted his chin up: "So what? It's their face that's lost, not mine. I should've been dead for years... Oh, right, how many years has it been? Do you know, little girl?"
This question stumped Ino. Most ninjas from Kirigakure only knew of the Second Mizukage, but they didn't know his name or his signature techniques. If even they didn't know, how could Ino, an outsider, possibly know?
The intelligence-gathering capabilities of the Yamanaka Clan had their limits. If you don't even know, how am I supposed to find out?
Ino could only try to piece together the timeline based on what she knew: "...I remember your four great ninja villages launched a war after the death of our First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. You took advantage of our weakness! Disgusting... After that, our Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, took over and fought against all four of you, crushing you. Later, the Second Hokage died while covering his subordinates' retreat. Senior, you must have perished around the same time, along with the Second Tsuchikage..."
Before she could finish, the man exploded: "What?! I died with Mu? Nonsense! Impossible! Absolutely impossible! My Water Release is invincible! Didn't you see Mu's bandages? Those injuries were from my explosions!"
Ino remained calm, waiting for his emotions to settle before speaking: "Hey, do you still want to hear this? If not, I'll stop."
"Wait a moment!" The man paused noticeably, and Ino suspected he could appear in multiple locations within the illusionary maze simultaneously. He was probably asking others about this.
People from Konoha couldn't possibly know this history. Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Choji didn't even know the Second Mizukage's name, let alone his life story. Shikamaru was no help either—high intelligence and historical knowledge weren't necessarily related.
Haku had always followed Zabuza and had no access to such information. Ranmaru, being so young, probably hadn't even learned to read most characters. The only one who might know was the shy Chojuro. People with such personalities usually aren't good at socializing and tend to bury themselves in books. Chojuro was also a key figure in Kirigakure Village's cultivation, so there was a high chance he knew about these past events.
The mustached man seemed to zone out, standing still for two minutes before angrily cursing, "Damn it, what kind of people has Kirigakure Village sent in? Am I getting old and out of touch with the times? These three are all men. What's with their appearances!? Is this the younger generation of Kirigakure Village today? Kirigakure is doomed!"
Ino smiled smugly. After waiting another half minute, the mustached man suddenly exclaimed, "Huh? There's a blond kid from your Hidden Leaf Village who looks a bit like my nephew. Is he really from your village? Too bad, he's a hopeless idiot!"
Ino didn't respond. Without even thinking, she knew it must be Naruto's "face that reminds people of their relatives" talent at work again.
If they encountered the mustached man on the battlefield, it would probably lead to three or four episodes of flashbacks, right? Naruto, being clueless as usual, would have no answers, so the mustached man's attention would inevitably return to Ino.
Ino began to tell the story, recounting how the Second Hokage used Edo Tensei to defeat the ninja armies of four villages, how the Second Hokage died in a rearguard action, and how the Third Hokage succeeded him. She also mentioned how Iwagakure and Kirigakure fought over spoils, leading to the mutual destruction of their Kage.
Having worked in sales, she was adept at narrating the story from a broader perspective. Chojuro might know some of Kirigakure's past, but he was far inferior to Ino when it came to storytelling.
"Not a bad story. That's probably how it happened. My original self was such a fool, dying over some petty spoils. It's infuriating, but…" The mustached man sighed heavily. "But having someone from the Hidden Leaf Village learn my ninja techniques is even more infuriating! Hit me, curse me, do whatever you want. I won't give you a test, and I certainly won't teach you! Get out."
He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and made it clear that he wouldn't resist if she hit or cursed him, but he would never teach her his techniques.
Ino had anticipated this. Perhaps the old ghost Genji from Kirigakure had foreseen this scenario.
A residual Chakra entity, somewhere between an image and a soul, was something most ninja couldn't handle. In this Genjutsu, the mustached man was the absolute ruler. If he refused to teach, there was nothing to be done. If this round was judged as a loss, she would have to withdraw. But Ino had no intention of withdrawing—she wasn't an ordinary ninja! "Senior, I'm going to use some methods. My apologies!"
She quickly formed hand seals, her hands moving so fast they left afterimages.
The mustached man was momentarily stunned, carefully observing her seals, then sneered, "That hand seal formation carries a strong spiritual energy. Are you trying to use Genjutsu on me?"
"Wrong. It's a Secret Technique!"
This was the third-stage secret ninja technique of the Yamanaka Clan—the Mind Body Disturbance Technique!
This technique was said to be capable of permanently altering a deity's thoughts, turning them into the user's ally. Its effect was comparable to Kotoamatsukami!
However, trying to manipulate the thoughts of a spiritual entity was an extremely difficult task.
Ino's current level of Yin Release and spiritual energy were far from sufficient, but at the same time, the mustached man was no god. These remnants of Chakra without a physical form were entirely within the influence range of the Mind Body Disturbance Technique.
The mustached man could interrupt Ino's technique midway, but on Ino's side, her spiritual energy was insufficient, and her level of Yin Release was lacking. She could only rely on forming Hand Seals to accumulate it bit by bit. His prideful nature kept the mustached man from taking action.
"I am the Second Mizukage, after all. What can a child from the Hidden Leaf Village do to me? I'll see what kind of Secret Technique this is!"