Barely a minute after Sky Armor's team vanished into the night, a squad of Cloud ninja materialized on the blood-stained bridge, their expressions twisting with frustration as they surveyed the carnage. The headless bodies of Numakura Yoroi, Nobutomo Suke, and Yukuchi Mitsuta lay sprawled across the splintered wood, a grim testament to Kirigakure's ruthless efficiency.
"Damn it!" the Cloud team leader spat, his fists clenching. "Three prime recruits, gone just like that. We were too slow." The loss stung, a bitter pill made worse by the looming specter of the Raikage's wrath. How were they supposed to explain this failure?
"Filthy Mist ninja," another Cloud shinobi growled, kicking a pebble into the river below. "They're too damn fast."
The team briefly considered pursuit, hoping to salvage the mission by claiming Mist scalps to appease their leader. But Sky Armor's team had erased their tracks with surgical precision, leaving no trail to follow. The Cloud ninja had no choice but to retreat, their heads bowed, dreading the inevitable dressing-down awaiting them in Kumogakure.
Ye Liangnai's condition was dire, a shadow of the prodigy who'd felled an A-rank rogue. Despite his crude stitching and the emergency drugs—painkillers, coagulants, and anti-inflammatories—administered to stem the bleeding, the relentless march back to Kirigakure was taking its toll. Each jolt as Haruha Yuya carried him on his back tore at the wound, fresh blood seeping through the sutures. His face was ashen, pale as wax paper, his breaths shallow and ragged.
Sky Armor offered no reprieve, his orders unyielding. "Eagle, keep moving," he commanded, his voice devoid of sympathy. To him, Ye Liangnai was a soldier, and soldiers endured—or died.
Gritting his teeth, Ye Liangnai's mind burned with resolve despite the haze of pain. This is unacceptable. If I survive, I swear I'll reform the village's medical system. The agony of fighting without proper care, of bleeding out with no hope of treatment, was a torture he'd never forget. No one should endure this.
Kirigakure, One Day Later
Ye Liangnai's return to the village was a blur of willpower and fading consciousness. He didn't know how he'd clung to life through the grueling journey, each step a battle against the darkness creeping at the edges of his vision. The moment they crossed Kirigakure's gates, his strength gave out, and he collapsed, the world dissolving into black.
He awoke—or rather, lingered—in the medical ward, his body a battlefield of pain and fragility. Terumi Mei sat at his bedside, her tear-streaked face a mask of anguish as she stroked his cold, pallid cheek. "Little Ye, you can't leave me," she whispered, her voice trembling with desperation. "Our plans… they're just beginning. You have to hold on."
His wounds were catastrophic, the chest gash so severe that his vital signs teetered on the edge of oblivion. The medical ninja had been blunt: "It's up to fate whether he wakes. If Commander Mei hadn't insisted, we'd have given up. His survival this long is a miracle—those stitches he did himself saved him from bleeding out instantly."
Mei's resolve had kept him alive, but his condition remained precarious, a tightrope walk between life and death.
Mizukage's Office
Yagura Karatachi leaned back in his chair, a chilling smile curling his lips as Sky Armor delivered the mission report. "Single-handedly killed Yukuchi Mitsuta, did he? This Ye Liangnai's got some real talent," he mused, his voice laced with a predatory edge. "He's worth cultivating."
As the room emptied, Yagura's smile widened, his words a sinister murmur. "By treating Ye Liangnai unjustly, I'll stoke Terumi Mei's rage. Her conflict with the Mizukage will tear Kirigakure apart, draining its strength. Perfect—absolutely perfect." He chuckled, his eyes glinting with malice. "Ye Liangnai, you've given me the ideal pawn. Let's see what mission I'll assign you next."
The voice wasn't Yagura's but Uchiha Obito's, the masked puppeteer pulling the strings. Kirigakure's suffering was his masterpiece, and Ye Liangnai was an unexpected gift to deepen the chaos.
Elsewhere in Kirigakure
In a dimly lit office, Chita Yasu lounged, his smirk dripping with petty vindictiveness. "Well, well, Terumi Mei," he sneered. "The medical ninja just happen to fall under my jurisdiction. Want to save your precious brother? You'll have to beg me first."
The memory of Mei and Ye Liangnai humiliating him still burned, a wound to his pride he was eager to repay. This was his chance to settle the score, to force Mei to grovel. "No price, no cure," he muttered, his grin widening. "Let's see her squirm."
He issued orders to halve Ye Liangnai's medication, instructing the medical staff to inform Mei that only a personal meeting would restore full treatment. A nervous medic hesitated, his voice trembling. "Sir, this… isn't this risky? Commander Mei's one of the village's top powers. Crossing her could—"
"Risky?" Chita's eyes flashed, his voice a low growl. "Are you defying me?"
The medic flinched, sweat beading on his brow. "N-no, sir, I just—"
"Then do it," Chita snapped, his tone dripping with menace. "Mess this up, and you're done."
The medic scurried off, torn between fear of Chita and dread of Mei's wrath. Provoking one of Kirigakure's three titans was a dangerous game, and the medical staff were caught in the crossfire.
Chita leaned back, his thoughts vile. "Terumi Mei, I've wanted you for years. A woman like you—mature, powerful—oh, the fun we'll have." He was certain his father, Elder Yuan Long, would shield him from any repercussions. Mei's influence, no matter how vast, couldn't rival the Elder Council's authority. Or so he believed.
The Next Day
Mei's fury was a storm unleashed when she learned of Chita's sabotage. Interrogating the medical ward's head, she extracted the truth with a grip on his throat, her eyes blazing with murderous intent. Without hesitation, she stormed Chita Yasu's compound, her presence a hurricane of rage.
"Commander Mei, please stop!" A squad of ANBU and guards scrambled to block her path, their voices urgent but wavering. Mei's aura was suffocating, her killing intent a palpable force that made the air heavy.
"Move," she snarled, her voice low and lethal. "Don't force me to see you as enemies."
The guards froze, their resolve crumbling under her gaze. Mei was a titan, a shinobi who could face three of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen without flinching. Opposing her was a death wish.
Chita Yasu emerged, his smug grin unfazed by the chaos. "Terumi Mei, barging into the Elder Council's territory? You're finished. No one's saving you now." He turned to the ANBU, his voice sharp. "What are you idiots waiting for? Seize her! Let this traitor slip, and I'll have your heads!"
The ANBU hesitated, their eyes flickering with unease. Chita's orders carried weight, but Mei's power was a guillotine over their necks. Duty forced their hands, their loyalty to the village's hierarchy overriding fear.