Chapter 150: The News of His Death

Drip… drip…

The pool of blood rippled outward, as if reflecting the desperate and pale face of Ye Zi. He hung his head low, thinking of his only relative—Rui.

"I'm sorry… in the end, I still couldn't change anything."

"Earth Style: Added Weight Rock Technique."

A voice sounded near his ear, and suddenly, his body felt as though it was being filled with concrete. His broken body was pressed down into the blood-soaked ground.

Splat!

Blood splattered.

At that moment, his consciousness began to blur. The strength that had kept him standing dissipated under the weight of what felt like a thousand tons, and even his strong will was slowly swallowed by despair.

"So tired… Dying like this… maybe it's okay. I won't have to endure anymore. No more pain, no more hardship. But… why is fate so unfair? We only wanted… a simple, ordinary life, nothing more."

The heavy force made it hard for him to breathe. His eyelids slowly drooped, covering the last glimmers of light.

Surrounding him, both on the ground and in the trees, stood numerous Iwa ninjas, forming a circle. They watched the scene with calm expressions, which made their actions seem all the more cruel.

Ōnoki picked up Ye Zi's severed arm. The Raiga sword, which had claimed countless lives, was still clutched tightly in the lifeless grip, with no sign of loosening.

Ōnoki glanced at the now barely-breathing Ye Zi. His face was expressionless. In this moment, he didn't feel the satisfaction he had anticipated. However, even so, he didn't want Ye Zi to die so easily.

He tossed the severed arm to one of the Iwa ninjas—it was a trophy, a declaration of the fall of a powerful enemy. Then, he took a few steps back and swiftly formed hand seals.

Boom!

Four stone walls rose around Ye Zi, tightly enclosing him. As they ascended, the walls sealed together, forming a solid, airtight rectangular prison around Ye Zi's helpless body.

Ōnoki maintained his hand seals, silently watching the stone prison. After a moment, a cold gleam flashed in his eyes. With a thought, the rectangular stone structure began to shrink, moving inward slowly.

This was Ōnoki's way of ensuring that Ye Zi wouldn't die easily. He wanted to slowly squeeze the life out of Ye Zi, suffocating him with the crushing weight of stone, forcing him to feel his body being crushed into paste.

Hatred breeds more hatred. Bloodshed calls for more bloodshed. And vengeance, too, breeds more vengeance. All of this plays out with cold ruthlessness, showcasing the darkest sides of human nature.

In this world filled with conflict and the pursuit of power, things are rarely beautiful.

Ōnoki watched the stone prison slowly contract. Soon, Ye Zi would be nothing more than a pile of bloody pulp, a fitting offering to the souls lost tonight.

This cruel act would, undoubtedly, bring some peace to those who had lost friends and family tonight. But it also gave an opportunity to another, someone lurking in the shadows—Zetsu.

"Such cruelty," Zetsu muttered, grinning as his body melted into the ground. He swiftly made his way into the stone prison, wrapping the barely-conscious Ye Zi in his form before melding back into the earth. Before leaving, he left behind a substitute corpse in Ye Zi's place.

The stone walls continued to shrink. Although no blood leaked out, the ground around the stone prison began to turn red, hinting at the gruesome scene within.

As the bloodstain grew, the stone walls finally compressed into a single pillar. No one knew what had become of Ye Zi inside.

Although the desire to inspect the results wasn't as strong as before, as a seasoned ninja, Ōnoki knew it was crucial to confirm the target's death.

The stone pillar split apart and sank into the ground, leaving behind a small pile of indistinguishable red and white flesh. Most of it had likely been smeared on the walls and had sunk into the earth along with them.

Ōnoki took a glance at the remnants, then used his Dust Release to erase Ye Zi's last trace from the world. He did, however, forget about the scroll that Ye Zi had stolen. But with Ye Zi's body turned to dust, the scroll, too, was likely destroyed. With the final confirmation of Ye Zi's death, Ōnoki gave the order for the remaining Iwa ninjas to return to the village before flying off toward Iwagakure.

The group of Iwa ninjas moved through the trees, heading back to their village.

That night, Konoha's Ye Zi had infiltrated Iwagakure to steal classified intelligence. His mission had failed, and he had perished.

In total, Iwagakure had lost 21 jōnin, 5 chūnin, and 3 genin, and a portion of the village's buildings were destroyed, including the Tsuchikage's office.

The number of casualties, though significant, was deemed acceptable by Iwagakure. Exchanging those lives for Ye Zi's death was considered a worthwhile trade.

However, when Ōnoki recalled Ye Zi's desperate breakout, he felt a lingering fear. Had Ye Zi not been focused solely on escape, the casualties could have easily been in the hundreds.

Fortunately, the losses were manageable, and Ye Zi was definitely dead.

In a dimly lit room with stone walls carved with candle niches, Ōnoki sat at the head of a long table, deep in thought.

Nineteen others sat around the table. These were Iwagakure's core leaders, each influential in the village's decision-making. Any major decision required consensus among them.

At that moment, they were discussing something seemingly minor, but it still needed to be settled: whether or not to send Ye Zi's severed arm back to Konoha.

This decision, while not of great importance, required careful consideration of Konoha's possible reaction.

"Send it."

After a long pause, Ōnoki finally spoke.

"I have no objections."

"Neither do I."

…

Once Ōnoki voiced his decision, the others quickly expressed their agreement.

War comes and goes, never truly ending.

The major villages had spent years recovering and strengthening their forces.

As long as reasons for conflict remain, just as there was a First and Second Ninja War, there will surely be a Third. This was an inevitable conclusion.

The scent of war was in the air, and many could sense it. It wasn't imminent, but it was coming. The villages were recovering, and only a spark was needed to ignite the next conflict.

Sending Ye Zi's severed arm and the Raiga blade to Konoha wouldn't start a war, but it would send a message.

Thus, the decision was made.

Iwagakure would send Ye Zi's severed arm to Konoha.

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Currently on Chapter 201: Severing of Bonds...