Chapter 512: Chapter Three: The Dangerous Prisoner

"Of course he can."

Kirigakure Zangetsu's answer was definitive.

"The collar prevents water transformation."

In the adjacent cell, a figure leaned against the wall—white hair, a mouth full of shark-like fangs.

Kirigakure Zangetsu wore an iron collar around his neck, with several tubes deeply embedded into his throat.

If Kirigakure Zangetsu used his water transformation ability, the seal on the collar would detect it and release Lei Dun.

In the past, this wouldn't have mattered to Kirigakure Zangetsu, but now he was too weak.

Around the cell, sensory ninja were stationed; escaping was nearly impossible. The prisoners held here were those who attempted to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage—how could the guards be lax?

Clank.

The iron door above the dungeon opened, blinding light piercing the dim interior.

Five ninja in Kirigakure uniforms entered—two jōnin, three chūnin.

The three chūnin were tense; pairs of predatory eyes in the prison locked onto them.

The two jōnin walked ahead; they too were nervous—these were hardened criminals and death-row inmates—but before their juniors, they couldn't lose face, so they forced calm.

Seeing newcomers, the prisoners began shouting:

"Did the food delivery guy die? Two days without food!"

"That pale kid—let me taste your flesh. Corpse meat tastes awful."

"Worthless trash. We follow only the Fourth. We won't recognize that woman, Terumi."

The dungeon held over a dozen prisoners.

"Shut up."

One jōnin spoke, forming hand seals.

"Is this guy going to attack?"

"Kill me already. I've wanted to die for ages."

Clearly, none of the prisoners feared death.

The two jōnin frowned—these men were harder to handle than expected.

Ignoring the prisoners, the five advanced deeper into the prison, soon reaching Kirigakure Zangetsu's cell.

"Kirigakure Zangetsu. Time's up."

The cell door opened; Kirigakure Zangetsu was dragged out.

"Hey, Bai Ye."

Kirigakure Zangetsu looked toward Su Xiao's cell.

"Hm?"

Su Xiao lifted his head; the two jōnin watched him warily, one even drawing a kunai.

Only now did Su Xiao see Kirigakure Zangetsu's face—a short man, around thirty.

"If you get out, do me a favor."

"Not interested."

Su Xiao didn't know the man; he wouldn't agree to his request.

"No more talk. Move."

One jōnin shoved Kirigakure Zangetsu; he didn't care.

"If you get out, tell Kirigakure Suigetsu I'm dead. Don't come seeking revenge for me. As for the reward for doing this… he'll give it to you."

With those words, Kirigakure Zangetsu was dragged from the dungeon—his fate was obvious.

From his conversation with Kirigakure Zangetsu, Su Xiao deduced the current timeline.

The Fourth Mizukage may already be dead; the future Fifth Mizukage, Terumi, was preparing to ascend.

Not good news—the Kirigakure Village was far more chaotic than imagined.

Aside from the danger, this timeline offered too many opportunities; many events occurred precisely now.

The main protagonist, Naruto, had trained under Jiraiya for three years; the Akatsuki was also unusually active.

Su Xiao sat in his cell, considering whether to escape.

If the Fourth Mizukage was dead, he was temporarily safe. After Terumi took power, Kirigakure's structure would undergo a complete upheaval—fittingly described as a dynastic change.

If the Fourth Mizukage was still alive, things would be complicated—no, perhaps not too bad. At this time, the Fourth Mizukage was under the genjutsu of the Sharingan, devoid of independent thought.

Escaping was extremely difficult; sensory ninja monitored Su Xiao's every move.

After the five ninja took Kirigakure Zangetsu away, the prison fell silent. Long after, the dim oil lamp extinguished.

"Bai Ye, Kirigakure Zangetsu is dead. Next is you."

"I've hated him for ages. Good riddance."

"Assassinating the Fourth? What an idiot."

"If I weren't too weak from hunger, I'd have killed him already."

Waves of malice came from all around; Su Xiao felt that, except for the taken Kirigakure Zangetsu, every prisoner here wanted him dead.

Three hours passed. Su Xiao knew this couldn't continue—the situation was worse than imagined. He had to create his own opportunity.

A S-class alchemical bomb appeared in his hand; it rippled, gradually transforming into a dozen white spiders.

This was a new form Su Xiao had recently developed: frog-shaped for speed, snake-shaped to entangle enemies, spider-shaped for speed and wall-climbing.

Soon, the dungeon erupted in chaos.

"Damn bugs! Crawling on my face again!"

"Huh? You've got bugs too?"

"I've got them too—what's going on?"

"No—it's Bai Ye's bomb…"

Over a dozen prisoners noticed the anomaly, but hunger had drained their strength; they were dazed, their perception severely diminished.

"Detonate."

BOOM!

The explosion roared; the dozen spiders detonated simultaneously, lighting the dungeon in blinding fire.

After the blast, silence fell. The air reeked of char and blood.

Su Xiao had killed all his "cellmates." He did it for two reasons: first, to draw Kirigakure's attention—he didn't know how long he'd be imprisoned otherwise.

Second, their malice was too obvious. Strike first—that was Su Xiao's style.

He didn't know who they were, but since they wanted him dead, he'd make them die first. Simple. Brutal. He never ignored threats.

Rapid footsteps approached; the dungeon door burst open. A ninja in dark green robes rushed in, wearing a black eye patch over one eye, two paper talismans dangling from his earlobes.

"What happened?"

The ninja's single eye was piercing; after scanning the room, he fixed his gaze on Su Xiao.

Within seconds, over a dozen more ninja stormed into the dungeon.

"Lord Qing."

"Lord Qing."

The ninja bowed their heads in respect upon seeing the green-robed ninja.

"Notify Lord Terumi. Tell her something has happened here."

"Yes."

Several ninja vanished; Qing walked deeper into the dungeon.

Tap. Tap. Tap…

Only Qing's footsteps echoed. The cells he passed held corpses—every one with shattered skulls, some still smoldering.

Reaching the dungeon's deepest cell, Qing stopped. He stared into the darkness. He sensed someone inside—the only living prisoner. An extremely dangerous one.

"What happened?"

Qing spoke, but received no reply.

"If you won't speak, I can order your execution."

A pair of eyes opened in the cell.

"Is the Fourth dead?"

Qing hesitated, then nodded.

"Dead. He was wounded by your two slashes, then died fighting outside enemies—protecting the village."

The Fourth Mizukage being wounded by Su Xiao's two cuts might be true—but the "outside enemies"? Pure lies.

"I see. How about a deal?"

Qing frowned. This man belonged to no ninja village, carried no chakra—and yet, with just a blade, he'd wounded the Fourth Mizukage, even if by ambush.

The Paradise of Circles' assigned identity for Su Xiao carried risk—but it depended on how he handled it.

"A deal? I'm interested."

A woman's voice came from the dungeon entrance.