[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-this-water-shadow-is-strong-but-excessively-caut":3,"chapter-this-water-shadow-is-strong-but-excessively-caut-this-mizukage-is-strong-but-excessively-cautious-chapter-491":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","This Mizukage Is Strong, but Far Too Cautious",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},2194802,3774,"Chapter 491: Progress on the","this-mizukage-is-strong-but-excessively-cautious-chapter-491",491,"\u003Cp>With the matter of Hanzo of the Salamander handled, the situation in the Land of Rain was effectively brought to a close. Mizunuki Ryosuke had only made a brief detour to the Hidden Mist outpost midway through, where he instructed Kuroshima Morita to arrange for personnel to escort the young maid back to the Land of Water.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Mizunuki Ryosuke did not linger any longer, instead departing the borders of the Land of Rain directly atop the Ice Dragon King.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Barring any surprises, he would likely never return.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The massive Second Shinobi World War was a tremendous challenge for any nation or ninja village.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Yet, no one could have imagined that amidst the tsunami-like flames of war sweeping across the shinobi world, someone would actually be able to snatch chestnuts from the fire and cast a massive \"net\" beneath the undercurrents.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>If the \"giant net\" woven by Mizunuki Ryosuke were to be compared to a jigsaw puzzle.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Then establishing contact with Hanzo of the Salamander and the hero-saving-the-beauty act in the Land of Rain could only be said to have completed five percent of the puzzle's prologue.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Subsequently, the establishment of a stable and reliable iron sand trade between the Hidden Mist and the Hidden Sand completed another ten percent of the puzzle.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Following that, his diplomatic mission to the Land of Iron and the cooperation established with the samurai leader Mifune pushed the puzzle's progress to thirty percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Then, waiting for the right moment and using the Raikage's invitation as a catalyst, he intervened in the battle between the Hidden Stone and the Hidden Cloud, winning a single victory that brought the entire puzzle's progress to fifty percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>By this point, Mizunuki Ryosuke’s plan could essentially be considered a foregone conclusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Having arrived quietly in the Land of Rain and manipulated the outcome of the war from behind the scenes without anyone noticing, he had basically achieved his goal.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The \"net\" was more than half-formed; the remaining minor loopholes had little impact on the overall situation. The entire puzzle had only ten percent of its progress left.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Once this final ten percent was completed, no one would be able to shake this giant net that enveloped the entire shinobi world!\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Now, Mizunuki Ryosuke would rush about for this final ten percent of the plan, and this time, his schedule was clearly very tight.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Several days ago, intelligence personnel from the White Shark Unit had already sent reports to Mizunuki Ryosuke regarding the situation within the Hidden Stone.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The Hidden Stone had suddenly declared war on the Waterfall Ninjas of the Land of Waterfalls!\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>And this was because the foreshadowing Mizunuki Ryosuke had laid earlier had taken effect, guiding the Hidden Stone toward the target he had pointed out.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>All of this seemed to have no connection to Mizunuki Ryosuke, who was in the Land of Rain, but that was not the case.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Or rather, the Hidden Stone’s move against the Waterfall Ninjas was entirely because of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Previously, during a series of chaotic battles in the Land of Frost.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>During the attacks on the Stone ninja Gari and the Four-Tails jinchuriki Han, Mizunuki Ryosuke had set up a diversion that caused Danzo to become deeply embroiled in it.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>At the same time, Mizunuki Ryosuke personally disguised himself as a Waterfall ninja, conveniently splashing a bucket of dirty water on the Waterfall Ninjas who were sitting at home.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>By the time the dust settled, the Waterfall Ninjas, who had been hit by a pot falling from the sky, could no longer explain themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Consequently, in a state of utter confusion, the Waterfall Ninjas inexplicably bore the blame for attacking the Hidden Stone’s logistics troops and the Four-Tails jinchuriki.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Furthermore, the Waterfall Ninjas were likely still being kept in the dark. After all, the three parties involved in the original incident would certainly keep their mouths shut, treating it as a top-secret matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>In other words, it could be understood that the Waterfall Ninjas, without knowing anything, had taken the fall for a massive disaster on Mizunuki Ryosuke’s behalf.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>In fact, in this matter, it wasn't just the Waterfall Ninjas who took the fall; there was also the \"Shinobi World Scapegoat King\" Danzo, who was schemed against at first and later took the blame voluntarily.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Because the Hidden Stone was at a critical moment in the war at the time, they could only secretly make a note of this and settle the account after the war.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>And after their defeat, the demoralized Hidden Stone, under the leadership of Kitsuchi, could only tuck their tails and return to the Land of Earth, temporarily swallowing their broken teeth.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>But once the Hidden Stone caught its breath, this matter would certainly not be dropped.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>And this, too, was a piece of foreshadowing Mizunuki Ryosuke had laid out using the information gap.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>At first glance, the Hidden Stone had suffered a crushing defeat and heavy losses; even if they had a grudge, they could only accumulate strength in secret, hoping to retaliate later.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>But Mizunuki Ryosuke knew clearly that it was not that simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>If the Tsuchikage of the Hidden Stone at this moment were still the strong-willed and prestigious Third Tsuchikage Onoki, then perhaps such a course of action might still be possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>....0\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Because with the Third Tsuchikage Onoki’s prestige within the Hidden Stone, the Stone ninjas, even if dissatisfied with the defeat, would not dare to say anything; he could completely suppress the backlash of the defeat by force.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>But one must know that Onoki was currently being held captive by the Hidden Mist in the Land of Water, and the person currently in charge of the Hidden Stone was the son of the Third Tsuchikage—Kitsuchi!\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Kitsuchi, who had ascended to power in a rush, had no ability to smooth over the backlash from the failed war against the Hidden Cloud.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>This had nothing to do with ability; it was an inevitable result caused by the gap in prestige and strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>And in this situation, there was only one way for Kitsuchi to break the deadlock.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>That was—to shift internal conflicts outward!\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>In other words, to launch a war against the outside world once again!\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>And since the Hidden Stone had just been defeated, morale was low, and they had suffered heavy losses in both troops and generals, they had no ability to wage war against a Great Nation.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>But who said the Hidden Stone had to fight a Great Nation?\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>If they couldn't beat a Great Nation, couldn't they bully a small nation?\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>A lean camel is bigger than a horse; taking advantage of the chaos of the Shinobi World War, it was still easy for the Hidden Stone to deal with a small nation or two.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Thinking it over, with old grudges and new hatreds combined, was there anyone more suitable than the Waterfall Ninjas?\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Chr\u002F>\u003Cp>\u003Cem>— Author's Notes —\u003C\u002Fem>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>·· ····Seeking flowers··· ····\u003C\u002Fp>",1156,"2026-06-17T05:01:42.922Z","2026-06-17T09:00:23.248Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","4e11bbecd2d418e8cb93c8214a3fd5500aa1266dcf8c60d5372688ac4cc26f69","this-mizukage-is-strong-but-excessively-cautious-chapter-492","this-mizukage-is-strong-but-excessively-cautious-chapter-490",533,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthis-mizukage-is-strong-but-excessively-cautious-cover.jpg"]