"Gone...?"
Kakashi's Sharingan stared intently at the spot where Menma, Zabuza, and Haku had vanished. He immediately recognized the signature Ninjutsu—the Flying Thunder God Technique.
This realization instantly drained his taut nerves. The Flying Thunder God had left... This meant he wouldn't attack them, right? The leader of the [Cinder] organization, possessing two extreme powers of destruction and regeneration, and whose thoughts were unfathomable, seemed to have truly come only to complete his "transaction" and "cleanup," with no intention of silencing them, the "witnesses."
Although he still couldn't understand why Menma had specifically cleared away the corpses—was it to conceal the existence of that regeneration ability?
Or simply because he didn't want to leave behind unsightly filth?—But the moment he confirmed the threat was temporarily lifted, a huge sense of security finally flowed back like a tide, replacing the fear that had almost crushed his heart.
He exhaled, almost collapsing, and the hand that had been tightly covering Sakura's eyes finally dropped powerlessly. At the same time, the prolonged use of the Sharingan for heightened perception, the intense battle against Zabuza Momochi, and the immense psychological pressure and the sharp decline after the adrenaline surge he had endured in those short few minutes, all the exhaustion instantly accumulated and rebounded.
Kakashi felt his legs go weak, his vision slightly darkened, his body swayed uncontrollably, and then he slumped to the ground with a thud, breathing heavily.
"Kakashi-sensei!"
Sakura, whose vision had just returned and who hadn't yet had time to take in her surroundings, immediately noticed the collapsed Kakashi. She quickly knelt down, carefully supporting his almost toppling body. "What's wrong? Are you hurt? Is something uncomfortable?"
On the other side, Naruto also released his hand from Satsuki's eyes. Almost the instant her vision returned, Satsuki had no time to spare for her surroundings; all her attention immediately focused on Naruto.
"Naruto!" She urgently grabbed Naruto's arm, her dark eyes filled with undisguised anxiety and tension, and began to meticulously check Naruto's body up and down, front and back. "What exactly happened just now? You're not hurt, are you?! Do you feel anything wrong anywhere?"
Looking at Satsuki, who was "touching" him, a warmth welled up in Naruto's heart. He quickly made a reassuring gesture, "It's nothing, it's nothing, Satsuki. Besides being a bit tired from using that Chakra earlier, I'm really fine. The new guy who came later... uh, the one with the fox mask, he didn't attack us; instead, he cleaned up all those bad guys and corpses."
His explanation temporarily soothed Satsuki's emotions, but she still clutched Naruto's sleeve tightly, unwilling to let go completely.
Meanwhile, Tazuna looked with complex eyes in the direction where Kakuzu had dragged Kado, his face a mix of shock, lingering fear, and an inexpressible bewilderment.
He had also heard those vague and terrifying legends about the [Cinder] organization, a mysterious and powerful group that even the Five Great Nations were wary of.
But in his imagination, it was perhaps just another version of the "Kado Group"—a larger, more ruthless criminal organization.
However, everything he had witnessed today completely overturned his understanding.
Kado, who had dragged the entire Land of Waves into hell, crushed countless lives with capital and violence, and made him feel utterly hopeless and powerful... In front of the [Cinder] organization, in the eyes of its fox mask-wearing leader, he was as insignificant as an ant?
Just one subordinate could drag Kado away like a dead dog? And Kado's seemingly vast influence and group of thugs were completely wiped out by the other party with a mere flick of a hand... This absolute disparity in power levels brought Tazuna an unprecedented shock.
A complex melancholy arose in his heart, a feeling of his own insignificance in the face of absolute power. But more than that, it was a sense of relief, almost ecstatic joy!
The organization's leader said it himself... Kado would not be let off!
This meant... the suffocating dark cloud named "Kado" that hung over the Land of Waves was truly... about to be completely dispelled!
After the incident on the bridge temporarily concluded, Tazuna did not immediately return to the construction site to continue building the bridge. After safely escorting Team 7, who were exhausted and needed rest, back home.
He immediately gathered a group of fellow workers. Armed with various tools, and with complex emotions, the group headed towards the place they usually avoided like the plague, the headquarters of the Kado Group in the Land of Waves, a symbol of oppression and despair.
And as they cautiously approached the eerie building, the sounds emanating from inside sent shivers down their spines, yet they couldn't help but stop.
Inside the Kado Group headquarters, Kakuzu's "work" was proceeding efficiently and ruthlessly. The thugs and hooligans who remained, who had been lording over others with Kado's power, were like paper toys in front of Kakuzu.
For Kakuzu, it wasn't even a warm-up; they were thoroughly "cleaned out."
Then, the real "main course" began. Kakuzu commenced his infamous financial interrogation of Kado. He didn't use many fancy torture devices; for a Ninja skilled in human anatomy and the psychology of fear, the simplest and most direct methods were often the most effective.
Tazuna and the workers dared not go in to witness it firsthand, only hiding far away on the outskirts of the building, but the heart-wrenching, utterly inhuman screams still clearly penetrated the walls and entered their ears, making their scalps tingle.
However, for Tazuna, an old man who had personally witnessed his son-in-law, Kaisha, being publicly executed by Kado, these agonizing cries from his enemy were not terrifying at all; instead, they were like the sound of heaven!
Each scream made his clenched fists tremble slightly, not from fear, but because the long-suppressed grief and indignation finally found an outlet for release.
In the room, Kakuzu expressionlessly watched Kado, who was twisting and rolling in agony. He merely demonstrated one or two methods that maximized nerve pain without causing immediate unconsciousness, which completely broke down the pampered rich man.
Kakuzu took out an old mechanical alarm clock, wound it a few times, and placed it on a nearby table, where it began to tick ominously.
"Speak. Vault passwords, real estate deeds, hidden accounts... Where are all the valuable things hidden?" Kakuzu's voice was as flat as if he were auditing ledgers. "If you can't say it within the allotted time, or if I find any concealment... we'll switch to a more 'in-depth' interrogation technique."
"Waaahhh!" Kado cried, snot and tears streaming, losing control of his bladder, sobbing incoherently.
"Crying? Crying also counts as time."
Under extreme fear and Kakuzu's "coaxing and tricking" words—"As long as you honestly hand over all your assets, I can consider... secretly letting you live, after all, I'm only after money"—
Kado, who had long lost all dignity and reason, like a drowning man clutching at a last straw, revealed all his asset information without reservation: his bank accounts scattered across the world, the locations of secret vaults, hidden jewels, all his properties and land deeds... all convertible assets.
It must be said that this guy truly deserved his reputation as one of the world's richest magnates; his accumulated wealth reached an astonishing level. Kakuzu, relying on Kado's testimony and "cooperation," worked for several days, using various Ninjutsu methods and underground channels, to receive, transfer, and liquidate these astonishingly vast assets one by one.
After properly settling Zabuza and Haku, Menma also returned to the Land of Waves using the Flying Thunder God. He looked at the neatly organized boxes of cash, gold bars, and priceless jewelry deeds that Kakuzu had prepared, almost filling a small warehouse. Activating the Flying Thunder God, he safely transported and stored this immense wealth, enough to cause an economic shock in a small nation, into the [Cinder] organization's secret underground base in the Land of Hot Springs.
After Kakuzu repeatedly confirmed that Kado, this "fat sheep," had been completely squeezed dry and not a single copper coin more could be extracted, he also "kept his promise" and fulfilled his "vow" to Kado—he indeed spared Kado's life, not personally taking it.
Of course, Kakuzu would never defy Menma's order to "clean up thoroughly." Not acting himself didn't mean others wouldn't.
Thus, shortly after Kakuzu left the Kado Group headquarters, news spread quickly. Especially after receiving the undoubtedly reliable propaganda from Tazuna and the workers, the residents of the Land of Waves, who had accumulated countless anger and hatred, swarmed from all directions, numbering thousands!
Armed with farming tools, fishing spears, and kitchen knives, they seized Kado, who had just barely escaped from financial torture, but was now penniless, with all his subordinates wiped out, and utterly alone.
Kado's desperate pleas and screams were instantly drowned in the ocean of the people's fury. The scene that followed was predictable: Kado, stripped of all protection, paid the most tragic price for his past heinous crimes in the Land of Waves—he was completely engulfed by the angry crowd, his end truly miserable.
It seems Tazuna's announcement that "Kado has completely fallen" was very timely and reliable. The nightmare that shrouded the Land of Waves finally, with the complete demise of the old ruler, ushered in a new beginning.