Chapter 93: Chōjūrō Hōzuki
The snow fell heavier and heavier as the cold wind howled with increasing fury.
The entire mountain range lay covered beneath a thick blanket of white snow, with only a few thin wisps of smoke rising from a distant village barely visible through the storm.
Under the Mizukage's direct orders, Chōjūrō Hōzuki, Jūzō Biwa, and Raiga Kurosuki led three separate teams of elite Hunter-nin operatives. With assistance from several sensory-type shinobi, they had been following the tracks deliberately left by Uchiha Kazuki, pursuing him relentlessly to this remote location.
However, they hadn't expected to be caught in such a severe blizzard.
The heavy snowfall rapidly covered the originally clear tracks, forcing the three legendary swordsmen to make the tactical decision to split up their search parties.
"It's so damn cold. I absolutely hate snow the most."
Chōjūrō Hōzuki carried Hiramekarei strapped across his broad back, looking visibly impatient and irritated: "If you ask me, we shouldn't have split up our forces at all. That guy's ultimate destination is obviously Kirigakure anyway. Why not just wait comfortably for him in the village?"
Compared to ordinary shinobi, his physique resembled that of a burly brown bear. Perhaps that genetic trait explained why he despised cold weather so intensely.
"There's no trace of Uchiha Kazuki detected anywhere nearby, Lord Chōjūrō."
The four-member Hunter-nin squad quickly swept the immediate area and, after thoroughly confirming the absence of any tracks, returned promptly to report their findings.
"Tch, with this much goddamn snow falling, even if that bastard really did leave footprints earlier, they'd be completely buried by now. It'd be a miracle if we could find anything." Chōjūrō Hōzuki sneered dismissively, appearing completely unconcerned as he gazed toward the distant village where smoke rose lazily. He stroked his chin thoughtfully: "Let's head over there to investigate and take a proper rest while we're at it. I'm exhausted."
"Lord Chōjūrō, isn't that somewhat... inappropriate?"
One of the Hunter-nin operatives hesitated noticeably upon hearing this suggestion: "The Mizukage gave explicit orders to locate Uchiha Kazuki as quickly as possible."
If they were caught deliberately slacking off on such an important mission, the Mizukage would absolutely tear them apart!
"What nonsense—aren't we actively looking? We haven't found him yet!" Chōjūrō Hōzuki's impatience visibly increased, his expression turning menacing: "I've worked this hard already, can't I even take a short rest?"
Seeing that he appeared on the verge of explosive anger, the four Hunter-nin immediately fell silent.
This particular swordsman wasn't known for having a pleasant temperament. If you pushed him too far, he'd likely just kill subordinates first and deal with consequences later.
Chōjūrō Hōzuki simply abandoned the Hunter-nin team, rubbing his rumbling stomach while slinging Hiramekarei casually over his shoulder. He headed toward the village, tossing back a casual order: "You guys keep searching the area. I'm hungry and need proper rest. Come find me when you actually have a solid lead."
"What should we do now?"
The four Hunter-nin exchanged uncertain glances, all offering wry, helpless smiles.
"What else can we possibly do?" The squad leader sighed with obvious resignation: "Let him go. We can't stop him anyway."
The village wasn't particularly far away—at a shinobi's standard traveling pace, it would take only about ten minutes to reach.
Soon enough, a dilapidated village came into clear view through the falling snow.
"Tsk, this run-down?"
Chōjūrō Hōzuki glanced at the poor settlement dismissively, his brows furrowing immediately as he wondered whether such an impoverished village could even properly satisfy his appetite.
However, at this point, he really had no alternative choice, since this represented the only inhabited settlement within a radius of several kilometers.
"Hey! Is anyone actually home in this village?!"
His booming shout rang out like thunder, causing accumulated snow to slide dramatically off nearby rooftops.
The elderly residents who had been sheltering inside were startled badly by the sudden explosive noise and rushed outside to investigate. They immediately felt horror upon seeing Chōjūrō Hōzuki's massive, bear-like figure—with his enormous bandage-wrapped weapon strapped across his back and his conspicuous Kirigakure headband prominently displayed.
"N-Ninja-sama..."
An old woman spoke while leaning heavily on her weathered cane, her wrinkled face filled with obvious fear. Her palms began sweating nervously: "Excuse me, is there... is there something you require from us?"
Chōjūrō Hōzuki's imposing physical presence and intimidating stare exerted immense psychological pressure on her fragile composure.
The prominent veins on her hand gripping the cane bulged involuntarily with tension.
"Hmm?"
As an elite veteran shinobi, Chōjūrō Hōzuki immediately sensed something fundamentally wrong with the old woman's behavior. His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
The oppressive silence grew increasingly heavy and uncomfortable. Cold sweat beaded visibly on the old woman's wrinkled forehead. She instinctively avoided his sharp, penetrating gaze while forcing an unconvincing smile: "Ninja-sama, it's terribly cold outside. We have a warm fireplace inside. Why don't you please come in and sit comfortably?"
"No rush at all."
Chōjūrō Hōzuki narrowed his eyes suspiciously, his instincts increasingly detecting something distinctly strange about this old woman's nervous behavior.
Her unconsciously tightened grip and the cold sweat forming on her forehead both clearly indicated she seemed extremely nervous about something specific.
But why would she be so nervous?
Lost in tactical analysis, Chōjūrō Hōzuki stepped forward decisively, bypassing the surrounding villagers entirely, and positioned himself directly in front of the trembling old woman.
A burly, imposing figure approached with deliberate menace, bringing a terrifying sense of oppression that made the elderly woman feel genuinely breathless. Her pupils trembled uncontrollably as she lowered her head in pure terror.
"You. Raise your head immediately."
Chōjūrō Hōzuki's eyes turned ice-cold, his voice emerging like the threatening growl of a brown bear, laced with unmistakable murderous intent: "Why do you bow your head when you see me? What exactly are you so nervous about?"
"Ninja-sama, please spare me! Please spare me!"
Hearing this direct accusation, the old woman dropped heavily to her knees with a desperate thud, pressing her forehead tightly against the frozen ground. She trembled violently while speaking: "I... I... it's just that I've never encountered a ninja as powerful as you before, so I became nervous and didn't dare look directly at your magnificent presence!"
"Hahahaha... you're quite the smooth talker, old woman!"
Chōjūrō Hōzuki felt genuinely delighted by this shameless flattery, his booming laughter echoing like thunder across the village.
The old woman kneeling on the ground, hearing that satisfied laughter, breathed a tentative sigh of relief—thinking she had finally managed to successfully deceive him.
"Hey, old hag, do you seriously think I'm a complete fool?"
Just then, Chōjūrō Hōzuki suddenly squatted down with shocking speed, roughly grabbed the old woman's gray hair, and forcibly lifted her head off the ground. His face contorted into a ferocious, terrifying expression as his cold eyes bored directly into her terrified, helpless gaze. He grinned maliciously: "Or perhaps you believe a few cheap flattering words will actually lower my guard?!"
Despite his bear-like appearance and seemingly careless demeanor, this brutish exterior had successfully fooled countless opponents over the years. Very few people could accurately discern his genuine shrewdness hidden beneath that rugged facade.
From the very beginning, Chōjūrō Hōzuki hadn't been fooled whatsoever by the old woman's transparent, clumsy deception attempts.
Under normal circumstances, he genuinely might not have cared about such trivial matters.
But recently, their entire unit had followed Uchiha Kazuki's deliberate trail all the way to this exact region.
And this particular old woman in the village, upon immediately seeing the Kirigakure headband, had acted so incredibly suspiciously nervous.
Could such a convenient coincidence truly exist naturally?
Chōjūrō Hōzuki absolutely didn't believe in convenient coincidences. With his battle-honed tactical mind, he vaguely guessed a distinct possibility.
Of course, he could potentially be wrong about his suspicions—but what actual harm existed in testing his theory?
After all, these were just a bunch of useless civilian trash with no economic productivity value, so even if his guess proved completely wrong, the consequences wouldn't matter whatsoever.
"You're terrified, you pathetic old hag." Chōjūrō Hōzuki, carefully noting something distinctly off in the old woman's eyes and subtle facial micro-expressions, stroked his chin with renewed interest: "I'm genuinely curious now—what secret makes you so desperately nervous?"
"No, no, ninja-sama!" The old woman, enduring the excruciating pain of her hair being viciously torn, her face contorting in visible agony, pleaded with genuine fear: "You've completely misunderstood! There really is no secret here!"
"Heh, don't want to cooperate voluntarily? No problem whatsoever."
A cruel, sadistic glint flashed prominently in Chōjūrō Hōzuki's cold eyes. He stood up abruptly while maintaining his brutal grip on her hair, then began dragging her bodily toward a nearby house: "What I'm absolutely best at is creative torture techniques!"
"No! Please no! Ninja-sama, I'm begging you!"
The old woman, dragged mercilessly through the snow by her hair, left a clear trail of disturbed marks behind her struggling form. She screamed in absolute terror: "I genuinely haven't hidden anything! Please, I'm begging you, spare me!"
The other elderly residents watching this brutal display couldn't bear witnessing such cruelty: "Please stop, ninja-sama, you can't—"
"SHUT UP!"
Chōjūrō Hōzuki's expression turned absolutely ferocious as he gripped the distinctive hilt of Hiramekarei strapped behind his back and drew the legendary blade with practiced ease.
SLASH!
The twin flat blades sliced cleanly through several elderly men at waist level, bisecting them instantly.
Blood and internal organs splattered dramatically across the area, staining the pristine white snow a glaring, horrific crimson.
Staring at the suddenly murdered elderly men lying in pieces, the remaining villager yes widened in absolute horror. They clutched their mouths desperately, trying to stifle any sound, terrified they would be next.
"Much better. Nice and quiet now."
Chōjūrō Hōzuki's nodded in cold satisfaction, continuing to drag the sobbing grandmother by her hair into the nearest house.
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