“Huh? I don’t care who the Kaguya or Yuki have sex with.” I said, not caring enough to be use a polite synonym, “Why did you make that face? What are you thinking?”

I could already tell by her demeanour and vibe that she wasn’t in support of me breeding the prime genetic Kekkei Genkai with her clan as a basis but frankly, that couldn’t be helped and it wasn’t like I was certain it would result in such, I was hopeful though.

“I…speaking freely I don’t like the idea of breeding the Yuki clan into another until our Bloodlines merge to produce something stronger. Not only would that put the Yuki clan at even more of a disadvantage it might eliminate what few of us still have the active bloodline. And as one of them I…I don’t believe I’d enjoy having to copulate with someone just to fulfil a desire for stronger bloodlines even though it might eliminate mine and its history.”

She had hesitated at the start but by the end her eyes were firm and challenging, she spoke the words and found that they made sense, resonated with her and perhaps even the other bloodline wielders I’d be making these decisions for.

I inhaled as I walked past her with a carrot to feed my bunny I said, “That is a valid point, Reina Yuki, but it’s unfortunate you don’t see that it is also the entire point of the Estate.” Before she could think up a retort I asked, “What have you uncovered about the Kaguya and Swordsmen HQ attacks?”

I’d placed her in charge of investigating both attacks. The Kaguya matter may have died down but with the knowledge of how their clan truly operated before coming to Kirigakure and the story the Matriarch told about their mirror clan and defenders being lured by a shinobi. It was clear things there were far from settled, the culprit was still at large.

Reina about turns to face me at the animal cages, their chirps and coos for the carrots in my hands couldn’t overshadow her loud, purposely projected voice, “None within the Sensor Division noted anything unusual the night of the Swordsmen attack. I personally questioned each and every one of the Mist Guard and all said nothing new or unusual slipped in through their managed territories.”

The Mist Guard were the vaunted shinobi responsible for maintaining the cover of mist over Kirigakure. They were very well the reason behind the villages name and many were of the Funato clan. There was no reason any one of them would fail to report a breach even if it meant they’d face the music of their failure. The Mist Guard were honour bound to protect and shield Kirigakure from every outsider at every second of every day, I trusted their word.

Reina continued, “Any trace of a shinobi luring the Kaguya from Kurokami-jima all the way here is long gone unfortunately but given the Swordsmen attack I suspect both incidents are closely related.”

I hummed in thought as I stepped away from the animals and studied Reina’s terse features. She’d failed me yet again but I wasn’t surprised, I was concerned but not surprised as I already knew the powers behind these incidents were beyond her knowing and would be well beyond mine if it weren’t for Jason’s memories.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

“What do you think about Shizu Yuki? She was the one Lord Funato saw, the assassin.” I asked, folding my arms at her.

Reina went cold and stoic, freezing up without giving a sliver of facial ticks to examine her emotions as she answered in ANBU mode, “It’s impossible. Even though her corpse has been stolen from the grave Shizu Yuki is most definitely dead. This assassin merely used her face to further implicate the Yuki clan in dire circumstances.”

I raised a brow at that and shifted my weight, “So you think the assassin meant to get caught? For their face to be seen and for us to know that it is Shizu Yuki?”

The Elite Jounin didn’t give an inch, “Yes, these series of incidents have been nudging Kirigakure towards a certain direction and you said it yourself, Mizukage-sama, someone is trying to manipulate us.”

I wasn’t satisfied with the regurgitate of an answer so I pressed, “What if the assassin truly is Shizu Yuki? What if she found some way to avoid true death and elude us all, she had ample time to prepare I say. It would also answer how neither the Mist Guard nor the Sensor Division noticed an intruder, because there never was one.”

Now I could see her jaw clench as she gritted her teeth, “With all due respect, Mizukage-sama, I killed Shizu Yuki myself, I delivered her body to her family a poor civilian husband and two children who now live within this Estate as pariahs. Shizu Yuki is dead because I didn’t hesitate to carry out your orders, sir.”

She was breathing slightly heavier than before, staunching a scream behind her throat and satisfying herself with boring an imaginary hole through my head. Rather than acquiesce I shrugged and pressed on, “Then explain this situation, Reina. How is it possible that someone not only infiltrated our village but did so without a single one of our defences going off until they’d made an attempt on a councillor’s life. Particularly Lord Funato, the councillor most outspoken against the Yuki incident and even the Kaguya.”

Reina bite her lip as she struggled to keep calm in the face of my sudden dress down, she made to speak but I kept laying it on thick, “And he saw her face, Shizu Yuki and at the same time her body disappeared from where it was buried in the main Yuki compound. I don’t think it’s out of the question to think someone in the Yuki, perhaps her husband learned a thing or two about Ninjutsu from her or even an undiscovered member of her courage clan. If not them then who, Reina? Who?”

Sick of it Reina blurt out in a raised, fury filled voice, “I don’t know! I will find out but it was not the Yuki, we are innocent. I don’t know how the assassin got in or even how they escaped, maybe this is someone that’s capable of breaching our defences with ease or someone who is immune to our techniques, someone with a jutsu that lets them come and go unseen and undetected, someone that-!”

“Someone that’s capable of escaping Ao’s Byakugan even with him on tail.” I said, finally helping her put two and two, “Someone that’s capable of bypassing all securities, someone capable of killing the Sandaime.”

Her mouth hung open and all brewing rage dispersed in a flash as she caught on to what I was implying, “You mean…”

I smiled, “Yes, someone that could be watching us, even now.”

Reina’s eyes darted around frantically looking for an unseen enemy, her senses on edge and chakra spiked as she drew closer to me as deeply ingrained ANBU instincts told her to protect her Kage.

I patted her shoulder as my smile grew, “This is the kind of threat we face, Reina, this is exactly why Kirigakure needs to cultivate strength through Bloodlines. Don’t worry, the unseen won’t go undetected for long.”