99. Report, sir—he stabbed himself.

In the prison.

Warden Muwei appeared in the nick of time, struck down the inmate Kisame Hoshigaki who had attacked a guard, and subdued him.

He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, surveying the room. Not a single prisoner dared meet his gaze; they all lowered their heads one by one.

As the inmates quieted down, the prison fell silent once more.

Muwei withdrew his gaze, narrowed his eyes, and looked down at Kisame, who lay sprawled on the ground, unable to rise. After considering for a moment, he gave the order:

"Take him away. Solitary confinement for a week."

With that, he turned and left.

Although Kisame was also a "sacrifice" for the Box of Ultimate Bliss, Muwei had no intention of letting this man follow the scar-faced one's fate so soon.

After all, the people of Kusanagi were still researching and groping for the method to open the Box of Ultimate Bliss. A carefully selected sacrifice like Kisame could not be wasted carelessly.

Kisame lay on the ground, watching Muwei's retreating back grow distant.

He had deliberately lost that fight, pretending to be subdued by the heaven prison technique, all so that Muwei would grow contemptuous and lower his guard.

Kisame had already confirmed the location of the Box of Ultimate Bliss.

What he needed to do next was play the role of a prisoner well, quietly building his strength.

During this time, he would use his wits to constantly maneuver against Muwei.

Once Kisame was fully prepared and confident in devouring the Box of Ultimate Bliss, that would be the moment he finally showed his cards to Muwei.

Until then, he had to be careful, cautious, and patient.

"Stop lying on the ground. Get up!"

At that moment, a guard kicked Kisame and barked at him harshly.

Kisame climbed to his feet, was fitted with shackles, and was escorted back to the solitary confinement cell.

Before leaving, he cast a glance backward.

After his snowflake charm had been casually tossed aside by Muwei, a one-eyed prisoner had reached out from a cell and secretly snatched it away.

Kisame remembered what that man looked like.

Soon, he arrived once more at that familiar solitary cell.

For Kisame, this was actually a good place. No prison nonsense, no distractions, and he could focus on training and honing his body.

A week passed in the blink of an eye.

Kisame once again finished his stint in solitary confinement and returned to his cell.

He was greeted by a brand-new cellmate. As luck would have it, this new cellmate was the one-eyed man who had stolen Kisame's charm a week earlier.

Kisame pretended not to know this. The moment he returned to his cell, he lay down on the bed and buried his head in sleep.

Late at night, in the dead quiet.

In the cell at the end of the corridor, the one-eyed man sleeping on the top bunk suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp light gleaming in them.

Like a monkey, he nimbly flipped down from the bed without making a sound.

Then, the one-eyed man produced a dagger from somewhere and, aiming at Kisame's chest, drove it down viciously.

At that very instant.

Kisame, who should have been fast asleep, suddenly opened his eyes as well—and flashed a grin at the one-eyed man, revealing two rows of jagged white teeth.

At the same time.

Kisame's right index finger twitched slightly. A line of chakra shot out from his fingertip like a bolt of lightning, wrapping around the one-eyed man's arm.

Thread Release: Puppet Marionette Technique.

The next second.

The one-eyed man, his face twisted in horror and panic, watched as the dagger meant for Kisame's heart reversed direction and stabbed into his own thigh.

Plop.

Nearly half the dagger sank into the flesh of his leg, and blood burst forth.

"Hiss."

The one-eyed man drew in a sharp breath, cold sweat streaming down his face, but he gritted his teeth and endured the agony, refusing to cry out.

"Who sent you?" Kisame sat up on the bed and asked.

The one-eyed man remained silent.

"Do you know that you're my third cellmate?" Kisame gazed at him, speaking in a calm, steady voice. "My first cellmate, Triangle Eyes, was shot dead by a guard. My second cellmate, Scar Face, failed his escape attempt and, I hear, was sent off for human experimentation. He died a miserable death. Though their deaths had nothing to do with me, I have a feeling that tonight, you too will die—and maybe even more miserably than those two. Perhaps... torn limb from limb?"

This devilish murmur shattered the one-eyed man's psychological defenses.

"...I'll talk."

He swallowed hard and, stammering, revealed the purpose and truth behind the assassination attempt on Kisame.

It turned out.

It was the captain of the guards who wanted Kisame dead.

That day, Kisame had nearly beaten the man to death with a single punch. The captain was still lying in a hospital bed, half of his body paralyzed. Burning with the rage of revenge, he had sent word through intermediaries to many gang leaders inside the prison.

He promised that whoever could kill Kisame would receive his protection and enjoy all manner of privileges and benefits within the prison.

When word spread, Kisame instantly became a target for everyone.

"There's one more thing."

After learning why he was being targeted for assassination, Kisame pressed the one-eyed man further. "What about my charm? I'll only ask once, so you'd better not deny it. Think carefully before you answer."

"That thing... was taken by the Wild Wolf Gang."

The one-eyed man said with a face full of regret.

It was his own meddling that had done him in. He had picked up Kisame's charm, thinking he could sell it for a few coins. But it had been snatched away by the Wild Wolf Gang, and that bunch had forced him to come assassinate Kisame.

Wild Wolf Gang?

Hearing this, Kisame pressed further and learned from the one-eyed man that the Wild Wolf Gang was a vicious prisoner gang with dozens of members.

Besides the Wild Wolf Gang, the prison also had major gangs such as the Hundred Victories Gang, the Black Bear Gang, the Fierce Tiger Gang, and the Skull Gang, as well as numerous smaller and mid-sized gangs.

Without exception, they all had their sights set on Kisame.

It could be said that at this very moment, Kisame was the common enemy of the entire prison.

"Ah."

Kisame let out a sigh.

All he wanted was a peaceful life, to be a model prisoner, to provoke no one and offend no one. But even such a simple wish could not come true.

Why must you force me?

With that thought, Kisame's gaze slowly turned cold. He said to the one-eyed man, "You can scream now."

The moment the words left his mouth.

Under Kisame's thread manipulation, the dagger in the one-eyed man's leg sank even deeper. The man could no longer hold back and let out a miserable shriek.

Two guards came rushing over.

"Hoshigaki Kisame, what's going on this time?!"

The two did not dare enter the cell to inspect, instead standing at the door and shouting at Kisame.

This madman—even the guard captain dared to attack. Apart from Lord Muwei, no one could control him.

"Reporting to the officers, my cellmate couldn't sleep in the middle of the night. He suddenly picked up a knife and stabbed himself, losing a lot of blood."

Kisame pointed at the one-eyed man.

"Do you think we'd believe that?" The two guards flew into a rage.

Just then.

The one-eyed man suddenly yanked the dagger from his thigh, screaming "No!" in terror, and stabbed himself in the abdomen more than a dozen times.

Finally, he toppled over and died by suicide.

Too eerie.

Witnessing this bizarre scene, both guards and the prisoners in the other cells felt a chill run down their spines, cold sweat pouring off them.

Kisame rose from his bed, walked to the edge of the cell, and extended both hands, waiting to be shackled.

Following the pattern of the previous two times, he was about to be taken back to solitary confinement.

However, after exchanging a glance with each other, the two guards did not punish Kisame in any way. Instead, they opened the cell, hastily removed the one-eyed man's corpse, and left.

Thoughtfully, Kisame returned to his bed.