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#
Six months ago.
Land of Hot Springs.
A large and small figure wearing straw hats slowly walked along the mountain trail that stretched to the horizon.
They crossed the Iron Country Bridge, draped in snow;
Passed through the bustling and lively Hot Water Smoke Capital, where the sounds of flutes and drums filled the air;
And traversed the Forest Sea, where the greenery swayed gently in the breeze.
Though weary, their eyes were filled with hope as they trod this long path home.
The smaller figure, wearing a straw hat, took a few steps forward and blocked the path of the robust man.
"Master Hayato, are we almost there?"
Fugaku asked with a grin.
"Mm-hm," the robust middle-aged man, known as 'Master Hayato,' lifted his head slightly.
"We're almost there. Just ahead is the old man's hometown."
He squinted his eyes, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he gazed at the village in the distance, a gentle and fond look in his eyes.
Hayato then shook his head, placing his hand on Fugaku's forehead. Seeing Fugaku's disheveled and dirty appearance, with his clothes in tatters, he said helplessly, "You idiot, you really don't make things easy for me."
"You've been chasing chickens and dogs along the way, and you even had to pick a fight with bandits in the forest."
"You can't even walk on water, and yet you think you're so capable, meddling in things that aren't your business!"
Fugaku scratched the back of his head and laughed, "But Master Hayato is here, right? The old man is a Jōnin of Hot Water Village! He's super strong!"
Hayato sighed and could only smile helplessly, "Once we get to the village, your mistress will sew you a new set of clothes. Don't cause any more trouble."
"And Ryouko keeps asking to play with her big brother."
"You idiot, when we get back, you need to show a bit of manliness!"
Fugaku grinned, not taking it seriously, and patted his chest.
"Of course! After all, this great man is going to become the Hot Water Kage!"
Hearing this, Hayato wanted to tell him that
outside the Five Great Nations, other ninja villages couldn't use the title 'Kage.'
It was a matter of strength and national power.
But thinking about it, he didn't say anything that would crush Fugaku's spirit. Instead, he smiled and said, "Is that so? Then starting tomorrow, you'll practice walking on water from the beginning!"
Fugaku's face fell at this, and he chuckled slyly before turning and running towards the village like the wind.
However, the next moment—
Boom!
"Yagura, give up your resistance!"
"Sorry, for the greater good, I cannot die here!"
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Shockwave!"
As this young voice shouted, a 'sea' suddenly rose from the ground, with waves reaching over ten meters high, like a wild beast charging forward.
In the face of such a terrifying jutsu, ordinary people were like ants.
Fugaku's smile froze.
His swift steps turned clumsy, and he was finally held up by Hayato, who caught his shoulder from behind, preventing him from falling.
The sky darkened instantly, the wind howled, and the waves surged, swallowing the entire village in an instant.
Then, blue lightning crackled, and the earth split apart.
The small village, like a tiny boat in a storm, vanished from the world without a sound.
Fugaku's ears went deaf, and his mind went blank.
Hayato, standing behind him, was momentarily stunned, his eyes wide with rage.
After a long while, Fugaku turned his head, his face dark and pale, his jaw trembling.
He stared with wide eyes, stammering, "M-Master..."
"What was that? Were those great nation ninjas?"
Hayato was jolted back to reality by this question. He looked at the hellish scene not far away, at the ninjas battling on the water's surface, and at the Mist Village headbands they wore.
Finally, he saw the culprit behind the destruction of their hometown.
The leader of the Mist Village Jōnin team—Yagura Karin.
A man who could be called a 'Kage.'
Hayato wanted to say something, but his lips were dry, and his heart felt hollow, as if a large piece was missing.
The harsh words and grand promises that were about to spill from his mouth were choked in his throat when he saw this man.
Sweat drenched his forehead, and his eyes burned with extreme fury, but he dared not direct his hatred towards the other side.
He couldn't laugh, and he couldn't cry or wail out loud, not in front of his disciple.
This rage, like a wildfire, was slowly consuming his heart, making him breathe heavily, his eyes gradually turning red, as if it would drive him to charge forward recklessly at any moment.
At that moment, Fugaku lifted his head, pointing at the destroyed village.
At the dozens of bodies and debris floating in the seawater, he tilted his head.
His face was dark, the skin around his eyes stretched as if it would tear, and he stared at Hayato with wide eyes, asking in a daze, "Teacher, why didn't you save them?"
"Didn't you tell me that you were the strongest ninja in Hot Water Village?"
"With your abilities, couldn't you have done it? Couldn't you have defeated those Jōnin who slaughtered civilians? Couldn't you have killed them, erased all traces, and escaped?"
Fugaku clenched his teeth, his face trembling, a tear rolling down his cheek as he asked with a sob, "Why didn't you kill them?"
Hayato's heart was pierced by Fugaku's question. He opened his mouth several times but couldn't bring himself to speak.
Finally, he took one last look at the young man on the water, wielding his staff, riding the giant waves, performing impressive jutsu, his eyes shining brightly, and his smile as radiant as the sun.
That was Yagura Karin.
Yes, why didn't I kill them?
Hayato fell silent for a moment, his gaze falling on the tool pouch at his waist, on a black scroll inside.
It was a book he had discovered in a ruin while tomb-raiding for a noble of the Land of Hot Springs, a book filled with numerous evil techniques—
The Ceremony of the Evil Deity.
The techniques recorded in it were extremely powerful, but the various blood rituals described were too horrifying.
Such a thing should have been destroyed.
Hayato took a deep breath, then grabbed Fugaku and ran, gritting his teeth, "Fugaku, those people have nothing to do with us. I've told you before, don't meddle in things that aren't your business."
#
Half a month later, The Third Ninja World War spread to the Land of Hot Springs.
Hot Water Village received the task of protecting the territories and properties of the nobles.
The other civilians in the Land of Hot Springs were abandoned, left to fend for themselves.
The small village, caught in the periphery of the war, suffered heavy losses, with news of disappearances and defections arriving daily.
The conflict between the peace faction and the war faction within the village grew increasingly irreconcilable.
Fugaku, disappointed by the weak Hot Water Village, left the village.
On the same day, Three Cloud Village ninjas, with cold eyes, invaded the village, severely injuring Hayato and other Hot Water Jōnin, forcing them to serve the Cloud Hidden Village.
The departure of his disciple, the pressure of the war, and the pain of losing everything, like layers of heavy nets, covered Hayato's head, piling up, piling up, making him toss and turn, unable to breathe.
Every night, he would wake up in a start, gasping for breath, and recall that day of destruction.
That day, Fugaku pointed at the dozens of bodies and debris floating in the seawater, and the great nation ninjas who caused it all, tilting his head.
And asked—
"Why didn't you kill them?"
Finally, on that night, in the howling wind, the silent surroundings, and the stillness of the night, a pair of bloodshot pale purple eyes opened.
Hayato, who had read the scroll countless times, unrolled it once more.
The pain in his face gradually deepened, his smile twisted, and he became deranged!
He formed hand seals, slashed his palms, and pressed his bloodied hands onto the scroll!
"Kill! Kill!"
"Hahahahahaha, kill them all!"
"Ninjas, Daimyo, nobles, commoners, if life is painful, then let's put this pain on the scale and compare!"
"Who suffers more! Who suffers more! Who suffers more!!!"
The paper screens were whipped by the wind, flapping wildly!
Hayato clenched his teeth, his eyes filled with the madness to destroy everything, snarled and roared, "Let them all die!"
"I curse this world!"
"I will perform the Blood Sacrifice, and slaughter the world!"
There's one more chapter, I'll try to post it as soon as possible.
(End of Chapter)