After several self-inflicted attacks from Hidan, Asuma, who shared the pain, was now bent over, barely able to stand.
He lowered his head, sweat dripping down. Even breathing felt like a struggle.
"Already done?" Hidan sneered.
Seeing that Asuma could no longer hold on, Hidan grew bored and decided to deliver the final blow.
The spear accurately pierced through his own heart.
Suffering such a critical strike, Asuma's eyes widened as he spat out another large mouthful of blood, collapsing weakly onto the ground.
Father, I'm coming to meet you…
Konohamaru, what should I do…
And Kurenai…
No matter how much he wanted to live, his body wouldn't obey. The injuries were too severe. Asuma blankly stared at the sky, vision gradually blurring.
Hidan clearly knew Asuma was dead. With a satisfied smirk, he stretched out on the blood ritual circle, completely at ease—as if he were basking in the sun.
"Asuma is dead!" Kakuzu declared.
The words hit the remaining Sarutobi clan like a thunderclap—they fell into panic.
"Kill them all, leave no survivors," the Daimyo shouted.
"Yes sir!" His subordinates responded eagerly.
With the leader of the Sarutobi clan already dead, and their own side possessing multiple experts stronger than Asuma with no casualties, victory was obvious. The Daimyo turned away from the battle and strode straight toward Kakuzu.
At that moment, Kakuzu met his gaze.
"Your Grace, it's time to settle the bill."
"You're kidding me, Kakuzu? You didn't even really help, and still want payment?" Hiroki interrupted.
"Who said that? Without me, Your Grace's men would've all died already."
The Daimyo did not wish to argue further and potentially provoke dissatisfaction, quickly replying in a straightforward tone, "How much is fair?"
Kakuzu calmly extended both palms outward.
"Ten thousand?"
"One Billion," Kakuzu replied coolly.
"Such an outrageous demand," Hiroki muttered.
Even the Daimyo couldn't help twitching his lips.
"One Asuma alone was worth over thirty million. As a Daimyo, you're worth dozens of times that. Makes sense, doesn't it?" Kakuzu added.
"Fair enough," the Daimyo reluctantly agreed. "But gathering such a large sum at once will take a few days."
"I can wait." Kakuzu nodded in agreement while barely concealing his grin.
One Billion—this was going to be the largest payout he'd ever received.
Later, one after another, members of the Sarutobi clan fell down. When confirming the death of the last clan member, the Daimyo's subordinates hurried back to his side, checking for any wounds or issues on his body.
Hiroki stood silent, watching it all unfold—no one had noticed that the Daimyo was under his control.
Three days passed, and the billion-yen bounty was finally gathered.
Hiroki stayed around for those days as well.
During this time, various odd experts and noble aristocrats appeared constantly, inspecting whether the Daimyo remained unharmed.
Finding nothing suspicious, Hiroki finally felt completely at ease.
"Kakuzu, there's no need to count again, right?"
The Daimyo ordered someone to count out one billion in cash before Hidan and Kakuzu, placing all the money into prepared boxes.
Kakuzu nodded slightly and took each box as it was handed to him.
Taking this chance, the Daimyo also asked them about several locations of the Sarutobi clan inside Kokuto.
Outside the palace, Kakuzu extended multiple tentacle-like appendages to carry the money-laden boxes. He looked like he was covered in hanging bags.
He looked at Hiroki and said, "I should get back with Hidan as soon as possible. Otherwise, if we're gone for too long, Nagato will grow suspicious."
Upon hearing this, Hidan quickly pulled out the registry scroll, smacking it into Hiroki's chest with a *slap!* sound, and grinned, "All these problems are now your responsibility."
"You really want to join the Akatsuki Organization that much? You don't even know what they do." Hiroki caught the book casually, looking slightly unconvinced.
"No way could they be worse than Konoha," Hidan replied. He was already itching to break free from Hiroki and others' surveillance.
"Fine," Hiroki agreed with a nod, and the group parted ways.
"Kakuzu, what exactly does the Akatsuki Organization do?"
"... ... ..."
"What, will they launch actions to destroy Konoha or something?"
"... ... ..."
As the sound of Hidan persistently questioning Kakuzu continued in his ears, Hiroki left Kokuto.
After everyone had departed, the Daimyo personally led an armed force out of the palace.
Inside the luxurious residence where the Sarutobi clan resided, six children, including Konohamaru, waited quietly within the house.
They didn't know where Asuma and the others had gone. Not seeing them for several days left the children very worried.
Though there was plenty of food in the mansion, only one of the kids could barely cook, so they never went hungry. Yet they felt lost without Asuma and others around, offering only mutual comfort.
*Peng*...
A violent crash echoed through the air as the gate was smashed open, and the Daimyo led his men storming straight inside.
He ordered coldly and calmly, "Kill every soul you see—no survivors."
No weeds, no roots—if you don't pull them up, the spring wind brings them back to life. Those Sarutobi clan members daring to intrude the royal palace had already been buried underground. As for those related, they must also die.
"Yes sir," the subordinates shouted together before scattering.
Thus, the fate of the unsuspecting Konohamaru and the rest was sealed.
Shortly afterward, some childish screams echoed from within this residence.
At the same time, word began to circulate that the Sarutobi Clan had broken into the Fire Daimyo's Palace, staged a rebellion, and been executed.
Nearly two hundred members of the Sarutobi clan were utterly defeated, none survived under coordinated attacks by numerous Daimyo's guards and one Konoha Chunin...
[Stable novel app running for years, comparable to old versions of book-searching tools; seasoned bookworms all use Huanyuan App]
Hidan and Kakuzu, whose identities remained improper, were deliberately kept off records by the Daimyo.
In a fortress deep underground, a man with bandages wrapped around his head sat in the main seat of a control room, holding several documents in his hand. He skimmed them, then sneered coldly, "What a bunch of idiots! With so many chances to get close to the Daimyo, and they still ended up dead..."
Not far from him within the same chamber was another man with grayish hair wearing a black hat. This man, holding tools in his hands, squatted on the ground inspecting various malfunctions with a serious expression.
"Shinno, how much longer before it's repaired?" Danzo turned his head and asked.
Without looking up, Shinno answered in a detached tone: "Even if it's fixed, it won't be usable right now—it requires energy to activate."
"What kind of energy?"
"Of course chakra..." Shinno replied indifferently.
Danzo shot him a displeased glance. If not for this guy's usefulness, he would've already disposed of him...
In the Country of Rivers, Orochimaru's base.
As the saying goes, a wise old hare has three burrows—but a snake isn't far behind. Since leaving Konoha, Orochimaru had secretly established numerous bases across small countries outside the Five Great Nations.
He had brought Sasuke to the Country of Rivers. Located between the Land of Fire, the Land of Rain, and the Land of Wind, its location was extremely convenient.
"So Konoha only dispatched a Chunin—Hiroki Hyuga? Oh, it's him then… Well that explains everything."
"They're all dead. My teacher must be terribly heartbroken," murmured Orochimaru, then frowned suddenly. "Strange! Why can't I summon him again? Same with Jiraiya, Obito, and A!"
Unable to resolve this mystery after much thought, he could only temporarily give up on them.
In the Country of Hot Springs, when Hiroki Hyuga returned, Kaguya, Hinata, and Hanabi weren't there.
According to Toyokawa White Zetsu, they had already left.
During Hiroki Hyuga's absence, Hinata seemed to have figured things out. She no longer dwelled over past matters and directly approached Kaguya, clearly stating her request for assistance.
She merely said she wanted to prevent Hanabi from receiving the Caged Bird seal.
But as for abolishing the Branch House/Main House system or removing the Caged Bird entirely, Hinata didn't mention these points.
Because she herself wasn't sure whether the Caged Bird should be abolished.
Although still young, Hinata was by no means foolish.
She could never forget what happened on the Moon—not a single word of it ever left her lips.
However, what if someone discovered the method of merging a large-scale Tenseigan? What would happen to those clan members?
At that moment, the Caged Bird seal now felt like a shield once more.
Therefore, Hinata felt torn, sensing her current level of insight couldn't provide a perfect solution.
Without further concern, Kaguya took Hinata and Hanabi back to Konoha.
Inside the Hyuga Clan meeting chamber, Hiashi sat cross-legged on the floor. Sitting opposite him were three elders.
These three individuals were naturally the same elder clansmen who had appeared previously during Hiashi's absence.
One of them handed over a list, placing it before Hiashi.
This document recorded the names of children scheduled to receive the Caged Bird seal.
Hiashi carefully examined the document and indeed saw Hanabi's name on it. He couldn't help but twitch slightly.
"Hiashi, pick a date already," said the elder who had spoken earlier. "Now that you've decided for Hinata to inherit your position, it's time to differentiate their treatments."
Hiashi felt complicated inside. Originally, he had hoped Hinata's eyes would awaken as the Tenseigan, allowing her to dominate the Hyuga clan and protect Hanabi.
Unexpectedly, after returning from the Moon, Hinata's eyes showed no progress at all.
He even began doubting whether what Hinata had told Hiroki had ever truly occurred.
As for Hiroki, although his eyes had also awakened as the Tenseigan recently, greatly increasing his power, he was still merely a member of the Branch House, lacking sufficient status.
If he used force, would the elders—who valued hierarchy, order, and authority—choose compromise? Or would they provoke a conflict just to save face?
It was hard to say.
Outside the meeting chamber, Hizashi stood waiting by the door.
Kaguya approached with Hinata and Hanabi following behind her.
Suddenly, Kaguya stopped in her tracks.
Hanabi, moving hastily, bumped straight into her.
"What is it?" Hanabi asked in confusion.
"My little one, I'm wondering why exactly should I help you..." Kaguya faintly smiled.
"Didn't you promise my sister?"
"She's she, and you're you. I only promised her, not you at all."
"You..." Hanabi stammered, unsure how to respond.
"Go ahead and beg me," Kaguya teased with a mocking gleam in her eyes.
Hinata stood beside them silently, knowing Kaguya was simply playing with Hanabi.
Flustered and embarrassed, Hanabi kept grumbling inwardly: "Annoying, annoying, annoying..."
Raising her eyebrows, Kaguya waited expectantly.
After a while, Hanabi finally blushed deeply, pinching the edge of Kaguya's sleeve shyly, gently swaying toward her with a coquettish tone, her voice sweet and soft, "Kaguya-sama, please... Help me."
Immediately afterward, Hanabi covered her burning cheeks and flung herself into Hinata's arms.
Patting Hanabi's head, Hinata couldn't help but smile slightly.
Kaguya too offered a slight smile, walked toward the meeting chamber, slid open the entrance door, and stepped inside.
One look from Kaguya was enough to silence Hizashi; bowing his head, he quietly took several steps back.
The door screeched open...
At the sound, Hiashi and the three elders simultaneously turned their gazes toward the direction where light poured in.
Seeing Kaguya's arrival, they froze in shock for a moment before swiftly rising to their feet and bowing respectfully.
"Honored Ancestor Kaguya."
Kaguya gave an indifferent "Hmm," slightly bending down to pick up the items they had dropped onto the floor.
Glancing over them casually, she tossed them back onto the ground.
"I rather like this child Hanabi; so don't mark her with odd symbols," Kaguya said lightly. "Oh, right—Hiroki's Cursed Seal has long been removed by me. Don't bother causing him any trouble..."
Upon hearing this, Hiashi looked somewhat surprised, though his facial expression remained unchanged.
The three elders exchanged glances, shock evident in their eyes.
Since the Kaguya ancestors had a way to remove the Caged Bird Seal, why hadn't they ever interfered in Hyuga Clan affairs?
Yeah… they just didn't care. All three elders felt a bit dejected.
As for matters concerning Hanabi, they seemed relatively insignificant at this moment.
"Got it?" Seeing that none of them responded, Kaguya asked again.
After hesitating briefly, one elder carefully began speaking: "Ancestor Kaguya, what do you think the Hyuga Clan should—"
"Whatever," Kaguya coldly interrupted before he could finish.
If the Hyuga Clan were strong enough, she might have treated them like the Otsutsuki God did, making this race her vassals and sending them to other planets to plunder resources for her.
But unfortunately, these people had limited potential and diluted bloodline inheritance, far inferior to the Otsutsuki Clan on the Moon.
Even if used as Byakugan evolution material, consuming the accumulated power of Byakugans across two to three generations could barely produce a single pair of Tenseigan.
That was all the entire clan was capable of.
Wait until you're actually worth my notice.
Pausing briefly, Kaguya finished the sentence indifferently before turning gracefully and leaving.
The three elders watched pitifully as Kaguya's figure disappeared into the distance, desperately shouting inwardly.
Ancestor! Please take notice of us…
Punish us severely if you must, demand our loyalty—we'll accept anything gladly…
Just don't ignore us…
Previously, that movie involving ancient history spanning a thousand years was merely an entertaining spectacle for outsiders. But for the Hyuga Clan—who had maintained family records for centuries—it directly supplemented and confirmed their own clan's history.
Knowing how mighty their ancestors truly were made them extremely excited, all wanting to latch onto her coattails.
After all, even the Sage of Six Paths who sealed Ancestor Kaguya was gone now—naturally making her the strongest being in existence, with no one left capable of threatening her.
If they aligned themselves properly, the Hyuga Clan could become the undisputed number one clan in the Ninja World.
And regarding transforming humans into White Zetsu or similar fates—wouldn't becoming Kaguya ancestor's subordinates allow them to avoid such destinies?
Besides, even if Ancestor Kaguya didn't care about the Hyuga Clan as a whole, there was someone dear among them—wouldn't that at least grant them some special treatment?
Outside the door, Hizashi bowed respectfully, watching Kaguya leave.
Having overheard everything clearly from outside the meeting chamber, after Kaguya departed, Hizashi stood still for a moment, sighed inwardly, and wondered: What did my Neji lack, exactly? Why couldn't he earn such favor…
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