Chapter 135
2-in-1-chapter
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Hōzuki Mangetsu frowned in confusion when he spotted his younger brother among the group.
"I came out to play," Hōzuki Suigetsu said carelessly, spreading his hands as though it were nothing.
Like his elder brother, the so-called prodigy Mangetsu, Suigetsu was also blessed with exceptional talent. From a young age, he had shown remarkable intelligence and skill. The clan heads and elders of Kirigakure's great families could not help but envy the Hōzuki clan for producing such a pair of prodigy brothers. When they compared the boys to the disappointing offspring within their own clans, they felt so disheartened that even their sake began to taste bitter.
"You should have been training at home today… forget it." Hōzuki Mangetsu, finding it troublesome to argue further, waved his hand impatiently. "Handle it yourself. If the old man decides to punish you, I won't step in."
"I already mastered Water Whip Technique a long time ago."
As he spoke, a stream of clear water coiled in Hōzuki Suigetsu's hand, twisting and lashing like a whip.
Watching his younger brother flaunt his skill, Mangetsu rolled his eyes and held his tongue. What was there to brag about? Water Whip was hardly difficult. He himself had mastered it in just half an hour at the age of five.
Back then, his progress had been swift.
Now, however, he had run into a wall. Training in the secret techniques left behind by the Second Mizukage, his advancement was painfully slow, enough to make him curse aloud. With that frustration simmering, he ignored his brother's boasting and focused instead on his duties with the Shadow Guard, escorting the Mizukage and the Elder into the Leaf shinobi encampment.
He was now a member of the Shadow Guard.
Protecting the Fourth Mizukage was only part of the assignment. The greater purpose of remaining at Yagura Karatachi's side was to receive his direct instruction. Mangetsu was not alone; Hoshigaki Kisame and Momochi Zabuza had also been recruited into the unit. Yagura was determined to give everything he had left to the village before his death, and to Mangetsu and the others he imparted his knowledge without reserve.
"Mizukage-sama, please forgive my sister's rudeness."
At the entrance, Rēn welcomed Yagura and his entourage.
Yet as he spoke, his eyes shifted toward the elder walking with a cane, surrounded protectively by the Mist-nin. In that moment, he immediately discerned the man's identity. This was the Elder of Kirigakure, the one known as Master Genji.
"It's fine. Children will be children."
Yagura dismissed the matter with a wave, then turned and gestured to Rēn. "Clan Head Uchiha, allow me to introduce you. This is Genji, Kirigakure's most senior elder."
"I had already heard of your name before coming here."
Rēn greeted him while openly studying the old man from head to toe.
After a closer look, his brow lifted slightly. "Shadow Clone?"
Normally, it was extremely difficult to see through a Shadow Clone. But not impossible. Chakra levels were often the clearest giveaway.
"Clan Head Uchiha truly has keen eyes," the elder admitted calmly. "I beg your pardon for my timidity. Your clan's Sharingan is far too terrifying, so I used this small trick to put myself at ease. I hope you will not take offense."
"What?"
The first to be shaken was Gonbee*. As a bodyguard stationed at the elder's side, he had not realized that the figure he was protecting was only a clone. Yagura too cast a startled look, but then recalled his own experiences and found the elder's choice understandable.
That accursed one-eyed man had once used genjutsu to seize control of him, but had failed to control the elder. Could it be that the elder had long since relied on Shadow Clones to walk among others, denying the enemy any chance to take him, or even to kill him outright?
Yagura thought bitterly to himself that age had its advantages. If he had been so cautious in his younger years, perhaps he would never have fallen to such a fate.
"It doesn't matter. I have no interest in using genjutsu to control others. Whether it is your true body or a clone, as long as we can converse properly, that is enough." Rēn extended his hand in an inviting gesture. Speaking at the doorway was hardly suitable, and even if this was only a clone, the figure appeared elderly. Letting him stand there was unkind.
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The pain transmitted from his right eye into his nerves, together with the darkness that filled his vision, reminded him every moment that he had lost his most treasured prize. That eye would never again see that marvelous, distant scenery.
"Ao."
The door of the hospital room opened.
A man wearing a gray shinobi cap to conceal his bald head stepped quickly inside. It was Bi.
"Ao, how are you?"
"Yeah… I just didn't see this coming."
"You bastard!"
Bi let out a breath of relief. If Ao still had the strength to joke, then his condition was not too dire.
Yet when Bi's eyes fell upon the bandages wrapped over Ao's right eye, a heaviness rose in his chest. They had once fought side by side on the battlefield. Bi was not as sharp as Ao, but he was not so dull as to miss how much Ao had valued and cherished the Byakugan he had captured.
To protect that eye, Ao had even spent countless hours studying fūinjutsu, crafting two charms that hung from his ears, designed solely to ensure its safety.
But now, though those two charms still hung at Ao's ears, the Byakugan was gone.
"Your right eye, then?" Bi sat on the stool by the bed.
"I had a prisoner's eye transplanted in. Its color matches my left. According to the doctors, in about half a month everything will be normal again. Though honestly, I feel I could leave now. I've long been used to walking with just one eye." He reached up, hand hovering near the bandages, muttering under his breath. Yet he did not touch the wounded place, remembering well the doctor's warnings.
"Half a month…"
Bi repeated softly. Looking at Ao, whose expression remained calm, he hesitated. Should he offer words of comfort? Would that only remind him of what had been taken? Unsure, he remained silent.
"Ao, did you finish the task Master Genji gave you?" Ao, knowing his partner's nature, changed the subject himself.
"It's done."
Bi nodded.
"I won't be able to handle missions for a while. If Elder Genji has need, I'll have to trouble you and Gonbee to go in my place." Even lying in a hospital bed, Ao's habit of fretting over duties had not changed. His thoughts still lingered on missions and assignments.
"This hardly counts as trouble."
Bi shook his head, a faint, helpless smile tugging at his lips. Yet the smile lingered only for a few seconds before fading, and as he looked at Ao lying on the hospital bed, he hesitated before speaking. "That… Ao, handing over the Byakugan like this, doesn't it leave you unwilling?"
"Unwilling?"
Ao tilted his head back, his intact right eye staring at the white ceiling.
"Of course I am unwilling!"
That eye was a prize he had risked his life for on the battlefield, a trophy won at great cost. Now it was being quietly returned to the shinobi of Konoha—how could he possibly feel at peace with it?
"But unwillingness changes nothing. We are not Konoha's match. Even Lord Mizukage was defeated. Other than bowing our heads and admitting defeat, we have no choice. Handing over the Byakugan is for the sake of the village. If it can allow the village to prosper once more, I would give my life without regret, let alone a single Byakugan."
Yes—so long as it was for the village, no matter how great the cost, it did not matter.
These were the thoughts in Ao's heart.
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Reception room.
Rēn was hosting two important guests. One was Yagura Karatachi, the Fourth Mizukage and the jinchūriki of the Three-Tails. The other was an elder said to have once fought alongside the First Mizukage, a man revered among the Mist as "Master Genji," a senior Elder of the village.
"…So you have already made a decision? I thought I would have to wait ten days, half a month even, before receiving your reply." Rēn's expression was bright with a smile. "Well then, can you tell me your answer?"
Yagura cast a sidelong glance at Master Genji.
The elder, weathered like an ancient pine, unmoved by storm or wind, had no intention of speaking. Left with no alternative, Yagura forced himself to reply. "The village has already decided. We are willing to dispatch reinforcements to support Konoha. Of course, we also hope that, considering the sacrifices our village has made, Clan Head Uchiha can ease the terms of compensation, at least for the time being…"
"That is easily said. Our forces are stretched thin right now. If anyone can lend aid at such a time, the more the better."
According to Rēn's most recent intelligence, Konoha's situation remained just stable enough to endure. Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin, had returned to the village and, rather than leaving the next day, appeared intent on staying for the long term. This suggested that both Iwagakure and Kumogakure had received reports from their spies as well. They too had learned of Jiraiya's return, and it had caused their previously restless ambitions to quiet somewhat. A man's reputation was like the shadow of a tree: even fractured as the Sannin were, no one would underestimate any of them.
In short, the war pressing on Konoha's borders had not yet erupted.
Yet how long Jiraiya's presence could restrain the Raikage and Tsuchikage remained uncertain. If their resolve to attack was strong enough, war was inevitable. To guard against sudden strikes from Kumogakure and Iwagakure, large numbers of shinobi had already been stationed on the northeastern and northwestern fronts.
The claim that manpower was strained was no lie. Konoha's mission assignment bureau no longer dared to accept additional commissions, as there were too few shinobi left in the village to carry them out.
"This is the item prepared for delivery."
As the conversation between Yagura and Rēn wound down, Master Genji extended a trembling hand from his sleeve and produced a small vial. Inside the translucent nutrient solution floated a pure white eye, drifting up and down.
"Clan Head Uchiha, this… is returned to you."
He pushed the vial toward Rēn.
The Byakugan.
Rēn's Sharingan flashed faintly as he stared at the eye drifting within the vial. With that instant's scrutiny he confirmed it to be genuine—a perfect Byakugan, untouched by the Caged Bird Seal. To be honest, even he was surprised. He had not expected the Mist to return it so quickly.
Whether Ao had given it up willingly or under compulsion, it did not matter. What mattered was that now he could present this to the Hyūga clan as an answer.
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*Note: Most probably won't care, but I still wanted to mention that I misspelt this guy's name in the previous chapter. The correct spelling is Gonbee, not Gombei
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