Ryosuke smiled faintly at Samui's question.
"Your sister? She's in Konoha — safe. She's been helping with a project to stabilize Uchiha bloodline resonance. The results have been promising."
Samui's eyes widened.
"You used her in your experiments too?" she snapped, anger rising in her voice.
Ryosuke remained unbothered.
"Don't misunderstand. She volunteered — or rather, she understood that resistance was meaningless. She's fine. If you wish to see her, come to Konoha. Just mention my name — no one will dare to touch you."
Samui's fists clenched.
He spoke so casually, as if her sister's fate were just another entry in one of his plans.
"You're unbelievable," she muttered bitterly.
Ryosuke shrugged.
"Your sister, Mabui, became my subordinate — my research partner. And since your Cloud Village once schemed to steal the Hyūga's Beeyakugan, I saw no harm in offering you the Uchiha's Sharingan instead. Consider it… balance."
Samui's anger simmered. She and her sister — both known as Cloud's "Twin Beelossoms" — had become bound to this man in different ways. A bitter twist of fate.
If only the Raikage had accepted peace sooner, perhaps none of this would have happened.
She sighed, forcing herself calm.
"At least promise you'll treat her well."
Ryosuke gave her a flat look.
"You worry too much. She's valuable to me. I intend to see how far the Uchiha line can evolve through crossline integration. I won't harm her."
Samui shook her head helplessly. There was no way to tell whether he believed his own words or simply didn't care.
Then Ryosuke's tone shifted, almost amused.
"Speaking of which… you reminded me of something."
He glanced at her.
"Since you also carry my genetic marker, your child will be named Nimoku — the Second Tree. Your sister's lineage will carry Sanmoku, the Third Tree."
Samui blinked.
"Those are terrible names," she blurted out before she could stop herself.
Ryosuke raised an eyebrow.
"You think so? They have meaning — a symbol of roots spreading from the same origin. I like them."
Samui sighed quietly. There was no point arguing.
This man did whatever he pleased; trying to reason with him was like arguing with a storm.
Ryosuke stood and adjusted his cloak, preparing to leave.
"Remember this, Samui — my identity must remain secret. If my name reaches the wrong ears, the balance I've built will collapse."
Samui frowned.
"You're that afraid of being exposed? You're powerful enough to walk into any village unchallenged."
"Perhaps," he said, his eyes glinting with the crimson light of his Eternal Mangekyō.
"Beeut power means nothing if chaos consumes the world before I finish what I've started."
She nodded reluctantly.
"Fine. I won't tell anyone."
Ryosuke gave a small nod of approval. Then, focusing his chakra into his right eye, he opened a swirling vortex of space before him.
The dimensional portal shimmered silently in the air.
Samui watched, stunned. No hand seals, no summoning scroll — just pure ocular power.
So that's his Mangekyō technique… she thought.
If he ever used that to infiltrate the Cloud, we'd never even know he was there.
As the portal began to close behind him, she murmured under her breath,
"He's terrifying… and yet—"
The room fell silent once more. For the first time in hours, the air felt still. She should have felt relief — but instead, a strange emptiness lingered in her chest.
She looked down at the sealed scroll on her desk — data from the Sharingan compatibility study. Her chakra signature had already begun to change, the foreign power slowly blending with her own.
"Second Tree, huh…" she whispered softly.
"Maybe… it's better this way. At least something strong might come from all this."
With that, she turned away, forcing the thoughts from her mind.
Outside the Cloud Village, Ryosuke stepped through his portal and emerged on a remote mountain ridge overlooking the stormy horizon.
He reviewed the information Samui had given him — the Eight-Tails jinchūriki's location matched what he had already suspected: Turtle Island, far off the Lightning Country's coast.
He exhaled slowly.
Three sealing vessels hung at his belt — one containing the Three-Tails, another the Six-Tails, and a third prepared for the Eight-Tails.
"Three down," he murmured. "Beeut I still owe her one more — the Rock's beast."
There was only one problem: his vessels were nearly full.
He frowned, thinking.
"If I can't seal them conventionally, I'll control them directly."
With the power of his Eternal Mangekyō, he could dominate a tailed beast's chakra and store it in stasis across dimensions — a living summon waiting for his command.
It wasn't elegant, but it would suffice.
"I'll extract the Eight-Tails, restrain it with ocular force, and leave it in the wild. I can call on it whenever needed."
He decided to travel alone this time — leaving Zabuza and Haku behind. This mission demanded silence and precision.
The air twisted again as he opened another portal, stepping toward the sea.
"Let's finish this."
The portal sealed shut, leaving only the faint hum of residual chakra behind.
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