Chapter 199: The Hyuga Main Family and the Uchiha are in Trouble!
"Conversely, look at those who haven't been deeply infected by chakra."
"They might be fragile, but they possess a stronger resilience and a primal need for 'order'."
"This is a more universally applicable survival strategy, isn't it?"
"In high-intensity confrontations, individual valor might decide the outcome of a battle. But sustaining a civilization relies on rules, order, and a balance accepted by the vast majority."
"In the early stages, humans deeply infected by chakra only thought with brute force. Apart from fighting with ninjutsu, they were a mess in every other aspect—incapable of construction, only destruction. Since they couldn't develop and only knew how to plunder with force, they had to temporarily depend on others."
"Of course, now that the chakra has been diluted, it could be used for productivity. However, it is the Daimyo, ordinary humans, who are suppressing this aspect. This is also to ensure that ordinary people without chakra obediently squeeze out every last bit of their surplus value over their lifetimes."
"The role of ninjas has also been solidified into performing trivial missions, assassinations, stealing intelligence, and acting as an institution of violence. Only in special times is ninjutsu allowed to boost current productivity. But under normal circumstances, the basic producers will always be those commoners who cannot use chakra."
"Only when the Daimyo feels that ninjutsu can improve people's livelihoods without affecting their rule will the stagnant gears move forward again."
"The Daimyo—their very existence has become an obstacle."
Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered, finding Orochimaru's answer still unsatisfactory. His thoughts inevitably drifted from the limitations of individual ninjas to the depths of history. The formation of the power structure, that first transfer of authority.
"Lord First… Lord Hashirama… He established the village, ended the wars, and transferred power to the Daimyo system… Surely…"
Orochimaru interrupted Hiruzen again, then said:
"Actually, when the First Hokage established the hidden village, it was the first step, and a giant leap, towards reclaiming power. But the First Hokage had self-awareness. He knew that at that level, they couldn't fully take over the entire country. Doing so would only plunge the nation back into chaos."
"So he continued to delegate power, managing just the small Konoha village himself. The plan was to slowly upgrade from governing a village to governing a country through generations of transition. At the same time, the hidden dangers within chakra could be constantly diluted through generations of inheritance."
"Of course, those Daimyo back then didn't just sit idly by. As beneficiaries of this power transfer, they also left themselves an out while setting the rules."
"As ordinary people unable to use chakra, they knew better how to use inequality to create inequality. In this power distribution movement, 'Daimyo' was not just a title, but a structure to re-establish political authority, an ideology more effective for managing ordinary people."
"The 'Daimyo' used this ideology to cultivate and supplement a mass of commoners with a complex for 'wise rulers and sage kings.' After all, many ninjas are also born from commoners."
"Once this base was solidified, even if future Daimyo were incompetent or even evil, the people's first reaction wouldn't be to oppose the Daimyo system itself. Instead, they would blame the 'black sheep' rather than the system, expecting a 'return to order' and a restoration of normalcy. This explains why these Daimyo can stay in their positions even if they are useless."
Hiruzen Sarutobi thought of the Daimyo in the stands. He thought of their keen interest in the dangerous weapons of the Hidden Sound. He thought of their wariness during past talks towards someone like Danzo, who looked fierce and dared to sing a different tune. A chill rose from his spine, instantly spreading through his limbs.
"Heh heh—"
Orochimaru let out a low, mocking laugh.
"And as ordinary people, their fear of you is manipulated through certain means, and combined with your own needs, makes you willingly fight and sacrifice. They manufacture internal strife to keep you occupied. They tacitly allow or even encourage confrontation between ninja villages to consume your excess power."
Hearing this, Hiruzen's body shook uncontrollably.
"Orochimaru… what is your… ultimate goal in doing all this?!"
Orochimaru slowly raised his head, smiling at his teacher.
"Their existence now offers no benefit. And I have cleaned them up for you."
"The windmill should start turning."
Konoha Hidden Village.
The smoke rising from the direction of the Chunin Exams arena had not yet dispersed. The alarm of war tore through the remaining tranquility of the village surface.
Edge of the Forest of Death.
The earth churned like plowed soil. But this was a deeper, more nauseating biological reaction.
Twisted limbs burst from the ground. Slick snake bodies combined grotesquely with hard insect shells. A foul stench assaulted the nose—the odor of rotting flesh mixed with unknown bodily fluids.
Biological weapons. Orochimaru's "test subjects."
They swarmed in groups. Their compound eyes flashed with inorganic red or green light. Those without eyes relied on minute vibrations in the air to discern direction. Piercing shrieks rose and fell, accompanied by the click-clack sound of limbs rubbing together, merging into a hair-raising tide of sound.
This sound tide was not mere noise. It carried a specific frequency that directly interfered with the flow of chakra. Konoha ninjas attempting to block them felt their chakra circulation become sluggish.
Among the ruins, countless dark insect-snake creatures shuttled through the corpses in a disgusting manner.
Their goal was clear.
The Main Family of the Hyuga Clan.
The Uchiha Clan.
The corpses of ninjas possessing Kekkei Genkai.
These specialized biological weapons used their sharp mouthparts or specialized limbs to precisely "harvest" specific tissues. Perhaps a pair of intact Byakugan. Perhaps a piece of still-active Sharingan tissue. Or maybe, their entire corpses.
Their movements were astonishingly fast. No hesitation. No reverence for the dead. Only pure, cold desecration.
The swarms that completed their "sampling" quickly swallowed the "materials" into their bellies, then burrowed into the ground without delay, disappearing. More swarms surged from underground, wave after wave.
Skritch-scratch… skritch-scratch…
The swarms were still busy. They constantly plundered the corpses of Hyuga Main Family ninjas. They precisely cut away the remains of Uchiha clansmen. Swallowing them whole.
Then, one by one, they drilled into the earth and quietly retreated.
It was like a never-ending gluttonous feast. And the "delicacies" on the table were the once-great bloodline clans of Konoha.