Outside Amegakure, a man clad in white robes sat on the ground with his eyes closed, sensing something.
After a long while, he slowly opened them.
"I never expected this… to sense a bloodline this pure. And it hasn't even been born yet. Perfect—I can take it back with me."
"To think that the bloodline exiled all those years ago would actually give rise to a Byakugan of this purity in such a barbaric land."
His name was Ōtsutsuki Riku. He had been dispatched to investigate the theft of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. After months of fruitless searching, he had been preparing to return to the Moon—when he unexpectedly sensed traces of the Byakugan here.
He knew that Konoha possessed a clan with the Byakugan bloodline. However, more than ninety percent of their Byakugan had been sealed away by special means, while the remaining fraction was under the highest level of protection. There was simply no opening to exploit. Moreover, the purity of their Byakugan did not interest him in the slightest.
"This is nothing more than a minor shinobi village—there isn't even a so-called 'Kage' here."
"Did they flee from Konoha? Or were they driven here with nowhere else to go? Or are they simply fools who don't understand what happens to an unprotected Byakugan… choosing a dump like this of all places."
Rising to his feet, his body gradually turned transparent as he walked toward Amegakure.
"There's one bloodline source that seems to be protected in the same way as Konoha's Byakugan. I'll start with him. Anyone capable of producing bloodlines of this purity must be special in some way."
---
At that very moment, Hanzo was having a "cordial" discussion with the Hyūga shinobi.
"You understood everything I just said, didn't you?"
"The Caged Bird…? Are you joking? No one has ever been able to break it. Anyone bound by it is destined to serve the main family for life. No one can escape that fate."
"Fate?" Hanzo scoffed. "My fate is decided by me—not by the world. I, Hanzo, have never believed in this damn thing called fate. If everyone believed in fate, what would be the point of striving at all?"
"..."
"I'm giving you an opportunity right now. I'll guarantee your safety. As long as you complete the analysis of the Caged Bird Seal, you're free to go wherever you want. I'll even give you the method to break it—I'd be delighted if you took it back to the Hyūga branch family."
"Whether you can seize that opportunity… that's your problem."
The Hyūga shinobi wavered violently. The temptation Hanzo offered was simply too great.
If he could truly unravel the Caged Bird… his brothers, his parents, and all the other branch family members…
"…It seems I don't really have a choice."
He hesitated, then asked,
"If I refuse to cooperate… will you use genjutsu to control me again?"
"No, no, no," Hanzo replied calmly.
"I believe in 'winning people over with virtue.' I merely had my subordinates place a suicide-prevention seal on you."
"As for the genjutsu before… cough, I was partly responsible. I was extremely busy at the time and didn't have the bandwidth to deal with you properly. Efficiency took priority."
"So you're saying… I can refuse now?"
"Of course."
Hanzo smiled.
"Like I said, I believe in 'winning people over with virtue.' If you don't want to cooperate, I won't force you."
"But in that case, we'll have to make use of your remaining value. I can't just waste such a precious resource, nor can I let you eat and drink for free in Amegakure."
"You'll continue reproducing the Byakugan bloodline."
"What…?"
The Hyūga shinobi panicked instantly.
"I heard last time it was six!" Hanzo laughed.
"You're quite blessed—even I'm envious. So young, yet already the father of six children."
"This time, let's make it ten. Ah—no need to thank me. After all, this is every man's dream!"
"Aaah! N-No—!"
The Hyūga shinobi seemed to recall something horrifying. Cold sweat poured down his face, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"No… no…"
Images flooded his mind—those wolfish shadows, squeezing him dry without mercy.
How many times had he hovered on the brink between life and death back then?
Euphoria and exhaustion. Pain and overstimulation. His brain swelling from oxygen deprivation, suffocation, nausea—until he was little more than a walking corpse.
That agony… unable to live, unable to die.
He was completely empty.
"Don't be afraid," Hanzo said gently.
"Our medical reforms are already underway. We'll definitely help you with that problem."
Disdain flickered through Hanzo's mind, but his face remained warm and smiling.
"You're still young. Fighting on for another ten or twenty years won't be an issue."
"Relax. I guarantee your life—you absolutely won't die."
"What?! No—no!"
Hanzo's smile filled the Hyūga shinobi with icy dread.
"Monster… you're a monster!"
He saw his future—emaciated, dazed, working endlessly like a machine. No self. No dreams. No future.
Tears and snot streamed down his face. His eyes were red and swollen, utterly devoid of any trace of a shinobi's dignity.
"Please… let me go. I'll do anything."
"That's hell… that's hell!"
Hanzo placed a hand on his shoulder.
"No problem. I told you—I believe in 'winning people over with virtue.' Of course I'll listen to the subject's wishes."
"After all, I'm no devil."
"Since you've agreed to cooperate, that's perfect."
His smile was sincere and friendly—so much so that the Hyūga shinobi nearly suffocated.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Hanzo sensed something.
"We have a guest."
"Or perhaps… a rat."
Ever since achieving a Sage Body, the perception granted by senjutsu had aided him countless times. Among the A-rank jutsu Konoha had paid as compensation was Tobirama Senju's Chakra Sensory Technique.
After fusing it with senjutsu, Hanzo had created his own unique sensory domain. Thanks to his Sage Body, the chakra consumption was less than his natural recovery. His domain now remained active twenty-four hours a day.
"They infiltrated Amegakure and came straight here without being discovered. Looks like an expert."
"Someone's following behind… that chakra signature—Murakami, Nono. Good work."
"The route is clear. It's him."
Hanzo glanced at the Hyūga shinobi behind him.
"But how did he know the location? An internal spy? Looks like Nono's cleansing needs to speed up."
"Is it Konoha? Or another village?"
As these thoughts raced through his mind, Hanzo sank into the ground using Earth Style.
"Let me see what you're really capable of."
---
Security in the underground prison was airtight—guards every ten steps, no blind spots. Not even a mosquito could slip through unnoticed.
Yet Ōtsutsuki Riku moved through it as if no one were there.
Still transparent, he stopped before a sealed door. It required a key—held by the two guards beside it.
"Annoying," he muttered internally.
"Byakugan."
As he activated the Byakugan, an unusual mental wave spread outward. Not only the two guards before him—every guard in the corridor lost the light in their eyes, collapsing as if under genjutsu.
Ōtsutsuki Riku revealed himself openly.
"The clan leader strictly ordered us never to expose the Ōtsutsuki in the shinobi world. Otherwise, I wouldn't need to be this careful."
"Open the door."
At his command, the two guards unlocked it.
With a sharp click, Riku entered the chamber. All the controlled guards collapsed unconscious.
"This way."
Guided by the bloodline resonance, he opened one of the inner rooms.
"Good. It's you."
The shinobi inside was pale and clearly overdrawn, but the bloodline resonance—and those unmistakable Byakugan—could not be faked.
"Who are you? A Byakugan?! You're here to save me!"
The next instant, he screamed hysterically,
"Run! Now!"
"There's a trap here!"
"Don't worry. I already saw him," Riku said disdainfully, glancing at the ground.
"Just a mud loach."
…It's over.
The Hyūga shinobi felt all hope vanish.
'Byakugan? What a nuisance.'
Hanzo slowly emerged from the ground, thoughts in chaos.
'Those clothes… Ōtsutsuki Toneri?'
'No—another Ōtsutsuki from the Moon. Has their internal war not begun yet?'
'Now's not the time for that. Why would an Ōtsutsuki from the Moon appear here? Did something go wrong?'
'My butterfly effect…?'
"So you crawled out of the ground, mud loach," Riku laughed.
"Impressive defenses. But he's worth it."
"Worth it?" Hanzo narrowed his eyes. "That Hyūga? What value could justify this?"
"Even if I've never seen you among the Hyūga… run. You're not his opponent," the captive urged.
Riku shrugged.
"Hyūga? I'm not from that exiled branch. I'm from the main lineage."
"Be proud. Soon, you'll meet the main family as well."
Seeing the confusion on his face, Riku shook his head.
"You'll understand soon enough. I'll take you out first."
Then he asked casually,
"Is he strong?"
In his perception, Hanzo's chakra was only at jōnin level.
The Hyūga nodded.
"Is he a Kage?"
The Hyūga shook his head.
"Does this village even have a Kage?"
Another shake.
Riku smiled.
"Then there's nothing to worry about. In this world, aside from those so-called Kage, no one can oppose me."
Being dispatched to the shinobi world meant his strength ranked among the Ōtsutsuki elite. Coupled with his disdain for mortal life, he feared no one here.
"You've talked a lot. Let me ask something," Hanzo said calmly.
"Do you have any mental failsafes? The kind that prevent information leakage?"
"You think you can defeat me?" Riku sneered. "I have nothing like that."
"But I can't be discovered. Since you've seen me—die."
"Byakugan."
A mental shockwave spread from his eyes, washing over Hanzo. A crushing drowsiness attempted to seize his consciousness.
"Hm? Genjutsu?"
The moment the sensation hit, Hanzo's chakra circulation accelerated severalfold, grinding the foreign chakra and mental force into nothing.
Ōtsutsuki Riku: "..."
Hyūga shinobi: "???"
Huh—why aren't you attacking?!
"Interesting. If this little tricks won't work…" Riku unfurled a scroll.
"Spirit Manipulation Technique."
Several puppet constructs burst forth, firing white energy blasts.
"That's it?"
A flash of white light—every blast detonated midair, and the puppets were cleaved cleanly in half.
In the next instant, Hanzo appeared before Riku and drove a fist into his abdomen.
Riku's body became a cannonball, smashing through two walls and cracking the third.
Hanzo watched cautiously, perception at full power.
"…Unconscious?"
After confirming there were no traps, Hanzo grabbed him.
Hanzo: "..."
'What a waste of my expectations… I thought you'd awaken the Tenseigan like Toneri—Truth-Seeking Orbs, light blades splitting the earth and all that.'
'Damn it.'
"???" That poor Hyuga, still watching, is confused asf.
Are you here to save me—or to die??
"Lord Hanzo!"
Murakami and the masked Nono knelt behind him.
"Status outside?"
"All guards are only unconscious. No lasting damage."
"We detected the infiltration while setting up the sensory barrier. His strength wasn't weak."
"To understand his goal, we followed him without alerting him."
"We just didn't expect…"
A gift wrapped and delivered from a thousand miles away.
"Good work," Hanzo nodded.
"Murakami, gather a few genjutsu specialists and bring them to the interrogation room. Now."
"Nono, you're coming with me. You're good at extracting information."
"Yes."
The three departed, leaving the Hyūga shinobi abandoned in the chamber.
The light had drained from his eyes.
What despair was worse than seeing hope—only to lose it again?
As for Hanzo, he urgently needed answers.
What kind of butterfly effect had he caused… to draw the Ōtsutsuki down from the Moon?
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