The thin middle-aged man sitting next to him, addressed as Third Brother, also frowned tightly and said helplessly:
"Big Brother, I've explained many times. Why do you insist on me saying it?"
"Why would I do these things? What good does it do me to kill them?"
"Does killing them mean I can succeed to the throne?"
Hearing the Third Brother's words, the expression of the obese middle-aged man froze.
Yes, there were still him and Second Brother ahead of Third Brother.
Even if Third Brother killed all the younger brothers behind him, it would be useless.
He was the rightful heir appointed by his father personally!
The Third Prince continued:
"Could it be done by those guys from the Underground Exchange?"
The dark thing called the Underground Exchange was no secret in the ninja world.
It was naturally an open secret among these secular nobles.
"Hmph, Big Brother, don't be fooled by his rhetoric. He could kill four younger brothers, so the next target is us!"
"As for the Underground Exchange, that thing only targets the ninja world. How could it break the rules and attack us secular dignitaries?"
Suddenly, a cold snort came out.
The eldest brother looked toward the sound and found that it was the Second Brother, who had been sitting silently on the chair, speaking.
The Second Prince, who was sturdy and looked very capable of fighting, looked at the Third Brother vigilantly and said unceremoniously:
"Third Brother, I hope you can obediently go to prison and wait for the investigation results to come out!"
The Third Prince immediately puffed up his thin chest unconvinced and said indignantly:
"Why do both of you suspect that I did it?"
"And what ability do I have to make them coincidentally gather in one restaurant?"
"And coincidentally, they all couldn't control their tempers and fought fiercely, even ignoring the tacit rules and facing each other with weapons?"
"And Fourth Brother. Obviously, it was a group of hooligans who attacked him. The employer behind the hooligans has also been investigated clearly."
"It was a merchant who had a grudge against him a few years ago. Besides, can I dictate where Fourth Brother goes?"
Hearing the Third Brother's words, the eldest brother obviously hesitated too.
His obese face was full of doubts, completely losing the arrogance he had at the beginning.
"Yes, Third Brother is right. Maybe this is just a pure coincidence?"
Seeing the eldest brother behaving like this, the Second Prince immediately said angrily:
"Big Brother, don't forget Third Brother's background!"
"Third Brother's mother was from a ninja clan."
"Ninjas... who knows if he used the ninjas from his mother's family to complete these incredible coincidences!"
The eldest brother also looked at the Third Brother with uncertainty, remembering this matter.
The Third Prince laughed out of extreme anger:
"Heh! My mother's family has long been ruined. The one with the highest level still alive is my Third Uncle, who barely qualifies as a Chunin."
"But Third Uncle is already over sixty years old. Do you think a Chunin over sixty has the ability to make younger brothers kill each other?"
The Second Prince, who had been picking faults, also fell silent.
Although the Second Prince didn't know much about the ninja world, he knew the general classification of ninjas.
A Chunin over sixty, old and frail, indeed couldn't pose any threat to them.
Even the Seventh Brother, who had the weakest guard force, had two Chunin guarding him.
Let alone the other older brothers.
But the Second Prince was still unwilling.
He had been suppressed by this Third Brother, who was two years younger than him, since childhood.
Now that he finally found an opportunity, how could he give up?
In fact, he also believed in his heart that this was a very coincidental matter.
He was just looking for an opportunity to send the Third Brother to hell.
He muttered to himself seemingly inadvertently:
"I heard that every ninja clan has some unknown trump card."
"Enough."
A calm male voice came out, but it wasn't the Third Prince, but the First Prince.
The First Prince's obese face was full of sadness.
He closed his eyes slowly. His tone wasn't like an order, but it made the Second Prince shut his mouth obediently.
The room with only six people became silent instantly.
After two minutes of silence.
The First Prince opened his eyes again, his eyes carrying some kind of decision:
"We shouldn't suspect each other here, adding to the suspicion."
"Regardless of whether these two things are one-in-a-million coincidences, or there is really a force plotting behind the scenes."
"From now on, I will stay in the Daimyo Mansion. You two stay in your respective mansions and never come out unless absolutely necessary."
The Second Prince opened his mouth slightly, wanting to say something, but closed it again.
Although his eldest brother was very mediocre and weak in character...
When he made a decision, these younger brothers couldn't persuade him at all.
Moreover, this decision sounded very reasonable.
The Third Prince looked at his eldest brother with a complex expression.
He considered himself much stronger than his mediocre eldest brother in all aspects.
However, the eldest brother was the legitimate eldest son, his mother's clan was dozens of times better than his, and he had the decisiveness a leader should have at critical moments.
So no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't surpass him.
A few seconds later, the Third Prince lowered his head slightly to express agreement.
The First Prince pondered for a while and added:
"Later, I will send someone to the Sand Village to explain the situation and ask the Third Kazekage to send suitable ninjas to assist us in the investigation."
Although the three princes present...
No matter who, they all strongly agreed with continuing to cut the Sand Village's military budget.
Or even further reduction plans.
But at this time, they still couldn't do without the help of the Sand Village.
Soon, the Second Prince and the Third Prince left first.
Looking at the retreating figures of the two, the First Prince frowned slightly, a trace of suspicion flashing in his eyes.
Finally, he sighed slightly and waved to the ninja beside him.
"Take a few people and set off for the Stone Village immediately. Find the Third Tsuchikage, Lord Onoki, issue an S-rank mission, and ask him to send capable Jonin here."
A few minutes later, a figure suddenly appeared in the corner of the quiet room.
Soon the figure turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared.
The Third Prince sat in the carriage, looking down at the carriage floor with a worried expression.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
If these two things were really not coincidences...
But someone plotting in the dark...
Then how powerful must this force plotting in the dark be?
You know, the Fourth Brother had a Special Jonin and an Elite Chunin by his side.
To be able to make these two ninjas act as if under a genjutsu, killed by a hooligan piercing their chests without any defense...
That would require at least a formal Jonin.
And it had to be a Jonin level from the five major ninja villages.
The more he thought about this matter, the more the Third Prince felt something was wrong!
Soon, the carriage arrived at his mansion.
The Third Prince walked anxiously to his study.
He clapped his hands, and a man in black immediately walked out of the darkness, kneeling on one knee to the Third Prince.
The Third Prince paced back and forth in the study with his hands behind his back.
While pacing, he said:
"Go to Konoha immediately and tell the Third Hokage that I want to issue an A-rank mission—no, an S-rank mission request!"
"I suspect the Sand Village violated the rules. They are very likely dissatisfied with our Daimyo lineage because we have cut their funding for years and ostracized them in various aspects, so they acted secretly!"
"Although this is incredible, better safe than sorry!"
"Take twenty samurai immediately, split into two groups, and go to Konoha. Be fast!"
After saying this, the pacing Third Prince didn't hear his subordinate's response.
He stopped abruptly, frowning at the man in black who was still kneeling on one knee.
The man in black remained motionless in the kneeling posture like a statue, without any reaction.
Seeing such a strange situation, a sense of vigilance suddenly arose in his heart.
The Third Prince quickly touched the saber at his waist with his right hand, looking around vigilantly. He was just about to open his mouth to call for help.
But suddenly, a man in black wearing an iron mask walked out of the corner!
Before the Third Prince could call for help, his eyes became dull!
Rasa sighed softly:
"Even with your IQ affected by my genjutsu, you can still detect the strangeness so quickly."
"However, the Second Prince wants to seek assistance from the Cloud Village, the Third Prince seeks aid from Konoha, and even the mediocre-looking eldest brother secretly sought help from the Stone Village."
"Do they distrust the Sand Village so much?"
"I really feel pity for the Sand Village, which endures constant exploitation silently."
After mocking himself, Rasa walked quickly to the Third Prince and put his hand on his head.
A few minutes later, Rasa let go, his whole body turning into a layer of smoke and disappearing.
Tens of seconds later, the Third Prince blinked quickly, his dull eyes returning to their usual shrewdness.
He looked down at the man in black kneeling on the ground and said coldly:
"This matter must have been done by Second Brother!"
"Second Brother is actually the most ambitious guy among us brothers."
"Thinking I don't know he has unclear connections with the Cloud Village secretly?"
After saying these words, the Third Prince turned around abruptly, hands behind his back, looking up at the sunlight outside the window.
"His next target must be me!"
"Since Second Brother broke the rules of the game, drew his blade first, and became the first one to stick his neck out, then don't blame me!"
"Strike first to gain the upper hand. Tonight at midnight, mobilize all forces to go to Second Brother's mansion and give him a surprise!"
"My mother's clan has fallen, but he certainly doesn't know I have other forces!"
The man in black kneeling on one knee finally spoke, his voice emotionless:
"Understood!"
"Did you all understand?"
In the Second Prince's mansion, the sturdy man said to the densely packed samurai kneeling in front of him.
Fifteen people in a row, kneeling in ten rows, the samurai wearing black armor answered in unison:
"Understood!"
The sturdy man roared excitedly:
"Very good!"
"That bastard Third Brother really thought I believed his previous rhetoric?"
"Only someone like Big Brother would believe his nonsense!"
"No matter how I look at it, I feel it's this kid acting behind the scenes."
"With a lowly ninja mother, the son is indeed the most unruly person, daring to break the rule of no bloodshed!"
"Maybe the next target is me! Must strike first!"
"All of you set off tonight!"
In the Daimyo Mansion.
The obese middle-aged man looked calmly at the twenty-odd ninjas and samurai guarding him.
He said softly:
"It's really an eventful time."
"Whether it was done by Second Brother or Third Brother, or it really is a once-in-a-century coincidence... just wait until the ninjas from the Sand Village and the Stone Village arrive."
"Let the two villages investigate jointly and supervise each other, and everything will come to light!"
The First Prince didn't know yet that the ninjas he sent to the Stone Village had already disappeared from the world.
The samurai next to him said carefully:
"Your Highness, really not going to tell the Daimyo?"