Next Bonus, 100PS!!
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"If a ruthless and unscrupulous person learned this blade art and used it to raid, slaughter, and spread chaos across the Shinobi world, wouldn't that only result in more victims and invite endless problems?"
"Right!" Senju Tsuru's eyes widened as he suddenly understood, and his hesitation vanished. He nodded firmly. "Sage, you're right! I was only thinking about keeping the sword art safe. I hadn't considered the danger it could bring!"
Tsuru no longer hesitated. He picked up the large blade beside him, walked to the stone wall, and began scraping away the carvings.
Stone chips scattered as he worked. Gradually, the blade marks and patterns faded. Soon, the wall was smooth and empty, with no trace of the sword art.
..............
"I want to try for it next year."
After they left the cave, Tsuru suddenly spoke.
Black Zetsu froze for a moment. "What brought this on? Try for what?"
"With this sword art to rely on and your support, Sage Black Zetsu, if I have one more year to grow, perhaps I will be qualified to become the head of the Senju Clan."
Tsuru turned his head, a confident smile on his face and hope in his eyes.
"Heh..." Black Zetsu let out a quiet laugh. "You're still young, and you're rushing... Take your time. If you want people to accept you and sit firmly in the clan head's seat, you'll need at least a few years of tempering."
"You have only recently begun your training, and your basics are still fragile. Rushing to compete for the position now won't convince the elders and clansmen."
"Sage, you're right!" Tsuru nodded. His impatience faded at once. He trusted Black Zetsu's judgement completely.
"Good. Don't overthink it. Next, we should move quickly and return to the battlefield line," Black Zetsu said.
They had only just lifted their feet to leave when Black Zetsu's expression changed. "What the hell??"
His keen senses reached out, detecting movement miles away with startling clarity.
A large shinobi unit was rushing towards Foxfall Cliff. That chakra signature clearly belonged to the Hagoromo Clan.
At that speed, they would arrive soon.
"Trouble, Tsuru!" Black Zetsu snapped, his voice sharp and grave. "I sense a Hagoromo unit heading this way!"
"Huh?"
Tsuru froze. A second later, his face shifted. "Sage, that doesn't make sense! Why would the Hagoromo Clan come to a place like this?"
A wave of panic swept through him. If it had been only a few Hagoromo shinobi, his new sword art might have given him a fighting chance. But facing an entire unit, he knew he wasn't strong enough.
That was how the shinobi world worked in these times. No matter how strong a single shinobi was, numbers still counted. Only those with Kekkei Genkai or Special techniques could hope to stand against such odds.
"I don't know why either..." Black Zetsu's voice grew heavy with confusion. "According to the original battlefield plan, the Hagoromo Clan should be teaming up with the Uchiha to attack the Senju from the north and south. There's no reason for them to come to Foxfall Cliff, since it has no strategic value."
"T-Then what do we do? I can't fight all of them by myself!" Tsuru gripped his blade tighter and frowned.
Black Zetsu stayed calm. "Why panic? I'm here. Do you think I'd let you die? We'll just take a different route."
He quickly gave directions. "The Hagoromo are coming from the front. We'll run the other way now."
"OKAY!" Seeing Black Zetsu so calm helped ease most of Tsuru's fear.
During their time together, this mysterious Sage had always made him feel safe. Tsuru didn't hesitate and followed Black Zetsu's directions, running into the forest and away from the Hagoromo unit.
..............
The Uchiha army marched forward in a long, imposing column.
At the front, an Uchiha elder turned to Uchiha Sa beside him. "Clan Head, Foxfall Cliff is just ahead... If we continue straight, we'll reach the designated location shortly. We contacted the Hagoromo Clan earlier, and they will arrive there at the same time."
"..." Uchiha Sa lifted her crimson Sharingan towards Foxfall Cliff, her gaze cold. She nodded and ordered, "In that case, increase speed. Reach Foxfall Cliff as soon as possible."
"Once we arrive, we'll coordinate with the Hagoromo Clan first, then finalise the plan for the surprise attack on the Senju."
"As you command!" the Uchiha elder replied, then immediately raised his voice and ordered the army to advance faster.
..............
Elsewhere in the forest, Tsuru gripped his blade and stumbled forward, following Black Zetsu's directions.
As the Hagoromo Clan's presence faded behind them, Tsuru was just starting to relax when Black Zetsu suddenly tensed.
"What the hell is happening??" Black Zetsu couldn't help but curse under his breath.
Tsuru stopped at once and looked down at his palm, panic written across his face. "Sage, what is it? What happened?"
Black Zetsu's voice sank like a stone, filled with disbelief and tension. "The Uchiha Clan's army is also heading toward Foxfall Cliff!"
"WHAT??" Tsuru's face turned even paler than before. He stumbled back and hit an old tree, feeling like the world was spinning.
Behind them were Hagoromo's pursuers...
Ahead of them was the Uchiha army...
Trapped between both groups, they had reached a dead end!
"Maybe... maybe this place isn't Foxfall Cliff." Tsuru stared at the trap closing around him and gave a bitter, self-mocking smile. "Maybe it's just a cage—created just for me."
Black Zetsu's dark mouth twitched. He almost laughed at how absurd the situation was.
"What kind of nonsense are you saying at a time like this?"
Black Zetsu held back his laugh and said, "The worse things get, the calmer you need to be. Panicking won't help."
Inside, he thought through the situation. He wasn't really in danger. He couldn't die, and the White Zetsu network could protect him. Even if surrounded, he could escape anytime with the Mayfly Technique.
The area seemed empty, but if he gave the signal, countless White Zetsu could rise from the ground.
But he couldn't leave Senju Tsuru behind. It wasn't just because Tsuru was the Asura reincarnation he needed for his test—it was also because he couldn't bear the thought of this boy, who had just discovered his fighting spirit, dying here.
Tsuru, however, seemed to give up entirely.
He let go of his blade, sat down on the ground, and spread his hands in surrender. His voice sounded tired and helpless.
"Forget it, Sage. This is enough. Meeting you was already the luckiest thing that ever happened to me. At least, for a little while, I truly got to feel like a shinobi. That's worth it."
Tsuru spoke with a helpless smile.
"..." Seeing him slip back into his old defeatist ways, Black Zetsu's face tightened again. Inside, he rolled his eyes.
This was classic Senju Tsuru. Before Black Zetsu showed up, he gave up every day. Now that things looked hopeless, the old habit was back.
"Calm down! I'm here. We'll keep searching for a way out!" Black Zetsu said.
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