When the Hyuga shinobi heard Asuma's words, they were all stunned.
Before attacking, they had imagined many scenarios.
Only this one had never crossed their minds.
One Hyuga shinobi hesitated slightly.
"What this guy said seems to make some sense. He is also the Hokage's son, yet Hiruzen Sarutobi treats him differently. It is just like how we and the main family are all Hyuga, yet we are treated differently."
"We are all victims of unfair fate!"
The Hyuga shinobi beside him could not help striking him on the head with a palm.
"Have you gone mad?"
"You believe his words?"
"Whatever he says is true? How has he not received benefits? With this kind of trash, without relying on his status as the Hokage's son, could he receive his current treatment? Dream on!"
"We are being targeted. He merely feels that he has not received enough benefits!"
"Among the benefits he has received, there is also the blood of our Hyuga branch family members!"
"What is there to say to a beneficiary of the people oppressing us?"
Another Hyuga shinobi said, "And we have already attacked him. Do we still have any chance to turn back?"
"Once we let him leave alive, the ones who suffer will definitely be us. Do you think he will let us go? We will even implicate the entire Hyuga clan. Those main family people can die for all I care, but the branch family cannot die."
"Today, this guy must die here!"
Asuma's expression grew even uglier.
"Damn it!"
In terms of personal strength, he was certainly inferior to them.
And now, the method of persuading them had not worked either.
What awaited him seemed to have only one result left.
Death.
"I still don't want to die."
"I am still so young!"
"I am the Hokage's son!"
"My future should be bright. Why should I die at the hands of a few pieces of trash from the Hyuga branch family?"
Asuma kept looking around, trying to find a slim chance of survival.
But he could not find one.
There was no one around.
It was as if someone had deliberately arranged something.
But the ones capable of arranging such a thing were absolutely not these Hyuga branch family members.
"There is someone else!"
"Someone else wants me dead and is only borrowing the hands of these Hyuga branch shinobi."
"Who?"
But Asuma was destined to never learn the answer.
The current Asuma was like Senju Itama back then, surrounded and attacked by several Uchiha clan members.
Relying on their numerical advantage, these Hyuga branch shinobi trapped Asuma in the middle. One fist after another continuously landed on Asuma's body.
They beat him until he spat blood.
"Pfft!"
A large mouthful of blood sprayed out, staining the ground red.
"Don't kill me!"
"Don't kill—"
"I promise I absolutely won't take revenge on you!"
"Let's pretend today's matter never happened."
But there was no way the Hyuga shinobi would believe him.
"Gentle Fist!"
"Eight Trigrams Palm!"
"Chakra Point Strike!"
"…"
Four attacks descended at the same time, striking four different vital points on Asuma's body.
A crisp cracking sound rang out.
Immediately afterward, Asuma's eyes rolled upward, and his body went limp. Helplessly, he collapsed.
The Hyuga shinobi exchanged glances and divided the work.
One of them damaged Asuma's corpse until it was almost unrecognizable.
Several others dug a deep pit nearby, then threw Asuma's corpse into it, buried him with soil, flattened the ground, covered it with grass, and disguised it to look as though nothing had happened.
Beneath the earth, Asuma's eyes remained wide open.
At the moment of death, Asuma felt more resentment toward Hiruzen Sarutobi than hatred toward the Hyuga shinobi.
"Father! Ever since I was young, you treated me poorly. You treated us differently."
"Everything was for Eldest Brother. Everything was given to Eldest Brother."
"I received nothing."
"You only knew how to tell me to work hard. But even when I worked hard, I could never obtain your approval."
"Now, I have even died because of being implicated by you."
"If I had a choice, I truly would not want to become your son."
"To me, you were never a qualified father!"
The Hyuga shinobi looked at the pit they had dealt with and felt slightly relieved.
"It's done!"
"With the traces handled like this, no one should discover anything for a while."
"Killing Asuma can be considered avenging Hizashi-senpai!"
Just then—
Crack!
The sound of a dead branch being stepped on rang out.
The Hyuga shinobi hurriedly looked over and saw a Konoha shinobi looking toward them with a terrified expression.
The hearts of the Hyuga shinobi sank.
All four of them were terrified to the extreme.
At this distance, there was no way they could stop the other side from shouting. And once the other side shouted, everyone nearby would be drawn over.
The fact that they had killed Asuma would no longer be hidden.
Suddenly—
A figure appeared behind that Konoha shinobi.
An invisible spiral formed, and the person slowly walked out from within it.
One hand landed on the Konoha shinobi's neck.
Crack!
With one simple motion, he easily twisted the Konoha shinobi's neck, then sent the body into the spiral, where it disappeared.
The four Hyuga shinobi let out a heavy breath of relief.
But immediately afterward, they became tense again.
Because this masked man who had suddenly appeared was someone whose identity they did not know.
Nor did they know his purpose.
"I can help you!"
"You must also be disappointed in this rotten shinobi world, yes?"
"You, who were born carrying the Caged Bird, are like beasts imprisoned and restrained by chains."
"The main family humiliates you at will."
"The others in Konoha do not treat you as human beings either."
"But I can give you hope."
"I can let you live in a world where everyone is equal."
"Follow me!"
"I can help you!"
"I can solve the trouble caused by the main family for you."
One Hyuga shinobi hesitated for a moment.
"But how are we supposed to trust you?"
Beneath the mask, the masked man revealed a smile and said calmly,
"Because of this name."
"My name is Uchiha Madara!"
A complex pattern appeared in the empty hole of the mask, allowing those Hyuga shinobi to see the pattern belonging uniquely to the Mangekyo Sharingan—completely different from an ordinary Sharingan.
The four Hyuga shinobi were violently startled.
"Uchiha Madara?"
…
…
Sunagakure.
With a thought from Rasa, an invisible lottery wheel began to spin.
"Thirty-pull, begin!"
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained an F-rank item: One tael of gold.]
…
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained a B-rank item: Ninjutsu Scroll—Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson.]
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained a C-rank item: One-Person Mirror Question Card—Konoha Designated Version.]
…
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained an A-rank item: S-Rank Ninjutsu Enhancement Card.]
"One-Person Mirror Question Card?"
Rasa raised an eyebrow.
This was a tool that had never appeared before.
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