The night wind swept through the courtyard, stirring up a few dead leaves.
Candlelight flickered, stretching Chiba Ran's shadow long.
Juzo Biwa's presence had already vanished.
The butterfly that had solidified from nothingness also turned into specks of light and disappeared without a trace.
Chiba Ran took a sip of the tea that had gone completely cold, then suddenly spoke toward the empty moon gate.
"How long do you think Juzo Biwa can be used?"
There was no response in the courtyard.
Only the sound of the wind.
Several breaths later, the shadow of a withered plum tree in the corner twisted strangely.
A dark figure peeled away from the shadow and silently appeared behind Chiba Ran.
Dressed entirely in black, he gave off no Chakra fluctuations. Even his breathing and heartbeat could not be sensed.
Then a hoarse voice sounded. "His value depends on what you need him to do, my lord."
"As for how long he can be used..."
"I'll keep an eye on him."
Chiba Ran was not surprised. He drained the cold tea in his cup.
The man in black was called Aono Saku, his shadow guard.
His public identity was merely that of a merchant guild manager overseeing several businesses under Daimyo Manor, an utterly inconspicuous merchant.
Yet no one knew that this silent man bore a surname capable of shaking the Shinobi World.
Senju!
Chiba Ran's gaze fell upon Aono Saku, and his thoughts returned to several years ago.
Back then, Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, that man who had realism etched into his bones—
had planted a chess piece when he established a partnership with Daimyo Manor.
He had personally selected a group of clansmen with pure bloodlines, erased all traces of their identities as shinobi, and secretly sent them to the Land of Fire Capital.
This group of Senju clansmen, named the Hidden Guard, had only one mission: to protect the daimyo for generations and become the daimyo's eyes and blades in the dark.
However, due to the sudden death of the daimyo before the previous one, the handover had been interrupted, and this force had somehow been forgotten for decades.
It was not until Chiba Ran was twelve, while organizing his father's study in this life, that he discovered a Secret Order personally written by Tobirama Senju inside a hidden compartment.
It was through that Secret Order that he awakened this sleeping force.
Nor was that all. After taking over the Hidden Guard, he had scoured the world for shinobi to recruit into it.
Just as he had recruited Juzo Biwa today.
During the earlier bloody and brutal struggle for succession, it had been Senju Saku and the Hidden Guard under his command who blocked countless assassination attempts and eliminated every conspiracy for him, allowing him to have the last laugh.
The strength displayed when the delegation arrived that day had been only a portion of the Hidden Guard.
This was his true foundation.
Even without the system, this absolutely loyal Hidden Guard, with its terrifying combat power, was enough to make any force that underestimated him pay the price.
"Any news from Konoha?" Chiba Ran withdrew from his thoughts, his voice returning to its usual calm.
"There has been no movement. However, thirty suspicious individuals entered the capital this afternoon."
"Judging by their movements, we can confirm they are Root shinobi."
Senju Saku's voice showed no fluctuation. "After entering the city, they split up. Two of them headed straight for West City and have not returned."
"Did you send someone after them?"
"Yes. Yanagi is following them. Every move they make is under our surveillance."
"Mm. It seems that old dog Danzo still couldn't hold back."
Chiba Ran knew perfectly well that once news of the budget cuts was announced, Shimura Danzō would definitely make a move. He just had not expected it to happen so quickly.
There was no need to guess what someone with only 10 points of loyalty would do.
Nothing more than contacting those remnants who had lost the power struggle yet escaped by sheer luck.
"What about those rats?"
Chiba Ran asked again, "Have they made contact with Konoha's guests?"
"My lord, they have already met." Senju Saku's voice remained hoarse. "We can confirm that their leaders are your Third Brother, Chiba Xiu, and his uncle, Saionji Takashi."
"They have gathered around two hundred deathsworn and wandering warriors, hiding in the Underground Waterway beneath West City. Based on our observations, it is a temporary stronghold."
"As for those two men, when they met Saionji Takashi, they handed him a scroll."
"A scroll... Do we know what it contains?"
"We do not. Yanagi did not dare follow too closely."
"Mm..."
Chiba Ran lightly tapped the table.
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He did not even need to think about it. The scroll surely contained nothing more than Danzo's promise to support his useless Third Brother's rise to power once the deed was done.
He wanted to trade a daimyo's life for a worthless scrap of paper.
Danzo was still such a skilled businessman.
But this was enough.
Everything was proceeding as he had expected.
Senju Saku asked for instructions. "My lord, shall we eliminate them now?"
With the Hidden Guard's strength, dealing with a mob like that would be effortless.
"No need."
Chiba Ran raised a hand to stop him.
"Fishing requires patience."
"Let them keep preparing. Whatever they lack, I'll give it to them. I want them to swell with confidence, to believe destiny favors them and victory is already theirs."
"I want every rat to crawl out of its hole on that day."
Chiba Ran turned around. Moonlight illuminated half his face, and killing intent radiated from him.
"Pass down the order. Watch them closely. Do not alert them."
"It is time for the delegations of the four nations, and those people from Konoha, to properly experience what the majesty of the Land of Fire's daimyo truly is."
"Understood."
Senju Saku lowered his head even further.
He could feel the immense, cold will emanating from his young lord.
"Dismissed."
"Yes."
As his voice fell, Senju Saku's body turned into a shadow once more, silently melting into the darkness and vanishing.
The courtyard returned to silence.
The horizon was already beginning to pale.
A new day was about to arrive.
But what he was looking forward to was the day after tomorrow.
That grand coronation ceremony, prepared for him alone.
At the same time.
West City, Land of Fire Capital, Underground Waterway.
The cold, damp air was thick with a nauseating stench of mold and rot.
Weak firelight danced on a dry platform, illuminating several twisted faces.
Saionji Takashi held a scroll and read it carefully.
Beside him stood a young man with a sallow face and sunken cheeks—none other than the missing Chiba Xiu.
"Uncle! Stop reading! Ask them already—how much can Konoha really do for us?"
Chiba Xiu's voice was hoarse and trembling with excitement as he stared fixedly at the two shinobi in white masks before him.
"Lord Xiu, please calm down." Saionji Takashi soothed him, then turned to the two Root shinobi and lowered his posture considerably.
"You two, we already understand Lord Danzo's promise. But security on the day of the ceremony will surely be tight. With only the people we have..."
One of the Root shinobi finally spoke, his voice cold. "Our mission is to ensure that Chiba Ran dies at the coronation ceremony."
He did not answer the question, merely stated the order.
"The scroll makes it very clear. As long as Chiba Ran dies, Lord Danzo will personally step in to mediate the chaos in the Land of Fire Capital and recognize you, Lord Chiba Xiu, as the sole legitimate daimyo of the Land of Fire."
Chiba Xiu shouted, "What I asked was whether you'll make a move! Don't forget, that bastard Chiba Ran has shinobi around him too!"
"Rest assured, my lord. Our presence here is the greatest assistance."
"When you act, someone will deal with those shinobi guards."
"What Lord Danzo wants to see is the result. You will create the process."
Those words immediately eased Saionji Takashi's breathing.
Wild delight appeared on Chiba Xiu's face.
"Good! Good! Good!"
He repeated the word three times, clenching his fists as he said bitterly, "As long as I can kill that bastard, I'll do anything! I'll take back everything I lost! The throne, the wealth, and that woman, Qing Yueye!"
His voice was filled with jealousy and hatred.
The two Root shinobi exchanged a glance and said nothing more.
The next instant, their bodies distorted and merged into the bottomless darkness behind them.
Only Chiba Xiu's increasingly crazed laughter remained in the waterway.
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