Minato Namikaze left.
The trailing hem of his Hokage Robe swayed in the wind.
His back remained as straight as ever.
But Chiba Ran knew that the flagpole that had once belonged to the Hokage had snapped.
And he had personally mended it, reshaping it into what he wanted.
Konoha.
The sharpest blade in the Land of Fire.
From this day onward, both hilt and blade rested in his hand.
Only some blades still needed polishing.
Chiba Ran leaned back in his chair, lightly tapping the armrest.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Comfortable.
Satisfied.
A protagonist of an era, a hero of a world, kneeling before him in wholehearted submission...
That feeling was a hundred times more wonderful than crushing him with Six Paths Power.
Power was the confidence needed to flip the table.
Authority, on the other hand, was the utensil used to savor the world's finest things.
Konoha.
The Uchiha clan grounds.
The sharp whistles of shuriken cutting through the air and the dull impacts of clan members sparring had all vanished from the training grounds.
In their place came melodious music and the soft singing of women.
Three young Uchiha girls knelt on cushions in plain-colored kimonos.
Their heads were lowered, their expressions solemn.
Mikoto Uchiha sat at the head.
Her features were gentle, but her gaze was cold as iron.
She personally instructed the girls in tea ceremony and flower arrangement.
The shift of a glance.
The turn of a wrist.
Any slightest mistake would earn her merciless rebuke.
This was no longer a selection of consorts.
This was for the Uchiha...
This was a harsh selection for the future mother of the Land of Fire.
"Mirin."
Mikoto Uchiha's voice was soft, yet it made one of the girls in the room tremble.
The girl looked seventy or eighty percent like her, though her features were more youthful. A trace of coquettish innocence and naivety still lingered in her bright eyes.
She was Mikoto Uchiha's younger sister, Mirin Uchiha.
"Big Sister."
Mirin rose to her feet, nervously twisting the corner of her clothes as she lowered her head even further.
"Your heart is not calm."
Mikoto picked up the tea Mirin had just brewed. She did not taste it, merely taking a whiff.
"The fragrance floats on the surface. It will surely taste bitter."
A faint blush spread across Mirin's cheeks as she defended herself softly. "I... I was just a little nervous, Big Sister..."
"Nervous?"
Mikoto set down the teacup. Her movements were gentle, but her face was incomparably cold.
"When you stand before the Daimyo Lord in the future, will you say that you are nervous too?"
"One mistake will doom not only you, but the entire Uchiha!"
"Can your life pay for that responsibility?!"
Her final sentence was already a harsh shout.
Mirin's lips trembled, her face drained of color, and she could not utter a single word.
The girls around her even softened their breathing.
Seeing her younger sister's distressed appearance, a trace of reluctance flashed through Mikoto's heart, but it was swiftly replaced by resolve.
She walked up to Mirin and straightened her slightly disheveled collar.
"Mirin, remember this."
"From the moment you stepped in here, your name ceased to matter."
"You are Uchiha's future."
Her hand lightly caressed her younger sister's face, which resembled her own so closely, her expression complicated.
"Go sit beneath the waterfall in the rear courtyard."
"Come see me again when your heart is colder than the water of a frigid pool."
"Yes, Big Sister."
With tears in her eyes, Mirin bowed and withdrew. Her slender back looked as though it might collapse at any moment.
Watching her younger sister leave, Mikoto's gaze turned somewhat vacant.
How could she not know how cruel this was for a girl of only sixteen?
But she had no choice.
Compared to the future glory of the Uchiha Clan, one girl's tears were insignificant.
Just then, Clan Head Lord Fugaku Uchiha entered from outside.
He glanced at the scene before him, a satisfied look appearing on his face as he nodded to Mikoto.
"Thanks for the effort."
"For the family..."
Mikoto merely replied indifferently.
Fugaku walked to her side and lowered his voice. "There is still no movement from the Hyuga side."
"As expected." Mikoto's tone was calm and unruffled. "The arrogance of the Hyuga Clan is carved into their bones."
"Hmph, foolish arrogance!" Fugaku snorted coldly. "Does he think things are still as they were? In the Daimyo Lord's eyes, the Hyuga Clan is no different from stray dogs by the roadside!"
He paused, a vicious glint flashing in his eyes.
"Still, that is for the best."
"The more stubborn the Hyuga are, the more it highlights the loyalty of our Uchiha."
"I have already sent the account books detailing all the tax evasion by the Hyuga Clan's businesses in the Land of Fire Capital to the Daimyo Manor."
This was the pledge of allegiance the Uchiha had offered.
A strange light flashed in Mikoto's eyes.
"What about the three Ino-Shika-Cho clans?"
"They are exceedingly slippery." Fugaku's tone was full of disdain. "They said they would wait for the Daimyo's orders!"
"They will regret it."
Mikoto raised her head and gazed toward the capital of the Land of Fire.
"When descendants bearing Uchiha blood are born to the Daimyo, our Uchiha Clan will become a true great house!"
At her words, a scorching light burst from Fugaku's eyes.
Yes.
That day was not far off.
In stark contrast to the Uchiha's fiery bustle, the Hyuga Main Family residence was deathly silent.
Smash!
A precious celadon teacup was hurled violently to the floor, shattering into fragments.
Hyuga Hiashi's chest heaved violently, his face ashen, the veins at the corners of his eyes bulging with rage.
Just moments ago, tax officials from the Daimyo Manor had left.
They had said little, leaving behind only the demand that the clan make its choice quickly.
Otherwise, they would have to repay every tax evaded or underpaid over the past ten years, along with a fine three times the amount.
That astronomical sum would be enough to wipe out the Hyuga Clan's centuries of accumulated wealth in one stroke!
This was not an audit.
This was stripping them to the bone!
"This is too much! This is too much!"
Hyuga Hiashi let out a low roar.
Several elders of the Main Family stood before him in terrified silence, scarcely daring to breathe.
"Clan Head Lord, what... what should we do?" one elder asked shakily.
"You want me to send a daughter of the Hyuga family into that place too?!"
Hiashi abruptly turned around. Bloodshot veins filled his pale eyes as he glared fixedly at the elder.
"I am telling you all!"
"Even if the Hyuga Clan fights until only one person remains and sheds its last drop of blood, we will never suffer such unbearable humiliation!"
His furious roar echoed through the empty room.
Yet that roar sounded more like a wail of grief.
The registration site in Konoha set up by the Daimyo Manor for selecting consorts presented an entirely different scene.
The place was already packed with people.
The enthusiasm of ordinary citizens was simple and direct.
To them, this was a path to the heavens that could truly change their fate.
At the edge of the crowd, several figures appeared distinctly out of place.
A representative of the Inuzuka Clan sat beside a ninja hound, his gaze sweeping through the crowd.
A representative of the Aburame Clan was wrapped from head to toe in a trench coat, with only several Kikaichū flying about restlessly.
There was also a representative from the Kurama Clan...
Beside each of them stood a beautiful young girl.
These small ninja clans did not seek to win the position of consort. As long as they gained a moment of the Daimyo's favor, it would be a tremendous boon to their entire clan.
This frenzy swept across all of Konoha.
Even some highly respected Jonin could not remain uninvolved.
Yūhi Shinku was among them.
Before you continue