Seize the Opportunity

The Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai of the Kaguya Clan truly has its unique aspects; it's incredibly offensive, especially when combined with the 360-degree vision of the Byakugan, leaving no blind spots or weaknesses. Attacks or counterattacks can be launched from virtually any angle.

On the night of the power struggle within the clan grounds, Hyuga Ritsu used the combination of his Byakugan and Shikotsumyaku to block Namikaze Minato's teleportation sneak attack.

At this moment, these water clones were even less of a concern to him. He didn't need to put in any effort, just plow through them like a steamroller. The water clones blocking his path were shattered one after another, failing to delay him even for a moment.

In the blink of an eye, he closed in on the Kirigakure Shinobi.

His speed was so great that the two Jonin dared not retreat and could only grit their teeth and swing their swords to meet him. The blades clashed against bone with crisp sounds, but they only had two swords, while Hyuga Ritsu had eight bone protrusions all over his body.

In just a single evasive maneuver, both Kirigakure Jonin were wounded, with their bodies crisscrossed by bone blades as sharp as knives, leaving several wounds that exposed the bone.

"Damn it, retreat quickly."

one of them cried out.

"But they..."

the other still wanted to know if he could protect the subordinates behind him. However, with a glance, he saw that all the subordinates they brought to attack the mountain had fallen. Only one young man holding a small tachi stood amidst the piles of corpses, blood dripping from the tip of his blade.

At this moment, the young man also looked over. The two inadvertently met eyes, and he clearly saw the other's crimson eyes, within which three black tomoe were spinning.

This is bad!

The Jonin let out a terrified internal scream.

But it was too late.

His consciousness was dragged into an endless abyss by those crimson eyes, and his body froze in place. The next moment, a sharp bone pierced through his chest.

"Brave of you to dare make eye contact with Shisui."

Hyuga Ritsu praised, pulling the bone out of the corpse. The body, losing its support, fell to the ground. The empty, lifeless pupils reflected the corpse of the other Jonin, submerged in a pool of blood.

In an instant, all the Kirigakure Shinobi present were killed by Hyuga Ritsu and Uchiha Shisui.

"Shisui, your speed is even faster than before!"

Hyuga Ritsu glanced at the corpses scattered everywhere. All of them had their throats slit, and the depth of the wounds was almost identical, as if the corpses had actively stretched their necks to meet Shisui's blade. Their stiff, dazed expressions suggested they hadn't even realized they were dead.

This strength, it was no wonder the Kirigakure Shinobi retreated in fear!

"Senior Ritsu, you are the one who made me..."

Uchiha Shisui stared at Hyuga Ritsu, watching him retract all his bone protrusions. He had a thousand words in his heart, but they were so jumbled that he couldn't speak for a moment. After a few choked seconds, he managed, "Senior Ritsu, this is the Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai, isn't it? How do you possess this Kekkei Genkai?"

His eyes were filled with curiosity and inquiry.

"It's a form of ancestral reversion!"

"Hmm?"

"The Hyuga Clan and the Kaguya Clan share a common ancestor. In fact, not just our two clans; the bloodlines of your Uchiha, Senju, Uzumaki, and other clans all trace back to the same ancestor... Alright! Just kidding. I used a secret technique passed down in my Hyuga Clan to forcibly take this from a Kaguya Clan member of Kirigakure."

Hyuga Ritsu spoke with a mix of truth and falsehood.

Everything else was true, except for the fabricated origin of the Chimera Technique.

"There's actually a secret technique for stealing others' Kekkei Genkai? That's a bit terrifying!"

Uchiha Shisui exclaimed in amazement. He didn't take Hyuga Ritsu's initial joke seriously but believed his final explanation. The Hyuga Clan was also an ancient, long-standing family; it wasn't strange for them to have powerful secret techniques passed down.

As for why no one from the Hyuga Clan had used such a technique to steal Kekkei Genkai before, perhaps the cultivation difficulty of this technique was very high? Or maybe there were other restrictions!

In any case, Uchiha Shisui believed Hyuga Ritsu's explanation.

Otherwise, how else could he explain the origin of Hyuga Ritsu's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai?

"Haha! Shisui, are you afraid I'll steal your Sharingan?"

Hyuga Ritsu joked.

"I'm not afraid of that, Senior Ritsu. You're not the type to harm your comrades."

"Ah, ah! Shisui, so my image in your heart is that noble? You're making me a bit embarrassed, but I advise you not to trust your comrades too much. You know, fatal attacks often come from behind."

"I'll remember that."

Uchiha Shisui replied perfunctorily.

It was clear he hadn't remembered at all, letting it go in one ear and out the other, without taking it to heart or thinking it through.

Hyuga Ritsu was too lazy to elaborate. He turned around and looked at the group of Kirigakure Shinobi walking up the mountain path, smiling, "Suikazan Fuguki, and Hozuki Mangetsu, you're quite slow! I thought you would have caught up sooner."

Konoha and Kirigakure have been fighting for so long.

It was already clear what kind of powerful experts each side had. Unless they were reinforcements who arrived later, any expert who had been active on the front lines for a while had their information thoroughly investigated.

Suikazan Fuguki and Hozuki Mangetsu were two such top experts among the Kirigakure Shinobi.

The former was a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the wielder of the Great Sword: Samehada. He was a long-established, prime-age veteran expert of Kirigakure. The latter, like Uchiha Shisui, was a prominent figure among the younger generation on the Kirigakure side.

Similarly, the Kirigakure Shinobi also had a general understanding of Uchiha Shisui and Hyuga Ritsu.

"Hyuga Ritsu, where did you get the Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyaku?"

Suikazan Fuguki stared intently at Hyuga Ritsu.

The secret letter from Konoha mentioned that Hyuga Ritsu possessed the Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai, which he found utterly absurd. But now, seeing Hyuga Ritsu use the Shikotsumyaku with his own eyes, he momentarily thought he was dreaming. How else could he witness such a preposterous scene?

But this was not a dream.

Reality was sometimes even more absurd than dreams.

Therefore, He desperately wanted to understand how Hyuga Ritsu possessed the Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai. Had a member of the Kaguya Clan secretly defected years ago? Or was it for some other reason?

"I have no obligation to answer your question."

Hyuga Ritsu shrugged.

"Is that so? Then, when you become a prisoner, I'd like to see if your mouth can remain as stubborn as it is now!"

Suikazan Fuguki waved his hand.

One Kirigakure Shinobi after another appeared around them. Including Suikazan Fuguki and Hozuki Mangetsu, over fifty Kirigakure Shinobi in total surrounded Hyuga Ritsu and Uchiha Shisui.

Although the secret letter from Konoha had instructed them to first test Hyuga Ritsu's capabilities and then create a more suitable opportunity to kill him, Suikazan Fuguki had no intention of following it.

If an opportunity presented itself, he would seize it. If not, he would create one.

Now that Hyuga Ritsu and Uchiha Shisui had truly run right into their hands, and Hozuki Mangetsu had conveniently shown up to be roped in, greatly bolstering their own strength, he planned to seize this chance to break both of these sharp blades of Konoha, rather than wait for a potential future opportunity that might never come.

As for whether doing so would cause trouble for the sender of the secret letter, he couldn't care less!

The more intensely the Konoha ninjas fought amongst themselves, the happier he would be!

He wished the Konoha ninjas would simply kill each other.