Slos Takes Action

Tokugawa Shigenami continued to perform his duties as Great General as always.

Just as he was listening to his staff report on the suppression of the mountain bandits, a palace attendant from the Daimyo's Mansion entered the room, led by a guard.

"Your Excellency Great General, His Highness the Great has ordered you to come to the palace for a discussion."

The sudden summons did not disrupt Tokugawa Shigenami's composure. He knew that because of the video recording from a few days ago, the daimyo must have already made up his mind.

"I see."

Tokugawa Shigenami took a deep breath and ordered his guards to be summoned.

Escorted by his personal guards, Tokugawa Shigenami arrived at the palace where the daimyo resided and was permitted to enter the palace with two guards.

This was also a privilege he enjoyed as Great General.

Gripping the sword hanging at his waist, Tokugawa Shigenami felt a sudden surge of tension for no apparent reason.

Watching the eunuch walking briskly ahead, Tokugawa Shigenami followed closely behind, glancing left and right, trying to glean any clues from the maids passing by in the courtyard.

Everything is as usual.

"Great General, please."

The eunuch suddenly stopped in his tracks.

The door slid open to both sides, and the daimyo sitting at the head of the table was hunched over, writing something with a pen.

Beside the lord, a boy he had never seen before sat on the ground, leaning against a pillar with his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

Who dares to overstep their bounds like this?

"The Great General has arrived. Please take a seat."

The daimyo didn't give Tokugawa Shigenami time to think. He put down his pen and gestured for the eunuch to bring out a cushion.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Tokugawa Shigenami thanked him and knelt some distance away from the daimyo, waiting for him to state the purpose of the summons.

He also noticed that, for some reason, none of the guards who usually stood on both sides to protect the daimyo were present today.

But the daimyo seemed to have forgotten about Tokugawa Shigenami, and after the other person sat down, he picked up his pen again and started writing on it.

He would write for more than ten minutes at a time.

Just as Tokugawa Shigenami was growing impatient, the daimyo finally stopped what he was doing and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Yes, my father praised my calligraphy skills when he was alive."

As he spoke, Daiming took out his signature folding fan.

Tokugawa Shigenami's vision went black. So you called me here just to watch you write?

Yeah, I've always felt that you're useless at everything except eating.

Even if he becomes a daimyo, he can't escape his inherently useless nature.

But the daimyo's next words made Tokugawa Shigenami's already dark face turn deathly pale.

"The messenger sent by the Great General to Konoha must have arrived by now."

What?!

Tokugawa Shigenami's hands trembled violently, and then he raised his head, staring at the daimyo with an incredulous look.

He found out?

"When the Fifth Hokage feigned support for the Imagawa Clan, he had already reached an agreement with you, right?"

The daimyo completely ignored Tokugawa Shigenami's overstepping bounds by staring directly at him, and continued to wave his folding fan as usual.

The two guards behind Tokugawa Shigenami reacted even earlier than him, drawing their swords and rushing forward while the daimyo was speaking.

Although they didn't know why the guards weren't there today, they had no choice but to try to take the daimyo hostage and find another way out.

"Yawn."

The boy, who had been sleeping on the floor, suddenly spoke, attracting the attention of the two.

The boy's seemingly unintentional swing of his arm created a sudden gust of wind.

The next second, the two guards turned into a cloud of blood mist, floating in the room.

"Ugh, ugh..."

It wasn't until his nasal cavity was filled with the smell of blood that Tokugawa Shigenami realized what had happened.

The facade of Great General has vanished; the middle-aged man lying on the ground, vomiting incessantly, is the true nature of Tokugawa Shigenami.

A hint of disappointment appeared in Daimyo's eyes, but he quickly dispelled it.

The man also made a vomiting gesture at the opportune moment, looking just like his uncle.

"Take the Great General away to rest. Also, send a messenger to Konoha and tell them that I, the Daimyo, wish to summon the Fifth Hokage."

Using a fan to disperse some of the strong stench of blood, and watching the guards who had been positioned outside rush in, the daimyo pointed to Tokugawa Shigenami, who was lying on the ground, still not recovered.

"Yes."

"You've seen my strength. If there's nothing else, I'm going back to sleep."

Ignoring the guards who were carefully avoiding him, Slos looked weary and, without waiting for the daimyo's reply, tore open a spatial rift and jumped inside.

With Slos gone, the guards looked much more relaxed, and the daimyo himself breathed a sigh of relief.

Watching Tokugawa Shigenami being dragged away like a dead dog, the daimyo reread the edict he had just written.

This was an unremarkable abdication edict. The only noteworthy aspect was that the designated successor on the edict was none other than Tokugawa Shigenami, who had just been dragged away.

"Immortality? Eternal existence would only bring eternal struggle, which would surely lead to weariness."

The daimyo shook his head, dismissing the immortality that the ministers treasured as utterly worthless.

"Whether it's Artificial Human or ninjas, whoever gains the upper hand in their struggle, I'm afraid what awaits me is not a happy ending."

The daimyo pressed the seal onto the imperial edict, then carefully put it away in a hidden place.

It's time to prepare for my inevitable end.