Who the Shadow Clone kills has nothing to do with me?

The enemy wasn't strong enough—otherwise, they wouldn't have been slaughtered single-handedly by Oyakajōen.

Counting the two dungeon guards from the start, Sōsuke had only received rewards from eleven people in total.

Total value: 902 points.

Adding his original stockpile, his current total points had already broken past the two-thousand mark.

Points: 2273

He still had 3,727 points to go before his next exchange target.

It wasn't that he was lazy—that guy's movements were just too fast. The Ketsuryūgan's ability to crush weaker opponents was simply unparalleled.

"Forget it, nine hundred is already pretty high."

Lying on the hard wooden bed, Sōsuke shifted uncomfortably. He was the type who got attached to his bed; suddenly arriving in a strange environment made it hard to fall asleep right away.

Since he couldn't sleep, he might as well think about his next moves.

The Chinoike Clan was wiped out. Oyakajōen had taken the blame alone, which counted as repaying Sōsuke for saving his life.

One wanted freedom, the other wanted points. Neither owed the other anything. From now on, they'd go their separate ways and never cross paths again.

The Valley of Hell had no more value. Soon, he would formally head to the Western Army Corps.

He would set foot on the battlefield himself and undergo the baptism of blood and fire. Countless strong opponents and points awaited him there—it all depended on whether he had the strength to claim them.

Among them, the Fūma Clan was currently performing the strongest, not backing down against the Uchiha at all on the front lines.

The personal strength of their Clan Head, Fūma Eiichirō, was explosively powerful. In one-on-one combat, it was said no one in the Western Army Corps could defeat him.

The Sarutobi Clan's strength was also extraordinary. With many clan members, they loved to roam around performing righteous deeds, and outsiders generally had a good opinion of them.

The Shimura Clan was more mysterious. Their shinobi specialized in Wind Style, kept a low profile in daily affairs, and rarely showed their edge.

As for the Kurama Clan, their situation was very different from when Konoha was founded. Now, they were a truly prestigious family.

They ran many businesses, had a large number of clan members, and occasionally produced geniuses who inherited the clan's bloodline power.

In the current generation, there was one who could use genjutsu to control the five senses. Just thinking about it made it clear how troublesome his strength would be.

Compared to other clans, the Uchiha's Western Army Corps had no advantage in any aspect.

In terms of numbers, splitting the clan's combat power into four parts meant they were bound to have trouble with troop strength.

In terms of combat ability, the Uchiha generally had the advantage in individual strength, but they currently lacked a top-tier expert who could decide the outcome with a single blow.

The Corps Commander, Uchiha Shinya, was strong, but he hadn't reached the highest level.

If Clan Head Tajima could come in person, he could solve the current predicament. But that guy wouldn't care about a mere Fūma Clan—his eyes were only on the Senju of the Forest.

The other clans of the Land of Fire?

A bunch of worthless pawns. He'd leave them to his subordinates to deal with. Senju Butsuma was the opponent worthy of his attention.

The Clan Head couldn't be relied on. It seemed the Western Army Corps would have to find its own way.

Fortunately, the current situation was relatively stable, with no large-scale conflicts breaking out. That left Sōsuke time to work hard and develop.

"I have to exchange for the Cursed Seal as soon as possible. The disadvantage of my body can only be offset by amplifying my chakra."

At the end of the day, his age was the biggest constraint on improving his strength right now.

Especially in this Warring States period, where everyone had formidable taijutsu skills. That would only magnify his disadvantage.

Even more so once he stepped onto the battlefield. No one there dared to waste chakra recklessly; they relied more on taijutsu to fight.

Once his chakra ran out, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Silently turning over, Sōsuke finally felt drowsiness washing over him. At his age, he was naturally prone to sleep. If the bed board weren't so uncomfortable, he'd probably already be snoring.

"Well, I'll worry about other things later. What I need most right now is to get familiar with the battlefield environment."

Before long, Sōsuke lay on the bed and drifted off into a dazed sleep.

In the darkness, it seemed like a pair of eyes were watching him, but when he looked closely, it was as if nothing was there at all.

The next day, Sōsuke pretended to go investigate the depths of the Valley of Hell, only to "accidentally" discover a mountain of corpses.

After a careful investigation, it was confirmed that the Chinoike Clan had been brutally wiped out the previous night. The perpetrators seemed to be two people.

The one who killed the most was the Ketsuryūgan user. Besides him, there should have been another expert skilled in Lightning Style.

During the investigation, the person in charge kept glancing at Uchiha Sōsuke from time to time, as if observing his expression.

The youth had just reported here, and the very next day the Chinoike Clan was annihilated. It was far too much of a coincidence.

Moreover, it was common knowledge that Sōsuke was skilled in Lightning Style. It was hard not to suspect whether he was involved in the whole affair.

"Captain, take a look at this." At that moment, someone brought over a yellowed book.

The contents recorded an evil ritual involving sacrifice. From the scene, it wasn't hard to tell what had happened the night before.

"It was to hold the ritual that someone who was meant to be a sacrifice ended up slaughtering the clan."

Thinking about it that way, it seemed the youth had nothing to do with it. Most importantly, the person in charge couldn't find any motive for Sōsuke to do such a thing.

The final investigation results came out quickly. After organizing them a bit, the person in charge sent a liaison to deliver letters to both the clan and the Daimyo's Mansion of the Land of Lightning.

Having finished all this, the person in charge finally let out a sigh of relief and returned with his team to the camp at the entrance of the Valley of Hell.

Then—

"Whoa!!!"

"Great, those bastards are finally dead and gone."

"I don't have to suffer here anymore from now on."

"Finally, I can leave this godforsaken place."

"Heh heh, this is the best news I've heard all year."

Watching his jubilant clansmen, Sosuke smiled faintly, genuinely happy for them in his heart.

But going out to the outside world wasn't necessarily a good thing.

In the Warring States Period, human life was as cheap as weeds; there was no place that could be called a pure land.

Perhaps living conditions would improve, but safety was something that couldn't be guaranteed.

Only, judging by everyone's current state, they probably weren't in the mood to consider these issues.

Pulling out the transfer order from Clan Head Tajima, Sosuke found the person in charge and stated that he needed to report to the Western War Zone.

Declining the invitation to stay and celebrate, under the admiring gazes of the crowd, the Youth packed up simply and left the Valley of Hell, where he had only stayed for a single day.

"No wonder he's a genius."

"Yeah, well, I think being an ordinary person isn't so bad either."

"Enough of that—how about we go grab a drink in town today?"

In the forest, Sosuke, who was sprinting at full speed, suddenly furrowed his brow and turned his gaze toward a side path.

"Someone's here."

Under his watch, a trio slowly emerged from the shadows.

"Just a brat." The man spoke with a smile.

Under the sunlight, his head of red hair was especially eye-catching.