Sealing Technique Aftermath

The next morning.

After finishing breakfast, Xingzhuo spent his time crafting slips of paper inscribed with sealing formulas.

Yun Fei helped by exchanging supplies with the clan elder in charge of logistics, bringing back enough paper to fill half the room, before heading off to practice the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms that his young master had taught him.

It was strange, to say the least.

Not only could Yun Fei use ordinary paper to bear the sealing formulas, but every sealing slip he produced was equal in quality to the sealing scrolls circulating on the market.

Because of this, Yun Fei had managed to trade a single stack of sealing slips for a room half-filled with ordinary paper.

Elder Qiyan, who managed the clan's supplies, even came to visit in person, hoping to purchase the sealing slips Xingzhuo produced at a "family discount" of one hundred ryo per sheet. He proposed an initial purchase of two thousand sheets to distribute among clan members who lacked sealing scrolls.

Xingzhuo didn't need to ask anyone else; he knew that if these sealing slips were proven reliable over time and their quality and stability matched that of standard sealing scrolls, they could sell for at least ten thousand ryo apiece on the open market.

However, because they hadn't been time-tested, and because Elder Qiyan genuinely intended to distribute them to all the clansmen who lacked scrolls, Xingzhuo readily agreed to a deal that benefited the clan members while earning him a profit.

Living at home was one thing, but if one were traveling, life would turn into mere survival without a sealing scroll.

Xingzhuo didn't want to waste Yun Fei's time.

In his eyes, Yun Fei was a genius no less talented than Hyuga Neji, with an even more resilient personality, and thanks to his own presence, the boy lacked that deep-seated bitterness.

So, after reaching the agreement with Elder Qiyan, he had the elder send people over to cut the paper.

Once the time spent cutting was accounted for, Xingzhuo operated at full speed, producing one sealing slip every two seconds.

The chakra consumed in the process was so negligible that he didn't even need to rest; it replenished itself between breaths.

It was nearing noon.

Yun Fei was training in the backyard.

Five ordinary members of the Hyuga Clan, who had not awakened the Byakugan, were in a room cutting the paper.

Xingzhuo glanced at the two slender figures waiting outside for quite some time and finally ceased his work.

He looked up at the clock on the wall; two hours had passed, and he had produced at least three thousand sealing slips.

He hastily pulled out two thousand of them and set them aside.

He didn't call a halt to those cutting the paper.

Rubbing his slightly numb wrists, he stood up and walked toward the door.

The two women outside were the branch family members he had requested from Elder Xiao yesterday.

It was laughable, really.

Even within a small group like the Hyuga Clan, there were still hierarchies of rank.

The highest rank, of course, was the main branch of the clan head.

Next were the main branches of the various elders.

Under normal circumstances, these two branches only consisted of two people each: the current head and the heir.

The current clan head's branch was an exception with three members, as Hyuga Tianren had used his own authority to forcibly delay the designation of an heir.

Below these two main branches were all the members of the branch family.

Aside from children born from intermarriage, the rest of the branch family members had all once been potential heirs to the main branch.

Under such a cruel system, members of the branch family rarely intermarried, and the elders of the main branch were also unwilling to have many children.

Of course, there was another exception: clansmen born unable to awaken the Byakugan.

They were born with the black or brown eyes of ordinary people.

The Caged Bird Seal, nominally meant to protect the Byakugan, was completely unnecessary for these individuals.

As a result, these people had become the most numerous group within the Hyuga Clan, and correspondingly, they held the lowest status.

Now, waiting at Xingzhuo's door were two branch family members.

In the room next door, the ordinary clansmen were busy cutting paper.

As he reached the doorway, he saw the two people waiting there.

They noticed his arrival immediately.

The two women, one older and one younger, knelt down to pay their respects.

"Greetings, Master Xingzhuo!" x2

Xingzhuo waved his hand, signaling them to rise. "We don't do kneeling here. Come inside and let's talk."

With that, he led the way inside.

Passing the room where the paper was being cut, Xingzhuo stopped to arrange for them to go eat, rest for two hours, and then return to help with the cutting.

To be honest.

He wanted to detain these people and have them responsible for cutting paper for him in the future.

It was just that he hadn't figured out how to detain them yet.

Oh no, how to keep them here.

Leading the two into the reception room, it took some effort to get them to accept the existence of chairs. After settling them down, Xingzhuo finally had the opportunity to observe them.

These were two women with somewhat similar features.

To be honest, even within the Hyuga Clan, where appearances are generally similar due to the Byakugan, these two women looked remarkably alike.

He didn't know which one was Hyuga Shiin and which was Hyuga Ren.

Regardless, one had the gentle appearance of someone around thirty, while the other had the raw, youthful look of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old.

Both wore washed-out, faded cloth garments, and their hands were covered in calluses.

The younger one wore her hair in a shrine maiden style, using bangs to cover the Caged Bird Seal.

The older one wore her hair somewhat casually, simply tied at the back.

Neither wore a Konoha forehead protector; it seemed they were clan ninja who had not entered the village's official ninja system.

Judging by the distribution of calluses on their hands, they were clearly veteran Gentle Fist practitioners.

Their strength shouldn't be anything to scoff at.

He just didn't know what their personalities were like, or if they could be turned into his own people.

Thinking this, he cast a system scan on the two women.

A simple glance told him the older woman was Shiin, and the younger one was Ren.

Judging by their chakra levels, it was no surprise that Shiin had the capacity of a veteran Chunin, a full 4500 points.

Ren had 1900 points, a level between Genin and Chunin.

Both only knew the most basic Three Body Technique and Gentle Fist; they knew no other taijutsu or ninjutsu.

During the time Xingzhuo was observing and pondering.

The reception room was terrifyingly quiet, especially after the paper-cutters had left; even the rustling sounds had vanished, which made the two women, who had been waiting all morning, grow increasingly uneasy.

Meanwhile, Xingzhuo was still unconsciously tapping his knuckles against the tabletop.

"Da... da... da..."

This seemed to be some kind of grating sound.

It made their throats tighten and cold sweat break out.

It wasn't until Xingzhuo saw their clothes beginning to dampen that he realized he had been silent for too long, so he spoke up:

"I requested you both because I lack people to do things for me. I don't require my subordinates to be exceptionally powerful or loyal; I only hope they will not betray me easily."

"In return, I will grant them respect and compensation, and I will not betray them easily."

"Barring any accidents, you will be working for me from now on, so please introduce yourselves first. Name, age, what you excel at, and what you like or dislike—try to tell me as much as possible."

He said this.

Suddenly thinking of something, he called out loudly: "Cousin, come here for a moment."

Then he explained: "Since it's our first meeting, it's best to get everyone acquainted all at once."

The two women stood up stiffly, nodding repeatedly to express their agreement.