"The new daimyo has been going too far lately! Does he even have any regard for the Yuki Clan anymore!?"
This was the ancestral hall of the Yuki Clan, a bloodline clan in the Land of Water. Many of the clan's key members had gathered here, all seething with indignation. The target of their condemnation was none other than the current daimyo of the Land of Water!
The Land of Water was an island nation on the edge of the continent, and it had always been known for its mystery.
But mystery did not necessarily mean anything good. In truth, the history of the Land of Water could be summed up in just two words—slaughter...
Its mystery came directly from its unique geography and history. The Land of Water was so fond of internal strife that it had no time for diplomacy. It had even been too lazy to take part in the Third Shinobi World War.
After wave upon wave of slaughter, the Land of Water had not only gained the most ruthless and cold-blooded ninja forces in the world, but had also continued to break the Five Great Nations' record for the highest rate of turnover among old and new ninja clans.
The Yuki Clan was one such clan. They had risen through war, but now the achievements of the past had become a death warrant. Such tactics were nothing new in the Land of Water.
The new daimyo seemed to have no intention of hiding his designs. As he tightened the screws, the Yuki Clan had finally begun to recognize the dangers lurking beneath its prosperity. The tension between the clan and the daimyo had grown increasingly volatile.
That was why the Yuki Clan was openly criticizing the daimyo at its family meeting. The conflict between them had become all but irreconcilable...
But the resentment the daimyo had stirred up among the Yuki Clan was clearly intense. The younger members' words soon threatened to get out of hand. They were on the verge of insulting the new daimyo's immediate family.
Ah, youth... So ignorant, and yet so fearless...
"Silence! What kind of ninja criticizes his own lord behind his back?"
At the head of the hall, an elderly man raised his brows. The clan members' remarks were becoming increasingly outrageous, and things would soon get out of hand. He had no choice but to intervene.
Even if the two sides were already openly at odds, a ninja who criticized his country's daimyo behind his back would give others ammunition if word got out. The Yuki Clan already had enough trouble; it didn't need any more.
In this world, ninja existed as a military force and were highly dependent on their countries. Even the Five Kage needed their daimyo present to vote in their elections. The relationship between the two sides was a delicate one.
But the Yuki Clan was not Kirigakure. Though it had drawn some clans to its side, it could never reach the level of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. In fact, an organization like theirs couldn't even compare to a mid-sized ninja village.
To a daimyo, ninja were tools. The Five Great Shinobi Villages were a different matter, but a single ninja clan, no matter how battle-hardened, was nothing to fear.
The old man seemed to command great respect. At his words, the hall quickly fell silent...
Seeing this, he nodded in satisfaction.
"Remember who we are. We are ninja, and ninja have their own rules. And today's meeting isn't to discuss the daimyo's actions. It's to decide what our clan should do about Yuki Qi!"
The name Yuki Qi seemed to have some kind of magic power. Everyone present fell silent, and a deathly stillness descended...
"Elder, I believe that even if the sky falls, the Yuki Clan must protect its own!"
After a long pause, a young clan member was the first to bow to the old man.
He seemed to represent the views of most of the younger generation. As he spoke, a large number of young clan members nodded in unison.
Unlike most bloodline clans, the Yuki Clan had no Main Family or branch families. Anyone who possessed the clan's bloodline was given the Yuki surname and carefully cultivated. Those who did not were not even allowed to bear the name Yuki.
In the truest sense, the Yuki Clan consisted of those who bore the Yuki name and possessed its bloodline. Every newborn Yuki was an irreplaceable treasure to the clan.
The reason was simple: the Yuki bloodline followed no discernible pattern. Anyone with Yuki blood could awaken its kekkei genkai. Awakening it after skipping a generation, or in another branch of the family, was common.
Every person who bore the Yuki name was one of a kind. New Yuki could only appear through sheer luck, and almost none of them were direct descendants. In other words, generations could separate them by a great span of time...
Under these circumstances, Yuki Qi was only six years old, yet he had awakened his bloodline at the age of four. His importance to the clan went without saying.
But there was a serious problem... This was exactly what had troubled the Yuki Clan for six years, and was the reason they had been forced to confine Yuki Qi for the time being.
The problem was this—Yuki Qi's father wasn't from the Yuki Clan. He was a member of the Kaguya Clan!
In the world of ninja, that was a very serious matter...
For a bloodline clan, the purity of its bloodline was a matter of survival. Whether it was the powerful Yuki or Kaguya Clans, or even the weakest bloodline clan, all took the same stance on preventing their bloodline from being passed outside the clan.
Yuki Qi's parents had undoubtedly broken one of the Shinobi World's most important rules. After the Yuki Clan captured them, it brought Yuki Qi, the fruit of their love, back to the clan as well.
But the Yuki Clan only sent the man from the Kaguya Clan back. They kept Yuki Qi. This had entangled the Yuki and Kaguya Clans for six whole years.
When it came to bloodlines being passed outside the clan, even the Kaguya Clan—whose members had plenty of muscle but little brains—knew to stand by its principles.
It was a pity, but the clan had no choice but to confine Yuki Qi for the time being. In the blink of an eye, the baby of years past had become a six-year-old boy.
If they kept him locked up any longer, even if Yuki Qi was willing, the Yuki Clan wouldn't be. That was especially true after he awakened his bloodline at four... Every bloodline wielder was incredibly precious! If they waited any longer, they would miss the best time to train him!
As the Yuki Clan saw it, protecting Yuki Qi was clearly preferable to offending the Kaguya Clan.
This family meeting had originally been meant to hold a final vote on what to do about Yuki Qi. But after a few remarks, it had turned into a loud denunciation of the daimyo of the Land of Water...
This left the old man dissatisfied, but also uneasy...
The old man had once been a formidable warrior on the battlefield. He had seen countless schemes and plots, and the recent atmosphere had put him on high alert.
His vigilance and concern came not only from the daimyo, but from the clan as well...
As the strongest bloodline clan in the Land of Water, the Yuki Clan seemed to have grown far too arrogant. The clan members' casual mockery of the current daimyo was proof of that attitude.
But was the daimyo someone they could mock at will? Or had his recent actions already made his impatience clear?
What are you thinking, daimyo...? What good could come to the Land of Water from eliminating so many of its ninja clans like this...?
Looking at the eager faces below, the old man felt a headache coming on.
The daimyo's recent actions were practically forcing the Yuki Clan to rebel! Judging by the clan members' reactions, he was succeeding.
Have you really made up your mind to wipe out our clan!?
His brows furrowed deeply. At his age, he had long since outgrown any so-called "impulsiveness," so he gave the many young people an answer they would hate.
He wanted to win the clan one last chance to survive, however slim it might be.
"Elder, Yuki Qi is one of us. It's not for outsiders to meddle in our affairs. I don't think we should give in on this. The daimyo is the more important issue now!"
The young clan member who had spoken earlier saw the elder sink into thought again and grew impatient.
That, too, was characteristic of the Yuki Clan. Though its history as a clan stretched back much further, it had not risen to prominence until recently, making it a young aristocratic clan. Here, only the elders didn't have a monopoly on the right to speak. The true Yuki Clan was small enough that everyone was entitled to take part in family matters.
The young man's impatient words represented the views of most of the clan. They looked at him with approval, then turned back to the old man, clearly hoping he would give them an answer.
They had no idea how laughable... and shortsighted... the old man found the sight.
"Is that so...? Since you want an answer, then I have only one word: endure!"
"What!?"
The hall erupted. The older members managed to stay somewhat calm and think it through, but the younger ones were furious.
"Elder, how can we endure this? If our strength keeps being whittled away, we won't have the means to fight back!"
The young man who had asked the question clearly disagreed. He couldn't accept an answer like that. He wanted to settle scores with a satisfying fight.
"Why can't we endure it? Do you think we can 'fight back' now? Or do you think we can win if we rebel right now?"
The old man's gaze remained calm as he looked at the young clan members one by one.
"We're ninja, not samurai. When we need to endure, we endure! Discard pointless pride. Ninja have no need for unnecessary vanity."
The clan had enjoyed far too much success over the years. The younger members seemed to have forgotten that they were ninja, not samurai.
"How many clans have been wiped out in the Land of Water? Has that still not made you wary? Or do you think our clan is strong enough to stand against the entire Land of Water?"
The old man's tone was perfectly calm, but each sentence hit harder than the last. The noise in the hall gradually died down until silence settled over it...
Still, a considerable number of people in the crowd looked unhappy. They were all young. Even the older members might disagree, but at least they wouldn't let it show on their faces.
The old man's authority could suppress them on the surface, but it could not change what they believed deep down.
The old man knew what these clan members were thinking, so he stopped wasting his breath. The Yuki Clan's situation now was exactly like that of the clans that had been wiped out years ago. It made him feel even more sorrowful.
"That's enough. All of you, leave. Bring me Yuki Qi."
The clan members were so frivolous and shortsighted. The Yuki Clan's destruction seemed inevitable. If someone was fated to die, there was no saving them. It was time to make plans for the future...
Looking at the clan members, one by one, with their complete lack of concern and their utterly clueless expressions, the old man finally gave up on them.
"Elder."
The old man's sudden coldness surprised the clan members, but at least they understood what he meant.
One by one, the clan members bowed to the old man and left the ancestral hall. Soon, only two people remained inside.
"Do you need something?"
The old man narrowed his eyes and looked at his only disciple, the current head of the Yuki Clan.
"Master..."
The middle-aged man who had stayed behind looked a little embarrassed.
"About Qi..."
"You don't need to worry about that... Leave."
The old man almost wanted to laugh.
He knew what his disciple was thinking. But just the same, the entire clan probably had no idea what he planned to do with Yuki Qi.
In the old man's eyes, Yuki Qi was now worth far more than just being a bloodline heir...
The clan members were beyond saving. If even a single spark could be preserved, then it had to be preserved...
"But... Qi doesn't possess Shikotsumyaku. Please, Master, keep that in mind and don't agree to the Kaguya Clan's demands. Leave our clan with a bloodline..."
The middle-aged man didn't leave. He wanted to finish what he had to say. After all, he was the old man's disciple; they weren't strangers.
"You're a Yuki too. How can you say something so childish?"
The old man scoffed and immediately countered the middle-aged man's words.
"He awakened the ability to control water. Does that mean he couldn't awaken Shikotsumyaku as well? Have there been no cases of dual bloodlines in the history of the Land of Water? If you were from the Kaguya Clan, would you dare take that risk?"
"I..."
The middle-aged man was left speechless, because he knew the old man was telling the truth.
Still, protecting one's own was human nature, and the Yuki Clan's unique method of passing down its bloodline had made it especially protective of its members...
Otherwise, given the old man's personality, he wouldn't have confined Yuki Qi. He would have killed him outright. That kind of thing was common in the Shinobi World—and it was supposedly a solution that left both sides empty-handed...
For a detailed example, just look at the unfortunate father of Neji Hyuga...
More importantly, the head of the Yuki Clan had seen the same cruel reality as the old man. He, too, had placed great hopes in Yuki Qi as a "spark" that might preserve the clan's future.
Though he had completely misjudged what his master intended to do...
In truth, once the old man decided to act, he was far more thorough than his disciple...
"Don't interfere in this. The boy will be fine. Go."
The old man waved a hand, a trace of impatience finally showing on his face.
"As head of a great clan, you're far too indecisive! Go do what you're supposed to do! Leave this to me!"