Everyone Has a Secret

Ninjas, at least a dozen ninjas surrounded them; in such a situation, there was almost no hope of escape.

But the pathetic Senju actually sent a child to lead the vanguard; we are not the two pieces of trash from before.

The three Uchiha ninjas had a good relationship and a certain tacit understanding; without verbal communication or eye contact, they already knew the thoughts of the other two, simultaneously using the Body Flicker Technique to rush toward Senju Shugo from three directions.

Uchiha Tadashi on the left was blocked by a tree wall, and Uchiha Shaku on the right was forced back by a Kunai combined with an Explosive Tag, but this also created an opportunity for the last person.

"Hate your own hot-bloodedness and youth; you've just won me a chance at survival."

Uchiha Chen shouted loudly, his eyes meeting the boy's, one hand gripping the boy's throat as he laughed wildly:

"Don't any of you come over, or this brat will lose his life!"

The surrounding Senju ninjas stood calmly in place, without the slightest movement, as if they were puppets.

It was too quiet all around; there wasn't even a whisper of wind.

Uchiha Chen sensed something was wrong and hurriedly looked at his two clansmen, only to find them standing foolishly in place, staring at him blankly without moving.

A drop of cold sweat slid down his cheek, and a conjecture formed in his mind, but he desperately denied it, because this was even harder to accept than being killed himself.

A dignified member of the Uchiha clan had actually fallen into the genjutsu of a Senju brat.

I don't accept this! This must be fake, yes, this must be fake, how could a Senju make me fall into a genjutsu...

"You should thank Uchiha Niji; if it weren't for the pressure he provided, my genjutsu wouldn't have improved so quickly. It's over."

A sharp pain suddenly surged from his eyes, pulling him back to reality; he could no longer feel the eyeballs in his sockets, there was not a trace of Chakra left in his body, and his feet were entangled by something.

"Tadashi, Shaku, where are you two guys?"

Uchiha Chen revealed a hint of panic; when people crave certain things, they are also afraid of losing them.

Two corpses lay to his left and right, but having lost his eyes, he could no longer see; he could only feel a killing intent approaching.

Shugo looked indifferent as he decapitated him, then ordered an elite Jonin.

"Take Itama back for treatment."

Upon seeing Shugo, the tension in Itama's nerves suddenly relaxed, and combined with the pain of having just lost both arms, he passed out directly.

This elite Jonin's specialty was speed, and he knew a bit of medical ninjutsu; he protected Itama with water-attribute Chakra and sealed the two severed arms into a scroll before immediately starting to run toward the clan grounds.

The Uchiha did not disdain using poison on their blades, but the force of the swing was not light; the area cut by the katana was not smooth and flat, leaving behind broken bone spurs as if they had been forcefully torn off after being half-cut.

"I don't know if 'Rei' can reattach them."

Shugo sighed; he knew something was up when he returned this time, so he had used all sorts of wheedling and pestering to bring this medical ninja, Senju Rei, back with him.

The price was building her a large wooden house, with "warranty" services added afterward.

Bringing out so many ninjas was not only to support Itama but also to recover the bodies of his clansmen and check on the Kurohane clan.

Regardless of the reason, it was the ninjas of the Kurohane clan who caused the problems in this operation, and according to Butsuma's temperament, he should find someone to vent the pain of his beloved son's severed arms.

Whether it was to confirm the route or to rescue them, going to take a look was fine.

However, as the distance grew closer, a sensory ninja ran directly to Shugo's side to stop him, saying:

"Young Master Shugo, there's no need to go; that place is full of that cold Uchiha Chakra. The Kurohane clan is already gone."

"I understand."

Shugo could only lead his men back the way they came.

Now that the Kurohane clan hadn't been wiped out, they were still severely crippled; for Butsuma, they had no value for a "punitive expedition," and likewise, they had no value for Shugo.

After returning to the clan grounds, Senju Butsuma, upon learning of Itama's encounter, immediately sent the ninja responsible for recording missions to the front lines, and incidentally killed the Kurohane ninja who had been left at the clan grounds.

Because Senju Rei did not usually live there, the location arranged for her was the room of a clansman who had gone to the front lines to fight; at this moment, many people had appeared at the door.

"How is the situation?"

Shugo found the elite Jonin responsible for bringing Itama and asked.

"Lord Rei said that because the bleeding was stopped in time and due to the vitality of a Senju clansman's physique, there is no danger to his life, but it won't be possible to reattach his arms for a while."

The elite Jonin answered honestly.

"Then why are so many people here?"

"Lord Rei is treating him, they don't dare to disturb her, and since they aren't 'our own people,' I didn't tell them the situation..."

"...This matter can be told."

The elite Jonin nodded and began to walk toward the crowd.

Shugo whispered: "Tobirama, eavesdropping is not a good habit."

Tobirama removed his disguise tools and looked at Shugo, transmitting his voice via Chakra:

"How did you know Itama would run into trouble?"

Shugo also transmitted his voice via Chakra:

"I was worried about Itama, so I started checking his mission, and analyzed it through the people, the mission, and the map."

Tobirama shook his head slightly:

"You're too fast. Your movements are far too hurried. If this were just a whim, you would never be in such a rush. I checked a mission scroll myself when I heard Itama was going out on assignment, so I know exactly what the standard procedure is."

"Hiugo, I am not trying to use this matter to threaten you. I only want you to understand that Itama is my brother as well. If something were to truly happen to our kin, regardless of the circumstances, I would save him if it were within my power."

Hiugo looked at him with some confusion:

"Aren't you curious how I knew Itama was in trouble?"

Tobirama remained very calm:

"Everyone has secrets. Am I supposed to investigate every single one of them?"

"I only know that you are my brother, a member of the Senju clan who would go to great lengths to protect a younger sibling. That is enough."

Hiugo curled the corner of his lips; this feeling of being trusted didn't seem half bad.

After the elite jonin finished explaining the specific situation, the clansmen at the door left one by one. Only Butsuma, Hashirama, and Tobirama remained outside the room, waiting for Itama to wake up.

Hiugo had originally intended to stay with them, but Butsuma personally escorted him back home.

"Regardless of the reason this time, regardless of how you found out about the mission issues, and regardless of what you have done, I will not pursue this any further."

Butsuma left that sentence behind and did not linger, returning instead to the room where Senju Rei was staying.

"Do you think I care about your word?"

Hiugo pursed his lips. The situation had largely followed the standard process; the only issues were the lack of approval from the clan head and taking clansmen out privately, which at worst amounted to an overreach of authority.

According to clan rules, he might have to spend a few days in the dungeon for discipline, but such a punishment was painless for Hiugo—at most, it would just be a different environment for his training.

One had to know that the dungeon was full of "talents," including many ninjas from other clans with various unique constitutions. It would be the perfect opportunity to let them sample his signature cuisine 7.0; it was killing two birds with one stone.

Because Senju Butsuma had to look after his son, Hiugo's own father, Senju Genma, was handling affairs directly at the clan head's residence and likely wouldn't be returning home for several days.

This wasn't the first time Genma had done this. As Butsuma's former right-hand man, their handwriting and habits overlapped significantly, to the point of being almost identical.