Failed Possession

Hiugo used Wood Style vines to drain Hyuga Ao's chakra dry, then wrapped them around him to crush him to death before tossing the corpse aside.

Hyuga Ao had been using chakra to control his Explosive Tags; the advantage was the ability to detonate them directly with chakra, but the disadvantage was that they became dead weight the moment he lost his chakra.

Although these Explosive Tags were decent resources, Hiugo controlled the wood to toss them far away, just to avoid any hidden triggers or traps.

After finishing this, Hiugo aimed a branch at Hyuga Zhi's head and fired. Thanks to that unknown Aburame ninja whose heart grew on the right side, he had learned that finishing moves should always be aimed at the head.

Hiugo walked over to Senju Shinji, helped him up, and asked:

"How is it? Still alive?"

Senju Shinji's abdomen was bleeding, and he said with a pale face:

"I'm fine, I won't die. Hiugo, I can walk on my own, you don't need to support me..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Hiugo vanished from where he stood, controlling wood vines to begin searching Hyuga Zhi's body.

Senju Shinji nearly collapsed, but managed to steady himself at the last second by pressing his hand against a nearby tree:

"Hiugo, what are you doing?"

"It's strange. They have the Byakugan and could have easily avoided us, yet they acted as if they were being chased by the Senju, desperate to capture me. I'm checking to see if there's something hidden on them."

"But aren't you going to check the other one?"

Hiugo looked at Senju Shinji, speechless: "It's all Explosive Tags. What am I supposed to look for, art?"

"..."

Senju Shinji silently swallowed a pill and said nothing. The "Sage of Six Paths" had provided intelligence that this person carried supplies, but now that Hiugo had discovered them, it was impossible to keep them for himself.

While the two were talking, a vine picked up a scroll. Hiugo channeled chakra into it to open it, revealing a pile of items.

Hiugo's expression grew increasingly strange. It was too weird; the two Hyuga had shown up for no reason, fought him, and were carrying a stash of supplies.

To be honest, if Senju Shinji hadn't been left in such a sorry state by this guy, he would have suspected they had some kind of special deal. After all, this wasn't a game where killing monsters dropped loot.

"How do you plan to distribute the supplies?"

"Do you want the truth or a lie?"

Senju Shinji became interested: "What's the lie? What's the truth?"

Hiugo smiled:

"The lie is: I kill you, then take all the spoils."

The youth spoke the vicious words in a gentle tone.

"And the truth?"

"One share for you, one for me, and one for the clan."

Senju Shinji's mouth twitched. He had a feeling that if he didn't agree, the truth would quickly turn into the lie.

After the two finished dividing the loot and returned to the clan grounds, there was no point in taking the Byakugan, as Hiugo's Wood Style had already drained their source chakra.

Although Senju Shinji had suppressed his injuries, he still needed urgent medical treatment, so they didn't dwell on it and headed back.

After the two had moved a considerable distance away, Black Zetsu approached to investigate. He had been observing the battle and felt that something had gone wrong when Hiugo finished off Hyuga Ao.

Hyuga Ao's Explosive Tags posed no threat to him, but after possessing the body, Black Zetsu keenly discovered something: the current Hyuga Ao's body was very weak, having lost something vital.

An ordinary person wouldn't be able to tell, but for the third child of Kaguya, it was quite easy to discern.

Black Zetsu checked Hyuga Zhi's condition as well, and the result was exactly the same.

"Wood Style that can extract source chakra... to think such a power exists."

Black Zetsu was overjoyed. He felt this was a gift from the heavens. There were many ninjas around Hiugo, including sensory types, yet there was never any intelligence suggesting he was abnormal. This meant he possessed an inherent ability to devour and absorb.

If he kept devouring, what would happen? Could he awaken the Sharingan?

Black Zetsu couldn't wait to find out, and the best way was possession.

To maintain the secrecy of his identity, he decided to wait until nightfall when everyone was sound asleep to try.

At night, after a "long" wait, Black Zetsu snuck into Hiugo's room.

Seeing Hiugo fast asleep, he immediately possessed him. In an instant, branches began to grow rapidly, stimulated by the contact.

"Useless. This kind of ninjutsu is ineffective against me. I am the third child of Kaguya."

Black Zetsu thought to himself, but as he quietly sensed everything about the young body, a sudden suction force emerged.

"What?"

Black Zetsu sensed that his own power was being extracted—though subtle, it was real, and the suction was increasing.

The black liquid surged rapidly, retreating from Hiugo's body. Looking at the drool on the youth's mouth, Black Zetsu felt a flicker of fear.

"Is this really a ninja I created?"

Black Zetsu grew suspicious, but the next second, he bolted out of the room. For some reason, a gaze had fallen upon him, followed by a second, a third, a fourth... and then it vanished in an instant.

What was going on...

Black Zetsu hated being watched. Even though it had only been for a split second, he could feel that he had been locked onto. That gaze belonged to the same eyes as his nominal brother, Otsutsuki Hagoromo.

Rinnegan...

Is it my imagination? How could that be!

In the current Warring States period, under the surveillance of Black Zetsu, it is impossible for someone to possess the Rinnegan without being noticed; furthermore, the Rinnegan is not something that can be awakened so easily.

This brat is incredibly bizarre; it is best to avoid close contact and find a way to test him further.

A flicker of wariness appeared in the depths of Black Zetsu's eyes. As a mastermind, encountering such a strange and unknown variable made it difficult to handle the situation for a moment.

If this were within the controllable circumstances he had anticipated, he would have killed him without hesitation. But now, the reincarnations of Indra are still growing, and his plan to "save Mother" remains a distant prospect.

If he were to erase this variable now, what would happen if the reincarnations of Indra and Asura were to kill each other later, and he ended up needing this boy's power?

Therefore, for the sake of Mother, he could only let this variable survive for a while longer.

Even if he grows stronger, it does not matter. How long can a ninja's lifespan possibly be? Sooner or later, he will die of old age, while he himself possesses an endless lifespan.

Thus, he is an "invincible" existence, a child destined to fulfill the mission of saving Mother.

With that, Black Zetsu submerged once more, attaching himself to Senju Shinji.

In the dream, regarding today's situation, Senju Shinji expressed anger and began to harbor suspicions toward the Sage of Six Paths.

The Sage of Six Paths did not care about this at all, for he was very familiar with the process; ninjas are greedy for benefits and filled with anger and fear when faced with danger.

He directly stated that upon waking, he would receive his gift.

The next day, Senju Shinji woke up to find that he had broken through to the peak of the Jonin level in his sleep.

One must know that he had been stuck at the elite Jonin level for many years, unable to find the feeling required to reach the peak, yet he had unexpectedly broken through following yesterday's severe injury.

Reaching the peak Jonin level meant being among the top combatants of the clan, eligible to attend the highest clan meetings and becoming a target for recruitment by various factions, instantly elevating his status significantly.

Moreover, if he had the ability, he could even strive to become one of the three clan elders—rights that an elite Jonin was not qualified for. The anger he felt toward the Sage of Six Paths vanished completely.