Chapter 23

It was common knowledge that Hyuga Tetsue and Hyuga Akisetsu had left the meeting midway. Few clans in the entire Ninja World dared to snub both the Uchiha and the Senju, but at this point, the Hyuga had the confidence to do so.

After they returned, neither man ordered an immediate pursuit. Instead, each recalled some of the pursuers. Hyuga Akisetsu used the incident to undermine Hyuga Tetsue's faction, greatly weakening its power. It seemed only a matter of time before the Hyuga Clan chose a true head. Meanwhile, the branch family members who had escaped reached their destination without trouble.

Few people knew the details of the incident, but the Uchiha were not among them. They had been watching the Hyuga around the clock.

Speaking of the incident, two people deserved special attention: Hyuga Ryosuke and Hyuga Shin. The former had already taken his own life, so there was little more to say about him. The latter had undoubtedly become the leader of the branch family members who had escaped.

Hyuga Shin, male, twenty years old. A once-in-a-century genius of the Hyuga Branch Family. Three S-Rank missions, seventeen A-Rank missions, forty-two B-Rank Missions, and twenty-nine C-Rank missions. Calm and composed, gentle yet patient, soft on the outside but firm within. Strong-willed, intelligent, peaceful, and unassuming.

Uchiha Tai knew that Xingyi admired this peer of his—not only for his outstanding abilities, but also for the air about him, which bore a slight resemblance to the clan head.

So, could his grandson set aside personal likes and dislikes and deal with this matter solely in the clan's interests?

Someone in the branch family had once suggested that Hyuga Shin ally with the Uchiha or Senju to counter the Main Family's power. The ever-composed man had answered with crystal clarity, "Setting aside whether we can offer them more than the Main Family can, enough to maintain their protection, we will always bear the name Hyuga. The dignity of the Hyuga must not be violated."

With Hyuga Shin at the helm, the Hyuga Branch Family would never serve the Uchiha. Uchiha Tai could see that the Hyuga's hopes of prosperity rested with him. So did the opportunity for their decline... provided Hyuga Shin died.

Publicly support the Main Family while secretly backing the branch family. Once the time was right, let the Hyuga Main Family and branch family tear each other apart, kill Hyuga Shin amid the chaos, and drive the two sides into a fight to the death. Then ensure the Main Family's victory, allowing them to continue suppressing the branch family and planting the seeds of division... It was an utterly sinister, ruthless, and shameless approach, but using one's enemy to eliminate another was common in politics. If Xingyi could really pull it off, he would have officially graduated.

"That goes against the spirit of the samurai!" The samurai yelled at the boy kneeling before him. "Are we supposed to sink to the same level of shamelessness as those ninjas?"

The boy ignored him completely. He lifted his head and stared intently at the man behind the blinds. The man had remained silent throughout.

"My lord! Don't listen to this brat! Doing this will only bring unnecessary disaster upon us!"

"Leave!" the man behind the blinds suddenly barked.

The samurai stared at him in disbelief. "My lord...?"

"I said, leave!"

"...Yes." The samurai bowed reluctantly. Before leaving, he shot one last furious glare at the boy, who remained kneeling calmly.

After a long while, the man's strained voice came from behind the blinds. "Will this really work?"

The boy answered at length. "The question isn't whether it will work. You have no other way out. The nobles at home have seized power and are eyeing your position. The Land of Wind has been manipulated into falling out with our country, and you've grown distant from the Senju Clan. Our country is now isolated and helpless. Even with fertile land that can provide for us, we're still just a juicy prize in other people's eyes. If those two clans really join forces, we'll never be able to recover."

"Senju Hashirama... isn't that kind of man," the man said uncertainly.

"You've wielded power for years, and you still believe in something as unreliable as 'good character'?" the boy retorted. "Isn't it better to nip trouble in the bud, even at a hundred times the effort, as soon as the first hint appears? No matter what, Senju Hashirama has his own clan's interests to consider. How could he stand entirely on your side? We have to act while the two clans are still at odds, so we can minimize the forces drawn into this and ensure our own safety."

"I'll think it over..."

"My lord, Uchiha Madara isn't an ordinary ninja. His ambitions extend far beyond the Ninja World. Look at how the Land of Lightning is already his domain. With its superior conditions, the Land of Fire is bound to be his next target!"

If Madara had heard those words, he would surely have been impressed. The boy had read his intentions perfectly. Since he and Hashirama had agreed to build a city in the Land of Fire, Madara's unwillingness to submit to anyone had already led him to weigh whether to conquer the Land of Fire before the city was built or seize power after it was built.

The man behind the blinds was clearly swayed. Anyone who coveted power was keenly sensitive to the actions of those who coveted it from them. He could certainly sense the feeling of being watched by a predator.

"What if they retaliate—"

The boy's eyes shone with bold confidence. "We'll see the results of the strategy you adopted on my advice soon. The Uchiha Clan has already sent people to the Land of Fire. What happened at the negotiations was a disgrace, so they'll surely purge their own ranks. Afterward, their influence in the Land of Fire will be greatly diminished. You can use the opportunity to reclaim more control, shift the blame onto them, and secure your power in the Land of Fire. They're on the road now, with very few guards. It's a rare opportunity! If we succeed, the Uchiha will be too busy to bother you for a while, and without Uchiha Madara, they're no longer a threat. Even if we fail, as long as you remain the daimyo, no ninja will dare lay a hand on you!"

A fierce gust swept through the pass between the hills, carrying the thick stench of blood. Corpses were strewn across the ground, while attackers continued streaming toward them from behind and down the slopes. With enemies lying in wait ahead and pursuers behind, the guards had all activated their Sharingan. Their repeated Fire Release attacks lit up the entire valley.

They'd traveled for five days without incident, only to be ambushed four miles from the Land of Lightning!

Uchiha Zhi wiped the blood from his face. The man who usually played dumb and joked around now looked utterly cold. He looked back and rasped an order. "Stay alert! Nobody leaves the formation to pursue them!"

The attackers kept their eyes on the ground, swooping down from higher elevations and killing anyone in their path. This greatly reduced the effectiveness of the guards' Sharingan. Fortunately, the Uchiha were skilled in both Taijutsu and ninjutsu. Though fewer than twenty in number, they had already repelled four waves of ninja—more than two hundred in all.

More than two hundred... Uchiha Zhi abruptly looked up at the dark mass crowding the mountaintop. His murderous Sharingan whirled furiously. Not enough! There were still at least a thousand enemies!

Kunai rained down, leaving almost no way for those below to dodge. At last, Madara, who had remained motionless until then, raised a hand. Ice-blue chakra spun upward and formed a barrier, instantly shattering the steel kunai.

The Uchiha seized their brief moment of respite and, ignoring the countless wounds covering their bodies, charged once more to meet the attackers surging down the slope.

Madara strolled unhurriedly over the corpses, casually deflecting attacks from every direction. He even pressed his foot down just enough to crush the chests of a few ninjas who weren't quite dead, then continued on as if nothing had happened.

He slashed a ninja's throat with a backhand, dodged a samurai's long blade, then shattered the man's spine with a backward kick. Uchiha Zhi's Sharingan analyzed the enemies' next moves without pause, searching for openings to strike. His mind was utterly blank. The kunai gripped between his fingers thrust along precise trajectories without conscious thought. After more than three hours of slaughter, the burning pain in his Sharingan only made the scene before him grow clearer.

Suddenly, a hand seized his wrist, while another, cool palm firmly covered his eyes. Uchiha Zhi stiffened all over, yet couldn't bring himself to resist.

A moment later, a calm, low voice sounded beside his ear. "Zhi, practice time is over."

The hands released him. Uchiha Zhi's gaze grew vacant for an instant, the red in his eyes fading before his vision cleared again. "...My lord?"

He turned and found himself looking straight into Uchiha Madara's brilliant red eyes.

"You really surprised me, Zhi." Madara smiled. "Open your Mangekyō Sharingan and see what it can do."

As Madara finished speaking, enormous flames suddenly erupted across the surrounding slopes, filling the world with despair.

Uchiha Zhi blankly touched his eyes and murmured in disbelief and delight, "...Amaterasu?!"