At a sentry post on the outskirts of Konoha, the two on-duty ninjas were still discussing the Chunin Ninja Exams.
In the distance, Orochimaru's subordinates had already assembled.
More than a dozen of them performed the Summoning Technique at the same time.
A three-headed serpent dozens of meters long appeared. Driven by the ninjas, it broke through the defensive wall.
Aoike, hidden in the Hyuga Clan Compound, watched the maddened serpent and smiled.
More than a hundred ninjas jointly cast a barrier, enclosing the entire Hyuga compound.
Aoike shed his disguise and entered once more the place where he had once lived so cautiously, barely scraping by.
"Who's there? How dare you trespass in the Hyuga Clan Compound? Quickly—ah! You're..."
Hyuga Tokuma's expression was cold, his manner proud and haughty. Before he could finish, a flash of steel flickered.
A head rolled to the ground, its face frozen in bewilderment.
Aoike shook the blood from his blade, pulled a register from his clothes, and began checking names.
"Don't rush. The Hyuga can't compare to the Uchiha in fighting strength."
As if trying to soothe his agitated heart, Aoike murmured to himself.
Everyone who had bullied him in the clan, or abused their Main House status to throw their weight around, was on Aoike's death list.
His blade flashed, and some Branch House members, servility carved into their bones, fell beneath it as well.
Holding the register, Aoike made his way deeper into the clan shrine.
Anyone who blocked his path was either gravely wounded or killed.
He tilted his head to dodge a Main House member's Gentle Fist, then struck him in the stomach with the hilt of his blade and followed with a backhanded slash that took his head.
Rotation deflected two other ninjas' Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palms. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
The enormous fireball, ten meters across, burned the two to charcoal and blasted them apart.
Stepping into the shrine where he had once been punished, Aoike was overcome by a surreal feeling.
Looking at the Hyuga gathered before him, Aoike wore a fake smile he hadn't put on in ages.
"Long time no see, everyone."
Hyuga Hiashi's veins bulged as he stared at Aoike's smooth forehead in disbelief.
How was this possible?
"You beast! Who gave you the nerve to attack the Main—"
Bang!
The elder who had been mouthing off was kicked into the wall, while the guards around him were knocked to the ground.
The Hyuga nearby swallowed nervously, beads of sweat rolling down their cheeks.
Aoike calmly walked up to the elder lying by the mural.
His blade rose and fell, severing the elder's limbs. Blood poured from the wounds, jolting the unconscious man awake. He made incoherent noises, unable to speak; only bloody froth at the corners of his mouth bubbled up and trickled down.
Watching him writhe in agony, Aoike nodded with satisfaction.
"Now that's more like it, Elder. It's only fair if we've all experienced pain."
The Main House elder who had once delighted in punishing the Branch House was finally tasting the fruits of his actions. Some who had bullied others, and some who had been bullied, were lost in thought.
Everyone present was cowed by the bloody scene. They could only surround Aoike and wait for the clan leader to speak.
Aoike's Tenseigan swept over them. None posed a threat to him.
Through the walls, he could see more Hyuga converging on the shrine.
Aoike didn't want to wait any longer. The Hyuga, who were better suited to support, were effortless to kill—and fighting them wasn't as interesting as fighting Sasuke.
The Tenseigan gave him control over gravity. Combined with Fire Style, it had let him develop all sorts of interesting techniques.
He formed Hand Seals with one hand. A Chakra Cloak emerged from within, and searing waves of heat sent the ninjas surrounding him flying.
"Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique—Modified!"
A fire dragon more than twenty meters long rose from the ground. Aoike rode atop its ferocious head, looking down at the Hyuga reinforcements rushing toward him.
At a distance, the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm barely felt like a tickle. It couldn't even scatter the heat currents around the dragon.
This was the helplessness ordinary ninjas faced when up against an overpowered monster.
Under the Tenseigan, the once-swift ninjas were full of openings. They couldn't even entertain their enemy.
His eyes swept rapidly across their faces as all kinds of information appeared in his mind.
He ignored the enemies now denouncing him.
No one cared what a mosquito had to say. They only wanted to swat it dead.
Under the Tenseigan's control, a small black spot appeared in the fire dragon's gaping maw, as red chakra poured into it without end.
Within seconds, a tiny scarlet sun took shape, like a Dragon Ball held between the fire dragon's jaws.
"Now, let's put an end to this cage."
Boom!
The air could no longer contain the pressure and burst apart.
A pillar of fire descended from the heavens, a punishment of flames that turned everything in its path to scorched earth.
The soft ground was more tender than tofu. Yellow earth flipped open, and black ravines joined together like indecipherable symbols.
The ninjas Aoike had marked were reduced to charred remains. Countless people's clothes were soaked with sweat, then dried by the heat.
Once the scattered targets had been eliminated, Aoike looked toward a group of Main House members who had gathered together and smiled.
He guided the fire dragon's path with his finger. Under their horrified gazes, it circled and plunged down.
"Rotation!"
A few Main House members, struggling desperately at death's door, raised a blue hemisphere.
It was useless.
Flames mixed with charred ash surged into the sky, blossoming like a scarlet dandelion.
Aoike landed steadily on the ground. The technique had cost him a fifth of his chakra. It was versatile and powerful; ordinary ninjas had no chance of stopping it.
Hyuga Hiashi clenched his teeth, forced to watch as the clan's legacy crumbled.
"Finally, no one's going to interrupt us. Shall we go through this quickly?"
He didn't give them time to respond.
Aoike pulled out the register, flipped forward a few pages, and crossed out the names of those he had just eliminated. Then he took his seat at the head of the clan and began calling names.
Hyuga Ishi, Hyuga Kuchiya, Hyuga Gotoku...
The people whose names were called turned deathly pale, swaying on their feet.
No one wanted to resist anymore.
With their Byakugan, they could see better than anyone just how terrifying the person before them was.
Neither his massive, vigorous chakra nor his fearsome techniques were something they could handle.
The Hyuga's strength had a clear ceiling. The Gentle Fist relied on close-range strikes to seal the opponent's chakra points. Before Aoike had graduated, only the clan leader and a few veteran jonin had been able to clearly outmatch him in the Gentle Fist.
Who could have imagined that, years later, the boy who had once served the Main House would not only break the Caged Bird Seal but also grow this powerful?
Aoike didn't care what they thought. With every name he read, he threw a Shuriken that pierced the person's chest.
This was what it meant to be called by the Death God.