Genius: Madara Uchiha

"Every leader of the Fuma Clan changed his name to Fuma Kotaro!"

Yao explained it to Mingye again, helping him understand the situation a little better. Mingye took a deep breath. This had been his plan all along, but now that the moment to act had come, he still felt weighed down. After all, more than a hundred lives were at stake. He issued Yao an order.

"Since that's the case, I understand. All right, you should leave too. Three days from now, have Uncle Shimizu bring the clansmen in to clean up. Also, prepare to seal off the mountain during this time. Anyone who tries to leave the mountain three days from now is yours to deal with!"

"Yes! Then I'll take my leave, Third Young Master!"

Yao nodded. Seeing that Mingye didn't want to discuss the plan with him, he wisely refrained from asking questions. He gave a slight nod, then vanished into the woods with the Body Flicker Technique.

"Why have I become so cold-blooded?"

Mingye stared up at the sky, eyes wide, trying to make out whether moonlight had appeared in the darkness. Then he gave a bitter, self-mocking smile.

"Hey! Mingye, there you are. These past few days have been exhausting, huh?"

Mingye was resting on a mountain path when Shangguan Yingjie's voice suddenly rang out beside him. He smiled, looked toward the sound, and replied.

"It's nothing. At least I don't have to beg for food anymore and go hungry half the time!"

Shangguan Yingjie jumped down from a tree and sat beside Mingye, teasing him with a grin.

"That's true. The clan's had plenty of food these past few days. I'll bring you some meat later to help you build up your strength!"

"Then I'll thank you in advance!"

Mingye smiled and nodded his thanks. Shangguan Yingjie looked generous, patted him on the shoulder, and boasted with a laugh.

"It's no big deal. Things have been busy lately, but once they settle down, I'll hunt a wild boar in the mountains for you to try. You wouldn't believe it—there's a whole herd of them up here, and they taste unbelievably delicious!"

"Stop talking, or I'll start drooling!"

"Hahahaha!"

Watching Shangguan Yingjie laugh so freely, with not a trace of guile, Mingye felt a pang in his heart. He no longer felt like carrying on the conversation, but he didn't let it show. Instead, he smiled at Shangguan Yingjie.

"I've rested enough. I'll be going. I still have three bundles of firewood to carry down the mountain!"

Shangguan Yingjie, ever the warmhearted one, spoke up.

"Oh! Are they still in the usual place? I'm free, so I'll help you carry them down!"

"Thanks, then!"

Mingye nodded. Shangguan Yingjie turned and ran up the mountain. Not long after he left, a small snake slid from Mingye's sleeve and coiled around his arm.

"Kid, you're wavering."

"I can't help feeling reluctant."

The little snake was Ara, Mingye's guide. Seeing Mingye lost in thought, Ara questioned him. Mingye lowered his head and answered heavily.

"Hmph! He's a ninja, and a Fuma Clan ninja at that. Do you really think that feeling sorry for him will do you any good?"

Ara looked at Mingye scornfully and challenged him. Mingye thought it over for a long while, then sighed.

"Maybe I could spare some of them."

"You're too naive!"

Ara offered Mingye no guidance at all, as if none of this mattered. It slithered back into his sleeve, while Mingye looked up once more, sighing endlessly to himself as he searched for some small measure of comfort for his conscience.

"I'll feel a little better if I do it this way."

Three days passed—not too quickly, not too slowly. The Fuma ninjas' compound was filled with laughter and celebration. The sound of gongs and drums rang out late into the night before finally quieting down.

As the lights in the ninjas' sleeping quarters gradually went out, Mingye approached slowly, step by step. Ninjas lay all around him, either drunk or dead, and none made the slightest effort to stop him. He walked unimpeded to the Fuma Clan leader's quarters.

Thump!

A kunai burst through the door just as Mingye reached it. He leaned aside to dodge, then pushed the door open. An old man with a white beard and a bald head was panting, kneeling on the wooden floor as he glared at Mingye.

"Who are you?"

"This poison is colorless and odorless. It can remain in a person's body for six hours. When it takes effect, the victim falls asleep and dies without ever realizing what happened. I didn't expect you to stay conscious this long."

Mingye looked calmly at Fuma Kotaro. He hadn't expected this either. Ara had told him that only someone with exceptionally deep chakra reserves could resist the snake venom, and there wasn't a single ninja like that among the Fuma Clan.

Fuma Kotaro shakily forced himself to his feet and glared at Mingye, shouting, "I never expected someone with not the slightest bit of chakra to have such methods. Who are you?"

"Heh. Old man, you should sit down and rest. Don't worry, this poison won't cause you any pain. Just drift off quietly and save me the trouble, all right?"

Mingye approached at an unhurried pace and stopped five meters from the old man, teasing him. Fuma Kotaro waited for his chance, then suddenly drew the soft sword at his waist and thrust it at Mingye with all his strength. Mingye stamped on the floor, making a plank spring up between them. As the sword pierced through the wood, Mingye kicked the plank, sending it spinning through the air. Fuma Kotaro lost his grip on the sword, and it flew from his hand. Mingye flicked his wrist, formed a Wind Spike in his palm, and shot it at him.

Thump!

"Who are you? Even if you're going to wipe out my entire clan, at least let me die knowing why!"

The old man's body was weak and powerless. With death close at hand, he drew a deep breath and used his last strength to question Mingye. Mingye smiled calmly and answered.

"My name is Mingye. The 'Ming' is the one in the underworld, and 'Ye' is the 'night' in deep night."

Mingye watched Fuma Kotaro, listening carefully to his heartbeat grow fainter and fainter until it stopped altogether. Only then did he turn away. But just then, a kunai skimmed past his cheek. Mingye frowned slightly, then heard a familiar voice.

"Why? Why did it have to be you?!" Shangguan Yingjie glared at Mingye in fury, his hands trembling as though he were on the verge of losing control. In Shangguan Yingjie's eyes, Mingye had truly been a good friend. There were few people his age in the clan, and even fewer like Mingye, who was so calm and willing to listen to whatever he said. Shangguan Yingjie had sincerely considered him a confidant and brother. He never expected that when they met again three days later, it would be under these circumstances.

"You shouldn't have come here!"

Mingye remained calm. He felt no guilt in the face of Shangguan Yingjie's accusation, because he had done right by his conscience. He hadn't poisoned the servants' quarters. He had poisoned only the food and drink in the ninjas' living area, intending to spare the servants and give them a chance to choose a new life.

But Shangguan Yingjie didn't take in Mingye's words, nor did he want to. The Fuma Clan was his home; it was everything to him. He had grown up here and long considered himself the spirit and soul of the Fuma. Yet on what should have been a joyous day celebrating the clan leader's birthday, everything had turned to this in a single night. He stopped wasting his words on Mingye, picked up a kunai from the ground, and charged.

Mingye sighed, quickly ducked beneath Shangguan Yingjie's thrust, then kicked him in the stomach and sent him crashing into a folding screen beside the room's entrance. He turned and headed outside.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A whirlwind burst through the door and shot toward Mingye. He dodged sideways again, while a long blade grazed his face. He kicked the ninja who had attacked him in the stomach, sending him tumbling, then sighed.

"I really don't want to kill you. I think you still have a chance to live. Hate me if you want. Maybe if you hold on to that hatred, you'll grow stronger!"

"Ah!"

Shangguan Yingjie wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and roared furiously at Mingye, as if he hadn't heard a word. He swung his blade at him again. Mingye flipped backward, trying to figure out how to make Shangguan Yingjie stop attacking him, when the ground suddenly shook and earthen spikes burst upward, trying to impale him.

Mingye arched backward and dodged the attack again, but Shangguan Yingjie wasn't about to let him go. He charged once more like a rabid dog. Just as Mingye decided to knock him unconscious, Shangguan Yingjie plunged his weapon into the ground, brought his hands together, and quickly formed hand seals.

"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"

A dragon's head rose from the ground beside Shangguan Yingjie and spat several earthen bullets at Mingye. Mingye retreated again. Just then, Ara, who had been curled around his arm and sleeping, woke up. Seeing the situation, it spoke with utter disdain, mocking Mingye.

"You used Manda's venom to kill over a hundred people, yet you're backing down for one man. Mingye, you really are a hypocrite!"

Mingye grew even more agitated. He truly couldn't bring himself to do it. It might sound ridiculous, but it was the truth. The hundred or so ninjas who had died from the poison hadn't meant much to Mingye, but killing someone with his own hands was a different matter altogether. He knew it was only a mental block, but he simply couldn't get past it. He suppressed the urge to kill and tried to preserve that little bit of goodness he still believed he had. His voice turned cold as he warned Shangguan Yingjie.

"Shangguan Yingjie, I don't want to kill you!"

Shangguan Yingjie had long since gone berserk and paid no attention to Mingye's words. Whatever Mingye said meant nothing to him. All he knew was that Mingye had destroyed his home, the place he depended on to survive, where he'd experienced every joy and sorrow of his life since childhood. Now it had become a place of restless spirits. He hurled the long blade beside him at Mingye with all his strength.

"But I want to kill you!"