Do My Ancestors Need to Be Auctioned?

The thick fog, like viscous ghostly hands, gripped the outline of the reef tightly, making this steel island that should not have existed seem ever more eerie between sea and sky.

Xuan's footsteps landed on the slick alloy deck without making a sound.

The tattered cloak of a Hidden Stone Village rogue ninja he wore had been shredded at the edges by the sea wind until it resembled rotten cotton, yet it perfectly concealed his agile frame and the killing intent lurking within.

The chakra membrane simulated by the system covered his right eye like a layer of thin ice, disguising the Mangekyō Sharingan that could overturn the tide of battle as an ordinary three-tomoe form, cold and vigilant.

"Stop. Wanted notice."

At the entrance, two guards in sealed black combat suits blocked his path. Their voices sounded like iron filings squeezed out from behind metal masks.

They wore no forehead protectors from any ninja village. The only thing on them was a twisted one-eyed emblem on their chests, emanating an ominous aura.

Xuan obediently handed over the carefully forged wanted notice in his hand. The photograph on it matched his current face perfectly, and the charge read: "Stealing classified scrolls from Earth Shadow Village."

First verification: documents.

The guard took the wanted notice and inserted it into a slot beside him.

A red light swept over it, and the device emitted a soft beep, indicating a successful database match.

"Hold out your left hand."

Second verification: chakra.

One guard's palm glowed with an earthy yellow radiance as he pressed it against Xuan's forearm.

A sluggish current of chakra entered his body, carefully probing the nature of his internal energy.

Xuan had long used the system to adjust his chakra fluctuations. What he displayed now was precisely the dense, steady quality expected of a Hidden Stone Village ninja proficient in Earth Release.

The guard nodded and signaled for the next test.

"One drop of blood."

The third—and most dangerous—verification: bloodline.

A small ball of golden liquid emerged from the other guard's fingertip, radiating astonishing heat like molten gold.

This was the Gold-Melting Art, a secret technique specifically used to test bloodlines possessing advanced ocular techniques.

It was said that Rinnegan chakra was fundamentally different from ordinary bloodlines and would produce a unique energy reaction under the burning of this secret technique.

Xuan's expression did not change as he extended his index finger.

The guard pricked his fingertip with a fine needle, and a drop of bright red blood was enveloped by the golden liquid.

The blood quickly evaporated under the high heat with a faint sizzle, but there was no abnormal energy fluctuation.

"Go in." The guard stepped aside and opened the way.

Xuan stepped into the deep, dark passage. The instant his figure was swallowed by shadow, the miniature biological crystal implanted in his spine sent out an almost imperceptible tremor.

A line of ghostly blue data projected directly onto his retina: "Warning: High concentration of forbidden technique chakra residue detected. Bloodline seal fluctuations ×7. Target 'Kaguya Chiori' life signal locked, located in the deep well level of Zone B."

The passage suddenly opened up at its end.

A massive circular, stepped underground marketplace appeared before him, like the inverted maw of some colossal beast.

At its center stood a brightly lit auction platform, surrounded by dozens of private rooms partitioned by translucent chakra barriers, clearly reserved for distinguished guests.

More unidentified casual buyers like Xuan were mixed among the tiered seats below, their faces and greed alike concealed by the shadows.

Xuan quietly blended into the casual buyers' section and sat down in an inconspicuous corner.

His right hand shifted slightly, and several grains of Magnet Release iron sand, only a little larger than dust, slipped through his fingers and silently seeped into the cracks in the floor.

It was a habit he had developed over the years. In any unfamiliar environment, he had to plant the pieces for a counterattack in advance.

His gaze swept across the venue, and before long, an appraiser wearing a spiral mask in the corner caught his attention.

The man was speaking softly with a buyer beside him. His voice was quiet, yet every word reached Xuan's ears.

"...The bloodline is impure, but the bones' vitality is abnormally astonishing. This girl isn't a purebred Kaguya. It's more like someone used some forbidden life technique to forcibly reverse-activate an ancient genetic fragment sleeping in the deepest part of her bloodline. Tsk, tsk. A mad yet brilliant piece of work."

Xuan's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

That voice, that tone of complete familiarity with bloodline limits—Hozuki Suigetsu!

The man who had once served Orochimaru, who possessed a pathological obsession with human anatomy and the deconstruction of bloodline limits.

What was he doing here?

Xuan immediately made a decision. After the battle, this man had to be captured alive. The secrets he knew far exceeded anyone's imagination.

"Clang—!"

A crisp gong sounded, and the auction officially began.

A huge steel cage slowly rose from the central auction platform.

A frail girl with white hair trailing to the ground was suspended in midair in an extremely humiliating posture, four thick chains piercing through her shoulder blades and pelvis.

She was completely naked, her skin so pale it was almost translucent. Tiny white bone spikes could vaguely be seen writhing beneath it, as though countless living creatures were struggling inside her body.

In an exaggerated, feverish tone, the host announced loudly, "Distinguished guests! Item Number Nine tonight, and also the most precious specimen—'Living Dead Bone Pulse: Mutated Strain'! Within her lies the most primordial secret of the Kaguya Clan. Whether used for bloodline transplantation or as research material, she is a priceless treasure! Starting bid: three million taels of gold! Minimum increase: one hundred thousand each time!"

The three tomoe in Xuan's right eye slowly turned as his ocular power gathered to its limit.

The analysis ability of [Myriad Phenomena Return to the Eye] activated silently. In his vision, the chaotic chakra flow within the girl's body was laid bare with perfect clarity.

Her life force was draining at an unprecedented rate, and her chakra system was on the verge of collapse. Yet at the brink of every collapse, an extremely faint but ancient pulse, old enough to make one's heart tremble, erupted and forcibly pulled her vital signs back.

That pulse... came from the same source as the aura he had sensed beneath Naka River Shrine, within the Stele Forest Remnant Souls left behind by the Sage of Six Paths!

Xuan understood instantly.

This girl was no accidental bloodline mutation. She was a vessel, an artificially created "key" intended to awaken some sleeping power!

"Three and a half million!"

"Four million!"

"Four point two million!"

The bids rose one after another, quickly climbing to an astonishing figure.

Among them, three ninjas dressed in identical attire and bearing steady auras were especially conspicuous. Their forehead protectors bore the character "Shadow." They were elite ninja from the mysterious organization Shadow Flow, which had risen to fame in recent years.

"Five million taels of gold!" Shadow Flow's representative bid coldly, his powerful presence making the surrounding bidders hesitate.

The entire venue fell briefly silent. That price had already exceeded what most could afford.

Just as the host was about to bring down the hammer, Xuan suddenly rose from his seat.

He did not call out a bid. Instead, he flicked his arm, and an ancient bronze fragment shot toward the auction platform like a streak of light, embedding itself in the wooden table before the host with a clang.

"I offer this." Xuan's voice was not loud, but it traveled clearly throughout the venue. "A fragment of a sealing formula personally drawn by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. It records three hand seal sequences from Planetary Devastation that have never been made public."

"Boom—!"

The entire venue erupted!

Planetary Devastation!

That was the forbidden technique said to have been used by the Sage of Six Paths to seal the Ten-Tails!

Even if it was only several unreleased hand seal sequences, its value far surpassed mere gold!

For any ninja or organization pursuing the pinnacle of power, it was an irresistible temptation!

The host picked up the bronze fragment with trembling hands and carefully passed it to the appraiser team nearby.

Several minutes later, the chief appraiser's face was flushed red with excitement as he nodded heavily at the host.

"It's... it's real! This chakra residue unquestionably belongs to the First Hokage himself!"

"Sold!" The host brought down the hammer, his voice warping with excitement.

"Bastard!" Shadow Flow's representative sprang to his feet, killing intent surging from him as though he intended to attack on the spot.

But his companion immediately held him back and said in a low voice, "Don't forget the rules here! At Nether Eye Reef, the cult's rules are supreme. Private fighting is forbidden!"

The elite ninja could only sit back down resentfully, his cold gaze locking onto Xuan like a venomous snake.

The transaction began.

Two guards escorted the iron cage over to Xuan.

At the moment of the exchange, Xuan's fingers seemingly brushed the girl's icy wrist by accident.

Now!

The disguise membrane over his right eye vanished instantly. The three tomoe spun rapidly and merged into a strange, intricate six-pointed star pattern—the Mangekyō Sharingan. [Myriad Phenomena Return to the Eye] activated at full power!

Mental Extraction!

An irresistible ocular power instantly invaded the depths of the girl's remaining consciousness, forcibly stripping away fragments of shattered memories!

Images flashed through Xuan's mind:

A boundless dark laboratory, where cold instruments glimmered with ghostly light.

Dozens of Kaguya clansmen's corpses had been piled in a bizarre manner into a towering stone pillar. Blood slowly flowed through the gaps between the bodies, gathering into a river of blood across the floor.

And at the top of that pillar of corpses floated an enormous one-eyed eye burning with scarlet flames!

A whisper whose gender could not be distinguished echoed through the darkness:

"...Not enough, still not enough... Only Xuan's Blood can truly awaken the divine power slumbering within the Progenitor's bones..."

Xuan's Blood?!

Xuan's heart sank sharply, and an unprecedented sense of danger engulfed him.

At that moment, a sudden change occurred!

"Rumble!"

The ceiling overhead exploded without warning!

A pitch-black figure swooped down from the shadows like a ghost. A poisoned dagger in his hand sliced through the air with a piercing shriek, stabbing straight at Xuan's heart from behind!

Too fast!

That speed had surpassed the realm of sound itself, so fast that even Xuan's activated Sharingan could only catch a blurry afterimage!

There was no time to turn around, much less form hand seals!

Yet in that split-second flash, there was not the slightest panic on Xuan's face.

Instead of retreating, he advanced, slamming his left hand against the ground!

Magnet Release: Iron Sand Thorns!

In an instant, the iron sand he had buried beforehand in the floor's cracks seemed to come alive, transforming into countless black thorns that erupted toward the ceiling!

The iron sand did not attack the assassin's body. Instead, from an unimaginable angle, it wrapped with absolute precision around the assassin's ankles and yanked down hard!

The assassin's body suddenly lost balance in midair and was hung upside down by the iron sand!

Everything had unfolded according to Xuan's calculations.

His Sharingan had already predicted every possible trajectory of the opponent's struggle after being restrained.

Xuan did not even look back. His body leaned backward at an incredible angle, and his right elbow, like a heavy hammer brimming with force, shot upward with a thunderous roar that tore through the air!

"Crack!"

A bone-splitting sound that made one's teeth ache rang out.

The cervical vertebrae of the top assassin known as Yamaru were instantly shattered by that elbow strike, his head twisting at a grotesque ninety-degree angle.

The life rapidly faded from his eyes. In the final instant before death, his dilated pupils clearly reflected Xuan's slowly turning right eye—the Mangekyō Sharingan, slowly revolving as it radiated endless coldness and the aura of death.

Yamaru's corpse hung limply. The entire process had taken no more than a second.

[System Notification: First kill of a Shadow-level assassin. New function [Death Echo Capture] unlocked. Can read the target's strongest obsession or image from the three seconds before death.]

In a distant private room, Kazama Genichiro, who had remained silent all this time, slowly removed the Noh mask from his face, revealing a face seventy percent similar to Xuan's, yet far more sinister and cold.

He calmly watched the bloody, efficient scene below. A cold curve lifted at the corner of his lips as he murmured in a voice only he could hear:

"False identity, a sky-high bid, a thunderous strike... I see. You were never here to buy someone."

His gaze passed through the chakra barrier and met Xuan's across the air, as though two invisible blades had collided, sending ripples through space.

"You came here to wreck the place."

In an instant, the clamor of the entire marketplace came to an abrupt halt.

The Shadow Flow elite ninja, Hozuki Suigetsu in the corner, and every distinguished guest in the private rooms—all eyes focused on the man whose elbow was still dripping blood, with the corpse of a Shadow-level assassin at his feet.

After a brief deathly silence came a chorus of sharp inhales.

Kazama Genichiro slowly raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

The next second, a piercing alarm swept through all of Nether Eye Reef like a tsunami.