Demon Eye's First Trial

"..."

The cruel curve at the corner of the man's mouth froze the next second.

Shusen, whom the kunai had stabbed, burst into a flock of crows. The crows circled before gathering several meters away from the man and reforming into Shusen.

"What kind of ninjutsu is this?!"

The man was dumbfounded, utterly shocked.

According to the intelligence he had received, Uzumaki Shusen was only a special chunin, while he himself was a special jonin. With the advantage of a sneak attack, he should have been able to kill him easily.

"Why are you trying to kill me?"

Shusen did not answer. Instead, he asked the question expressionlessly.

He felt extremely frustrated, certain that something had gone wrong somewhere.

I've been lying so low, staying out of everyone's business, and there are still idiots trying to kill me!

The man's expression flickered several times before he finally gritted his teeth and said coldly, "As expected of Ryū's son. No matter how worthless you are, you still managed to learn a few advanced ninjutsu."

"But unfortunately, I'm a special jonin. My absolute strength is enough to crush you, Uzumaki Shusen. Die!"

As soon as he spoke, his hands flashed through a series of seals before slamming heavily onto the ground.

"Earth Release: Thorn Array Technique!"

The ground surged like waves, and one sharp earthen spike after another erupted from below.

"Arghhh!"

Shusen let out a miserable scream. Caught off guard, his body was pierced through, bright red blood spraying everywhere as he hung from the earthen spikes, barely alive.

"Hahaha!"

The man threw back his head and laughed. "A special chunin is still just a special chunin—utterly helpless! Hahaha..."

"What are you laughing at?"

A puzzled voice sounded beside his ear.

The laughter stopped abruptly.

The man turned his head with difficulty and saw Shusen standing safely at his side.

"You... you..."

The man looked as though he had seen a ghost.

At that moment, a giant python climbed up his legs, wrapping around him like a rope and pinning him firmly in place.

"No! No! Let me go!"

The man screamed in terror, nearly scared out of his wits.

He could not understand it. What kind of monster was this person??

The giant python flicked its tongue, revealing vicious, terrifying fangs. Its snake eyes were intertwined in red, white, and black, making them exceptionally eerie.

For some reason, after meeting those eyes for only a moment, the man felt his will grow hazy and his mind turn muddled.

"Why are you trying to kill me?"

Shusen asked calmly.

"I wanted to curry favor with Lord Wuzhan..."

Like a numb machine, the man spilled all his secrets without reservation.

A moment later, Shusen understood the full story.

The man was a spy planted in Whirlpool Village by the Kaguya Clan. It had been him who informed Kaguya Wuzhan that Shusen had nearly married Hyuga Rika.

Knowing that Kaguya Wuzhan deeply hated Shusen, the man had acted on his own initiative. He wanted to kill Shusen and take his head to Kaguya Wuzhan in exchange for credit and rewards.

"Kaguya Wuzhan. That bastard again."

Shusen muttered, "You really have to keep coming after me, huh?"

The tri-colored Demon Eye in his right eye slowly faded, returning to normal.

The man stood there with a blank expression. There was no python wrapped around him; everything he had seen just now had been an illusion created by Shusen's genjutsu.

He had not merely fallen under a genjutsu—he had also been hypnotized by the Demon Eye.

"Once I fuse the Rinnegan, I'll come settle this with you sooner or later, Kaguya Wuzhan. Just you wait."

After leaving behind a harsh threat his enemy could not hear, Shusen formed hand seals. He first used Fire Release, reducing the man to ashes with a blast of flame. Then he used Earth Release to turn the ground into a swamp. Waves of rock churned, and the ashes and remains quickly sank deep underground.

The entire process of destroying the evidence was as smooth and seamless as flowing clouds and water.

After confirming there were no flaws, Shusen headed toward Whirlpool Village again.

Although the man had tried to ambush and kill him, he had indeed delivered Ryū's message. While hypnotized, he had clearly explained everything.

Present-day Whirlpool Village was vastly different from the Uzumaki Clan Territory of three months ago.

Dozens-of-meters-high walls surrounded Whirlpool Village, with only four entrances in the east, south, west, and north. Shusen entered through the western entrance.

Walking along the smooth concrete road, he saw rows of neat, beautiful wooden houses. Even basic facilities such as convenience stores, restaurants, and barbershops had been built. Looking farther into the distance, he could see civilians working together in the fields, while a vast expanse of green wheat seedlings swayed in the wind.

"What a wonderful Whirlpool Village."

Shusen could not help feeling pleased. The bad mood Kaguya Wuzhan had caused him earlier vanished completely.

If he had not pushed forward the village-building plan ahead of time, Whirlpool Village would never have prospered as it did now. The Uzumaki Clan members would still be crammed into that shabby little clan territory.

At the thought, a strange sense of accomplishment lingered in his heart. It did not matter even if no one else knew.

Half an hour later.

In the council chamber of the clan leader's building, Ryū sat upright in the seat of honor. Mito, Shusen, Ashina, and the elders were seated below him.

Ashina was still young. Normally, even as the clan leader's son, he would not have been qualified to attend an elders' meeting. But ever since he had proposed and carried out the plan to build a village, no one dared treat him like a child anymore.

"The Kaguya Clan has declared war on us."

Ryū went straight to the point. "Early this morning, Kaguya Izui split his forces into five groups and attacked the iron mine. The Fourth and Fifth Elders stationed there have temporarily held off the assault with formation barriers, but they urgently need reinforcements."

"Those damned Kaguya Clan bastards still refuse to give up!" the First Elder snorted.

"Our Uzumaki Clan is no longer what it used to be. If they dare wage war against us, they're asking to be destroyed!"

"Actually, we could abandon the iron mine and avoid conflict with the Kaguya Clan," the Third Elder suddenly said something unexpected.

"The iron mine is no longer that important to us. We only need to focus on developing Whirlpool Village. There is no need to fight and kill other ninja clans. No matter how bold Kaguya Izui is, he would never dare attack Whirlpool Village."

Some of the elders were stunned, yet they found the Third Elder's words rather reasonable.

"We cannot avoid this war."

Mito refuted him. "Kaguya Izui's intention is not merely to seize the iron mine. He wants to cripple Whirlpool Village."

"Even if we hand over the iron mine, Kaguya Izui will still blockade Whirlpool Village and prevent all merchant caravans from trading with us, causing us heavy losses."

"If we still refuse to fight then, the other ninja clans will see us as weak and easy to bully. They may very well ally with the Kaguya Clan afterward and attack us together to divide up our lands."

The First Elder agreed. "Mito is right. From the moment Kaguya Izui declared war, we had no choice but to fight. We cannot present ourselves as weak merely because we fear casualties among our clan members!"

The elders who had previously thought the Third Elder made sense immediately came to their senses and joined in agreement.

Ryū nodded, glanced at the Third Elder, and said sternly, "This time, not only will we fight—we will win a great victory! We will let those ninja clans that secretly mocked us understand just how strong our Uzumaki Clan has become!"