Killing the Chicken to Warn the Monkeys: An Iron-Blooded Hand That Tolerated No Defiance

A terrifying spiritual pressure blanketed the conference room, making the air so heavy it crushed against their chests. Everyone's throats began to tighten.

Sweat mixed with blood and rolled down the executives' cheeks. Death stood right before them, and these old men did not even dare breathe too hard.

Yet even at a time like this, someone still failed to recognize reality and actually wanted to challenge Ye's authority with his life.

Kneeling at the very back of the group, an aggressive clan head viciously bit through his tongue. The searing pain shot into his mind, barely holding together his nerves that were on the verge of collapse.

Drawing on that ruthlessness, he forcibly squeezed Chakra out of his body, and his tensed legs gradually began to exert strength.

"Don't think we'll bow our heads just because you're strong enough!"

He raised his bloodshot eyes, and the roar forced from his throat made his chest tremble without end.

"The glory of the Blood Mist is not for an outsider like you to trample on!"

Before his words had faded, he sprang up from the ground against the spiritual pressure and drew the standard short blade hidden at his waist.

Chilling Water Release Chakra coated the blade. Throwing caution to the wind, he lunged at Ye, the tip aimed straight for his throat.

Ye did not so much as twitch an eyebrow. He remained where he was, his gaze fixed on the Hozuki Clan elder in the front row.

A pale figure suddenly darted out from the corner.

Kimimaro, who had silently stood at the side all this time, moved. He was so fast that only an afterimage remained behind him.

There was no probing, no unnecessary move. Facing the clan head who had leaped into the air, all ten of his fingers simultaneously fired ten sharp finger bones.

"Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets!"

Several muffled bursts of tearing flesh rang out in succession. All ten bone bullets struck without the slightest error, piercing through the clan head's limb joints.

Blood sprayed from the wounds in torrents, immediately splattering across the air.

The man could not even scream. His blade-wielding arm had already lost control, and the short blade slipped free and fell to the ground.

But Kimimaro's attack was not over.

His body twisted through the air, and a string of strange bone-growing noises came from Kimimaro's right arm, making everyone's scalps tingle.

A long, pale bone blade pierced through his palm, and he gripped it firmly in his hand.

Using the force of his descent, Kimimaro thrust the bone blade forward one-handed, piercing straight through the clan head's heart without pause.

Then a dull impact sounded from the wall, and cracks spread outward from the point of collision.

The corpse was nailed to the stone wall by the bone blade. Its sharp tip pierced through the wall, leaving the man hanging in midair.

Hot blood trickled down the wall and dripped onto the faces of several executives below. Their shoulders convulsed in fright as they lowered their heads even further.

Kimimaro pulled out the bone blade and let the corpse slide down the wall, landing heavily in a pool of blood.

Shaking the blood droplets from his blade, he retreated to Ye's rear flank. His expression did not change in the slightest, as though he had merely dealt with a rebel in passing.

The conference room fell completely silent. The only sound left was blood dripping onto the floor, drop after drop.

The clan head who had been shouting about righteousness just moments ago was now a corpse by the wall.

The remaining executives no longer even had the courage to raise their heads. As the corpse hit the ground, their last trace of wishful thinking vanished completely.

But Ye's methods went far beyond killing people.

Erasing a single rebel was merely the first step. What he truly wanted to destroy was the last shred of psychological support these people had desperately maintained.

"Looks like some people really think the righteousness on their lips matters more than their lives."

Ye chuckled softly, the mockery in his words entirely undisguised.

He turned his head and gave Kabuto Yakushi a look.

Kabuto immediately understood. He raised a hand to adjust his round glasses, his usual false smile hanging from his lips as he calmly walked before the crowd.

He unfurled the black scroll in his hand. White smoke rose, and stack after stack of heavy documents fell onto the table.

Picking up those files, Kabuto glanced at the names on their covers and tossed them one by one before the corresponding elders.

"Gentlemen, the wind here is rather strong. You should take a close look at what you're holding."

Extending a constantly trembling hand, the Hozuki Clan elder opened the top-secret file bearing his name.

After reading only the first two lines, the flesh on his face began to twitch violently, and the last trace of color swiftly drained away.

The file clearly recorded every dirty transaction he had conducted over the past three years.

The day he sold frontline defense maps to pirates, the time he withheld the pensions of fallen shinobi to cover his clan's losses—every detail was written down with perfect clarity.

Even the receipts and ledgers for his secret sale of the village's forbidden technique scrolls in exchange for private assets from the Daimyo's Estate were listed one by one.

The other executives fared no better.

Some stared at the evidence of their crimes as cold sweat quickly soaked their backs. Others had their legs give way and collapsed straight into the pool of blood, drained of even the strength to turn a page.

Their deepest secrets had now been exposed before everyone. Not even the smallest room for concealment remained.

The lofty principles and righteousness they had flaunted moments ago could no longer be maintained in the face of this irrefutable evidence.

"Y-You... how did you get these...?"

The Hozuki Clan elder forced out the words in a completely altered voice. His lips trembled with every syllable.

Ye walked before him and stepped on the spread-out documents, pressing the pages into the blood.

"You didn't really think the Daimyo's Estate could protect you, did you?"

Applying a little pressure underfoot, Ye crumpled the bloodstained documents into a mess.

"To me, that stuff is nothing but a pile of waste paper. If I want to take it over, I can do so anytime."

Upon hearing that, the crowd's final hope in the Daimyo's Estate was completely severed.

"Now, I'll give you ten seconds."

Looking down at the Hozuki Clan elder, Ye's voice was not loud, yet it sent chills through everyone present.

"Either leave your life behind, or obediently put on a dog collar."

Before the ten seconds had even begun, the Hozuki Clan elder slammed his head heavily against the blood-soaked floor.

His forehead throbbed from the impact, but he did not dare stop. Before death and the destruction of his clan, that tiny bit of pride was worth nothing.

"I... I am willing to pledge my loyalty to Lord Ye!"

The Hozuki Clan elder hurriedly raised his voice, but even it trembled.

"I'll go through fire and water, with absolutely no second thoughts!"

Seeing him bow his head, the other executives also threw themselves down in a rush, knocking their heads against the floor while loudly declaring their loyalty.

Not a single word of resistance remained in the entire conference room. Only chaotic pleas for mercy could be heard.

Ye turned and sat back down in the broad leather chair, raising a hand to withdraw the spiritual pressure blanketing the room.

The people sprawled on the ground could finally breathe again, yet not one dared straighten their back, much less look up at him.

Sweeping his gaze over these executives who had entrenched themselves in the Land of Water for years, Ye issued his first uncompromising order after taking over the Hidden Mist Village.

"Starting tomorrow, all private shinobi forces belonging to the clans of the Land of Water will be disbanded."

The people prostrate on the floor quieted even their breathing.

"All secret technique scrolls held by the clans will also be surrendered."

The faces of several elders twitched continuously, but in the end, none dared utter even half a word of refusal.

"All registered shinobi will be broken up and reorganized, then uniformly incorporated into the Yaksha organization."

Leaning back in his chair, Ye gave them the final deadline directly.

"Three days. I'll give you only three days. Those who fail will be struck from the rolls."

How could the executives dare harbor even the slightest grievance? They could only nod frantically, then drag their injured bodies out of the conference room in a rush.

Once everyone had left, only Ye and Terumi Mei remained in the damaged room, the latter having watched everything unfold from the side.

Ye took a thick document from the System Space. It recorded the distribution of Chakra Ore throughout the Land of Water, along with a complete industrial transformation plan.

With a flick of his hand, the document landed on the table before Terumi Mei with a crisp smack.

Leaning against the back of his chair, Ye looked at the beautiful secretary, who had been thoroughly stunned, and the corner of his lips slowly rose.

"Memorize this tonight."

After saying that, he closed his eyes and ignored Terumi Mei's reaction.

"Tomorrow, the Land of Water will change."