The night wind swept through the abandoned altar, stirring the loose strands of hair before Hyuga Xiao's forehead.
He stared at the bloody words beside Qingkong's corpse, then glanced at the Thunder Fang dagger in Samui's hand. In 0.3 seconds, his mind had finished assessing the situation.
"The Leaf Village pursuit force will reach the Fire-Grass Border by tomorrow night at the latest."
"The Watcher Seed inside Ko Hyuga could awaken at any moment."
"There is a seventy percent chance that Samui's cooperation is a trap."
"If the Byakugan Advancement Scroll falls into Hidden Sand's hands, Sasori's puppet techniques will break through their bottleneck."
Xiao's voice was as calm as if he were discussing the weather, yet every word carried the sharpness of a blade. He raised his right hand and traced through the air with his fingertips. Pale-blue chakra lines sketched out a simple map—Leaf Village, the Fire-Grass Border, the Hyuga Clan Grounds, and Forgotten Gorge, four points connected into a distorted quadrilateral.
"We need to split into two groups."
Kurenai Yuhi immediately frowned. "Your Divine Erosion Index has already reached forty-two percent. Acting alone is too dangerous. When you fused the Covenant Stone Fragments in the laboratory last time, you nearly—"
"Nearly lost my humanity. I know."
Xiao cut her off, but there was no impatience in his tone. He turned around, and moonlight illuminated half his face. Something seemed to be struggling deep within those eyes, which glimmered with pale-blue starlight.
"That is exactly why I need to get the scroll as soon as possible. Byakugan advancement techniques can stabilize the bloodline and ease the erosion. It is the most direct solution available right now."
"Then let me go with you to the Hyuga Clan Grounds." Hong stepped forward, her fingers instinctively clutching Xiao's sleeve. "My genjutsu