Ch. 41Xiao's Suspicion

Hyuga Xiao deceived Ko Hyuga about his encounter with the Curse Mark and learned that Ko planned to sacrifice the Branch House members in a diversion against Hidden Sound Village. Xiao persuaded Hyuga Ken and Hyuga Rei to follow his own, more survivable plan, while Ko watched them and resolved to test Xiao in the coming assault.

  • Hyuga Xiao reported finding a destroyed Hidden Sound laboratory and blamed his disrupted chakra on a Curse Mark trap, but Ko Hyuga remained suspicious of his polished account.
  • Xiao claimed to have seen records mentioning the God Tree, prompting Ko to question how he knew of the forbidden subject.
  • Ko ordered Xiao, Hyuga Ken, and Hyuga Rei to attack Hidden Sound Village's defenses at dawn as a diversion for the Leaf Village ANBU, despite the likely casualties.
  • Xiao convinced Hyuga Ken and Hyuga Rei to create a diversion by striking a weak point and retreating instead of charging the defenses head-on.
  • Ko secretly watched the trio plan and decided the assault would reveal whether Xiao was worth keeping under observation.

Ch. 42The Assault Begins

Hyuga Xiao infiltrated Orochimaru’s underground laboratory while Kakashi’s squad sought the God Tree Cell Cultivation Records. The laboratory’s fruit began ripening as its self-destruct countdown started, trapping Kakashi and his team amid the revived test subjects while Xiao watched from the shadows.

  • Ko Hyuga ordered Xiao, Takuya, and Hikō to draw the Sound Ninja’s forces with a frontal assault, and Takuya and Hikō were badly wounded in the fight.
  • Xiao used a Shadow Clone to fake his injury, then slipped into the laboratory through a concealed ventilation duct.
  • Xiao found Kakashi and six ANBU members in the deepest chamber, where Orochimaru had been extracting chakra from captives and corpses to cultivate a God Tree fruit.
  • The fruit resonated with Xiao’s Curse Mark Seed, and a stone slab revealed an image linking the Caged Bird Seal to the God Tree and warning of eternal slavery.
  • The laboratory began a sixty-second self-destruct sequence as the fruit ripened, and the revived test subjects blocked Kakashi’s squad’s escape.

Ch. 43Laboratory Core

Hyuga Xiao rescued Shisui Uchiha from a Leaf Village operation to destroy Orochimaru’s laboratory, then recruited him as an ally. They headed toward a prototype God Tree Fruit as Kakashi chose to withdraw and report them dead.

  • Hyuga Xiao infiltrated the laboratory and discovered Shisui Uchiha alive in a cultivation tank as Kakashi’s team prepared to destroy the test subjects and research.
  • Hyuga Xiao drained the cultivation tanks, took the remaining records, and used Earth Release to escape with Shisui Uchiha.
  • The system revealed that rescuing Shisui Uchiha had affected the fates of Izumi Uchiha, Kurenai Yuhi, and Tsunade, raising the potential Destiny Points reward.
  • Hyuga Xiao persuaded Shisui Uchiha to join him, and Shisui agreed on the condition that Xiao would not kill Itachi Uchiha unless Itachi stood in his way.
  • Hyuga Xiao and Shisui Uchiha found a pulsing prototype God Tree Fruit, and Xiao decided to devour it as the laboratory began collapsing.
  • Kakashi caught the unnatural chakra from deeper in the passage, then ordered his team to withdraw and report Shisui Uchiha and the test subjects dead.

Ch. 44Shisui's Eyes

Hyuga Xiao rescued Shisui Uchiha from a classified laboratory and stole the data chip containing records of the experiments performed on him. With Konoha's pursuers closing in, Xiao carried Shisui underground and chose to continue interfering with his fate.

  • Xiao discovered Shisui alive in a cultivation tank, with his eyes removed and his body sustained by life-support equipment.
  • Xiao used a Shadow Clone to distract Kakashi and the ANBU while he stole Shisui's experimental data chip and released him from the tank.
  • Xiao carried Shisui toward a ventilation duct, deflected an ANBU's explosive kunai, and escaped as his clone detonated and blocked the passage.
  • Kakashi recognized the attacker’s modified Gentle Fist technique and ordered the mission continued while keeping the attacker's identity uncertain.
  • Xiao read the system's warning about the consequences of changing Shisui's fate, accepted the risk, and began analyzing the stolen data.
  • As Konoha's searchers approached, Xiao carried Shisui into the earth using Subterranean Passage Technique.

Ch. 45Data Scramble

Hyuga Xiao escaped the collapsing laboratory with Shisui and used the system to remove Shisui’s Curse Mark, though the extraction left him severely weakened and without his eyes. Xiao then found Kimimaro emerging from a broken cultivation tank and chose to take him in as the laboratory exploded behind them.

  • Xiao concealed the laboratory data chip, fought Kakashi in the ventilation ducts, and escaped with Shisui by misleading Kakashi about where the chip was hidden.
  • Xiao spent 1000 Destiny Points to extract Shisui’s Curse Mark, stabilizing him but leaving his chakra meridians severely damaged and his strength below 30 percent of its original level.
  • Xiao spotted Kimimaro emerging from a cultivation tank with a blank memory and early Curse Mark corrosion.
  • Xiao decided to take Kimimaro with him as the laboratory’s final explosion lit the sky, while Kakashi searched the ruins, unable to remember what he had missed.

Ch. 46The Runaway Boy

Hyuga Xiao rescued Kimimaro from Orochimaru’s collapsing laboratory, treated him and Shisui, and escaped with them as Kakashi began investigating. At an abandoned shrine, Xiao told Shisui what he knew about the Uchiha’s coming tragedy and offered Kimimaro a chance at treatment, then prepared to flee the Land of Fire with the two of them and the stolen data chip.

  • Hyuga Xiao found the weakened Kimimaro in the ventilation shaft and carried him and the unconscious Shisui out of the laboratory before it collapsed.
  • When Kimimaro’s Curse Mark went berserk, Xiao struck its core to suppress it, then spent 600 Destiny Points to stabilize Kimimaro and 900 to treat Shisui.
  • Xiao erased the group’s traces and fled with Shisui and Kimimaro; Kakashi found the clearing, recognized traces of Hyuga medical ninjutsu, and ordered a report to the Hokage and a review of Xiao’s mission records.
  • At an abandoned shrine, Shisui woke and Xiao revealed his knowledge of Danzo’s plans, the Uchiha massacre, and Itachi’s choice, while explaining that he had saved Shisui to gain an ally.
  • Kimimaro woke, and Xiao promised to seek treatment for his Bloodline Disease in exchange for his Shikotsumyaku; Kimimaro asked for time to think.
  • Xiao decided they needed to leave the Land of Fire, while the stolen chip revealed an encrypted file about God Tree cells and Byakugan purity.

Ch. 47Boneline Suppression

Hyuga Xiao escaped the destruction of Orochimaru's laboratory with Kaguya Kimimaro, temporarily suppressing his Curse Mark and promising to seek treatment for his Bloodline Disease. As they planned to return to Leaf Village for resources, Kakashi discovered that someone had removed a test subject from the laboratory before the ANBU arrived.

  • Hyuga Xiao used the Active Curse Mark Seed and precise Gentle Fist Chakra to suppress Kimimaro's Curse Mark, then persuaded him to leave with him.
  • Xiao and Kimimaro escaped Hidden Sound Village as Leaf Village's ANBU destroyed the laboratory; Xiao saw Kakashi carrying a scroll containing Shisui's Sharingan.
  • Xiao took Kimimaro toward a safehouse and promised to attempt treatment using Orochimaru's research data, while they avoided a wounded Leaf Village ANBU.
  • Xiao's analysis of the Curse Mark Seed revealed a possible Cursed Seal Simulation Technique that could amplify his combat power but accelerate Divine Erosion.
  • Xiao decided to return to Leaf Village with Kimimaro to access resources and pursue his plans involving Hinata, the Main House, and Shisui.
  • Kakashi learned that Cultivation Tank Number Three had been emptied before the ANBU arrived and suspected someone from the Hyuga Clan had taken its occupant.

Ch. 48Return and Interrogation

Hyuga Xiao returned to the rendezvous cave with Kimimaro and the laboratory data, where Ko used the Caged Bird Seal to force Xiao to surrender the boy and the chip. After Ko revealed the Main House planned to brand Xiao with a Level-Two Caged Bird Seal, Xiao concealed his anger and secretly marked Kimimaro’s seal with a message to wait.

  • Hyuga Xiao carried the unconscious Kimimaro to the cave and reported that he had destroyed Orochimaru’s laboratory and retrieved its data chip.
  • Ko demanded Kimimaro and activated Xiao’s Caged Bird Seal when Xiao resisted, forcing him to bind and seal the boy’s chakra.
  • Xiao handed Ko the data chip, and Ko announced that the Main House planned to impose a Level-Two Caged Bird Seal on Xiao after the mission.
  • Xiao secretly connected a thread of chakra to Kimimaro’s sealing talisman and wrote a hidden message telling him to wait.

Ch. 49Anko's Crisis

Hyuga Xiao temporarily stopped Anko's Curse Mark from consuming her and learned that Orochimaru was summoning her to a trap at midnight. He left the hospital facing Anko's need for Tsunade's treatment and his own looming Level-Two Caged Bird Seal judgment, determined to turn the danger against his enemies.

  • Xiao entered Anko's ward and used her secret chakra frequency to restore her lucidity for ten minutes.
  • Anko told Xiao that Orochimaru had programmed the Curse Mark to summon her to a cave downstream of the Naka River at midnight, and she asked Xiao to kill her rather than let her become his pawn.
  • Xiao used three silver needles and Gentle Fist chakra to redirect the Curse Mark and place it in temporary dormancy for up to forty-eight hours.
  • Xiao told the medical staff to prioritize Anko's care when Tsunade arrived that evening, then whispered something to Anko before she fell asleep.
  • Xiao left the hospital aware that his own Level-Two Caged Bird Seal application was under the Third Hokage's consideration, with the final judgment less than three days away.

Ch. 50Whispers of the Snake's Shadow

Hyuga Xiao forced Orochimaru’s consciousness fragment out of Anko and learned that Snakebone Gorge was a conversion site meant to turn her into a vessel. Anko survived with her Curse Mark weakened, while Xiao prepared for Orochimaru’s response and the threats awaiting him in Leaf Village.

  • Anko told Xiao that Orochimaru had directed her to Snakebone Gorge as a possible way to remove her Curse Mark, and Xiao deduced that the site was meant to complete her transformation into Orochimaru’s vessel.
  • Xiao used a Vitality Seed and silver needles to provoke Anko’s Curse Mark and draw out Orochimaru’s consciousness fragment.
  • Xiao questioned the fragment and learned Snakebone Gorge was beneath an ancient shrine in the Forest of Death, and that Orochimaru’s Curse Mark experiments collected data on soul transfer.
  • Xiao used a modified Evil-Sealing Method to strip the fragment from Anko and seal it in a scroll, leaving her unconscious with a weakened but still-present Curse Mark.
  • Xiao anticipated Orochimaru’s retaliation and the Main House’s next move, while the Fate-Breaking System reported a fifteen-percent increase in Anko’s fate alteration degree.

Ch. 51Clash of Consciousness

Hyuga Xiao entered Mitaraishi Anko’s mindscape, sealed Orochimaru’s consciousness fragment in a monitored prison, and learned that the Caged Bird Seal might siphon Branch House bloodline power to the Main House. After stabilizing Anko, Xiao prepared to investigate the hidden altar beneath the Hyuga Ancestral Shrine.

  • Hyuga Xiao entered Anko’s mindscape and used Tenseigan Chakra to push back Orochimaru’s snake phantoms.
  • Orochimaru claimed the Caged Bird Seal harvested Branch House bloodline power and directed Xiao to a Bloodline Crystal beneath the Hyuga Ancestral Shrine.
  • Xiao rejected Orochimaru’s request to enter his mind and sealed the fragment inside a Mind Prison cube under his surveillance.
  • Orochimaru revealed that the shrine chamber entrance was behind the ancestral portrait in Hyuga Hiashi’s study and warned that the altar was alive.
  • Xiao restored Anko’s consciousness and told her to remain loyal to him while receiving chakra suppression every three days.
  • Xiao resolved to investigate the altar and expose the truth behind the Caged Bird Seal.

Ch. 52Deal Reached

Hyuga Xiao struck a bargain with Orochimaru's fragment and learned that the Caged Bird Seal sent Branch House bloodline essence to a lunar Hyuga treasury. After secretly delivering Anko to Konoha Hospital, he planned to investigate the seal and turn its power against the Main House, while Hyuga Hiashi increased surveillance on him and Hinata.

  • Hyuga Xiao agreed to trade for information, and Orochimaru's fragment revealed how the Caged Bird Seal extracted Branch House bloodline essence and named the hidden apparatus and lunar treasury.
  • Hyuga Xiao sealed Orochimaru's fragment in a scroll, stabilized Anko with a Vitality Seed, and carried her through Konoha to Tsunade's hospital room with a note requesting treatment.
  • Hyuga Xiao returned home, decided to study Orochimaru's laboratory data and treat Kimimaro before investigating further, and wrote plans to approach Kurenai Yuhi, Tsunade, and Hinata.
  • Hyuga Hiashi received a report of unusual chakra fluctuations in Hyuga Xiao's room and ordered Ko Hyuga to intensify surveillance on Xiao and Hinata.
  • Ko Hyuga told Hyuga Hiashi that Hinata had been researching clan history and the Caged Bird Seal's origins, prompting Hiashi to suspect someone was guiding her.

Ch. 53Tsunade Returns

Tsunade stabilized Anko’s worsening Curse Mark with a sealing formation and recruited Hyuga Xiao to help maintain it while she taught him its principles. As Xiao began earning Tsunade’s trust, he resolved to enlist her in his plans against the Hyuga Main House and to change her tragic fate.

  • Tsunade examined Anko and used Creation Rebirth and thirty-six silver needles to stabilize her Curse Mark for up to seventy-two hours.
  • Tsunade noticed Xiao’s unusual chakra, then asked him to supply chakra to Anko’s sealing formation and taught him how it worked.
  • Xiao quickly mastered maintaining eighteen needles, impressing Tsunade, who learned his name and said she would remember him.
  • Xiao considered the Caged Bird Seal’s connection to the Hyuga Main House and the Moon, and strengthened his resolve to gather evidence and overthrow the Main House.
  • Tsunade spoke of the seal and of losing loved ones, then rested while Xiao watched the formation and decided to bring her into his camp.

Ch. 54Medical Assistant

Hyuga Xiao helped Tsunade suppress Mitaraishi Anko’s Curse Mark, then learned she had chosen him as an assistant for a secret, politically sensitive case. He resolved to save the patient tied to Case MT-047 and began secretly searching Konoha Hospital’s archives for information.

  • Hyuga Xiao stabilized Anko’s chakra while Tsunade sealed her Curse Mark, leaving her unconscious in a deep hibernation seal for up to seventy-two hours.
  • Tsunade examined Xiao’s chakra and discovered his chakra pathways were unusually wide and resilient, then invited him to assist with a difficult consultation for Case MT-047.
  • Tsunade told Xiao not to inform the Hyuga Main House about the consultation, while the system warned him that the case involved a power struggle and offered the Mystical Palm Technique if he changed the patient’s death outcome.
  • Xiao decided to investigate the patient, improve his medical knowledge, and study the Caged Bird Seal before the consultation.
  • Tsunade reviewed the top-secret MT-047 file and wondered whether Xiao’s chakra carried a trace of Hashirama Senju’s vitality.
  • Xiao entered the hospital archive room unnoticed and opened an archive box labeled with the MT series.

Ch. 55Second-Level Curse Mark Engraving

Hyuga Xiao was forced by Hyuga Hiashi and the Main House elders to receive a Second-Level Curse Mark so they could control him and use his relationship with Tsunade. Xiao secretly severed and diverted part of the seal’s control structure, then left for Konoha Hospital determined to turn the Main House’s plan against them.

  • Hyuga Hiashi ordered Xiao to receive a Second-Level Curse Mark, citing his unusual chakra purity and recent usefulness to the clan.
  • The First Elder and two other elders restrained Xiao and engraved the seal at the back of his neck.
  • During the engraving, Xiao used Tenseigan Chakra to graft a rootlet of the seal into a hidden False Core in his palm, secretly breaking its control link.
  • Hiashi tested the seal by examining fragments of Xiao’s memories, then ordered Xiao to report twice a month and remain within thirty li of Konoha.
  • Hiashi told Xiao to maintain his relationship with Tsunade so the Main House could gain her support, and privately ordered the elders to watch Xiao and detonate his seal if they detected anything unusual.
  • Xiao left the shrine with the hidden backdoor intact and headed toward Konoha Hospital, planning to use the Main House’s scheme to his own advantage.

Ch. 56Consultation Day

Hyuga Xiao and Tsunade saved an ANBU ninja infected with a growing Degraded Hashirama Cell Replica by luring it out with Tsunade’s blood and destroying it. The case strengthened Tsunade’s trust in Xiao and left them suspecting secret experiments within Leaf Village.

  • Hyuga Xiao used his Byakugan to discover the tissue was nearing the ANBU ninja’s brain and identified it as a Degraded Hashirama Cell Replica entering its Mimicry Stage.
  • Xiao told Tsunade that Sage Chakra or genuine Hashirama Cells could counter the infection, then proposed using her blood as bait because she carried Hashirama Senju’s direct bloodline.
  • Tsunade injected diluted blood while Xiao stimulated the tissue, drawing it toward the patient’s neck as she repaired his chakra network with Creation Rebirth.
  • Xiao trapped the gathered tissue with a Four Symbols Seal and burned it away with a carefully controlled Fire Release, saving the ANBU ninja.
  • Tsunade agreed to conceal Xiao’s unusual abilities, and the system reported that he had changed the ninja’s fate and raised his bond with Tsunade to Friendly.
  • Xiao left the hospital suspecting secret White Zetsu cell experiments and resolved to gain power to break the Caged Bird Seal and challenge Leaf Village’s leadership.

Ch. 57Tsunade's Shock

Hyuga Xiao convinced Tsunade that forbidden experiments were transforming living people with degraded Hashirama Cells, and explained how Sage Chakra or pure Hashirama Cells might stop the tissue. Tsunade recruited Xiao to help investigate and chose to retrieve a pure cell sample she had sealed beneath Konoha Hospital.

  • Xiao claimed that records from a destroyed laboratory described degraded Hashirama Cells, and told Tsunade the Hyuga Main House had seized and destroyed them.
  • Xiao explained that Sage Chakra could suppress the tissue and that pure Hashirama Cells could lure it away from its host.
  • Tsunade reflected on her past and resolved to save Withered Wood with the Bait Method.
  • Tsunade asked Xiao to join her investigation, and he agreed.
  • Tsunade led Xiao toward a sealed laboratory on Konoha Hospital's third underground level, where she had hidden a pure cell sample taken from the First Hokage's corpse.

Ch. 58Investigation Begins

Hyuga Xiao investigated the source of Withered Wood’s rapidly spreading white tissue and discovered that Danzo’s White Fang-Revised project was behind it. He learned an inhibitor could be made from a rare fungus and headed into the laboratory to retrieve its final dose.

  • Tsunade learned that Withered Wood’s seal would hold for only twelve hours, and Xiao proposed using Hashirama Cells or an inhibitor to save him.
  • Xiao revealed the forbidden White Fang project and persuaded Tsunade to seek Hashirama Cell samples from Danzo while he investigated the weapon’s source.
  • Xiao located an underground laboratory beneath the Medical Division’s herb base and sent Scout Beetles inside to gather information.
  • The beetles uncovered that Danzo led the White Fang-Revised project with support from the Hyuga Main House, using injured ninja as test subjects.
  • Xiao learned that a rare Shikkotsu Forest fungus could suppress the white tissue and that the laboratory’s vault held the last available dose of inhibitor.
  • With an hour and forty minutes before his meeting with Tsunade, Xiao headed toward the laboratory’s ventilation entrance to retrieve the inhibitor.

Ch. 59The Truth of the Laboratory

Hyuga Xiao infiltrated Danzo’s underground laboratory and discovered its human experiments, the evolving Hashirama-cell tissue, and the Hyuga Main House’s cooperation with Root. He escaped with evidence, leaving Shin anesthetized and carrying information that could shape Tsunade’s decision and his next move.

  • Xiao used a chakra-mimicking potion and a Shadow Clone to distract the guards, then disguised himself as a Root ninja and entered the facility.
  • Xiao found five experimental subjects on the third level, recognized the child Shin, and anesthetized him instead of rescuing him.
  • Xiao read records describing the tissue’s ability to parasitize and potentially spread through the air, and found a report identifying Kakashi as a prospective host.
  • Xiao saw a Main House Hyuga ninja working with Root and learned that the Main House planned to supply five Branch House members as experimental subjects.
  • Experimental Subject Zero detected Xiao, so he used Shadow Clones to cover his escape and fled toward Leaf Village with the documents.

Ch. 60Snake and the Caged Bird

Hyuga Xiao uncovered a joint laboratory run by Orochimaru, Danzo, and the Hyuga Main House to create Byakugan-Wood Release weapons using Branch House members, then fought and destroyed an Orochimaru clone. After disabling the laboratory’s self-destruct device, Xiao received a message from Tsunade and raced off to save someone, while Orochimaru’s true body learned of Xiao’s Tenseigan.

  • Hyuga Xiao overheard Root and Hyuga Main House ninjas discuss experiments combining Byakugan, Hashirama Cells, and the Caged Bird Seal, including plans to use Branch House members as test subjects.
  • Orochimaru confronted Hyuga Xiao, explained the laboratory’s purpose, and offered to help remove the Caged Bird Seal in exchange for Xiao’s cooperation and a supply of Branch House subjects.
  • Hyuga Xiao refused to trade his clansmen’s lives for his freedom and revealed his Tenseigan’s embryonic form before Orochimaru attacked him with a clone.
  • Hyuga Xiao activated Partial Tenseigan Chakra Mode, destroyed Orochimaru’s clone, and recorded the laboratory conversation as evidence.
  • Hyuga Xiao temporarily sealed the laboratory’s self-destruct device, then left after receiving Tsunade’s message, “Got it,” and hurried to save someone.
  • Orochimaru’s surviving cell fragment reached his true body, who learned about Hyuga Xiao’s Tenseigan and decided to adjust his plan.
Show
Page 3 of 16