Kakashi pricked up his ears.
He could usually rely on quick thinking and an encyclopaedic mind to compensate for his shortcomings, but this time, he had precious little to go on, hardly enough to guide his decisions. If the Manyū could produce monsters like Sakura and this Munenori fellow, then the Hidden Leaf would have to tread very carefully indeed…
"I shall begin by telling you of our clan's history, Sakura-kun," Lord Munenori began, taking a sip of his tea. "For to be dispossessed of one's heritage is to be set adrift at sea aboard a rudderless ship."
Over eighty years ago, the turbulent age of the Warring States had still been in full swing. No matter the battlefield, the Uchiha and the Senju always managed to find themselves on the front lines, but it was always the weaker clans caught in the crossfire who suffered most…
"Our clan has always disproportionately given birth to females, so ours is mostly a clan of kunoichi," Lord Munenori explained. "We served many Daimyō as masters of seduction, information gathering, blackmail, and bed assassinations."
So far, what the old man had said perfectly corresponded to what Kakashi had already guessed on his own.
"No wonder we weren't able to find any information on the Manyū," Kakashi remarked thoughtfully. "It would make sense the ones who employed your clan wouldn't go around shouting it from the rooftops."
Lord Munenori nodded, before resuming his story.
"In this field, none could rival us, save for the Munamori clan," he went on, his bushy white brows furrowing slightly. "Though we stayed far from the front lines, there was much bloodshed between our kunoichi. Quietly, behind the scenes."
The conflict between the Manyū and Munamori continued to escalate as they competed for the same jobs or found themselves on opposing sides of contracts. Wary of assassination by their concubines, some Daimyō even began hiring Munamori kunoichi to satisfy their 'needs' while keeping them safe as they slept, while rival nobles employed the Manyū to conspire against them.
More often than not, the Daimyō's own sons, impatient for a taste of power, would employ the Manyū to assassinate their fathers in the very beds they had been conceived in.
"Eventually, it grew to the point where we would start massacring each other on sight, even outside of missions," sighed Lord Munenori. "Our irreconcilable differences had brought us to the very verge of catastrophe."
The old man fell silent.
"So, what happened?" Sakura piped up.
"Though it shames me to admit it, I cannot undo what our leaders resolved to do back then," Lord Munenori said solemnly. "The clan pooled its resources and secretly hired the Uchiha to massacre the entire Munamori clan. In a single night, they were all exterminated— save for a few stragglers away on missions at the time."
Sakura was shocked!
Well, not that shocked. The same thing had happened in the Manyū Hikenchō world, though the Manyū clan had leveraged its ties to the Bakufu to carry out the deed, rather than relying on the Uchiha's aid.
But what she didn't understand was why the old man had spontaneously brought up the clan's shameful history. He was obviously interested in her, so what did he have to gain by telling her this information?
"Perhaps what followed was karma," said Lord Munenori sadly. "Though seventy years have passed since that fateful day, I still remember it as clearly as if it were yesterday."
Naruto yawned.
"A few months after the massacre, the Munamori survivors went to the Senju clan to plead for vengeance," Lord Munenori continued. "But because my mother was the mistress of the Senju clan's head— my father— they were turned away."
Butsuma was Hashirama's father.
Talk about having a finger in every pie… no wonder the Senju hadn't come to the Munamori clan's rescue— the Manyū had probably killed their envoys before they ever reached the Senju's forest!
"I do not know what happened after that," Lord Munenori went on, "but what I do know is that, a few years later, the survivors resurfaced… accompanied by the terrifying Uzumaki clan. The red-headed devils surrounded our mountain and used their fearsome Fūinjutsu to seal us away in this closed-off space, and from that day forward, we remained cut off from the rest of the world… until now."
Naruto's jaw fell open.
He was used to being treated as a monster, but to think his family name inspired such fear! He laughed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, and said, "Sorry about— glep!"
BONK!
Kakashi hurriedly brought down his fist on Naruto's head, causing him to bite his tongue and shut up before he got them all killed.
"You were saying, young man?" said Lord Munenori, raising a bushy eyebrow.
"You'll have to forgive our Naruto here— he can be such a jokester," said Kakashi, laughing matter-of-factly. "But do go on— you were saying? You were about to tell us how Sakura here could be a member of your clan if you were all sealed away?"
Lord Munenori waggled his finger.
"Not all," he said gravely. "Just as a few members of the Munamori clan escaped extinction by being absent on the day of the massacre, so too did one of us escape their fate by being away from the mountain that day."
Naruto gingerly massaged the aching bump pulsating on top of his head.
"As I have already told you, the Manyū clan gives birth to far more girls than boys," Lord Munenori continued. "My mother was originally the former patriarch's first wife, but unable to produce a male heir, she was sent away to the Senju as a gift— which is how I came to be born. The patriarch remarried, and this time, his new wife bore him four children, and at last, a male heir."
Muneyuki, the firstborn son.
Kyōka, the eldest sister.
Kagefusa, the middle sister.
"And Chifusa, the youngest sister, your ancestor," concluded Lord Munenori, "despite being named heir of the clan's secret techniques for her talent, she eloped with one of the Uchiha just before the sealing calamity befell us, taking with her the Scroll of Secrets."
Sasuke inwardly sighed with relief. After learning of Sakura's newfound ability to perform Wood Style, his suspicions that she had somehow acquired Uchiha blood through illicit means had grown, but now it seemed those doubts were unfounded. After all, from the very beginning, she had displayed all the hallmarks of an Uchiha through her powerful Genjutsu and Fire Style…
Sakura looked thoughtful.
Her horny ancestor running away to elope with a handsome Uchiha man (or woman?) was believable enough, but it did not align with the history she knew: the original Chifusa had defected because she disagreed with the Manyū's violent support of an illogical breast-based society.
Furthermore, Chifusa was supposed to be Muneyuki's and Kagefusa's half-sister, not their full sister. Her real birthmother was a survivor of the Munamori clan, and that was precisely why only she could wield Breast Flow!
The proof? Her System, which clearly stated she had both bloodlines running through her veins… since the very beginning of her adventure.
And although she couldn't prove this version of Chifusa would have followed in the original's footsteps, Sakura was certain the old man had lied at least more than once during his long story. And how on earth had he managed to become the new patriarch, if he was a bastard child of the Senju? What had happened to Muneyuki, the male heir of the Manyū's main family?
There was more to this situation than met the eye…
"Your letter stated that two officials from your village accompanied you here to begin negotiations," Lord Munenori said, rising to his feet. "You may go and fetch them… but Sakura-kun must remain. I would have her meet her family; my youngest daughter is about to give birth, and I should be grateful if she would attend."
"Of course," said Kakashi, giving Sakura a knowing look. "I'm sure Sakura would be pleased to make their acquaintance."
"No problem," said Sakura glumly. "Just don't forget to come back for me, okay, Kakashi-sensei?"
"I'll stay too, then!" Naruto chimed in.
"As will I," added Sasuke.