Gorō Fūma brought the "bad news" back to camp.
However, this news didn't cause any panic, since everyone had almost certainly expected this outcome.
"Kikyō Castle has given us three days to leave the 'Land of the River Source'... What should we do next?"
As he spoke, Gorō Fūma's face took on a worried expression.
It could be said that Yūshin's first impression of this Fūma clan leader when he encountered the Fūma Clan had been very accurate... He truly had no stress tolerance.
"Of course we should put on a good show of fleeing in panic—pack what needs packing, look as worried as we should look," Yūshin said, half-seriously and half-jokingly.
Kikyō Castle's daimyo had made a gesture of wanting to "peacefully part ways" with the "Fūma Clan" due to "incompatible ideologies," but if Yūshin chose to believe that, he'd have problems with his brain.
Having pinned the crime of assassinating another faction's daimyo on Yūshin's group, could the other side really allow them to leave smoothly?
The less one argues, the more "credible" the "facts" become—but only the dead don't argue.
After sorting through this simple logical chain, Yūshin naturally knew what to do.
He couldn't forget about the previous batch of Kikyō Castle ninjas being wiped out.
He could even guess what Kikyō Castle would do next—wait for news of Reitō Castle's daimyo's death to spread, and when the other side directed suspicion toward Kikyō Castle...
Kikyō Castle would deny, make excuses, conduct self-investigations, spread information, prove their innocence, and clean house—a complete package deal, ultimately striving to maintain an image of having minor oversights but not losing their sense of justice and righteousness.
One could only say Kikyō Castle's imagination was quite impressive.
If Kikyō Castle's daimyo was truly filled with righteous indignation over the "Fūma Clan's" reckless behavior and wanted to shake off Yūshin's group like dog shit stuck to the bottom of a shoe, then his order should have been "immediate expulsion."
But now the other side had given Yūshin three days. What was this—was the daimyo really so kind-hearted?
Quite the opposite—the other side had already written "malicious intent" all over his face.
This showed that not only did Yūshin understand what "fermentation" meant, Kikyō Castle's daimyo was probably also a half-baked pastry chef.
As for Yūshin's earlier mention of "fleeing in panic," that was obviously just a joke.
"There's no need to tell everyone about this for now, or it'll be another mess," Yūshin instructed everyone.
Currently, most people in the organization didn't know that Kikyō Castle's daimyo had issued an order to eliminate another daimyo, let alone that Yūshin had already brought back the "gift" and sent it out.
They all believed their side had settled down here.
Since that was the case, and the final result would still be the organization taking root in this place, there was no need to waste words explaining the minor bumps along the way.
"You don't need to worry about what comes next—just leave it to me to handle," Yūshin tried to give everyone a reassuring pill.
After thinking for a moment, he felt he should explain further: "The daimyo has finished reasoning with us, so now it's my turn to reason with him."
Shichimi Uchiha seemed to understand, asking in a somewhat hesitant tone: "Are you planning to... persuade this daimyo using the simplest, purest, most efficient method?"
Her way of speaking clearly showed the influence of being around Yūshin—her language habits had been unfortunately infected to some degree.
Yūshin shook his head with a laugh: "How could that be? We're 'rule-abiding' ninjas... The infamy of assassinating our employer will never be pinned on us."
Now everyone understood—the difference between name and reality needed no elaboration.
"Everyone go about your own business. The problem we're currently facing... well, it'll be resolved before dawn tomorrow."
Although everyone still had doubts, since Yūshin had said so, they each dispersed.
However, Yūshin called out to Shichimi Uchiha, who was lingering at the back.
"I need to trouble you with one more thing... While I'm away from camp, could you take on the responsibility of protecting this place?"
"It won't be too long—maybe just a few hours. And normally speaking, the other side won't immediately take action against this place. My action is more like striking first."
Yūshin explained quite a bit because this time was different from the last—he couldn't righteously demand Shichimi Uchiha's help... Even with something like a "life-saving favor," he couldn't repeatedly ask for repayment.
Shichimi Uchiha had put in great effort during the previous action to destroy the Tsugawa Clan, which already counted as repaying Yūshin's favor.
Without her help, that matter couldn't possibly have been completed so smoothly.
Now Yūshin was making such a request again, which meant he had become the one owing favors.
Although Yūshin didn't know why Shichimi Uchiha had never brought up leaving—theoretically, she should have returned to the Uchiha Clan long ago—this didn't mean he could treat her like a subordinate, because Shichimi had never mentioned joining the organization either.
Nominally, she was just here recovering from injuries.
Precisely because of this ambiguous relationship between them, Yūshin's request was made with considerable thick skin.
As for asking Shichimi Uchiha to act together with him again, honestly, that would be somewhat too presumptuous.
But what he hadn't expected was that Shichimi Uchiha nodded in agreement without hesitation.
"I can only promise you that if anything unexpected happens here, I'll do my best."
Doing her best meant doing what she could accomplish, and what she couldn't accomplish was simply impossible. Shichimi Uchiha was being realistic and not boastful.
What a ninja can accomplish is very limited—when attacking enemies, they can be unrestrained, but when protecting their own side, they can only say they'll do their best.
But this was already enough.
"Thank you so much. After this matter ends, I'll owe you a favor."
Yūshin didn't know what use his favor might have, but in any case, he'd owe it first.
Shichimi Uchiha just casually waved her hand. The camp's situation actually didn't need worry—she also believed that at least today, nothing unexpected would happen here.
She was more concerned about Yūshin's actions.
"You seem very confident. Haven't you considered what would happen if the action fails? I suspect this daimyo's guard strength is definitely not weak."
"It's not confidence, but rather there's no need to consider the consequences of failure... I only need to consider how to achieve the goal. If I really encounter failure, that means my fate with everyone has ended."
Yūshin and his organization had always stood on the edge of a cliff—indeed, they only needed to consider how to move forward. Failure equaled falling into the abyss—what was there to consider?
If Yūshin encountered an accident, this organization would merely follow the predetermined fate it was meant to have. While reaching a pessimistic ending would certainly be regrettable, it was nothing more than the normal state of worldly affairs.
This made Shichimi Uchiha feel that Yūshin wasn't just open-minded—in some sense, he even seemed somewhat "transcendent."
Excuse me?
How did you develop such a transcendent, otherworldly sage mentality at such a young age?
Yūshin ignored the confusion in her eyes.
Whether he was a sage or not was debatable, but he was indeed very much "otherworldly."
...
Time came to the early morning hours again—another daimyo's bedroom.
Yūshin silently wandered among the surrounding wall panels, seemingly wanting to observe the situation inside the room. However, his gaze had only swept around once when he immediately realized something was wrong.
That Kikyō Castle daimyo wasn't here—the room seemed empty.
No, not empty. Yūshin noticed a patch of shadow in the room...
The next moment, he suddenly felt his form freeze.
When he had used the Mayfly Technique before, the surrounding medium was like deep water, and he himself was "like a fish in water." But now the water seemed to suddenly freeze, forcibly squeezing his body out.
His usually invincible infiltration technique had suddenly failed this time—this situation clearly exceeded Yūshin's expectations, and he had never encountered such an accident before.
Originally, he had indeed been quite confident about this infiltration operation. After all, relying on White Zetsu's penetration ability, he believed that while his "offensive capability" might be questionable, his "defensive capability" was definitely invincible—as steady as a turtle.
But as soon as the operation began, his turtle shell seemed to be shattered.
Yūshin's form was squeezed out from the wall. He landed somewhat awkwardly on the room's floor, still trying to avoid making noise while barely maintaining his balance.
However, his "cautiousness" was now unnecessary, because a person completely shrouded in a black cloak was standing quietly not far ahead.
"Indeed, an infiltration technique beyond imagination—not a trace of chakra reaction or breath leaked, but unfortunately you encountered me... You're not a Fūma Clan ninja, are you?" the black-cloaked person asked Yūshin. He didn't seem surprised that someone would appear here in the middle of the night.
This person wrapped up like a dumpling—Yūshin had met him once before. At that time, he had felt the other's strength seemed very powerful, but he had never thought the other could break his Mayfly Technique.
He didn't immediately answer the other's question, first trying to activate the Mayfly Technique again, but found he still couldn't succeed... Looking around this room, he was now trapped here.
His "escape route" had been cut off...
Yūshin felt somewhat troubled.
"How did you learn about my abilities?" he asked in return.
"You attacked a small ninja clan's village, then couldn't silence everyone—isn't it normal for intelligence about yourselves to leak out?"
Yūshin nodded. He naturally knew that since the Tsugawa Clan had scattered, some intelligence about his "appearing and disappearing mysteriously" would leak out. It was just that...
"Kikyō Castle having the ability to confirm the destruction of a ninja clan within another faction's sphere of influence—I can understand that. But how could you collect such specific intelligence so quickly?"
The black-cloaked person wasn't in a hurry to attack, and was even patiently answering Yūshin's questions:
"Collecting intelligence doesn't require doing it personally. The ninja world naturally has specialized organizational groups to do this kind of work—we only need to issue missions."
Yūshin: "..."
Nobody told me about this...
To put it bluntly, his understanding of the current ninja world situation was insufficient.
Seeing Yūshin's somewhat confused expression, the black-cloaked person couldn't help but shake his head in disappointment. This was just an ignorant, immature ninja—talking so much with him seemed like a waste of emotion.
"It seems you don't want to introduce your background... Fine, soon you'll tell me everything in as much detail as possible."
"Hospitality etiquette—you understand... The so-called host accommodating the guest. Why don't you first introduce your background and abilities? Then it'll be my turn to reciprocate."
"Utterly foolish. Attempting to assassinate Kikyō's daimyo is an unforgivable crime—you'll pay the corresponding price."
Yūshin blinked. The other's words were quite... amusing.
"If you win, I'm naturally the assassin of the daimyo. But if I win, then the fact is that the daimyo's hired guard ninja was insatiably greedy and treacherous... This isn't hard to understand, right?"
This statement made the black-cloaked person pause, and then he actually nodded: "Indeed, ninjas ultimately don't rely on words to establish facts... I won't let you die simply."
Yūshin's body became increasingly tense, the chakra within him began to condense, and he stared unblinkingly at the person not far away.
Unable to use the Mayfly Technique was equivalent to removing the strongest card from Yūshin's hand. Without this ability's support, his strength was almost equivalent to an ordinary ninjutsu-type ninja, while this person opposite him very likely had strength far superior to his.
Why couldn't he penetrate this room? Was it because of a barrier? No, definitely not a barrier—there was no chakra reaction around at all... Yūshin tried to find the key to breaking the situation.
Both sides lost the desire to communicate. The dim room became completely quiet, and the atmosphere became increasingly tense as their fighting spirit climbed.
In an instant, lightning flashed from the black-cloaked person, and his figure suddenly disappeared from his original position.
Yūshin's eyes couldn't capture the other's figure at all. He hadn't even made any reaction when he felt severe pain in his neck.
The enemy's right hand gripped his throat like pincers, and then an irresistible massive impact force drove his entire body to retreat at high speed, followed by a thunderous crash as he was slammed into the wall behind him.
"Cough..."
Blood flowed from the corner of Yūshin's mouth. This purely physical heavy blow had almost displaced his internal organs.
More importantly, he felt his throat was about to be crushed.
His gaze involuntarily moved downward, and only then did he notice for the first time that this black-cloaked person's physique was extraordinary... This person's arm exposed from the cloak was thicker than Yūshin's thigh.
With just one exchange, Yūshin understood that his strength and the other's weren't on the same level at all.
Basic qualities, physique, chakra quality and quantity—the two sides were incomparable.
Oh, so the fate of cannon fodder has always accompanied me...
The enemy's five fingers began to tighten. More blood poured from Yūshin's mouth, and his consciousness seemed to be drifting away.
But for some unknown reason, Yūshin's mouth corner suddenly showed a hint of a smile.
Honestly, human nature always carries a bit of a masochistic streak. After living a peaceful life for too long, if you give him some extreme sports, he's actually quite happy.
A strange, uncontrollable force suddenly triggered the black-cloaked person's chakra. This force almost instantly drained the chakra he was using to suppress Yūshin, causing his grip like a pipe wrench to suddenly lose strength.
Just in a moment of distraction, before he could withdraw his hand, he found Yūshin's hands had already come together, and then...
Water Release: Water Severing Wave!
Yūshin spat out an indestructible water blade from his mouth. At this moment, what the enemy should have done most was completely snap his neck, but the other simply couldn't do it.
However, Yūshin also couldn't freely turn his neck due to the other's hand restraint, so the Water Severing Wave lost its best cutting angle.
The water blade could only sweep a tiny arc from top to bottom.
One could only say that no matter what, Yūshin should thank Tobirama Senju's eight generations of ancestors. The killing power of this high-level water release was unquestionable—even in this situation, he easily severed the enemy's right arm at the shoulder.
Under this sudden attack, the enemy quickly retreated.
The five fingers on Yūshin's neck loosened, and that arm crashed to the ground.
His body also slid down along the wall, half-kneeling on the ground, coughing violently.
More blood, along with some flesh and tissue fragments, was spat onto the floor.
Yūshin's breathing sounded like a broken bellows. If he were just an ordinary ninja, the next outcome would only be death by suffocation.
He quickly made his shoulder and neck area "White Zetsu-ized," with large amounts of chakra gathering toward the wound. Under this life-and-death crisis, certain survival potential was activated, and the wound under "White Zetsu-ization" was healing at a speed far exceeding the past—unprecedented speed.
After a moment, regardless of the injury's condition, at least his trachea could connect to his lungs again.
"Hu..."
Yūshin exhaled deeply, but had no time to experience the feeling of surviving disaster.
His eyes looked toward the ground, and immediately, as if realizing something, his pupils couldn't help but contract.
The ground was covered with his blood, yet he had clearly severely injured the black-cloaked enemy, but the other hadn't shed a single drop of blood.
The next moment, the arm on the ground suddenly "launched," its five fingers together like a blade, easily piercing through Yūshin's abdomen.
The severe pain almost made him bite through his teeth, but at this moment, Yūshin's eyes were tightly fixed on the "wound" of that arm.
That wasn't a wound at all—what was exposed were wild, flamboyant, floating black threads, like black long hair.
Yūshin made a sound like a broken bellows:
"Earth Grudge Fear..."
The enemy opposite shouldn't be the First Hokage's lifelong rival.
But the secret technique he used seemed to need no further explanation.
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