The confrontation at the negotiating table is never accomplished in a single stroke.
The first formal contact between the two sides concluded under the consideration of Genshi.
The night was like ink, thickly smeared across the sky above the Hidden Mist Village.
The hazy moisture of the day condensed into colder, wetter mist at night, silently enveloping this land that had just broken free from the "Bloody Mist Regime" policy.
Moving away from the lights of the Mizukage Building, Hyuga Hiashi, accompanied by Neji, slipped quietly away from their arranged residence like two specters merging with the night, heading toward the Kaguya Clan Ruins marked on the letter outside the village.
The air was filled with the salty tang of the sea breeze and an indescribable, old scent of blood mixed with rust and bone powder, seemingly seeped deep into the soil.
Before them lay a massive ruin.
Broken, enormous stone pillars, like the skeletons of giant beasts, jutted menacingly toward the night sky.
The remnants of collapsed buildings were covered in slick moss and twisted vines, and scattered among the crumbling walls were many ghastly white, strangely shaped, giant bone columns.
Those were the last remnants left by the Kaguya Clan's famous ability, the "Shikotsumyaku."
Moonlight struggled to penetrate the thick fog, casting mottled, distorted shadows on the ruins, like ghostly claws.
The entire area was so silent it was unnerving.
Hyuga Hiashi stood at the entrance to the ruins, the veins around his eyes instantly bulging. Pure white light flared in the darkness, sweeping over the dead zone like two searchlights.
'As expected...'
Hiashi understood immediately.
The Kaguya Clan had been completely wiped out in a bloody internal conflict many years ago; this place was truly a land of death.
However, the number of people lying in ambush was still considerable.
Yet, within this seemingly uninhabited silence, his Byakugan clearly saw them.
Dozens of figures were lurking in the shadows of the broken stone pillars, behind the massive bone piles, and concealed by the twisted vines—they were like venomous snakes coiled in the darkness, silently flicking their tongues, waiting for their prey to step into the center of the encirclement.
"Neji, protect yourself."
Hiashi's voice was low and calm.
The moment Hiashi activated his Byakugan, Neji had already sensed the numerous people lying in wait around them, ready for battle.
His Byakugan also activated, and the three-hundred-and-fifty-nine-degree field of view instantly locked onto the positions and movements of all hidden individuals.
Just then, a voice filled with clear hostility abruptly rang out from the center of the ruins, shattering the silence:
"Esteemed guests of Konoha, instead of resting in your residence late at night, you run off to this desolate forbidden area... What exactly are you trying to do?"
Accompanied by heavy footsteps, a figure slowly emerged from behind a broken giant pillar.
The moonlight barely outlined his figure: tall and muscular, dressed in dark Hidden Mist Ninja attire. Most notably, thick white bandages were wrapped around his neck, extending up to his chin.
His eyes gleamed with a ferocious, beast-like light in the gloom. In his hand, he carried an extremely bizarrely shaped giant weapon—it looked like a combination of an axe and a heavy hammer. The axe blade was broad and heavy, while the hammerhead was large with a short handle, and there seemed to be a mechanical link in the middle.
It was one of the Seven Ninja Swords—Dull Blade: Kabutowari!
"The Hyuga Clan and the Kaguya Clan have old ties; I came to look around here."
Hiashi's gaze lingered on the man's face and the iconic weapon for a moment, information from the Anbu intelligence files quickly flashing through his mind. He recognized the person.
It was Toroi Saburou, the son of Toroi Ebisu, the previous wielder of Dull Blade: Kabutowari.
"Toroi Saburou."
Hiashi's voice remained steady, betraying no hint of tension despite being surrounded.
"The Hyuga Clan and the Kaguya Clan also shared some connections in the distant past. I only came here to reminisce about our former relationship."
He casually dismissed the late-night visit as "reminiscing," yet his gaze was sharp as a knife, scrutinizing the opponent.
It seems those old fogeys in the Hyuga Clan truly have a death wish.
Toroi Saburou let out a sneer.
He casually swung the Kabutowari twice, creating a dull whooshing sound, the axe blade and hammerhead reflecting a cold metallic sheen under the moonlight.
"Reminisce about old ties?"
He grinned, revealing stark white teeth.
"In the Hidden Mist Village, any unauthorized nighttime activity by outsiders warrants suspicion."
He violently slammed the hammerhead of the Kabutowari onto the ground, producing a heavy "thud" and scattering broken stones.
"If you want to reminisce, you must first report to Lord Genshi and obtain permission.
If an esteemed guest acts so furtively, are you not afraid of being treated as a spy gathering intelligence?"
His voice suddenly rose, laced with menace. The surrounding killing intent instantly intensified, and the faint sound of weapons being drawn could be heard in the darkness.
"Report to Genshi?"
Hiashi deliberately slowed his speech.
"Why not report to... Lord Mizukage?"
His gaze was fixed on Toroi Saburou's face, especially those fierce eyes, not missing the slightest change in expression.
Since entering the Hidden Mist Village, he had rarely heard anyone mention Mizukage Yagura; virtually everyone referred to Genshi when discussing important matters. A bold conjecture formed in his mind.
Did Genshi kill the Mizukage and take power himself?
Is the Hidden Mist secretly withholding the news of the death to prevent others from realizing that the village currently lacks a sitting Mizukage?
After a momentary lapse, Toroi Saburou forcibly suppressed his churning emotions, the veins on his neck bulging with effort.
He violently pointed the Kabutowari's axe blade at Hiashi, making a grating metallic sound. His voice, strained by forced suppression, sounded even more hoarse and aggressive, as if masking his inner turmoil:
"Because Lord Mizukage is extremely busy with state affairs and doesn't have the time to entertain you."
"Take down these two spies attempting to investigate Hidden Mist intelligence!"
In that instant, the killing intent that could no longer be restrained erupted like a bursting dam!
Shing shing shing—!
In the darkness, over a dozen Kunai, tipped with a faint blue cold light, tore through the humid air like bloodthirsty wasps, shooting in from tricky angles all around, targeting the vital points of Hiashi and Neji.
Simultaneously, several dark figures burst forth like phantoms from behind the rubble and bone piles, wielding Ninja Swords and charging forward with chilling killing intent!
Hyuga Hiashi moved.
His figure seemed to instantly break free from the constraints of gravity, like a crane suddenly spreading its wings under the moonlight!
His wide kimono sleeves and long black hair fluttered wildly in the fierce wind.
All the deadly Kunai missed, grazing his sleeves and hair tips before embedding themselves in the crumbling walls behind him with dull thuds.
In the instant he dodged the attack, before Hiashi's body even touched the ground, his arms pushed out horizontally like lightning!
"Eighty Trigrams Empty Palm!"
Buzz—!
Two unseen, violent blasts of chakra, like invisible giant fists, slammed with perfect precision into the two Hidden Mist Ninja who had just emerged from cover.
The two Ninja didn't even have time to scream; their bodies were struck as if hit head-on by a speeding train.
They were sent flying backward like ragged sacks, crashing heavily onto the pile of white bones in the distance. Blood mixed with fragments of internal organs sprayed violently from their mouths and noses, killing them instantly.
One strike, two kills, clean and decisive!