"Looks like you guys—!"
Hyuga Mirai had just appeared beside Kiyo Hyuga and the others using his space-time ninjutsu when he was struck hard by a palm. The blow wasn't enough to seriously harm him, but it still stung.
"So it's you. Next time, give me a heads-up. In unfamiliar places, misunderstandings happen easily."
Kiyo Hyuga said with a smile at the corner of her mouth. She had just endured an attack from Kurenai Yuhi's useless fat and happened to see Hyuga Mirai emerge from the space corridor, so she vented her frustration on him.
But Hyuga Mirai wasn't exactly defenseless. After Kiyo struck him, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, his face pale, and he weakly said, "It's fine, a minor injury. Be careful, though—though I've already defeated the Sage of the Six Paths, there are still many powerful beings in the Pure Land…"
"How can it be this serious…"
Seeing his expression, Kiyo panicked and stepped forward, intending to heal him with medical ninjutsu. But when she examined his condition, she was shocked: his chakra was depleted, his meridians were chaotic, his internal organs severely damaged, and his body weakened constantly.
"Quick, go back for treatment! If enemies appear, I'll cover the rear!"
Kiyo Hyuga scolded herself. She had acted too impulsively, attacking Hyuga Mirai without knowing the situation, worsening his injuries.
"No need. There's still a lot to handle. I'll escort you back first…"
Hyuga Mirai said weakly, and this immediately frustrated Kiyo—he had suffered such serious injuries yet still cared about other matters.
"Stop saying useless things. Go back immediately. You're weaker than me right now; if you stay, I'll stay too."
Hyuga Mirai hesitated, then said weakly, "Then, Kiyo, promise me one thing, and I'll… go back."
"Anything."
"Promise me." Hyuga Mirai instantly 'recovered' upon hearing her answer. "Kiyo, your words are the strongest medical ninjutsu. I'm fully healed—let's go back."
"You…"
Kiyo Hyuga realized at once that Hyuga Mirai had tricked her. Her palm strike and concern had allowed him to deceive her. Looking back, Yuhi and Ayaka hadn't reacted; they had been watching her the whole time.
As for the promise, Kiyo already guessed what it was. Even if she regretted it, Hyuga Mirai had plenty of ways to ensure her compliance.
"I'll send you back first. The Pure Land still needs some cleaning up. Kiyo—"
"No need to say it. I know!" Kiyo Hyuga said, blushing, turning her head, her tone firm. "It's just one thing; I won't go back on my word."
She had been caught off guard this time, but next time, she would be far more cautious.
Satisfied with her answer, Hyuga Mirai patted her long hair and used a gray crystal to send the three of them out of the Pure Land. Nearby, spirit bodies were rushing in. If he hadn't dealt with the Sage of the Six Paths early, they would have faced endless combat.
Through the gray crystal's power, Hyuga Mirai saw many spirits converging on the 'living' in the Pure Land, though a few powerful ones, like Uchiha Madara, remained inactive.
The first to face large-scale spirit attacks were Hyuga Mirai's mechanized puppets and the one hundred jonin capable of Sage Mode. After these spirits' assaults caused significant damage, Hyuga Mirai's next step, after sending Kiyo and the others away, was to send these allies out as well.
"First, block the spirits' perception…"
Once the spirits lost their ability to sense, they could no longer endlessly locate the living in the Pure Land to attack.
Hyuga Mirai felt the gray crystal contained many abilities, likely one of the masterpieces of ancient onmyoji who created the Pure Land. Here, it allowed near-total suppression of spirits.
If possible, he wanted to study this technique, then improve Obito Uchiha's Kamui space into a portable crystal, optimized as a ring or earring for easier control and potential mass production.
But now wasn't the time. First, he needed to eliminate all the unruly spirits in the Pure Land.
This was a remarkable place. From the planet-covering 'backside' space to the way spirits were absorbed, it was all worthy of study. Mastery here would make him practically the ruler of a hellish domain.
Next, Hyuga Mirai used Yomi Birasaka to teleport the Sage Mode jonin out, then stored the mechanized puppets. By rough calculation, from when he opened the Pure Land gate, he had eliminated over a hundred thousand spirit bodies—more than all the deaths in past shinobi wars combined.
Finally, Hyuga Mirai arrived at Tsunade's battlefield, where he saw her controlling a massive Susanoo, smashing the ground like a whack-a-mole game, leaving several kilometers of terrain completely destroyed.
"Bind!"
Hyuga Mirai immediately activated the gray crystal's power, immobilizing the First Raikage and First Tsuchikage. The next instant, the Susanoo's blade shattered them into pieces. Their spirits turned into starlight, merging into the Pure Land space.
"What are you doing here? Done over there? Was that your doing?"
Tsunade deactivated the Susanoo, noticing the sudden immobility of the others and losing interest in playing.
"Sort of. After dealing with the Sage of the Six Paths, he left this here. Holding it produces an effect, but to fully utilize it, swallowing might be necessary. Binding spirits is minor; other areas even bind stronger spirits, with powerful seals."
Hyuga Mirai handed over the gray crystal. Tsunade inspected it, played with it briefly, then returned it, asking, "Indeed. But what will you do with these guys? Let them go?"
"Let them go? Are you joking? These are people who actively oppose us. Eliminating them generates energy to reinforce the Pure Land. If we let them go, their hatred won't dissipate—what's the point?"
Hyuga Mirai looked at Tsunade like she was an idiot, then nodded toward her. "The hatred in their eyes won't turn into gratitude."
Especially Uchiha Itachi and Jiraiya. Though bound and immobile, their gazes were hostile. Their deaths were directly linked to him, and they blamed him entirely for Konoha's fate, never considering the lives of civilians.
"Hmm, you're right."
Though she agreed, Tsunade wanted to plead. Jiraiya, though foolish, had been her teammate for over a decade. If he died in the Pure Land, it would be final.
As she hesitated, Hyuga Mirai snapped his fingers. Instantly, the First Kage and past jinchūriki turned into starlight, returning as energy to the Pure Land. Next, it was Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi.
Killing these two gave him no particular feeling.
By the time Tsunade realized, only Jiraiya remained uneliminated. Before Hyuga Mirai snapped again, she hurried to stop him.
"All right, I got it. I'll work properly when I return, as you instructed."
Tsunade's intervention made her realize he had deliberately waited for her, rather than eliminating Jiraiya immediately. He seized every opportunity to neutralize threats.
"Tsunade, don't plead. Fukasaku already sees life and death clearly…"
Jiraiya's words were cut off; Hyuga Mirai blocked his voice entirely. No matter how much Jiraiya tried to speak, no sound emerged, only a hostile glare.
"This guy is really annoying."
Hyuga Mirai thought sparing Jiraiya was too generous. He whispered a request to Tsunade, who blushed furiously and clenched her fists.
"Are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?"
Hyuga Mirai only shook his head, pretending ignorance. "So this is a decade of teammate friendship. I understand—better to eliminate than to survive in the Pure Land…"
"I get it!"
Tsunade interrupted, exhaling deeply, trembling as she hugged Hyuga Mirai's waist tightly.
Jiraiya, shielded from sound, only saw Hyuga Mirai whispering to Tsunade, followed by her embarrassed hug.
Pain! Too much pain! Even in death, Jiraiya hadn't felt this. He refused to accept this sight—it was a genjutsu! Hyuga Mirai was attacking his mind with illusion!
"Tsunade, reflect properly in the Pure Land. Don't continue making mistakes; there might still be…"
Before she could finish, Hyuga Mirai used the gray crystal to send Jiraiya away, to a place in the Pure Land filled with toad spirits, suitable for him. If he had continued listening, he might have immediately killed himself. Tsunade, turned away, didn't know.
Feeling a mix of shame and anger at her teammate's life being threatened, she sat silently for a long moment.
"He seems furious. Should I send him away?"
Though Jiraiya had already been sent off, Hyuga Mirai could still trick Tsunade.
"Send him now!"
Blushing like she had a fever, Tsunade closed her eyes, trembling as she urged him.
"All right. I'll study how to use this gray crystal properly," Hyuga Mirai said seriously, feigning research.
"Done?"
"Almost."
A few minutes later, sensing Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama finishing and heading their way, he said to Tsunade, "They've been sent, Tsunade."
Hearing this, she released her embrace, stepped back, face flushed, looking away. Once she let go, the tight pressure on Hyuga Mirai's chest dissipated.
"Nothing we just did is to be told to anyone!"
"Ah, that depends on your future behavior. You'll follow a 9-to-5 schedule, right? Otherwise, you wouldn't want anyone seeing this video."
Hyuga Mirai tapped his watch, a screen appearing to replay Tsunade hugging him. Jiraiya, hearing nothing, could only see her blushing face before she pulled him close.
"You're threatening me with this?"
Tsunade exclaimed in disbelief. Jiraiya had already been sent away—she had been tricked into hugging him for so long?
She was ready to use her ultimate move today, furious, rolling up her sleeves—but sensing her grandfather and great-grandfather approaching, she realized Hyuga Mirai had calculated this. Blushing with anger, she glared at him.
"I-I know! Don't show this to anyone else!"
"Of course. If you behave, only two people will know about this video."
Hyuga Mirai smiled, adding, "Remember to clock in on time. I'll check your work records."
"You…"
Tsunade fumed, about to raise her fist, but Senju Tobirama and Senju Hashirama arrived the next second.
"Looks like you handled things too, hmm? Little Tsunade, why is your face so red?" Tobirama asked midway, noticing her condition. Did she get hurt dealing with so many powerful foes?
"Nothing, just overused my dojutsu," she said, heart racing. Luckily, she had destroyed several kilometers of terrain like a whack-a-mole game, avoiding suspicion.
"Is that so? Rest well when you return."
Tobirama and Hashirama then looked at Hyuga Mirai, awaiting his instructions.
Hyuga Mirai spoke, "The Pure Land is under my control. Some areas still need clearing, but I'll handle that later. First, I'll send you out."
A few powerful spirits remained sealed, including one free-moving consciousness—the Shinigami sealed by the Uzumaki clan's traditional corpse seal. Through the gray crystal, Hyuga Mirai could see Namikaze Minato inside the Shinigami.
He also discovered that the energy accumulated in the Pure Land could be released back to the shinobi world, naturally enhancing chakra there.
However, doing so would leave less energy to sustain the spirits.
(End of Chapter)
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