He pointed sharply toward Land of Wind and sneered. "Sunagakure. They said the Land of Fire was too rich and that Sunagakure could not survive. So they launched the Second Shinobi World War with the absurd excuse of unfair resource distribution."
"In the Third Shinobi World War, three generations of Kazekage went missing, and they blamed us for it and used that shameless excuse to invade again." His words struck hard. "They crossed our borders, tore apart our companions with puppets, buried our fields in sand, and poisoned our people."
"They used the blood and lives of the Land of Fire to fill the hungry cracks of their barren land. That is what they call fair distribution." His gaze swept the crowd. "That is Sunagakure. That is Kumogakure."
"Not long ago, they sent envoys, yet put blades to the throats of children." His voice dropped, filled with contempt. "When their plot failed, those beasts pressured our Konoha and demanded we hand over the so-called murderer who protected their family."
"They said they wanted an explanation." He laughed softly. "An explanation? They dare to speak of explanation?"
"Who will give Konoha an explanation?" he demanded. "Who will answer the families who lost their pillars, the villages crushed underfoot, and all of us?"
Fear faded from the crowd, replaced by silent, growing anger. It built like molten rock beneath the ground, waiting for a way out. Ryuji Hyuga's voice cut through it again.
"Assassination, plunder, kidnapping, framing, extortion." He tightened his grip on the sword. "This is Kumogakure. This is Sunagakure."
"Their Greed gaze has never left the land of Konoha. And now, they are here again." His eyes burned. "They did not even wait for us to wipe away our tears before baring their teeth."
"They are saying that without a First Hokage, Konoha is nothing but a broken-backed cat." He leaned forward. "So now, what is your answer?"
He stepped forward, nearly leaning off the platform, his injured right arm staining his clothes red. He ignored the pain and shouted, "Have you had enough?"
"Enough!" a deep roar answered from the crowd. The sound was low but unified. Rage replaced hesitation.
"Do you still believe those peace agreements written on worthless Scroll can protect our families?" he pressed. The answer came back like thunder. "No!"
"Will you let them bleed us dry like leeches?" he shouted again. The crowd roared in response, a violent release of fear, sorrow, and fury.
"Good. Very good." A cruel, fervent smile spread across Ryuji Hyuga's face. "Those bastards understand only one thing."
He raised his bandaged arm and wrenched it with force. The bandages snapped and fell apart as blood flowed down, dripping onto the cold stone platform. His voice crashed down on the crowd. "Blood."
"Kill them. Kill them until they are afraid." He stood there, bathed in the red light of sunset, blood dripping steadily from his arm. It was not a declaration, but a raw and unquestionable command.
Below, the Konoha Ninja erupted completely. Shouts of "Kill!" echoed again and again, filled with resolve and desperation. The ground itself seemed to tremble under their voices.
In the crowd, Hizashi Hyuga and others felt the fervor up close, their faces pale with shock and awe. Words failed them as they stood frozen. Farther ahead, Hyuga Aoi swallowed and looked up at that figure, her last trace of pride shattered and replaced by admiration.
"Form up immediately. Target, Land of Rain!" Orders rang out one after another. "Logistics, calculate sufficient supplies. Sealing Technique teams, prepare sealing formations against the Tailed Beasts."
Hiruzen Sarutobi finally stepped forward, forcing down his shock and the long-lost heat in his chest as he issued commands into the storm of emotion. Nearby, Danzo Shimura stared at Ryuji Hyuga with a flushed face, his body trembling. How could someone be this bold, and why did such a person belong to Hiruzen?
On the platform, Ryuji Hyuga stood with his arm soaked in blood and paid it no mind. He was listening to the pleasant chime in his head. The notice told him his lie had been judged as a staged truth, stirring intense belief and granting him a great number of Reality Points.
At the same time, memories flowed in. The clone near Nagato had been Remove, which meant the Box of Ultimate Bliss was finally in hand. Ryuji Hyuga looked at the fervent crowd again as if watching one soul after another, and a sincere smile appeared.
Go, fight for Konoha. I will wait for you to return to death's embrace, and fight for me.
Near Land of Grass, in the middle of a stretch of violent sea, there stood a lone island. That island was the infamous Hozuki Castle, known across the entire Ninja World. Jagged reefs covered its shores, their sharp points thrust upward like the fangs of a giant beast.
The island was battered year round by rushing waves that struck it without pause, producing a deep roar that never stopped. Layer after layer of dark water surged toward the coast, carrying a heavy glow beneath the surface. It was not only an island or a city, but also a prison.
"Has the recent intelligence from the Ninja World beenorganizeed?" "It has already been placed in your office, Muei-sama."
The man called Muei walked through a narrow and dim stone corridor, with a prison guard following close behind in a respectful manner. Muei gave a short response and did not turn his head. He wore the red and black robes unique to the city lord and warden, his footsteps echoing faintly against the stone floor.
On both sides of the corridor were rows of heavy iron-barred cells, with sparse light leaking through and casting dense shadows across his body. Low moans and cries filled the air, voices of men and women, old and young, tangled together until the wall lamps trembled as if about to go out. These sounds were not sharp screams of pain, but hoarse howls like those of the gravely ill at the edge of death, filled with negative emotions born from the loss of all hope for life.
Bang.
As Muei passed several cells, filthy and withered arms suddenly thrust out through the gaps in the bars, fingers spasming as they clawed toward him. In one cell, a small figure was curled in the corner shadows, head buried in their knees, body shaking as it whimpered like a dying animal. Bloodshot eyes stared out, numb, crazed, hateful, or empty.
Muei did not slow his pace at all, nor did his gaze shift even slightly. He walked on as if moving through a forest made of negative emotions, his expression unchanged. No one understood better than him who was imprisoned within this so-called Hozuki Castle.
Hozuki Castle was a prison jointly funded by various nations and entrusted to Kusagakure for management. It was specifically used to hold heavy criminal Ninja offenders. Those locked here were Ninja who had committed unforgivable crimes across the Ninja World.
What counted as unforgivable included slaughtering civilians, stealing secrets, assassinating nobles, and researching forbidden arts. Madmen who could kill hundreds or thousands on a whim were common here. Each crime alone was enough to justify immediate execution.
Yet execution was not always the best choice. Some prisoners held secrets, some were tied to complex political interests, and some existed as deterrents or bargaining chips. Thus, Hozuki Castle came into being as a place to gather filth and danger, a trash bin that let all nations look away.
Every city lord of Hozuki Castle came from a clan capable of using Fire Release to create the Heavenly Prison. By implanting this Ninjutsu into a prisoner, it prevented them from gathering Chakra. As a result, there were no fierce Ninjutsu battles here, only raw physical violence, mental torment, and silent Zetsu Wang.
Without the ability to use Chakra, and with seas full of whirlpools surrounding the island, no one could swim away alive. Ninja stripped of their power were like tigers without claws or fangs, left to cling to life in cold cages through endless time. In Muei's view, this was the most fitting punishment for such inhuman lunatics.
Of course, Kusagakure accepted this commission for reasons far from benevolent. kacha.
Muei reached the end of the corridor and pushed open a heavy door, its hinges letting out a dull groan. Inside was his office. He told his subordinate to leave if there was nothing else, then stepped in and closed the door behind him.
Compared to the damp chill outside, the room was merely dry, but it blocked out the disgusting sounds and stares beyond the walls. An oil lamp cast a wavering glow over a massive desk and shelves piled high with files. Muei took off his outer robe, draped it over the chair, and sat down with a faint sigh of fatigue.
His gaze fell on the Scroll at the corner of the desk. It contained the routine monthly intelligence, the only way to learn about the outside world from this isolated island, though the information was always delayed. He opened it and skimmed through, finding mostly trivial matters.
Then the next report made his eyes tighten.