No matter how heartbroken and furious Danzo was, no matter how ecstatic the ninja clan representatives were after securing promises from various aristocrats—the sun still rose the next morning.
After composing himself and tidying his attire, Danzo, serving as Chief Envoy, slowly stepped out from the lodging that had been under constant surveillance by Jonin of the Hyuga Branch House throughout the night. He joined the other ninja clan representatives who, after feasting and drinking with the nobles of the Daimyo's court the entire night, now yawned while waiting to enter the palace for their audience with the Daimyo.
Honestly, Danzo was taken aback by how wild the Konoha reps were acting right now.
Unlike their usual cautiousness back in Konoha, ever since leaving Konoha these representatives had become somewhat more vigilant in their actions—but stranger still, they acted like they didn't care anymore.
It seemed contradictory, but Danzo knew his instincts were sharp.
Their attitudes remained as respectful as always—well, except for the Hyuga Clan and Uchiha Clan!
But whether it was just his imagination or not, Danzo couldn't help but feel that there was something strange about the way they looked at him.
After much thought, Danzo finally realized belatedly what it was—their eyes revealed disdain! That's exactly what it was—disdain!
Still, after being severely humiliated all night long by the collective [Byakugan] glares from the Branch House Jonin, Danzo had become more calculating than before. Thus, despite his inner turmoil, he still managed to maintain a slightly strained smile on his face as he exchanged idle chatter with those representatives who each harbored different thoughts.
After pretending to engage in small talk for some time, a chamberlain from the inner palace finally arrived at the embassy district accompanied by a squad of samurai, summoning the Konoha delegation to follow them into the palace for the audience.
"Wait!"
Just as the envoy members were preparing to depart, a senior samurai bearing two ceremonial flags strapped onto his back suddenly shouted furiously, drawing numerous curious glances from the ninja present.
"No ninja tools or weapons are permitted when appearing before the Daimyo!"
The elaborately armored senior samurai declared aggressively.
Instantly, all gazes turned toward Danzo, the appointed Chief Envoy.
Under the weight of everyone's stare, Danzo felt his frustration rise.
Guess I can live with never getting the easy gigs—but why's every nasty job mine?
However, because of who he was, Danzo had no choice but to bite back his pride and speak up: "We shinobi of Konoha serve directly under the Daimyo—"
"Rude!"
His words were cut off by a foul-breathed roar from the samurai officer: "How dare you lowly shinobi act so presumptuously before His Highness the Daimyo?!"
This sweeping insult hit every single Konoha ninja present!
"Daring indeed!"
Danzo's face darkened instantly. Hidden beneath his sleeves, his fingers clenched together as chakra began to surge through his fingers.
But after hesitating for several seconds, he ultimately held back. Although this samurai was overstepping, judging by his attire, he was likely one of the Daimyo's personal guards. Additionally, the chamberlain in charge of delivering orders showed no extra reaction either, making Danzo hesitant about how to respond immediately.
"Hmph!"
Hizashi Hyuga let out a cold snort and exchanged a meaningful glance with Hyuga Soushu.
[Jumping Slash!]
Again using that familiar move — [Jumping Slash!] — Hyuga Soushu's ghostly form shot forward with speed that surpassed even the Body Flicker Technique, appearing right before the Senior Samurai. He struck like a spear, sending the man crashing to the ground!
"What are you doing!"
The aide immediately cried out in alarm.
"Just teaching you a lesson."
Ignoring the other warriors who had taken defensive stances and drawn their swords, Hyuga Soushu calmly pulled out a kunai and squatted down, placing it across the Senior Samurai's throat—the man still dazed from that single blow.
"No! Please don't!"
The aide's scream pierced the air like that of a castrated rooster.
But whether it was the Konoha ninjas watching coldly from the sidelines or those terrified warriors, none showed any intention of stopping Hyuga Soushu.
"You..."
The trembling aide opened and closed his mouth several times, unable to form a complete sentence.
Still wearing a calm smile, Hyuga Soushu even took the time to lift his head and look at the equally frightened warriors.
"Clang!"
One particularly young warrior was so intimidated by Hyuga Soushu's gaze that he trembled like a leaf and dropped his sword to the ground.
This only made the others flinch again, their expressions growing even more fearful.
As one of the Daimyo's personal guards, these Senior Samurai held prestigious positions and formidable power. Besides their traditional swordsmanship skills, they also wielded chakra energy. In normal circumstances, they could match the Daimyo's guardian ninja evenly in combat. Yet this man had been knocked unconscious with just one blow from a Konoha ninja—and now seemed intent on committing outright murder.
How could the warriors not be terrified?
"Enough already. Let that be a warning—"
Though secretly quite pleased, Danzo maintained a tight expression as he spoke up.
"Kill him."
Hizashi Hyuga said simply.
"Gurgle!"
As Hyuga Soushu dragged the kunai across his throat, the Senior Samurai emitted a pitiful shriek like a chicken about to be killed!
"Don't worry..."
Hyuga Soushu's smile grew wider. "...just take a breath. Breathe through it."
As the kunai cut deeper, blood spurted out, staining the ground with an ominous black hue while the sweet metallic scent of blood spread through the air.
The ninjas watched it all unfold with cold amusement, but the sheltered aides and warriors had never witnessed such brutality before—they were utterly horrified, trembling with terror!
Because the kunai's blade was quite short, Hyuga Soushu had to drag it back and forth for a long while before finally severing the Senior Samurai's head from his body. Then, grabbing the hair on the severed head, he lifted it up and stood, turning toward Hizashi Hyuga and asking, "Should I carry this gift all the way into the palace for our audience?"
"No need."
Hizashi Hyuga replied calmly without any change in expression.
"Well then…"
Hyuga Soushu wiped the bloodied kunai clean against the hair on the head before tossing it aside carelessly, treating it like discarded trash.
Throughout the entire act, he remained calm and emotionless, as if he had simply crushed an insignificant ant.
"That's right. Speaking of which, the so-called quality of the Uchiha Clan's ninja tools is nothing special!"
Hyuga Soushu calmly returned a kunai still stained with traces of blood into his Ninja Tool Pouch (a specialized pouch for storing ninja tools), then remarked to Captain Uchiha from the Policing Department's Special Operations Unit: "It took so long to finish him off—it was such a hassle."
"Who told you not to invest in premium-grade tools!"
The captain grinned revealingly. "Next time I'll have Mahiru show you around my family's weapon shop (a shop specializing in ninja weaponry). You'll find top-notch quality at unbeatable prices!"
This refined yet oddly eccentric ninja perfectly suited Soushu's taste!
No wonder Mahiru chose this man for her affection and respect!
It's just a shame that he's from the Hyuga Branch House—or he would have been even more perfect!
"Sure thing, I'll stop by next time."
Soushu nodded slightly, disregarding those terrified quail nearby as he gestured politely toward the composed envoy members.
Hizashi Hyuga, his expression gradually showing subtle arrogance, tidied up his clothing and strode past Danzo who remained rooted on the spot. He led the envoy's clan representatives toward the embassy district entrance.
Danzo, his expression changing constantly, finally began walking once half the envoy had already passed by.
Yet instead of joining the envoy group, he walked alone on one side.
He walked alone and isolated, like a wandering soul.
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