"Shukaku?"
Inside the Hokage's office, Tsunade and the Third Hokage were discussing Konoha's follow-up plans—specifically how to coordinate with the daimyo regarding the so-called "civilian-use ninjas."
Then—
Yamanaka Santen returned with a piece of terrifying news.
Yagyū Souma had split Shukaku in half.
"What?! That brat has gone too far—quick, we need to send reinforcements!"
The Third Hokage's expression changed instantly.
That wasn't some ordinary enemy—it was the One-Tail. Even with only half its chakra, it was still an existence of overwhelming danger, far beyond what ordinary shinobi could handle.
No matter how much of a genius Souma was—
Urgency flashed across Hiruzen's face as he moved to leap out the window. Santen panicked and hurriedly grabbed him before he could act.
"Third Hokage-sama, please wait! Shukaku didn't go berserk! It doesn't dare go berserk!"
"…What do you mean?"
Hiruzen was confused.
Wasn't a tailed beast split apart?
Given Shukaku's notoriously violent nature, how could it possibly coexist peacefully with humans? Even at half strength, it should have been a massive threat to the village.
But—
"That Shukaku was… incredibly obedient. Um, I can show you my memories."
With no other choice, Yamanaka Santen formed hand seals and shared what he had seen.
Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
After a moment, Santen sensibly shared the same memories with her as well.
Then—
The Third Hokage and Tsunade exchanged a look, sat back down, and fell into silence.
They wanted to say something—but their minds were blank.
After a long pause, Tsunade waved her hand irritably.
"You can leave. Keep monitoring the situation. If Shukaku shows any unusual movement, report immediately."
"Yes!"
Yamanaka Santen withdrew.
Hiruzen frowned, saying nothing. Tsunade rubbed her temples with a headache building, then suddenly stood up and kicked her chair aside.
"What the hell is that brat trying to do?!"
"Don't rush it," Hiruzen said calmly, switching roles to comfort her.
"He must have his reasons. Honestly… I'm more curious about how he made Shukaku behave so obediently."
Tsunade slowly calmed down and thought it through.
"It's probably a mental-type technique."
"A mental technique?" Hiruzen paused. "From the Yamanaka clan?"
"Not exactly," Tsunade replied.
"More like Yakumo's abilities—splitting consciousness, temporarily creating a new personality. Tailed beasts may not fear death, but if their consciousness is replaced or erased… then the current Shukaku is essentially dead."
Her analysis was sharp—she had guessed most of Souma's method.
Hiruzen was genuinely surprised.
So the Yamanaka clan had fully aligned with Souma as well?
Impressive.
Ino–Shika–Chō, plus the Aburame and Inuzuka clans… Konoha's core combat forces were now deeply tied to that boy.
Sixth Hokage, without question.
Hiruzen's mouth twitched slightly before he looked toward the outskirts of the village.
"In that case, Shukaku probably won't act recklessly. Keeping it in the Forest of Death, with Souma's clone watching over it, shouldn't cause problems."
"Mm."
Tsunade nodded, then frowned slightly.
"Do you think he's guarding against Akatsuki?"
"Very possible," Hiruzen said after some thought.
"If Akatsuki's members are all S-rank missing-nin and they're targeting tailed beasts, Sunagakure wouldn't be able to hold Shukaku."
"Rasa can handle one," Tsunade sneered, "but two? Hah. Unless Chiyo is willing to burn her life away."
Half a tailed beast was still better than losing the entire thing to Akatsuki.
That was probably Souma's reasoning.
After a few seconds of thought, Tsunade said decisively:
"I don't think we need to interfere. Souma's thinking is correct. We need contingencies—and Sunagakure isn't exactly Konoha's ally either."
"Let's get back to our discussion," Hiruzen said with a sigh.
"That brat takes all the benefits for himself and dumps the cleanup on us."
He complained—but only verbally.
Souma was capable, proactive, and willing to open new paths. Cleaning up after him was something these old folks were more than willing to do.
Meanwhile, at a training ground in the Forest of Death—
"Who are you?"
Sasuke and Neji stared warily at the figure emerging from the shadows.
"By order of Yagyū Souma, I'm here to teach you swordsmanship and taijutsu."
Kimimaro stood with a sword at his waist.
During his time in the Forest of Death, the seal on his body had been lifted. He didn't deliberately train anymore, but years of accumulated experience were more than enough to handle Sasuke and Neji.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes.
"Not Souma-senpai?"
Kimimaro smiled gently.
"My swordsmanship is average—but it's enough to teach you. If you want to learn Souma-sama's sword style… you'll have to defeat me first."
"Can we use ninjutsu?" Neji asked.
"Yes."
Neji and Sasuke exchanged glances.
Neji moved first.
He didn't activate the Byakugan. Even so, his taijutsu was top-tier among his peers. He burst forward—
Close range. Gentle Fist.
Before his palm could land, pain shot through his arm.
Kimimaro had struck it with the sword's hilt.
"Too slow. In real combat, that would've severed your arm."
"…Together," Sasuke said, his expression growing serious.
Kimimaro was far stronger than them—at least in taijutsu and swordsmanship. Learning from him was absolutely worthwhile.
But first—
They had to test him.
Sasuke flashed forward and kicked at Kimimaro's lower body, coordinating with Neji's follow-up attack.
The next instant—
Sasuke sucked in a sharp breath.
So hard?!
It felt like kicking an iron pillar. Kimimaro didn't move an inch, while Sasuke's leg nearly went numb.
He leapt back immediately—but a blade followed.
Clang!
Neji blocked with a kunai, but Kimimaro's sword knocked it away effortlessly, barely slowing its momentum.
A moment later, Sasuke launched a volley of shuriken, steel wires glinting behind them.
Kimimaro cut once.
The wires snapped.
The next instant, the blade rested against Sasuke's throat.
"Too many unnecessary movements. Weapon manipulation like that is useless at close range."
Kimimaro spoke calmly.
Cold sweat formed on Sasuke's forehead.
He had been arrogant—thinking two-on-one didn't require the Sharingan.
Reality proved otherwise.
Without the Sharingan, he couldn't even track Kimimaro's movements.
Too fast.
"You rely too much on flashy techniques," Kimimaro continued.
"Tricks like weapon manipulation—Souma-sama never uses them. Against experts, they're pointless. Against the weak, they're unnecessary."
"Use your Sharingan and Byakugan. Acknowledge the gap in strength—it will only benefit you."
"Yes!"
Neji activated the Byakugan without hesitation.
The difference was too vast. Without the Byakugan, they were children before Kimimaro.
Yet—
As the Byakugan activated, Neji's mind quickly settled.
He realized—
He had truly grown stronger.
With the Byakugan active, Neji could clearly sense the changes in himself, especially in taijutsu.
Freed from total reliance on the Byakugan, his taijutsu had improved faster than ever.
Then—
His gaze shifted to Kimimaro, shock flashing in his eyes.
This body…
So frail, yet still capable of crushing both him and Sasuke so easily.
How terrifying would Kimimaro be at full health?
And those bones—
So unnatural.
Kimimaro wasn't even serious. This wasn't a battle—it was barely a warm-up.
"I'll go first," Neji said, turning to Sasuke.
"Mm."
Sasuke nodded.
Kimimaro's swordsmanship was terrifying—and absolutely worth learning. Observing from the side would be the best way to learn.
"Apologies. Due to my condition, I can't fight at full strength," Kimimaro said calmly.
"But with Souma-sama's improved taijutsu and sword style, I can still spar with you."
"Kimimaro of the Kaguya clan. Please instruct me."
Neji charged.
He flashed in and threw a punch—but Kimimaro drew a second short blade from his sleeve, still unsheathed.
One blade attacked. One defended.
Perfect coordination.
Even with the Byakugan, Neji couldn't break through—
Until—
He condensed chakra, closed in, and struck again.
A chakra-needle-like spike formed in his palm, stabbing toward Kimimaro's vitals—
But Kimimaro's body twisted unnaturally, closing the distance instead.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Sheaths clashed again and again.
Pure swordsmanship and taijutsu—clean, decisive, lethal.
Sasuke didn't dare blink.
This sword style was terrifying—built purely for killing and combat.
Perfect for him.
No wonder Souma had sent Kimimaro.
But—
This sword style had been improved by Souma?
Sasuke felt a surge of envy.
If only he had that kind of talent.
"That sword style—did you create it?"
"It wasn't originally swordsmanship. The Shikotsumyaku has several dances—each extremely refined and powerful. I simply converted them from special taijutsu into sword techniques."
High in the trees nearby, Yagyū Souma and Might Guy crouched, observing.
Guy watched for a while, then nodded.
"Very strong taijutsu. A pity—it's a modification. True Shikotsumyaku would be even stronger."
"His body's too damaged," Souma shook his head.
"If he uses Shikotsumyaku directly, he won't last three months."
If Kimimaro were even slightly healthier, he wouldn't have defected—let alone stayed behind to cover their retreat back then.
Everything had cause and effect.
Guy, lacking medical knowledge, couldn't tell Kimimaro was dying just from chakra alone.
After watching a bit longer, he sighed.
"Ever since you created all those new taijutsu, I've been feeling more and more overwhelmed. Some techniques—you just don't understand unless you learn them."
"There's no need to force it," Souma said seriously.
"Even without those techniques, you're still the strongest taijutsu master, Guy-sensei."
Guy sought improvement—that was natural.
But abandoning one's greatest strength for novelty would be a mistake.
Guy laughed, but then sighed.
"You're right. Still… apart from Lee, Neji and Maki aren't suited for the Eight Gates. With you helping, I'm at least relieved about Neji…"
Guy sighed again.
Neji was a true Hyūga genius.
If not for the branch family system, Neji would've been the strongest of his generation.
But fate had made him a branch member, estranged from the main family.
If Guy failed him—
He'd regret it for life.
Souma couldn't make promises.
Neji had to find his own path.
Souma didn't have the Byakugan.
Of course—
If Neji abandoned the Byakugan entirely… there was another road.
Swordsmanship. Taijutsu.
Or even—
Souma narrowed his eyes, a faint idea forming.
"By the way, Souma," Guy coughed lightly.
"If you make progress with the Eight Gates, could you teach me or Lee? Especially ways to reduce bodily damage."
Souma nodded without hesitation.
"If I achieve results, I'll tell you and Lee immediately."
He would never forget—
At his most difficult beginning, who had helped him selflessly, without asking for anything in return.
Guy's requests would never be refused.
"Alright, I'll head out," Guy said cheerfully.
"I need to check on Lee. That kid hasn't been improving lately—he looks fine, but he's secretly depressed."
"Yes. Take care."
Souma stood.
Guy left swiftly.
Souma glanced toward Neji, mulling over the thought that had just formed.
Remaining in Konoha—
Neji's future was limited.
Unlike before, Neji now wanted to abandon the Byakugan, but he lacked a new foundation to support himself.
If so—
Why not have him defect to Otogakure and let Kabuto transplant Shikotsumyaku into him?
With the Byakugan later reawakened, he might even achieve a bloodline evolution.
The only issue was—
If Otogakure's truth ever came to light, Souma's relationship with the Hyūga clan would become… complicated.
So—
Second best.
Simply transplant Shikotsumyaku.
Seal—or even remove—the Byakugan entirely.
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