"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!"
"Cough, cough, cough… killing someone for the first time… really… cough, cough… ugh!"
In the forest, the autumn wind swept up dry yellow leaves, rustling softly. Senju Syura braced himself against a tree trunk, bent over and retching, his stomach churning violently, as if he were about to vomit even his bile.
In front of him, the corpses of two members of the Hagoromo clan lay quietly. Blood had soaked into the soil, staining the fallen leaves at his feet red, the sight stabbing painfully at his eyes.
"Sigh, you still need more practice…", Black Zetsu's voice came from his left palm. The ink-black face frowned slightly as it looked at Senju Syura's pale, almost translucent face, his tone filled with helplessness.
He had originally thought that although Senju Syura hadn't refined chakra, at least having been born into a ninja clan, he should understand some of the rules of a chaotic world through exposure.
Who would have thought that this young clan head of the Senju had been protected so tightly, spending over ten years buried in books, never even having seen bloodshed.
"Ugh… cough cough…"
Senju Syura straightened up, clutching his chest as he coughed violently, his fingertips still trembling uncontrollably.
He lowered his gaze to look at his own hands, his eyes filled with frustration and confusion, "Cough, cough… as expected, maybe I'm more suited to reading and writing…"
"Sigh…"
As his words fell, Black Zetsu in his palm let out a soft sigh.
His gaze softened a little, forming a hand that gently patted the back of Syura's hand.
His voice lost some of its earlier teasing, replaced with the clarity of someone experienced, "Reading and writing is a peaceful way to live, but you were born into this war-torn ninja world, and you're the young clan head of the Senju. How can you only hold a pen and not a blade?"
Black Zetsu lifted his eyes, glancing over the broken blades and blood scattered across the forest. His tone grew heavier.
"Do you think the Hagoromo clan would care about your kindness?"
"If they break through the Senju borders and start burning, killing, and looting, they'll show no mercy to the elderly and the weak in your clan."
"If you hesitate today, then tomorrow the ones who fall will be your father, the elders who have protected you for over ten years, and even the children in the clan who haven't grown up yet."
"In troubled times, you can't survive just by being kind. Self-preservation has always been the first priority."
Senju Syura's shoulders sagged slightly. He raised his lowered head a bit, and the confusion in his eyes lessened, replaced by a trace of understanding.
Seeing this, Black Zetsu continued, "The fact that you can vomit, that you feel reluctance, means your heart is still warm."
"That alone makes you far better than those who have blood on their hands yet feel no guilt at all."
"Killing was never something worth being proud of, but this is what the times force upon you."
"For your first time seeing blood to have this kind of reaction is already rare. In the future, after experiencing it a few more times, being able to steady your hands while still keeping that kindness in your heart, that's the hardest part."
Black Zetsu paused, the corner of his ink-black mouth curling into a teasing arc.
"I'll teach you a method to help you get rid of your guilt."
"Every time you kill someone, if you feel like you've killed the innocent, just repeat in your mind, 'It wasn't me who killed you, it was this chaotic world that killed you!'"
Black Zetsu said with a grin, "So that's how it is…"
Senju Syura listened blankly. The ink-black face in his palm was both gentle and firm, and those words were like a breeze, blowing away the panic and self-doubt in his heart.
He lowered his head to look at Black Zetsu in his palm. The confusion in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by determination and gratitude.
"Thank you for your guidance, Master Black Zetsu. I understand now.", Senju Syura said respectfully.
"Mhm, you can be taught.", Black Zetsu nodded slightly, his ink-black brows curving as he returned to his usual somewhat sly expression.
"Good that you understand."
"Oh right, your father didn't send you to the Uchiha battlefield. He's probably worried about your safety, so he deliberately transferred you to the Hagoromo battlefield.", Black Zetsu said.
Hearing this, Senju Syura subconsciously scratched his head, a complicated expression appearing on his face, "Although the Hagoromo battlefield isn't as intense as the Uchiha battlefield, the Hagoromo clan isn't to be underestimated either."
"I heard their ancestor was the son of the Sage of Ninja Sect…"
"Hah? That's pure nonsense.", Black Zetsu said disdainfully.
"The founder of the Hagoromo clan was just an ordinary disciple under the Sage of Ninja Sect."
"He merely borrowed the name 'Hagoromo' and arrogantly used it to establish a clan. In the end, it's nothing more than using a famous name to prop themselves up.", Black Zetsu explained.
Senju Syura's eyes were full of doubt. He stepped forward slightly and pressed further, "Then where exactly does the name 'Hagoromo' come from?"
Black Zetsu's ink-black body paused slightly, as if hesitating. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke calmly, "Hagoromo was originally the real name of the Sage of Ninja Sect."
"So that's how it is."
"That's unbelievable! I've always treated the Sage of Ninja Sect as a legend. I never even dared to be sure whether he truly existed…", Senju Syura's eyes widened as he said in surprise.
"I'm the one who finds it unbelievable.", Black Zetsu complained, his ink-black brows lifting slightly with a hint of helplessness.
"It's only been a few hundred years, and the history of your ninja world has already become so obscure."
"Even Asura's name has been passed down ambiguously. Give it a few hundred more years, and you'll probably forget how you even came to exist."
Black Zetsu looked off into the distance toward the Senju clan's territory, a trace of complexity flashing in his eyes, 'No wonder the Great Immortal wanted to organize historical records at Mount Myoboku.'
'In the end, it was to prevent these precious records from being completely buried by the blood and fire of this chaotic era.'
Senju Syura had just stopped retching and was raising his sleeve to wipe his mouth.
Suddenly, the ink-black eyes in his palm lit up.
The previously helpless tone instantly shifted, now carrying a hint of excited cunning, "Oh right, I just thought of an opportunity. Maybe you can go and obtain it!"
"What?"
Senju Syura froze, the hand gripping the tree trunk tightening slightly as he lowered his head in confusion to look at his palm. "What opportunity?"
The moment he finished speaking, the ink-black face in his palm curled into a sly grin, its brows forming a crafty arc.
"Do you know the Hatake blade technique?", Black Zetsu asked mysteriously.
"I do."
"That's the supreme blade technique personally created by the Hatake clan leader a hundred years ago!"
"It was precisely because of this technique that the originally weak Hatake clan managed to rise in one move and become one of the great clans of the ninja world, their reputation spreading far and wide!"
Senju Syura said seriously, a trace of admiration in his eyes.
"Wrong!"
Black Zetsu immediately said, "That blade technique wasn't created by the Hatake clan leader at all."
"Huh?"
The certainty on Senju Syura's face instantly froze. His brows knitted tightly as he asked, "Then who exactly created it?"
"I heard old stories circulating in the ninja world that say the old Hatake clan leader suffered defeat early on, fled into the deep mountains, and after deep contemplation, created this Hatake blade technique."
Senju Syura scratched his head, laying out everything he knew.
"That's just a story the Hatake clan made up to give their blade technique a background."
Black Zetsu shook his head, a smile curling on his ink-black lips.
"In reality, this blade technique has another name, and another origin."
"Another name? Then what is it exactly?"
Senju Syura's curiosity was completely hooked. He leaned forward unconsciously, staring at Black Zetsu in his palm with eager eyes.
Seeing this, Black Zetsu deliberately slowed his speech and asked in a profound tone, "Have you heard of Falling Katsu Cliff?"
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