As night approached, Hidekazu Ueno entered a small town on the border area of the Land of Fire with Hiroki Hyuga and the others, checking into a local inn.
"You've done well. Rest up here for two days and get ready. And stay put — no wandering off."
After speaking, Hidekazu Ueno left the inn.
Using a familiar code, he made his way to the designated meeting place.
In the shadows, a masked ninja appeared before him and presented him with a document. "To ensure the safety of the Hot Water Daimyo, we must escort him to the temporary palace in the Land of Fire."
"Understood."
Back at the town's inn, Hiroki Hyuga and Hana Inuzuka each left the inn for their own purposes, while Itachi Uchiha remained alone in his room.
Hana went out to regain her composure.
Hiroki walked down a quiet, empty street and stood there briefly until Zetsu emerged from the ground, appearing before him.
"Hiroki, why are you hanging around with Itachi Uchiha?" Black Zetsu asked as soon as he surfaced.
"Is there something wrong with him?"
"Itachi has great talent and also has a younger brother, so that kid Obito considers him a backup candidate to awaken the Rinnegan. Sometimes, they deliberately provoke him to increase his strength." As he spoke, Black Zetsu's tone clearly carried disdain and mockery.
Black Zetsu had once altered the Uchiha Clan's memorial tablets.
The message "[Senro Manzai] (All Creation)" was left by him.
With those words, he successfully misled Madara Uchiha into believing that the key to awakening the Rinnegan was merging the bloodlines of the Senju and Uchiha clans.
Eventually, Madara Uchiha, who obtained cells of Hashirama Senju, awakened the Rinnegan in his later years.
Actually, it was simply because he carried Indra's chakra while Hashirama Senju possessed Ashura's chakra. The combination of these two chakras unlocked the Sage of Six Paths' power, allowing the Rinnegan to be activated.
Madara, who had lived under this deception his whole life, firmly believed it was the successful fusion of Senju and Uchiha powers.
Before his death, he passed on the inscription's content to Obito Uchiha, successfully misleading him as well.
"Can Obito see through White Zetsu's impersonation jutsu?"
"Of course not," White Zetsu suddenly interrupted, joining the conversation.
White Zetsu's ability to impersonate others originated from the God Tree. No one, except perhaps several Tailed Beasts and Kaguya herself—manifestations of the God Tree—could penetrate his disguise.
"So then, what's the problem?"
"Are you saying we should have White Zetsu impersonate you?" Black Zetsu asked.
Hiroki nodded. "If necessary, let him temporarily take my place."
Black Zetsu sighed helplessly. "You really care about your position in Konoha, huh?"
"That's because Hayato's descendants are all hiding in Konoha."
Thinking for a moment, Black Zetsu suggested, "Alright then. I'll have White Zetsu plant some spores on you. If anything happens, he can pass messages or assist with impersonation."
"Don't stick everything inside people's bodies!" Hiroki protested.
"Don't worry. Normally, the spores remain dormant and won't affect your daily life. If you want to activate them, channel your chakra into them to speed up their growth."
After some consideration, Hiroki agreed.
Black Zetsu, slightly excited, allowed White Zetsu to plant five spores on him.
Hehe, getting closer to Honored Mother!
"By the way, how long can White Zetsu's disguise last?"
White Zetsu: "It depends on chakra consumption. If chakra is used quickly, like in a fight, the disguise won't last very long."
"I understand."
Hiroki Hyuga bid farewell to Zetsu.
Two days later, Hidekazu Ueno led Hiroki Hyuga and others toward the Daimyo of the Country of Hot Springs' temporary palace.
The Daimyo of the Country of Hot Springs was named Hidenaga Toyokawa, aged 43 this year.
Unlike most middle-aged men who showed signs of aging, he had fair skin and looked well-preserved.
Within this palace, besides his wife, beautiful concubines, and some of his children, everyone else were servants, attendants, guards, and eunuchs serving him.
Among these guards included both samurais and ninja.
Though these ninja weren't officially registered shinobi from any village, they all had received ninja training.
Whether ninja or samurai, all were personally cultivated by the Daimyo and remained loyal to him.
Holding a folding fan that covered half his face, Hidenaga Toyokawa lazily remarked when seeing Hiroki Hyuga and the rest: "So it's actually cooperation between Uchiha and Hyuga?"
"Daimyo-sama, staying in the Country of Hot Springs may become dangerous; perhaps you should consider seeking refuge in the Land of Fire," Hidekazu Ueno said after bowing respectfully.
A servant girl standing nearby said: "Please rest assured, Lord Daimyo. Everything has been prepared, and we are ready to leave at any moment."
"Rest here tonight, we'll depart tomorrow." With a yawn, Hidenaga Toyokawa turned toward Hidekazu Ueno indifferently and asked, "This time, just how long do you Konoha shinobi plan to stay?"
"This...it's hard to predict such things," Hidekazu Ueno hesitated.
Waving his hand, Hidenaga Toyokawa signaled them to withdraw.
Immediately, attendants escorted Hiroki Hyuga and others away, arranging accommodations for them.
The palace complex was extremely large, with many vacant rooms, so each of them got their own room.
Everyone they met maintained a cool attitude, keeping a polite yet distant manner toward them.
"I have the feeling people here aren't too fond of us," Hana Inuzaka remarked.
"After all, something like this could be accomplished without involving Konoha ninja either," Itachi Uchiha replied calmly.
After all, whether moving a country's ruler to another nation was merely evacuation or essentially taking him hostage remained uncertain.
Even if it truly was just temporary relocation for safety, the Daimyo's subordinates would've been capable enough to handle it.
Instead, involving Konoha ninjas felt more like forcing the Daimyo to leave.
How unfortunate for a small nation, Itachi thought quietly.
"What kind of thing?" Hana asked confusedly.
She honestly couldn't understand what Itachi meant again—he always talked in riddles.
Glancing at Itachi, Hidekazu Ueno found himself surprised by the boy's sharp political instincts but chose not to explain anything, simply telling them to go rest.
At night, Hidenaga Toyokawa continued living a life of decadence as usual.
Whether it was the war between Konoha and Cloud Village, the impact on the Country of Hot Springs, or the domestic religious cult that had never been completely eradicated, he never interfered. Maybe he truly lacked the strength to intervene — instead, he simply gave himself over to pleasure and indulgence.
The suffering and infighting of commoners would never threaten his lofty position as Hot Water Daimyo.
Inside Hiroki Hyuga's room, [Byakugan] scanned the surroundings to confirm no one was watching him. He then activated his chakra and focused it toward a specific part of his arm.
A white mass bulged out slowly before peeling away from his body.
"White Zetsu, go replace the daimyo."
In this era, every person in the world carried chakra within; the difference lay in whether one could extract it. Those capable of extracting chakra had the potential to become ninja, while those who couldn't remained ordinary civilians.
Upon receiving the order, the newly born White Zetsu sank into the ground, merging with another to form a complete White Zetsu. The two silently infiltrated near Hidenaga Toyokawa, waiting for the right opportunity.
After a while, Hidenaga felt the urge to urinate and went to the restroom while his attendants waited outside.
Without warning, White Zetsu suddenly appeared beside his feet. Pants still in hand, Hidenaga jumped up in shock.
"You…"
As if boneless and soft, White Zetsu rapidly coiled around his body, covering his mouth and nose, snapping his neck.
Then, White Zetsu extracted chakra from the corpse, imprinting its chakra signature, and transformed into an exact replica of Hidenaga Toyokawa.
From this moment onward, there was no longer a man named Hidenaga Toyokawa, Hot Water Daimyo — only Hidenaga White Zetsu, Hot Water Daimyo.
The noise echoed beyond the bathroom door, prompting one attendant to ask cautiously through the wood, "Daimyo, is everything alright?"
"Nothing serious. Just wait quietly." Imitating Hidenaga's voice perfectly, Hidenaga White Zetsu coldly replied.
"As you command."
Carrying the corpse of Hidenaga Toyokawa, White Zetsu vanished underground, disposed of the body, then returned to the original location.
After opening the bathroom door, he led his attendants back to his chambers, looking clearly exhausted as he ordered, "You may all go now."
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