Naruto: I, who fooled the ninja world, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 405 Heads Rolling, Blood Flowing Like Rivers

The candlelight flickered, casting everyone's shadows onto the plain white tatami mats.

The officials, dressed in straight robes, sat on either side, appearing upright and proper, but their eyes held a variety of thoughts.

The official systems of the five major states were actually similar to those of Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate period.

The daimyo is equivalent to the emperor, the supreme ruler of a country, but his real power may be usurped by the "shogunate".

The ninja villages were equivalent to the Tokugawa shogunate, possessing actual military power and some administrative authority. The Hokage, as the leader, was responsible to the daimyo but had a great deal of autonomy.

The Grand Council of State was the highest decision-making body, consisting of the Left Minister and the Right Minister, similar to the Left and Right Chancellors, and was nominally the head of all officials.

There are also several "Grand Councilors" and "Counselors" who are qualified to participate in the deliberation of major decisions, and below them are the "Eight Ministries" that serve as the specific implementing departments.

Official ranks were divided into four levels from highest to lowest. The highest was the chief official, also known as the "qing," followed by the deputy official, the judge, and the chief clerk.

All the important officials of the Land of Fire, regardless of their true thoughts, obediently attended the meeting without exception.

Oh no.

The Ministry of War is in charge of the military forces under the control of the daimyo. The unfortunate man who was the head of the Ministry of War and the captain of the daimyo's personal guard has been killed by Hyuga Kumokawa.

It's no wonder that guy harbors deep hostility towards Hyuga Kumokawa and Konoha, after all, the Ministry of War is nominally the highest military administrative body.

In name, Konoha, as part of the national military force, should still be under the administration of the Ministry of War, but clearly, it is only "in name" left.

"That Hokage actually dared to kill even the head of the Ministry of War and the Daimyo's personal guards..."

The official from the Ministry of Civil Affairs kept wiping the fine sweat from his brow, and said in a trembling voice to the official from the Ministry of Finance beside him, "Have you summoned us now because...?"

"Be careful!"

The Grand Secretary hurriedly interrupted, glancing around out of the corner of his eye, and whispered, "Didn't I already say? The Imperial Guard encountered intruders and died in the line of duty protecting the Second Prince!"

The Ministry of Civil Affairs was responsible for household registration and taxes, while the Ministry of Finance was responsible for finance and the national treasury.

"Yes, yes, yes!" The Minister of Civil Affairs nodded repeatedly, "Died in the line of duty, yes, died in the line of duty."

"Hmph, look at the way you all are!" The Left Minister, with graying temples, sneered. "Do you really think that Hokage can kill us?"

Upon hearing this, the two quickly said, "Please enlighten us, sir."

"You are still too young."

The Left Minister's eyes gleamed as he spoke, "Those samurai will die simply because they are no longer of any value in the eyes of that Fifth Hokage."

"He clearly wants to place his own people in the daimyo's prefecture and deeply bind them to the new daimyo he has helped to take power."

"It's either the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, or one of the Great Prince's other children..."

He paused for a moment, then said jokingly, "A daimyo is a daimyo, and a Hokage is a Hokage. It's just that someone else sits in that position."

"Do you really think he still wants to usurp the throne and become the Daimyo as Hokage?"

The two young officials exchanged a glance, finding it truly hard to imagine the absurd scene of the Hokage usurping the throne.

“In your opinion, sir…” one of them probed, “who would sit in that position?”

"Hmm..." The Left Minister pondered for a moment, then said meaningfully, "It is said that the Imperial Guard injured two Anbu ninjas while protecting the Second Prince, who was in the palace at the time."

"Although this behavior was still not very smart, it was at least justified, but in the end, the Hokage killed him without any restraint..."

"I think this attitude couldn't be clearer."

"The one he chose must be that Crown Prince who is close to Konoha."

The two nodded as if they suddenly understood, and one of them breathed a sigh of relief: "So, it's just a matter of replacing the samurai with Konoha ninjas, and then having the crown prince succeed as daimyo?"

Another person sighed softly, "It's a pity about the Second Prince. His character and abilities, which he has shown recently, are still commendable."

Beside them, the relatively young Right Minister remained kneeling expressionlessly, only flashing a bitter, self-deprecating smile when his eyes met those of Nan Wu opposite him.

"His Highness the Second Prince has arrived."

Yuanlitong, dressed in a straight robe, entered the hall and knelt on the right side of the throne. Many officials present immediately cast different glances at him.

Mockery, pity, regret, profundity...

Clearly, many people thought they had seen through Hinata Kumokawa's intentions and were already planning which side to take.

Yuan Litong simply lowered his eyes, seemingly completely unaware of the officials' gazes.

"Look."

The Left Minister tilted his head slightly, his voice low enough for the people around him to hear: "If the Second Prince is truly the one he chose, he should be entering alongside that person right now."

"Just wait, His Highness the Crown Prince, who hasn't shown up for a long time, will soon appear along with that Hokage."

Just then, the palace doors slowly opened once again.

All whispers ceased abruptly, and everyone instinctively turned to look.

Hinata Kumokawa walked in slowly, followed closely by Karin, Kakashi Hatake, who was now the head of the Anbu, and the heads of several other important departments in Konoha.

However, there were only a few of them left in the group.

As everyone expected, Yuan Shixiu did not appear.

An uncontrollable commotion swept through the hall, and confusion and astonishment quickly spread in the eyes of the officials.

"This..." The confidence and certainty on the Left Minister's face froze instantly.

What shocked everyone even more was that Hinata Kumokawa did not stop at the foot of the steps, but instead walked straight up the steps towards the higher place.

Amidst countless shocked gazes, he landed on the main seat, which symbolized the highest authority of the Land of Fire.

"Hyuga Kumokawa! What are you doing?!"

The Minister of Ceremonies, who was in charge of civil service examinations and etiquette, suddenly stood up. His finger, trembling with shock and anger, pointed directly at Hyuga Kumokawa, and he shouted sternly, "That is the throne! How dare you usurp a place like that?!"

"Oh?" Hinata Kumokawa smiled gently, seemingly unaware of any offense, a stark contrast to the rumored image of a ruthless madman.

However, when Kakashi Hatake, who was standing below the steps, saw the smile on Hyuga Kumokawa's face, a look of pity appeared in his dead fish eyes.

He knew that whenever Hinata Kumokawa showed that kind of smile, it meant that someone was about to be in trouble.

"Then, in your opinion," Hinata Kumokawa said with a smile, his gaze sweeping across the room before finally settling on Shikibu-no-kami, "who is truly qualified to sit here?"

“Naturally, it’s His Highness the Crown Prince!” the Minister of Ceremonies blurted out.

He had always been a staunch supporter of Enichi, and had previously believed that Hinata Kumokawa would support Enichi in taking office. He had been smiling smugly because he felt he had made the right bet.

But at this moment, after seeing what Hinata Kumokawa had done, this certainty turned into a sharp questioning under the weight of panic.

"It's a pity." Hinata Unkawa shook his head slightly and said regretfully, "To avoid attracting attention, His Highness the Crown Prince has already secretly returned to the capital ahead of us."

"However, I knew something was wrong when I found out he hadn't arrived as scheduled."

"Just now, we found the remains of His Highness the Crown Prince and the people you sent to meet him on another secluded road leading from Konoha to the capital."

"Upon investigation, it was found that they were ambushed by an evil cult and all of them perished."

what?
The expressions on everyone's faces immediately changed.

"Impossible!" Shikibu-kei's face immediately showed disbelief.

"The body has been escorted back to the city and temporarily placed in a side hall, awaiting burial," Hinata Yunchuan sighed. "If you don't believe me, you can go and confirm it yourself later."

Looking at Hinata Kumokawa's normal expression, a chill ran down the spines of all the officials.

They realized that what Hinata Kumokawa said was probably true.

His Highness the Crown Prince is really dead?
Moreover, was he murdered on his way back to the capital?

"And what about the Second Prince!"

As if grasping at the last straw, the Minister of Ceremonies stammered, "According to the rules of etiquette, succession should be from brother to brother. Although the Second Prince is born out of wedlock, he can still..." Before he could finish, his words came to an abrupt halt.

Yuan Litong, who had been sitting quietly with his eyes down, slowly stood up.

He straightened his robes, stepped forward, faced Hyuga Kumokawa on the throne, and bowed impeccably.

“Mr. Yun Chuan.” His voice was clear and calm, echoing through the deathly silent hall. “My father and elder brother have tragically perished, and the whole nation mourns.”

"The Land of Fire is in such a critical situation that it cannot be without a leader for even a day, but Li Tong is incompetent and lacks virtue, and is not fit for the task."

At this point, he raised his head and met Hinata Kumokawa's gaze with composure.

"Therefore, Litong voluntarily relinquishes his right of inheritance and from this day forward, he is willing to serve Mr. Yun Chuan as his master, and the entire Fire Kingdom will obey his orders."

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire hall fell into a deathly silence. The Minister of Ceremonies stood with his mouth agape, as if an invisible hand was gripping his throat, his face deathly pale.

"Your Highness! Do you know what you're saying?"

The Left Minister abruptly stood up, exclaiming in disbelief, "This is utterly absurd! How can the Hokage of Konoha become the Daimyo of the Land of Fire?"

"That's right!" an official slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "How could such rebellious words be uttered? His Highness must be under the influence of an illusion!"

"Don't forget, the person who killed the Daimyo was a Konoha ninja. Does Konoha want to usurp power?!"

"Calm down! Everyone, calm down!" Some people tried to maintain order, but their voices were quickly drowned out.

"Are we abandoning all etiquette, ancestral rules, and traditions?"

"Lord Hokage, please explain yourself!"

"Your Highness, please wake up!"

Chaos erupted inside the hall, with shouts, questions, and exclamations mingling together.

Spit flew everywhere, but Yuan Litong simply stood still, his expression calm, seemingly oblivious to the chaos around him.

This is the second step he has chosen to take after Naruto.

After observing for some time, he has determined that entrusting the Land of Fire to Hyuga Kumokawa would be the right choice.

He knew that Hyuga Kumokawa would not become a daimyo.

Just like Naruto said to him that night.

Hinata Kumokawa will definitely go even further.

This is indeed the case.

"Who said I was going to become a daimyo?"

Hinata Kumokawa's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly froze all the noise.

Inside the main hall, a pin drop could be heard for a moment. Everyone froze in place, their faces a mixture of confusion and disbelief.

"Wha, what do you mean?"

The Left Minister initially looked bewildered, then, as if realizing something, hope rose in his eyes: "Could it be that...you intend to establish a new law and appoint a regency..."

“I mean,” Hinata Kumokawa interrupted him, his tone chillingly calm, “that kind of daimyo shouldn’t exist.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Karin stepped forward and distributed several files from her arms to the officials.

While the others were at a loss, the Right Minister, who had remained silent, took the document and unfolded it. Upon seeing the photograph tucked inside, his pupils suddenly contracted.

Under the stark white operating lights, a child was strapped to the dissection table. The chest and abdominal cavities had been opened, and the exposed heart was still beating weakly, but the lung lobes had been removed.

The child's face was contorted with pain, while the person standing to the side, holding instruments and coldly recording data, was none other than He Ma.

Next to the photo are the experimental records, with hastily written handwriting recording cold data.

[Sample No. 387, a young male, had both lungs removed while alive, and was implanted with the Nine-Tails' chakra. The subject survived fully conscious for 3 hours and 47 minutes, and spontaneous tearing of muscle fibers was observed...]

[Conclusion: The Nine-Tails' chakra can replace some of the functions of vital organs, but the peak pain response during this period exceeds the normal threshold by 15 times...]

[Sample number 672, an adult female. The experimental subject, infused with the Nine-Tails' chakra, was thawed at -70 degrees Celsius to record the degree of healing of the bones and nerves...]

[Sample number 823, adult male, injected with illusory spiritual energy, accompanied by high-frequency mental interference, unable to sleep for 72 consecutive hours, exhibiting autophagy behavior, brain tissue death, confirming the critical point that the mind can withstand...]

Piles of corpses, pale skin covered with ugly scars burned by the Nine-Tails' chakra, ninjas tied to chairs, half-twisted into inhuman monsters...

The bloody, graphic photos and experimental records sent a churning sensation through the Right Minister's stomach, and his hand began to tremble uncontrollably as he turned the pages.

These experimental reports clearly document the various human experiments conducted by Kazuma, as well as his secret conversion of people from slums and red-light districts into 'virtual' beings for testing purposes.

And below each of these experimental reports, there was another person's comment.

[Continue to observe.]

[Approval granted for the next phase of the experiment.]

[It can continue, but must be kept under control.]

"vomit!"

A young official, who had been tightly covering his mouth, could no longer hold back and bent over to vomit violently, the stench of his excrement instantly filling the hall.

A deathly silence returned to the hall.

But this time, the silence was filled with a deep-seated fear and chill.

Everyone who had seen the file was now deathly pale, as if all the blood and warmth had been drained from their bodies, leaving only stiff shells trembling.

"Now, you all finally know where those rampant 'voids' came from, don't you?"

Hinata Kumokawa leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on the armrests, his gaze slowly sweeping over the faces below, contorted with fear.

"That's really impressive," he praised. "The extraction of the Nine-Tails' chakra, the cultivation of artificial Hollows, the technique of turning living people into Hollows, the technique of manipulating the corpses of the dead..."

"Even those notorious S-rank rogue ninjas wanted by Konoha, such as Danzo Shimura."

"In some respects, I am far inferior to the daimyo to whom you all serve, and I am ashamed of my own inadequacy!"

Before he could finish speaking, his tone suddenly turned icy: "Do some of you think you can stay out of this?"

hum! !

A chilling killing intent surged forth like a tangible tide, instantly engulfing the entire hall.

"Do not……"

Driven by this suffocating fear, several people, including the Left Minister, suddenly stood up, some wanting to kneel down and beg for mercy, others trying to escape.

However, the next moment.

The Left Minister suddenly felt the world begin to spin before his eyes.

He saw a headless body dressed in gorgeous clothes staggering forward and falling down due to inertia.

Why does that body look so familiar?
That's my body?
This madman actually dares to kill me here?

The moment this thought crossed his mind, the terror in his eyes froze completely, then dissipated.

Pfft!Pfft!Pfft!
Several heads rolled to the ground one after another, and warm blood gushed out from the severed necks, flowing in front of the imperial steps like a river.

"Ah... ah ah ah..."

The Minister of Ceremonies watched helplessly as the head of the Minister of the Left, with its wide-open eyes, rolled to his feet. He immediately collapsed to the ground, his mouth agape, emitting a broken sound, and his crotch was quickly soaked.

Then, his voice faltered, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

The others were equally pale, completely devoid of color, as they looked at the man sitting on the throne, who remained expressionless, his eyes lowered, looking down at them.

A madman! This madman!!

This guy is a complete lunatic!!
(End of this chapter)