Seated on top of a puppet hawk, Hyuga Gakuya activated his Bloodline Seizure Technique and absorbed a pouch of Tsunade's blood.
He immediately performed a sensory jutsu to feel for any changes in the Ōtsutsuki genes. No wonder people say the Senju and Uzumaki lineages share similar traits—Tsunade's blood wasn't even enough to enhance his Sage Body.
Despite all the Sage Blood he'd absorbed, he had clearly hit a bottleneck.
Gakuya suspected that only Hashirama's blood might allow his Sage Body to evolve further.
But Hashirama's cells… the only ones who might still possess them were Danzo or Orochimaru back in Konoha. Something he'd definitely need to consider soon.
Still, this mission hadn't been a waste. At the very least, he'd obtained part of the Wood Release genetic chain. It would now be far easier for him to develop Wood Release jutsu.
All he needed now was pure-blood from the Sarutobi clan, and he could finally break the seal on the Blood-Match Seal.
Controlling the puppet hawk, Gakuya flew straight toward the Daimyō's mansion.
...
In the grand hall of the mansion, the Daimyō was still in the middle of discussions with his advisors.
With a thunderous crash, Gakuya and his puppet hawk smashed through the ceiling and descended directly into the center of the hall.
"Protect the Daimyō!"
In an instant, twelve elite guardian shinobi surrounded the Daimyō.
With a wave of his hand, Gakuya recalled his puppet and calmly walked through the settling dust.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"You're... Hyuga Gakuya!" Several voices cried out in disbelief. They'd only seen him once before, but they recognized his face—and they'd all heard about how he'd slaughtered the entire Hyuga clan.
"That's right."
The Daimyō quickly stopped his guards from attacking. He knew exactly how powerful Gakuya was. These men didn't stand a chance.
"Gakuya... What do you want? Wealth? Status? I can give you both. Even Konoha's bounty on you—I can have it removed."
The Daimyō had been personally elevated to power by Gakuya. He still held some goodwill toward him, and clearly hoped to win him over.
"That's generous of you. I only have two requests."
"First, I want a blood sample from Sarutobi Asuma."
"Second, I want Kazuma's Earth Revival Jutsu."
The two men named visibly stiffened.
Asuma tried to make sense of Gakuya's demands. The Sarutobi clan didn't even have a Kekkei Genkai—why did he want his blood?
Kazuma was even more bewildered. How the hell did this guy know about that jutsu?
Gakuya gave them time to think, standing silently in place. But when no one moved, he started forming hand seals.
"If you won't hand it over... then I'll just take it myself. Don't blame me if I don't hold back."
"Lightning-Wind Taijutsu: Chakra Armor!"
Two layers of chakra erupted around Gakuya's body in different colors, enveloping him like armor. The tiles beneath his feet cracked into fragments, and in the blink of an eye, he shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow.
"Wait!!" the Daimyō shouted desperately.
Gakuya's palm halted just centimeters from one of the guards' chests.
"Give him what he wants..."
"Yes, sir!"
The twelve elite guards collectively let out a breath of relief. No one had even seen Gakuya move—if they had actually fought him, they wouldn't have stood a chance.
Especially the man who had nearly been struck. He collapsed to the ground, shaking. It was the first time in his life he'd felt death breathe down his neck so closely.
"Appreciate your cooperation." Gakuya handed Asuma an empty blood bag, then turned to Kazuma and took the Earth Revival scroll from his reluctant hands.
Asuma quickly filled the bag with blood and passed it back.
"Thanks." Gakuya tucked the blood away, summoned his puppet hawk once more, and flew off without another word.
...
"What do we do now, Lord Daimyō?"
"What else? Increase his bounty. Raise it to one hundred million!"
The ministers broke into murmurs of agreement and concern.
The Daimyō snapped impatiently, "Are you all idiots? What if we push him too far and he decides to assassinate me? How do I survive that?"
"You want to raise the bounty now? Are you trying to get me killed!?"
"Here's what we'll do—issue a recruitment order. Any ninja from any land may join the Fire Nation's elite guard. Those who are accepted can become my personal bodyguards, with full benefits!"
The ministers quickly obeyed.
The Daimyō had always respected ninja, especially after seeing Gakuya's power in the past. But he hadn't realized just how little protection he truly had until now. Gakuya could've killed him in seconds—and made his elite guards look like nothing.
That terrifying vulnerability lingered in his chest, like a storm cloud that wouldn't pass.
Konoha's years of obedience had lulled him into complacency.
But now... he needed his own ninja.
...
Gakuya didn't care about any of that. He flew straight back to the Land of Rain. He needed to bring along Uzumaki Yukari and Uchiha Izumi. Both of them would be crucial in unsealing Uchiha Hikari.
After picking them up, the trio set out for their destination. According to his records, Hikari was sealed inside a cliffside chamber in the northern region of the Fire Nation.
With the map's guidance and Gakuya's Tenseigan scouting ahead, they made it there without trouble.
Their goal was a cave embedded in the cliff wall.
Torches in hand, the three made their way deeper into the cave, startling countless bats that took flight and swarmed toward the exit.
Eventually, they came upon a massive stone door, glowing with the marks of a sealing jutsu.
Gakuya turned to Yukari. "This is the Blood-Match Seal?"
"Yes."
"So where do I put the blood? I don't see any slot or offering bowl."
"You just need to smear the blood of her blood kin directly onto the surface," Yukari replied.
Gakuya pulled out the blood bags from Tsunade and Asuma, opened them, and smeared the blood onto the stone.
As expected, the sealing runes shattered with a burst of chakra, and the stone door began to rumble open.
...
Uchiha Izumi leaned forward, curiosity in her eyes. But there was no lavish tomb waiting for them inside.
A powerful gust surged past their backs as the sealed room inhaled fresh air for the first time in years.
Gakuya didn't immediately enter. Instead, he activated his Sharingan and pulled Yukari and Izumi into a genjutsu world—one crafted from his own first-person perspective. He would let them experience Uchiha Hikari's story for themselves, ending right at the moment she was sealed.
In the vision, a newborn baby was cradled in her parents' arms.
"Our daughter... Let's name her Hikari."
"The shinobi world is still shrouded in darkness. I want her to grow up in the light."
Yukari's eyes welled with sadness. She couldn't help but imagine herself in the mother's place. If she and Karin hadn't met Gakuya, they too would've been turned into tools for the Grass Village.
She had read Hikari's file before, but no written report could compare to experiencing it through Gakuya's genjutsu—through Hikari's eyes.
Izumi, on the other hand, wasn't conflicted at all. Despite being an Uchiha herself, she saw the girl in the memory clearly and condemned the Warring States era for what it was.
"She was just a child..."
"Once we meet her, let's try to convince her to join us. If that doesn't work, we wait until she's weak, then knock her out. Got it?"
That was why Gakuya had shown them this story—because sometimes a woman's intuition and empathy could go further than brute force. He would step in with his own persuasion if needed.
And if that still didn't work... he'd use the Tenseigan to convert her into a mechanical puppet.
He couldn't risk using his Sharingan's Jōka Technique—Hikari also had a Mangekyō, which meant his genjutsu likely wouldn't work.
"Understood." Yukari and Izumi nodded firmly.
They might feel sorry for her, but they weren't about to jeopardize Gakuya's mission.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo