The Akahane clan was one of the twelve mid-tier clans in the northern part of the Land of Fire, and also one of the most prosperous. The Clan Head, Akahane Akira, was a Peak Jōnin with tyrannical strength. Besides him, the clan also possessed a surviving elder who was rumored to have fought the previous Uchiha Clan Head and lived to tell the tale. Because of this, the Akahane clan was implicitly considered the strongest faction among the twelve clans.
This place—originally the sprawling mansion of a wealthy merchant in the Uchiha's northern territory—had now been converted into the Akahane clan's temporary command compound.
The current Clan Head, Akahane Akira, was in his room, reading through intelligence reports by candlelight. Most of these reports contained details regarding the alliance negotiations with the other clans. There were also scattered pieces of intelligence on the Uchiha, but they were incredibly sparse; Uchiha Tō had set up an impeccably tight defensive line, making it exceptionally difficult for their scouts to gather any useful information.
The night was deep, and the candlelight on the desk flickered erratically. Akira let out a yawn and rubbed his temples in exhaustion. It was time to rest.
Just as he stood up to blow out the candle, under his astonished gaze, the space in front of him suddenly rippled. The air twisted slightly, and a figure entirely shrouded in a black cloak materialized without a single sound. It was incredibly eerie.
Akira's reaction was blisteringly fast. Although he had never seen such a bizarre phenomenon, it didn't stop him from making the correct tactical judgment. Three kunai left his hands in a flash, drawing three streaks of cold light across the dim room.
A bizarre scene unfolded. The kunai phased cleanly right through the intruder's body, as if absolutely nothing was there.
Akira's gaze hardened. Channeling explosive force into his legs, he launched himself at the cloaked figure like a human cannonball. Chakra condensed around his fist in a highly specialized, lethal pattern. Even a powerhouse of the exact same rank wouldn't dare take this blow head-on.
Yet, this absolute, surefire strike... also missed completely.
Akira's entire body phased directly through the black silhouette. The jarring, nauseating sensation of throwing a full-power strike at empty air was enough to make a man want to cough up blood.
Physical attacks are ineffective? In that case... Akira thought to himself as he skidded to a halt past the figure. His hands blurred into seals instantly. "Fire Style: Bursting Flame Bomb!"
He exhaled a massive fireball, but just like before, it phased directly through the cloaked figure's body without singeing a single hair.
The roaring flames surged forward. With a deafening boom, the Jutsu blasted a massive hole in the far wall. The explosion alerted the entire Akahane compound, and patrolling shinobi immediately rushed toward the room.
"Patriarch! What happened?!" The voices arrived before the guards did.
"Clan Head Akahane, it seems you are a bit agitated," the cloaked figure spoke for the first time. His voice had been heavily distorted by chakra, making it completely impossible to discern his age or gender. "Do not worry, I mean you no harm. Quite the opposite, actually—I am here to save you. I will return shortly. I hope you will have calmed down by then. You are not my only option, after all."
Akira's frown deepened.
Just like when he arrived, a spatial ripple appeared in the air. The space then twisted into a vortex, completely sucking the cloaked figure inside and vanishing without a trace. The entire sequence was incredibly bizarre and unfathomable.
"Lord Patriarch!"
It was only then that a group of Akahane shinobi finally rushed into the room.
Akira fell silent, a profound chill running down his spine. Who on earth was that cloaked figure? How could his abilities be so bizarre? He glanced at the shinobi who had just rushed in. He originally wanted to reprimand them for their slow response, but after a moment's thought, he said, "It's nothing. You are dismissed. I was just bored and practicing Ninjutsu."
The shinobi looked at each other in dismay. Isn't that excuse a bit too far-fetched? Practicing destructive Ninjutsu in the middle of the night? Inside your own bedroom? Just how bored are you, old man? However, since the Clan Head said so, it wasn't their place to question it. They bowed respectfully and withdrew.
The moment the guards left, a beautiful silhouette wearing a tight black bodysuit stepped into the room, asking in confusion, "Father, what really happened?"
It was the Eldest Daughter of the Akahane clan, Akahane Yui. She was hailed as the greatest genius the Akahane clan had produced in a century—a twelve-year-old Jōnin.
Seeing his daughter, Akira thought for a moment before saying, "Come with me. Something extremely bizarre just occurred. I want you to hide behind the folding screen in the back room later. No matter what happens, you must absolutely not make a sound."
As he spoke, he gathered the various intelligence reports from the desk and moved to another room. The current room had a massive hole blown in the wall, letting the freezing night wind howl through; it was no longer habitable.
After moving to the new room and lighting a fresh candle, Akira signaled his daughter to hide behind the screen. He then sat down formally behind the desk, quietly waiting for the eerie cloaked figure. Given the intruder's unfathomable methods, since he promised to return, there was an eighty percent chance he would actually do so.
Sure enough, not long after, the space in front of him fluctuated, and the cloaked figure eerily reappeared. Akira had no idea how the figure knew his exact location despite him changing rooms, but that detail hardly mattered now.
The reason he referred to him as a 'cloaked figure' was because, aside from the voluminous black robes, absolutely nothing else was visible. Even his head was hidden deep within a pitch-black hood. Faintly, only the lower edge of his jaw could be seen, and even that was covered by a mask adorned with spiral patterns.
"Clan Head Akahane, it seems you have calmed down this time," the cloaked figure spoke first. The chakra-distorted voice was quite jarring to the ear.
Akira snorted coldly. "I don't have time to beat around the bush with you. State your purpose."
"Heh, Clan Head Akahane is truly straightforward. Did you know that earlier today, the Uchiha Patriarch dispatched five Shadow Guards to the north? All five of them... are Peak Jōnin."
Xuan observed the man through the mask, speaking in a low, ghostly tone. His eyes were deeply shaded by the hood, ensuring the enemy could not see his Sharingan.
"What?!" This piece of news made Akira's entire body jolt. Deep intelligence from within the Uchiha clan was incredibly hard to obtain. If this person hadn't told him, he likely wouldn't have known until those assassins actually appeared on the battlefield.
"Why should I believe you?" Akira asked sharply.
Xuan let out a bizarre chuckle, his chakra-altered voice echoing, "Whether you believe it or not is your own business, Clan Head. I trust that someone of your caliber can judge the authenticity of this intelligence for yourself. Oh, and a piece of friendly advice on the side: the secret alliance between your twelve clans has already been exposed. The Uchiha are currently planning to wipe you all out in one fell swoop."
The moment the words fell, Akira's expression changed drastically. If the previous piece of intelligence had merely surprised him, this completely shocked him. His face shifted through a myriad of emotions before he replied in a freezing tone, "Even if they gained five extra Peak Jōnin, our overall military strength still holds the advantage. Pure nonsense."
Beneath the mask, the corners of Xuan's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a smile of absolute control. The other party clearly believed him to some extent already. This made things easy. With just a little bit of guidance, he could steer the entire situation exactly where he wanted it to go.
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