They stopped and went along the way, the three old men discussing some of the Clan's situation so Miki could understand.
Most of it was Shiyū the old man speaking, Shihō the old man supplementing, and Shihu the old man not saying much.
Shiyū the old man's generation consisted of seven siblings; Shiyū was the eldest, Shihō was the fourth, and Shihu was the youngest.
Their other siblings had died in the cruel Warring States Period, the culprits being other families who were also Konoha Ninja.
The Senju of the Forest, Uchiha, Hyuga, Kurama, Ino–Shika–Chō, and others, all had a hand in it.
As a hidden Clan that upheld mysticism, they had always been neutral and unaligned. Due to the power and versatility of their Insects, the Clan members could undertake various types of missions, whether assassination, reconnaissance, destruction, or others. To earn money, they never refused a mission.
In the Warring States Period, families mostly did their own thing, and the market environment dictated that Aburame could love no one and be the coolest on the whole field.
Therefore, they had basically offended everyone.
But from the time the Senju and Uchiha allied, and the Village began to take shape, Shiyū could only lead the Clan, enduring the hatred, to join for the Clan's survival.
For him, it was a wise but difficult decision.
After joining Konoha, Shiyū stepped down from the position of Clan Head, retiring with various regrets, and the position of Clan Head was taken by the son of his younger brother, Shihō.
Shihu the old man had no descendants; since he was young, he possessed those poisonous insects, and even the women in the Clan would not approach him without dying.
As for Shiyū the old man's descendants, besides his beloved youngest daughter, born late in life, all his other children had died in the Warring States Period, and the culprits were still those same people.
And his youngest daughter, Yumi, grew up in the relaxed environment of Konoha, and Shiyū the old man originally did not want her to become a Shinobi.
Then he forcibly explained to Miki why he hadn't visited her and her mother for so many years.
Miki listened quietly for now, offering no opinions.
Clearly, the father and daughter had a conflict, and the old man was too embarrassed to bring it up.
Soon, the four arrived at the Clan's compound.
The Aburame Clan members guarding the entrance came forward to greet the four.
After simple customary exchanges, they entered the building.
The solitary assembly shrine was not large.
Judging by its appearance, it hadn't been in use for many years, lacking the weight of history.
The shrine inside was even more empty and bare.
However, the gravestones standing in the open space outside were particularly eye-catching.
"You all guard outside."
"Yes." With a whoosh, the three stationed guards elegantly left using a Body Flicker Jutsu.
This basic Chunin Jutsu, Miki also had, but she couldn't use it yet.
Her body had not yet reached the standard for performing the Jutsu.
The three old men, in true hidden Clan fashion, opened a hidden secret door, holding lit candlesticks, and proceeded down the secret passage.
Along the way, Shiyū the old man formed a hand seal, and Insects with glowing red butts flew out from him, lighting the candles along the deep underground passage.
"How about it, my Flamebug?"
Like fireflies, they must be very beautiful at night.
Miki said, "Will they explode?"
"No!" Shiyū the old man said.
"They fly too slowly," Miki said. "It's still the same attack method as Insects: suicidal group attacks, forming clusters, setting traps to prevent prey from escaping."
All in all,
"Not fierce enough."
"At this level, the destructive power of ordinary Insects is already sufficient. Their only advantage is a special attack against Fire Release."
Miki stated her opinion truthfully.
"You're right, but that's because you haven't seen the Uchiha's Mangekyo," the old man said. "When facing the Uchiha, never think your destructive power is sufficient."
"Mangekyo?" Miki probed.
"You won't have a concept of it until you've seen it, that kind of divine power," Shiyū the old man said. "You'll see it eventually; the Uchiha are not a Clan that can stay quiet."
"Mm." Miki nodded, looking at the Insects with red glowing butts.
From his tone, it seemed to be a type of insect capable of breaking through Susanoo.
Against Susanoo, with the current strength of Insects, they were very powerless.
Even against a very basic Susanoo.
After walking for a considerable distance, they reached the end of the path.
The room was not large, about one hundred square meters and empty. On three of the walls, one was a mural depicting the history of the Aburame Clan raising Insects, with many Insects different from those of today.
Another wall was covered with Ninjutsu scrolls.
And on the last wall were placed bottles of sealed clay pots.
No need to think much, they were definitely mutated insect eggs.
Miki was drawn closer, ignoring the secret Ninjutsu scrolls.
"It's all yours, pick whatever you want! Hahahaha!" Seeing Miki's expression, Shiyū the old man's loud laughter shook down a fine dust from the underground.
Miki then reached out, her hand covered in Chakra, and touched the clay pots one by one as she walked past.
After a long time, Miki turned to Shiyū the old man and said, "Basically, they're all dead."
Shiyū the old man seemed unsurprised and said, "There's no helping it; they've waited too long here, without anyone to inherit them."
"However, Mushi-Hime, you said 'basically,' so there must still be some alive, right?"
Miki held up her hand, making a 'two' sign, and said, "Only these are reacting."
Saying this, Miki came to the largest clay pot. This pot held a strong will to survive.
She reached out and smashed the clay pot, revealing the giant insect egg inside.
Its size was almost level with Miki, as big as a child.
"It's truly enormous, this insect egg." Miki turned to Shiyū and asked, "Do you have any records of it?"
Shiyū the old man shook his head and said, "It was here since I can remember."
"Then, I'll begin."
Saying this, Miki placed her hand on the insect egg.
The three old men focused their attention, watching intently, but couldn't make sense of it.
It was a very normal method for hatching an insect egg.
As Miki's Chakra flowed in, the infection proceeded subtly and extremely rapidly.
This insect egg had its own will, quite clear and firm: to survive.
Facing the lifeline Miki offered, it clung on without hesitation.
The entire infection process was very fast and smooth.
Indeed, the infection's progress was related to the target's spiritual will.
The progress was almost synchronized with the hatching speed, even a little faster.
Once the infection was complete, the hatching would also be finished.
A moment later, the insect egg began to show signs of life, with small bumps appearing on the egg wall from time to time.
Immediately after, the insect egg began to crack, and some tissue fluid flowed out through the crevices.
Until a certain moment, Miki let go and stepped back.
The entire insect egg split open, and then a pair of small hands pushed open the egg and crawled out.
Looking at the naked, human-like little girl crawling on the ground, the four exchanged glances.
To call her human, she had a simple exoskeleton.
Currently, the exoskeleton was still transparent and soft, clearly showing the fair-skinned human little girl inside.
As the exoskeleton rapidly hardened and changed color, a human-like insect was left on the ground.
"Stand up!" Miki didn't need to speak to give commands; she could easily sense this girl through her thoughts.
This was just for the convenience of the three old men's understanding.
Under Miki's command, the girl struggled to stand up.
The three pairs of compound eyes on her face rotated, looking at different people.
Then they fixed intently on Miki.
When she opened her mouth, her oral cavity split open like an insect's.
"M-mom... mother..."
She spoke...
"Ah! I've truly lived to see everything!" After a long pause, Shiyū the old man slapped his thigh and exclaimed.
What was going on with this child?
"Don't call me mother!" Miki said darkly.
"Yes! Mother!" Insect Sister said obediently.
She seemed a bit slow-witted.
Miki pressed her throbbing forehead, a bad premonition in her heart.
The three old men gathered around Insect Sister, examining her with great interest.