Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 96 The Seven-Tailed Whirlpool Purple Flycatcher Awakens

Negishi Kusanagi stood by the window, gazing in the direction where Aburame Shisei had disappeared: "Chief, do you really believe him?"

After a moment of silence, Negishi Kusa said, "I don't believe it."

"Then why..."

"But he's right." Negishi Kusanagi turned around. "Since we're going to die anyway, we might as well die a glorious death."

He walked to the center of the council hall and looked at the still bewildered ninjas.

"Published."

"What?"

"We're condemning the bullying of our small ninja village by the two great powers." His voice grew increasingly firm. "We're releasing the evidence—evidence of the murder committed by Iwagakure spies. Let everyone see who killed the Hokage's son, and who framed him."

"Furthermore, we must question Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi: is he blind and incompetent, or simply too cowardly to confront Iwagakure head-on? Let the entire ninja world judge this!"

Everyone was stunned; this was about to escalate into something serious!

"Chief, this..."

"Do as instructed." Negishi Kusanagi's voice left no room for argument. "From this moment on, Kusagakure is no longer a fence-sitter. Don't forget your declaration from that day: we are the independents."

After leaving the meeting room, Shisei Aburame did not return directly to Takigakure, but instead went to a refugee settlement on the outskirts of Kusagakure.

There lived hundreds of war orphans, all rescued from the battlefield by the Grass Ninja Village. They lived in dilapidated tents, surviving on thin porridge given to them by the Grass Ninja Village, and were skin and bones.

Yu Nu Zhicheng walked through the crowd to the most dilapidated tent. Inside the tent huddled a little girl, about seven or eight years old, with messy red hair and a dirty face, but her eyes were exceptionally clear.

The Uzumaki clan, the most powerful sealing technique family in the ninja world, were once the masters of the Land of Whirlpools, but now only scattered fragments of their bloodline remain scattered across various regions.

The little girl looked at him warily, like a frightened little animal.

"Don't be afraid." Aburame Shisei squatted down and looked into her eyes.

"What's your name?"

The little girl didn't speak.

Are you hungry?

She remained silent.

You Nu Zhicheng took out a piece of dried food from his pocket and handed it to her. The little girl stared at the piece of dried food, her throat moved, but she didn't take it.

You Nu Zhicheng smiled, put the dry rations on the ground, and stood up: "Come with me, there's food for you."

He turned and walked out of the tent. He heard rustling sounds behind him, but he didn't turn around. A moment later, a small figure followed him.

Following the statement from Kusagakure accusing Konoha and Iwagakure, Shisei Aburame has taken the little girl and left the Land of Grass, returning to Takigakure.

The accusations made by the Grass Ninja Village have once again caused a huge uproar in the ninja world.

Everyone thought the ninjas of Kusagakure had gone mad. In the last hundred years, only one Hanzo of the Salamander had ever appeared, yet even he was utterly defeated by Amegakure. What strength did Kusagakure possess that could make them so reckless?

All eyes were immediately drawn to it, and even the changes within the country of Takigakure were ignored and postponed by the various countries—after all, no matter how much Takigakure had changed, it did not dare to openly challenge the two great powers.

Unbeknownst to them, all these changes were orchestrated by Aburame Shisei. His sole purpose was to divert attention and stabilize developments in the rear. He didn't even care if the Grass Ninja Village was destroyed.

Since the goal is to attract attention from all sides, why not make a bigger fuss?

So the tailed beasts will naturally have to make an appearance. As for whether the tailed beasts are lent or given away, since they belong to him, it's just a matter of a word.

Furthermore, he discovered that Negishi Kusanagi had great potential, with the rudiments of Dark Release already emerging within him. He could experiment with the virus on him to see if he could elevate his strength to Kage level in a short period. Even if he couldn't, he would at least cultivate an elite expert capable of holding off a Kage-level powerhouse for a while.

Thus, even without his personal intervention, the Three Kingdoms Alliance could almost stand firm and compete with the two major powers, which was entirely feasible.

-

Deep within the underground palace of Takigaku Village.

Kakuzu sat cross-legged in the center of the stone chamber, counting money.

This was his new hobby, but now it has become his job. Since taking over the financial reins of Takigakure, he spends two hours every day counting money—not how much comes in, but how much is spent.

How much does it cost to build roads, how much does it cost to build power plants, how much does it cost to renovate docks, how much does it cost to pay officials' salaries... every penny must be carefully calculated.

"Damn, it's more tiring than killing someone."

He muttered to himself and pushed a pile of account books aside.

Just then, the door to the stone chamber was opened, and Kakuzu looked up, saw that familiar figure, and was immediately stunned: "Why are you back?"

Aburame Zhicheng didn't answer, but simply turned to the side, revealing the dirty little girl behind him.

"This is……"

"An orphan of the Uzumaki clan," Aburame Shisei said, "the new Jinchūriki of the Seven-Tails."

Kakuzu was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "What are you up to now?"

"Tailed beast rental, would you like to inquire?" Aburame Shisei suddenly became serious, placed one hand on his chest, and bowed at a ninety-degree angle: "I am Shiraki, the strategist of Kusagakure."

Kakuzu was speechless for a moment, but his eyes lit up when money was mentioned.

"Wait a minute, do you still need the help of a Kage-level expert? Don't worry, as long as the money is right, I can even stop the Third Hokage."

"What if we add the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, to the list?"

Kakuzu's expression turned serious. After a long silence, he said, "We need to pay more."

-

Deep within the underground palace, on the fiftieth level.

Aburame Shisei stood before the massive sealing array, with Uzumaki Shiki, a girl from the Uzumaki clan, beside him.

She looked at the sealing array before her, her eyes filled with both curiosity and fear.

"Are you ready?" Shisei Aburame asked.

Whirlpool Purple Fly nodded, then shook her head. She was only seven years old and didn't fully understand what was about to happen.

Aburame Shisei didn't say anything more. He formed hand seals, and the sealing array slowly opened.

Golden light surged from the array, illuminating the entire underground palace. At the center of the light, a huge creature was curled up, its six wings enveloping its body, like a sleeping insect.

Nanao·Chongming.

Just as Aburame Shisei was about to continue forming hand seals, a childish voice suddenly rang in his mind:

"Who are you?"

Yu Nu Zhicheng paused in his movements.

He looked at the Seven-Tails, whose enormous compound eyes were slowly opening, their golden pupils reflecting his image.

He remained calm and simply smiled, saying, "My name is Aburame Shicheng. Hello, Chongming."

"You know me?" Nanami seemed somewhat surprised.

"Chongming...it feels like it's been ages since anyone called my name. By the way, how do you understand insect language?"

Insect language?

Wasn't Chongming communicating with him in human language?

Aburame Shisei suddenly looked down at the whirlpool purple cricket beside him. The other looked at him blankly, seemingly having heard nothing.