Uchiha orphan, so what if I'm ruthless?

Uchiha Taiga gently extracted a wisp of pale red Tailed Beast chakra. Yagura Karatachi endured the pain without making a sound. The entire process was quiet; no one spoke, and no one moved.

The Kirigakure shinobi present watched the scene with bizarre expressions. Their Lord Mizukage was lying on a broken wooden board while an outsider boy crouched beside him, one hand pressed against his lower abdomen, extracting chakra from his body.

Meanwhile, their Lord Mizukage gritted his teeth, his face pale and his brows furrowed tightly, without uttering a single word.

No one stepped forward to stop it, nor did anyone voice a protest. The Grand Elder had already spoken, and the Mizukage himself had agreed. What else could they say?

Time ticked by, minute by minute.

Terumi Mei stood on the ice, her hands hanging by her sides, fingers slightly curled.

Her gaze darted back and forth between Uchiha Taiga and Yagura Karatachi. Her lips twitched as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately, no words came out.

Beside her, some of the surviving Kirigakure ninjas lowered their heads, some looked away, and others closed their eyes. No one dared to look directly in that direction.

The Grand Elder stood in place, leaning on his cane, as motionless as a statue.

His face was completely devoid of expression, and not a hint of emotion could be seen in his cloudy old eyes.

Behind him, the ice on his two guards had already been shattered, but their bodies were still trembling slightly—whether from the cold or something else was unknown.

Ao stood behind the Grand Elder, the Byakugan beneath his mask shifting slightly. He watched Uchiha Taiga's movements and the extracted Tailed Beast chakra, a complex gleam flashing in his pupil.

However, he remained silent, simply standing there quietly.

The entire process went without a hitch.

The amount Uchiha Taiga had extracted previously was already enough, but when it came to Tailed Beast chakra, you could never have too much.

Since they were willing to give it away, he had no reason to refuse. It was free, after all.

His hand movements were steady, the extraction speed unhurried, ensuring that every wisp of chakra was completely separated from the core without damaging the core itself.

Yugito Nii waited to the side, her gaze occasionally sweeping over the Kirigakure group, especially the Grand Elder.

Her eyes held a hint of curiosity.

To be honest, the Grand Elder's earlier handling of the situation had truly broadened her horizons.

Back in Kumogakure, the older generation figures she had seen were either stubborn to the bitter end or immediately submitted.

But the Grand Elder's ability to speak the toughest words while doing the most cowardly things, using the most unyielding posture to frame a massive loss as if he were doing the other party a huge favor—she had never seen such a skill before.

She silently made a comparison in her heart, feeling that the Kumogakure higher-ups needed to change their mindset and learn more from this Grand Elder.

It didn't take long for Uchiha Taiga to finish the second extraction of Tailed Beast chakra. Retracting his hand, he sealed the Tailed Beast chakra into a scroll, organized it, and strapped it to his lower back.

Standing up, Uchiha Taiga brushed the ice shavings off his clothes and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Let's go."

With that said, he turned and walked away, crisp and decisive.

"Wait."

The Grand Elder's voice rang out from behind once again.

Uchiha Taiga's footsteps halted. He turned his head, his expression turning peculiar.

"Seriously, old man, what else do you want?"

Yagura Karatachi lay on the wooden board, his face slightly contorted.

He had barely managed to endure the pain; the sensation of having chakra extracted from his body felt like someone carving his flesh with a dull knife. He thought everything was over and he could finally lie quietly for a moment, but then the Grand Elder spoke up again.

He nearly choked on his own breath, his heart trembling in tandem.

Yagura gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, pretending he hadn't heard a thing.

Terumi Mei also whipped her head around to look at the Grand Elder, a trace of nervousness in her eyes.

She was genuinely terrified that the Grand Elder would say something like, "Let him extract a bit more."

If that happened, the Mizukage probably wouldn't survive.

The Grand Elder leaned on his cane and took two steps forward, his expression solemn.

"The strongest genius boy in the ninja world."

His voice was old but powerful, immediately throwing out Uchiha Taiga's newly minted title.

"As the Grand Elder of Kirigakure, I can distinguish between gratitude and hatred."

Uchiha Taiga nodded. "Yeah, right, right. I can see that."

He paused.

"And then?"

The Grand Elder took a deep breath, as if making a momentous decision.

"You freeing the Mizukage from control is a favor. Sparing the lives of everyone present is also a favor."

He raised his cane and pointed at Uchiha Taiga.

"I invite you to stay in Kirigakure for a short while."

Hearing this, Uchiha Taiga's expression grew even more peculiar.

"Huh? Are you serious?"

Terumi Mei was astonished. She stared at the Grand Elder with wide eyes, her mouth slightly agape.

She never expected the Grand Elder to say such a thing.

Inviting an outsider to stay in Kirigakure? This was incredibly rare in the village's history.

Kirigakure was the most isolated ninja village among the Five Great Nations, extremely hostile to outsiders. Let alone staying for a visit, even entering the village required layers of approval. Was the Grand Elder trying to break tradition?

Yagura also struggled to sit up upon hearing this, casting a bewildered look at the Grand Elder.

Although he was no longer a puppet under genjutsu control, he was still the Mizukage, the leader of Kirigakure.

Shouldn't the Grand Elder have at least discussed it with him before making such a decision?

The Grand Elder didn't look at them. His gaze remained fixed on Uchiha Taiga, his expression solemn, as if making a formal and earnest invitation.

"Naturally. We of Kirigakure know how to repay our debts of gratitude."

Uchiha Taiga looked at him and remained silent for two seconds.

"Really? I don't believe you."

He shook his head.

"Forget it. You've got too many schemes running through that old head of yours. I'm afraid I'll end up getting played."

He turned around and waved his hand.

"I appreciate the gesture. Goodbye."

With that, he strode away.

Yugito Nii followed behind him, her steps light and brisk.

The two walked across the ice into the distance, showing absolutely no intention of lingering.

Since his goal for this trip had been achieved, he naturally had no plans to visit Kirigakure anymore.

Of course, he originally did. Uchiha Taiga's initial idea was to enter Kirigakure to see the true face of the Village of the Bloody Mist and gather some intelligence along the way.

But with how things had developed, if he went now, who knew what kind of rhetoric that old man would pull out.

As for whether staying in Kirigakure would be beneficial, he didn't doubt it. He even figured he might be able to get his hands on Kirigakure's ninjutsu collection.

But he didn't care too much about those things right now. At best, it would just be some ninjutsu he hadn't learned yet—important, but not strictly necessary for him.

Right now, he only wanted to gather enough Tailed Beast chakra as quickly as possible to perfect the formula for his "Taiga Brand" God Tree seed.

As for ninjutsu, he could slowly study it in his free time.

Sometimes, the process of developing new jutsu was actually quite fun.

The two walked far away.

Only the Kirigakure group and their frozen companions remained on the ice.

The Grand Elder leaned on his cane, watching Uchiha Taiga's back disappear into the sea mist, and remained silent for a long time.

Then, his body suddenly slumped. He grabbed his lower back with his free hand, the wrinkles on his face bunching together as he let out a low groan.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch... Damn it, that brat actually refused."

His voice carried a tone of regret.

Terumi Mei turned her head and saw the Grand Elder's body trembling slightly—whether from standing too long or something else, she didn't know.

She quickly walked over and reached out to support him, but the Grand Elder raised a hand to stop her.

The Grand Elder took a deep breath, steadied himself with his cane, and let out a long sigh.

"What a pity, what a pity."

His gaze was still fixed on the end of the ice field, as if looking at a vanished treasure.

"The dual Kekkei Genkai of the Byakugan and Sharingan, and still so young..."

He shook his head.

"If we could have kept him here, those two Kekkei Genkai could have taken root and flourished in Kirigakure."

Terumi Mei's eyelid twitched.

The Grand Elder slowly turned around and looked at Terumi Mei.

An indescribable gleam suddenly appeared in his cloudy old eyes. His gaze lingered on Terumi Mei's face for a moment, sweeping up and down, as if appraising a commodity waiting to be sold.

"Mei."

His voice suddenly became amiable.

"You are a famous beauty in the village, and you're not that much older than that brat. Furthermore, you possess both the Lava Style and Boil Style Kekkei Genkai. Your talent and aptitude are top-tier. If you were to unite with him..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

But the implication was clear to anyone listening.

Terumi Mei's expression froze. The Grand Elder's blatant scheming caught her completely off guard.

Starting from her neck, a deep red flush crept up inch by inch, passing her chin, her cheeks, her ears, all the way to the roots of her hair.

Her mouth opened and closed, closed and opened, as if something was stuck in her throat.

"Grand Elder!"

Her voice squeezed through her gritted teeth, carrying an extreme, suppressed sense of shame.

"Do you even hear what you're saying?!"

The Grand Elder's expression didn't change. He leaned on his cane, turned around, and walked toward Kirigakure. His voice drifted back from ahead.

"I was just saying. It's not like he agreed, right? Besides, seeing how arrogant that brat is, he might not even take a fancy to you."

Terumi Mei stood rooted to the spot, her fists clenching so tightly they cracked.

Her face was still red, but the flush had shifted from shame to pure anger. Glaring at the Grand Elder's back, she wished she could charge forward and whack him with his own cane.

But she held back.

Because she knew the Grand Elder was dead serious.

If Uchiha Taiga had agreed just now, the Grand Elder really would have washed her clean, packed her up, and delivered her straight to that boy.

And as a Kirigakure ninja, facing the dual pressure of the Grand Elder and the Mizukage—and even the expectations of the entire village—she probably wouldn't even have the right to refuse.

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and opened them again. Finally, she cast a glance in the direction Uchiha Taiga had left and let out a cold snort.

"Damn brat, don't let me ever see you again!"