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It was the third day since the daimyo's carriage departed Konoha.
Outside Konoha, the gates of the prisoner camp opened.
The sound of chains rubbing against each other broke the morning's quiet.
There was no bugle.
No send-off.
Only silence.
A group emerged from within the camp.
Five hundred Konoha shinobi walked at the front, silent, guarding both sides of the prisoner column.
In their midst were three thousand Kumogakure prisoners.
These Kumogakure prisoners were all dressed in dirty prison uniforms, with heavy shackles carved with sealing jutsu on their wrists and ankles.
As they walked, the shackles rattled.
On the faces of the Kumogakure shinobi, there was numbness and shame, and a deeply buried hatred.
On the camp's flagpole, Hiruzen stood there, his long-unused armor and mask worn neatly.
He remained completely still.
Ten Hyuga clan members were arranged around him, their Byakugan activated, watching every prisoner carefully.
The group moved very slowly.
Because the daimyo had said that these prisoners were to be paraded through the streets.
A parade of victory and power, dedicated to the entire Land of Fire.
The destination of the group was the Land of Hot Water.
However, the route taken was deliberately roundabout.
This was pre-planned to pass through several of the most wealthy towns within the Land of Fire.
The daimyo wanted everyone to see.
This was the consequence of provoking the Land of Fire.
It was late morning.
The escort team arrived at the first village-town.
The entrance was already packed with civilians who had come upon hearing the news.
When they saw the three thousand Kumogakure prisoners in shackles, the crowd first fell silent, then burst into thunderous cheers!
"Long live the Land of Fire!"
"Long live Konoha!"
But soon, the cheers turned into angry curses.
"It's these bastards! They almost destroyed our homes!"
"They should all be killed!"
A specially arranged villager threw a rotten egg, hitting a Kumogakure shinobi squarely in the face.
Sticky, foul-smelling egg fluid slid down his cheek.
The Kumogakure shinobi's body stiffened, and he suddenly looked up, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the villager.
"What are you looking at!"
"Still daring to glare!"
The crowd was enraged.
More rotten vegetable leaves, stinky eggs, and even stones rained down on the prisoner column.
The Kumogakure shinobi, dragging their shackles, tried to resist, but were whipped back by the Konoha shinobi guarding them with long whips.
"All of you, behave!"
The Konoha shinobi shouted, standing between the Kumogakure and the civilians.
He did not stop the civilians from continuing to throw things.
Instead, he watched the shamed Kumogakure prisoners with a pleased expression.
He was a person arranged by the Third Hokage.
One of the actors responsible for lighting the scene on fire.
The prisoners lowered their heads, silently enduring.
But their slightly trembling shoulders, and the bulging veins under their shackles from effort, showed the fury within them.
Shame.
Endless shame.
They were the elite of Kumogakure, the pride of the Land of Lightning. When had they ever suffered such treatment?
To be stared at, cursed, and hit with garbage by these civilians like monkeys.
This was more unbearable than killing them!
The escort team struggled through the village-town in the middle of the insults.
Hiruzen walked at the very back of the group, pretending not to know about everything that happened.
Like a silent watcher.
"Report!" A Hyuga shinobi came to his side. "Thirty-seven prisoners at the back of the column are agitated, and their chakra is showing unusual changes, but they are all within the holding range of the sealing jutsu."
"Continue watching."
Hiruzen spoke four words and said nothing more.
He knew this was just the beginning.
The seeds of anger and shame had already been planted.
But to fully light their fury, more shame was needed.
Two hours later, outside another village-town, the escort team took a short break.
Just now, the Kumogakure prisoners had suffered the same treatment as in the previous village-town.
"Byakugan!"
At a command, ten Hyuga clan members at the same time activated their Byakugan, their pure white eyes scanning the three thousand prisoners.
The flow of chakra was clearly visible in their sight.
The operation of each sealing jutsu, the subtle changes in each prisoner's chakra, nothing escaped their notice.
"First group, chakra flow stable, seal normal."
"Second group, stable, normal."
"..."
Reports sounded in Hiruzen's ears.
This was a routine check.
Every two hours, the Hyuga's Byakugan would scan all prisoners to ensure nothing went wrong.
The reason for passing through these village-towns was also a crucial part of the daimyo's script.
It was necessary for all civilians along the way to witness it.
Only then, when an incident occurred, would no one suspect Konoha.
Instead, they would believe that the Kumogakure had rioted because they could no longer endure the shame.
Konoha would merely be forced to fight back.
The short break ended, and the group set off again.
The parade of shame continued.
The third village-town, the fourth village-town. Each stop presented the same scene.
Angry crowds, overwhelming curses, and garbage.
The nerves of the Kumogakure prisoners were stretched tighter and tighter.
Some young Kumogakure shinobi were already on the edge of breakdown.
They began to clash with Konoha's guards.
What they received in return was even harsher holding down and deeper shame.
Several Konoha shinobi responsible for stirring up trouble would even deliberately throw food on the ground when giving out food and water, making the prisoners scramble for it like dogs.
Anger was constantly building up.
Killing intent grew in the hearts of every Kumogakure prisoner.
They no longer hid their deep-seated hatred for the Konoha shinobi.
Dusk.
The group arrived at the designated campsite, a small village.
The villagers here were even more wild than before.
Perhaps because this place was closer to the former battlefield, their hatred for Kumogakure was even deeper.
Stones rained down.
One prisoner was hit on the forehead by a stone, blood streaming down. He let out a held back roar of rage and suddenly tried to struggle.
"Behave!"
A Konoha shinobi nearby, who had already been instructed, rushed forward with a kick, directly knocking the Kumogakure shinobi down.
In the chaos, the Konoha shinobi's hand brushed over the sealing jutsu on the prisoner's lower back, leaving no trace.
An extremely subtle hand seal flashed and disappeared.
A faint surge of chakra was injected into a specific point of the sealing symbol.
The entire process was extremely fast.
Even the other Konoha shinobi around did not notice anything unusual.
Having done all this, the Konoha shinobi stomped on the prisoner twice, cursing as he dragged him back into the column. "Dare to move again, and you'll be killed on the spot!"
The beaten prisoner slumped to the ground, his body trembling violently from anger and pain.
He did not realize that the unbreakable seal had already shown a slight loosening.
Through his mask, Hiruzen remained cold and uncaring.
His gaze lingered for a moment on the subordinate who had just acted.
Another seed was planted.
Soon!
The fury of the three thousand Kumogakure should be lit.
Suddenly, the Hyuga clan member next to him sharply turned his head.
"Third Hokage!"
His Byakugan had remained active, his eyes fixed on the Kumogakure prisoner who had just been kicked down.
"That person's chakra, the seal..."
But then, a Konoha shinobi next to him suddenly pulled him aside.
As the Hyuga clan member looked on in confusion, he heard the Konoha shinobi whisper, "You didn't see anything."
"See wha... Uh..." Just as he was about to ask, the Hyuga clan member suddenly realized, his body stiffened, and he rigidly turned to look at the Third Hokage.
Hiruzen ignored his gaze, simply remaining silent.
The Hyuga clan member said no more, his head slightly bowed, his lips trembling.