Chapter 166: Scoundrel, How Dare You Kill My Horse!!!

That night, after an intense battle with several young women, Shinji took a bath. By the time he returned to his room, he was alone.

Although Shinji enjoyed the company of women, he always preferred sleeping alone.

Feeling somewhat drained, he pulled the blanket over himself and fell asleep immediately. The next morning, he woke up at around nine.

This was his usual routine, but for some reason, he woke up abnormally early today. The sky was still dark, and the dim lighting in the room cast a grayish haze.

"Huh? So it's still night?"

Half-asleep, Shinji realized it wasn't yet dawn and decided to go back to sleep.

However…

He suddenly found himself unable to do so.

His body felt sticky, and the air carried a thick, metallic scent of blood.

Sensing something was wrong, his sleepiness vanished, replaced by nausea.

The sticky sensation came from his own body. He pulled back the blanket. Though the room was dim, he could still make out what it was.

His eyes widened in shock.

A crimson liquid.

A pungent, iron-like stench.

Blood.

He was covered in fresh blood.

It felt as if a hammer had struck his chest. His heart nearly stopped from the shock. He let out a loud scream and rolled off the bed, looking utterly disheveled.

His scream quickly attracted the servants outside. They rushed in, saw him drenched in blood, and asked what had happened.

Still trembling from fear, his voice quivered as he pointed toward the lump beneath the blanket on his bed. "Th-There's something there…"

He had a terrible feeling that the blood covering him had come from that thing.

One of the servants took a deep breath, gathered his courage, and carefully approached the bed. With a swift motion, he lifted the blanket—only to reveal a severed head with a single horn.

The moment Shinji got a clear look at it, he momentarily forgot his fear. His eyes filled with bloodlust, veins popping in his whites. In a furious roar, he cursed:

"Who the hell dared to kill my horse?!"

It was the severed head of his unicorn. Its mouth foamed, its blood-soaked tendons exposed to the air. Once, it had beautiful, expressive eyes, but now they had turned lifeless and dull, like those of a dead fish.

His body trembled with rage. He only calmed down a little after taking another bath.

Who could have done this?

Who would dare kill a unicorn worth a fortune without even issuing a prior warning?

Such an act, without negotiations or threats, was a blatant show of hostility.

Whoever was behind this had no regard for his noble status.

No—what was even more terrifying was that this person had infiltrated the heavily guarded daimyo's residence with ease, bypassing all the guards, killing the horse, and placing its head right next to him—without anyone noticing.

If their true intent had been to assassinate him…

That thought sent a chilling sensation down his spine, making his hair stand on end.

No, he had no choice. He had to discuss countermeasures with that man.

On the surface, Prince Huang Ren was his uncle. In reality, however, he was the illegitimate child born after Huang Ren cuckolded the daimyo.

A cunning man always has multiple escape routes. Ever since Lan Ren met an unfortunate end in Konoha, Huang Ren had shifted his focus onto this illegitimate child.

After pondering for a moment, Huang Ren asked, "Have you offended anyone recently?"

Shinji froze. He wasn't sure how to answer—not because he didn't know, but because there were simply too many.

Huang Ren continued, "Has anything unusual happened lately?"

Shinji shook his head. "Everything's been the same as usual. The only difference is that I had an audience with the Third Hokage."

"And what did he want from you?"

"Nothing too important," Shinji replied before recounting the conversation.

Huang Ren's eyes narrowed. "I think I know why this happened."

"What?" Shinji was a beat too slow, but then his eyes widened in realization. "Damn it! Some lowly scoundrel dared to kill my horse!"

The timing perfectly matched the Hokage's return to the village.

Huang Ren shook his head. "Forget about your horse. You should be more concerned about that brat in Hozuki Castle."

Shinji's voice was firm. "What else can I do? Of course, I'll imprison him until he dies. Releasing him is out of the question."

Huang Ren sighed. "I advise you to let him go."

"Why?"

"This time, it was probably the Uchiha clan acting on their own. They're an unruly bunch. If you don't release that prisoner, next time, the thing getting cut off might not be your horse's head—it might be yours."

Shinji scoffed arrogantly, "Would they dare? Are they not afraid of breaking relations between the village and the Land of Fire?"

"Of course, they would. Have you ever considered the possibility that next time, someone might use the Sharingan to control you into releasing that brat, and then kill you right after? Who would you even complain to then?"

Shinji took a sharp breath, feeling a chill run down his spine. He slumped. "I can't accept this…"

Prince Huang Ren sighed. "Just wait."

"Wait for what?"

"Wait for the right opportunity to start a war and weaken Konoha's military power—especially the Uchiha."

"Then why not just cut their military funding directly?"

"Forget it. If you push them too hard, who knows what those ninjas might do? Today, you cut their funding. Tomorrow, someone might cut off your head."

Shinji: …

Land of Grass, Hozuki Castle.

Prison Cell No. 9527.

Tōshirō lay on the hard bed. It was still dark, yet he was already awake.

With a metallic clang, the iron door creaked open, followed by a man's voice: "Get out."

Tōshirō sighed and got out of bed. This miserable prison life—when would it end?

"Follow me."

Tōshirō didn't think much of it and silently followed behind. He knew better than to make trouble here—this wasn't Konoha. These bastard prison guards would actually beat inmates without hesitation.

He had seen plenty of fresh prisoners come in with defiance, only to have their spirits crushed over time.

As he followed the guard, Tōshirō noticed that today's route was different. Unable to hold back his curiosity, he asked, "Where are we going?"

"No idea. I just follow orders."

Tōshirō sighed inwardly. When the hell am I getting out of here?

The village was supposed to come rescue him, yet so many days had passed, and there was still no word.

They had told him that once they caught the real culprit, he would be freed.

But where the hell are they supposed to find the real culprit?

Maybe I should sell out Kakuzu…?

Tōshirō thought about it but quickly dismissed the idea.

Kakuzu knew too many of his secrets. Selling him out would not only risk exposing everything, but it would also ruin the small bit of rapport he had built with the man. He might have even convinced Kakuzu, an S-rank rogue ninja, to work for him. Losing that would be a waste.

As he pondered, he unknowingly followed the guard through a door into a well-furnished room.

It was the warden's office.

Seated at the desk was a solemn-looking man—the person in charge of the prison.

The warden saw Tōshirō and smiled faintly. "Congratulations, Uchiha Tōshirō . Your village has come to take you home."

The man's deep voice was far from pleasant, but to Tōshirō , it sounded like the most beautiful melody—like a breath of fresh spring air.

The warden walked up to Tōshirō , formed a hand seal, and released the restraints on his body.

Immediately, Tōshirō felt lighter, as though a great weight had been lifted from him. Strength surged back into his limbs.

"I'm back… I'm finally back! I can feel everything again!" Overcome with emotion, Tōshirō spread his arms and embraced the sky.

"Here are the clothes you arrived in." The warden handed him a set of clothes. "Get changed, and you'll be free to leave."

Tōshirō took the clothes with both hands, thanked him, and swore to himself that he would never set foot in this godforsaken place again.

And yet…

A dark glint flashed in his eyes.

He clearly remembered how, back when he was brought before the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, the man had demanded that he commit seppuku to atone for his alleged crimes.

At that time, Tōshirō had barely managed to hold himself back from cursing the Daimyo to his face.

Seppuku? Just because he was doing his job? Anyone unaware of the situation would think he was some kind of black-market organ dealer.

He had endured it then, but…

An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.

Tōshirō never forgot a grudge.

The Daimyo's personal guards were too strong, making a direct abduction difficult without revealing his full power.

But that didn't mean he would give up on getting revenge.

If he couldn't target the Daimyo himself…

Then he would target the person the Daimyo treasured the most—his son.

After his release, he would find Kakuzu and plan a kidnapping.

How much ransom could I demand for the Daimyo's son?

500 billion ryo sounds reasonable, right?

*P.S.: The illustration explains the pricing.

In the changing room, Tōshirō put on his clothes and adjusted his collar, which felt a bit tight.

He had been here for a while—his hair had grown long, with his bangs now covering half his face. His hairstyle was starting to resemble that man's.

Maybe he was still growing, because even his clothes felt tighter.

As he stepped outside, the weather was the same as the day he arrived—gloomy and gray.

Taking a deep breath, Tōshirō savored the fresh air of freedom.

(End of Chapter)

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