Chapter 85: Talk-no-jutsu
"Even if you kill me... I will not betray my comrades!"
Her Byakugan was already deactivated, but the stubbornness in Hinata's eyes, her presence, and her determination were even more potent than when she was in battle!
Those eyes seemed to say that even death... could not change her will!
As if hearing the greatest joke in the world, Kabuto actually disregarded his feigned harmless image and burst into wild laughter.
"Lady Hinata, you are so naive and childish. It's truly ridiculous and pitiful to the extreme! To think that someone like you would also be brainwashed by the so-called 'Will of Fire' and still prattle on about not betraying your comrades..."
The laughter gradually subsided, and Kabuto said coldly.
"If I remember correctly, Lady Hinata, the reason you went to the Ninja Academy to become an ordinary ninja is that you were already abandoned by the Hyuga clan, isn't it? As the main family's eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan, you have to be an ordinary ninja and risk your life. You, who have already been thoroughly sold out, are still clamoring about never betraying your comrades. You've really been thoroughly brainwashed, haven't you? Sold out by others, and yet still willing to lay down your life for them."
Kabuto mercilessly mocked the young girl, attempting to shake her heart. He stared intently at Hinata's blank white eyes, searching for any sign of confusion that might appear.
At the brink of life and death, he had seen too many people change their beliefs and break their own bottom lines in order to live, let alone a young ninja whose worldview and outlook on life had not yet stabilized. When death is imminent, many people will expose their true thoughts or change their principles.
Even an ant will cling to life!
Kabuto believed that someone like Hinata, who had been betrayed by her family, would be easily swayed.
He pressed on, step by step.
"What 'Will of Fire,' what 'protecting comrades,' it's all just talk. The fools who took it seriously are pretty much all dead. You don't want to be the next one, do you? Do you know how the White Fang of Konoha died back then?"
Kabuto let out a cold laugh and suddenly raised his voice.
"Konoha, which prides itself on valuing the bonds of comradeship the most, because the White Fang chose to save his teammates, used slander and gossip to drive a hero of a generation to suicide! I wonder, when he died, your revered Third Hokage, the one who is always talking about the Will of Fire, the one who told you to value your comrades, what was he doing then?"
Hinata subconsciously lowered her eyelids. She had also heard a little about the White Fang's story. It was a painful dark history for Konoha. Exposed so mercilessly by Kabuto under the broad daylight, she was speechless.
Kabuto was not embellishing. The parts he spoke of were indeed facts, at least the version the village had given for the incident. Therefore, Hinata was even less able to refute it.
"Lady Hinata, can you tell me why this is?"
A highly sarcastic smile appeared on Kabuto's face.
Hinata bit her bloodless lower lip and said nothing. Compared to battle, Hinata's talk-no-jutsu skills were extremely unskilled. Being inarticulate and overly serious, she couldn't be like Naruto, who could talk an enemy into shame and repentance with just a few hot-blooded words, nor could she be like Sakura, who could arrogantly ignore others' words.
Kabuto's unrestrained contempt for Konoha drilled into her ears, extremely annoying yet very tenacious.
And it sounded very reasonable.
Regardless of the truth behind it, the Konoha leadership must have played an extremely disgraceful role in the White Fang's suicide, a serious deviation from the ideals that Konoha had propagated since its founding. For a powerhouse who had made great contributions to Konoha to end up like that was truly disheartening. As a young girl who had just graduated and was only beginning to come into contact with the dark side of Konoha, she did not know how to evaluate such a cruel and dark history.
Kabuto's words continued.
"You may not know much about the White Fang's story, so let's talk about something you've experienced yourself! I'm sure you still remember the incident when you were kidnapped back then. At that time, a ninja from the Land of Lightning, in order to obtain the Byakugan, sneaked into your home and abducted you. He was then discovered and killed by your father. In the end, Konoha actually killed your father's own twin brother as an apology to the Land of Lightning!"
"Hahaha! Konoha, which prattles on about everyone being one family, not only did not protect its own family but, because Hyuga Hiashi had protected his family, used his brother's life to apologize to the enemy in exchange for a precarious peace! Hehehe, Lord Hokage and the Konoha leadership are just a bunch of life-sucking, cowardly parasites who feed on the ninja of Konoha!"
"Is such a hypocritical and dark village worthy of your loyalty?"
"Tell me Sasuke's location, then leave this land where the flower of evil blooms and live freely. Wouldn't that be great?"
"As long as you are willing to tell me Sasuke's location, I promise I won't lay a hand on you. You can leave safely, and it's even no problem for you to follow me and join Lord Orochimaru's ninja village! I'm only interested in Sasuke. you can completely trust my promise. I won't hurt you!"
Kabuto looked at Hinata earnestly with a gaze full of sincere temptation, as if he were not the one who had been in a life-or-death battle with Hinata just now, as if he had suddenly become a young man who only thought of others.
Temptation and threats. If the target had been a fool like Mizuki, or someone else who valued their own life above all else and would do anything to survive, then Kabuto would have already succeeded.
However, for Hinata, seeing a spy who was a threat to Konoha suddenly pretending to be looking out for her best interests, she only felt a wave of disgust. As for Kabuto's words, she had already thought them through.
Perhaps! Konoha really does have many problems.
But this is her home. A child doesn't find their own mother ugly. Konoha had its dark side, but that was not a reason to defect. It only meant that the Konoha ninja who yearned for the light still had much to do. To work hard to change those unreasonable systems, to clear out the dark and corrupt things—as long as they had strength in their hands and light in their hearts, it was not an unattainable thing.
Most importantly, her bonds were here. She had a best friend to whom she could entrust her life, a boy she secretly liked, her teachers, her relatives, her comrades. Those were the people she acknowledged and who acknowledged her. Those were the people she was willing to protect with her life!
The Will of Fire was not false. In these bonds, Hinata had truly felt that warmth.
To betray my comrades and become a traitor, how could I face the eyes of those I care about? That is a feeling more unbearable than death. Not to mention the days of constant fear after defecting, which was not a feeling of freedom at all.
Compared to such an ending, she would rather die in battle here.
This was the girl's true thought.
Thinking of this, Hinata had already made her resolve.
Indeed, Kabuto's words sounded very reasonable, but Hinata believed that Kabuto, as a spy, was absolutely untrustworthy. He was just trying to lure her into betraying her comrades. If Sakura were here, she would definitely see through Kabuto's loopholes quickly and then scold the enemy with her sharp words! Unfortunately, the one facing Kabuto was her. Hinata closed her eyes helplessly. Not only could she not win in a fight, but she was no match for his talk-no-jutsu either.
Hinata had heard from Sakura before that Orochimaru was desperate to obtain the Sharingan, so if Sasuke were captured by Kabuto, he would surely be killed! When she discovered that Kabuto was tracking her from behind, she had understood this point and had deliberately adjusted her pace, deviating from Sasuke's direction. It wasn't long before Kabuto realized that Hinata was intentionally leading him in circles, and knew that he had been discovered. So he had shown himself and started this fight, wanting to use her life to threaten her into revealing Sasuke's location.
At this moment, Kabuto had already said all he had to say. Besides selling out Sasuke, there was no other way to live.
Having silently made her decision, Hinata already knew how to answer.
She raised her left hand, which felt as heavy as a mountain.
"Alright... you want Sasuke's location. It's over there."
The girl said calmly.
Kabuto's face suddenly became as dark as water.
"Don't joke with me, that's the direction I came from... Lady Hinata!"
"Hehe, maybe Sasuke has already returned to Konoha. Who knows?" On Hinata's usually serious face, at this moment, there was a hint of mockery.
"My patience is limited, Hinata! One last chance. Where is Sasuke?"
The fake smile on Kabuto's face finally disappeared completely, replaced by a sinister killing intent. That dense killing intent made it nakedly clear that if Hinata refused to give the correct answer again, then he would attack her without mercy!
However, Hinata's answer ultimately disappointed Kabuto.
"I've said it before. My principle is to never betray my comrades. I don't go back on my word. That is my ninja way!"
Kabuto finally confirmed that the girl before him, so stubborn she could be called block-headed, would not give him a satisfactory answer.
Perhaps he would never be able to understand Hinata's thoughts, to understand what sacrifice was, but that was no longer important.
"Hinata, since you are so determined to seek your own end... I will grant your wish!"
He took a deep breath. His chakra once again surged wildly. The Corpse Puppet Manipulation Technique was brought to its full potential. Countless ninja tools: kunai, darts, shuriken, short blades, caltrops, long swords, sharp blades, and so on, ten, a hundred, a thousand... Under his chakra control, they all floated in mid-air, densely surrounding Hinata in a semicircle, poised to strike the girl at the center!
Compared to the previous attacks, which were deliberately meant to consume her stamina, Kabuto's full-powered attack was on a completely different level of power! With just one glance, Hinata understood with despair—
She absolutely could not block this.
The next wave of attacks would be her death!
The kunai in her hand was gripped tightly and then helplessly released. Facing a certain death, since resistance was already futile, then there was no point in resisting.
The number of ninja tools floating in mid-air was still increasing.
Before this blow fell, Kabuto asked one last question.
"Lady Hinata, before you die, I have one question... Why, when you've clearly accepted my reasoning, do you still insist on your principles? Are you really so foolishly loyal?"
A complex smile appeared on Hinata's face.
"Foolishly loyal...? Kabuto, I think as a spy, you probably can't experience the so-called 'bonds,' can you? Hiding in Konoha, you probably don't have a master who cares for you, comrades to whom you can entrust your back, or relatives with whom you share a blood bond, right?"
"People, in order to protect those who are important to them, will become strong and fearless. The me of the past, who used to be weak and self-abasing, has also changed a lot now... This feeling, a person like you who is all alone, will probably never be able to experience or understand it!"
For a brief moment, Kabuto was silent. Perhaps Hinata's words had triggered a distant memory, or perhaps he was trying to understand what she was saying. He was silent, the reflection on his glasses hiding his eyes, making it impossible to see what he was thinking.
Perhaps, in the deepest part of a person like Kabuto's heart, there was still a trace of softness?
However, as an excellent spy, Kabuto quickly shook off that brief moment of distraction, withdrew the true expression he had revealed, and put on his thick mask again. He let out a cold laugh, then forcefully waved his hand!
The swarm of ninja tools flying in mid-air instantly poured down like a torrential rain!
Am I going to die?
The girl subconsciously crossed her hands to protect her head, her face pale. She closed her eyes, waiting for the moment of death to arrive—
"Huh?"
Hinata found that the pain of being shot into a sieve by the ninja tools was long in coming. She quietly opened one eye and saw a thin, pale blue water shield protecting her. The barrage of ninja tools, like a storm of rain, was firmly blocked by it without any effort!
I'm saved. She immediately realized that this strange and peculiar water jutsu could only be used by that person!
She's here.
The next moment, a silver line shot out from an unknown location in the woods, traced a fan-shaped arc in mid-air, and cut everything it encountered—corpse puppets, trees, rocks, iron ninja tools, and Kabuto who was standing in front of Hinata—in two like cutting tofu, without the slightest resistance!
"Water Style: Wind Blade Raging Stream!"
At this time, the sound of Haruno Sakura casting her ninjutsu came leisurely from the woods.
(PS: I'm using a new ninjutsu name because this is the third stage of the Water Gun Jutsu. To distinguish it, I gave it a new name.)
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