Another ten minutes passed.
Princess Xiaoxue, her dress soaked and dripping wet, was finally escorted out personally by Shimoku.
Of course, the water stains on her dress were caused by an accidental spill when she was overly surprised—nothing suspicious at all.
However,
To others' eyes, it might not seem that way.
Especially to her personal agent, Sandayu Asama.
He had been waiting outside and, upon seeing his young mistress in such a soaked and disarrayed state,
Instantly imagined countless terrible scenarios inside his mind.
His face changed dramatically.
He nearly drew his sword right then and there to fight that brat!
"Miss, you... he?..."
"Grandpa Asama, I'm fine. Master Shimoku didn't do anything to me."
"Besides, we've reached a preliminary agreement. We're accepting this filming request."
Xiaoxue quickly tried to calm him down.
She was afraid of what Sandayu might do next.
After all, even though she didn't know exactly how strong Shimoku really was,
That sudden teleportation technique alone was beyond imagination—
Certainly something Sandayu couldn't possibly contend with.
"Oh? Oh! Is that how it is?"
"That's good then, very good!"
"Oh, by the way, may I ask about the script?"
Sandayu blinked in surprise, immediately regaining his composure and hurriedly asked.
"There are two scripts; here they are."
Xiaoxue handed them over.
They had been authorized by Shimoku beforehand.
Since they'd agreed to take on both films, the scripts could finally be shared to some extent.
Sandayu eagerly started flipping through them.
Just like before, after only skimming a few pages, he couldn't help but tremble involuntarily.
He stammered nervously:
"T-This…?"
"A movie about ninjas? And it involves both the [*Land of Fire*] and the [*Hidden Leaf Village*]?!!"
"T-This seems just too audacious!"
Shimoku chuckled joyfully, patting the elder's shoulder.
"Don't worry, that's not your concern."
"Just focus on getting familiar with the script and do the filming well."
Sandayu remained deeply unsettled.
"But... much of the plot here also involves the First Hokage?!"
"And haven't there been rumors saying the First Hokage has somehow returned to life?"
"What if... what if someone comes after us for this?"
Shimoku laughed again:
"Haha!"
"Master Asama, you actually believe such nonsense?"
"Even if ninjas are powerful, resurrection from the dead is impossible, isn't it?"
"Otherwise, why haven't those ancient gods one by one revived themselves already?"
Sandayu blinked again, then suddenly understood.
It did make sense!
"Yes yes yes!"
"The Young Master speaks wisely indeed! This old fool acted rashly."
Sandayu nodded eagerly, forcing a smile as he agreed.
Subconsciously treating this as just another rumor.
After all, how could the dead really come back to life?
It must all be lies!
"Alright then, continue reading through the script carefully."
"In two days, once the new equipment arrives, we'll begin filming."
"New equipment?"
"You'll see soon enough," he said. "There might be some pretty intense scenes during filming. Better brace yourselves."
"Intense scenes? You're not talking about anything rated R, are you?"
Sandayu Asama exclaimed with a whistle of surprise.
They were a proper troupe, after all. They performed, but never sold their bodies!
Unless...the price was right!
"Don't worry. It's just some fictional filming scenes and characters. Nothing to overthink about..."
"Oh, right! Right!"
Sandayu nodded his head while inwardly feeling slightly disappointed.
...
Although most of the crew had basically arrived,
The equipment still hadn't been fully prepared.
It would take a few more days to get everything ready.
But roughly estimating,
Lady Serpent should be able to upgrade that new 'Sharingan Camera' within these few days.
Once it's ready, actual filming could properly begin.
At that time, Madara's acting parts definitely would have to be impersonated by himself.
As for Hashirama's roles, he really needed to find a strong method actor.
"Hmm…who could I get for this?"
Shimoku thought to himself as he walked...
According to recent reports,
Konan wouldn't arrive at the village until evening.
In the meantime, Shimoku intended to pay a visit to the Hyūga Branch House.
After all, it had already been quite some time since he'd convinced their entire clan to join.
He hadn't yet gone there to properly console them—it was high time for a visit of reassurance.
Besides, this was also a good opportunity to check how his [Long-range Byakugan Sniper Unit] was progressing,
And whether they had mastered those new sets of equipment.
Ever since being incorporated into Homuragakure,
The living conditions of those Hyūga Branch members had indeed improved greatly.
At the very least, they no longer had to worry about being forced through the 'Caged Bird Cursed Seal'
To carry out near-suicidal missions in the name of protecting the Main House.
Nor did they have to fear sacrificing themselves on the battlefield for the sake of the Main House.
Although joining Homuragakure didn't necessarily equate complete freedom,
In this harsh Ninja World, true absolute freedom simply didn't exist.
Being able to have a peaceful home,
Receiving fair compensation for one's labor,
Living comfortably while pursuing one's livelihood…
That itself was already extremely fortunate.
Of course, after joining Homura Village,
All civilian affairs concerning the Hyūga Clan were placed under the management of the Uchiha Elder Council.
Though there had been minor conflicts along the way,
Generally speaking, things remained quite stable.
The village provided arrangements, wages, and accommodations for the Hyūga clan members exactly as it did for the Uchiha—no favoritism was shown.
Moreover, neither side was foolish. Both clearly recognized who their common enemy was.
Until Konoha was destroyed,
Whether it was the Uchiha or the Hyūga Branch House...
Neither would stupidly create internal conflict or hostility among themselves.
Rather, both desired to unite closely together,
Actively developing the village to reach a level capable of rivaling Konoha.
Otherwise, if Homura Hidden Village were ever truly breached and conquered by Konoha Village,
The Uchiha would surely face total annihilation,
And those traitorous Hyūga Branch members would likewise meet certain deaths...
They were all in the same boat—and survival depended on working together.
Apart from civil matters,
All the ninjas of Hyūga Clan were now under the command of Shinkawa Hyuga.
Some participated in the village's daily defense operations.
Others were assigned to construction tasks within the village.
The last and smallest group consisted of elite members,
whom Shinkawa personally led to form and train into a Long-range Byakugan Sniper Unit, ordered directly by Young Master Shimoku.
At this moment,
outside the second training ground of Homura Hidden Village,
over a dozen Hyūga ninja stood in formation across the training field, bows ready as they practiced long-range shooting.
This training ground stretched an entire kilometer into the distant woods,
specially designated for the sniper unit's practice.
At the front of the formation,
Shinkawa had his Byakugan activated. Holding a bow in his left hand, he fired off three arrows in succession.
"Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh!"
In an instant,
the targets five hundred meters away were pierced dead center by all three silver arrows—without exception.
And notably, he drew the bow purely with his strength — no chakra used at all.
If he added chakra power and used the Byakugan to guide his aim,
hitting the target from a thousand meters away with explosive force would be effortless.
"Papapap!"
The crisp sound of clapping rang out.
Shinkawa quickly turned his head.
Only then did he notice that Young Master Shimoku had unknowingly appeared behind and beside him,
applauding approvingly.
"Greetings, Young Master!"
Shinkawa immediately dropped to one knee in salute.
The other ten or so Hyūga also reacted in surprise, halting their practice to greet him as well.
Shimoku: "Shinkawa, your shooting skills have improved dramatically!"
Shinkawa: "Such improvement is nothing significant—it's all thanks to the Young Master's teachings."
"Now, no need to be humble."
"Your progress is clear for all to see."
"A little over a month ago, you couldn't even land consistent hits on a hundred-meter target."
"You're doing really well now! Training must've been tough lately?"
Shinkawa hurriedly shook his head:
"Not at all!"
"It's all for the village and our future; everyone is giving their all during training."
Shimoku nodded in satisfaction.
That Shinkawa really was as clever as always — definitely worth a thumbs-up.
"All right, rise everyone. Resume regular training."
"Yes!"
Everyone immediately stood up and continued training as before.
Shimoku: "By the way, has the shipment we custom-ordered from the Land of Iron arrived yet?"
Shinkawa: "It arrived this morning — we haven't had a chance to check it out yet..."
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