It was the third day since the Daimyo's procession had departed from Konoha.
Outside Konoha Village, the gates of the prisoner camp creaked open.
The sound of chains grinding against each other shattered the morning's silence.
There was no horn, no send-off, only quiet.
A formation emerged from the camp.
Five hundred Konoha shinobi walked in front, silent and composed, flanking both sides of the prisoner column.
In the middle marched three thousand Kumogakure prisoners.
They were all dressed in filthy prison uniforms, with heavy shackles inscribed with Sealing Jutsu around their wrists and ankles.
As they moved, the chains clinked and rattled.
On the faces of the Kumogakure prisoners were numbness, humiliation, and suppressed hatred.
Atop the camp's flagpole stood Hiruzen, wearing his long-unused armor and mask once again.
He stood completely still.
Around him, ten Hyuga clan members had their Byakugan activated, their white eyes coldly observing every prisoner.
The procession moved slowly.
Because the Daimyo had ordered that these prisoners be paraded through the streets, a parade of victory and authority for the entire Land of Fire.
Their destination was the Land of Hot Water.
But the route was deliberately roundabout, passing through several of the most prosperous towns in the Land of Fire.
The Daimyo wanted everyone to see.
This was the consequence of provoking the Land of Fire.
By late morning, the escort reached the first town.
The entrance was already packed with civilians who had gathered after hearing the news.
When they saw the three thousand shackled Kumogakure shinobi, the crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted into thunderous cheers.
"Long live the Land of Fire!"
"Long live Konoha!"
But soon, those cheers turned to angry shouts.
"It's these bastards! They nearly destroyed our homes!"
"They should all be killed!"
A villager threw a rotten egg, hitting a Kumo shinobi squarely in the face.
The sticky, foul-smelling liquid slid down his cheek.
The prisoner stiffened, lifting his bloodshot eyes toward the villager.
"What are you looking at!"
"Still daring to glare?"
The crowd's rage exploded.
More rotten vegetables, eggs, and even stones were hurled toward the prisoners.
The Kumogakure shinobi, dragging their shackles, tried to resist, but were brought to order by the Konoha guards.
The Kumogakure shinobi, dragging their shackles, tried to resist but were brought to order by the Konoha guards.
"All of you, behave!"
The Konoha shinobi shouted, stepping between the prisoners and the civilians.
He didn't stop the civilians from throwing things.
Instead, he watched the humiliated prisoners with a hint of satisfaction.
He was one of the Third Hokage's men, an actor planted to stir the scene.
The prisoners lowered their heads, silently enduring.
But their trembling shoulders and the veins bulging beneath their shackles betrayed the fury burning inside.
Humiliation.
Endless humiliation.
They were Kumogakure's elite, the pride of the Land of Lightning, when had they ever suffered such disgrace?
To be jeered at, cursed, and pelted by civilians like animals in a cage.
It was worse than death.
The escort moved through the town under a storm of insults.
Hiruzen walked at the rear of the column, unmoving, a silent spectator.
"Report!" A Hyuga shinobi approached. "Thirty-seven prisoners at the back of the column show signs of agitation. Their Chakra is fluctuating abnormally, but all remain within the suppression range of the seals."
"Continue monitoring," Hiruzen replied curtly.
He knew this was only the beginning.
The seeds of anger and humiliation had been planted.
But to make them explode, more fuel was needed.
Two hours later, outside another town, the escort took a brief rest.
Once again, the prisoners had endured the same treatment as before.
"Byakugan!"
At the command, ten Hyuga clan members activated their eyes simultaneously, the flow of Chakra across the three thousand prisoners becoming visible.
Every seal, every flicker of Chakra activity was laid bare before them.
"First formation, Chakra flow stable, seals intact."
"Second formation, stable, normal."
"..."
Reports came one after another to Hiruzen's ears.
This was routine procedure.
Every two hours, the Hyuga would sweep the entire group to ensure nothing was amiss.
Passing through these towns was also part of the Daimyo's design.
It was essential that civilians along the way witnessed it all.
That way, when something happened later, no one would suspect Konoha.
They would simply believe the Kumogakure prisoners had rioted out of humiliation, forcing Konoha to retaliate.
The break ended, and the column moved again.
The parade of shame continued.
The third town. The fourth town.
Each stop was the same, furious crowds, curses, garbage raining down.
The nerves of the Kumogakure prisoners stretched tighter with every step.
Some of the younger shinobi were already close to breaking.
They began to lash out at the guards.
But each time, they were met with harsher suppression and deeper humiliation.
Some of the Konoha shinobi assigned to provoke them even threw food on the ground when distributing rations, forcing the prisoners to snatch at it like dogs.
Anger kept building.
Killing intent festered within every Kumogakure heart.
They no longer hid their hatred for the Konoha shinobi.
By dusk, the procession arrived at the designated camp, a small village.
The villagers here were even more hostile than before.
Perhaps because it was near the former battlefield, their hatred for Kumogakure burned stronger.
Stones rained down again.
One prisoner was struck on the forehead, blood streaming down his face. With a muffled roar, he suddenly struggled.
"Behave!"
A nearby Konoha shinobi, one already briefed, rushed forward and kicked the prisoner to the ground.
In the chaos, the shinobi's hand brushed over the seal on the prisoner's lower back, leaving no trace.
A fleeting hand sign flashed and vanished.
A faint surge of Chakra slipped into a node within the sealing rune.
The entire process took only a second.
Even the other Konoha guards nearby noticed nothing unusual.
After finishing, the shinobi stomped on the prisoner twice more, cursing as he dragged him back into the line. "Move again and you'll be killed on the spot!"
The beaten prisoner collapsed, trembling from pain and fury.
He didn't realize that his supposedly indestructible seal had already begun to loosen.
Through his mask, Hiruzen remained silent and cold.
His gaze lingered on the subordinate who had acted.
Another seed had been planted.
Soon.
The rage of three thousand Kumogakure shinobi would ignite.
Suddenly, a Hyuga shinobi beside him turned sharply.
"Third Hokage-sama!"
His Byakugan was still active, his eyes locked on the Cloud prisoner who had just been kicked down.
"That one's Chakra, the seal..."
Before he could finish, a Konoha shinobi beside him pulled him aside.
The Hyuga looked up in confusion, only to hear a low whisper.
"You didn't see anything."
"See wha... uh..." The Hyuga froze mid-sentence, his body stiffening as realization struck. He slowly turned his gaze toward the Third Hokage.
Hiruzen ignored the look, standing silent and unmoved.
The Hyuga said nothing more. His head lowered, his lips trembling.
(To be continued.)