The Hokage's office was silent.
"So you noticed two suspicious people and followed them for a moment, ending up surrounded?" Danzo's voice cut through the air like a blade.
Li Shang maintained his posture, his gaze impassive. "Exactly."
Nothing more was said. He knew when to keep quiet. The old man wanted more details, but any unnecessary word could become a weapon.
The elders exchanged glances. Homura was the first to speak. "It makes no sense. Itachi wouldn't return to the village without reason. He's hunted by Konoha."
Koharu crossed her arms. "Unless he's looking for something... or someone."
Might Guy, leaning against the wall, replied directly. "According to Asuma and Kurenai, they were after the Fourth Hokage's legacy."
Danzo's expression immediately hardened. "Jiraiya's information really was correct." He slammed his cane on the floor. "Guy, leave immediately. The Jinchūriki cannot be captured."
"Understood."
Guy turned and left with a firm stride.
The discussion continued among the elders, each defending a theory, but Li Shang had already been dismissed. He bowed briefly and left without looking back.
'Danzou...'
The memory of that old man's expression bothered him. His gaze was not that of a concerned leader, but of someone weighing possibilities. 'I don't want to be the focus of someone so strange and mysterious. This kind of man does nothing without reason.'
Walking through the streets, Li Shang noticed that the village's atmosphere was heavier. Orochimaru's attack had left scars, and now rumors about the Akatsuki were already beginning to spread.
He decided to make a quick stop at Ichiraku Ramen before returning to training. The familiar aroma and warm steam calmed him for a few minutes.
"As always," Teuchi smiled. "You eat in silence, but your face says the ramen is perfect."
Li Shang gave a slight smile. "It is."
He paid, adjusted his cloak, and left.
Back in the forest, the sound of impacts echoed rhythmically. "Haah... haah... haah..."
The air around him trembled with the released chakra flow. Li Shang panted, his body covered in sweat. In front of him, the shadow clone reinforced with the soul fragment attacked him without hesitation, moving as if it were a deadly enemy.
The two had been facing each other for almost an hour. Neither of them held back their blows.
Li Shang dodged a kick, spun his body, and hit it with a fatal blow, dissolving the clone into dense smoke.
He took a deep breath, his gaze firm. 'The cultivation was stable. Still, this body didn't have much energy.'
He closed his eyes, concentrating. 'How are those three little guys progressing?'
He activated the Soul Stigma — an internal seal that connected his consciousness to the fragments scattered throughout the forest. The sensation was strange, like opening three mental windows at once.
For a moment, the spiritual flow stabilized... until something different happened.
A distant noise echoed through the trees. Muffled screams. The sound of breaking branches.
In front of Li Shang, three beasts watched him in silence. A black-furred wolf with fangs like blades, a lizard covered in thick scales resembling polished metal, and a brown-furred monkey, the smallest of the three.
Li Shang's eyes reflected the cold blue of the Tenseigan as he evaluated each one. "Good progress, you two."
He pointed to the wolf and the lizard, who had already surpassed five meters in height. The spiritual power emanating from them was dense, aggressive. But when he looked at the monkey, he frowned. "But you... didn't adapt."
The animal lowered its head, breathing with difficulty. Its chakra was unstable, its body collapsing.
A slight smile appeared on Li Shang's lips. "He who does not evolve... perishes."
In the next instant, the wolf and the lizard advanced. The ground trembled under the impact of their massive bodies. The monkey did not resist — it just stood still, submissive, accepting its fate.
The sound of flesh being torn filled the clearing. Li Shang watched in silence, his expression unchanged. 'Nature was never merciful. Only the strong deserve to ascend.'
After witnessing Naruto's summoning a few days earlier, he decided to test a theory. The Heart of the Celestial Devourer, his most dangerous cultivation technique, worked by absorbing living energy. If applied to other creatures, it could generate a chain of instinctive evolution, free from morality or restriction.
'The method is simple... cruel, but efficient.'
He implanted soul stigmas and the Heart of the Celestial Devourer in several beasts in the Forest of Death, observing which ones would survive. In the end, only three resisted — those in front of him.
And now, natural selection completed the cycle.
As the monkey disappeared under the fangs and jaws of the others, a wave of chakra began to condense. The air trembled with the force generated by the fusion of energies. The Heart of the Celestial Devourer acted by reflex, refining and redistributing the devoured power.
The wolf roared, the sound reverberating like thunder. The lizard responded, its scales shimmering as it absorbed the energy.
Li Shang crossed his arms and observed the process. "Fourth Order. Not bad."
The chakra emanating from the two creatures was intense, comparable to that of an experienced jounin. He evaluated the spiritual flows, measuring the density of the energy. 'The toad Naruto summoned... must have been in the Seventh Order. These two still have a long way to go.'
Despite the analytical tone, a flash of envy crossed his mind. 'Their cultivation advances faster than mine. No restriction, no doubt, no soul to restrain.'
The wolf growled, and Li Shang felt the spiritual link vibrate. He had marked the creatures with soul stigmas, making them extensions of himself. He could feel their emotions, their impulses — hunger, anger, obedience.
"Good," he murmured, raising his hand. "Keep feeding. The forest is full of prey."
The two beasts disappeared among the trees, leaving only the heavy trail of expanding chakra.
Li Shang looked at the sky, his blue eyes reflecting the sun's glow. 'If I could devour other ninjas... my advancement would be several times faster.'
But he knew that wasn't possible — yet. There were limits. The village's balance, the elders' vigilance, and, above all, the Hyuuga seal.
He closed his eyes, sitting on a moss-covered stone. 'I need independence. Space to act without restrictions. As long as I remain in Konoha, I will be chained by rules and politics.'
The spiritual energy of the beasts still echoed in his mind, pulsing as a reminder of what was possible when ethics were abandoned.
'These beasts are a reflection of what the ninja world truly is — a hunting ground disguised as civilization.'
Li Shang opened his eyes again. The Tenseigan shone in bluish tones. 'All I need is time. An opportunity. When it arises... there will be no more limits.'
The distant sound of a roar echoed from the forest. The two beasts were hunting.