"I'm… dying, but the Uchiha Clan, I… can't leave them behind…"
Kazuya's tone held no reluctance, but an inexpressible regret.
"You don't need to speak. My time is… limited. Just listen to me… The Uchiha Clan's Dove Faction has split into a faction that supports you becoming Hokage. If you encounter difficulties in the future, you can seek out my younger brother, Shoya."
"I've already arranged everything. If you go to the battlefield, three Jonin will accompany and protect you. Now that you've joined the Anbu, you must be extra careful."
Ling never expected that the kind-looking elders she had just met were her supporters; it was utterly preposterous, like the mother of preposterous opening the door for preposterous, preposterous to the extreme.
"The Hawk Faction has the will but lacks the strength to unify the clan's voice and cannot achieve great things. The Dove Faction is weak and not a threat. If you wish to reclaim the Uchiha Clan in the future, you only need to kill Setsuna and pacify any dissent."
Ling didn't know how to retort, it sounded as if you weren't originally part of the Dove Faction.
"Fugaku is indecisive. As long as you unify most of the voices, you can naturally force him to abdicate. You must ensure the Uchiha survive!"
Before Kazuya could finish speaking, his voice abruptly ceased. Ling immediately checked for a pulse, then used medical Forbidden Technique to assess Kazuya's physical condition.
The many elders outside the door heard the commotion and entered, bowing their heads as they watched the deceased Kazuya.
Ling's Yang Release Chakra was like a mud ox entering the sea, completely ineffective, because Kazuya's body had already run out of oil in the lamp, and his last breath of life had also dissipated.
"Ling, has Elder Kazuya passed away?" Shisui came to Ling's side, his voice trembling slightly as he spoke.
"My condolences. Elder Kazuya passed away peacefully."
Ling rose and, along with everyone else, observed a moment of silence. The subsequent funeral arrangements would be handled by others, so she didn't need to worry.
Ling was still a bit dazed at the moment, mainly because the amount of information in Elder Kazuya's words was too vast. She hadn't expected that she actually had supporters.
"Ling, please come with me. There is an adult who wishes to see you. Please come with me."
Shoya was already prepared for his brother's death. In the past, Elder Kazuya followed Uchiha Chiri to quell the Uchiha Clan's rebellion, ultimately suffering severe injuries. His ability to live until today was already a blessing.
Although the Uchiha Clan's Salvation Faction only consisted of three people, making it the weakest among the three factions, they often shared the same opinions as the Dove Faction.
Following the three old men, they arrived at a cherry blossom-filled courtyard. The courtyard was planted with many flowers and plants, protected by a sealing barrier that controlled the temperature, creating a beautiful scene of blooming flowers and dancing butterflies. This courtyard did not resemble the Uchiha Clan's style at all.
Ling looked around the courtyard with some curiosity, wondering who in the Uchiha Clan could own such a place.
"Little one, are you curious about the layout here? Hehe, how interesting. You're as cute as Jinli was when she was little."
Just as Ling was looking at the scattered petals beneath the largest cherry blossom tree, a shower of flowers gathered together, transforming into a young woman in a cherry-colored kimono. She was looking at Ling kindly, her purple hair swaying in the breeze, with cherry blossoms falling onto her hair.
"Lady Chiri!" Three respectful voices came from beside her, belonging to Shoya and the two elders.
"Uchiha Chiri!!" Ling's pupils constricted, as if she had seen something incredible. She wasn't surprised that Uchiha Chiri was alive, but her youthful appearance was terrifying, almost impossible, because she hadn't found a Yin Seal on Chiri's forehead.
"Little one, it seems you know me? But you're very surprised to see me like this, hmm?"
Uchiha Chiri walked over from under the tree, her eyes filled with playful teasing, yet still kind and gentle, with a hint of undetectable affection and pity.
"Is this one of your Mangekyo Sharingan's ocular techniques? Although your appearance is very young and your vital energy is abundant, your life force is not strong."
Ling could sense with her Curse Power perception technique that Uchiha Chiri's life and soul fire had the color of an elderly person. Excluding the possibility of the Yin Seal, it could only be an ocular technique of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Oh? Ling knows about the Mangekyo Sharingan? And that it's an ocular technique?"
Uchiha Chiri looked at Shoya and the others beside her, but all three shook their heads, clearly indicating that Ling did not get the information from them.
"Interesting. Little one, where did you get this information? Can you tell me?"
Uchiha Chiri bent down and naturally plucked a cherry blossom petal from Ling's head, her eyes curiously fixed on Ling, but without any intention of forcing an answer.
"It was in a compendium left by my father that recorded information about the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Ling didn't lie. Irming Yagyu indeed left a compendium that recorded the power of Uchiha Madara's Mangekyo Sharingan. It was likely recorded by the ancestors of the Liu Sheng Clan, probably left by Ling's grandfather.
"I see. Little one, are you curious why I wanted to see you?"
Uchiha Chiri took Ling's hand and led her to two zabuton cushions under the cherry blossom tree, where they knelt down. She looked at Ling with interest.
"Uh, not curious."
Ling naturally knew Chiri wanted to tease her, so she had to suppress her curiosity and say she wasn't curious, planning to tease the Uchiha Chiri, whom she felt very close to, in return.
"Hmm? Then aren't you curious about which of my ocular techniques allows me to live in this state until now?"
Uchiha Chiri noticed Ling's little trick and found Ling extremely cute, so she teased Ling again.
"Not curious."
Ling was certainly curious. She knew Uchiha Chiri's other ocular technique was Izanami, that ultimate ocular technique that could affect enemies without relying on the five senses.
It could control the enemy's fate, making them cycle through a predetermined destiny until they accepted their fate and sincerely repented, only then would it be dispelled, similar in effect to Kotoamatsukami.
And this ocular technique was originally one of Uchiha Chiri's Mangekyo ocular techniques. Later, after she researched and mastered it, she simplified it so that even the Revolving Sharingan with three tomoe could use it, but the cost, like Izanagi, would cause one eye to go blind.
However, Uchiha Chiri would naturally not go blind when using this ocular technique. If she wished, she could even make all of Konoha's high-ranking officials accept the destiny Chiri had set for them.
Now it seems, in addition to Izanami, Uchiha Chiri also has another ocular technique, which should have a similar effect to the Yin Seal.
"Is that so? Then aren't you curious about what our relationship is? Hmm? Little one? Aren't you curious?"
Uchiha Chiri had a mischievous smile on her lips, her eyes full of doting, wanting to see how much more this little girl would try to be stubborn.
"No~! Not~! Curious~!"
Ling's pupils first widened slightly, but upon seeing Uchiha Chiri's teasing, she immediately turned her head away, blushing, ignoring her.
But internally, she was pondering the hidden meaning of that sentence—Uchiha Chiri's relationship with herself. Since there was a relationship, the most probable one was a familial connection.
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