"Are you saying I shouldn't have arranged for Kaguya to stay in the palace?"
Inside the Daimyo's residence, Minamikawa Yuu looked at the old man before him with a calm expression.
In front of him stood an old man dressed in luxurious robes.
He was quite advanced in years, with hair and beard as white as snow, yet he still maintained a stubborn demeanor before the Daimyo, Minamikawa Yuu.
This man's name was Sawada Kawano, an elder left to Minamikawa Yuu by the previous generation's Daimyo of the Land of Ancestors, and could be considered one of his retainers.
Over these years, he had assisted Minamikawa Yuu in ruling the Land of Ancestors, working quite diligently.
However, at this moment, he had rushed to Minamikawa Yuu's side to offer a warning.
"Has Your Highness forgotten the efforts you once made to revive the Land of Ancestors?"
Sawada Kawano spoke loudly: "To revive the Land of Ancestors, Your Highness once worked so hard. How can you forget now? How can you neglect the affairs of the state for the sake of a woman?"
"Furthermore, with Your Highness acting like this, are you not afraid that the Daimyo of the Country of Hi will have objections?"
He brought up the Daimyo of the Country of Hi.
Back when Minamikawa Yuu had first transmigrated here, in order to maintain stable external conditions, he had promised to marry the daughter of the Daimyo of the Country of Hi.
Nominally, that princess from the Country of Hi, whom he had never even met, was his legitimate fiancée.
In the past, Minamikawa Yuu had always performed perfectly, but now, after meeting Kaguya, in just a short period of time, there were already signs of him neglecting state affairs.
This caused great concern among the group of elders led by Sawada Kawano, which led to this admonishment.
However, it was clear that his warning did not have much of an effect.
"And what of it?"
Meeting Sawada Kawano's gaze, Minamikawa Yuu simply smiled and then spoke: "I have taken Lord Sawada's warning to heart and will consider it carefully later."
"As for now, please take your leave."
In front of the elders, he remained as gentle as usual, with an attitude that left little room for criticism.
The superficial courtesies were fully observed.
As for whether he would actually listen when the time came, that was his own business.
Of course, listening was out of the question.
After all, he had finally managed to latch onto a wealthy woman and live off her; the most important thing now was to enjoy it while it lasted. How could he possibly push her away?
As for the Country of Hi, Minamikawa Yuu hadn't worried about it at all.
He had been developing his lands for several years now and had already accumulated a sufficient amount of strength.
The reason he hadn't broken ties with the Country of Hi yet was simply because he wanted a few more years of peace.
But if the other party really dared to say too much, then there would be nothing more to discuss.
He would simply take action.
However, the probability of the other party taking action was not high either.
After all, up until now, the annual tribute Minamikawa Yuu provided hadn't decreased in the slightest.
Even if just for the sake of that tribute, the other party wouldn't easily make a move.
Under Minamikawa Yuu's firm stance, the disturbance gradually subsided.
After several months, those around who still mentioned the matter gradually disappeared.
The people of the Land of Ancestors also grew accustomed to Lady Kaguya's superior status.
And so, several more years passed.
Over those several years, time continued to march on.
During this period, things in the surrounding area began to change constantly.
Under Minamikawa Yuu's direction, the Land of Ancestors began to expand outwardly, annexing several small countries over the years.
Inside the Land of Ancestors, the population continued to multiply, creating a scene of great prosperity.
And most noteworthy of all was that God Tree.
As several years passed, the God Tree grew even more massive; now it truly looked like a divine tree, visible even from a great distance.
During this time, Kaguya brought Minamikawa Yuu there once.
Before Minamikawa Yuu's eyes, she plucked a special fruit from the tree's canopy.
The fruit of the god tree carried a sense of mystery; as soon as it appeared, it exerted a strong attraction on Minamikawa Yuu, causing him to involuntarily fix his gaze upon it.
"What is this?"
Looking at the fruit in Kaguya's hand, he asked.
"This is the fruit of the god tree."
Kaguya spoke, her eyes filled with various emotions as she looked at the fruit in her hand.
Within that gaze was a heavy longing, as well as fear and many other emotions, all intertwined and appearing quite complex.
Like Minamikawa Yuu, she also possessed an incomparable longing for this fruit of the god tree.
In fact, because she was a member of the Ōtsutsuki Clan, her desire for this fruit was even more intense, reaching an almost instinctive level.
Minamikawa Yuu could somewhat empathize with the complex emotions in her heart.
The God Tree was a tool used by the Ōtsutsuki Clan to absorb Natural Energy and produce chakra fruits; its purpose was to absorb the energy of other planets and bear a chakra fruit.
This kind of fruit offered immense benefits to the Ōtsutsuki Clan; by consuming it, one could not only obtain vast power but also directly awaken the Rinnegan, which was a standard awakening for the Ōtsutsuki bloodline.
Speaking of the Rinnegan, Minamikawa Yuu had originally thought it was a standard feature for all members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
But from his current experience, Kaguya did not seem to have awakened the Rinnegan yet.
Therefore, a logical inference would be that even for the Ōtsutsuki Clan, unless an individual had a pure bloodline and was born with the ability to awaken the Rinnegan, they would also need to consume a chakra fruit to possibly awaken it.
Just as most members of the Uchiha Clan cannot awaken the Sharingan Bloodline Limit and are just ordinary people, a similar situation existed within the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
But as long as they could consume a chakra fruit, their bloodline would evolve, directly granting them the power of the Rinnegan and completing their own transcendence.
The God Tree before him had been planted in this world for that very reason.
As for Kaguya, she was the "farmer" responsible for guarding the God Tree.
As a guardian sent by the Ōtsutsuki Clan, her purpose was to protect the God Tree and ensure nothing happened to the chakra fruit it produced, while waiting for the arrival of the Otsutsuki Main Family.
However, judging from Kaguya's current behavior, she also had her own secret thoughts regarding this fruit of the god tree.
For the Ōtsutsuki Clan, the temptation of a chakra fruit was simply too great.
Kaguya stood there, struggling for a long time as she looked at the chakra fruit before her, but in the end, she gave up.
She sealed it away and did not use it.
"Not going to use it?"
Watching her actions, Minamikawa Yuu suddenly asked.
Kaguya shook her head.
She looked at Minamikawa Yuu, still maintaining her usual indifferent expression, but the words she spoke were completely different: "If it were just me, I would have used it. Even if I were captured and taken back to the main family, it wouldn't be a big deal."
"But I don't want you to die because of me, Yuu."
As she finished speaking, Minamikawa Yuu instinctively looked up, momentarily stunned.
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