Next Bonus Chapter, 200!
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Below the platform, thousands of Hyūga clan members listened as Manji praised them three times. The crowd filled with joy, and pride showed on every face. People stood taller, lifted their heads, and felt relief mixed with the honor of being recognized by the Sage of Six Paths.
The senior elders looked happier than anyone. Their wrinkled faces broke into wide smiles. For generations, they had kept faith in the Sage of Six Paths and enforced the laws from their ancestors, like the rule against capturing the Tailed Beasts.
These traditions had helped the Hyūga avoid the purge!!
Now the Sage himself had praised them in front of everyone. The Hyūga had never felt more honored.
As everyone enjoyed the excitement, Manji's tone changed. "However, your clan has also made mistakes."
"..." Those words made the whole crowd go silent.
Every Hyūga tensed up. The joy in the courtyard disappeared, replaced by worry. No one had the courage to breathe loudly as they wondered what mistake the Sage had found.
Manji looked down at the kneeling members of the Main Family.
"The system you call the Caged Bird treats members of your own clan as property and subjects them to lifelong servitude. It is a corrupt practice, and it must be abolished."
His words shocked the Branch Family.
Many Branch Family members looked up in disbelief. Their shock turned into hope, and then into excitement so strong that some began to tremble.
For generations, the Caged Bird Cursed Seal had controlled their bloodline, freedom, and lives. The Main Family could punish or even kill them using the seal, and the Branch Family had always been told to accept this as their fate.
They had always hated the unfairness, but they never had the nerve to speak up about it.
Now the Sage of Six Paths had called out the system and ordered it to end.
Was the Sage really going to free them from the chains that had held their families for centuries?
Manji watched their reactions in silence. He had no secret reason for ending the Caged Bird system. He saw it as an old form of slavery, and he did not want any slaves in the new era he planned to create.
He thought the Main Family elders would resist. The custom had lasted for centuries and was deeply rooted in Hyūga society. Men who spent their lives defending tradition usually did not give up their power easily.
But what happened next surprised him.
The moment he finished speaking, several of the Main Family's oldest elders stepped forward and bowed to him without hesitation.
"We will obey every command issued by the Sage of Six Paths!"
"If the Sage declares a practice corrupt, then we will abolish it!"
"We fully support the Sage's decree. The Caged Bird system shall be dismantled at once!"
Their voices echoed across the courtyard, strong enough to clear away any remaining doubt.
The Hyūga Clan Head followed their example. He stepped forward, dropped to his knees, and pressed his forehead to the ground. "We obey the Sage's decree. From this moment forward, the Hyūga Clan will abolish the Caged Bird system."
A tradition the Hyūga once saw as sacred and unchangeable ended with just one sentence from Manji.
The Branch Family members stared at the elders in disbelief. These were the same stubborn old men who always put ancestral rules above reason and never gave in on anything. How had they become so willing to cooperate?
Had someone replaced them??
It seemed that the only person who could overrule elders obsessed with seniority was someone even older.
Manji nodded in satisfaction. Their willingness to cooperate meant he did not have to force the issue.
He then brought up another issue.
"The Hyūga Clan has grown prosperous and numerous. I intend to relocate half of your people."
The clan head felt a pang of worry. He stepped forward and bowed.
"May I ask why the Sage wishes to relocate half the clan? If so many leave, will those who remain still possess enough strength to defend themselves?"
"No." Manji shook his head and surveyed the kneeling Hyūga. "You will no longer need to fight wars."
He spoke with calm certainty, and his voice carried across the courtyard.
"This is my reward for preserving your faith and refusing to covet the Tailed Beasts."
Manji raised one hand. Immortal power gathered around his fingers, forming a brush, ink, and a sheet of white paper in midair.
The brush moved across the page, leaving six bold words filled with divine authority.
THE HYŪGA SHALL KNOW NO WAR
The ink shone like polished crystal, and immortal power filled every stroke. The words looked less like calligraphy and more like a decree that the whole world would recognize.
Manji sent the paper floating toward the clan head.
"With these words, no one will attack the Hyūga. In return, your clan must never start a war or invade another clan's territory."
The elders' eyes lit up.
This was no ordinary piece of calligraphy. It was a divine promise of protection, worth more than any alliance or treaty. With the Sage's decree, no clan in the shinobi world would dare attack the Hyūga.
From now on, they could stay out of the struggles of the shinobi world and live without fear of war.
"WE OBEY!"
The clan head took the decree with shaking hands. The faint chill of the immortal ink touched his fingertips, taking away his earlier worry and leaving only respect.
He handled the paper with care before looking up at Manji.
"May I ask where you intend to take our people? I know the Sage would never harm the Hyūga, but as clan head, I must know where they are going before I can rest easy."
Manji smiled gently.
This was the response he expected from a responsible clan leader.
"Your concern is natural. I will find them a safe place to live, and their lives there will be even better than here. No one will be forced to leave. Each person can decide for themselves."
The answer eased the clan head's remaining anxiety.
With his power, Manji could have moved the whole clan instantly. He did not have to ask for permission or respect their wishes, but he chose to do both.
To the Hyūga clan head, this showed that the Sage of Six Paths had more than just power. He also had the character needed to use it well.
The shinobi world was lucky to have a guardian like him.
The clan head bowed until his forehead touched the ground. "We obey. The Hyūga Clan will accept the Sage's arrangements of our own free will."
Once no one raised further objections, Manji addressed the entire clan.
"Those willing to follow me to this new land may stand."
Countless members of the Branch Family rose at once.
Their faces showed gratitude and hope. Many gathered their spouses and children right away, eager to leave behind the compound where their families had lived under the Caged Bird Seal for generations.
Then something happened that Manji did not expect.
The Main Family began to rise as well.
The clan head stood. The elders followed. Ordinary Main Family members rose beside their children until thousands of Hyūga were on their feet.
Not one person remained kneeling.
Manji raised an eyebrow, feeling both surprised and a little frustrated. He had planned to move only half the clan so the Hyūga would keep strong roots in their ancestral homeland.
Instead, every member of the clan wanted to follow him.
Their faith in the Sage of Six Paths was now so strong that even the Main Family was ready to leave the land their ancestors had lived on for generations.
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