Konoha: Superman template, the spoiled brat becomes strong.

The moment the spores seeped into the crystal, Akahoshi's pupils suddenly contracted to pinpoints, and a broken sob escaped his throat: "Mr. Bai...?"

“Your memory circuits have been tampered with.” Bai Ye caught the kunai that Akahoshi had dropped, watching his trembling right hand unconsciously reach for the back of his neck. “But your body still remembers its fighting instincts.” He tapped the crystal card on the back of Akahoshi’s neck with his finger, and the spores burst into a pale green glow the moment they touched. “Tell me, what is the Shadow of the National Sphere?”

Akahoshi's eyes darted around violently, as if two forces were vying for control of his body.

His lips parted several times, finally squeezing out fragmented information through his teeth: "The First Hokage... the shadow clone of the First Hokage... sealed in the national veins... inspecting the Daimyo... but... corrupted... mutated..." Before he could finish speaking, the crystal card suddenly burst into sparks, and Akahoshi's pupils became empty again. He raised his kunai and attacked once more.

Bai Ye dodged to the side, placing his palm on the mechanism hub in the back of Chi Xing's chest.

Wood Release spores burrowed into the puppet's joints like vines, instantly binding all the transmission gears. "Sorry," he said softly, watching Akahira's body crash heavily to the ground, "I'll help you clean the chip after we've dealt with this."

Footsteps suddenly came from the end of the passage.

Bai Ye spun and disappeared into the shadows, only to see Chiyo's figure, leaning on a cane, emerge from the secret passage, her silver hair gleaming coldly in the dim light.

She was holding a bronze box in her arms, the box engraved with the puppet runes unique to Sunagakure.

“Ebizo asked me to pass on a message.” Chiyo handed the bronze box to Byakuya, her fingertips tracing the dents on the lid. “The successive finance ministers are not a coincidence; it is a ‘blood pact selection’.”

From childhood, they were instilled with the belief that 'the ninja world needs a savior,' maintaining this system—ensuring that war, famine, and conspiracy exist forever, so that someone will need to step forward to save the world.

Byakuya opened the bronze box, inside which lay a three-inch-long silver needle, its body shimmering with a dark golden luster, the tip engraved with the clan crest of the Sand Village puppeteers. “The Shadow-Severing Needle,” Chiyo’s voice deepened. “My grandfather said this was the only thing that could sever the connection between the shadow of the nation and the nation’s lifeblood.”

When the First Hokage's shadow clones were sealed, the nation's resources were used to create chains; now the chains have rusted, and what was inside has become a calamity.

A deafening roar suddenly came from deep underground, like the tremor of the stone tablet rising completely.

Bai Ye gripped the broken needle tightly, the clan emblem at the end of the needle digging painfully into his palm.

He looked toward the altar at the end of the passage, where a faint smell of blood lingered in the air.

"Sōjirō's sacrificial procedure has begun." He tucked the Shadow Needle into his sleeve, turned, and walked deeper into the passage. "Since the Shadow of the National Polity is an observer left behind by the First Generation, it shouldn't have become like this."

Chapter 914 So you want to be the savior?

Chiyo watched his figure disappear into the darkness, when suddenly she heard Sojiro's maniacal laughter coming from the direction of the altar: "Come on!"

Let's see who the real puppeteer is! She sat down, leaning against the stone wall, and took out the communication puppet from her waist. Her fingertips danced rapidly on the mechanism—it was time for Ebizo to pass on the remaining intelligence to the Five Kage.

White Night's boots rolled over the gravel, and the outline of the altar gradually became clear in the dim light.

Sojiro was kneeling at the feet of the puppet with the first-generation face, and the puppet's empty eyes were slowly turning toward the entrance of the passage.

He touched the outline of the broken needle in his sleeve, the warmth of his palm passing through the needle and condensing a thin layer of sweat on its dark gold surface.

The eerie light from the altar dome cast dappled shadows on the puppet's face, and as the heel of Byakuya's boot crushed the last piece of gravel, Sojiro's laughter clung to his eardrums like decaying vines.

The puppet with the original face was now fully erect, its bronze fingertips trailing thin, almost imperceptible black threads that traced serpentine paths across the ground.

"Just in time!" Sojiro staggered toward the puppet's feet, his blood-stained court robes leaving dark red marks on the bluestone slabs.

His face, still held a maniacal laugh, was tilted back, but a morbid expectation flickered in his eyes. "Look at these eyes—how much they resemble that fool who talked about establishing order back then?" He suddenly lunged at the puppet's knees, his nails digging into the bronze crevices. "He thought that using shadow clones to monitor the daimyo would bring lasting peace, but how can people's hearts be obediently bound by chains?"

The black stockings suddenly emitted a buzzing sound.

Bai Ye's pupils contracted slightly—those thin, black threads were seeping into the ground through the cracks in the altar. In the cracked stone at his feet, half of a sleeve embroidered with the national crest of the Fire Kingdom was entangled in the black threads and was being slowly dragged down into the ground.

"You are connecting with important officials in the capital." Bai Ye's voice was like ice, and the temperature of the broken needle hidden in his sleeve suddenly became scorching.

He saw Sojiro's fingers rapidly moving on the mechanism at the puppet's ankle. With each press, a dozen more black threads would sprout out. "Use the chakra of the Shadow of the Nation to control the higher-ups... You're going to turn the entire Land of Fire into a puppet."

"No, the entire ninja world!" Soujiro suddenly threw his head back and laughed, saliva mixed with blood splattering on the puppet's feet. "Fear is the best order!"

War, famine, conspiracy—these are the things that keep the ninja village alive, and they all need a predicament that 'must be broken'!

And I, I'm maintaining this predicament! His fingertips slammed down on the final mechanism, and the stone tablet at the center of the altar rose with a roar, revealing a circular groove inscribed with runes beneath. "Once the black threads connect to the Five Kage, they'll wage war like puppets, and then...and then someone will step forward to save the world!"

The sound of black silk piercing the ground was as dense as a torrential downpour.

Bai Ye saw the stone wall twenty meters away suddenly crack open, and three black threads were wrapped around the throat of a Fire Country guard. The soldier's pupils dilated instantly, and he raised his sword to slash at his companion.

"You're insane." Bai Ye's thumb rubbed the clan emblem on the broken needle's tail, and beads of blood from his palm seeped into the dark gold patterns on the needle's body.

He could feel the First Hokage's bloodline burning in his veins—this was the first time he had so clearly sensed the existence of that power since he awakened his abilities. "The First Hokage used the national bloodline to seal the Shadow Clones in order to monitor corruption, not to create new corruption."

"So you want to be the savior?" Sojiro's laughter stopped abruptly. He got up and pointed his bloodied finger at Byakuya. "What's the difference between you and those daimyo?"

It's just a different way of standing at the top! Before he finished speaking, the bronze arms of the Shadow of the Nation suddenly opened, and black silk threads shot out from all directions of the altar like mad snakes, three of which went straight for Bai Ye's throat.

Bai Ye did not retreat.

Chapter 915 You're nothing but a puppeteer!

He stared at the arc drawn by the black silk threads before his eyes, then suddenly ripped open his shirt and pointed the tip of the Shadow Needle at his heart.

Wood Release spores surged from his sleeves, condensing into a pale green mist around him. "I am not here to be a savior." His voice was low, yet it struck the altar wall like a heavy hammer, causing stone chips to fall in a flurry. "I am here to pay my debt—the bloodline of the First Generation has flowed in my body for twenty years, and today it is my turn to cleanse it of its lingering poison."

The moment the needle pierced the skin, excruciating pain shot through my entire body like an electric shock.

Byakuya's knees slammed heavily onto the bluestone slab, and beads of sweat from his forehead fell onto the stone surface, only to be stained pale green by Wood Release chakra the instant they made contact.

The Shadow Needle pierced three inches into the heart, its dark gold patterns emitting a faint light that spread along the blood vessels to the limbs and bones—a resonance mark left in the bloodline by the First Hokage when he sealed the Shadow Clone.

The bronze eyeball of the Shadow of the National System suddenly rippled.

A faint emerald green appeared in the previously empty eye sockets, like the first glimmer of life emerging from the frozen earth as spring grass sprouts.

The black silk's offensive suddenly halted, and the silk threads that were binding the important official began to slowly retract.

"Do not!

"Impossible!" Sojiro lunged at the puppet's control mechanism, his fingernails scratching harsh marks on the bronze surface. "You're nothing but a puppeteer!"

By what right...by what right can it be awakened!

Bai Ye's back was taut like a bow.

He could feel the Wood Release chakra flowing into the Shadow of the Nation through the Shadow Needle, weaving a net of light between the two.

That was the chakra of the First Hokage, carrying the moist scent of the Konoha forest, mixed with the fragrance of soil and grass, creating a sharp collision with the putrid stench of its mutation.

"……Peace……"

A faint whisper suddenly echoed at the altar.

The bronze lips of the Shadow of the Nation opened and closed, the voice like ashes scattered by the wind, yet it caused Bai Ye's pupils to contract sharply—it was the voice of the First Hokage, carrying the gentleness and firmness he had heard in historical records, "...It shouldn't be exchanged for fear..."

The black stockings disintegrated instantly.

The threads binding the important officials turned into black mist and dissipated. The controlled soldiers, clutching their necks, slumped to the ground, their eyes gradually clearing.

Cracks began to appear on the bronze body of the Shadow of the Nation, starting from the pattern on the first headband on its chest and spreading like a spider web across its entire body.

Sojiro let out a heart-wrenching scream.

His body was suddenly bound by the rebounding chakra, and his skin festered at a visible speed. "This is impossible!"

I'm the one pulling the strings!

"I am the one who—" Before he could finish speaking, he was sucked into the disintegrating ball of light of the Shadow of the Nation, and before he could even scream, he was caught in the act.

Bai Ye crashed heavily to the ground.

The Shadow Needle had already penetrated most of his chest, and his Wood Release chakra was still leaking out uncontrollably, turning the bluestone slabs around him into a vibrant green.

He watched the dissipating light and mist above his head and heard hurried footsteps coming from the entrance of the passage—the sound of Chiyo's cane striking the ground, mixed with the distinctive clanging of headbands from the Sunagakure Anbu.

"Shiro!" Chiyo's voice trembled unusually.

She knelt beside Bai Ye, her wrinkled hand pressed against his chest, "Ebizo's men have taken control of the capital's key officials, the medical team will be here soon—"

Bai Ye shook his head, blood foam oozing from the corner of his mouth.

He gazed at the first rays of dawn filtering through the altar and suddenly smiled. "No need to rush... this injury won't kill you." His gaze passed over Chiyo's shoulder and fell upon Nanaho standing at the altar's entrance, the morning light illuminating the sand-covered silver ornament in her hair. "Nanaho... what brings you here?"

"I've come to take you back to Sunagakure." Nana stepped forward, her fingertips lightly touching his blood-stained sleeve, her voice as soft as morning mist, "You said... you would teach me how to improve puppet joints."

Bai Ye's smile deepened.

Chapter 916 The First Bloodline Successor

He felt his consciousness begin to blur, but he could still clearly hear cheers coming from afar—the sounds of the people of the Land of Fire discovering that the control had been lifted.

With his last glance, he saw Chiyo take out the communication puppet and quickly tap the mechanism in the direction of the Land of Wind; he saw Nana squat down and gently place his head on her lap; he saw the sky outside the altar, where the morning light was dyeing the edges of the clouds a pale gold.

As the desert wind whipped up the fine sand, Bai Ye's boots had already crushed the seventh pebble.

His clothes were still stained with dried blood, and only the end of the broken needle on his chest, bearing the clan emblem, was visible, trembling slightly with his breath.

The spore wristband on my left wrist was half broken, revealing the wood spores wrapped inside, which shimmered with a pale green light in the sunlight.

He looked up and gazed into the distance.

As the morning mist dissipates, the outline of the Hokage Rock of Konoha Village can be faintly seen on the horizon.

Deeper still, the spire of a shrine, forgotten by time, slowly emerges from the morning mist.

The desert wind whipped up sand and grit that lashed against White Night's headband, his left hand still clutching the tattered spore wristband.

Wood Release spores seeped from the cracks, condensing into a pale green mist between his fingers, much like the color his mother used to tie this wristband to him with chakra threads twenty years ago before she passed away.

“Under the dry well on the east side of Guiyuan Shrine.” He murmured to himself, his voice hoarse from the unhealed scabs in his throat, pointing to the faint engravings on his wristband.

The fragments of memory that surged back when the Shadow of the Nation collapsed were still pricking his temples—it was a unique resonance of the first generation of bloodline, like a burning thread, branding a deliberately buried place into his nerves.

The wound throbbed painfully under my clothes.

The broken needle, with only the clan emblem at its end visible, pierced his heart with each breath.

He suddenly laughed, his laughter shattered by the wind and sand: "Sōjirō thought that by trapping me in the Shadow Shell, he could make the Will of Fire forever a puppet of powerful ministers... But he forgot that the first Bloodline Successor was the sharpest blade of the Will."

The wind suddenly changed direction.

Bai Ye's pupils suddenly contracted, and his toes left half-inch-deep marks on the gravel—he changed his route, the hem of his black robe sweeping across a clump of withered thorns.

The outline of the former Konoha territory can already be seen in the profile of the Hokage Rock, and the Guiyuan Shrine is hidden in that mountain valley shrouded in morning mist.

He slowed his pace, and Wood Release chakra seeped into the ground from his fingertips, like countless fine needles probing three inches into the earth.

Meanwhile, in a dark alley in the capital of the Land of Fire, Nanaho was holding half a charred piece of paper between her fingers.

She crouched behind the rummaged-through desk, the silver ornaments jingling softly near her ears—the unique tracking marks of the Sand Village's Dark Guard, now making a faint, clattering sound due to the rapid movement. "Shuo Wang... Offering to the Ashes of Shadows..." she squinted at the words on the tattered page, her nails digging deeply into her palms.

The words Byakuya spoke at the altar three days ago suddenly echoed in my ears: "Sōjirō did not only tamper with government decrees, but with the Will of Fire itself."

She stood up abruptly, her boot heel knocking over a candlestick at her feet.

Sparks landed on the moldy curtains, only to be extinguished instantly by her Wind Release chakra. "Send a message to Sunagakure." She gestured to the shadows, and the communication scroll at her waist unfurled with a "whoosh." "Content: Origin Shrine, Shadow Ashes, Bloodline Successor."

Inside the Chiyo family ancestral home in Sunagakure, the old woman's hands trembled.

As soon as the communication puppet's mechanism released Nanaho's secret message, she staggered and fell towards the sandalwood cabinet in the corner.

The copper lock snapped with a "crack" within the chakra threads, and the dusty "Ninja Ritual Record" fell, knocking over a teacup on the table. "Guiyuan Shrine is not a place for worship..." she wiped the tea stains from the pages with her sleeve, her reading glasses slipping to the tip of her nose, "Only those with bloodline inheritance may enter..."

She heard footsteps from the Sand Village's Dark Guard outside the window, but she paid no attention.

Chapter 917 Jointly Deciding the Nation's Fate

Her withered fingers traced the wormholes along the edges of the ancient book—a notebook her grandfather had secretly kept when he participated in sealing the remnants of the first generation's will. "Bai's wounds haven't healed yet..." she suddenly gripped the pages tightly, her knuckles turning white. "That child is too much like his mother, always thinking that he should bear all the debts himself."

When the ruins of Guiyuan Shrine appeared before Bai Ye's eyes, his breath hitched.

The vermilion paint on the ruins had long since peeled off, and the withered vines that covered them had an unnatural bluish-gray hue—they were not ordinary plants, but dead things that had been corrupted by chakra.

The chakra in the air was unusually thin, as if someone had used the Otsutsuki purification technique to drain all the energy from the area.

He squatted down and placed his palm on the bluestone slab.

The Wood Release bloodline limit surged, and countless translucent roots burrowed into the cracks in the rocks, extending along the earth's veins.

The feedback from underground made him frown—the reverse chakra circuit was slowly injecting ley line energy into a sealing structure. "Just as I thought." He tore off a fragment of the Shadow Needle from his waist; it was forged by Chiyo using the puppet core of the Third Kazekage. "Using the First Hokage's relic to seal the First Hokage's will... quite a scheme."

The moment the broken needle pierced the ground, the foundation of the shrine glowed blue.

The spell projection unfolded on the broken wall: several elderly men dressed as finance ministers of the Fire Kingdom were throwing scrolls covered with runes into the brazier in the well.

The one at the very front, whose face bears a striking resemblance to Sojiro, is his great-grandfather, a former finance official who suddenly "died of illness" twenty years ago.

"The altered clauses must be burned into the earth's veins, twisting the will of fire at its very source..." Bai Ye pressed his knuckles to his lips, his gaze fixed on the well's edge in the projection.