Following the conclusion of the higher-up council meeting, Kaminobu Kamo returned to the ancestral estate of the Kamo family.
"Brother!"
Hiroki Kamo, Kaminobu's younger brother, stood at the entrance and bowed deeply. Beside him, the wives of both men stood with downcast eyes, maintaining the rigid, suffocating decorum expected of the clan's women.
Behind them stood another man, his posture fawning and his movements hesitant, almost fearful. This was Asaoka Kamo, a member of a branch lineage. He was only permitted within the main house—and only granted the privilege of standing before the head—for one reason.
He was the father of Noritoshi Kamo.
Noritoshi was the heir to the Kamo clan's prized inherited technique: Blood Manipulation. Despite Noritoshi's branch-family origins, the clan had brought him into the main house for cultivation, and his father had ridden his son's coattails into the inner sanctum of power.
Kaminobu glanced at Asaoka, a flicker of disdain crossing his eyes before he looked toward his brother.
"Brother, was the meeting successful?" Hiroki asked.
Kaminobu nodded. "Smoothly enough. And I have some interesting news."
"Oh?"
"The Zenin clan is officially moving to select a successor."
Hiroki frowned. "I thought Naoya Zenin was already the undisputed choice."
Kaminobu let out a low chuckle as they walked through the courtyard. "If it were truly Naoya, Naobito wouldn't be making such a spectacle of the process. The current situation suggests that his ideal successor isn't Naoya at all."
"Then who? Among the younger generation of the Zenin, Naoya is arguably the most talented."
"The choice doesn't necessarily have to come from within the Zenin household," Kaminobu said, his smile widening. "That old man Naobito... he still can't let go of the Ten Shadows Technique."
At the mention of the Ten Shadows, Hiroki understood immediately. Naobito Zenin had set his sights on Megumi Fushiguro, the first-year student at Tokyo High.
"But... would the other Zenin elders ever agree to that?"
"Of course not!" Kaminobu sneered. "Forget the history between Toji Fushiguro and the clan for a moment—given Naoya's volatile temperament, he'll burn the house down before he lets an outsider take his seat. The Zenin are busy manufacturing their own downfall."
Hiroki's eyes brightened. "The Gojo have withdrawn from the council, and the Zenin are sabotaging themselves. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the Kamo clan."
Kaminobu cast an appreciative look at his brother. "Precisely. Masamichi Yaga is out, and Gakuganji is dead. The principal positions at both jujutsu schools are vacant. We start our takeover there."
"Understood!"
"As for the experiment..."
Kaminobu stopped mid-stride. He caught the eyes of the wives, who immediately took the hint and scurried away. Then, he beckoned Asaoka forward. "Asaoka, what is the status of the Blood Manipulation project?"
Asaoka bowed low, his voice oily and eager. "Rest assured, Lord Kamo. The experimental data has stabilized. We only require live combat results to finalize the procedure."
Kaminobu laughed, clapping the man on the shoulder. "Excellent! The Zenin were arrogant enough to cease their research the moment a natural Ten Shadows user appeared. Fortunately, we Kamo stayed the course."
"Asaoka, from this day forward, you are the Third Elder of the Kamo main house."
Asaoka's eyes went wide. He began to tremble with such intensity that he nearly collapsed. He fell to his knees, his forehead striking the floor. "Arigato! Thank you, Lord Head!"
Kaminobu looked down at the man, his eyes cold and filled with contempt. A low-born branch member, he thought, but his 'Artificial Technique' theory has yielded results. He's more useful than half the main-house pigs.
"Stand up."
"Yes, my Lord!"
Thirty minutes later, Asaoka Kamo returned to his private quarters.
"Good afternoon, Father," Noritoshi Kamo said, bowing as his father entered.
The fawning, subservient mask Asaoka had worn before the Clan Head was gone. In its place was a brittle, forced air of paternal authority.
"Noritoshi. How was your training today?"
Noritoshi forced a small, polite smile. "Thank you for asking, Father. It is complete."
"Good." Asaoka nodded sharply. "As of today, I have been promoted to Third Elder. As my son, you must redouble your efforts. Do you understand? The status of our line depends on you."
"Third Elder?"
Before Noritoshi could process the news, his father turned and swept out of the room. It felt as though the man had only stopped by to brag about his promotion; the question about training was merely an afterthought.
Noritoshi felt very little about the promotion itself, but the fact that a branch member had attained such a high rank was logically baffling. Was it because of him?
Compared to the Six Eyes twins or Megumi Fushiguro, who had mastered a domain at fifteen, his own Blood Manipulation seemed almost mundane. He recalled snippets of his father's drunken ramblings from months past.
"Blood Manipulation... experiments... artificial techniques..."
Noritoshi whispered the words to himself, a cold sense of dread pooling in his stomach. After a long moment of hesitation, he went to his father's study.
"Father?"
"Enter," Asaoka's voice came from within, cold and distracted.
Noritoshi pushed the door open, meeting his father's questioning gaze. "What is it?"
"Father, did you forget? After being promoted to Elder, you must visit the ancestral grounds to offer incense and prayers to the forefathers."
"Is that so?"
"It is the tradition of the main house."
Asaoka scratched his head, looking annoyed. "Hmph... very well."
Asaoka didn't suspect a thing. Noritoshi had always been the perfect, law-abiding son who never spoke a word of deceit. He walked out of the room, heading toward the shrines.
The moment he was gone, Noritoshi moved with silent urgency. He entered the study and began searching through the scrolls. It wasn't that Asaoka was careless; he simply never imagined that the boy who lived and breathed the Kamo code would ever commit an act of rebellion.
When Noritoshi opened the restricted files, the color drained from his face. By the time he reached the final page, his expression was one of pure, unmitigated horror.
Minutes later, Noritoshi walked out of the room, his movements wooden and hollow. He returned to his own quarters like a ghost. The August heat was stifling, yet he felt as though he were standing in a blizzard.
After a long time, he reached into his robes and pulled out a photograph. It showed a man and a woman holding the hand of a small boy; they looked like a happy family. The angle of the shot made it clear it had been taken secretly.
Noritoshi traced the woman's face in the photo, his eyes filled with a tragic longing.
Years ago, as a child, he had been identified as the bearer of Blood Manipulation and torn away from his mother to be raised in the main house. He had lived every day with a single goal: to become the Clan Head. He believed that if he stood at the top, he could finally give his mother a place of honor within the family.
But he had been wrong.
The name "Noritoshi Kamo" was a name his mother had given him as a final act of spite against the clan—a name shared with the "Most Evil Sorcerer in History." She had fled the shackles of the Kamo family to build a new life, a new family.
The boy in the photo was receiving the love Noritoshi had spent his life chasing. He was merely an observer to a happiness that was never meant for him.
He looked at his mother's smile in the picture. She looked so light. No chains, no expectations—just the freedom to laugh and the freedom to love.
"Mother... perhaps your choice to leave was the only thing that was ever right."
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