Chapter 362 – Your Ancestors Were Once Glorious Too
Yakushi Nono's intelligence didn't really come as a surprise to Kei.
At best, it simply confirmed what he already remembered.
If Kumogakure was planning to make a move during the birthday of a member of the Hyūga clan, then—assuming nothing unexpected happened—it could only be that little girl.
Hyūga Hinata.
Like Naruto, she was born in Konoha Year Forty-Seven, and her birthday fell near the end of December.
Kei still remembered that in the original timeline, Hyūga Neji had once revealed the exact date of his father's death during the Chūnin Exams. Kei had written it down in his notes back then—and coincidentally, he had reread those notes not long ago.
That was why the detail stood out so clearly to him.
Ayaka, however, was visibly puzzled by Nono's report.
Using the birthday of a Hyūga clan member as a pretext to visit Konoha?
She couldn't immediately see the connection.
Was this merely diplomatic maneuvering—or was Kumogakure planning something specifically targeting the Hyūga?
Despite her emotional distance from the Hyūga clan, this still involved her.
No matter how indifferent she felt, she was still a Hyūga.
So she couldn't afford not to pay attention.
Kei didn't give her an answer.
And Ayaka didn't ask.
She wanted to arrive at the conclusion herself.
Ayaka was fiercely competitive by nature. Even though she had already accepted that there were areas where she couldn't match Kei, she absolutely refused to fall behind him across the board.
More troubling, however, was something she herself had begun to notice.
The relationship between her and Kei was becoming… strange.
And what frightened her most was that this strangeness didn't make her uncomfortable.
On the contrary—
Their unspoken understanding, their awareness of who the other truly was beneath the masks—it gave rise to a feeling she couldn't quite put into words.
Comfort?
She didn't know.
And she forced herself not to think about it.
After all, she hadn't forgotten just how vicious Kei could be.
She had nearly died by that cold man's hand once.
Back then, we were enemies… and not ordinary enemies at that.
Sometimes the thought surfaced on its own.
And every time it did, Ayaka snapped back to herself, irritated.
Why am I trying to justify that bastard in my head?
Her thoughts were a mess—completely chaotic.
And to make matters worse, her body was still in poor condition.
After attempting Kei's so-called "serum activation burst"—which she strongly suspected was either an oversimplification or an outright lie—her physical state had deteriorated noticeably.
Multiple side effects overlapped.
Even during work or experiments, she found it increasingly difficult to stay focused.
Eventually, someone reached their limit.
And surprisingly, it wasn't Kei.
"Ow—damn it, what's wrong with you today?!"
The one complaining was Imai Kenta, baring his teeth in pain as he clutched his arm.
Ayaka had stabbed him with the syringe—and missed.
Kenta had already sensed that something was off with her, but he hadn't expected it to be this bad.
Kei could ignore it—Ayaka never lost focus when he was the one being injected.
But Kenta?
He was collateral damage.
For a fleeting moment, Kenta genuinely wondered whether those two had actually gotten together.
If so, that'd be doing society a favor…
"Stop whining," Ayaka snapped. "I just missed the angle. You're fine."
She glanced at his arm and pulled the needle out.
What was unsettling was that there wasn't even any blood.
The tiny wound closed almost instantly, vanishing without a trace.
That level of physical resilience was terrifying.
Kei and the others had even tested it more aggressively—cutting him with blades.
The results were exactly as Kei had expected.
While Kenta's regeneration wasn't instantaneous, ordinary injuries were almost meaningless to him.
Kei himself wasn't far behind.
He had tested it in secret—scratching his arm with a kunai shard.
Though not as absurd as Kenta's recovery, his wound healed completely in just over ten seconds, leaving no mark behind.
Still, this was purely experimental.
In real combat, Kei would never allow himself to be injured so casually.
Even if he could recover.
"A fighting style that relies on getting covered in wounds is barbaric to the extreme," Kei once concluded.
"Elegance, on the other hand, never goes out of style."
Ironically, he'd realized that his own combat style could indeed be described as elegant.
Anyone who had seen him fight—and survived—described it the same way:
Clean.
Swift.
Elegant.
That was the proper style of a true Uchiha with the Sharingan.
Kei was not the future Sasuke—untrained in Uchiha traditions, winning fights by bleeding more than his opponent.
"She's just stuck on something she can't quite work through," Kei said lazily, stretching as he felt the surging chakra and hyperactive blood within his body.
"Stuck on what?" Kenta tilted his head.
"Oh—I get it now." He suddenly grinned.
"You haven't told her who Kumogakure is actually coming for yet, have you?"
"I heard love makes people lose half their brainpower. Don't tell me that's what's happening here?"
"If you don't speak, no one will think you're mute," Ayaka shot back coldly.
"This isn't hard to deduce. By process of elimination, there are only two possibilities: Hyūga Hiashi or Hyūga Hinata."
"You really think I wouldn't figure that out?"
"Then what are you overthinking?" Kenta rolled his eyes.
"If you've already guessed, what's left to be confused about?"
"She hasn't figured out what Kumogakure actually wants," Kei said calmly.
"Or what they plan to do to the Hyūga clan."
"And more importantly," he added, his tone steady,
"she's thinking about how to profit from it."
Kei shrugged indifferently.
"She's torn right now," he said. "Between sticking to her old approach—keeping her distance and staying out of it entirely—or taking advantage of the present to do something that will pave the way for the future."
Imai Kenta glanced at Kei in surprise.
Ayaka did the same.
That reaction alone made one thing clear: he'd guessed correctly.
Kenta looked at Ayaka again, momentarily confused—but after a bit of thought, he understood what Kei meant.
Her current condition was actually quite good—at least in terms of her evolutionary progress.
If things continued like this, it wasn't impossible that she might truly break free of the Caged Bird seal.
And when that day came, she would be forced to make a choice.
For example—
She could sever ties with the Hyūga clan entirely.
The cost would be steep, of course.
But with Kei's protection—and his own—it wouldn't really be a problem.
By now, Kenta was absolutely certain that after this December, he would officially become the head of the Mission Department.
And even now, with just half a foot inside Konoha's true core of power, his status within his clan had reached unprecedented heights.
If Ayaka wanted, he could help her.
Together with Kei's influence, negotiating concessions with the Hyūga clan—or securing Ayaka's protection outright—would be absurdly easy.
Of course, there was another option.
She could stay within the Hyūga clan.
The benefits of that path were obvious as well.
Kei's so-called "Three Pillars" strategy was already in motion—and they had more or less completed half of it.
If Ayaka remained in the Hyūga clan and managed to secure sufficient internal support, advancing along that Three Pillars path would become far easier.
They would wield even greater power.
Naturally, that route was far more difficult than simply leaving the clan behind.
"Well… yeah," Kenta spread his hands. "That is a tough choice."
"But aren't you planning to give her some advice?" he continued.
"After all, you two are a couple, aren't you? And if she stays in the Hyūga clan, your future together gets a lot shakier."
The moment the words left his mouth, a sharp whoosh cut through the air.
Kenta reacted instantly, raising his hand and catching the kunai mid-flight.
He looked helplessly at Kei.
Was this guy's way of expressing displeasure always this crude?
Still, Kenta knew there was no real danger.
If Kei had truly intended harm, with Uchiha throwing techniques and Kei's strength, there was no way Kenta would have caught it so easily.
"Watch your mouth," Kei said flatly.
"Even friends and partners can get stabbed in the back by me."
"And besides," he added with a roll of his eyes,
"even if we were in that kind of relationship, so what if she went back to the Hyūga clan? Do you seriously think I lack the power to force them to let her go?"
"Don't joke."
"Yes, yes," Kenta waved it off. "Truly worthy of Konoha's youngest—and strongest—Head of the Police Force. The Uchiha clan's genius, Uchiha Kei."
He flicked the kunai back.
It embedded itself neatly into the tabletop, stopping less than five centimeters from Kei's arm.
"Oh, by the way," Kenta continued casually,
"Kakashi's been pretty vocal lately. Looks like your old classmate is really about to become the head of ANBU."
"A shame, though. He's not really part of our little circle. Otherwise—"
"Nothing to regret," Kei interrupted calmly.
"He's still an external ally. And a trustworthy one."
Kei picked up the kunai, glanced at Ayaka—who was quietly preparing another batch of serum nearby—and then continued:
"These days, you two should look for opportunities to interact with him more. No—Ayaka shouldn't move around too much. You do it."
"Build that relationship properly. Understood?"
"I know," Kenta stretched lazily. "You don't need to tell me."
"Just hope Kakashi doesn't turn out like the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi types. At this rate, once I officially take my position, I'll probably be dealing with the same things you are now."
"That's just how they survive," Kei replied.
"But you've got it better than I do."
"After all," he added lightly,
"your ancestors were Hokage once."
"So technically, he's a direct descendant of a Hokage," Kenta shrugged.
"I just don't like his style. That's all."