Hyuga Yū made his move!
He didn't even think of activating the Caged Bird Curse Seal—after all, in his arrogance, he had never placed Aya in his eyes.
She was just a servant, a mere branch house girl.
Instead, in front of the entire clan, this was the perfect chance for him to shine.
He would prove to everyone that he alone was the Hyuga's future.
The future clan head—none other than himself!
Hyuga Yū, Heaven's chosen child, the destined leader of the Hyuga.
Chakra surged through his body, his Byakugan glowing faintly as he dropped into the Gentle Fist stance and lunged straight toward Aya.
"Yū, stop—!"
Hyuga Yotai shouted in panic.
Yes, he was a fool—but not a complete one.
Though he didn't know Aya's true strength, he at least knew she had fought on real battlefields, and had once served in Uchiha Kai's elite squad.
His son's "talent" only existed within the sheltered walls of the main house. Against outsiders? Yotai couldn't be sure at all.
But it was too late.
Eager to perform, eager to show off, Yū ignored even his father's warning.
Not even his own parents could stop him from flaunting his "genius."
Aya, however, only looked on with open disdain.
This so-called genius? On a real battlefield, he wasn't even fit to be cannon fodder.
She didn't even bother to activate her Byakugan. She didn't even bother with Gentle Fist.
Her left hand flicked through a seal—Substitution Jutsu.
Yū's Gentle Fist slammed into a dry log, shattering it.
"…What?"
Yū froze, bewildered.
Substitution was one of the most basic academy techniques, common even among the lowest genin in Konoha.
But he had never once seen it in practice.
Because whenever he fought branch house servants, they didn't dare play tricks on him.
They didn't dare use their full strength.
Even if they could, they never would.
Anger him, and their lives wouldn't be worth a breath.
So even this most basic jutsu—he had never witnessed it used against him.
As he stood stunned, Aya appeared silently at his back.
Her right hand pressed a kunai to his throat.
Her eyes were cold. Contemptuous.
Pathetic.
So this was the "pride" of the Hyuga main family? A fool who would freeze in the middle of battle?
Idiot.
She tightened her grip, ready to strike—
"Hyuga Aya! Stop!"
Yotai roared in desperation, his face twisted.
Yū was his only son. He could not die here.
Without hesitation, he formed the seals. He didn't care about Aya's ties to Uchiha Kai.
He unleashed the main family!
At once, Aya's forehead mark flared with light.
But… nothing happened.
Aya's face remained calm, utterly unaffected.
Yes.
When Uchiha Kai had acted before, though he hadn't completely erased the seal, he had severed its control over her body, her organs, her Byakugan—even her soul.
The main family could shine all it wanted. It no longer bound her.
Aya felt a faint warmth at her brow, but no pain, no paralysis.
Her lips curled into a cold smile.
It worked.
The main family's leash was broken.
Her heart surged with exhilaration.
And without a moment's hesitation, her kunai flashed.
Shhk!
Blood sprayed.
Hyuga Yū's throat was cut wide open.
The so-called prodigy was dead.
Aya straightened, calm and composed. She flicked the blood from her kunai and slid it back into its sheath.
Her expression did not change.
Even though she had slain a main family heir, even as every eye in the hall locked onto her—there was not a trace of fear in her gaze.
Yotai: "…"
Hiashi: "…"
Hizashi: "…"
The rest of the Hyuga: "…"
The entire clan stood frozen.
When they looked at Aya, their eyes swirled with shock, disbelief, fear, hatred… and for some, even excitement.
For the main family, there was only terror and confusion.
For the branch house, there was a surge of elation.
Yes.
They had suffered under the main family's arrogance for far too long.
But unlike Aya, they had never dared to resist.
So when Yū fell, when his blood stained the floor, the branch house felt their hearts leap.
And yet—though they rejoiced inwardly, they moved as one.
They closed in around Aya, surrounding her on all sides.
They didn't need to be ordered. The system had long since trained them.
Even if they admired her courage, for their own survival, they would bare their blades against her.
Hizashi sighed quietly.
From the two times he had spoken with Aya, he knew this girl was decisive, unflinching.
But even he hadn't expected her to go so far as to kill a main house heir.
Though he despised the main family's tyranny, he was too kindhearted to feel joy at Yū's death.
Instead, a hollow emptiness filled him.
Yet alongside that was a shock he could not suppress.
He had seen it with his own eyes—Yotai had used the Caged Bird Curse Seal, but it had failed.
Aya hadn't lied.
Uchiha Kai truly had the power to sever the seal.
His heart twisted in turmoil.
Because when he had agreed to Aya's bargain before, he had only thought of saving his son.
So long as Aya took Neji away, kept him from being branded, that would be enough.
As for himself? He resigned. That was his fate.
And persuading others in the branch house? Empty words, little more than lip service.
For he had never truly believed the seal could be undone.
But now…
Now he had seen it.
Uchiha Kai could.
The truth left him shaken.
Could he still keep lying to himself?
The Hyuga clan could not survive without the branch house. The main family were nothing but pampered dead weight.
And yet the branch house bore all the suffering, all the injustice.
Until now, there had been no way out.
But now there was.
His thoughts spun into chaos.
And in that chaos, Hiashi finally spoke.
His voice was calm. Too calm.
But laced with ice.
"Hyuga Aya," he said.
"You have gone too far."
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