Clan Chief's Mansion.
"Old fool, you have insulted me too much!"
Having just returned home, Hyuga Hiashi could no longer suppress his overwhelming rage.
He suddenly grabbed a celadon teacup from the side and slammed it hard onto the ground.
Crash!
The porcelain shattered, shards flying everywhere.
Hyuga Hiashi stood there, his teeth gritting audibly, his chest heaving violently.
His fists were clenched tight, veins bulging, nails nearly digging into his palms.
"Brother, calm down!"
Hyuga Hizashi hurriedly stepped forward, his voice tinged with urgency.
He looked at his out-of-control brother, then toward the door. "Ieyasu's actions are simply too much!"
"Too much? He's roasting our Hyuga Clan over a fire!"
Hiashi's voice was low but carried an irrepressible fury. "To go around me and pressure Hokage-sama directly! What does he take me for as the Clan Chief!"
He breathed heavily, trying to settle the boiling anger within him.
For the sake of the Family, he had to endure, but the fire in his heart had reached an uncontrollable level.
"How is the situation with the Branch House lately?"
Hiashi finally spoke, his voice hoarse and carrying a grim chill.
Hyuga Hizashi quickly replied, "Resentment is high. Those few old geezers are getting more and more out of hand."
"That old fellow Ieyasu... a few days ago, he forcibly took a widow of a fallen Branch House member into his back courtyard."
"Bastard!" Hyuga Hiashi's anger, which had finally begun to subside, flared up again.
His hand resting on a pillar literally gouged out a piece of it, and the floorboards beneath his feet cracked in response.
"These old fools hold positions they don't deserve. On the surface, they sound grand, claiming everything is for the Family, but in reality, it's all for their own selfish interests..."
"That old bastard Ieyasu covers the sky with one hand, valuing his own lust for power more than the future of the clan!"
His tone was grim, his voice so low it sounded like it was squeezed out of his throat.
Hyuga Hizashi lowered his head and did not respond.
It took quite a while before Hyuga Hiashi's emotions finally calmed down again.
"Brother..." Hyuga Hizashi spoke up with concern.
"I'm fine." Hyuga Hiashi walked to the window, let out a long breath, and looked sharply toward the Elder Council. "The more they act like this, the more I must change it all."
He turned around and looked at Hyuga Hizashi. "You need to pay more attention to Hyuga Aokawa's Family. If they lack anything or face any inconveniences in their daily lives, make sure to take care of it promptly."
"Don't worry, Brother! I've already made arrangements."
"Don't just delegate it; you should visit them personally more often," Hiashi said seriously.
Hizashi was stunned, a flash of surprise in his eyes. "Brother? You mean..."
He was somewhat puzzled.
Just a clansman who awakened a Long-range attack, even if he has some achievements in Medical Ninjutsu...
...it shouldn't warrant this level of attention, should it?
He was, after all, the head of the Branch House. If he had to visit every Branch House member personally, he wouldn't get any work done.
As if knowing what he was thinking, Hyuga Hiashi explained, "It's not as simple as you think."
He suddenly activated his Byakugan, and after confirming no one else was around, he said slowly, "His strength is even above mine!"
"What?!" Hizashi was shocked and exclaimed in a low voice, "Above yours?"
Someone who was recognized as a dead last last year, who lost face at the clan meeting every year...
...now someone was telling him that this person's strength was greater than the Clan Chief's. It was hard for him to believe.
"That's right." Hiashi continued, "The Hokage has been suppressing Aokawa's military achievements on the Battlefield. It's normal that you don't know."
"On the Land of Hot Springs Battlefield this time, he captured the Two-Tails Jinchuriki alive and even held his own against the Eight-Tails!"
"T-Tailed Beasts?" Hizashi's head buzzed, his mind going blank, feeling as if the world had turned upside down.
"How... how is that possible?!" He swallowed hard, his face full of shock. "Those terrifying monsters... there are only a handful of people in the Village who can stand against them. And not just the Two-Tails, but holding his own against the Eight-Tails too!"
"Could the information be wrong?" Hizashi followed up quickly.
"I've confirmed it multiple times. Our people saw it with their own eyes. Based on their descriptions and the fact that Minato Namikaze brought back the Nii Jinchuriki as evidence, it should be true," Hyuga Hiashi said.
"But... but I've checked his records. Before, he couldn't even pass the Three Basic Jutsu. How did he become so strong all of a sudden?" Hizashi still found it hard to accept.
"I thought it was strange too."
Hyuga Hiashi frowned. "But through a series of recent events, I suspect this is the Hokage's handiwork."
"Hokage-sama?" Hizashi was confused. How did this involve Hokage-sama?
Hiashi nodded. "A Branch House member who couldn't even learn the Three Basic Jutsu suddenly got connected with Sarutobi Biwako."
"I gave him a warning this time, originally wanting him to find his own way to stay at the Front Lines, but I didn't expect someone as principled as Minato Namikaze to directly defy the transfer order for him."
"Add to that Ieyasu hitting a wall in front of the Hokage this time, and the Hokage's previous protection of him."
The more Hiashi analyzed, the clearer his thoughts became, and his eyes grew brighter.
"Furthermore, his medical skills reached the top ranks of the Hospital in just two months, and then he went to the Battlefield and could hold his own against the Eight-Tails."
"To explain this merely as 'great talent' is already very far-fetched."
"Brother, do you mean... the talent is fake?" Hizashi inquired.
"No, the talent is definitely there, but whether it's Medical Ninjutsu or strength, they aren't things that can be improved that much in such a short time."
"So, I'm more inclined to believe that the Hokage discovered Aokawa's extraordinary nature long ago but had him hide his abilities to protect him because of the environment within the Hyuga Clan."
"The fact that the Hokage suppressed all of Aokawa's achievements on the Land of Hot Springs Battlefield this time is the best proof."
"If Iroha hadn't seen it with his own eyes, I would still think the clan had just produced a Medical Ninjutsu Genius."
"Exactly! That must be it!" Hiashi clapped his hands, having sorted out all his thoughts.
Everything connects.
But then he punched the table again, saying resentfully, "Those old bastards like Ieyasu only care about their own pleasure. Even when an outstanding talent appears in the clan, the Hokage knows about it before we do."
"If this continues, the Hyuga Clan, a millennium-old clan, will be ruined."
"Just endure a bit longer. Once his term as Clan Chief Assistant is up, you'll be able to do as you wish, Brother," Hizashi comforted.
"It's not that easy. Even if he steps down as Clan Chief Assistant, he won't easily let go of the power he has in his hands."
"However, if Aokawa is willing to stand on our side, then the promises I need to make to win over other Elders won't have to be as many, and the speed of the clan's reform will be faster than I originally planned."
"But will he stand on our side?" Hizashi was somewhat worried.
"He will! By Awakening a Long-range killing ability, he is naturally opposed to those old fogies like Ieyasu. From the start, he's been on the same front as us," Hiashi said with certainty.
"However," he then changed the subject, "you cannot neglect taking care of Aokawa's Family, and at the same time, you should send a few people to guard them."
"Guard?" Hizashi was stunned. "Brother, do you mean Ieyasu would be driven to desperation?"
Hiashi shook his head. "Not quite. Ieyasu doesn't know Aokawa's strength yet, and the refusal of the transfer order was Minato Namikaze's doing, so his resentment won't be directed at Aokawa."
"Asking you to send people to guard them is just to be wary of any Lowlifes, just in case."
"Understood. I'll make the arrangements as soon as I get back," Hizashi responded.
"A Branch House member who can hold his own against Tailed Beasts... the heavens are truly helping me!"
"..."