November 13th, Year 49 of Konoha. During a period when a large-scale battle was on the verge of erupting on the Eastern Front of the Third Shinobi World War, a group of uninvited guests arrived at the Leaf camp.
The entire team was clad in black tactical jumpsuits, layered with green Jonin flak jackets. Their eye sockets held the pure white pupils that set them apart from ordinary people—cold gazes radiating a murderous aura that warned others to keep their distance.
Immediately upon entering the camp, the group ignored the solemn, tense atmosphere of their surroundings and headed straight for the main command tent.
Leaving thirteen Hyuga Jonin behind to blockade the tent, an old man and a young man at the head of the group stepped directly inside.
Inside the tent, Hyuga Hizashi, who was seated at the side, saw the two men burst in. His expression flickered briefly before he quickly suppressed his panic. He stood up with a look of surprise. "Brother... and Great Elder, why have you come so suddenly?"
The newcomers were none other than the current head of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Hiashi, and another elderly man with salt-and-pepper hair, symmetrical features, and a stiff, expressionless face.
Faced with Hizashi's inquiry, Hiashi remained silent. His gaze toward his younger brother grew increasingly cold as he asked bluntly:
"Hizashi... where have you hidden Hyuga Yu?"
"Hyuga Yu?" Hizashi froze for a moment, then shook his head with a chuckle, dismissing the thought. "Brother, a whole month has passed. Are you still doubting that kid?"
"He has no reason to do such a thing. As you know, Elder Takahiro has no children of his own and has always valued him. The treatment Yu receives in the clan is no different from that of the Head House."
"Besides, I verified his Caged Bird Curse Mark in front of the entire camp that day..."
"That's not what I'm asking!" Hiashi narrowed his eyes, staring coldly at his brother as he pressed him further. "Hand him over!"
"Brother, what on earth happened?"
"What happened? Heh... you're asking me what happened?" Hiashi let out a cold, frustrated laugh. He looked at Hizashi with indifference and asked, "How do you explain the fact that for the past month, every Hyuga shinobi sent to the battlefield has been attacked one after another!?"
Hearing this, Hizashi stood up abruptly, asking in disbelief, "What? Something like that actually happened?"
He seemed to realize the gravity of the situation instantly, and his expression toward Hiashi turned hesitant and fearful. "I... I haven't received any transfer orders from the village. Brother, what... what exactly is going on?"
Hiashi watched his brother's expression coldly. The Head House did not trust Hizashi; naturally, they wouldn't let him know about the Branch House members sent to verify Hyuga Yu's true situation, nor would those records be left in Konoha's official documentation.
However... all of those people had been killed.
After a long silence, Hiashi saw that his brother truly seemed to know nothing about the matter and felt a secret sense of relief. Still, he kept his face icy, as if he couldn't be bothered to waste more words on Hizashi. He turned to the old man beside him. "Great Elder, what do you think?"
"It is likely that Hyuga Yu intercepted and killed those clansmen..." The Great Elder of the Hyuga Clan took a deep breath and said in a heavy voice, "It seems the rumors about that boy are true!"
"He... he really did transplant a Byakugan from the Head House!"
Hiashi's expression turned grim, and he immediately asked, "Then what will happen now?"
The Great Elder exhaled slowly, giving Hiashi a deep look. "That old man, Hyuga Takahiro, will use this as an excuse to propose the restoration of the 'Ten-nin' system."
"Ten-nin? What is that?"
The Great Elder replied coldly, "You don't need to know. It's just some outdated family dregs that have fallen behind the times."
"All you need to know is one thing—"
"Now, we must find that boy and use the Caged Bird to kill him. If the Caged Bird doesn't work, then use your Gentle Fist, use your Byakugan—kill him at any cost!"
"But... why?"
The Great Elder looked at Hiashi and suddenly revealed a sinister smile. "Hiashi... I think you really need to think carefully about why you were the one to inherit the position of Clan Head."
Meanwhile, on the other side, in a nameless forest.
While Hyuga Yu was engaged in battle with the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, two figures stood on a high ground not far from him. They were positioned within a barrier, looking down at the battle currently unfolding.
One of them had short brown hair with neatly trimmed sideburns. His head and right eye were wrapped in bandages, and his face was deeply lined and gloomy. His one slightly open, narrow eye gave off an aura of cunning and calculated malice.
This man, even just by standing there, seemed to make the surrounding light dim.
At that moment, he turned his head slightly toward the person beside him and spoke in a flat, somewhat surprised tone.
"Orochimaru, I truly did not expect that you would come here."
"Heh heh..."
"Lord Danzo, your appearance is quite a surprise to me as well."
The voice that answered Shimura Danzo was raspy and playful. The speaker was a young man with long black hair, purple eye shadow, and golden, slitted snake-like pupils. He wore a plain white kimono tied with a simple purple shimenawa rope at the waist. He looked peaceful and harmless, yet he exuded an aura of extreme danger.
This man was none other than one of Konoha's Sannin: Orochimaru!
At this, Shimura Danzo frowned and asked tonelessly, "Why have you come?"
Orochimaru replied casually, "I was asked by someone."
"Tsunade?"
"..." Orochimaru did not deny it, his gaze looking indifferently at the scene below.
Shimura Danzo suddenly spoke up. "Hand this child over to me."
His tone was calm, yet it carried a trace of unwavering determination.
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Orochimaru's originally indifferent gaze suddenly flickered with a hint of genuine interest.
Three days ago, Team Jiraiya had finished their mission and returned to the village. After handling the appearance of the two Iwa Jinchuriki on the Grass Border and the leak of Kushina's Nine-Tails chakra, the Sannin had a rare reunion in Konoha. Orochimaru had found a place to have a few drinks with Jiraiya, who was about to rush back to the front lines, and Tsunade, who had made up her mind to leave the village.
At the table, he had learned about the events surrounding a brat named 'Hyuga Yu.'
However, Tsunade was only doing it to repay a favor to the high-ups in the Medical Department, so she had asked Orochimaru to secretly save Hyuga Yu. She hadn't made any further demands of him.
As for Orochimaru... frankly, he wasn't interested in Hyuga Yu.
A Branch House Hyuga who was skilled in medical ninjutsu, knew a bit of Wind Style, and at most practiced a forbidden technique called the Eight Inner Gates.
That was it.
To the current Orochimaru, who was wavering between the pursuit of immortality and mastering all forbidden jutsu to grasp the truth of the world, this really wasn't very attractive. Even now, seeing Hyuga Yu use three S-rank level Wind Style jutsu against the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Orochimaru—who could understand the simple fluid dynamics behind them with a single glance—felt no real interest.
Life is like the morning dew; the days gone by are many and bitter.
In his eyes, this wasn't some genius; he was just an ordinary kid who would die if stabbed in the heart or the head.
Furthermore, by forcing himself to face enemies he couldn't possibly defeat, he would likely be dead very soon...
And yet, such an ordinary brat was actually being "contested" by the sinister, black-hearted Shimura Danzo—a man who usually cared for nothing but Wood Style, the Sharingan, and the seat of Hokage?
Looking at it that way, in Orochimaru's eyes, things had suddenly become quite interesting.
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