Chapter 14: Neji "Mournfully" Lost His Father — Funeral Services, Full Package
"Ahem. This man belongs to your Kumo village, I believe?"
The Third brought the unfortunate corpse into the meeting room. The powerful aura of Nine-Tails chakra still clung heavily to the body.
The Kumo delegation fell silent.
Their original plan had been to steal the Byakugan. If it succeeded, wonderful. If it failed, they would use the body of the dead man as leverage and turn the tables on Konoha. But with this overwhelming Tailed Beast chakra soaked into every inch of the corpse — how exactly were they supposed to turn the tables on anyone?
Were they going to report the Hyuga using the face of their poor dead colleague as evidence?
"Oh! My poor Meimyoko! How did he come to such a terrible end?!"
The leader of the Kumo delegation stepped forward, voice cracking with theatrical grief, as though the man who had died was his own father.
"He wandered into the training grounds of our village's Jinchuriki yesterday. He was mistaken for a spy and killed."
Hiruzen's tone was perfectly solemn, almost as if he were playing along with the leader's performance.
The delegation leader's mouth snapped shut.
They had all been involved in last night's operation. His team had been tasked with distracting the Hyuga clan's attention while Meimyoko went in to abduct the Hyuga heiress. Everything had gone smoothly — until they ran straight into the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
The entire plan was ruined.
And that overwhelming Tailed Beast chakra — Konoha's Jinchuriki was clearly no lightweight. Had the intelligence been wrong? The reports had said the Jinchuriki was a three-year-old child. How could a three-year-old inflict damage like this? When he got back, he was absolutely reporting whoever fed them that false intelligence to the Raikage.
"Ahahaha, is that so? Then what about this handprint on his face?"
The leader made one last attempt.
"Ah, that."
"That is our Hyuga clan's latest therapeutic technique."
"By applying pressure to specific acupuncture points on the face, we achieve a haemostatic and healing effect."
Hiashi, standing behind Hiruzen, stepped forward and offered this explanation with complete composure.
"I arrived as quickly as I could, but regrettably, I was unable to save the honourable Meimyoko."
Hiashi sighed with what appeared to be genuine remorse and bowed his head, as though he truly felt sorry for the dead man.
The delegation leader stared at Hiashi, who was now telling barefaced lies with perfect sincerity, his eye twitching uncontrollably.
That handprint was several centimetres deep. And you're telling me that's therapeutic acupressure?
We all watched you sprint out of there in a complete panic last night.
This is a provocation. This is absolutely a provocation.
Could he tolerate it?
Of course he could.
"I see. On behalf of the late Meimyoko, I sincerely thank you for your efforts to treat him."
The leader spoke through slightly gritted teeth. Everyone in the room knew the truth, but under the pressure of the situation, none of it could be said aloud. They had no choice but to swallow this humiliation in silence.
"Think nothing of it. It is simply what Konoha does."
Hiruzen stepped in smoothly to wrap things up, his words carefully avoiding any mention of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki losing control.
Deliberately poking at us, are you?
Actually, no — Hiruzen was simply worried that if he pushed further, the Kumo delegation might lose their composure entirely, and the situation would become much harder to manage. Better to let it end here, and use the moment to demonstrate Konoha's generosity.
Danzo, who had been entirely unaware of the previous night's events, tapped the table beside him to signal that the discussion should conclude.
Having been warned by Hiruzen recently, Danzo had become more careful in his movements, directing most of his attention toward the Uchiha clan. Last night's incident with the Jinchuriki had genuinely passed him by completely. But seeing Hiruzen hold his ground so firmly — and recognising that it ultimately served Konoha's interests — he chose not to cause trouble at the table. Instead, he volunteered to play the villain.
"Regrettable as it is, we must ask Kumo's representatives to take your man home."
"Due to the Jinchuriki's loss of control, we will need to bring this exchange to a close as soon as possible."
"After all, no one can guarantee who might fall victim if the Nine-Tails loses control again."
Danzo's voice was dark and measured, the threat embedded within it unmistakable.
The words were aimed squarely at the Kumo delegation.
The meaning was clear: given what you've pulled, there's no point in continuing this visit to Konoha. Wrap up the remaining post-war arrangements and then we'll see you out. And if you're still thinking of trying anything, our Nine-Tails is not something to be taken lightly.
This suffocating pressure — so this was the man they called Konoha's Darkness, Shimura Danzo. Even from his tone alone, you could feel how terrifyingly calculating he was.
"Fine. Saoru, collect Meimyoko's body. We'll finish the last section of the agreement and take him home."
The leader lowered his head. The situation left them with no room to manoeuvre whatsoever.
In truth, the Raikage had given him two objectives — steal Konoha's bloodline limit if at all possible, and probe the village's true strength. The bloodline mission had failed, but learning that Konoha had a Jinchuriki of significant power was itself valuable. The visit had not been entirely without gain.
Given that, bowing their heads slightly to Konoha was an acceptable outcome.
Hiruzen glanced at Danzo, his expression complicated.
*My oldest friend — what am I supposed to do with you?*
He sighed inwardly. If only all three of his students were still around. Then he wouldn't have to hold Konoha together with just himself and Danzo.
Hiashi: *So I don't even factor into your thoughts at all, do I?* -`д´-
The Kumo delegation completed the final handover of the agreement that same afternoon.
And with that, the Third Ninja War came to its true and official end.
What a joyous occasion. Truly, a joyous occasion.
Meanwhile, little Hinata had returned home.
The terrifying experience of the night before had only strengthened her desire to become stronger. Yet no matter how hard she pushed herself, the gap between her and Neji never seemed to close.
"Young lady, perhaps you should rest for now," said a voice nearby. "You're only three years old. There is no need to push yourself this hard. As a Branch family member, it is my duty to protect you."
Neji, who had been spared the experience of accompanying his father's funeral arrangements in full, still held genuine affection for Hinata. Though he spoke of his Branch House duty, what he felt was simply a brother's instinct to protect his younger sister.
Little Hinata wiped the sweat from her face. Her round little cheeks were flushed red, slightly swollen from effort.
She knew she was nowhere near Neji's level. But she refused to give up. She refused to be someone who needed rescuing every time danger came.
The small amount of chakra within her surged toward her eyes in response to that feeling.
Fierce veins bulged around both eyes.
The Byakugan.
The night before, at the moment the doctor had said "dead," Hinata's Byakugan had already been on the verge of awakening. But it was only now, in this moment, that it truly opened.
Yet the instant it did, little Hinata lost consciousness.
Her body crumpled to the ground.
"Young lady!"
Neji had been genuinely delighted the moment he saw Hinata's eyes activate — *she's finally growing,* he had thought. He never expected her to collapse in the very next instant.
He rushed forward and caught her, then carried her back to her room and left her in the care of the maids.
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