Chapter 31: Hyūga (Skip if you don't like)
"Goodbye, Naruto-kun."
Hinata stood beneath the gates of the Hyūga compound, reluctantly waving goodbye to Naruto. Her small figure carried with it a faint air of fragility.
He guessed that perhaps it had something to do with the secrets of the Hyūga main family, but Naruto didn't dwell on it. For him, what was in front of him was reality.
The warm, vivid Hinata wasn't just a simple paper character. He could feel the tension and gloom behind her smile, like a girl dancing in shackles.
"Goodbye, Hinata." Naruto waved.
Hinata nodded, took two steps into the darkness, then turned back to him and said,
"Thank you, Naruto-kun. I was really happy today."
"Me too."
The next morning, before dawn, Naruto woke up in bed. Opening his eyes, he pulled up the system panel and began updating the Ninja God Diary. Yesterday's events had long since faded from his mind; he felt completely refreshed.
"August 16th. My desire to destroy the ninja world has grown a little stronger again. Another day without seeing any long legs. I'm thinking of writing a novel—stealing a friend's little sister, what a great theme, it would definitely sell! Damn it, still no long legs! Oh, right—the Hyūga clan's Caged Bird is the most disgusting slave system I've ever seen. Turning your own family into slaves? Ugh, you guys sure know how to play."
Send.
Naruto shook his head, eyes still hazy, then flopped back down to catch a bit more sleep.
Above Konoha.
After a few moments of silence, a chorus of screams rang out!
The entire village of Konoha erupted over this daily update from the Ninja God. If yesterday's revelation had made the higher-ups nervous, today's had completely shattered their composure.
In a room, the bedside lamp clicked on. The village's high-level meeting had ended at 2 a.m., and only three hours later, Yamanaka Inoichi had to drag himself out of bed again.
"Inoichi, do you really have to go? I'm worried," said Lady Yamanaka Riyo, her face weary in the dim light.
"It's fine." Inoichi dressed as he reassured his wife. "Normally, only Shikaku needs to attend high-level meetings for the Ino-Shika-Chō trio—he speaks for all three clans."
"But you know that message appearing directly in people's minds is far too strange. In this village, we Yamanaka are the only ones skilled in mental techniques. If I don't go, it'll raise suspicion."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Inoichi," Riyo said softly.
After a moment of silence, as she put on her robe and stepped out of bed, she asked,
"Inoichi… is what that Ninja God says true?"
Inoichi didn't know how to answer. He could only sigh and reply vaguely,
"It shouldn't be true. How could such a thing as a Ninja God exist? It's definitely someone's doing. In any case, the village will get to the bottom of it and give everyone an explanation."
"Riyo." Fully dressed and ready to leave, Inoichi placed his hand on the door, then turned back to his wife.
"Go spend time with our daughter. Ino must be terrified."
"Alright. Be careful on the way."
Bang—the door shut.
Walking down the road, Inoichi found the once-quiet Konoha in complete disorder. Villagers filled the streets, faces pale as they discussed the Ninja God's diary.
"This Ninja God really exists, huh? It's been two days now—it doesn't seem fake," muttered villager Iteki Sae, clearly uneasy.
"Who knows? The village hasn't said a word yet, but I don't think it's fake," said the dango vendor outside his shop, heavy dark circles under his eyes.
"I couldn't sleep all night because of this. How can anyone rest easy like this?"
"Exactly. Even the Hokage hasn't shown up to say a word," sighed another villager, Itsuki Nagahisa.
"So… do you think what the Ninja God said is true?" whispered villager Tanaka Tanyū, lowering his voice. "About that big shot… and about the Hyūga clan's…"
At those words, Iteki Sae's face went pale. He whispered nervously,
"You can eat recklessly, but you can't talk recklessly. If the Anbu hears you, you'll disappear. And the Hyūga clan's business? Don't even mention it. Just keep it in your heart."
"Yeah, yeah, best not to talk about that," Itsuki agreed.
Passing by, Inoichi caught every word of their conversation. His expression grew heavier. He had long heard rumors of the Hyūga clan's slave system. It truly was a jutsu impossible to accept.
Turning your own kin into slaves—such a thing was utterly taboo. Among those in Konoha who knew, it was a topic so avoided that people simply stopped speaking of it.
Over time, most of Konoha's populace became ignorant of it. But those who had survived the Third Great Ninja War knew all too well.
It was a curse known as the Caged Bird. The cursed could be punished—or even killed outright—by the caster the moment they showed the slightest disrespect toward the main family.
This was the reality of the Hyūga clan. Only the eldest son or daughter of the main family could inherit the title of head. All others were cast into the branch family.
And the branch family meant slaves of the main family. This system was the reason the Hyūga had endured for a thousand years, securing absolute loyalty through the Caged Bird.
Absolute loyalty meant no betrayal. A single thought from the main family could mean instant death for a traitor.
In life-and-death battles, branch members were forced to fight to the death to protect the main family's retreat. Because of this, the Byakugan bloodline endured no matter what.
Yet strangely, under Hiashi Hyūga's generation, the eldest daughter hadn't assumed the role of head, and the younger daughter hadn't been branded as branch family either—they were simply… left in limbo.
As for why, Inoichi didn't know. He had only heard whispers and didn't care for the Hyūga clan's secrets.
What he could do was capture this so-called Ninja God and restore peace to the village.
At least, restore peace on the surface. What lurked beneath didn't matter.
The Hyūga clan was shrouded in a stifling gloom. Inside and out, their compound was more deathly silent than ever, like a place suffocating in despair.
As the morning light spilled into the courtyard, Neji Hyūga sat before a mirror, calmly staring at the green curse mark of the Caged Bird on his forehead.
…
"Man, that was a good sleep!" Naruto yawned, clad in bear-print pajamas, stretching lazily on his bed.
The so-called evil Ninja God scratched his butt without a shred of dignity, then sluggishly began to wash up.
Staring at his messy bedhead in the mirror, he yawned again and muttered,
"Still got fourteen D-rank missions unfinished. Better go pick one up today—don't want them realizing I've been using a stand-in."
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