"You…"
The words reached Hyūga Hizashi's ears like a trigger.
He jolted back instinctively, stumbled half a step, nearly losing his balance.
His scalp prickled.
"What are you?" he asked hoarsely, staring at the black-robed figure beside him. "Why are you saying these things to me?"
"I'm pruning pests," the figure replied calmly, "and observing what grows afterward."
The hood concealed its face, but Hizashi was certain he was being watched.
Not stared at.
Examined.
There was no rage in that gaze. No obvious fanaticism. Just quiet interest, like fire allowed to burn without concern for what it consumed.
Hizashi fell silent.
The main family is the root. As long as the root remains, branches can wither or flourish.
That had been drilled into him since childhood.
But when the image of Hinata resurfaced in his mind, clumsy in training, hesitant, protected at all times, something dark twisted in his chest.
Neji possessed talent. Real, terrifying potential.
Yet because of birth alone, he would be branded, restrained, monitored for life.
While a weak heir sat behind him, inheriting everything by default.
If I cannot even protect my child's freedom…
Hizashi clenched his fists.
He would die obediently if asked.
But Neji deserved to live freely. As a human being. Not as an attachment. Not as a sacrificial piece labeled destiny.
"Believe me," the black-robed figure said quietly."Selling your soul is not shameful."
"Failing to sell it for a meaningful price is."
"…What can you do?" Hizashi asked at last."And what do I have to give?"
"I can give you the power to break the cage," the voice replied."In exchange, you give everything. Your name. Your future. Your life. Your will."
Hizashi's breath faltered.
"That's not a fair exchange."
"Deals with devils never are," the figure said flatly."So. Decide."
Hizashi's chest rose and fell sharply.
He knew the malice was real. Obvious. Undeniable.
And yet he could not rebut it.
This entity understood him too precisely. Stripped every thought bare. Laid desire and shame side by side.
After a long pause, Hizashi shook his head.
"I don't believe anyone can free us. Not truly."
As long as the Cage Bird Seal existed, Neji would never be free.
Even the clan head could only activate it. Removal was impossible.
"So be it," the figure said.
An arm emerged from the shadows.
"Then experience it once."
System Record
Target: Cage Bird SealAction: Temporary SuspensionDuration: 10 secondsCost: 300 pointsAuthorization: Approved
Two fingers touched Hizashi's forehead.
His blood stalled.
For a fraction of a second, panic surged—
Then something opened.
Pressure vanished.
Something inside his skull unraveled cleanly, precisely. Not violently. As if restraints had been disengaged rather than destroyed.
Clarity flooded in.
Hizashi gasped.
Veins spread violently around his eyes.
"Byakugan!"
It activated instantly.
No blind spot.
None.
Complete visual coverage. Seamless. Perfect.
His breath broke into laughter.
Hoarse. Uncontrolled.
This was freedom.
Light, unobstructed, intoxicating.
For ten seconds, the world felt right.
Then it collapsed.
The seal reasserted itself.
Pain did not come. Only loss.
The blind spot returned. Darkness crept back into the periphery.
Hizashi staggered.
"…How?" he whispered, confusion and despair twisting together.
Then he remembered.
An experience. Just a demonstration.
He seized the figure's sleeve.
"What do you want me to do?"
The figure didn't react.
Instead, it asked, "You and Hyūga Hiashi are identical twins."
"…Yes."
"I need Hyūga Hiashi to live," the voice said evenly."And Hyūga Hizashi to die."
Hizashi recoiled.
"You're asking me to replace him?"
"Yes."
"That's impossible!"
"You just said freedom was impossible," the figure replied.
It pried Hizashi's hand away with minimal force.
"You don't need to plan. You will receive instructions."
Moonlight stretched their shadows across the ground.
They wavered among the trees.
Hizashi squeezed his eyes shut.
The memory of those ten seconds crushed his hesitation.
"…Fine," he said through clenched teeth. "I'll do it."
The figure watched him steadily.
Caged things, once released even briefly, do not accept confinement again.
Hizashi was never the point.
The real piece lay deeper.
The figure's gaze shifted toward a silent residence in the distance.