"Phew! Cough, cough!"
Hyuga Neji leaned against the cold door, his body slightly hunched over, suppressing his rapid, heavy breaths. Cold sweat had already soaked his thin undershirt, clinging to his skin and bringing a chill.
It was clear that he was the one who had killed Hyuga Naosuke. And just as Hyuga Nigo had guessed, he had been injured during the fight with Naosuke. So when he heard that the Main Family had discovered the body and planned to find the killer based on their wounds, he suppressed his fear and ran back home. Other people with wounds could simply explain them away as injuries from a mission, but as a boy who wasn't even a Genin, he had no way to justify the knife wound on his body.
Now, there was only one way to try to hide it.
Neji didn't turn on the light; any light source could attract unwanted attention. He fumbled his way to the stove in the living room and gently tore off the bandage on his lower abdomen.
"Mgh!"
The wound had stuck to the bandage. Each layer he peeled off was accompanied by a subtle "schlorp" as the cloth separated from the scab and a muffled groan that Neji suppressed in the back of his throat. The searing pain shot through his body like an electric current, covering his forehead in a fine layer of cold sweat.
A long, three-inch-deep gash, visible to the bone, was exposed in the dim moonlight. The edges of the wound were peeled back, and blood was still slowly oozing out. The skin around the wound was an unhealthy pale blue from blood loss and pain.
Clenching his teeth, he fought off the dizziness and intense pain, placing a kunai in the stove to heat it until it was red-hot. The flickering orange light dispelled a small patch of darkness and illuminated Neji's pale, taut face. The cold metal, licked by the high heat, gradually changed from a dull to a dark red and then to a searing, bright red.
Neji stared fixedly at the hot kunai, then yanked it out. A wave of scorching heat hit his face! There was no hesitation in his eyes, only a nearly crazed ferocity. Without giving himself a moment to think or back down, he pressed it directly onto the hideous gash!
Sizzle!
The pungent smell of burnt flesh and rendering fat instantly filled the air, accompanied by a horrifying, teeth-grinding sound like meat frying in hot oil!
"Aaagh!!"
An unimaginable, burning pain instantly swept through his body, making Neji's body go rigid like a taut bowstring. But he bit down hard on his lower lip until it almost bled, forcing back a scream of pain. The veins on his forehead bulged, and his body trembled violently. His vision swam, and he nearly fainted.
But in his mind, he kept replaying images:
His father, Hiashi's, pained and twisted face as he was tortured by the Caged Bird seal!
The resentful and sorrowful look in his father's eyes when he put the Caged Bird seal on him!
The cold, arrogant faces of the elders of the Main Family, who regarded the Branch Family as disposable ants!
Hyuga Naosuke's ugly, tyrannical face, twisted with malice, as he whipped and abused the Branch Family members!
And that pair of eyes from his dreams and ancient texts, eyes with the power to change all fate!
"I can't be discovered yet. Not even close!"
"I have to live! I have to become stronger! I have to destroy this goddamn fate!"
Drawing on a terrifying hatred and obsession, he pressed the red-hot kunai down firmly, enduring the pain that would have made an ordinary person pass out instantly. He held it motionless against the wound.
Time seemed to freeze. Every second was as long as a year.
Finally, after an unknown amount of time—perhaps a few seconds, perhaps a few minutes—the pain was completely replaced by numbness.
Clang!
The now-cooled kunai in his hand fell to the ground, hitting the floor with a crisp thud. Neji was drenched as if he had just been pulled from the water. He slumped against the cold wall, his body trembling as he gasped for breath.
He didn't dare to delay for a second, forcing himself to look at the wound on his abdomen. It was no longer a gruesome knife wound. Instead, the entire area was covered by a charred, black brand! The flesh had been completely burned and carbonized by the heat, taking on the dead color of burnt wood. The curled edges of the wound were seared shut, and no more blood oozed out.
The excruciating pain still persisted like a parasite in his bones, but compared to the soul-tearing pain of the Caged Bird seal, this continuous, dull ache brought Neji a sort of twisted pleasure.
This was the most he could do. To turn the damning 'evidence' on his body into a seemingly 'accidental' burn, at the cost of a permanent, ugly scar. But it was all worth it.
To live.
To get revenge on those people.
For that pair of eyes that could overturn everything!
At this, he seemed to remember something. He struggled, using his trembling arms to push himself up, and went to a nondescript tatami mat in the corner of the room. He reached out a similarly trembling finger and carefully pried open a wooden board. Underneath was a well-hidden small compartment, holding a palm-sized scroll.
Hyuga Neji took it out, unrolled it, and made a hand sign.
Poof!
When the white smoke cleared, two eyeballs appeared on the scroll.
Pure and flawless, like white jade.
It was clear that these were Hyuga Naosuke's Byakugan.
"Hmph..."
Looking at the two Byakugan, Neji let out a breath, a flicker of fanaticism in his eyes. Recalling the scene he had seen in his dreams, he picked up one Byakugan in each hand and pressed them onto his own open Byakugan. Soon, an extremely faint but incredibly clear warmth quietly flowed into his eyes. At the same time, the two Byakugan, which had been glowing with a soft luster, underwent a bizarre change at a visible speed. They began to shrivel and wither like grapes that had lost their water, and fine black cracks appeared on their surfaces.
Pfff...
Finally, the two Byakugan in Neji's hands completely lost all their luster and life, turning into fine powder that crumbled through his fingers with a light squeeze. Neji felt the world before his eyes become clearer, and his perception and range of both the outside world and himself grew much stronger, as if something his eyes were missing had been completed.
"A second pair!"
He looked at the full-length mirror in the living room. As he saw the eyes in the mirror, his heart pounded wildly in his chest, and a morbid excitement surged through him. The eyes he had taken from Hyuga Kurozuka last time had already been drained of their pupil power and turned to dust, proving the authenticity of his dreams and the ancient texts.
Hyuga Neji believed that as long as he obtained enough Byakugan, he would one day possess that powerful pair of blue eyes. And then, he could sever all ties with the Main Family and his damned fate!
However, Neji clearly didn't know that the "completion" he felt was actually an increase in the purity of his Byakugan, which would at most allow him to reach the level of Hyuga Hinata. This was only one of the necessary conditions to obtain the Tenseigan. The other necessary condition was the Ōtsutsuki Clan's bloodline, which was something he could never achieve on his own.
But, at least in his mind, he was on the right path.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A brutal knocking suddenly broke the night's silence. Neji's body shook, but before he could feel alarmed, he heard a familiar voice from outside the door.
"Neji! Kawa-nii-san is summoning all Branch Family members to gather at his place!"
Hearing this, Neji recognized the owner of the voice as Hyuga Takashi, a fellow Branch Family member, and immediately felt relieved, but then confusion set in. Hyuga Kawa, summoning all Branch Family members? Was it because of Hyuga Naosuke's death?
No matter what, he had to go.
With that thought, Neji quickly changed into a clean set of clothes, carefully covering the burn marks on his abdomen with the hem of his shirt. Then he walked out of his home, his trembling steps becoming steady. He soon arrived at Hyuga Kawa's house and naturally stood among the crowd of Branch Family members, looking at the figure standing at the very front.
When Hyuga Kawa's gaze swept over the crowd, a chilling feeling, as if he had been seen through, came over Neji, making him involuntarily lower his eyes.
It was at this moment that Hyuga Kawa spoke.
"Everyone."
"What are you afraid of?"
His gaze swept over the crowd as he spoke slowly, "Afraid of a thorough investigation by the Main Family? Afraid of being framed as the murderer? Afraid of being tortured by the Caged Bird seal like those few people under Hyuga Naosuke?"
Each question was like a cold awl, piercing the hearts of the Branch Family members and making their faces even paler.
"Look at you all. Do you still remember that you are of the Hyuga Clan?"
Hyuga Kawa's voice was low. "We willingly had the Caged Bird seal placed on us to protect the Byakugan, for the continuation of the clan, and to protect our families."
"But what is the Main Family doing with it now?"
"What have they turned us into?"
"The Main Family has turned it into a leash that can choke us at any time, and we have become dogs with leashes around our necks!"
As he said this, Hyuga Kawa let out a deep breath, and the words that followed made everyone's resolve tremble.
"Everyone," he said, "Hiashi-sama's blood has not yet run cold!"
"I don't deny that there are some in the Main Family who see us as equals."
"But for the majority, when they needed us to sacrifice, they used our blood ties and family affection to send Hiashi-sama to his death! But what happened after the sacrifice? What happened when peace returned?"
"Did they treat us with paternal care? Did they support us through thick and thin?"
"No! They became more and more suspicious and trampled on us with even greater impunity! We are to be summoned when they need us and dismissed when they don't!"
"They don't need evidence or a reason, just suspicion, to use the seal to question us!"
"We share the same blood! We bear the same name! Why must we endure such treatment like servants? Our only 'mistake' was being born into the Branch Family!"
Hyuga Kawa's gaze was tangible, searing the deepest wounds in everyone's hearts.
"Hyuga Naosuke is dead. That good-for-nothing, who wasn't even a Chunin but relied on his Main Family status, that guy who beat and cursed the Branch Family members who protected him and treated them like trash, is dead."
Kawa's tone was filled with a bone-chilling sarcasm. "Tell me, do you feel, even a little, that he deserved to die?"
The eyes of some of the Branch Family members flickered. Though fear remained, a long-suppressed resentment and unwillingness surfaced in their depths.
And so, Hyuga Kawa looked at Hyuga Takashi in the crowd and said, "Takashi, come here."
The solemn-faced Hyuga Takashi walked over, and Hyuga Kawa unbuttoned his shirt. In the moonlight, his not-so-broad chest and back were covered in crisscrossing scars. There were knife wounds, kunai puncture marks, and burn marks, all of which were not old—they had all been left within the past year or two. The newest wound, of course, was the one on his arm.
The expressions of many present changed, but they were quickly interrupted by Hyuga Kawa's voice.
"Do you see these wounds?"
Hyuga Kawa's voice was low and powerful. "These were left on the battlefield, on missions, and during training! These are the wounds he sustained from countless times he crawled back from the brink of death!"
"These are what he earned with his life, time and time again, to protect the honor of Konoha and the Hyuga Clan!"
"But now!" he said coldly, "The people from the Main Family are coming, and they want to check if we have any new wounds and use that as 'evidence' of our guilt!"
"If they were really trying to find the killer, I would accept it. But are they really trying to find the killer?"
"No! They're not looking for the killer! They are checking how much backbone we of the Branch Family have left! How many bones they can still break! How much dignity they can still trample on!"
"They are trying to assert their authority! They want to tell all of us that the Branch Family are dogs of the Main Family, and in their eyes, the wounds we receive are what we deserve."
"They just want to see us groveling and trembling like dogs at their feet, begging for mercy!"
"But I am not a dog," Hyuga Kawa said softly. "And neither are you."
"So..."
As he spoke, he raised his arm, held a kunai in his other hand, and slowly drew it across his forearm. A scarlet line of blood slowly appeared, and blood flowed from the wound.
This action made the hearts of every Branch Family member present tremble. The Main Family was investigating the murderer of Hyuga Naosuke, based on so-called 'new wounds,' and yet Hyuga Kawa had just given himself a new wound... Everyone understood what this meant.
Hyuga Neji stood in the crowd, his body trembling uncontrollably. He hadn't expected this. He truly hadn't.
"Those of you with wounds, don't be afraid. I will stand with you." Hyuga Kawa chuckled softly. "Those without wounds can leave now."
In the moonlight, the scarlet line of blood cut by the kunai was clearly visible. The warm blood flowed down his forearm, and each drop hit the ground with a soft "plop."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Only the sound of increasingly heavy breathing and the rustling of leaves in the night wind.
No one spoke. They all stood where they were.
Fear still lingered in their eyes, but in their depths, a strange impulse surged like a tide!
Just then, a furious and chilling shout exploded.
"What are you all doing here?!"
The Main Family had finally arrived!
Leading the way was none other than Hyuga Nigo!
His face was so grim it looked like it could drip water, and his Byakugan burned with fierce rage. Behind him were dozens of fully armed Branch Family members, exuding a murderous aura. These were the loyal hounds of the Branch Family who had been completely brainwashed and tamed by the Main Family.
"Hyuga Kawa!"
Seeing the figure at the head of the crowd, Hyuga Nigo squinted and said coldly, "You! And all of you! What are you doing? Trying to collude and hide the murderer?"
Hyuga Kawa turned to face Hyuga Nigo, his face expressionless like a deep pool. He spoke, "There is no so-called murderer here."
"Hmph." Hyuga Nigo sneered, his gaze falling on the bleeding arm. He said mockingly, "Whether there's a murderer or not is not for you to decide. Take away everyone with a new wound!"
At these words, someone finally drew a kunai from their waist.
It was no one else.
It was Hyuga Neji.
Driven by that powerful impulse, he, the true killer who had desperately hidden his wound, actually sliced his own arm with the kunai.
Chirp!
The sharp blade of the kunai also cut a gash into his left arm, and blood instantly gushed out!
"I..." Neji wanted to speak and confess that he was the murderer, but before his trembling voice could utter a word, another sound of tearing flesh came from beside him.
Then, a third, a fourth, a fifth...
One after another, the Branch Family members silently drew their own kunai, or even borrowed a shuriken from someone else.
Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!
The sound of blades cutting through flesh rang out, one after another, without pause!
There were no shouts, no hesitation. Only muffled grunts and heavy breaths that were unusually loud in the silent night!
One scarlet line of blood after another blossomed simultaneously on their arms, thick and thin, under the pale moonlight.
"You want to check for people with new wounds?"
Hyuga Kawa faced the astonished gazes of Hyuga Nigo and the other Main Family members. He raised his bleeding arm, his voice clear and cold. Behind him, dozens of arms were raised high, and dozens of scarlet wounds were hideously exposed in the moonlight. Blood flowed, quickly soaking their sleeves and dripping onto the ground.
"As you can see," Hyuga Kawa said calmly, "everyone here has a new wound."
"Who are you going to take away?"
"Or...?"
He looked at the speechless Branch Family members behind Hyuga Nigo and said softly, "Are you going to treat all of us, everyone in the Branch Family..."
"As murderers and take us all away?"