"..."
Hearing the solution Hyūga Hideki proposed, the other main family elders' eyes flickered.
One after another, they began to contemplate the feasibility of this plan.
It seemed this method really could resolve the crisis.
Whether the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning misunderstood the Hidden Cloud's true intentions or not, what mattered was that the demand had been made clear: they wanted the "corpse" of the culprit.
So what if the Cloud shinobi discovered the corpse no longer had eyes?
Would they still dare to stand upright and demand the Byakugan openly?
That would make no sense.
Even if the Hidden Cloud wished to wage war, they still required a justifiable reason.
Without such a reason, the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning would never approve it.
If they could not stand on moral high ground, then first, the Land of Lightning's prestige across the shinobi world would suffer.
Second, the Hidden Cloud's economy would be harmed as well, since the number of mission requests coming into the village would sharply decline.
Mission requests came partly from the citizens of the Land of Lightning itself, but much of the rest came from people of the smaller nations without shinobi villages.
Unless they chose to be like Sunagakure, groveling at the Daimyō's feet like dogs — relying solely on the Daimyō's financial support and otherwise being forced to dismiss shinobi — then missions were the very foundation of a shinobi village's survival.
The shinobi world's rules were truly twisted: villages and nobles depended on each other, yet were wary of one another.
Shinobi brought bloodshed and trouble to the people, but the people could only hire shinobi to solve these very troubles.
Shinobi, who produced nothing themselves, needed mission requests from the people in order to live.
The entire shinobi world existed in a strange and fragile balance.
The Hyūga elders did not think quite so deeply, but they too understood: for the Hidden Cloud to start a war, they would need justification.
"Hiashi, the time has come to face reality. Our ancestors safeguarded the Hyūga's kekkei genkai in this very way."
Hideki's eyes locked firmly on Hiashi's conflicted face. In a heavy tone, he declared:
"For the sake of the Hyūga, even brothers must be abandoned. This is the destiny of the Hyūga main house. This is the fate of the Hyūga clan!"
"..."
The silence was suffocating.
The faint hiss of the burning candlewick, the quiet dripping of melting wax reflecting the nearby flame — these were the only sounds.
Not one person spoke. All waited quietly for Hiashi's decision.
In truth, based on Hizashi's nature, since he had already decided to die in his brother's place, he would never have let Hiashi bear the role of villain.
At such a moment, he would normally step forward to settle it with his own voice.
But now his heart was complicated.
He only gazed intently at his elder brother, without speaking, while in his ears seemed to echo the parting words of that man.
"It seems you are not yet prepared. In that case, let's make a wager."
That man had chuckled softly, his tone laced with mockery:
"You have chosen to be a father. Then let us bet — will Hyūga Hiashi choose to be a brother, or will he choose to continue being the 'clan head who puts the greater good above all'?"
It was because of those words that Hizashi chose silence.
And everything that had happened up until now was unfolding exactly as that man had foretold.
The Land of Lightning, the Hidden Cloud, Konoha's upper echelon, the Hyūga main house, even Hizashi himself…
It was as though they were all chess pieces in that man's hand, moved and placed precisely where he intended.
Such mastery of strategy and manipulation of human hearts only deepened Hizashi's awe of him.
Now, Hizashi only wanted to see.
If events were allowed to progress as they originally would, without that man's intervention — would his death truly be worth it?
"..."
The atmosphere in the audience chamber sank lower and lower, until it felt as though one were gasping for breath in a swamp, thick, muddy air pouring into one's lungs.
Hiashi's mind was in chaos.
Looking at Hizashi's calm expression, he could not perceive what his brother was thinking.
The hesitation twisting his face gradually turned into torment.
Fear of death. Guilt toward Hizashi. Duty to the clan. Attachment to Hinata.
Hatred toward the Cloud.
He was not truly cold and heartless.
Just as he cherished Hinata, so too did he harbor feelings for Hizashi.
But those feelings were buried, deeply hidden beneath a rigid exterior.
Now, countless emotions wove together into a great net, like a tangled ball of thread without a loose end, binding his heart so tightly that even the blood within him seemed to stagnate.
"Hiashi!" Hideki barked sharply.
"I…"
Hiashi's body trembled suddenly. His chest heaved violently, like a tattered bellows. His voice came out hoarse:
"I… I am the head of the main house, I…"
But the rest would not come out.
His body hunched, his head bowed low, and he did not dare look at Hizashi.
A deep, crushing powerlessness surged up within him.
For the first time, he loathed himself.
For the first time, he felt how unbearably heavy and foul those words he had often mouthed — "destiny" — truly were.
At the same time, a trace of serenity appeared on Hizashi's calm face.
With Hiashi's words, all of Hizashi's hesitation was cut away.
He had lost.
And Hiashi had lost as well.
"Elder Brother."
Hizashi even smiled faintly as he looked upon Hiashi, whose hunched form seemed ready to collapse into the earth in humiliation.
He spoke:
"I still have a few final words, concerning Neji and Kumokawa, those two children. Could I speak with you alone?"
Hiashi's body shuddered again, then slowly nodded. Naturally, Hideki and the others had no reason to stop them.
Kumokawa simply stood silently where he was, watching this so-called great clan reveal its most "ugly" face.
Click.
The two brothers — Hizashi in front, Hiashi behind — entered another soundproof chamber.
The sound of rain outside was cut off. Only heavy, disordered breathing remained.
Hiashi, still with his head bowed, seemed to gather a shred of courage.
Lifting his eyes toward Hizashi, he pressed his lips together and said:
"Hizashi, I'm sorry. Neji, and that boy Kumokawa — I swear I will take care of them for you."
But as he spoke, Hizashi slowly shook his head, his face still bearing that serene smile.
"Lord Hiashi."
No longer did he call him elder brother, but instead used the old respectful address. In a calm voice, he said:
"Do you realize that even now, you are still arrogant?"
"..." Hiashi froze. "What?"
"In fact, within the method Hideki proposed, there was one choice you all ignored."
Hizashi continued evenly, paying no mind to Hiashi's shock:
"If you truly possessed the resolve to die… if you truly had the courage to pay the price for your rashness… you could have gouged out your own eyes, and then taken your own life. That way, the Byakugan would not be lost, nor would war be invited."
"But from beginning to end, you never even considered it. Such arrogance."
Looking upon Hizashi's eerily calm expression, Hiashi suddenly felt a wave of unease. He opened his mouth instinctively, trying to speak.
But in the next instant—
Splurt!
A shadowy blur appeared behind him. Hiashi felt a sudden chill in his chest.
As though all strength had been drained from his body in that moment, he stiffly lowered his gaze toward the source of the cold.
A hand, fingers curved as if loosely grasping, protruded from his chest.
No blood flowed — only rippling waves spread outward from the wound.
Hiashi's body went rigid, his face frozen in bewildered confusion.
What… is this?