Dawn had barely broken when Hyuga Kei forced himself out of his warm bed. The moment he stepped outside, he sensed that Hyuga Haru was already waiting at the door.
Before he could speak, Haru handed him a paper envelope and said coldly,
"This is from Lord Taihiro. And you'd best remember, this is the benevolence of both the elder and the clan."
"Of course. I'm truly grateful."
Kei offered a polite smile devoid of warmth. As he took the envelope and weighed it in his palm, he added,
"Though I may never serve Lord Elder as loyally as you do, I will never forget this kindness."
"You'd better not," she replied, her voice noticeably colder than before.
To most, her shift in tone would've gone unnoticed, but to Kei, a trained psychologist, it was glaringly obvious.
Still, he didn't push. There was no need to rush. He understood the danger of overplaying one's hand.
He already had a long-term, thorough plan laid out for Hyuga Haru.
Kei tucked the envelope into the inner folds of his robe for safekeeping and headed with her to the clinic.
Business had just barely started when he sensed Shisui's presence again.
So much for peace and quiet.
Although in truth, that so-called peace had already been shattered the moment Shisui first walked through his door, and not just once or twice, either.
At this point, Shisui was entirely consumed by the "Will of Fire," to the extent that Kei even suspected he'd revealed the secret of his Mangekyō Sharingan to Konoha's upper echelon.
To Shisui, transparency was proof of loyalty. He believed that by showing his cards, the village would trust him.
But what he hadn't realized, and perhaps never would, was that Kotoamatsukami's very existence made trust impossible.
And in the original timeline, Shisui's end had proven that all too clearly.
Now that Kei had been pulled into this vortex, with the clan keeping him under constant surveillance, he understood that wishing for a quiet life was no longer enough to attain one.
Which meant, for the sake of his own survival, he needed to abandon passivity. It was time to seize the initiative.
Crisis, after all, also meant opportunity.
With that thought, he turned toward the figure watching him from just outside the clinic and called out,
"Staring won't get you any answers, you know."
The words struck Shisui like a stone. He couldn't explain why, but in that moment, something in Kei's tone had clearly shifted.
Truthfully, Shisui hated this feeling of being scrutinized.
But some things needed answers, and this might be his best chance.
He entered the clinic once again and sat opposite Kei, briefly glancing at Haru standing silently behind him.
"You've gotten popular," Shisui said, half-sarcastically. "Business seems to be booming."
"My business has always been good," Kei replied mildly. "The real question is, what have you seen lately?"
He turned his head slightly and said,
"Haru, would you mind preparing some tea for us?"
Haru stopped, her lips tightening.
She wanted to protest, I'm your assistant, not your servant, but then remembered Taihiro's instructions and quietly stepped away to prepare the tea.
Kei noted her silence with satisfaction.
It was just a simple order, but within the field of psychology, even such small interactions mattered.
The fact that she gave in once meant she'd do so again. Eventually, her compliance would become habitual.
Accepting the cup Haru handed him, Kei took a sip of the hot tea. The lingering sleepiness began to fade.
Shisui, however, didn't touch his own. He went straight to the point.
"I went to the places you told me to visit."
"And what did you think?"
"…There are certainly areas and people in the village that are often overlooked," Shisui admitted.
"But I believe that under Lord Third's leadership, those problems will be resolved, sooner or later."
Kei's hand jerked slightly, nearly spilling the tea in his cup.
"That's it?" he asked. "You didn't consider anything deeper than that?"
Shisui fell silent.
"Is it that you didn't consider it, or that you refused to?" Kei asked flatly.
"If it's the former, then you're just a fool. If it's the latter, then you're even more of a fool."
"No one can account for everything. It's normal for the village to miss a few things," Shisui replied. "So I don't agree with your take."
"Then why keep clinging to me, asking for explanations?" Kei asked. "If you already know better, why bother coming back?"
"That's a separate issue."
"If you say so." Kei shrugged. Stubborn beyond measure.
Shisui fell into silence again, but quickly added,
"I'm not here to debate about the village. I just want to know, how can you be so sure destruction is inevitable?"
"I've already told you," Kei said calmly.
"When someone loses the ability to think for themselves and only follows others' voices, they become blind to the truth around them."
As he spoke, Kei raised a finger and pointed toward the alleys beyond the clinic, the border of the slums.
Shisui turned to look. He pursed his lips and said,
"…Fine. I admit, some things are being ignored. But I had a reason for being there that night."
Before Kei could press him, Shisui continued,
"What I really want to know is, why were you there?"
"What do you mean?"
"You live near the main road. You could've taken a much simpler path home. Why go through such a remote alley?"
Kei tilted his head and, despite his blind eyes, stared right at Shisui.
Then he smiled.
"So that's your true purpose for coming here. I was wondering what brought you back."
It made sense now.
His clinic sat not far from the edge of the slums, separated only by a few winding alleys, and his usual route home passed straight through them.
The alleys themselves weren't special. They were just home to a few homeless men and beggars.
But Kei remembered the scene that night: the homeless dragged across the ground, the trails they left behind, and, of course, Orochimaru.
Three points, now forming a triangle.
"You've figured something out," Shisui said.
He could tell from the flicker in Kei's expression, something had clicked. Kei knew something.
"…Nothing important," Kei replied, shaking his head.
"You think a half-hearted denial will hide the truth?" Shisui rose to his feet.
"You'd better have nothing to do with this. Because if you do, even if you're from the Hyuga clan, I won't let it go."
Kei wasn't fazed.
"I look forward to seeing what truth you uncover."
Shisui stared him down, then turned and began walking away. He wasn't going to press further now. If Kei wouldn't talk, then he'd investigate on his own.
Kei shook his head and turned slightly.
"Haru," he said. "Would you kindly show this idiot out? I don't think we have anything more to discuss."
<150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter>