The Death of Hyuga Kazefu

Am I going to die? I don't want to die. I don't want to die now. I've only lived in this world for a few years. There are still so many good days waiting for me. I don't want to die!

Hyuga Kazefu knelt on the ground with his head lowered, his thoughts constantly shifting. But overall, he simply did not want to die—did not want the clan head, Hyuga Hiashi, to have someone kill him right now.

I have to run. I must escape. Hyuga Kazefu swallowed hard. His palms were drenched in sweat from extreme nervousness, soaking his entire hands. He could not even feel the pain in the hand Xuan Ye had broken.

There wasn't anyone guarding near this room when I came in. Even the heavens are helping me, Hyuga Kazefu thought to himself.

Kneeling on the floor, Hyuga Kazefu adjusted his posture into one better suited for escape. When the time came, he would be able to flee at top speed without wasting any extra strength.

Hyuga Hiashi, seated in his chair, noticed Hyuga Kazefu's movement. Yet he did not react at all, because he knew that within the Hyuga Clan's territory, it was impossible for Hyuga Kazefu to escape.

He merely watched Hyuga Kazefu with cold eyes, waiting to see what else he could do.

Hyuga Kazefu adjusted his condition and recovered his stamina. To achieve this, he chose to plead with Hyuga Hiashi, stalling for time while his strength returned. Though Hyuga Hiashi had seen through him long ago, he did not expose him and simply watched in silence.

Hyuga Kazefu did not stall for long. He was afraid—afraid that Clan Head Hyuga Hiashi would suddenly make a move and kill him. So, once his stamina had mostly recovered, he began to act.

His knees, which had been on the floor, abruptly pushed him upright. The instant he stood, he sprinted toward the exit at his fastest speed. Yet Hyuga Hiashi remained completely motionless and did not stop him from escaping.

Hyuga Kazefu saw this and was overjoyed, believing that Hyuga Hiashi had failed to react in time and had therefore been unable to stop him.

Great! That old bastard Hyuga Hiashi isn't chasing me. I should escape while I have the chance. Once I get out, I'll find somewhere hidden, change my name, and make sure no one from the Hyuga Clan can find me. Then I won't have to die.

That was what Hyuga Kazefu thought, but he had no idea how cruel reality was. Would Hyuga Hiashi, the head of the Hyuga Clan, really fail to react? What a joke. If Hyuga Hiashi could not even react to this, then he would never have become the Hyuga Clan's head.

Hyuga Kazefu ran faster and faster, reaching the greatest speed of his life. The door was right before him. As long as he crossed it and escaped the Hyuga Clan's territory, then even if Hyuga Hiashi wanted him dead, it would not be so easy.

It took less than a second for Hyuga Kazefu to reach the door and step through it. Just as he was about to rejoice, something unexpected happened.

A Hyuga Clan ninja appeared from some nearby corner. That ninja was incredibly fast, countless times faster than Hyuga Kazefu, who was not even a genin.

The Hyuga Clan ninja drew a Kunai, flashed before Hyuga Kazefu, and made a light slash. A line immediately appeared across Hyuga Kazefu's neck.

Pfft.

Bright red blood sprayed from Hyuga Kazefu's neck. He only felt an intense pain in his throat before collapsing to the ground without even making a sound, never to rise again.

Even in death, Hyuga Kazefu wore a smile on his face. Because until the moment he died, he did not even know what had happened. He died in a muddle.

The ninja who had killed Hyuga Kazefu walked step by step into Hyuga Hiashi's room. Upon seeing Hyuga Hiashi, he lowered his head. "Clan Head, Hyuga Kazefu is dead. How should his body be handled?"

Hyuga Hiashi set down the teacup he had been holding and looked up at the ninja. "Do I have to teach you? Clean up Hyuga Kazefu's corpse. Do not leave even the slightest trace. Then have someone treat Hyuga Kazefu's parents well. Consider him to have sacrificed himself for the Hyuga Clan."

"Yes, Clan Head." The ninja cupped his hands toward Hyuga Hiashi, then left the room and walked over to Hyuga Kazefu's corpse. Forming several hand seals, he spat out a ball of flame directly at the body.

The flames were extremely hot. In an instant, Hyuga Kazefu's corpse was reduced to ashes. The ninja struck out with his palm, and a powerful gust scattered the ashes across the ground until nothing remained.

In my room, I took several Kunai and some Shuriken from the two boxes full of ninja tools. Then I took out some of the weights inside and tied them to my body. At this point, the weights on me totaled about twenty jin.

Once all those weights were tied to my body, everything felt completely different. My body had originally felt light and relaxed, but after adding those twenty jin, even walking became somewhat difficult. I swayed slightly as I moved, as if I had lost my balance.

There was no one at home now. My father, Minato Namikaze, was probably in the Hokage's office handling the Hokage's duties, while my mother, Kushina Uzumaki, was likely out on a mission.

Besides, I felt that training outside would have better results. So, after tying the weights onto myself and placing some Shuriken and Kunai in my pockets, I prepared to head out.

Back on Konoha's streets, I did not intend to stroll around this time. I wanted to run somewhere I could train my body and improve my ninjutsu proficiency. The outskirts of the village should be a good place to train.

But before that, I needed to shake off the two tails behind me. If someone watched me train, it would feel uncomfortable just thinking about it.

Because I was wearing weights, I ran much slower than before. Still, this speed should be enough. Before long, I reached a crowded street in Konoha.

To shake off the two ninjas following me, I had to go somewhere with lots of people. Only by running into a place like this would I have a chance of losing them.

I pushed into the crowd and quickly disappeared among the pedestrians. People came and went along the street, and before long, the two Konoha Anbu could no longer find Genya Namikaze's figure.