No More Branching Off

Hiruzen Sarutobi pressed one hand against the ground, Chakra dispersing along his arm.

"Summoning Jutsu: Enma, King of the Monkeys!"

Bam!

Amid swirling white smoke, a burly, upright-walking ape appeared beside him.

"Yo! Hiruzen, long time no see."

It spoke human speech, acting very familiar with the Third Hokage.

The Third's expression was slightly grim, his tone somber: "Mm... let's fight side by side."

Enma looked around for a moment, his face turning serious.

"Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Tsunade... they're all enemies this time? Your teaching skills are a bit lacking..."

Stung where it hurt, Hiruzen Sarutobi snorted coldly and struck without further words.

His hands hung slightly before him, forming seals at a dizzying, blinding speed.

"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"

In an instant, a torrent of shuriken howled toward Tsunade's side.

Dense as locusts, the shuriken made one's scalp tingle and palms sweat.

Though the technique's name lacked flair, it was a genuine A-rank jutsu—an ultra-high-difficulty original creation of Hiruzen Sarutobi.

It used Chakra to multiply the number of shuriken, forming an inescapable net of blades—a combination of ninja tools and ninjutsu.

"The old man's still fairly spry, hasn't completely let himself go." The corners of Orochimaru's mouth lifted, a chillingly wicked smile spreading across his face.

This kind of material clone was harder than ordinary Shadow Clones; likewise, it required no preparation beforehand, and each shuriken carried lethal force.

On this side, Hiruzen Sarutobi unleashed a large-scale AOE to clear the field, dust rising and obscuring the battle's outcome.

"Well? How many did you take out?" Utatane Koharu asked impatiently.

Mitokado Homura shook his head and sighed: "Not a single one... everyone they brought this time is a master."

He'd initially thought the numerous, youthful-looking opponents were just Small Fry there to fill out the ranks—never expected them all to be elites!

That expressionless White-haired youth, without using any weapon, simply swatted a few times, precisely shattering every shuriken that could reach him.

The purple-haired young woman protected herself with crimson crystals.

The burly youth with dark Runes swirling across his face...

The clearer Homura saw the enemy's strength, the more his heart pounded.

"Damn it!"

Utatane Koharu's face was full of fury. "It's all those traitors' fault! The Hyuga Clan, the Ino-Shika-Cho... at the critical moment, they all became fence-sitters! This is outright defection! After this time, we'll make them pay!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was far calmer than the two of them; he'd long seen that the enemy was formidable, and this attack was merely a probe.

"Aren't you going to make your move?"

His gaze passed over Tsunade's group, landing on the cluster of buildings not far away.

"Haha... as expected of the Third Hokage!"

A large group of ninjas with pure-white eyes walked out slowly, the speaker at their head being Hyuga Hiashi. "Lady Utatane Koharu, you said one thing wrong. Perhaps other clans are fence-sitting. But the Hyuga Clan has completely sided with the Three Ninja!"

Seeing this, Utatane Koharu's expression twisted with rage: "Damn you! Your Hyuga Clan is already Konoha's largest clan, and you still want to go further? Just wait! You'll end up like the Uchiha Clan—wiped out completely!"

Hiashi sneered, retorting sarcastically: "Go further? I've never had such thoughts. As long as I can protect the clan, I'll bear any infamy. If Danzō hadn't been stupid enough to make a move on my Hyuga Clan, do you think I'd have defected so quickly?"

At these words, Utatane Koharu was left speechless.

After all, she knew well enough what kind of bastard her teammate was.

Shimura Danzō.

That bastard was up to his tricks behind their backs again!

No one realized that Hiashi was deliberately slandering Danzō.

But then again, if Danzō didn't take the blame, what purpose did he even serve?

"Where's Shimura Danzō! Didn't he say he'd bring Root to reinforce us in a quarter of an hour? It's been half an hour now!"

Utatane Koharu ground her teeth in hatred.

"Forget it. He's always been like this—haven't we gotten used to it by now?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled bitterly.

Back when Namikaze Minato died, Danzō, dissatisfied with the Third retaking power, sent Yamato of the Wood Release and many Root elites to assassinate him.

After it failed, the Third, out of leniency, imposed no punishment—never imagining he'd indulged Danzō to this extent.

Mitokado Homura clenched his fist and shouted across to the Hyuga group: "Hyuga branch members! If you're willing to abandon the darkness for the light, I have a way to break the Caged Bird Seal! From now on, you'll never be bound by it again!"

He then looked at the young man with a youthful face but a calm, serious expression and those Byakugan eyes. "You're Neji Hyuga, right! Your father, Hizashi Hyuga, died in place of your uncle back then! And now you still follow their orders?"

Blame that bastard Danzō for taking his Root and running off—otherwise, why would an old man like him be here wasting his breath?

Neji Hyuga shot a cold glance at Mitokado Homura, his tone icy. "My uncle has already spoken with me in depth about the truth of what happened back then. I don't need you spouting nonsense. Besides, the Hyuga Clan no longer has the concept of branch and main families. I suggest you stop wasting your breath."

The moment those words left his mouth, the Hokage faction's hearts turned to ice.

The Caged Bird Seal existed for two reasons: to preserve the purity of the Byakugan so it wouldn't degenerate, and to prevent the Byakugan from leaking out.

Hiashi actually had the guts to lift the Caged Bird from all branch members? Didn't he understand what that meant? Wasn't he worried about the consequences of such an act?

"Something feels off here. Sarutobi, don't rush in..."

Mitokado Homura rubbed his throbbing temples, sensing he was missing something.

These past few days, too many things had felt wrong.

Could someone have cast a Genjutsu on Hyuga Hiashi to seize his mind, driving him to such extreme actions?

"Fight! Why all the useless talk! Old monkey! Let's go!"

The arrow was nocked, the bow drawn—there was no turning back. The Third Hokage might listen to Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, his two advisors, during peacetime, but this was war!

He called out to Enma beside him, and they launched their attack together.

That move became the spark that ignited a full-scale escalation of the conflict.

Might Guy, Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yuhi, Shiranui Genma, Yamashiro Aoba, Namiashi Raidō, Morino Ibiki, Ebisu, Gekko Hayate...

Everyone loyal to them charged forward.

But...

Kakashi wasn't there.

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Two more chapters coming today!