The truth??

In the Hyuga Clan's compound, Hyuga Hiashi sat at the head of the hall, coldly watching the clan members kneeling before him.

"Are you sure that person was Akira Kurama?" Hyuga Hiashi asked slowly. He couldn't fathom how his daughter, whom he had gone to such lengths to protect, could be so easily abducted! The clan member kneeling before him still looked resentful, his tone even implying blame towards Hiashi's daughter. That brat, is he tired of living?!

"Your subordinate... your subordinate confirms!" The clan member thought back carefully. By this point, he had calmed down. He also knew the gravity of his mistake, but he simply couldn't accept that a genius like himself was assigned to guard a little girl. Thus, he hadn't taken his job seriously. The clan's princess was taken right in front of him, and he returned unharmed. His first reaction was to shift the blame.

Hyuga Hiashi looked disappointed. Such a useless person was from the main family. In his eyes, a child like Hinata, who lacked talent, would eventually be relegated to the branch family anyway, which was why she had been so careless with her mission. How could he compare to Hizashi? Did he live up to Hizashi's efforts? Did he live up to the humiliation he, the esteemed clan head, had faced?!

The system of main and branch families within the Hyuga Clan needed to change!

Hyuga Hiashi's gaze became firm. He didn't want the tragedy that befell him to repeat itself for future generations. Glancing with disgust at the useless person kneeling before him, Hyuga Hiashi stood up and walked out. "Go to the detention cells for seven days of reflection! If you don't understand where you went wrong, you can go to the branch family!"

"Yes..." The clan member bowed his head deeply. He had always been proud of his status in the main family. Being sent to the branch family was worse than death to him. But facing the clan head's command, he had no choice but to obey.

Hyuga Hiashi secretly arrived at the Kurama Clan's residence, only to find Tsukishiro Yuexi waiting for him at the entrance. Yuexi cupped her hands in a salute. "Welcome to the Kurama Clan, Patriarch Hyuga. Young Master has been waiting for quite some time. Please, follow me."

"Lead the way!" Hyuga Hiashi nodded and followed behind Tsukishiro Yuexi. He wasn't surprised that Ming Jing had anticipated his arrival. After all, little Hinata was his beloved daughter!

The two silently walked around a rock garden and entered the dining room. They found Ming Jing smiling as he spoke to Hinata and another young girl. Hyuga Hiashi didn't rush in. Watching Hinata's smile, he couldn't help but recall the joy this child had brought him. Unfortunately, after practicing the Gentle Fist, Hinata's smiles in front of him had become fewer and fewer.

In the future, this child would likely marry into the Kurama Clan. Was it still necessary to teach her the Gentle Fist?

Hyuga Hiashi fell into thought.

After a while, seeing that Hyuga Hiashi hadn't moved, Tsukishiro Yuexi stood in a more conspicuous spot. Ming Jing saw her immediately and naturally knew Hyuga Hiashi had arrived. He then walked out and said apologetically, "Mr. Hiashi, I apologize for the delay!"

"No, I was just lost in thought." Hyuga Hiashi looked at Ming Jing with a touch more warmth. He could tell that Ming Jing's affection for Hinata was genuine.

"Mr. Hiashi, please!" Ming Jing smiled and personally led the way.

"F-Father..." Seeing her father enter, Hinata's face turned pale. She quickly lowered her head and stood still, softly saying, "I-I'm sorry, Father..."

"Sorry for what?" Hyuga Hiashi asked, looking at Hinata.

"Sorry... I, I'm sorry..." Hinata became flustered and her mind raced, making her unsure of what she was saying.

Seeing Hinata's helplessness, Ming Jing couldn't help but explain, "Mr. Hiashi, I took the liberty of bringing Hinata here. Please don't make things difficult for her."

"Taking the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan's main family... Ming Jing, what do you take my Hyuga Clan for?!" Hyuga Hiashi turned to look at Ming Jing, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

"Allies!" Ming Jing met Hyuga Hiashi's gaze and calmly uttered two words.

"Allies??" Hyuga Hiashi sneered. "I've never met an ally who would snatch away their ally's most precious descendant!"

"Indeed, there aren't," Ming Jing nodded. "But shouldn't allies protect their comrade's descendants before their enemies arrive?"

Uh...

Hyuga Hiashi was stunned. After all, the Cloud Ninja were still in Konohagakure. If they discovered a lost member of the Hyuga Clan, anyone could guess what they would do. In a sense, Hyuga Hiashi should be grateful to Ming Jing, but a father-in-law's pride was a delicate thing...

Seeing Hyuga Hiashi's expression, Ming Jing knew he wasn't truly angry. He said sincerely, "This time, I acted rashly. I hope Mr. Hiashi will not make things difficult for Hinata, considering my eagerness to protect her."

"Hmm... I'll let it slide this time!" Hyuga Hiashi looked at Ming Jing with satisfaction. What a wonderful child, it's a shame he isn't a member of the Hyuga Clan! Koji Kurama must have saved the galaxy in his past life to have such an intelligent successor!

"Since Mr. Hiashi and Hinata are here at the Kurama Clan, it would be impolite not to try our cuisine. Serve the food!" Seeing that Hyuga Hiashi was no longer upset, Ming Jing instructed Yuexi to arrange the dishes. As one exquisite dish after another, full of color, aroma, and taste, was placed on the table, the attention of this pair of 'cataract' father and daughter was drawn.

"Mr. Hiashi, please take the seat of honor!" Ming Jing said. Hyuga Hiashi didn't hesitate. In terms of status, he was the only one present qualified to sit in the seat of honor.

Looking at the dishes on his plate, which resembled works of art, Hyuga Hiashi couldn't help but sigh. "Your Kurama Clan has truly achieved great success. To bring cuisine to this level, how much effort did you put in? If you had put this much effort into ninjutsu, your Kurama Clan's achievements would be far greater."

"Heh heh, it's not that we are unwilling, but we are powerless! I don't fear Mr. Hiashi laughing, but countless ninjas with the Kurama Clan's Bloodline Limit have fought and died on the battlefield for Konohagakure. They often went to battle right after awakening their abilities, not even having time to leave behind their own training notes. Each generation of ours repeats the same actions, walking on the path of exploration, and before we could leave coordinates for our successors..." Ming Jing gave a wry smile. The reason he read books wasn't to show off; he wanted to understand why the Kurama Clan had become so weak.

"I have indeed heard some rumors," Hyuga Hiashi said after a moment of silence. "The Kurama Clan hasn't had any clan members awaken their Bloodline Limit since the end of the Second Great Ninja War. This has led to your clan's decline. It's very strange!"

"Mr. Hiashi, who was our clan's opponent during the Second Great Ninja War?" Ming Jing asked.

"You followed Lord Orochimaru to fight against the ninja of the Land of Rain," Hyuga Hiashi replied.

"Orochimaru, Land of Rain, Hanzō..." Ming Jing narrowed his eyes. Hanzō was likely dead by now. Perhaps only Orochimaru knew what truly happened back then, causing the Kurama Clan to be unable to awaken their Bloodline Limit!

The two adults discussing such heavy topics naturally couldn't hold the little girls' attention. Led by Yakumo, Hinata finally began to eat heartily. At this moment, Hinata realized that food could be made so delicious. She looked enviously at Yakumo, thinking that this child ate such delicious food every day!

"Heh heh... Delicious, right? We have even more delicious food at home! Hinata, come visit often, and I'll take you to eat it! Okay?" Yakumo said with a grin, enticing Hinata.

"B-but... my father won't agree..." Hinata thought of her father's questioning expression and cautiously glanced at Hyuga Hiashi, saying, "I'm sorry."

"Heh heh, then let my brother convince your father! Don't worry! My brother is super amazing!" Yakumo said proudly. Then, regardless of Hinata's reaction, she asked Ming Jing, "Brother, can Hinata come to our house to play in the future?"

"Of course!" Ming Jing smiled apologetically at Hyuga Hiashi before answering Yakumo.

"But this scary-looking uncle here won't let Hinata play!" Yakumo said, looking at Hyuga Hiashi with a hint of complaint.

Hyuga Hiashi was speechless, being called "scary" by a little girl from another family. He couldn't refute it and felt awkward.

"Yakumo, you mustn't be so rude. This is Hinata's father. From now on, you must call him Uncle, understand? I apologize, Mr. Hiashi, please don't take her childish words to heart." Ming Jing spoke to Yakumo a bit sternly before apologizing to Hyuga Hiashi.

"It's alright. It's rare for these two children to get along so well. I'll let Hinata come over to play in the future. Yakumo, is it? You can also come to the Hyuga Clan to find Hinata to play with." Hyuga Hiashi waved his hand dismissively, speaking kindly to Yakumo.

"Really? That's great! Hinata, I can come find you to play now too! Hahaha..." Yakumo happily took Hinata's hand, her clear laughter filling the room.

Hinata was also happy. She smiled shyly, like a lily.