I Want the World, Not Your Daughter

The Daimyo Manor, study.

Chiba Ran listened to the messenger's report, his expression freezing for a moment.

The hand holding the teacup stopped mid-air.

Gen, the butler standing by, noticed the sudden silence in the air.

After the messenger finished his report, he also relayed Minato Namikaze's question.

"Then... what about the Imperial Concubine Selection? Did the Daimyo not mention it?"

Chiba Ran blinked, his mind racing, before connecting these two unrelated matters.

Then, he felt a sense of absurdity.

An indescribable sense of absurdity almost made him spit out the tea he was drinking.

"You mean..." Chiba Ran's tone was strange, "those people from Konoha, including their Fourth Hokage, thought I was targeting the Hyuga before to make their family hand over a woman?"

The messenger lowered his head, not daring to respond, but his silence was an answer in itself.

Chiba Ran was completely speechless and raised a hand to rub his temples.

He remembered very clearly that the decree for the Imperial Concubine Selection was issued to the entire Land of Fire.

The real purpose was to use this opportunity to pressure and screen those old nobles, to see who was loyal and who had other intentions, and to carry out a reshuffle of power in the process.

As for Konoha...

He had only prepared two options for Konoha from the beginning.

One was about the future Genius Cultivation Plan.

The other was about the current Guardians of the Twelve.

These two options were the means he intended to use to win over Konoha.

Imperial Concubine Selection?

That was, at best, a political reality show, something for ordinary people to watch.

When had he ever considered this trivial matter as a standard for testing Konoha's loyalty?

Did he need to use such a low-level tactic to covet a pair of Byakugan?

Ridiculous!

Now it seemed that the Uchiha clan's almost frenziedly positive attitude was likely the beginning of this huge misunderstanding.

When they moved, the Hyuga moved, and then other ninja clans followed...

As a result, all of Konoha fell into a bizarre atmosphere where the Daimyo was trying to snatch beautiful girls from the Ninja World.

Thinking of this, Chiba Ran couldn't help but chuckle.

"Heh heh..."

His laughter was not loud, but it made Gen and the messenger's scalps tingle.

"It seems I overestimated them,"

Chiba Ran muttered to himself, his tone filled with helpless self-deprecation.

"I thought they truly had backbone, but I didn't expect their thinking to still be stuck in the primitive stage of snatching people and territory."

Ninjas are ninjas, after all.

Their worldview was firmly confined by Kekkei Genkai, ninjutsu, and family heritage.

It was indeed asking too much of them to understand higher-level political games.

In the future, when issuing decrees, the wording must be rigorous, every word must be explained clearly and meticulously, and there should be no wording that could cause misunderstanding.

Chiba Ran made a self-reflection.

Although this misunderstanding was harmless, and even provided a good show, it had indeed slowed down the progress of the plan.

He disliked this feeling of inefficiency.

"Never mind."

He waved his hand, his lordly demeanor restored, and said, "Go back and tell Minato to relay my original words to the Hyuga family, word for word."

"Tell them to stop pondering useless things."

"I have no interest in watching their tragic drama; I only want to see the results."

"Yes, Lord!"

The messenger, as if granted amnesty, bowed and withdrew.

Chiba Ran picked up his teacup and took a sip, his gaze distant.

A bunch of idiots.

Hyuga residence.

The atmosphere was oppressive.

Hyuga Hiashi knelt at the head seat, his eyes bloodshot.

Several elder members of the main family sat on either side, each with a solemn expression.

When Minato Namikaze stepped into the room, everyone inside turned to look at him.

"Lord Hokage."

Hyuga Hiashi's voice carried a tone of desperate finality.

"If you're here about that matter, then please turn back."

"Our Hyuga clan would rather be shattered pottery than intact tiles!"

He believed this was the Daimyo Manor sending their final ultimatum.

However, Minato Namikaze simply looked at him quietly, his expression complex, a mixture of sympathy and awkwardness.

"Hiashi," Minato Namikaze began, "I'm not here about the Imperial Concubine Selection."

Hyuga Hiashi's tone remained stiff, "Then what is the Fourth Hokage here for?"

Minato Namikaze ignored Hyuga Hiashi's bold declaration and conveyed the Daimyo's original intent.

He added in the end, "If the Daimyo Manor does not receive your reply within three days..."

"Officials from the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Internal Affairs will personally visit."

As his words fell.

Silence filled the room.

Everyone was stunned.

They had anticipated countless possibilities: coercion, bribery, or even direct military encirclement.

But they had never imagined the content would be this.

Hyuga Hiashi's mouth opened and closed, and he subconsciously asked, "Th-that's... all?"

"What about the Imperial Concubine Selection?" an elder couldn't help but press, "Does the Lord Daimyo... no longer want our clan's Byakugan?"

This question immediately brought a strange expression to Minato Namikaze's face.

He looked at the Hyuga clansmen, who were prepared for battle, and finally couldn't hold back a long sigh.

"I think we've all misunderstood."

Minato Namikaze said with some helplessness, "From beginning to end, the Lord Daimyo never connected the Imperial Concubine Selection with your Hyuga clan."

"He doesn't care at all whether you send people or not, nor does he care about your Byakugan."

"That imperial decree was for the entire nation to see."

"Whether Konoha participates or not is of no importance to him."

Uh...

A buzzing sound filled the minds of the Hyuga clansmen present, leaving them speechless.

Hyuga Hiashi's face, tense with defiance, instantly froze.

What... did he just say?

Didn't care about the Byakugan?

Not important?

Then their resistance, which risked the lives of the entire clan...

The Kekkei Genkai they had protected at all costs...

The crisis of annihilation that had kept them awake at night...

He said it was all a misunderstanding?

Hyuga Hiashi's head spun as if struck by lightning.

Immediately following was not humiliation, but a surge of overwhelming joy.

The sword hanging over the Hyuga clan's heads had just vanished?

That sword had never existed from the start!

They had been scaring themselves all along!

This sense of relief was so intense that Hyuga Hiashi's tensed muscles instantly slackened, and the cold sweat on his back soaked through his clothes.

But what followed was endless fear and shame!

He had almost personally destroyed the entire Hyuga family due to a foolish misunderstanding.

The Hyuga's proud perception, the caution etched into their very bones, now became a joke.

The Daimyo had never coveted their Byakugan.

And yet, they had almost paid everything for it.

The thought of nearly walking down a dead-end path due to his own misjudgment made Hyuga Hiashi's knees go weak.

His usually dignified face was now only pale and ashamed.

He finally understood.

The Genius Cultivation Plan…

The Guardians of the Twelve…

This was what the Daimyo truly wanted!

He didn't want a woman, or a pair of eyes.

He wanted the complete, unreserved loyalty of the entire Hyuga clan!

That afternoon, Hyuga Hiashi delivered two lists to the Hokage's Office.

One was an application for the Hyuga clan's Genius Cultivation Plan, bearing the names of almost all the younger generation of Hyuga.

If he hadn't been childless himself, and his brother's child still too young, he would have even wanted to include them on the application.

The other was the list of candidates for the Guardians of the Twelve. Hiashi had written his brother's name, Hizashi Hyuga!

The Hyuga clan offered their loyalty in the most thorough manner.

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