Uncle's Worries

Hyuga Kazuya quickly looked up again and smiled as he sought Uncle's help.

"Uncle, even if you give me the Chakra Metal directly, I have no way to use it."

Uncle unhurriedly sipped the Tea in his hand, a sly grin on his face.

"I've already found the best blacksmith in the Land of Fire for you."

He deliberately paused for a moment, teasing Hyuga Kazuya with the suspense.

"But as for the cost..."

"Uncle, I'm your own nephew. I lost my parents when I was little, and I've always regarded you as a father."

Hyuga Kazuya hurriedly put on a pitiful expression, tugging at Uncle's sleeve.

Seeing Hyuga Kazuya's plaintive look, Uncle set down his teacup. After pondering for a moment, he spoke with a pained expression.

"Fine. The Master Blacksmith originally wanted five hundred thousand Ryo to make it for you, but you're my own nephew, so I'll pay three hundred and fifty thousand Ryo for you. Adding the one hundred thousand Ryo you were originally rewarded for your performance at the Ninja Academy, you only need to pay fifty thousand Ryo."

Hearing Uncle's words, Hyuga Kazuya was overjoyed. But before he could agree, Uncle continued with another question.

"By the way, I haven't asked yet. What are you planning to forge with the Chakra Metal?"

"Arrowheads for a bow."

Lowering his head, Hyuga Kazuya did not quite dare to meet Uncle's eyes as he answered softly.

"You want to forge a bow?" His tone was full of surprise, and his voice rose considerably.

Hyuga Kazuya could only nod without explaining.

He also wanted to see what the person closest to him in the Clan thought about this. Whether Uncle approved or opposed it, Hyuga Kazuya would not abandon his plan to make a bow. He merely wanted to use this test to observe the Clan's reaction to "change," as a reference for his future actions toward the Clan.

How ridiculous. Since when had using a bow become a reform?

Hyuga Kazuya had thought Uncle would be angry when he heard that he wanted to forge a bow. After all, it went against the Main Family's so-called "fine traditions" throughout history.

Yet Uncle was not angry at all. Instead, he praised him with a relaxed expression.

"Kazuya, you're doing well. You haven't let the Clan's so-called traditions and honor bind you."

"Go ahead and do as you wish. This old man will bear everything for you."

Seeing Uncle support him so firmly, Hyuga Kazuya was delighted. The person he had expected to become an obstacle had instead become an ally—how could he not be happy? Yet he soon discovered that he had celebrated too early.

"Forging arrowheads is different from forging swords and blades. It's more difficult, so you'll need to pay another fifty thousand Ryo. While I'm at it, I'll have the Master Blacksmith make you a bow and matching arrow shafts."

Though Hyuga Kazuya's heart ached over his savings, he had no choice but to agree.

Afterward, Hyuga Kazuya returned to his room and found his piggy bank. Most of the money inside had been obtained from Uncle over the years through all sorts of excuses.

After carefully counting it, he found that it was neither more nor less than exactly one hundred thousand Ryo. Seeing that it was exactly one hundred thousand Ryo, Hyuga Kazuya could not help cursing inwardly.

That Old Man... did he do this on purpose?

But Hyuga Kazuya had no choice. Debts always had to be paid. If he lacked the strength to resist, he could only obediently accept it. Besides, once he got the bow and arrows, his killing power would soar.

For strength, for his future safety, he would endure it.

Hyuga Kazuya then hurried back to Uncle and reluctantly handed over his one hundred thousand Ryo.

Once Hyuga Kazuya saw that everything that needed discussing had been discussed, he told Uncle that he was going to train in the courtyard and quickly left that money-draining place.

After seeing Hyuga Kazuya leave, Uncle counted the money in his hands and said smugly.

"That brat thinks he can compete with me? I had to get back every bit of money he cheated out of me before."

Recalling Hyuga Kazuya's earlier words, Uncle let out a deep sigh, his expression growing somewhat desolate.

"Ah..."

"I had planned to let him graduate normally from the Ninja Academy, then return to the Clan and be assigned as a guard for the Clan grounds. That way, he wouldn't have to risk his life outside and could live out his days in peace."

"But I never expected him to have a heart unwilling to settle for mediocrity."

"Yes, I should have seen it long ago. I should have seen it the moment he displayed extraordinary talent as a ninja."

It was only that he had always been unwilling to think in that direction.

Shaking his head, Uncle realized that he had been too wishful in his thinking. Born into the Hyuga Clan, how could one possibly avoid life-and-death struggles?

"I should get out and make some visits as well. While I'm still here, I need to find this brat someone to rely on."

"With that stubborn streak of his, if he doesn't have someone backing him after I'm gone, who knows how the others in the Main Family will deal with him?" He thought of Hyuga Kazuya's outwardly carefree smile and optimistic personality, while knowing the emotions the boy kept buried deep in his heart.

He really was like Uncle in his youth, always wanting to change every injustice, only to find himself constrained at every turn. By the time he grew old, there was precious little he had been able to change.

Wait, what if this brat faced off against the Main Family in the future?

All at once, as though he had thought of something terrifying, Uncle tightly shut his eyes, his face expressionless. Yet from his repeatedly twitching eyelids, it was clear that he seemed to be making an agonizing decision.

After a long while, Uncle finally made up his mind. His entire bearing changed as he slowly opened his eyes. At that moment, it was as though an invisible aura had stirred up a violent gale in the room, making the paintings and calligraphy on the walls rustle loudly.

Even the air seemed to have frozen, filled with an incomparably oppressive presence. Even Hyuga Kazuya in a distant room felt as though someone had viciously clenched his heart, leaving him unable to breathe.

But that aura came quickly and vanished just as quickly. Hyuga Kazuya, in his room, only felt that everything just now had been an illusion. Perhaps he had caught a chill recently?

Uncle, who had just opened his eyes in the room, felt the frailty of his aging body and the draining of his vitality. The trace of resolve and killing intent in his eyes slowly faded. He withdrew his aura, as if none of the strange events from before had ever happened, once again becoming a kindly old man.

"Kazuya, if you truly want to change this Clan, perhaps that will be the last thing I can do for you." As he spoke those final words, Uncle's eyes turned piercingly cold, and his clenched finger joints went white.

Clearly, Uncle also knew that relying on a single backer was not safe enough. He had his own contingency plan, because as an elder of the Main Family himself, he knew exactly how ruthless certain Main Family elders could be in their methods of protecting the Main Family.

Coming back to his senses, Uncle knew that was the final option only when there was truly no other way. For now, the most important thing was to find this brat a good teacher—preferably one with deep ties to Konoha's upper ranks.

"I'm old, I'm old. I'll have to swallow my pride and ask some of my old friends for help."

Of course, Hyuga Kazuya knew nothing of this. He knew that with his rate of growth, during the Third Shinobi World War, as long as he did not die the moment he appeared, a few years would be enough for him to grow. He might not be able to turn the tide alone, but he would certainly be capable of standing on his own.

After the war, he would at least be able to enter the reserve ranks of Konoha's upper echelon.

The other Main Family elders of the Hyuga Clan were so cowardly that even with the Caged Bird Seal, as long as he did not openly oppose them, they would not dare do anything to him.

Still, despite saying that, Hyuga Kazuya needed to make the necessary preparations. He had to grasp both sides firmly.

Even if it truly came to that, before he died, he would tear a bloody chunk from the Main Family.

A man dies but once; if he doesn't die, he lives for ten thousand years.