The group raced along the trail for hundreds of kilometers before finally catching up with the Hidden Cloud delegation.
Ahead of them, the Hidden Cloud delegation, led by Prince A, was not moving particularly fast. Its formation was orderly, however, with nearly ten ninja on full alert guarding the carriage at its center.
Inside the carriage, a woman in her thirties held a baby in her arms. Hizashi Hyuga immediately recognized her as a member of the Hidden Cloud delegation.
Well, damn. The Hidden Cloud delegation had planned to kidnap Neji from the very beginning. No wonder they had included a woman who was clearly married.
The Ninja World's social structure bore some resemblance to Japan's. Female ninja existed, but once they married, they took far fewer missions, often switching to administrative work or retiring outright.
As a result, married female ninja were actually quite rare on the battlefield.
"Hizashi, can you confirm that the baby in the carriage is Neji?" Hyuga Hiashi asked his younger twin brother.
Although Hyuga Hiashi was already fairly certain that the baby in the woman's arms was his nephew Neji, he asked anyway to avoid any embarrassing mistake.
Hizashi Hyuga activated his Byakugan. After checking repeatedly, he exclaimed, "It's Neji! The baby in the carriage is Neji.
"That handsome face, those noble Byakugan eyes, that stirring in my heart from our shared blood.
"In this very instant, my heart resonated with the blood flowing through Neji's veins. There's no mistake. I can clearly feel Neji calling out to me, his father!"
Hyuga Hiashi nodded and ordered, "Good. Everyone, pursue at full speed. We must stop that convoy."
When Hyuga Hiashi and the others spotted the Hidden Cloud delegation, the Kumogakure ninja also noticed the pursuers on their heels. Kumogakure had excellent scouts of its