The Fox Mask

Ten minutes earlier.

The Hyuga Main Family group arrived at an unnamed forest situated between the Forest of Death and Grass Wave Coast, traveling at a normal pace for Ninja on land.

At this moment, they were unaware that they had walked into a Kirigakure ambush.

From a God's eye view, their formation from front to back was:

Hyuga Main Family group -- Entrance to Kirigakure ambush zone -- Location of Ao of the Mist and Hyuga Yu -- Kirigakure squad executing the bait mission.

This team of 12 was divided into three squads: front, middle, and rear.

At this time, In the front squad, where Hyuga Tetsu was located, "Woooo... Roar!"

Inuzuka Tsume's ninja dog, Kuromaru, a wolf-like Inuit dog, suddenly let out an uneasy howl.

It dropped to all fours, its tail raised, baring its teeth as it stopped.

The front squad immediately halted due to this anomaly.

"What's wrong, Kuromaru? Auntie Tsume?" Hyuga Tetsu, who was constantly vigilant of their surroundings, turned his head and asked Inuzuka Tsume.

Inuzuka Tsume immediately squatted down, stroked Kuromaru's mane, and began communicating with her ninja dog in low growls.

A moment later, she looked up, frowning:

"Kuromaru says she feels uneasy."

"There's a strange, damp smell in the air."

An adult dog's sense of smell can reach human scents from 400 to 500 meters away, while a specialized ninja dog like Kuromaru can smell specific items from 5 to 8 kilometers away.

Common Ninja Tools used by Ninja, such as Kunai, Shuriken, and Explosive Tags, are a focal point of their training.

Hyuga Tetsu immediately asked, "Can you smell any Ninja or an ambush?"

"No," Inuzuka Tsume frowned. "Maybe Kuromaru is just being overly cautious."

Upon hearing this, the Jonin leading the front squad, Hyuga Hiroshi, nodded.

"Better safe than sorry, let's scout ahead."

He turned his head and looked at Hyuga Tetsu, giving instructions:

"Tetsu, go relay the message to Young Master Genko in the middle squad. I'll use my Byakugan to scout ahead."

"Yes."

Hyuga Tetsu immediately complied.

Soon, Upon hearing the news, the Main Family's young master, Hyuga Genko, immediately turned to look at Hyuga Hideki, the Jonin bodyguard who was always by his side.

Hyuga Hideki nodded in understanding, veins bulging around his eyes. He activated his Byakugan and spun like a top for several rotations.

He used the exact same technique as Hyuga Yu.

This was an ability to alter the viewing angle, allowing the field of vision to contract and see further, which few even within the Hyuga Clan had mastered. This ability relied purely on talent, and in Shippuden, only Hyuga Hinata had displayed it.

As a veteran Jonin of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Hideki could perceive vertically over a range of 8 kilometers.

At this moment, Hyuga Hideki, after spinning in place for a few rotations, deactivated his Byakugan and reported to Hyuga Genko:

"The front squad's feeling is correct."

"About seven kilometers to our east, there is indeed a squad of Kirigakure Chunin."

"The squad consists of three Chunin. Their mission scroll has the words 'Tanzaku Castle' on it, so they shouldn't be here to intercept us deliberately. They are on a mission deep into the Land of Fire."

"Are you sure?" Hyuga Genko frowned slightly. Encountering such a situation right after leaving the village made him feel uneasy.

Hyuga Hideki couldn't help but chuckle wryly, then explained seriously, "Young Master Genko, this kind of situation is common. The combat style of Ninja is different from what you might imagine. Cases of them attacking in large groups or conquering castles are rare."

"Moreover, there are only three Chunin on their side. They wouldn't be foolish enough to try and intercept our middle squad of twelve."

"If you're still worried, we can delay for a moment and deal with these three before continuing our journey."

"No," Hyuga Genko frowned, his gaze deepening.

"We'll take a detour."

"A detour?"

Hearing this, not only Hyuga Hideki, but also Hyuga Tetsu, who had come to report, and Hyuga Natsu from the guard squad, all slightly turned their heads.

"It's possible this is a decoy from the enemy," Hyuga Genko swept his gaze over the few people in the squad, his eyes turning cold.

"Therefore, even the slightest possibility of danger must be completely eliminated!"

The sudden abnormal situation reminded Hyuga Genko of the thick fog that erupted around the Hyuga Clan's territory on the eve of his departure.

The Hyuga Main Family wasn't filled with naive fools who knew nothing of the world. On the contrary, the Hyuga Main Family had several branches, all vying for seats within the main house.

In the minds of many Main Family members, their status was no different from that of the Branch Family. Aside from not being locked by the Caged Bird, they still had to work like oxen and horses for the Hyuga Main Family branch led by Hyuga Hiashi.

(PS: Hyuga Kō, Hyuga Hinata's guardian Jonin, is also from the Main Family, yet he refers to himself as a subordinate to the Main Family heir, Hyuga Hinata.)

As a member of the Main Family who had grown up in such a backstabbing environment, Hyuga Genko simply lacked experience as a ninja, but he wasn't foolish. Furthermore, he understood all too well how filthy human beings could be.

Thinking this, Hyuga Genko suddenly turned his head coldly to look at Hyuga Tetsu, who had come to deliver the report.

"Hyuga Tetsu."

Hyuga Tetsu instinctively knelt on one knee. "Yes!"

Hyuga Genko indifferently commanded, "Use the Transformation Technique and disguise yourself as me."

He then looked at his guardian Jonin standing beside him.

"Eikiteru, send a shadow clone to stay with the squadron. Your main body will stay by my side at all times."

Hyuga Tetsu froze in place, hesitating for a moment before looking up and asking, "Then... then what about Young Master Genko? Where... where are you going?"

Hyuga Genko offered him a kind smile, one that looked like a fox in human skin.

"Tetsu, don't be nervous."

"You know, this is just a precaution. After the mission is over, I'll personally guide your training."

He thought for a moment, then, as if still not feeling secure enough, he put on an even more hypocritical smile.

"I just remembered, you seemed to have gone to see that... Hyuga Yu yesterday?"

"Was it because he received a letter of appointment from Elder Chongguang?"

"After this mission is over, I will... " At this point, he turned his head again to look at Hyuga Natsu, who stood silently beside him.

"And you, Natsu, you are both reliable children. I believe you are perfectly capable of working within the Main Family, entering its more core positions!"

"So,"

Hyuga Genko smiled as usual, but this smile now seemed exceptionally false.

"You should know what to do, right?"

"Of course, if it's come to this and you're still unwilling, I can also persuade you in a different manner."

For a moment, Hyuga Tetsu felt his throat go dry. He looked up and saw the young master of the Main Family raise his hand and form a hand seal right in front of him.

It was the activation formula for the Caged Bird.

Seeing this, Hyuga Tetsu's body trembled slightly. His beating heart instantly felt like it had plunged into an ice cellar.

He immediately realized that he was being used as a decoy by the Main Family.

Even though he was only facing a squad of Kirigakure Chunin with no inherent risk, and the high and mighty Main Family not only didn't use the Caged Bird to forcibly compel him to obey his orders but even offered extremely generous rewards.

He didn't know how to refuse, nor did he have the right to refuse.

But for the first time, He felt an emotion called "humiliation."

It was an invisible foot stomping on his face, treating him as an object, yet achieved through hypocritical, fox-like means.

At this moment, In his daze, Hyuga Tetsu finally began to understand why Hyuga Yu had refused the Main Family elder's letter of appointment.