Fox Mask

Ten minutes earlier.

The Hyuga Main Family group arrived at this Nameless Forest, nestled between the Forest of Death and Grass Wave Coast, traveling at the normal speed of ninja moving overland.

At this point, they did not yet know that they had entered the encirclement of a Kirigakure ambush.

From an omniscient perspective, their positions from front to back were:

Hyuga Main Family group—entrance to the Kirigakure ambush zone—Ao of the Mist and Hyuga Yu's location—Kirigakure squad carrying out the bait mission.

This twelve-man team was divided into front, middle, and rear squads.

At this moment,

Within the front squad, where Hyuga Tetsu was stationed,

"Whine... howl!"

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

She crouched low on all fours, her tail standing erect, baring her teeth as she stopped.

The front squad immediately halted because of the abnormality.

"What's wrong with Kuromaru, Sis Tsume?" Hyuga Tetsu, who had been constantly watching their surroundings, turned to Inuzuka Tsume and asked.

Inuzuka Tsume immediately crouched down, stroked Kuromaru's mane, and began communicating with her ninja hound in low, indistinct murmurs.

A moment later, she raised her head and frowned.

"Kuromaru says she feels uneasy."

"There's an unusual, damp smell in the air."

An adult dog's sense of smell could detect a human scent from four to five hundred meters away. A specially bred ninja hound like Kuromaru could detect the scent of a designated object from five to eight kilometers away.

Ninja tools commonly used by shinobi, such as kunai, shuriken, and Explosive Tags, were an especially important part of their training.

Hyuga Tetsu immediately asked, "Can she smell any ninjas or an ambush?"

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

Hearing that, Hyuga Hiroshi, the jonin leading the front squad, nodded.

"There's no harm in being careful. Let's scout ahead first."

He turned to Hyuga Tetsu and ordered,

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

"Yes."

Hyuga Tetsu immediately agreed.

Soon after,

Upon hearing the report, Hyuga Genko, the young master of the Main House, immediately turned to look at Hyuga Hideki, the guardian jonin constantly stationed at his side.

Hyuga Hideki nodded in understanding. Veins bulged around his eyes as he activated his Byakugan, then spun several times like a top.

He was using the exact same technique as Hyuga Yu.

Even within the Hyuga Clan, few possessed this ability to alter the angle of their vision. It allowed their field of view to contract and thus see farther. It depended entirely on talent. In Shippuden, only Hyuga Hinata had ever displayed such an ability.

As a veteran jonin of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Hideki could sense vertically across a range of more than eight kilometers.

At this moment,

After spinning in place several times, Hyuga Hideki deactivated his Byakugan and reported to Hyuga Genko,

"The front squad's instincts were correct."

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

"The squad consists of three Chunin. Their mission dossier bears the words 'Tanzaku Castle.' They probably aren't here specifically to intercept us, but are carrying out a mission deep within the Land of Fire."

"Are you certain?" Hyuga Genko frowned slightly. Having encountered something like this just after leaving the village left him feeling uneasy.

Hyuga Hideki could not help but laugh. Then he explained seriously, "Young Master Genko, this sort of thing is common. Ninja combat is different from what you imagine. It is very rare for shinobi to move in large groups and assault cities or strongholds."

"Besides, there are only three Chunin on the other side. They wouldn't be foolish enough to try and intercept a full twelve-man middle squad like ours."

"If you're still worried, we can stay here for a while, eliminate those three, and then continue on our way."

"No." Hyuga Genko knitted his brows, his gaze darkening.

"We'll take a detour."

"A detour?"

At those words, not only Hyuga Hideki, but even Hyuga Tetsu, who had come to report, and Hyuga Natsu of the Guard Squad glanced over.

"We cannot rule out the possibility that this is enemy bait." Hyuga Genko swept his gaze over the others, his eyes turning cold.

"So even if there is only the slightest possibility of danger, we must eliminate it completely!"

The sudden discovery reminded Hyuga Genko of the thick fog that had erupted around the Hyuga Clan compound on the night before departure.

Not everyone in the Hyuga Main Family was an inexperienced fool. On the contrary, the Hyuga Main Family had several lineages, all competing for the position of the Main House.

In the eyes of many Main Family members, their status was not much different from that of the Branch House. Other than not being branded with the Caged Bird, they still had to serve the Main House lineage led by Hyuga Hiashi like beasts of burden.

(PS: Hyuga Kō, Hyuga Hinata's guardian jonin, belonged to the Main Family just like Hinata, yet referred to himself as a servant before Hyuga Hinata, the Main House heir.)

Having grown up for years in such an environment of intrigue and scheming, Hyuga Genko lacked experience as a ninja, but he was no fool. Moreover, he understood very well just how filthy human beings could be.

At that thought, Hyuga Genko suddenly turned coldly toward Hyuga Tetsu, who stood nearby after delivering the report.

"Hyuga Tetsu."

Hyuga Tetsu instinctively dropped to one knee. "Here!"

Hyuga Genko gave his order indifferently. "Use the Transformation Jutsu and disguise yourself as me."

He then looked at his guardian jonin beside him.

"Hideki, leave a Shadow Clone Technique in the middle squad. Your real body will remain at my side at all times."

Hyuga Tetsu froze, hesitated for a moment, then raised his head and asked, "Th-then what about you, Young Master Genko? Wh-where are you going?"

Hyuga Genko gave him a gentle smile, smiling like a fox wearing human skin.

"Tetsu, don't be nervous."

"You know this is only a precaution. Once the mission is over, I will personally guide your training."

He thought for a moment, as though he felt that was not enough insurance, then revealed an extremely false smile.

"I just remembered. Yesterday, it seemed you went to see that... Hyuga Yu?"

"Was it because he received Elder Chōkō's letter of appointment?"

"Once this mission is over, I will..." At that point, he turned to look at the silent Hyuga Natsu beside him.

"And you too, Natsu. You are both reliable children. I believe you are fully qualified to work for the Main Family, to enter more central positions within it!"

"So,"

Hyuga Genko smiled as usual, but at this moment, his smile seemed exceptionally false.

"You should understand what you need to do, correct?"

"Of course, if even after I've put it this plainly, you are still unwilling, I can persuade you in another way."

For a moment, Hyuga Tetsu felt his throat go dry. He raised his head, only to see the Main Family's young master lift a hand and form a hand seal before his eyes.

It was the activation formula for the Caged Bird.

At the sight, Hyuga Tetsu's body trembled slightly. His hot, beating heart plunged into an icy abyss in an instant.

He immediately realized that the Main Family was using him as a stand-in.

Even though he only faced a Kirigakure Chunin squad that posed no risk whatsoever, and even though the lofty Main Family had not used the Caged Bird to force him to carry out the order and had even offered an extremely generous reward.

He did not know how to refuse, nor was he qualified to refuse.

Yet, for the first time in his life,

He felt an emotion called humiliation.

It was the invisible foot that turned people into objects and trampled upon his face, achieved through the fox-like hypocrisy of the Main Family.

At that moment,

In his daze, Hyuga Tetsu finally understood, if only a little, why Hyuga Yu had refused the Main Family elder's letter of appointment.