Hyuga Ritsu received no official post and merely remained on standby in the camp as a Jonin. This naturally left the Hyuga clansmen deeply dissatisfied, and the faces of the two elders, Hyuga Takashi and Hyuga Shinichiro, were livid.
"Clan Head, this... this... the Hokage is going too far!"
Hyuga Shinichiro was perceptive and bold. He could clearly see that Hyuga Ritsu had not been granted even a minor position according to the village's unwritten rules, and the root of it lay with none other than the Third.
"Shinichiro, watch your tongue!"
Hyuga Takashi was startled. Frowning, he rebuked him, "Do you think this is the clan compound? Do you dare say anything here?"
"What is there to fear? Since the Hokage dares to humiliate the Hyuga Clan like this, he should understand that our clan will surely be dissatisfied. If we simply swallow this insult, won't they instead think our Branch House is weak and easy to bully?"
Hyuga Shinichiro spoke indignantly.
"That may be true, but he is still the Hokage." Hyuga Takashi was equally displeased, but he was more seasoned and understood that opposing a Kage was never a good thing.
"So what if he is the Hokage? He has been Hokage for decades. Isn't everyone saying that once the war ends, he will step down and yield his position to the Fourth Generation? We might as well choose someone on good terms with our clan and support him!"
"But the two candidates with the strongest support right now are one of the Hokage's disciples and one of his disciple's students."
Hyuga Shinichiro was left speechless.
After a moment,
he grumbled irritably, "Then tell me what we should do."
"It is not for me to decide. The Clan Head has the final say."
With that,
the two of them turned to look at the silent Hyuga Ritsu.
"Why are you both looking at me?"
Hyuga Ritsu smiled. "Neither of you is wrong. We definitely cannot openly oppose a Kage unless our clan intends to betray the village and establish itself independently. But being looked down on is indeed infuriating, so we can try to find a suitable candidate to run for Hokage."
As he spoke,
he lowered his head in thought, as though seriously considering the matter.
Hyuga Takashi and Hyuga Shinichiro exchanged glances.
"All right, that is enough of this. Being humiliated by the Hokage like this is infuriating, but there is nothing we can do. He is the Hokage, and we have no way to deal with him. Even if we are humiliated, we can only endure it for now, until we have the ability to strike back. In short, do what you can."
Hyuga Ritsu brought the meaningless discussion to an end.
At this point, further words were useless.
If others looked down on them and humiliated them, they only needed to find a way to repay it. Why waste their breath here?
He rose to his feet. "Elders, I expect an endless stream of missions will come looking for me next. But you two should not be too busy, so I will leave the important task of looking after our clansmen to you. As for recovering the Byakugan, leave that to me."
The village—or rather, the Third and the higher-ups—had made their attitude clear. Nothing could happen to the Hyuga Clan, but he, who had led the Branch House in rebellion and killed the Clan Head of the Main House, was not indispensable. In their eyes, he was entirely superfluous.
Therefore,
if his predictions were correct, he would soon receive a ceaseless flow of assignments. Given Danzo's style, it was not impossible that he would collude with Mist ninja to have him killed.
However, the other clansmen would not receive special treatment. As he had said, the Hyuga belonged to Konoha. Reducing the Hyuga Clan to a weakened state would do Konoha no good.
"Clan Head, are you saying the village is targeting you?"
Hyuga Shinichiro's mind worked quickly, and his expression immediately changed. He had thought the village was merely deliberately humiliating their clan as punishment for killing members of the Main House.
"Targeting me would be overstating it. They will not send me on missions that are certain death, but... let us not talk about this. I know what I am doing. You only need to follow my instructions and take care of the other clansmen. Leave everything else to me!"
"Then, Clan Head, can you tell us how exactly you intend to recover the Byakugan? Do you really not need our help?"
Hyuga Takashi asked softly.
"It is simple. If I am lucky enough to encounter that 'Byakugan Killer,' I will kill him and take back the Byakugan. If I am unlucky and cannot find him, then I will capture a few high-ranking Mist ninja and try to make a deal with them."
Ever since the Mist ninja named "Ao" had taken a Byakugan from the Main House, he had gained the nickname "Byakugan Killer." It made it sound as if many Hyuga clansmen had died at his hands.
"All right, that is all. My Teacher has come to see me, so go attend to your business!"
Hyuga Ritsu stood up, waving them away as he strode outside.
At the entrance to the camp specially assigned to the Hyuga Clan, he saw a white-haired middle-aged man waiting there.
"Teacher, you are back!"
Hyuga Ritsu greeted him happily.
He had originally planned to seek out Hiruko, but Orochimaru had told him that Hiruko had gone out on a mission and was not currently in the camp. He had also said that once Hiruko returned, he would inform him of Hyuga Ritsu's arrival.
Hyuga Ritsu had thought he might be sent out on a mission before Hiruko returned, yet Hiruko was already back.
"Ah Ritsu, you really are... unbelievably bold!"
Looking at his familiar yet somehow unfamiliar disciple, Hiruko could not help sighing.
At first, he had merely hoped Hyuga Ritsu could use the Chimera Technique to break the Caged Bird Seal and then flee far away. He had never expected Hyuga Ritsu to be so bold as to sneak back into the village, overthrow the Main House's rule over the Hyuga Clan, and take the seat of Clan Head for himself.
"When it is time to take a gamble, you have to gamble! Besides, rather than live like a rat hiding from everyone, I would rather risk my life and fight for it. And even if I lose, it is no big deal. I can just run away again. Come on, Teacher. Let us talk inside."
Hyuga Ritsu personally led Hiruko into the tent.
The two sat down.
"Akiba, Akiba, bring us some hot water for tea!"
Hyuga Ritsu called for his younger female cousin, who had come to the front lines with them this time, to help.
"Ah Ritsu, you have already put on the airs of a Clan Head." Seeing the girl come in to pour water, Hiruko could not resist teasing him.
"Hehe! This treatment is my payment for labor!"
"What do you mean?"
"Akiba helps serve me tea and water to make me look good. In exchange, I have to teach her the advanced Gentle Fist technique of our clan, the Gentle Step Twin Lion Fist."
"I see!"
Hiruko could not help laughing. But once Hyuga Akiba had prepared the tea and left, his expression abruptly changed. His face became especially grave as he asked, "Ah Ritsu, Orochimaru told me that your current situation is not very good. What exactly is going on?"
Before you continue