Swan and Crow

"You know, Hanabi isn't that young anymore. Hyuga Hiashi has to choose between the two of you—either brand you with this Curse Mark, or Hanabi."

"I... I'm willing." Hinata clenched the hem of her clothes tightly, her voice trembling slightly, yet firm.

She did not know, nor did she understand, why the clan had developed such a technique. The only thing she understood was that someone had been hurt by it. The people who had been hurt were Sister Yue's parents, Uncle Hizashi.

And next would be one of her and Hanabi.

A gentle smile hung on Uchiha Jie's lips as he looked down at Hinata and asked,

"If I don't take you away, will you willingly accept the Caged Bird Seal, let Hanabi become the next head of the Main Family, and voluntarily join the Branch Family?"

"Yes... yes, I'm willing!" Hinata's voice was louder than before.

"From Yue's memories, you should know what it means to be branded with the Caged Bird Curse Mark, right?" Uchiha Jie continued.

"Yes..." Hinata nodded, but Uchiha Jie cut her off.

"It's not just an ugly mark appearing on your forehead."

As he spoke, he extended his right hand. A streak of black suddenly appeared in the vast white space. A crow flapped its wings and landed in his hand.

The bird tilted its head, its scarlet eyes examining Hinata's face. Then Uchiha Jie grabbed its feet from behind and roughly stuffed it into a birdcage that had just appeared.

The cage was small, and the gaps between its bars were even smaller. The crow curled up and beat its wings desperately, but after a while, it quieted down on its own. Its crimson pupils were no longer as lively as before, yet they glimmered with an indescribable light.

"Are you really willing to become this crow?"

A smile appeared on Uchiha Jie's lips as he handed the birdcage to Hyuga Hinata.

She took the cage and immediately found its door. At some point, a tiny black key had appeared in her hand. She inserted it into the lock, and with a click, the crow was free.

Hyuga Hinata watched in horror as it shot out of the cage like black lightning. Hatred swirled in its scarlet eyes as its claws reached for the equally scarlet Sharingan. Then, with a wave of Uchiha Jie's hand, its body was scattered through the white space, leaving only a feather drifting slowly down before her.

"Hyuga Hinata, this matter will not end just because you are branded with the Caged Bird."

As he spoke, he extended his hand again. This time, more things appeared in the white space.

Several swans strolled about leisurely, while dozens of Crows were crammed together inside a huge cage nearby. Amid their black feathers, their red gemstone-like eyes held jealousy, hatred, madness, and malice.

Blocking the cage door was a blood-drenched swan. Her feathers were no longer white, stained the color of blood. Her gaze was no longer lively as she watched the swans outside the cage strutting about, laughing and chatting. Her expression shifted from resolve to doubt, until red light finally flickered in her eyes as well.

Hyuga Hinata covered her mouth as she watched the bloodstains on that swan slowly congeal into black clots, covering her entire body. She watched the swan's eyes gradually turn bright red, just like the other Crows'.

The swan turned around and twisted her head, cawing like the other Crows. She battered the cage door alongside them. The little lock grew looser and looser until the Crows broke through the cage door.

This time, their target was no longer Uchiha Jie, but the swans outside the cage. They swarmed forward, and in an instant, the swans were torn apart.

Hyuga Hinata sat beside the swans. She tried to reach out and stop them, but all she touched were the Crows' phantoms. Yet the swans' blood splattered across her face, sliding down from her forehead to the corner of her mouth.

With another wave of Uchiha Jie's hand, both the Crows and the swans vanished once more. Only the blood on Hinata's face remained, slowly congealing.

He reached out and gently wiped Hinata's cheek. His voice was soft, but it carried an undisguised smile—a mocking smile.

"You can't save anyone, Hinata," he said with a smile.

"In the beginning, every member of the Hyuga Clan was a swan, until someone was locked inside a cage."

"Their hatred grew day by day, and their fury burned ever hotter. That Elder came up with an excellent plan, and Hizashi Hyuga was the perfect candidate."

"Honestly, he was far better than your father. He was only born a little later than your father, yet he held no resentment. Even most of the Branch Family admired him. He saved his older brother, but he could only save him once."

"Because the fire of the Branch Family cannot be easily extinguished like this. They have been locked in cages for too long—so long that they have forgotten what it was like to soar through the sky."

"But they can still see the swans flying."

"Now, let's look at another ending."

He waved his hand again, and the swans and Crows reappeared. The swan blocking the cage door was once again stained with blood, yet this time, all of it was seen clearly by the swan outside the cage.

He saw the rioting Crows. He saw the crystal tears of the swan in the cage. His face remained expressionless as he gently opened his beak and called out.

The instant the sound rang out, the Crows inside the birdcage became even more frenzied. They battered everything around them and shrieked madly, but it was futile.

The cage gradually shrank. The Crows' cries changed from furious to miserable, then finally fell silent. All that remained was a small pool of blood and a small tuft of feathers.

Hyuga Hinata began to cry again. She had just reached out, wanting to open the cage for the Crows, but she still touched only phantoms. Yet her fingertips turned bright red, stained with blood.

"On one side are your father, Hyuga Hiashi, and your younger sister, Hyuga Hanabi."

Uchiha Jie sat beside Hinata and gently patted her back, yet his voice was low as he spoke cruel words.

"On the other side are your Sister Yue, your Brother Neji, your guards, your nanny, and every other member of the Hyuga Clan."

"I heard you say that they are all people you want to protect. You do not want any of them to be harmed."

"Do you know why, even while your Sister Yue was unconscious, we could still hear and see what was happening around her?"

"Because she did not eat at all that day. She keenly noticed the sleeping pills in her food. She heard her parents talking in the courtyard. She watched her parents be crushed to death by the cage before her eyes, and she saw herself being locked inside it."

"After that, she became just like her mother. She never smiled again. She placed the red clothes she loved most into her white eyes. There was blood within them, and hatred glimmered there."

"Now, the Crows are about to break out of the cage, Hyuga Hinata."