Kill, Make a Scene. The Stage Is Set

Boom!

A deafening clap of thunder exploded over Konoha, and a ghastly white flash of lightning illuminated the entire world for an instant.

Then the rain came pouring down, mercilessly blanketing the whole of Konoha.

Mist swirled, and the wind howled.

The weather at that moment was just like Konoha's predicament.

Buffeted by storms, with its very survival hanging by a thread.

In the southern district of the village, among Konoha's two great clan compounds, the Hyuga Clan Compound was utterly silent—a stark contrast to the Uchiha Clan Compound, where the air was thick with bloodlust.

"Have you prepared the list?"

Hyuga Hiashi's voice was hoarse, and an unshakable gloom lingered in his pure-white eyes.

Compared to the confident, dignified Hyuga clan head he had once been, he now looked more like a defeated man driven into a corner by reality, forced to make a choice.

"It's mostly finished..."

Hyuga Riwo paused beside him, his tone heavy as well. "Aside from those who secretly went to the battlefield, everything else has been sorted out."

As he spoke, he handed over the list.

Hiashi took it and slowly scanned the page.

One familiar name after another met his eyes.

Most belonged to core members of the Main Branch or shinobi the clan had secretly trained. Yet not a single member of the Branch Family—the people who truly upheld the Hyuga bloodline and fighting strength—appeared on the list.

Hizashi wasn't there.

Hyuga Qinglan wasn't there either.

"Evacuate... Is this really what we're going to do?"

As Hiashi looked at the familiar names, his heart twisted with pain.

The Branch Family was being spent as shields on the front lines, while the Main Branch discussed escape routes in the rear.

As head of the Hyuga clan, had he really... made the wrong choice?

"Hiashi, this is to preserve the Byakugan bloodline."

Riwo looked at him and finally sighed. His words held both helplessness and the cruel weight of reality.

"If Konoha hadn't fallen apart, our Hyuga clan wouldn't need to make a decision like this. We could even keep sending people to support the front lines."

"But Konoha now..." Riwo shook his head. "Even the Third Hokage and the Yellow Flash might not be able to stabilize the situation. Why should we Hyuga keep wading into this mess?"

"This battle is almost certain to end in defeat. When it does, the Cloud Village and Kirigakure will probably come swarming in like mad dogs scenting blood, aiming straight for our Byakugan."

"..."

Hiashi fell silent.

Only the patter of rain outside and the sigh of the breeze could be heard in the room.

A moment later, Hiashi suddenly raised his head. For the first time, a nearly unyielding sharpness appeared in his usually calm, white eyes.

"If all that remains of a clan is a group of eyes barely clinging to life, capable only of running away..."

He slowly lowered the list. His voice was quiet, but every word rang like iron.

"Then what's the point of talking about dignity?"

With that, he stood and straightened his clan head's robes.

At that moment, the authority and resolve of a clan head finally returned to his once-calm, weary face.

"Have Hizashi take the Main Branch children and the elders through the secret passage. Head for the reserve outpost on the border of the Land of Fire."

"What about you, Hiashi?" Elder Riwo's face changed drastically, and the words burst from his mouth.

"Me?"

Hiashi turned around, his expression calm, but a long-dormant battle spirit had kindled in his eyes.

"I'm going to the front lines. I'll lead the Branch Family shinobi into battle."

"If I run before even fighting, then my name, Hyuga Hiashi, doesn't deserve a place in the Hyuga clan genealogy."

He paused, his gaze calm and resolute.

"Qinglan is still on the battlefield."

"As head of the Hyuga clan, I can't let myself lose by too much... can I?"

Meanwhile.

On the other side of the southern district, the atmosphere in the Uchiha Clan Compound was entirely different from that of the Hyuga.

There was no dejection, no deathly silence.

Instead, the fighting spirit in the air seemed ready to burst through the roof.

"You are the last hope of our Uchiha clan."

Inside Naka Shrine, Uchiha Setsuna stood at the forefront. His booming voice rang through the hall, each word firm and forceful.

"And for that very reason, even though the village is in its most desperate hour, you children will not be sent to the battlefield—not for the clan, and not for the village."

Apart from the clan members who had already left for the front lines, the shrine held almost entirely the old, the young, and women.

Yet even so, everyone stood straight-backed, their eyes fixed on Uchiha Setsuna on the dais.

The middle-aged shinobi, now grown old; the silent elders; and the children with their youthful faces all waited to hear what the elder would say next.

"The current Third Hokage may have been appointed by that old dog, Senju Tobirama."

Uchiha Setsuna's tone abruptly turned cold. "He uses the Uchiha, yet fears us and keeps us under his thumb!"

He snorted, then changed tack. "But there's no denying that Konoha was created by Lord Madara and Senju Hashirama together. With the village in danger, the Uchiha clan cannot—and absolutely will not—stand by and do nothing!"

"Leave supporting the battlefield to the adults."

As Setsuna spoke, a sly smile tugged at his lips.

"As for you children..."

His gaze returned to the younger generation, including Shisui and Itachi.

"Don't talk about going to the battlefield until you've awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan!"

Boom!

A ghastly white bolt of lightning split the sky, and deafening thunder crashed outside the shrine.

The rain came down harder and harder, as though the heavens themselves were mourning this disaster-stricken village.

Uchiha Setsuna turned and led the adult shinobi of the clan toward the shrine's entrance.

But just then, a clear, resolute voice came from behind him, brimming with unshakable determination.

"Elder, I'm going too!"

Uchiha Shisui, who had sat silently in a corner, spoke with extraordinary conviction.

His normally gentle, limpid eyes had now turned a deep scarlet...

Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

Deep beneath the veil of rain, along the muddy mountain road leading to the Rock Battlefield,

a shinobi force raced through the storm, mud and water flying beneath their feet, not one of them hesitating.

"All that scheming for nothing..."

Hyuga Qinglan maintained an even rhythm of breathing as he sprinted with the unit.

His gaze passed over the ranks of shinobi and settled on the imposing figure at the very front.

He'd even summoned Ao to deliberately provoke Hanzo.

He hadn't expected the man to look so indecisive, yet act so swiftly in the end...

"And it seems a few words of provocation even rekindled Hanzo's ambition to become the 'pinnacle of the Shinobi World'..."

Be confident.

Believe in yourself.

Only when you truly fell from the heights and shattered on the ground

would your pride be crushed completely.

Hyuga Qinglan chuckled inwardly, his expression as composed as ever.

At the same time, his mind kept reviewing the forbidden jutsu from Konoha's scroll, like a scene playing over and over.

He would reap the greatest possible benefit from the chaos of this battle.

And the jutsu he needed to purify his bloodline, increase the concentration of his Tenseigan, and find his Otsutsuki remains again

was connected to Senju Tobirama.

"Kill, make a scene. The stage is set."

"Leave the rest to Orochimaru..."