Attempting to Break the Stalemate

The next day, Hinata Hyuga returned to her usual self, training with extra diligence and showing more initiative during sparring.

It seemed as though everything was moving in a positive direction. However... when Hyuga Homura arrived to deliver his report, Hyuga Hiashi's expression darkened even further.

As soon as the cooldown for the Life Simulator ended, Hinata Hyuga activated it immediately.

[Konoha Year 54, the Kumogakure delegation arrives, and Father becomes increasingly busy. I find an opportunity to slip out of the estate again, intending to go find Neji.]

[However, just outside the perimeter wall, I discover a suspicious figure. The person has dark skin, looking very much like someone from the Land of Lightning.]

[Now, I have three choices.]

[1. Shout loudly that there is a spy from an enemy village here.]

[2. Ignore it and continue searching for Neji.]

[3. Do nothing and return to my room immediately.]

"I choose the third option."

[Taking advantage of the fact that the person has not yet noticed me, I silently retreat inside the wall and run back to my room. I fall into a deep, uneasy sleep; the intruder seems to stop there, and the night passes without incident.]

[The next morning, a new choice is placed before me.]

[1. Go find Kiyonari and Neji to discuss a countermeasure.]

[2. Inform Father of what I discovered last night.]

Hinata had already made up her mind, choosing the first option directly to find the Kiyonari from the simulation.

[I decide to go find Kiyonari and Neji, tell them about last night's discovery, and tactfully explain that we absolutely cannot let the Kumogakure envoy die in Konoha.]

[Neji suggests that he can have Uncle Hizashi lead the clansmen to set an ambush in advance; if the intruder comes again tonight, they can work together to capture him.]

[I subconsciously look at Kiyonari. He also approves of Neji's suggestion and adds: Our abilities are limited, so we must ultimately rely on the strength of the adults to set up defenses in advance and make foolproof preparations.]

[Night falls, and I climb over the wall again as bait. As soon as the Kumogakure ninja sees me, he immediately reaches out to grab me.]

[The branch family members hidden in the shadows appear instantly, surrounding the intruder. However, seeing that his mission has failed, a flash of determination crosses the Kumogakure ninja's eyes, and he chooses to commit suicide without the slightest hesitation!]

[He is dead.]

In that instant, a chill shot from the soles of her feet to the top of her head, turning Hinata's face as pale as paper.

Three simulations in a row... regardless of whether she chose to ignore, call for help, or set an ambush, the final outcome pointed to the same result. This could only mean that Kumogakure never cared about the life or death of that envoy from the start; all they wanted was an excuse to stir up trouble!

"Their goal in coming to Konoha is only the Byakugan!" she murmured, her voice trembling slightly.

For Kumogakure, if the intruder could kidnap her directly, that would be the best result. If the plan was exposed, he would commit suicide immediately, followed by Kumogakure applying pressure to shift the target onto Father.

This was a conspiracy from start to finish!

"Hoo—"

Hinata Hyuga took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, her slightly trembling body gradually calming down after repeated deep breaths.

Having experienced all this and possessing the help of the Life Simulator, if she were to shrink back every time she encountered a problem, it would be a betrayal of Kiyonari's trust.

She cast her gaze toward the final segment of this simulation.

[This simulation has ended]

[Evaluation: You still have not figured out what exactly killed the people you cherish.]

She couldn't understand why the simulator would say that.

She shook her head, temporarily setting aside this heavy question.

Time passed quietly, and another day went by; there was very little time left until the Kumogakure delegation arrived in Konoha.

Hinata Hyuga opened her notebook, her gaze gradually settling and becoming firm.

Fourth simulation, activate!

[Konoha Year 54, the Kumogakure delegation arrives, and Father becomes increasingly busy. I find an opportunity to slip out of the estate again, intending to go find Neji.]

[However, just outside the perimeter wall, I discover a suspicious figure. The person has dark skin, looking very much like someone from the Land of Lightning.]

[Now, I have three choices.]

[1. Shout loudly that there is a spy from an enemy village here.]

[2. Ignore it and continue searching for Neji.]

[3. Do nothing and return to my room immediately.]

"I choose the third option."

[Taking advantage of the fact that the person has not yet noticed me, I silently retreat inside the wall and run back to my room. I fall into a deep, uneasy sleep; the intruder seems to stop there, and the night passes without incident.]

[The next morning, a new choice is placed before me.]

[1. Go find Kiyonari and Neji to discuss a countermeasure.]

[2. Inform Father of what I discovered last night.]

This time, Hinata chose the second option.

I informed Father of my discovery last night, laying out the Kumogakure conspiracy in its entirety as a deduction. Father's brows furrowed in skepticism, but in the end, he chose to believe me.

That night, he took action himself, sneaking outside the compound wall. The Kumogakure ninja, caught completely off guard, was struck in a vital point with a single blow and knocked unconscious, after which he was silently hidden away in a remote storeroom.

The next day, the Kumogakure delegation arrived aggressively as expected, claiming their important envoy had mysteriously vanished within the Hyuga Clan Grounds and demanding that the Hyuga family provide an explanation.

Amidst their clamor, Hyuga Hiashi stated he would send men to assist in the search. He then personally led the Konoha high-ranking officials and the Kumogakure delegation to "search" the compound, eventually "discovering" the "missing" envoy in front of everyone, passed out and snoring beside a vat of wine, reeking of alcohol.

The faces of the Kumogakure delegation turned livid. Their leader stared daggers at his "dead drunk" companion, trembling with rage, yet unable to utter a single word. Under the watchful eyes of the Konoha contingent, they had no choice but to swallow their pride, accept this "accident," and slink away with their man in tow.

The crisis facing the Hyuga Clan seemed to have been resolved.

Hinata's tense body went limp, and she nearly collapsed into her chair. "Finally... finally, it's going to succeed!"

She had successfully protected the clan's Kekkei Genkai from being leaked, protected Father, and protected Neji and Uncle Hizashi! A sense of achievement and pride, unlike anything she had ever felt before, filled her small chest.

The text on the notebook continued to emerge, each line and word seemingly confirming her victory.

[That same day, the peace treaty was successfully signed, and the Kumogakure delegation departed at dusk, leaving Konoha.]

"Great, now as long as I follow the simulator..."

However, before she could finish her sentence, the situation within the Life Simulator took a sharp turn for the worse.

[Not long after, two cold corpses were delivered to the gates of Konoha.]

[The returning Kumogakure delegation, filled with grief and indignation, accused the Hokage, claiming they had been hunted down shortly after their departure.]

[The Kumogakure envoy pointed to the dark purple internal injuries on the corpses, claiming this was ironclad proof of the Gentle Fist Technique and that it was Hyuga Hiashi's retaliation against them!]

The smile on Hinata's face froze instantly, and her pupils contracted sharply.

[Faced with this riddled-with-holes, extremely shameless frame-up by Kumogakure, the Konoha side fell into an eerie silence.]

[The leader of the Kumogakure delegation stated that they did not wish to reignite the flames of war, but Hyuga Hiashi must pay the price for his "evil deeds." They demanded that Konoha hand over Hyuga Hiashi to be taken to Kumogakure for trial, in order to appease the Raikage's fury.]

[Faced with this riddled-with-holes and extremely shameless frame-up by Kumogakure, the Konoha side fell into an eerie silence.]