The Hyuga and the Uchiha

The doors to the Hyuga Clan Compound's auditorium suddenly swung open.

The man holding a letter bent over, panting as he struggled to catch his breath. His gaze swept over the crowd and fixed on the figure seated high on the wooden platform.

His damp hair fell over the front of his white robes. His clear eyes were full of resolve as he met the many scrutinizing gazes, and he couldn't help tightening his grip on the letter.

The Hyuga clan member kneeling by the door was surprised to see the Uchiha Clan's Gunbai stamped on the pristine white envelope.

"Harumasa, you're late. Go sit in the back."

The dignified middle-aged ninja seated in the center of the platform spoke calmly. His smooth forehead marked him as the clan head.

"Yes, Clan Head."

After closing the door, Harumasa bowed and obediently knelt at the back of the crowd.

He was carrying an invitation from the Uchiha Clan, sent to the various clans to attend their tournament. He knew the Uchiha intended to assess how well their children had done at the Ninja Academy.

As the clan head's son, he had a keen political sense. The Uchiha had certainly invited other clans besides the Hyuga. Their plans must be significant, if they wanted so many clans to witness them.

On the platform, his father, Hyuga Ryudo, was solemnly talking about the importance of uniting the clan's strength.

Unite the clan?

The Caged Bird Seal had already split the Hyuga Clan apart.

He had suggested long ago that the clan send its children to the Ninja Academy, but his efforts had been in vain.

His father's authority and the clan's power had kept a tight grip on him, a man with little standing. No phrase could describe him more accurately than "a small voice carries little weight."

The identical expressions on the faces of those around him filled his moon-bright Byakugan with resentment.

Having only recently joined Konoha, he longed for change. But as time passed, he felt as though they had merely moved from their ancestral lands into a new home without changing a thing. It was old wine in a new bottle.

The meeting gradually drew to a close, and the customary final question came.

"Does anyone have anything to add?"

The clan head's deep, dignified voice echoed through the room.

The invitation to speak seemed democratic, but there was an insincere emphasis to it. Harumasa slowly rose amid the astonished looks around him and walked forward.

"This is an invitation from the Uchiha Clan. They've invited us to watch their clan tournament."

Harumasa respectfully presented the letter, its creases smoothed out, then stood straight and silently before the crowd.

"Is this why you were late?" Hyuga Ryudo asked, pointing at the Gunbai. He took the letter from inside and said, "You've been thoughtful."

The letter was brief, containing little beyond the time and place. Ryudo committed it to memory, then passed it to the other Main Family elders.

The Branch Family elders could wait their turn.

After everyone had read it, the letter returned to Ryudo. "You'll represent the Hyuga Clan at this event. That's all. The meeting is adjourned."

His words fell.

Ryudo rose first, followed closely by the Main Family elders. They walked behind the screen and gradually disappeared from Harumasa's view.

Alone in the empty auditorium, Harumasa leaned weakly against the wall of the wooden platform and sank to the floor.

All his efforts had come to nothing. The calm look in his father's eyes as he left had chilled him. Head bowed, Harumasa gazed through the open doorway into the distance.

The clouds on the horizon changed color with the fading light. Even the fiery crimson sunset could not warm his frozen heart.

"Get up."

After a long while, a familiar voice came from the platform. When Harumasa didn't move, the speaker quickly descended the steps, pulled him to his feet, and punched him in the face.

Clutching his cheek, Harumasa stared at the angry face before him in disbelief.

He had never seen his usually unflappable father look angry before.

Even when news reached the clan that his brother had died in battle after joining the village, his face, always as cold as ice, hadn't changed in the slightest.

Perhaps the peaceful sight of the village since joining Konoha had gradually made Hyuga Ryudo lower his guard. Looking down at his son, who had fallen to the ground, he finally spoke from the heart. "I know everything you've done."

Harumasa clutched his reddened cheek, but his hand couldn't hide the large fist-shaped mark. He stared at the father he had always thought of as an old fossil, unable to believe it.

Without his facade, Ryudo's frame seemed a little hunched. He sat beside Harumasa and gazed at the brilliant clouds. "I knew about the Uchiha and Konoha's plans to establish a village. But why do you think the Hyuga Clan waited until the Ino-Shika-Cho clans had joined before joining ourselves?"

Confronted by his foolish son's confusion, Ryudo suppressed the urge to use Gentle Fist. Pointing to his own clear, flawless Byakugan, he explained, "The Hyuga Clan only does things that add to what's already there. If we placed bets everywhere, we'd have been wiped out in the wars long ago."

Harumasa knew the Hyuga Clan's situation all too well: the conflict between the Main and Branch Families, and the Byakugan that made outsiders covet it.

He desperately hoped the Hyuga Clan could bring new life to their lifeless compound in the newly founded Konoha. Even half as much as the Uchiha would have been enough.

"As for the Ninja Academy, the Branch Family children may go as they please. You can decide about your unborn child. We'll discuss the other Main Family children later." Ryudo glanced at his foolish son, who had fallen silent and recovered his composure, then walked away across the wooden floor.

Hope kindled in Harumasa's eyes as he gazed at the dusk. "Only my child and the Branch Family, huh? Well, at least my efforts paid off."

Inside the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

Rai and Baru watched Rikusei, who had the Uchiha Gunbai strapped to his back, with envy.

The little boy was carrying an enormous Gunbai and a towering scythe. Even with their wildly disproportionate sizes, he looked mighty in their eyes.

These were the Uchiha Clan's treasured weapons. In the clan head's hands, they had defeated countless powerful foes.

Rikusei looked helplessly at Naka, who was excitedly circling him. The boy had no sense of friend or foe. They were supposed to settle things on the Training Ground in a moment.

Rikusei planted the Gunbai in the ground, tugged on the chain of the scythe in his hand, then turned to look at the two sneaking around.

"What are you doing? Beating up a competitor before the match is dishonorable." Baru reacted in time to shield Rai behind him, his voice trembling.

He knew Rikusei was strong enough to wield the Gunbai, so he wisely pretended to be the weaker one.

"That's right! If you're going to beat someone up, beat Baru first. I've got a chance of defeating you."

Rai, speechless, tugged at Naka's clothes. Naka's legs were trembling, even though his face remained composed as he made his brazen claim.

"What are you thinking?"

Rikusei looked at the trio fooling around and waved them closer.

Baru looked warily at Naka. "Maybe he's trying to lure us in. Last clan tournament, the three of us fell for the same trick."

"Didn't you want to touch this?" Rikusei asked, gently waving the fan at the children, who were as skittish as startled birds.

"It's real!"

Rai stroked the fan's blades with a blissful expression, speaking to the two standing beside him.

Once he had them hooked, Rikusei smiled with satisfaction. "In a moment, I'll need you to deliver it to Great Elder Kaku."

The three exchanged gleeful glances. Now they'd get to touch it as much as they wanted on the way.

"There's a condition."

Rikusei watched the three black balloons deflate. "Tell Great Elder Kaku that the clan head has business to attend to and won't be coming. The Gunbai is here in his place."

They nodded like chicks pecking at grain. On the way, Rikusei turned serious and warned them solemnly, "And don't try to use it. It'll drain your chakra and knock you out."

"No problem!"

Naka ran a hand over the scythe's blade in a daze and thumped his chest in assurance.

"Then I'll leave it to you!" Rikusei smiled as he watched them head toward the center of the clan grounds.

"He's handed this over to us. So what's he going to do?"

Baru detached the chain from the fan's handle and spoke to the other two, who were helping him carry the Gunbai.

"Who cares? It has nothing to do with us."

Naka gazed dreamily at the Tomoe on the fan and replied.

"True. We're the ones who hit the jackpot!"

Baru gripped the scythe. The three exchanged smiles, then set off toward their destination, full of energy.

At last rid of his little tagalongs, Rikusei spotted a purple silhouette beneath the trees in the distance and ran over.