The Conspiracy Behind the Scenes

An unknown child rushed at Uchiha Chen, and the other's actions immediately made it clear to him who had sent them.

Chen easily dodged the kunai in the other's hand, then grabbed their wrist with his other hand.

"Ah!"

A scream rang out as the poor fool's wrist was snapped by Chen.

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

A shadow clone appeared and charged straight at the others. Chen tossed the kid in front of him to the clone.

Ignoring this meaningless fight, Chen walked over to Hinata, who was standing frozen in place.

"You're Hinata, right?"

"Y-yes. May I ask who you are?"

Hinata looked timid. Perhaps she was embarrassed, because her cheeks were still flushed. She looked very endearing.

"Uchiha Chen. You can call me Chen.

"You actually have the strength to beat them, don't you?"

At Chen's words, Hinata stared at him blankly, clearly not understanding why he would say that.

"Maybe you're not strong enough to beat them, but as long as you show them what you can do, they won't dare bully you again.

"If you keep giving in, the people who bully you will only push you further. You take one step back, and they'll take one step forward.

"Being kind is a good thing, but you should choose who you're kind to. If you keep giving in to them, what if one day they bully your family? Do you think that would be a good thing?"

Hinata wasn't weak; it was just that her personality had a few issues when she was young. She only needed to understand when she should be brave. After that, it was up to her.

What's more, although Chen didn't say it outright, he was hinting at Hinata's younger sister.

As a big sister who loved her little sister, Hinata clearly had to pull herself together, if only for Hanabi.

"Thank you, Chen."

"It's nothing. We're both part of Konoha. I'll walk you home. It wouldn't be good if these people kept bothering you."

Hinata hesitated briefly, then nodded. Chen walked with her toward the Hyuga House, and they chatted along the way.

"Hey, you called me shameless, but now you're starting to groom a little girl. How is that any less shameless?"

The system's voice suddenly rang out, and Chen was utterly speechless.

Everything sounded weird when it came from the system.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Let me check Hinata's affection level. It's already at seventy, twice as high as Uchiha Izumi's forty.

"Feels like you could max it out any time."

"Shut up. Do you think I'm that disgusting?"

"Who knows?

"How about I give you a mission? Then you'd have an excuse. What do you think? I'm so thoughtful, aren't I?"

The system spoke lecherously. Chen could almost picture its sleazy form in his mind.

"No need. I'm not interested in Hinata."

By then, Chen and Hinata had reached the gate of the Hyuga estate. The guards were surprised to see someone from the Uchiha Clan, and even more astonished that their young lady was with him.

"Goodbye, Chen. Thank you for helping me earlier."

Hinata spoke with a blush. She was still shy, but something had changed in her, even if only a little.

"It's nothing. We're both part of Konoha. If I see someone in danger, of course I'll help."

With that, Chen waved goodbye to Hinata.

"Hey, seriously, should I give you a mission?

"Come on, don't be shy."

Chen had to admit that the system was getting more and more shameless. Before, it had just tricked him; now it was acting like a madam.

"No need."

"Tch."

"I'm not interested in Hinata. Or rather, I'm not interested in Hinata when she's grown up.

"Hinata's pretty when she's older, but she's not the type I like. She's cuter as a child.

"How should I put it? The grown-up Hinata just isn't my type."

Chen had no intention of pursuing Hinata. He had only stepped in because he happened to be there.

When he returned to where the incident had taken place, his shadow clone had already tied up the unlucky brats.

Chen had originally thought they were children from some clan, but the moment they attacked, he realized they were just ordinary people, and probably orphans, too.

There was a reason they had bullied Hinata. The whole thing had been orchestrated by Danzo.

Danzo wanted to become Hokage, so he needed to weaken the Hokage's faction. The Hyuga Clan belonged to the Hokage's faction, and if the Hyuga heir was a failure, the threat posed by the entire clan would be greatly reduced.

What's more, if Hizashi Hyuga suddenly died, and the whole clan ended up in the hands of the timid Hinata, it was easy to imagine what would happen.

On top of that, Danzo had a member of the Hyuga Clan among his subordinates. He could then support Hyuga Hinata as a puppet clan head.

Originally, Naruto should have stepped in when Hinata was bullied, but for some reason, Chen had been the one to encounter her.

He had already been suspicious of that part of the story. Now, after sensing the murderous intent of those children, Chen had put the pieces together.

After tying up the unconscious brats, Chen took them straight to the Hokage Office Building.

The ninja guards were baffled by the sight. What was a child from the Uchiha Clan doing with a group of unconscious people?

"Uchiha Chen? What's going on? And who are the people behind you?"

Although the Third Hokage had received a report, he was still puzzled when he saw the situation for himself.

"Third Hokage, these people just tried to attack Hinata Hyuga of the Hyuga Clan. They were also discussing taking her Byakugan."

"What!"

Hearing this, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi froze.

It hadn't been long since Kumogakure had kidnapped Hinata, an incident that had ended with Hizashi Hyuga sacrificing himself in her place.

And now, someone else was targeting Hinata Hyuga?

If Hinata were kidnapped again, the entire Hyuga Clan might well turn against Konoha.

"Uchiha Chen, are you sure what you're saying is true?"

The Third Hokage spoke with a grave expression.

"Yes. I overheard their conversation. They mentioned taking the Byakugan and giving it to some 'lord.'

"I don't know who they meant, but it's clear they intended to take the Byakugan.

"I knocked them out, then escorted Hinata Hyuga back to the Hyuga Clan. After that, I brought them here for Lord Hokage to deal with."

At Chen's words, Sarutobi Hiruzen furrowed his brows. He, too, began to suspect Danzo.

After all, the Cloud ninja couldn't have infiltrated the village that easily, and there was no way they would have sent a group of children to take Hinata.

The only person who could pull this off inside Konoha and benefit from it was his old comrade, Shimura Danzō.

Could it have been you?

You had the Hyuga Clan's eldest daughter harmed so you could sever the clan's ties to me.

If only a few children were involved, there'd be no evidence left behind. And if they succeeded, even if I suspected you, I'd have no proof.

Seeing the Third Hokage's expression, Chen knew his plan had worked.

Sometimes, suspicion without proof was far more frightening than proven fact. After all, no one could know what someone might imagine.