The Hyuga Clan's New Clothes

In the days that followed, Ito Makoto devoted all his energy to building a safe hideout. He put up a small wooden cabin on the cliff, laid planks across the floor, and did his best to make them even. He added bedding, clothes, and some necessities like instant noodles and salt.

That way, if danger ever came, he could hide there for a few days and still get by.

At first, he'd planned to set up a tent, but tents in Konoha weren't cheap. He had no money, and even the cleverest cook couldn't make a meal without ingredients. Besides, the wind was strong on the cliff, and an ordinary tent wouldn't hold up against it. So he changed his mind and built a wooden cabin instead.

Konoha had plenty of trees, if nothing else. And this world had no environmental protection laws, so trees could be cut down at will. As for the price, a wooden cabin was cheap and practical.

While Ito Makoto paid no attention to the outside world and focused entirely on building his hideout, he forgot that an ugly political scandal was unfolding in Konoha.

That evening, his mother Mika shattered the quiet.

"Xiao Cheng, we're going to Neji's father's funeral tomorrow. You should go to bed early tonight."

What? Ito Makoto was stunned. It had only been a few days—less than half a month since he'd stayed at the Hyuga Clan's home—and Hizashi Hyuga was already dead?

"How could that happen? Was he injured while on a mission outside the village?"

He wanted to know exactly what had happened. After all, there were many Transmigrators in this world. The original manga's plot could also be affected by the butterfly effect and change.

"I'm not sure. They say Neji's father was there when the Hyuga Main Family's eldest daughter was kidnapped. He was injured while fighting the assailants."

Mika spoke hesitantly. She didn't know the details either; the whole thing was shrouded in mystery. As an outsider, she couldn't see the truth at all. Yuko was being evasive, too, as if she had something she couldn't say.

After hearing his mother's words, Ito Makoto understood. Even with him, a Transmigrator, interfering, the plot was still following its original course.

Hizashi Hyuga had still taken the blame for Hiashi Hyuga. Forced by the Third Hokage and the rest of Konoha High Command, he had become the scapegoat.

"Xiao Cheng, Neji's father has passed away. Aunt Yuko and Neji must be heartbroken. Make sure you comfort Neji at the funeral tomorrow."

As a native of this world who knew nothing about Naruto's plot, Mika didn't read any deeper into it. She simply reminded Ito Makoto to be a good friend and look after Neji.

Ito Makoto nodded.

Hizashi Hyuga's funeral was a grand affair. All of Konoha's leading figures were there, including the Third Hokage and Shimura Danzō. The Hyuga Clan head, Hiashi Hyuga, and all the clan elders were in attendance as well.

Hizashi Hyuga's name was engraved on the Memorial Stone.

The Memorial Stone in Konoha recorded the names of every shinobi who had died fighting for the village. In Konoha, having your name inscribed on it was the mark of a hero, and the villagers respected everyone whose name appeared there.

The Third Hokage presided over the funeral himself. Neji Hyuga and the other bereaved family members, like Yuko Hyuga, could only stand below as part of the gathering.

There were too many important people present for Ito Makoto and Mika to approach Yuko's family. They could only watch from a distance at the back.

Everyone wore black and stood in solemn silence, mourning the dead.

Yuko Hyuga had tears in the corners of her eyes, yet she seemed utterly calm as she stood quietly with Neji's hand in hers. Neji Hyuga, on the other hand, couldn't stop crying. No matter how often he wiped his face, the tears kept coming. The sleeve of his shirt was soaked through.

Standing in the last row, Ito Makoto found the scene before him bitterly ironic.

He had never met Hizashi Hyuga. To him, the man was simply Neji Hyuga's father, and so he felt no grief over his death.

In truth, although Hizashi Hyuga was fairly strong, he was still a nobody. In the Hyuga Clan, he was a low-ranking shinobi of the Branch Family. In Konoha, he was a Jonin, but he had little standing. He wasn't one of the village's top fighters, nor was he any kind of special shinobi who served as a pillar of the village.

And yet the funeral of a shinobi with such low standing had brought together nearly every major figure in Konoha Hidden Village: the Hokage, the Hokage's advisor, the heads of the major clans, the Hyuga Clan head, and all the clan elders.

It was because Hizashi Hyuga's death had resolved the trouble they were all facing.

With Hizashi dead, the Hyuga Clan head, Hiashi Hyuga, had been spared. The Hyuga Clan had prevented its bloodline limit from falling into enemy hands. The Third Hokage had room to smooth things over with Kumogakure. And Konoha would avoid a clash with Kumogakure.

At this funeral, every member of Konoha High Command had benefited from Hizashi's death. They had all played a part in it, too.

The Third Hokage had demanded that the Hyuga Clan hand over the culprit. To save their clan head, Hiashi Hyuga, the Hyuga Clan had used the Caged Bird Seal to force Hizashi Hyuga to die in Hiashi's place. The Third Hokage had turned a blind eye and accepted the substitution. In the end, everyone's problems had been solved—and Hizashi Hyuga alone had lost his life.

Under pressure from Kumogakure, Hizashi Hyuga's body probably wasn't even there at the funeral. Kumogakure had kidnapped Hinata Hyuga and demanded that the culprit be handed over in order to obtain the Byakugan, a bloodline limit.

Although Hizashi Hyuga belonged to the Branch Family and his Byakugan would be destroyed automatically upon his death, he was still a member of the Hyuga Clan. His body was of great value for research, and Kumogakure certainly wouldn't let that opportunity pass.

The funeral before him was a gathering of the culprits, mourning a body that wasn't even there.

The funeral went smoothly. Once the formalities were over, Ito Makoto and Mika finally got the chance to go up and offer Yuko and Neji their condolences.

Yet, looking at the grief on Neji Hyuga's face, Ito Makoto couldn't find a single thing to say.

What could possibly ease the pain of having your own father murdered?

Just then, Hiashi Hyuga, the head of the Hyuga Clan and Hizashi Hyuga's older brother, came over with the clan elders to offer their condolences to Yuko's family.

"Yuko, don't grieve. Hizashi died for the future of the Hyuga Clan. His death was meaningful and worthwhile," said an elder of the Hyuga Main Family.

"That's right. Hizashi's sacrifice protected our clan's bloodline and prevented the Byakugan from falling into enemy hands. It was a good thing. It was his duty as a member of the Branch Family. What is there to grieve about?" another elder of the Main Family added.

Those bastards had benefited from Hizashi's death, yet they still wielded the cudgel of "the greater good" and rubbed salt into the victim's wounds. Watching these "respected" elders at work made Ito Makoto want to vomit.

Yuko Hyuga said nothing. In the Hyuga Clan, those elders of the Main Family held power over everyone. They could kill any member of the Branch Family with the Caged Bird Seal whenever they pleased. The Branch Family were no more than slaves; what chance did women like her have to speak up?

All she could do was hold Neji close and cry in silence.

Her husband had nothing to do with any of this. He hadn't even been in the village at the time. Plenty of clan members could have testified that he'd been away, but none of that mattered in the face of power.

"Yuko, I'll take good care of you and Neji."

Hiashi Hyuga, the silent head of the Hyuga Clan and the central figure in the kidnapping incident, suddenly spoke. He seemed genuinely grief-stricken. Clearly, he and Hizashi Hyuga had cared for each other as brothers. Sadly, that bond meant little beside his own life.

At that moment, the Third Hokage approached with the rest of Konoha High Command. He addressed Yuko.

"Hizashi Hyuga was a hero of Konoha. His sacrifice preserved peace between Konoha and Kumogakure. Konoha will make sure his family is taken care of. If you need anything, you can come see me at the Hokage Office."

Yuko Hyuga nodded, still saying nothing.

As more and more members of Konoha High Command gathered around Yuko, Ito Makoto suddenly decided to make a scene.

He pretended to be an ordinary child and asked Mika,

"Mom, why exactly did Uncle Hizashi die?"

"Didn't I tell you before? He died while fighting the envoys from Kumogakure."

"That's a lie," Ito Makoto said in a child's voice. "We were at Aunt Yuko's house then. Uncle Hizashi wasn't even in the village. He'd gone outside on a mission."

The important people present changed color. Some things they all knew, but there were things you could do without saying aloud.

"Maybe Aunt Yuko remembered wrong," Mika said, realizing something was wrong and trying to stop Ito Makoto from running his mouth.

"She definitely didn't remember wrong. We stayed at Aunt Yuko's house for a whole night. Do you really think she could forget that? If Uncle Hizashi had been home, there wouldn't have been room for so many people. How could she have let us stay over? You're obviously lying to me. Uncle Hizashi wasn't even in the village that day."

Ito Makoto showed no mercy as he continued to expose the truth.

Most of the important people present knew what had really happened. But many ordinary people had no idea. They believed that Hizashi Hyuga had truly died fighting the envoys from Kumogakure.

So when Ito Makoto revealed part of the truth, some of the uninformed began whispering among themselves.

That left the important people present with egg on their faces.

An elder of the Hyuga Main Family lost his temper.

"Where did this brat come from? He's full of lies and has no manners. Take him away at once!"

"Who are you calling ill-mannered?" Ito Makoto wasn't afraid in the slightest. Now that he'd mastered Reverse Summoning Jutsu, he could escape whenever he wanted. Was there anyone in Konoha who could catch up to Space-Time Ninjutsu? Who did he have to fear?

Besides, he was still a three-year-old child. Children were allowed to speak without thinking. If a politician picked a fight with a three-year-old like him, what would that do to his political career?

"My mom taught me always to tell the truth. Everything I said is true. I didn't lie about a single thing. How can you say I have no manners?"

The important people's faces turned ashen, and the whispers around them grew louder.

Seeing that things were getting out of hand, Mika quickly covered Ito Makoto's mouth and said with an apologetic smile,

"He's just a child who doesn't know any better. I'll take him home and give him a proper scolding."

With that, she dragged Ito Makoto away.

Neji Hyuga watched as Ito Makoto was dragged off. A gleam suddenly lit his pale eyes.

Ito Makoto hadn't offered him any words of comfort, but his few remarks had revealed the truth about his father's death. For him and his mother, that meant more than a hundred words of consolation.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, felt deeply embarrassed as well. Once certain things were exposed, they could deal a tremendous blow to one's reputation. To protect his own good name, he had even given up some of his power and cultivated Shimura Danzō as a scapegoat. Now a child's careless remark had damaged a reputation he'd spent over twenty years building.

To save face, the Konoha High Command had no choice but to keep up the pretense and offer hollow condolences to Yuko Hyuga after Mika and her son left. Their words had gone flat, but they all knew the truth. They had to keep playing their parts anyway.

Only after they had left the cemetery did Ito Makoto, still being dragged along by Mika, let himself smile.

The funeral was like the emperor's new clothes. Everyone knew the emperor was naked, but for the sake of appearances and dignity, they had to praise his splendid outfit.

And Ito Makoto was the child who had disrupted the scene. As a child, he didn't have to care about dignity or appearances. He could speak the truth and say exactly what he felt.

So, in front of everyone, he had openly announced that the emperor onstage was naked.

A child's words were honest. Once he spoke, the whole truth lay exposed in broad daylight.

Of course, people wouldn't change anything just because a child had spoken. Like the naked king, even after the truth was revealed, he still strutted through his procession as though nothing had happened.

But the truth had already found its way into everyone's heart.