All Foxes, All Two-Faced

Time ticked by, second by second.

The jonin inside the Ancestral Hall grew increasingly impatient.

The jonin beside Hyuga Hiashi were especially restless. Some of the older ones had already begun asking about the arrangements.

The Hyuga Clan Great Elder also kept activating his Byakugan, scanning the area around the Hyuga Clan in hopes of spotting the person he wanted to see.

But he was disappointed again!

There were only Hyuga Clan shinobi on guard nearby. The person he was waiting for hadn't come!

Shinichi Hyuga raised his head, a glint in his eyes. It seemed Orochimaru was doing a decent job.

He'd successfully held up the Third, which meant half of his plan had worked.

Footsteps echoed through the commotion~~

Someone left their original group, drawing everyone's attention.

"Clan leader, it's getting late. Let's end this clan meeting early. I need to go home and spend time with my daughter!"

Shinichi Hyuga moved closer to Hyuga Hiashi and spoke in a loud voice.

Everyone's heart skipped a beat.

The Ancestral Hall fell silent in an instant.

For as long as anyone could remember, the Main Branch had controlled everything in the Ancestral Hall. Once, a member of the Branch Family had misspoken, and the Main Branch had blown it out of proportion to warn the others, tormenting him with the Caged Bird.

Rules like that had been carved into some people's bones.

Shinichi Hyuga was overstepping the line. Wasn't he practically handing them a pretext to punish him?

The shame and anger on Hyuga Hiashi's similarly youthful face were impossible to hide.

Shinichi Hyuga had once been his bodyguard. Now he was challenging him—or trying to intimidate him.

Could he really have found a way to neutralize the Caged Bird?

Hyuga Hiashi felt more and more that this clan meeting was slipping out of his control.

He wanted to activate the Caged Bird, but managed to suppress the urge at the last moment.

After what had happened with the Great Elder, he no longer felt sure of himself. Only the person he was waiting for could give him confidence.

"If you don't want to compete for the position of Hidden Branch Main House, you can leave. No one's stopping you."

Hyuga Hiashi quickly regained control of his expression and retorted, forcing himself to sound authoritative.

Though he had grown accustomed to his role as clan leader, he was still somewhat immature. Even so, he represented the will of the Hyuga Clan.

"I mean, don't bother waiting! The Third isn't coming."

Shinichi Hyuga moved even closer to Hyuga Hiashi, putting pressure on him, and spoke softly by his ear.

But everyone present was a jonin.

In the silent Ancestral Hall, every person heard those words.

To Hyuga Hiashi, the gesture was nothing short of a provocation.

He had announced that the honored guest invited to witness the proceedings was the Third.

If the Third failed to appear, it would deal a blow to his authority as clan leader.

And he couldn't use force to control Shinichi Hyuga, either.

"I'm the clan leader of the Hyuga Clan. No matter what you do, you can't affect me!"

Hyuga Hiashi couldn't let anyone see what he was really thinking.

His mind was full of doubts, but he had to maintain his authority. His father had impressed that upon him before he died.

As he spoke, he also linked to the Caged Bird seal to exert pressure, asserting his status as a member of the Main Branch.

That brought everyone back under his control.

Hyuga Hiashi was pleased with himself and failed to notice the changing expressions of the old men beside him.

Those expressions were complicated: guilt, resentment, relief... They varied from person to person, but their earlier deference had already begun to fade.

"Shall we begin, then?" Hyuga Hiashi glanced at the Great Elder beside him, looking to his other ally and signaling that it was time to make their move.

The Third hadn't come, but they could still follow their own rules at the clan meeting and crush Shinichi Hyuga.

But the Hyuga Clan Great Elder didn't react the way he'd expected.

"No. Wait a little longer!"

The Hyuga Clan Great Elder spoke up.

Hyuga Hiashi could no longer keep his expression under control. Shinichi Hyuga had already said the Third wouldn't come.

Now the Hyuga Clan Great Elder wanted them to wait? Was he planning to break their agreement, too?

Hyuga Hiashi turned a probing gaze on the Hyuga Clan Great Elder.

"He's here!" the Hyuga Clan Great Elder said, ignoring him. The veins around his eyes bulged as he activated his Byakugan.

The corners of his mouth lifted uncontrollably into a smile.

"The Third is here?" Hyuga Hiashi smiled as well and activated his Byakugan to look.

He still didn't understand why Shinichi Hyuga had lied to him earlier, but a moment later, he stiffened and deactivated his Byakugan.

Someone had indeed arrived!

But that person wasn't the Third. It was Shimura Danzō!

So Shimura Danzō was the Great Elder's real supporter?

Had the Great Elder already seen through his plan?

His original plan with the Third had been to erase the Hidden Branch Main House from history once and for all. In exchange, he would pledge himself to the Third and become one of his loyal followers.

But Shinichi Hyuga's sudden rise had forced them to take a step back. They'd decided to rein him in and let the Great Elder's faction retain its position as the Hidden Branch Main House.

They intended to turn the Great Elder into a puppet and take control of his faction.

Now it seemed everyone had their own plans.

The Great Elder hadn't just pledged himself to the Third. He'd also pledged himself to Shimura Danzō.

None of them were simple.

His spirits sank for only a moment before he relaxed again.

No matter what, both of them were targeting Shinichi Hyuga. He could still achieve his goal.

With Shimura Danzō as a witness, they could follow the rules and force Shinichi Hyuga to accept the outcome.

Hyuga Hiashi swept his gaze over the Hyuga jonin standing beside him and the Great Elder. There were nearly a hundred of them in total. Victory was assured.

Once they had decided who would become the Hidden Branch Main House, they could bring the unstable factor that was Shinichi Hyuga under control.

He could only hope everything went smoothly!

Shimura Danzō followed a Hyuga Clan patrol shinobi to the Ancestral Hall. Another bodyguard followed behind him, and that bodyguard had a pair of Byakugan.

Everyone looked closely. It was Keimei Hyuga, once a disciple of the Hyuga Clan Great Elder and a bodyguard to his son.

The others had wondered why the Great Elder's trusted follower hadn't shown up. Now it seemed he'd gone off to be someone else's lapdog!

The Hyuga Clan Great Elder hurried to the entrance of the Ancestral Hall to welcome Shimura Danzō.

"The Third was delayed by a few matters. I've come to witness this clan meeting on his behalf!" Shimura Danzō said as he casually walked over to Hyuga Hiashi.

Hyuga Hiashi found the words deeply unconvincing.

In the end, he could only choose to believe them.

Shinichi Hyuga felt a little resentful toward Orochimaru. The man was always so unreliable.

Still, there was one consolation: Shimura Danzō thought far too highly of himself.

Neither his strength nor his influence could compare to the Third's, let alone qualify him to "represent" him.

What use could he possibly be?

After all, Shimura Danzō had the "terrible teammate" buff.

When you had Shimura Danzō as a teammate, you always had to be ready to get sabotaged.