The Hasu Clan

Hyuga Hanabi was the young lady of the Main Family. She'd been arrogant and had planned to take Takizawa Dan as her lackey, so she could sneak out to play without Neji knowing.

But now that she'd seen him take down a foreign assassin with a single move, she realized he was an absolute powerhouse!

For a moment, Hanabi wasn't thinking about how to control Takizawa Dan. She was wondering whether he might kill her too.

After all, she'd discovered his secret—that he could fight!

"Hanabi, don't worry. Konoha is my home. I'll never betray it, and I'd never hurt anyone for no reason!"

Takizawa Dan seemed to have guessed what Hanabi was thinking. He shook his head as he spoke.

Some children and ignorant people looked down on him or even mocked him, but Lord Hokage and many kind ordinary people had always cared for him and looked after him. Without their help, Takizawa Dan couldn't have grown up safe and sound.

Deep down, he had a strong attachment to Konoha.

"Oh..." Hanabi nodded obediently. "I believe you, Takizawa-kun. But now... the news that you're not a good-for-nothing is going to spread through the village."

Indeed, as the young lady of the Hyuga Clan's Main Family, Hanabi held a position of great importance. The attempted kidnapping by foreign assassins had to be reported to Lord Hokage.

There was no way to keep quiet about Takizawa Dan killing two adult ninja on his own!

"No, it won't." Takizawa Dan shook his head, his dark eyes fixed on Hanabi. "Hanabi, you killed those two. Understand?"

"Me?!" Hanabi quickly caught on, her mouth forming an O. "But... why? Isn't this the perfect chance for you to shed your good-for-nothing reputation?"

"I don't like attracting attention, and I like being famous even less!" said Takizawa Dan. "Come on. Let's bury the bodies together, then take their heads to see Lord Hokage!"

"Okay..."

An hour later.

Konoha, Hokage's Office.

"What?! You're saying someone tried to kidnap you?"

The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, slammed her hand on the desk, looking shocked.

It hadn't been long since the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had passed away, and Tsunade had only just taken office. Her position was still unstable.

A group of Konoha High Command members stood nearby. At her words, they all fell silent.

"Yes... Lady Tsunade. Just now, Takizawa-kun and I were in the woods behind the village..."

Under the pressure of the Hokage and the High Command, young Hanabi was frightened, but she still did her best to explain exactly what had happened.

However, when describing how the two ninja had died, Hanabi stuck to the story she and Takizawa Dan had agreed on beforehand. She said that after being captured, she'd seized the chance to get close and used the Gentle Fist and Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists to strike their vital points, killing the two adult ninja before they could react!

"Where are the bodies? Take me to see them," Tsunade asked.

"They're here, Lady Tsunade. There's no need for you to go in person. I've already cut off their heads and brought them to you."

As he spoke, Takizawa Dan opened the dark-colored bundle he'd been carrying on his back and set it on Tsunade's desk.

The bundle came open, revealing two masked heads! One had its eyes wide open, staring lifelessly.

Hiss—

At the sight, many of the Konoha High Command members drew a sharp breath and looked at Takizawa Dan with fear.

Normally, after killing their enemies, Konoha ninja brought back the bodies intact and buried them. It was a way of showing respect to the dead.

But Takizawa Dan had not only buried the bodies carelessly in the woods behind the village, he'd also cut off their heads!

How could a child so young be so ruthless?

Tsunade looked surprised, too. She glanced at Takizawa Dan, then asked, "Takizawa Dan, tell me. You were with Hanabi at the time, weren't you? What were you doing when she was kidnapped?"

To be honest, Tsunade had her doubts about Hanabi's account.

Even if the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist was devastating at close range, it seemed unlikely that a seven- or eight-year-old Hanabi could kill two well-trained adult ninja in an instant.

So Tsunade's instincts told her that Takizawa Dan must have been involved.

"At the time? The moment I saw those two ninja, I was so scared that I hid," Takizawa Dan said, putting on a frightened expression. "I didn't come out until Lady Hanabi had killed them and told me it was safe..."

The High Command members frowned deeply at his words.

"Absurd! You're a boy over ten years old, yet you let Lady Hanabi, who's only half your age, protect you?!" one of them leapt to his feet and scolded Takizawa Dan, pointing at him. "Are you even a man? And Lady Hanabi is someone of such noble standing! If your cowardice had gotten her captured, you'd be responsible!"

The other High Command members glared at Takizawa Dan, as if they thought he was a disgrace to Konoha.

"But... you all know I've been physically weak since birth. I'm not even as strong as a child. Besides, I have no chakra, so I can't fight at all," Takizawa Dan said, looking innocent and aggrieved. "I'm definitely not as strong as Lady Hanabi. In that situation, I'd only have gotten myself killed, and I wouldn't have helped at all. As for failing to protect her... I admit I was a coward. I'm a useless good-for-nothing. I beg Lord Hokage to punish me!"

As he spoke, Takizawa Dan dropped to one knee before Tsunade, who sat at the head of the table.

"You..."

The High Command member who'd spoken earlier was struck dumb.

That was true. Who didn't know that Takizawa Dan was Konoha's number-one good-for-nothing? He was physically weak and had no chakra; he was even weaker than an ordinary civilian. Expecting him to rush in and protect Lady Hanabi really was asking too much.

And besides, the one thing this guy wasn't lacking was a thick skin. He'd actually admitted in front of everyone that he was useless!

For a moment, no one knew what to do with him.

"All right, all right. You're all from the same village. Why turn on each other? Besides, Takizawa Dan, your parents died for the village. The village owes you, and you've done nothing wrong. Don't ask to be punished again," Tsunade said, waving her hand.

Maybe she really had been overthinking it. She'd personally examined Takizawa Dan with Medical Ninjutsu and confirmed that he'd be an invalid for life, with not a trace of combat ability.

The only explanation was that the Hyuga Clan was indeed powerful in close combat, and that Hyuga Hanabi had incredible talent. Together, they had managed to avert this crisis.

With the Hokage's word, the High Command members naturally had nothing more to say. They fell silent.

Then Tsunade slowly removed the black cloth covering the two masked men's faces.

On each man's left cheek was a scar shaped like a ripple!

At the sight, Tsunade cried out in surprise. "This is... the mark of the Hasu Clan!"