A Conspiracy

"Quick, Rixin, hurry and kill... that brat!" Seeing who had arrived, Hyuga U said weakly.

"It's you! Rixin!" Riyue clutched his forehead and struggled to get up, his heart filled with fury. Even the wisest could overlook something; no matter how carefully he'd planned, he'd never expected the despicable Rixin to ambush him at a time like this.

"Well, well, look who it is. Good afternoon, you piece of trash." Rixin looked at Riyue, his face full of deep disgust and the pleasure he took in torturing him.

"You're pretty tough! You can even withstand the power of the Cursed Seal!" He grinned viciously as he walked toward Riyue, increasing the force with which he activated the Cursed Seal.

"Ah!" Unable to bear the agony of his head being torn apart, Riyue screamed.

Rixin stepped forward and slammed a palm into Riyue's chest. Though Rixin's skills were mediocre, Riyue couldn't use chakra to defend himself, and the blow landed squarely. Riyue spat out a mouthful of blood, his internal organs shaken by the impact, and fell backward to the ground.

"Trash will always be trash. You're not even fit to carry my shoes! You're just like your dead old man, daring to challenge the Main Family's authority. Take a look at yourself—what kind of garbage are you? Garbage should be disposed of! Hahaha!" Rixin stepped forward and stamped hard on Riyue's chest, then ground his foot against it, as if crushing a bug.

"Ah..." Riyue spat out another mouthful of blood, and the injured spot on his chest throbbed with pain.

"Tsk, tsk. To deal with you, Father specifically sent me to the front lines. After all, I'm the one who can activate the Cursed Seal on your forehead. Father even found an ancient document from the clan archives. It did mention this place, something about a road around here. But it said nothing about any ruins, so he made up some ruins and tricked the Clan Head and the Third into approving this mission to investigate. Hahaha! Pretty good plan, wasn't it, Riyue?" Seeing the pain on Riyue's face seemed to give Rixin particular pleasure, and he kept taunting him.

"Of course, after you die, Konoha will just assume the Hidden Sand attacked you. As for those ruins? The document must have been wrong. We didn't find anything, that's all! Hahahaha!" Rixin laughed hysterically, bracing one hand on his hip until he was practically doubled over.

"Y-you bastard!" Riyue ground his teeth, his fury reaching its peak. He bit through his lip without even realizing it.

"Enjoy the taste of the Caged Bird! It was designed specifically to seal the Byakugan!" Rixin increased his chakra output again. Riyue felt his Byakugan begin to throb with pain, as if someone were pricking it with needle after needle. Each wave brought another sharp stab of agony.

"Ah! My eyes!" Riyue clutched his eyes with both hands and screamed. His vision gradually blurred, and the world before him grew darker and darker.

"Good. The Caged Bird Seal has damaged and sealed your eyes! They'll never recover! You piece of trash don't deserve to have the Byakugan! Hahaha!" Rixin cackled, his face twisted into a vicious sneer.

Whenever he thought of this insignificant ant before him—someone who had become a Chunin, become a student of the Sannin, and even won the Hyuga Clan Head's praise—the jealousy and hatred inside him became unbearable. Now, at last, he felt utterly exhilarated! An ant should know its place!

Am I... going to die here? Riyue was overwhelmed with regret. He'd actually fallen for that scoundrel's scheme. Images of his parents from his previous life, his parents now, his cousin Mizuki, his friends and companions, Teacher Dan Katō, and the old Third flashed through his mind one by one...

It seemed he could no longer see.

No! I can't give up yet! There's still one chance! One chance! Riyue clenched his teeth with all his strength, doing everything he could to stay conscious.

"Rixin! Stop it right now!" Mizuki shouted from nearby.

"Well, well, isn't this my cousin Mizuki?" Rixin turned to look at her, a mocking smile on his face.

"Rixin! Let Riyue go!" Mizuki shouted angrily.

Rixin took a few steps toward Mizuki and looked down at her where she lay on the ground, then glanced back at Riyue.

"Rixin! Riyue is your cousin! How can you do this?" Mizuki said through gritted teeth.

"Cousin? Hahaha... To me, he's just a filthy bug! Every night, I think about how to crush him to death, bit by bit, while listening to his desperate screams!" Rixin said coldly, his eyes alight with bloodlust.

"So this is your decision, Rixin? Do members of the Main Family really enjoy killing their own family?" Mizuki shut her eyes in despair.

"Tsk, tsk, Cousin Mizuki, you shouldn't insult people. Blame yourself for wanting to look after this piece of garbage! Now that you know what happened here, you have to die too! But... you're quite a looker. My buddies have a few shops in the Land of Fire. If you agree to become their top girl, I might consider sparing you... Hahaha!" Rixin leered at Mizuki.

"You shameless beast! You vile scum! Just kill me! I'd rather die!" Mizuki cursed with all her strength.

"Oh? Right! Hey, you piece of trash, don't you think of her as your sister? It'll be awful for you if I kill her right in front of you, won't it? Hahaha!" Rixin laughed wildly, his face twisted with cruelty.

"Rixin, kill them quickly! Stop wasting time!" Hyuga U urged.

"Fine, I'll do it now! They both died at the hands of the 'Hidden Sand.' What a shame we couldn't save them. We'll have to make the Hidden Sand pay for this!" Rixin excitedly drew a Kunai and slowly approached Mizuki, preparing to kill her first.

"Rixin... Come at me! You old dog Hideyoshi!" Riyue shouted, his hatred burning even more fiercely than the pain in his eyes and head.

Rixin was enraged by Riyue's words. He turned around and looked at him with a cold sneer. "Trash! How dare you insult my father! I've changed my mind. I'll kill you first! Oh, I forgot to tell you—your dead old man died the same way. We sent him to the front lines, then left him for the enemy to kill. That's how you deal with garbage. Hahaha..."

"Father... you're dead!" Riyue stared at Rixin with bloodshot eyes and spoke each word slowly.

"Hahaha! Die!" As he spoke, he was about to throw the Kunai at Riyue's throat.

"Then why don't you try?" a cold voice said beside Rixin's ear.

A hand seized the one Rixin was using to activate the Cursed Seal. Crack! Two of Rixin's fingers snapped! The Caged Bird Seal on Riyue's forehead immediately stopped. The agonizing pain in his head eased at once, and he breathed a sigh of relief. His whole body was drenched in cold sweat.

"Ahhh!" Rixin screamed like a slaughtered pig, clutching his fingers as he fell to his knees. It was Mizuki, standing behind him, who had broken them!

"Still trying to activate the Cursed Seal?" Without hesitation, Mizuki struck Rixin in the abdomen with her palm.

"Ah!" Rixin spat out a mouthful of blood, then curled up and collapsed to the ground like a dead dog. His internal injuries left him temporarily unable to gather chakra.

"Rixin!" Hyuga U cried out in alarm, staring in disbelief at Mizuki, who seemed completely unharmed. But Mizuki had already charged up to him. She plunged a Kunai into his heart. "Die!"

"You... aren't..." Hyuga U pointed at Mizuki, then fell to the ground with his eyes open. He was dead.

Mizuki looked coldly at the dead Hyuga U and said, "That's right! I'm not! I'm just a Shadow Clone!"

Poof! A cloud of white smoke appeared, and "Mizuki" turned back into Riyue.

Rixin, still sprawled on the ground, stared blankly at Hyuga U's body, its eyes still open. He trembled all over, so terrified that he no longer felt the pain. He even forgot to run.

Riyue's Shadow Clone hurried over and slowly helped his original self to his feet. Some of Riyue's vision had returned, but everything before him remained blurry. Clutching his chest, he staggered step by step toward Rixin and glared at him with murderous intent.

A chill ran down Rixin's spine. He immediately kowtowed and begged for mercy. "Riyue, I was wrong! Please let me go. I'm begging you! For the sake of us being from the same clan..." He banged his forehead against the ground again and again, his rear stuck high in the air.

Disgusted by Rixin's shameless pleading, Riyue's Shadow Clone raised a hand and struck several of his pressure points. Rixin immediately sprawled on the ground, unable to move.

"You... you!" Rixin could only manage a faint murmur. All that remained in his eyes was terror.

"Rixin, you talk too much!"