The Hyuga Second Elder Appears

The two brats meant that they were on the same team as Kawaki Aoba.

Oh, now he remembered. He had heard about a genius kid who'd created a hand-sign-free Lightning Release Ninjutsu shortly before graduating.

But the technique had limited power when used by other ninja and demanded an exceptionally high level of chakra control. Few could master it, so it had only reluctantly been classified as C-rank.

Besides, the kid was supposedly quite talented, and Lord Hokage had personally assigned him to the squad led by his youngest son, Sarutobi Asuma.

Now it seemed that the genius kid from back then was none other than Kawaki Aoba.

The three kids were on the same team, and their Jonin leader was none other than Yuhi Shinku.

However, more than their leader, Yuhi Shinku, what Asuma had just said was what concerned Fugaku.

All right, Fugaku had to admit that Sarutobi Asuma's identity was quite useful.

The Third Hokage's position had to be considered in this matter.

And although he hated to admit it, the truth was that the Third Hokage's inner circle wasn't someone the Uchiha could deal with as they pleased.

The Third Hokage himself had assigned Kawaki Aoba to Asuma's team. However you looked at it, it seemed like he was grooming a following for his youngest son.

Having pieced things together, Fugaku's expression darkened.

His mighty Uchiha Clan had been used by a kid, and now they couldn't even teach him a lesson. This was just...

Left with no choice, Fugaku let the three kids leave the Uchiha Police Force.

He had to consider how the Third Hokage would react. If he refused to let them go, who knew whether the next ones to show up at the Uchiha Military Police Force demanding someone would be the Anbu?

What Uchiha Fugaku didn't know was that Sarutobi Asuma and Yuhi Kurenai had come to the Uchiha Military Police Force to demand Aoba's release only because Kawaki Aoba had sent them a Shadow Clone in advance to inform them.

It had absolutely nothing to do with the Third Hokage.

"Aoba, why don't you stay at my place for a while? The old man's the Hokage, after all. I'm sure the Hyuga Clan won't dare cause trouble there." As soon as the three of them left the Uchiha Police Force, Asuma was the first to speak.

"Yeah, Aoba. You should stay at Asuma's place for a while. It'll definitely be much safer than staying at home," Yuhi Kurenai chimed in.

Aoba thanked his two friends for their kindness, but he turned down Asuma's offer.

One reason was that Kawaki Aoba didn't want to owe anyone too big a favor. More importantly, he wasn't sure where the Third Hokage stood.

To put it simply, he didn't want to gamble. And even if he won, his situation would only improve a little. Hiding like a rat in its nest wasn't what he wanted.

As for how to deal with this huge problem, Kawaki Aoba already had a plan.

Hah, it's just a pair of Byakugan. No Hyuga had seen his eyes with their own eyes.

Meanwhile, at the Uchiha Police Force, Fugaku had chosen two trusted subordinates and taken the two Hyuga Chunin to "pay a visit" to the Hyuga Clan.

Fugaku had already made up his mind: he'd make the Hyuga Clan pay for the frustration Kawaki Aoba had caused him.

After all, it was that damned Byakugan bloodline that had started all this.

And just as Fugaku was preparing to make trouble for the Hyuga Clan, things weren't exactly peaceful in the Hyuga Clan Compound either.

"Second Elder, I witnessed it all myself. Kawaki Aoba walked out of the Uchiha Police Force in plain sight alongside the Third Hokage's youngest son and the daughter of Jonin Yuhi Shinku. Also, according to the information we gathered earlier, Tsubaki and Yu really may have been taken to the Uchiha Police Force by Kawaki Aoba."

A Hyuga Branch Family Jonin knelt on one knee before the Hyuga Second Elder and reported everything he had just discovered.

Earlier, when the Hyuga Second Elder saw that the two subordinates he'd sent out hadn't returned, he'd feared something had gone wrong and immediately sent his personal guards to investigate.

He hadn't expected to get a report like this.

As he berated himself for being careless, the Hyuga Second Elder also sensed trouble.

Like Uchiha Fugaku, he wondered why Sarutobi Asuma had appeared beside Kawaki Aoba at a time like this. Had Sarutobi Hiruzen ordered it?

As for the two Hyuga ninja attacking Kawaki Aoba, wasn't that a minor incident from start to finish? At worst, his Hyuga Clan would be blamed for failing to discipline its people.

Aside from some damage to their reputation, it would hardly affect them. And as for those two good-for-nothings, what use were they if they couldn't even handle such a small task?

The Hyuga Second Elder paced around his room, thinking about what to do next. There was no way he'd let that kid go. The Hyuga Clan's Byakugan absolutely couldn't be allowed to fall into outsider hands.

"I'll go to the Hokage Building and meet Sarutobi Hiruzen in person. I'll ask him what he means by this. As for Kawaki Aoba, you'll keep a close eye on him yourself. Watch him carefully, but don't make a move until I give the order." The Hyuga Second Elder soon came up with a plan.

He waved his hand, and the ninja kneeling before him vanished with a whoosh. If all went as expected, the man had gone to watch Kawaki Aoba as ordered.

The Second Elder acted swiftly and immediately set off for the Hokage Building to demand an explanation.

But before he could leave the Hyuga Clan Compound, the commotion at its entrance caught his attention.

Listening carefully, he could hear people arguing in front of the Hyuga Clan's main gate.

Normally, the Hyuga Second Elder would have stormed over with a stern look and put them in their place. But this time, he sensibly chose to take another route.

There was no helping it. A few Uchiha were blocking the Hyuga Clan's main gate.

Though he didn't care whether those two good-for-nothings lived or died, the Hyuga Clan was indeed in the wrong here. So the Hyuga Second Elder decided it was best to slip away first. Fortunately, the Hyuga Clan had more than one gate. Otherwise, he would have had to scale the wall like a ninja today.

The Hyuga Second Elder could barely remember the last time he'd traveled like a ninja. It seemed like a very distant memory.

Unlike the current Hyuga Clan Head and the First Elder, who at least had some practical combat experience, the Second Elder had plenty of strength but had never fought on a battlefield.

Unfortunately, the current Hyuga Clan Head and the First Elder had both gone to visit the nobles at the Land of Daimyo in the Capital of the Land of Fire, leaving him alone to temporarily manage the Hyuga Clan.