What Was I Touching Just Now?

Pfft!

Wuye struggled to shift half an inch, barely avoiding his heart, but the kunai still stabbed viciously into his chest.

His cell division accelerated a hundredfold in an instant. His bodily energy erupted, and his chakra surged more than a hundredfold in tandem.

"Aah—!"

With a roar, he gathered chakra beneath his feet and kicked out fiercely.

Bang!

Hyuga Naoya only had time to raise an arm in defense before the immense force sent him flying.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Under the enormous threat of death, Wuye formed hand seals several beats faster than usual. In an instant, three chakra chains extended from his back and swept toward Hyuga Naoya like water serpents.

This was the strongest ninjutsu he could use now, and the only technique capable of threatening a jonin.

Eight Trigrams Palm: Rotation!

At that moment, Hyuga Naoya used the main family's ultimate technique, one Wuye knew all too well.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The hemispherical expansion of chakra deflected the three chakra chains. Under the tremendous pulling force, coupled with the instability of Wuye's chakra reserves, the chakra chains shattered.

Eight Trigrams Air Palm!

Hyuga Naoya struck out with an air palm, blasting Wuye backward in an instant, blood spraying from his mouth.

Seeing Hyuga Naoya close in again, his gaze vicious and clearly unwilling to rest until he had killed him, Wuye could only struggle to block a few palms. His injuries grew worse and worse.

Come to think of it... my chakra points were sealed from the beginning. Why was I able to use ninjutsu earlier...?

As his consciousness blurred, that thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

Hm? That's not right...

He shook his head hard, enduring the pain as he thought calmly. Kaguya just told me not to leave her side recently. How could Hyuga Naoya have ambushed me now?

And...

I clearly didn't activate my Sharingan. How could I see a jonin's movements so clearly?!

Wuye's defensive movements abruptly stopped, and he let the vicious Eight Trigrams Palms strike him.

A pair of scarlet eyes emerged, their tomoe slowly turning.

Through his faintly red vision, he clearly sensed an abnormal interference of spiritual energy.

It's genjutsu...

Hyuga Wuye formed a hand seal and, following what he had learned at the Ninja Academy, disrupted the chakra within his body in an attempt to break free of the genjutsu.

The world before him visibly distorted, becoming even more unreal, yet the illusion remained intact.

Such powerful genjutsu... Is it the Uchiha Clan?

Ignoring Hyuga Naoya's attacks, Wuye frowned. Could it be the person who spied on us at Konoha Cemetery before?

Just when he was at a loss, a powerful stream of chakra suddenly poured into his body.

Like a fresh breeze suddenly blowing through a murky world, it instantly soothed Wuye's agitated mind...

Boom!

The entire illusory world began to twist violently before shattering with a thunderous crash.

Countless fragments of spiritual energy seemed to flutter away and vanish. The world before Hyuga Wuye slowly returned to normal... vast swathes of smooth, snowy whiteness filled his vision.

What... is going on?!

Not only was his vision full of white, but Wuye also felt soft, smooth sensations all over his face.

A rich fragrance wafted into his nostrils in waves, intoxicating him.

"Clan Head, Hyuga Wuye actually dared to ambush you!"

Hyuga Naoya's voice suddenly reached his ears. "That Uchiha bastard is no good after all! He must be expelled from the clan!"

Startled, Wuye was just about to turn around when a slender, delicate hand gently stroked the top of his head.

"Who said he ambushed me?"

Kaguya's cool voice entered his ears. "My own younger brother and I were merely playing around. Does the Grand Elder have to interfere with that too?"

One hand stroked him, while another seemed to be pressed against the center of his back, chakra continuously flowing into his body.

Wuye instantly understood his current situation... When he had attacked Kaguya in the genjutsu, she must have held him and restrained him, right?

The chakra in his body had also been infused by her to disrupt his spiritual energy and break the genjutsu.

"Sis..."

Wuye raised his head and pulled back slightly from Kaguya... The wonderful feeling of being held by her was truly hard to put into words.

"Why don't you take your hand away already!"

Kaguya did not even look at him, her expression perfectly normal.

But from Wuye's angle, he could see that her delicate, rounded earlobes were bright red, like translucent grapes.

He instinctively released his hand, and a soft, springy sensation flashed across his palm.

Hyuga Wuye was instantly stunned... What was I touching just now? Why was my hand there? What kind of attack did I use in the genjutsu? Some kind of Dragon Claw Grab?

Once he let go, Kaguya released him as well and pulled him to her side.

Taking a careful look around, Wuye realized that he had somehow already entered the Hyuga Clan Grounds, while Grand Elder Hyuga Naoya had brought quite a few people to surround them.

"Grand Elder, my sister and I were hugging. That's none of your business, is it?"

After figuring out what had happened, Wuye immediately put on an innocent expression.

"Hmph. Everyone saw the chakra surging around your body just now."

As Hyuga Naoya spoke, a trace of displeasure flashed through his eyes... Uchiha Yuxiong couldn't even control a child without getting broken free from? What a useless fool!

"I already said it. My brother and I were just playing around!"

Kaguya said coldly, "All of you, back off!"

"Everyone knows Hyuga Wuye was only acknowledged as the Clan Head's younger brother yesterday, yet you're already this intimate today?" Hyuga Naoya spoke with earnest concern. "Clan Head, don't let him deceive you. Even if he is not expelled from the clan, he should at least be branded with the Caged Bird."

In a shadowy corner, Uchiha Yuxiong cursed furiously in his heart... That shameless old bastard. He clearly said he wanted to force Hyuga Wuye out of the clan, and now he's changed his tune? So branding him with the Caged Bird was his real goal all along.

"Sis, can you catch the person who controlled me?" Wuye tugged at Kaguya's sleeve and asked quietly.

Kaguya's eyes widened as her Byakugan vision rapidly expanded, quickly locking onto Uchiha Yuxiong.

Bang!

But before she could point him out, he vanished.

"That was a shadow clone," she said, shaking her head.

Hyuga Wuye frowned... So I can only swallow this loss in silence.

The Uchiha Clan had plotted this well. As long as he attacked the Hyuga Clan Head in public, there was no way he could remain in the Hyuga Clan.

Even if Kaguya firmly supported him, she could not completely disregard the views and opinions of the clansmen. Otherwise, she would easily end up isolated and abandoned by all.

As for Hyuga Naoya, whether Kaguya was forced to abandon Hyuga Wuye or Wuye was branded with the Caged Bird, either outcome was a victory for him.

He already held a lofty position within the clan. With these recent incidents added in, it was not impossible for him to unite the main family and remove the Clan Head.

Even though the Caged Bird was nominally abolished, the branch family's Caged Bird had not actually been removed. Even if they had objections, they had no voice.

From that perspective, joining forces with the Uchiha Clan to stage this was absolutely beneficial to him!

"The Caged Bird system has been abolished. Grand Elder, do not bring it up again," Kaguya said indifferently. "Everyone, disperse."

Kaguya could only use authority to suppress the clansmen's opinions. Though her strength had increased enormously, her control over the clan was still far weaker than the Grand Elder's.

The clansmen gave Kaguya and Wuye several strange looks before dispersing one by one.

Before long, what had happened here would surely spread throughout the clan.

But what spread probably would not be what Hyuga Naoya wanted. After all, gossip about an ambiguous relationship between siblings was far more interesting than any conspiracy!

They had been hugging in public, and he had even groped her chest...

Hyuga Naoya likely guessed the outcome by now. His face darkened several shades... His results had been greatly diminished!

"Colluding with the Uchiha Clan and framing a fellow clansman—the Grand Elder's methods are becoming increasingly unscrupulous," Kaguya said blandly.

Hyuga Naoya did not deny it. He merely said in a low voice, "The Caged Bird is the foundation of the Hyuga Clan. It must not be abolished. Clan Head, you will lead the clan into irreversible ruin."

"I will remove you from your position. I certainly will."

He turned and left. From his back, he even seemed somewhat righteous, leaving Wuye briefly unable to tell whether he acted for the public good or for personal gain.

Or perhaps he was using the clan's interests as an excuse to seek benefits for himself?

When strength is lacking, conspiracies make up the difference. He's exactly like that old scheming bastard Danzo.

Should I stir up something first and weaken his influence a little? At the very least, make him stop throwing his seniority around and acting recklessly...

All kinds of ways to screw people over flashed through Hyuga Wuye's mind.

Beside him, Kaguya let out a soft sigh. "Recently, we can't let him catch us with another weakness... Thirty million ryo... sigh..."