Not, But It Could Be...

"Brother, this kid wet the bed last night."

The moment Neji got up, he loudly tattled to Ning Qi.

The culprit, Hyuga Hanabi, hid behind the door, quietly sniffling.

After being carried from the Main Family residence to this small loft, perhaps because the two brothers possessed Byakugan that were clearly similar to hers, or perhaps due to lingering effects of the This-Realm Naraku Technique, Hanabi showed no fear or crying. Only when Neji pointed at her did she pout and look at them both with grievance in her eyes.

Ning Qi was making breakfast. He looked up, caught sight of the large wet patch on Neji's clothes, clicked his tongue, and said disdainfully,

"Go change your clothes. Wash yourself clean before talking to me."

By the time the three of them sat around the table eating breakfast, several pieces of clothing and a bedsheet had also been hung out on the balcony.

"Brother, whose kid is this? How long is she staying with us?" Neji gnawed on his corn and could not help asking. Ever since his father Hizashi had died, this was the first time an outsider had moved into their home, and it made him quite uncomfortable.

"You don't need to worry about that. Hanabi won't be staying here for long. As her older brother from the same clan, just take better care of her while she's here." Ning Qi glanced at Hanabi beside him, who was quietly holding a cup and sipping milk in small mouthfuls, then spoke casually.

Taking Hanabi away had only been meant to frighten that stubborn old fool Hiashi into handing over information. The little girl was only two years old this year, and her Byakugan had only just awakened. The amount of Byakugan Essence she could provide was extremely limited.

"Hanabi? The Main Family's second young lady?" Neji's expression immediately darkened. During past Hyuga clan festivals, he had seen the sisters Hinata and Hanabi before. He would not take out his father's affairs on innocents, but he certainly would not have a pleasant expression for them either.

Ning Qi ignored him and simply stuffed a bun into Hanabi's mouth.

The little girl did not know that the man before her was the one who had killed her mother and imprisoned her father. She was very obedient, eating until her mouth was covered in grease. When Ning Qi brought over a tissue to wipe her mouth, she even softly said thank you.

Watching their movements, Neji suddenly seemed to understand something. His voice suppressed with anger, he asked,

"So you're going to be her guard now?"

The clan would assign powerful Branch Family members to serve as guards for high-status Main Family members. This was the concrete manifestation of the Branch Family being the Main Family's "spear and shield." What Neji found especially unbelievable was that even someone as strong as Ning Qi could not resist the clan's orders.

For a moment, Neji's dissatisfaction with the Hyuga Main Family swelled to its limit.

Hanabi clutched Ning Qi's sleeve, lowered her head fearfully, and secretly watched the furious Neji across the table from the corner of her eye, unable to understand what was happening.

Ning Qi raised a brow.

"Have you lost your mind?"

"Would I become a guard in my own home?"

Oh... that made sense.

Neji immediately realized that he had let his concern cloud his judgment.

His brother Ning Qi held an especially important place in his heart. Ning Qi had a bright future in ANBU and was expected to become a Jonin this year. This promotion speed was only one year slower than Kakashi's record. If he were assigned by the clan to become Hanabi's personal guard at this point, ruining his future, Neji would never be able to accept it.

"Where are you going?" Neji watched Ning Qi stand after finishing breakfast and could not help asking.

"What's with you? You were never this nagging before." Ning Qi looked at Neji in surprise. Are you the older brother, or am I? Do I need to report everywhere I go to you?

"Oh." Neji looked somewhat dejected. He had to attend the Ninja Academy today, but he still did not know how to face the aggressive Hyuga Ling, which left him extremely irritated. He casually asked, "Then what about this kid? Are we leaving her home alone or sending her back to the Main Family?"

"I... I don't want to go back..." Hanabi hurriedly said.

Neji ignored her, but Ning Qi paused for a moment before suddenly turning around. He rubbed Hanabi's head with interest and asked,

"Why don't you want to go back?"

"Papa is sick, and Sister is too... Mama... Mama fell asleep. She's been asleep for so many days... Sister Xia, Sister Senma, lots of them are sick too. At night, they planted lots and lots of trees in the courtyard... I... I'm afraid they'll plant me in the ground as a tree too..." Hanabi spoke in broken fragments.

Neji frowned deeply as he listened. She did not want to go back because she was afraid they would plant her in the ground as a tree?

What kind of strange idea was that?

Ning Qi's fingertips brushed across Hanabi's brows as he watched the girl's eyes flicker constantly in embarrassment.

These were Byakugan of exceptionally high purity.

"You have great talent," Ning Qi praised.

But talent alone clearly could not explain Hanabi's instinctive resistance toward what had happened in the clan head's residence... Was it because she was still so young?

Ning Qi considered another possible flaw in the genjutsu he had developed. Because her age was too young and her capacity for logical thought limited, was she instead less likely to be misled by the seemingly natural reality "modified" by the This-Realm Naraku Technique?

How likely was that?

As Ning Qi pondered, he remembered Hyuga Senma, who had suddenly "awakened" after seeing Hyuga Hikari last night, as well as Hyuga Hinata, who had yet to appear at all. He abruptly came back to his senses.

Some little mice were about to escape from the net he had woven...

As he thought about these matters, Ning Qi dressed himself neatly and prepared to leave. When he turned his head, however, he saw Neji looking at him with deep concern.

Ning Qi clearly knew what Neji was afraid of. After thinking for a moment, he said,

"Don't go to school for the next few days. Take leave."

"Huh?" Neji's eyes suddenly widened.

Take leave?

Wouldn't that mean he could think of a way to face Hyuga Ling, who had been bullying him, later?

As soon as the thought arose, Neji felt ashamed. Hyuga Ling of the Main Family held the secret order that controlled the Caged Bird Seal, and she pressed down on him like a mountain, leaving him unable to breathe.

...Had he truly become so afraid of her?

"Konoha's situation isn't very stable. Don't wander around before the clan council next week. Stay home and play with Hanabi for a couple of days."

Ning Qi did not care what Neji was thinking. He merely spoke meaningfully.

"The Ninja Academy teachers will understand..."

"--After next week's Hyuga Clan Council is over."

Today was the day Ning Qi's injury leave ended and he returned to duty.

As the captain of a Root combat squad, the first thing he had to do was report to Danzo.

"Ning Qi, between you and Itachi Uchiha, Konoha's Twin Prodigies, who do you think is stronger?" Within the dark hall, Danzo silently turned around. His calm voice disturbed the candlelight and echoed through the chamber.

Countless people had asked this question countless times.

According to public records, Ning Qi and Itachi had been rivals since the Ninja Academy. Even after becoming Chunin, the two had remained evenly matched, each winning and losing in turn.

It was only after Itachi joined ANBU and became Kakashi's subordinate, while Ning Qi joined Root and handled matters that could not see the light of day, that their clashes gradually became less frequent. They began contributing their own efforts to Konoha's development.

As for privately...

"He's slightly stronger." Ning Qi lowered his head, his manner respectful.

"Oh?" Danzo wore an ambiguous smile. "When I asked Itachi that question, he said you hid yourself more deeply."

"I'm curious. What exactly have you been hiding?"

"I don't know what Lord Danzo means," Ning Qi replied.

"Have the recent disappearances of Hyuga clan members been your doing?" Danzo asked bluntly.

"No." Ning Qi looked confused, as if finding the suspicion against him absurd. He shook his head and denied it. "I'm also investigating the murderer who killed our clansmen."

"Is that so? Then you'd better take the initiative to avoid suspicion lately. Don't always be the first to appear beside those Hyuga clan victims. It will cause many people to misunderstand." Danzo offered the advice carelessly.

In a report submitted by ANBU, Ning Qi had been listed as one of the primary suspects in the disappearances of numerous Hyuga clan members. The reporter had presented abundant evidence and details in support. Other than having no clue regarding Ning Qi's motive, the report was perfect in every other respect—so perfect that it invited endless speculation.

Danzo did not care whether Ning Qi had truly killed several fellow Branch Family members. But the report had been placed on the Third Hokage's desk. After Sarutobi saw Ning Qi's name in it, he immediately threw the report back at him. The meaning was obvious.

Keep your subordinate under control.

Whether he did it or not.

Danzo understood very clearly that this was not aimed at Ning Qi, but at himself. Someone wanted to use the Hyuga clan's problems at this moment to ease the conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha Clan. They had certainly put considerable thought into it...

"Yes." Ning Qi lowered his head even further.

"No matter what you intend to do, Ning Qi, now is not the time." Danzo glanced sideways at him. His voice was calm, yet carried an unquestionable tone.

"The Uchiha Clan's rebellion is imminent. No one wants to see the Hyuga clan fall into chaos at the same time... You understand what I mean, don't you?"

The Uchiha Clan was plotting a coup, and this was currently Konoha's leadership's main concern. Danzo and Sarutobi argued fiercely every day over how to resolve the Uchiha issue. Naturally, all sorts of actions were being taken in private as well. That report suspecting Ning Qi of being the culprit behind the Branch Family members' disappearances was clearly the work of certain doves.

"This subordinate understands." Ning Qi bowed expressionlessly.

Of course he understood Danzo's meaning. The current priority was not the Hyuga clan, but the Uchiha Clan.

Whether the killings and disappearances of Hyuga clan members had been Ning Qi's doing or not, Danzo did not care. If something happened, it would be pinned on Ning Qi anyway. He could deal with it himself.

"I heard the Hyuga clan is holding a clan council?" After finishing his warning, Danzo seemed to recall something and looked up to ask.

Ning Qi nodded. The news had been delivered to every Hyuga clansman by carrier pigeon last night. Naturally, in order to prevent Konoha's senior officials from becoming suspicious, Sarutobi, Danzo, and the others had also been notified.

"Yes."

"...Hiashi really has been pushed to desperation," Danzo said with some emotion as he passed Ning Qi, leaning on his cane. "But Konoha's situation is wrong right now. We really can't spare many people to help him."

As he said this, Danzo wore a faint smile. He was a key advocate among Konoha's leadership for destroying the Uchiha Clan and had coveted the Sharingan for a long time. Naturally, he would not transfer Root members who had originally been monitoring the Uchiha Clan to the Hyuga clan at a time like this.

"This is your Hyuga clan's disaster. You should put more thought into it yourself. If you can catch the culprit and prove your innocence, that would be best. If not, heh, it doesn't matter either. After all... you're only a Hyuga Branch Family member."

Danzo's lips held a trace of mockery. Ning Qi's Branch Family status determined the limit of his potential. Just as no master would allow a slave to stand higher than himself, Ning Qi, constrained by the Caged Bird Seal, was destined to be nothing more than a pawn to be used by others.

The original purpose of the Hyuga Branch Family's Caged Bird Seal was to prevent the Byakugan Kekkei Genkai from falling into outsiders' hands. It artificially divided the Hyuga clan into the Main Family and Branch Family, assigning them different duties.

Once a Branch Family member branded with the Caged Bird Seal died, the seal would destroy their Byakugan. Enemies could not obtain Byakugan from Branch Family members, so naturally they had no reason to hunt them. Those who desired the Byakugan's power could only focus their attention on Hyuga Main Family members.

The Caged Bird System effectively protected some Hyuga Branch Family members from disaster, but on the other hand, it also turned the Hyuga Branch Family into subordinates of the Main Family.

The so-called spear and shield were servants of the Main Family who could be exploited at will—the Hyuga clan head's residence was filled with maids and guards from the Branch Family. Many Main Family young masters and young ladies also had servants assigned to them, people who could give their lives for the Main Family at critical moments.

It was a perfect system designed to protect the Hyuga clan's bloodline.

Of course, this system also had a less obvious limitation. As the party sacrificed for the clan's interests, those branded with the Caged Bird Seal would inevitably grow increasingly dissatisfied.

If the Hyuga clan had always remained strong masters with weak servants, that would have been fine. But if the Main Family weakened while the Branch Family truly produced someone remarkable, such as Ning Qi before him, then it was entirely imaginable that he would refuse to be controlled by the Caged Bird and do anything at all.

In Danzo's view, if the disappearances and murders of Hyuga clan members really were Ning Qi's work, then the only possible motive was his dissatisfaction with the Caged Bird Seal on his forehead. The missing Hyuga clansmen had most likely merely been taken somewhere secluded for experiments—Danzo was quite familiar with that sort of thing, given his experience collaborating with Orochimaru.

This was not an especially important matter. In fact, if Ning Qi could truly break the Caged Bird Seal, it would instead be a good thing for Danzo.

As long as the Caged Bird's restraints were gone, every Hyuga Branch Family member would become one of his experimental subjects. It would not only be the Sharingan—Danzo might even be able to attempt obtaining the Byakugan's power as well...

"Dismissed." Danzo had no interest in talking further. The Byakugan was excellent, but the current priority was not the Hyuga clan, but the Uchiha Clan. Whatever the truth behind the disappearances of Hyuga Branch Family members, he did not care much.

But Ning Qi did not move.

Danzo noticed his hesitation and paused before asking,

"Is there anything else?"

Ning Qi pressed his lips together and said,

"Takizawa Yamaaki, who was investigating the disappearances of Hyuga Tokuma and the others, is dead."

Hm?

Danzo was extremely surprised.

Now he truly believed that the disappearances of Hyuga Branch Family members were not Ning Qi's doing.

This was far too brazen!

Takizawa Yamaaki was not strong. The Third Hokage had not sent him because he truly expected him to uncover anything. Yet even such a harmless choice had been killed by the mastermind behind it all...

What was this?

This was naked provocation!

"How did he die?" Danzo asked, though inwardly he was furious. The more trouble arose in the Hyuga clan, the more conservative Sarutobi would become regarding how to deal with the Uchiha Clan.

If the Uchiha Clan was not exterminated, where would he find so many Sharingan?

Ning Qi let out a breath and explained first,

"He died from a blade wound. He was beheaded in a single strike."

"Do you know who did it?"

Noticing Danzo's ugly expression, Ning Qi felt that he might have fallen into a misunderstanding, so he softly reminded him,

"...It could have been the Uchiha Clan."