Hinata's Visit

Night had fallen deep.

Only the dim glow of emergency lights remained in the corridors of Konoha Hospital, while the footsteps of the night-shift nurses gradually faded into the distance. Hyuga Xiao lay on the hospital bed with his eyes closed, his breathing steady as though he were truly asleep.

But he was not asleep.

Hiashi Hyuga's oppressive scrutiny during the day was like a thorn lodged deep in his consciousness. When the Main House head's Byakugan had swept over his body, he had felt as though he had been seen through completely—no, he had not been seen through. After the system's repairs, even the Byakugan could not detect any abnormalities in his body.

A faint curve appeared at the corner of Xiao's lips in the darkness.

The Caged Bird Seal's removal was at 0.1%. It sounded insignificant, but it was like the first crack in a dam. More importantly, after his Byakugan purity had risen to 6%, he had truly "seen" this world for the first time.

Not with his eyes, but with the perception awakening from deep within his bloodline.

The ward door was quietly pushed open a crack.

Xiao did not open his eyes, but his Byakugan vision had already pierced through his eyelids, clearly "seeing" the small figure at the door—Hinata Hyuga. She wore light blue pajamas beneath an ill-fitting haori, clutching something wrapped in cloth to her chest. Standing on tiptoe, she peeked around like a startled little rabbit.

"Xiao... Xiao?"

Hinata's voice was so soft it was almost inaudible.

Only then did Xiao slowly open his eyes, showing just the right amount of surprise. "Lady Hinata? Why are you here so late...?"

"I, I came secretly." Hinata hurried into the ward and softly shut the door behind her, moving with a familiarity that made it seem as though this was not her first time doing something like this. She placed the bundle in her arms on the bedside cabinet and untied it, revealing several rice balls still warm to the touch. They were lopsided, but clearly made with care.

"I made them myself... They might not taste very good." Hinata lowered her head, twisting the corner of her clothes between her fingers. "Father wouldn't let me come to the hospital to see you. He said it was normal for members of the Branch House to get hurt, so there was no need to visit you specially. But... but I have to thank you."

When she spoke those last few words, her voice suddenly became firm.

Xiao propped himself up. The movement tugged at the wound in his chest, and his brows furrowed slightly before quickly relaxing. Hinata immediately reached out nervously to support him, then seemed to realize something and withdrew her hand, her ears turning red.

"I am honored to receive rice balls personally made by Lady Hinata." Xiao picked one up and took a bite.

The rice was a little hard, and there were too many pickled plums. It was so salty that it tasted bitter.

But he chewed slowly and carefully, then gave her a gentle smile. "They're delicious."

Hinata's eyes lit up. The joy of receiving praise made her whole body relax a little. She sat on the chair beside the bed, her hands resting on her knees, her posture as straight as a student listening in class.

"Uncle Tokuma said you were badly hurt... that you almost..." Hinata's voice lowered again. "It was all because you were protecting me."

"That was my duty." Xiao put down the rice ball, his tone calm. "The Branch House is meant to protect the Main House."

"No!"

Hinata suddenly raised her voice, startling even herself. She hurriedly covered her mouth and looked around. After making sure no one had heard, she spoke again in a low but urgent voice. "Father said it was part of the plan. They deliberately let the Hidden Cloud people try to capture me, then replaced me with a decoy... But, but you didn't know about the plan, Xiao. You really were risking your life to protect me."

She raised her head, her pale eyes shimmering with tears. "You, Uncle Tokuma, and all the Branch House members... none of you knew about the plan, right?"

Xiao did not answer immediately.

He silently watched Hinata, this six-year-old Main House heiress who should have been innocent and carefree. Hiashi Hyuga had protected her well—or rather, imprisoned her well. He had kept her kind, kept her weak, and kept her completely ignorant of the clan's darkness.

But now, a crack had appeared.

"Lady Hinata." Xiao's voice was soft, as though sharing a secret. "In the eyes of the Main House elders, the lives of the Branch House are worthless. If the plan succeeded, the credit belonged to the Main House. If it failed, it did not matter if a few Branch House members died. We are merely... tools."

Hinata's lips began to tremble.

"That night, you were locked in a room deep within the estate, weren't you?" Xiao continued, his voice as calm as if he were stating a fact. "Lord Hiashi told you it was to protect you. But in truth, he was using you as the perfect bait—because only the real Main House heiress could make the Hidden Cloud believe they had captured the right person."

"But... but Father said..."

"He said it was for the clan, for the Leaf Village." Xiao smiled, and there was something in that smile Hinata could not understand. "Lady Hinata, do you believe that? Using the life of a six-year-old child as a wager, using ignorant Branch House ninjas as disposable pawns—is that truly 'for the clan'?"

Hinata could not speak.

She remembered that night, locked in an unfamiliar room while fighting and screams echoed outside. She had huddled in the corner in terror until Xiao burst in, covered in blood, and shielded her behind him.

She remembered the savage wound on Xiao's chest when he collapsed to the floor.

She remembered her father arriving at the hospital. His first question had been whether the plan had succeeded, and his second had been about Branch House casualties. From beginning to end, he had never once asked her, "Were you scared?"

"I..." Hinata's voice caught. "I don't know..."

"You don't need to know right now." Xiao's tone became gentle again. "But please remember what I said tonight: in this clan, not everyone bearing the title of the Main House deserves your respect; and not everyone marked with the Caged Bird Seal is willing to be a slave for life."

Hinata nodded hard, and her tears finally fell, splashing onto the back of her hand.

Xiao reached out and gently wiped away her tears. The gesture made Hinata freeze—in the Hyuga Clan, strict boundaries separated the Main House and the Branch House. Branch House members were never allowed physical contact with the Main House, especially men with women.

But Xiao had done it, as naturally as if there were nothing strange about it.

"Lady Hinata, if anyone bullies you in the future, tell me." Xiao looked into her eyes and spoke each word clearly. "Whether they are from the Main House or from outside. As long as you need me, I will be there."

[Ding! Bond deepened. Destiny Points +50]

[Current bond level with Hinata Hyuga: Trust (75/100)]

The system notification sounded in his mind, but Xiao's attention remained entirely on Hinata. In his enhanced Byakugan vision, the flow of chakra within her body was clearly visible—that should have been the purest bloodline of the Hyuga Main House, yet it was now bound by countless invisible chains.

More than a dozen crucial nodes in her chakra pathways were severely blocked.

One of the Eight Gates near her heart was nearly completely sealed. This was not an inborn flaw, but... an artificial seal. Xiao's pupils narrowed slightly—Hiashi Hyuga, you would not even spare your own daughter?

Was it to control her? To ensure that she could never surpass you?

"Xiao?" Hinata noticed something strange in his gaze.

"It's nothing." Xiao withdrew his hand, his smile returning to normal. "I just think Lady Hinata's chakra... doesn't seem to flow very smoothly. When you train, do you often feel tightness in your chest, as if your chakra disperses halfway through gathering it?"

Hinata's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"I guessed." Xiao brushed it off lightly. "Perhaps your training methods do not suit you very well. If there is a chance later, I can practice with you—using some crude methods from the Branch House. They might help."

"Really?" Hinata's eyes lit up again, but soon dimmed. "But Father said the Main House and Branch House training techniques cannot be mixed..."

"Then don't let him know." Xiao winked.

Hinata froze. Then, for the first time in front of Xiao, she showed a genuine smile—not a polite, restrained smile, but the smile of a six-year-old child, carrying a hint of mischief and a shared secret.

"Mm!" She nodded hard.

After chatting for a little longer, Hinata glanced at the clock on the wall and hurriedly stood. "I, I should go back now. Otherwise, the patrolling clan members will notice I'm not in my room..."

"I'll walk you to the door."

"No, no, Xiao, you need to rest properly!" Hinata waved her hands. When she reached the door, she turned back and said earnestly, "Tomorrow... I'll come again tomorrow. I'll make better rice balls!"

With that, she slipped out, and her footsteps gradually faded down the corridor.

Xiao leaned against the headboard, and the gentle smile on his face slowly disappeared, replaced by cold calculation.

Hinata's chakra seal—this was an opportunity.

The shackles Hiashi Hyuga had personally planted within his daughter's body—if Xiao could undo them, how dependent on him would Hinata become? When the Main House heiress discovered that the one who could truly help her grow stronger and give her freedom was not the father who endlessly spoke of clan honor, but a Branch House member marked with the Caged Bird Seal...

Xiao closed his eyes, yet his Byakugan vision became even clearer.

He could "see" a figure hiding in the shadows at the end of the corridor outside the ward—Tokuma Hyuga. This Branch House Elite Ninja had been secretly protecting Hinata ever since she entered the hospital, or rather, watching her.

Tokuma did not fully trust him.

That was normal. After living in the Hyuga Clan for over thirty years and witnessing countless Branch House members rebel against the Main House only to die horrible deaths, how could he easily place his bet on a twelve-year-old child?

But Tokuma had already taken the first step.

That night, he had acted according to Xiao's plan. He had saved Hinata and proven before every Branch House ninja that the Main House's plan would sacrifice them, but they could fight for a way to survive themselves.

"Slowly." Xiao murmured to himself.

The Caged Bird Seal on his forehead grew faintly hot, proof that the Main House could take his life at any moment. Yet at that moment, Xiao felt the power granted by his 6% purity Byakugan, the Destiny Points brought by his 75-point bond with Hinata, and Tokuma's hesitant footsteps outside the door that had yet to leave...

It was as if he could already see the prison that had confined the Hyuga Branch House for a thousand years cracking apart inch by inch.

And all he had to do was plant the Seed of fire within those cracks.

Outside the window, the lights of the Leaf Village went out one after another.

But once some things were ignited, they would never grow dark again.