The Branch House's Intelligence Network

Afternoon sunlight filtered through the eaves of the Hyuga Clan Grounds in Konoha Village, cutting the ground into interwoven grids of light and shadow.

Hyuga Xiao knelt beneath the eaves at the edge of the Branch House residential area, a kunai pinched in his hand as if he were practicing his throwing form. His movements were slow, each lift of his arm resembling a beginner correcting his stance, but the pupils in those pale eyes shifted by the tiniest margins.

He was observing.

The Branch House residential area was far more crowded than the Main House's side. The buildings stood packed tightly together, and the alleys were narrow. This was the strictest class divide within Konoha Village—the Main House lived in spacious courtyards at the center of the clan grounds, while the Branch House surrounded the outer perimeter like guards, serving as both protection and surveillance.

"Xiao!"

Three children of seven or eight ran out of the alley. Leading them was Hyuga Keita, a distant Branch House relative, followed by his younger sister Hyuga Rei and an even smaller boy, Hyuga Ken. All three bore bluish Caged Bird Seals on their foreheads, glinting dully beneath the sunlight.

Hyuga Xiao stopped moving, a gentle smile appearing on his face—the expression he had practiced countless times before a mirror. It was neither warm enough to arouse suspicion nor cold enough to keep people guarded.

"Keita, why are you running in such a hurry?"

"Xiao, I mastered that Gentle Fist opening stance you taught me yesterday!" Keita excitedly demonstrated it twice. The movements were childish, but they had the right shape.

Hyuga Xiao nodded and pulled three candies wrapped in wax paper from his clothes. He had bought them with the allowance he had saved this month. Branch House children received pitifully little spending money, so candy was a rare luxury to them.

"Not bad. These are your rewards."

The three children's eyes instantly lit up. Rei carefully accepted her candy and said softly, "Thank you, Xiao... This must have been expensive, right?"

"It's fine once in a while." Hyuga Xiao ruffled her hair with the natural ease of a real older brother. "Has anything interesting happened around the clan grounds lately? I spend all day at the training grounds. I'm going stir-crazy."

He asked casually, as if it were idle conversation.

Keita unwrapped his candy and stuffed it into his mouth. "Nothing special... Oh, right! The day before yesterday, Ken and I went to catch fish by the little river outside the village, and we saw several merchants wandering around there."

Hyuga Xiao's fingers paused almost imperceptibly.

"Merchants?" he asked in a relaxed tone. "Merchants come and go through Konoha all the time. What's so strange about that?"

"But they were really weird." Ken licked his candy as he chimed in. "They wore ordinary clothes, but the way they walked... was kind of like ninja. And their eyes—"

At that point, Ken suddenly shrank back, lowering his voice.

"Their eyes were terrifying, like they wanted to kill someone. We wanted to get closer and see what they were selling, but one of them glared at us. We got so scared that we ran away."

Hyuga Xiao's heart jolted.

System panel silently unfolded in his field of vision:

[Key intelligence lead detected]

[Analyzing intelligence...]

[Match rate: 87%]

[Preliminary assessment: Hidden Cloud spies have infiltrated Konoha's outskirts and are surveying the terrain and defensive weaknesses]

He kept smiling and pulled out two more candies. "What else? How many were there? How long did they stay by the river?"

Keita thought for a moment. "About four or five, I think? They walked around the river, then headed toward the forest to the south. We played there all afternoon before they finally left."

The southern forest—close to the seventh section of Konoha's walls, one of the relatively weaker areas of the defensive barrier. When Hyuga Xiao had been punished to kneel yesterday, he had noticed a three-minute gap in the Main House patrol route in that direction.

Three minutes was enough for elite ninja to accomplish a great deal.

"Xiao, why are you asking about this?" Rei tilted her head at him.

"Oh, I've been working on a reconnaissance techniques assignment lately." Hyuga Xiao casually made up an excuse. "The teacher told us to observe the behavioral patterns of strangers around the village. The clues you gave me are useful. Next time, I'll treat you to dango."

The children cheered.

Hyuga Xiao chatted with them for a while longer, until the three children skipped away. Once their figures vanished at the end of the alley, the smile on his face gradually faded, leaving behind only cold calm.

He rose, brushed the dust from his knees, and headed deeper into the Branch House residential area.

The Branch House intelligence network—this was the hidden network he had spent half a year unraveling after transmigrating here.

The Main House believed the Caged Bird Seal was enough to completely control the Branch House, yet they had overlooked the most basic truth: to survive, the oppressed would naturally form systems to resist oppression. Branch House servants, laborers, and children—those neglected figures on the margins—were precisely the natural carriers of information.

While cleaning the Main House courtyards, they could overhear fragments of conversation. While standing watch at the village gates, they could observe people entering and leaving. While clearing the outskirts of training grounds, they could monitor the progress of Main House descendants. Those fragments of information circulated quietly within the Branch House, forming an invisible intelligence network.

Hyuga Xiao arrived at an old teahouse on the western side of the residential area. It was a place where Branch House elders often gathered. A few low tables and a few pots of coarse tea were enough to pass an entire afternoon.

"Xiao, is that you?" The owner of the teahouse was a Branch House elder in his sixties named Hyuga Heizo. His left eye had been blinded during a mission years ago, and he now managed the Branch House's material distribution.

"Grandpa Heizo." Hyuga Xiao bowed respectfully and sat in an empty corner seat. "A pot of tea, please."

Heizo slowly carried over a teapot and poured him a cup of murky tea. The old man's single eye studied him for several seconds before he suddenly lowered his voice. "I heard the Main House made you kneel yesterday?"

The news traveled fast.

Hyuga Xiao gave a bitter smile. "I touched someone I shouldn't have."

"Lady Hinata?" Heizo snorted. "Those Main House lords value their young lady more than their own lives. You're Branch House. Stay far away from her."

"I know." Hyuga Xiao took a sip of tea. It was bitter, but refreshing. "Grandpa Heizo, has there been anything unusual with the clan's recent supply purchases?"

The old man's remaining eye narrowed. "Why ask that?"

"I accepted a D-rank mission to help the logistics department inventory the warehouses." Hyuga Xiao had prepared his explanation long ago. "I noticed that several calming medicinal herbs had been delivered in particularly high quantities lately—thirty percent more than usual."

That was true. He had indeed helped at the warehouse yesterday, and he had indeed noticed the anomaly. He simply had not thought much of it at the time. Now that he connected the pieces, it took on an entirely different meaning.

Heizo fell silent for a moment, thought flickering in his lone eye.

"Now that you mention it..." The old man lowered his voice further. "Last week's procurement list also increased the quota for trauma medicine and antidotes. I asked the Main House steward, and he said it was a routine reserve update."

A routine reserve update?

Hyuga Xiao sneered inwardly. Konoha's medical stockpiles followed strict rotation procedures. There were only two reasons to suddenly increase quotas: either a large-scale conflict was expected, or the upper ranks knew certain intelligence and were preparing in advance.

Combined with the "merchants who looked like ninja" the children had seen, the answer was already obvious.

"Grandpa Heizo." Hyuga Xiao set down his teacup, his voice so soft it was nearly inaudible. "If... I mean, if the village might become unstable soon, what should the Branch House do?"

The old man's remaining eye turned sharp.

They looked at each other for several seconds before Heizo slowly exhaled. "Xiao, there are things you cannot say carelessly."

"I understand." Hyuga Xiao took a small cloth bundle from his clothes and pushed it toward the old man. "This was a charm my mother left behind. Before she died, she told me that if I ever felt I was in danger, I should bring it to you."

That came from the original owner's memories. In his youth, Hyuga Heizo and Xiao's father had once been friends who had trusted each other with their lives. Before Xiao's mother died, she truly had given him those instructions.

Heizo stared at the faded cloth bundle, a complicated emotion flashing through his lone eye. He remained silent for a long time, until the other elders in the teahouse gradually left, leaving only the two of them.

"Your father..." The old man finally spoke, his voice hoarse. "Back then, he was too honest. The Main House sent him on that suicide mission, and he went without even asking a question."

Hyuga Xiao listened quietly.

"Branch House lives are worthless." Heizo's fingers rubbed the edge of his teacup. "But even the lowliest life is still a life. Xiao, you're smarter than your father. That's good. But smart people often die faster, because they see too clearly."

"If you can't see clearly and die in ignorance, what meaning is there in that?" Hyuga Xiao asked softly.

Heizo stared at him for a long while before suddenly smiling. The smile was bleak, carrying the numbness and clarity unique to Branch House elders, worn down by the years.

"Three days ago, the Main House secretly transferred six Branch House Elite Ninja away, saying they were assigned to long-term infiltration missions." The old man finally revealed the crucial information. "But their families received no notice and no settlement allowance. That has never happened before."

Hyuga Xiao's pupils contracted slightly.

Before Branch House Elite Ninja carried out dangerous missions, the Main House would at least make a show of giving their families some compensation. It was the bare minimum for maintaining Branch House loyalty. If even that had been abandoned, there could be only one explanation: the mission was too urgent to worry about such details, or... the people carrying it out were unlikely to return.

"Which direction were they sent?" he asked.

"North." Heizo said. "Toward Hidden Cloud."

At that moment, every fragment fell into place.

Hidden Cloud spies had infiltrated to survey the area. Konoha had increased its medical supplies. The Main House had urgently sent Branch House elites to the border. This was no ordinary border clash. These were signs of a war approaching.

And the Hidden Cloud Envoy Delegation's visit was the perfect cover.

Hyuga Xiao rose and bowed deeply to Heizo. "Thank you, Grandpa Heizo."

"I didn't say anything." The old man waved a hand, his lone eye turning toward the window. "I'm just an old man who makes tea. I don't know anything. Xiao, take care of yourself."

By the time he left the teahouse, night had fallen.

Hyuga Xiao walked through the narrow alleys of the Branch House residential area. Scattered lights glowed in the houses on either side. He could hear sounds drifting from within—the voices of mothers scolding children, married couples talking softly, old people coughing.

They were all Branch House members, carrying the same Caged Bird Seal as him on their foreheads, their lives and deaths resting on a single thought from the Main House.

He stopped and looked toward the center of the clan grounds. The lights there blazed brightly, and the Main House compound appeared especially grand beneath the night sky, like a massive cage.

No.

Hyuga Xiao withdrew his gaze and continued onward.

That was not a cage. It was a graveyard. And what he intended to do was drag out everyone inside, one by one, and bury them in the dirt.

After returning to his cramped Branch House dormitory, Hyuga Xiao closed the door and slowly slid down against it to sit on the floor. He closed his eyes as the system panel unfolded in the darkness.

[Main quest: Prevent the Hidden Cloud Envoy Delegation from kidnapping Hinata within seven days]

[Time remaining: 6 days, 11 hours]

[Current progress: Intelligence-gathering phase complete]

[Key clues obtained: Hidden Cloud spies have infiltrated Konoha's outskirts; the Main House has sent Branch House elites to the border; Konoha's medical stockpiles have increased abnormally]

[Intelligence analysis completion: 92%]

[Recommendation: The next step should focus on confirming Hidden Cloud's specific operation time and infiltration route]

Hyuga Xiao opened his eyes, his pale pupils glimmering faintly in the darkness.

It was still not enough.

He knew Hidden Cloud would make a move. He knew the approximate time window. But he did not know the specific day or the exact moment. He needed more precise intelligence. He needed to confirm where the Hidden Cloud spies were hiding and determine their route of action.

And he could not rely on anyone for any of it.

The Branch House intelligence network could only provide fragments. The true core intelligence had to be obtained by himself.

Hyuga Xiao got up and walked to a corner of the room, shifting aside a loose floorboard. Beneath it was a small hidden compartment containing three items: an unmarked kunai, a roll of bandages, and a small bottle of Soldier Provision Pills.

This was his "emergency reserve," accumulated bit by bit over half a year.

He picked up the kunai, his fingers brushing over its cold blade. It was an ordinary standard-issue training weapon, but it had been sharpened to a keen edge. In the faint moonlight filtering through the paper window, the blade gleamed with a chilling coldness.

"System," he murmured inwardly. "If I take the initiative and eliminate the Hidden Cloud spies beforehand, would that count as changing a Fate Node?"

[Warning: The host's current strength is insufficient to confront an elite Hidden Cloud spy team directly]

[Recommendation: Prioritize completing the task of building trust with Hinata. Make further plans after obtaining the first-stage rewards]

[Risk notice: Host death probability: 78.3%]

Hyuga Xiao tugged at the corner of his mouth.

A 78.3% chance of death—very high, but there was still a 21.7% chance of survival. And if he did nothing and waited for Hidden Cloud to act, he would have to save Hinata under Hiashi's watch. The chance of death would only be higher.

He needed strength. He needed the system rewards: increased Byakugan purity and progress toward removing the Curse Mark. But those rewards required completing missions, and completing missions required strength.

A deadlock.

Unless... he could find a third path.

Hyuga Xiao put the kunai back into the hidden compartment and replaced the floorboard. He walked to the window, pushed open a narrow gap, and looked at the night sky.

The moon was full. Its cold light spilled over the rooftops of the Hyuga Clan Grounds, illuminating everything clearly while somehow making it seem as if nothing could be seen clearly at all.

He suddenly recalled what Keita had said that afternoon.

"Their eyes were terrifying, like they wanted to kill someone."

Eyes.

Hyuga Xiao's pupils abruptly contracted.

What were Hidden Cloud ninja best at? Lightning Release, taijutsu, and swordsmanship. But spies infiltrating to conduct reconnaissance would certainly avoid using conspicuous Lightning Release, and taijutsu could not expose Hidden Cloud's distinctive methods of exerting force.

Then what did they use to identify friend from foe? What did they use to move at night?

Their eyes.

Hidden Cloud had no Kekkei Genkai involving eye techniques. To fight at night, they needed tools: night-vision goggles, or... some kind of secret medicine that enhanced eyesight.

Hyuga Xiao suddenly turned around, opened the hidden compartment again, and took out the roll of bandages. He quickly tore off a strip and covered his left eye, leaving only his right exposed.

Then he walked to the other side of the room, where a small mirror hung.

In the mirror, the young man with his left eye covered stared at himself with his pale right eye. Hyuga Xiao slowly turned his eye and circulated chakra. It was weak—the chakra extraction methods available to the Branch House were all incomplete versions—but he had never slacked off during the past half year.

Byakugan, activate.

The vision in his right eye changed instantly. The surrounding walls became transparent. He could see the Branch House ninja sleeping in the next room, and farther away, he could see Main House guards patrolling the alleys.

But with his left eye covered by the bandage, half his vision was gone.

Hyuga Xiao maintained the Byakugan and began moving around the room. He avoided tables and chairs, picked up a cup, and tried throwing kunai. Every movement became clumsy due to the missing field of vision, and his distance judgments were distorted.

He stopped moving and tore off the bandage.

"So that's it..."

If Hidden Cloud spies wanted to infiltrate the Hyuga Clan Grounds at night, they would be facing Byakugan users with three-hundred-and-sixty-degree vision. Their only advantage was that Hyuga clan members relied too heavily on the Byakugan. Once their vision was disrupted, their combat strength would be greatly reduced.

And the simplest ways to interfere with vision—smoke screens, flash bombs, or... creating local visual blind spots.

Hyuga Xiao walked to his desk and spread out a crude map of Konoha Village. It was an illustrated map included in the textbooks distributed at the Ninja Academy, marked with major buildings and streets.

His finger moved across the map, starting from the southern forest outside the village, passing through the seventh section of the wall, entering the Hyuga Clan Grounds, and finally stopping at the Main House compound.

A possible infiltration route.

But that route had to avoid at least twelve Hyuga patrol points, three ANBU sentry posts, and the barrier surrounding the Main House compound itself. Hidden Cloud could not possibly force their way in. They had to have an insider, or... some method of temporarily blocking Byakugan surveillance.

Hyuga Xiao stared at the map and suddenly remembered something.

Three days ago, the Main House compound's barrier maintenance had been handled by three Branch House ninja. It had been routine maintenance, once every three months, nothing unusual at all.

But what if one of those three Branch House ninja had been bought off?

What if, during the barrier maintenance, someone had quietly left a back door?

Hyuga Xiao put away the map, blew out the oil lamp, and lay down on his bed in the darkness. He did not sleep. He stared at the ceiling as his mind raced.

Tomorrow, he needed to confirm three things.

First, where the three Branch House ninja responsible for the barrier maintenance were now.

Second, whether the southern forest outside the village contained traces left behind by Hidden Cloud spies.

Third—and most importantly—he needed to see Hinata once more.

The system mission required trust, and trust needed time as well as opportunity. The Hidden Cloud Kidnapping Incident was a crisis, but it was also an opportunity. He needed Hinata to rely on him during the crisis, trust him, and finally... be unable to leave him.

The moon outside slowly moved across the sky. Moonlight shifted from the window to the wall, then vanished into the darkness before dawn.

Hyuga Xiao finally closed his eyes.

Six hours later, dawn would arrive.

And his war had already begun.