Stirrings on All Sides

Bitterness surfaced on Hyuga Hiashi's stern face. The pressure of leading the clan had left him struggling to breathe.

"Yes, I had no other choice."

Uchiha Kyu curled his lips into a smile. "Clan Head Hyuga will certainly be glad for the decision he made today."

The Hyuga Clan's Byakugan was simply too useful in battle, practically like using cheats.

During several Shinobi World Wars, the Hyuga Clan had made tremendous contributions on the battlefield.

Without the Byakugan's long-range x-ray vision, it would have been even harder for Konoha to triumph against the siege of those hidden villages.

That was why the Byakugan had always been coveted by outside ninja villages.

"Brother." Hizashi Hyuga felt deeply ashamed that he had failed to share even a fraction of his brother's burden.

Hyuga Hiashi looked at his younger brother. Thinking of their respective fates, his gaze gradually hardened.

"Hizashi, if we do not change, then our fate will forever be that of the main house and branch house."

Hizashi Hyuga stared wide-eyed at his brother, his heart hammering faster and faster.

Hyuga Hiashi raised a hand to stop Hizashi from speaking, then looked at Uchiha Kyu and asked solemnly.

"How can I trust that you will not sell out the Hyuga Clan the moment you turn around?"

"There are only two words in any deal in this world." Uchiha Kyu raised two fingers and calmly spoke them: "Value."

"When your value far exceeds the value of selling you out, naturally I will not sell you. On the contrary, I will value you even more."

"The Senju Clan has long since been reduced by Konoha's higher-ups to just Tsunade. If Konoha's top two clans join forces now, I can only describe it with two words."

"Invincible."

Bragging cost nothing, after all, and Uchiha Kyu could hardly wait to paint Hyuga Hiashi a grand vision.

Hyuga Hiashi was somewhat swept up in it as well, but he quickly calmed down and asked, "Then what about the Hyuga Clan's businesses on the Three Great Streets?"

Uchiha Kyu waved a hand and spoke with an air of generosity.

"As a show of good faith in our cooperation, ordinary members of the Hyuga Clan who do not cultivate chakra may go to the Three Great Streets and take over the Hyuga Clan's businesses."

"Pay the monthly rent as usual. As for taxes, simply pay them directly to the Uchiha Clan."

"That is only proper." Hyuga Hiashi's expression eased considerably. The issue of the clan's businesses had finally been resolved.

After they simply established a preliminary partnership, Hyuga Hiashi became much friendlier. Uchiha Kyu was also happy to chat with him for a while.

Through their conversation, Uchiha Kyu told Hyuga Hiashi about what had happened outside.

To show his gratitude, Hyuga Hiashi personally poured him a cup of tea.

"Thank you for informing us, Uchiha Clan Head. Otherwise, the Hyuga Clan would truly have remained in the dark."

Uchiha Kyu intended to add more fuel to the fire. Smiling, he glanced at Hizashi and said lightly.

"Brother Hiashi, let me tell you one more secret."

Hyuga Hiashi stopped Hizashi Hyuga, who had been about to leave, and asked doubtfully, "What secret? There are no outsiders here. Speak freely."

Uchiha Kyu rotated his teacup and revealed a shocking secret. "The Byakugan and the Sharingan are actually the same."

Uchiha Kyu gave them no time to question him and immediately used the Flying Thunder God Technique to leave the Hyuga Compound.

This trip had not only secured a preliminary alliance with the Hyuga Clan, but also thoroughly whetted Hyuga Hiashi's appetite. When the time came for him to act on Uchiha Kyu's behalf, he would surely give it his all.

Just as Hyuga Hiashi was about to question him, he discovered that Uchiha Kyu had vanished outright.

Hizashi Hyuga hurriedly said, "Brother, he may have said that deliberately."

"Do you think he did? He must know something."

Hyuga Hiashi was, after all, the clan head. He knew certain secrets his younger brother did not.

Still, he only knew fragments. The Hyuga clan heads throughout history had merely treated them as an ancestor's hope for the Byakugan.

Now that Uchiha Kyu had suddenly raised the matter, Hyuga Hiashi could not help but take it seriously.

The next day, Fugaku Uchiha began making arrangements early in the morning for clan members to take over the three streets outside the compound.

Konoha's higher-ups were truly efficient. Aside from the Hyuga Clan, all the other businesses on the three streets had already moved out in haste.

The Uchiha Compound had not yet been forcibly relocated from Konoha's central district, which showed just how valuable those three streets were.

No matter the world, one could never get by without money.

There were many ninja clans in the Shinobi World that had fallen into poverty and wandered everywhere because they lacked money, including clans with Kekkei Genkai.

As for how everything would be arranged, Uchiha Kyu left it entirely to Fugaku Uchiha.

Uchiha Kyu then turned his attention to Danzo, who had not made a move all this time. That man was difficult to kill, especially with those densely packed Sharingan on his arm.

Just thinking about his clan's Sharingan being on Danzo's arm made Uchiha Kyu feel uncomfortable all over.

His alliance with the Hyuga Clan this time was not only for future plans, but also to ensure that when he moved against Danzo, nothing could go wrong.

The Byakugan was simply too overpowered for reconnaissance. No Kekkei Genkai could compare to it in that regard.

Thud!

Uchiha Kyu nailed Danzo's photograph to the wall.

Danzo had to die. First, he would cut off one of Sarutobi's arms.

Land of Rain, Amegakure.

In Amegakure, where rain fell abundantly year-round, the air constantly carried the scent of rust.

"Konan, you are back."

Nagato's true body slowly raised his head from a hidden location. His face looked as though all life had been drained from it, weak beyond belief.

When Konan saw Nagato as she entered, even her icy expression melted, revealing a faint smile.

"During this trip to Konoha, I discovered something very interesting. For the next ten or twenty years, Konoha will have almost no fresh blood."

"Other than the Hyuga Clan, the younger generation of Konoha's major clans has basically been wiped out by the Uchiha Clan."

As a spatial vortex appeared, Uchiha Obito, wearing a mask, appeared before the two of them.

"Looks like I came at just the right time."

"Madara Uchiha, you seem very pleased to hear this news."

Nagato's Rinnegan stared fixedly at the masked man. From beginning to end, he had been probing the man's true identity.

After Yahiko's death, Nagato had begun to doubt the masked man's identity.

Uchiha Obito lowered his voice and said, "The Uchiha Clan that once betrayed me—do you think this old man would be happy?"

"Heh... who knows?" Nagato lowered his head weakly and let out a frail laugh.

Uchiha Obito frowned beneath his mask. "What are you laughing at?"

"Did you come here specifically to chat with us?"

Konan trusted Yahiko's instincts and had disliked the masked man from the very beginning.

Uchiha Obito had not come to chat. Excitedly, he revealed his idea.

"This weakening of Konoha's future backbone is extremely beneficial to our plan."

"If war breaks out again at this time, Konoha will surely deploy a great deal of manpower to the battlefield."

"If we drag Konoha back into the mire of war and weaken every hidden village's strength once more, it will be more advantageous for us to capture the Tailed Beasts in the future."

"As it happens, those hidden villages are also eager to make a move, wanting to carve a piece of flesh from Konoha."

"We will not even need to pay too great a price to fan the flames from the sidelines among those hidden villages."