Undercurrents Within the Hyuga Clan

After finishing the medicinal bath, Hyuga Hiashi called Naruto alone into the reception hall.

By now, Naruto moved around the Hyuga Clan estate as if it were his own home.

In the past, Hyuga Hiashi would have had to weigh Naruto's status as the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki, along with his connection to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

But after Hinata had been taken, he had thrown those concerns completely out the window.

You pushed me out as cannon fodder, and I was supposed to keep working myself to the bone for you?

Besides, the Hyuga Clan was no pushover. If Hiruzen Sarutobi truly wanted to make a move against them, it would not be nearly so simple.

The Hyuga Clan did not control the Konoha Military Police Force, and they got along reasonably well with the village's other ninja clans.

Everyone understood the saying about lips and teeth. You could kill a chicken to scare the monkeys, but if you wanted to use the Hyuga Clan to fill a hole like you had the Senju Clan, the other ninja clans would be the first to object.

And these were peaceful times. If Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to use the same old methods he had used against the Senju Clan on the Hyuga Clan, he could forget it.

To put it bluntly, the relationship between the Hokage and the great clans was a business arrangement.

I send my clansmen into the ANBU. If you have the ability to win them over, that is your skill. If you cannot, then consider it protection money the clan paid Konoha in exchange for the whole family's safety.

Fū Yamanaka, Torune Aburame, and that whole group in the ANBU were all the same.

The old days when ninjas from every clan volunteered to join the ANBU had long since passed.

That was why so few clan ninjas appeared later in the story.

Yet when Pain kicked down the door and the Fourth Shinobi World War arrived, they all popped up like radishes being pulled from the ground.

Naruto had saved his younger brother's life, so Hyuga Hiashi treated him like a close junior without the slightest pretense.

The Fourth Hokage's reputation spoke for itself. There was no mistaking it.

"I received the message from the head of the Nara Clan."

Hyuga Hiashi spoke to Naruto with a stern expression.

"Is there something you want to tell me? Or do you want me to cooperate with something?"

From the very beginning, Hyuga Hiashi had believed that someone stood behind Naruto, offering him advice.

Naruto did not answer right away. He raised a hand, ran it through his hair, and slicked it back into the same style as that master of posing.

Hiashi's face darkened when he saw the look.

A little brat trying to pull off something like this was utterly immersion-breaking.

Only then did Naruto slowly open his mouth.

"The Uchiha Clan has been making quite a fuss lately, haven't they? Ever since they were driven from their clan grounds to that out-of-the-way corner."

Hyuga Hiashi nodded and replied in a low voice.

"Those who police crime are bound to draw resentment. The Military Police Force carries considerable weight in the village, and over time, they have become increasingly convinced that no one else matters."

"Three years ago, they helped our Hyuga Clan out of a bind, which eased their relations with the other ninja clans somewhat."

"But as time passed, they stopped even trying to hide that ambition. They put it all out in the open."

After saying that, Hiashi gave Naruto a deep look.

"On the night of the Nine-Tails' rampage, no one failed to notice the Sharingan in the demon fox's eyes. And going further back, Madara Uchiha's tyranny was no secret either. The various ninja clans would never allow an Uchiha to sit in the Hokage's seat."

Naruto nodded after hearing that.

That made everything clear.

Why had the great clans acted as though nothing had happened when the Uchiha Clan suffered such a catastrophe?

They truly disliked Hiruzen Sarutobi, but their grudge against the Uchiha Clan, which had been targeted ever since the Second Hokage founded the village, ran even deeper.

The position of Konoha Military Police Force had thoroughly dragged the Uchiha Clan into a ditch.

On top of that, they had been driven to the edge of the village, right beside the prison. Over time, people unconsciously began associating the Uchiha with prisoners.

That was the root of why all the great clans had stood by with folded arms and watched the show on the night the Uchiha were massacred.

Naruto continued speaking to Hiashi.

"During that incident with the delegation, Hiruzen Sarutobi failed to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys. Now the Uchiha Clan's thoughts of rebellion are practically spilling out."

"Itachi Uchiha was planted in the ANBU long ago as a spy. The spark between the Hokage's side and the Uchiha Clan could ignite at any moment."

"If Hiruzen Sarutobi wants to establish his authority this time, he will definitely strike hard. Everyone knows the Sharingan is earned by gambling with one's life."

"The Uchiha, who did not participate in either the Second or Third Shinobi World Wars, have long since become weak in terms of combat power..."

Hyuga Hiashi's expression changed dramatically after hearing Naruto's analysis.

"You mean..."

Naruto curled his lips and said coldly.

"If nothing goes wrong, the Uchiha Clan will follow in the Senju Clan's footsteps."

Hyuga Hiashi's brows knotted together, and he immediately rejected the idea.

"That cannot be, can it? Konoha's foundations are already weak enough. Wiping out the Uchiha Clan would be like cutting off one of its own arms. Not long ago, Kirigakure even stretched out a claw to test us, only to be scared back by Shisui Uchiha."

"If he really wipes out the Uchiha Clan, is Hiruzen Sarutobi trying to bring on the Fourth Shinobi World War sooner?"

"Besides, the Uchiha Clan's strength is not so easy to swallow. Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi holds elite ANBU in his hand, he could not possibly suppress them all."

"Even if their combat strength has declined, the Uchiha Clan still has more than one or two ninjas with the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, not to mention the rest. What could Hiruzen Sarutobi possibly use to pull that off?"

Naruto sighed inwardly.

That was because the Uchiha Clan had raised two traitorous ingrates...