Early the next morning, everyone got up and went to breakfast. Hizashi Hyuga looked rather gloomy after what had happened that night. When the more outgoing Fujimura Yuki saw him, he asked, "Mr. Hizashi, what's wrong? Didn't you sleep well last night?"
"Ah, it's nothing. I just felt inspired in the middle of the night and got up to practice my Gentle Fist." Hizashi Hyuga snapped out of his thoughts and immediately adjusted his expression, making himself look merely tired.
"Is that so? Mr. Hizashi, you really should rest in the middle of the night," Fujimura Yuki said, without much suspicion.
"Thank you for your concern." Hizashi Hyuga nodded lightly. His gaze involuntarily flickered toward Asuna, then hurriedly shifted away, afraid someone might notice.
Although Hyuga Qi had said no one had put him up to it, his relationship with Kazemori Masaki made Hizashi Hyuga suspect he might be hiding something. Hizashi knew that, to the leader of a Shinobi Village, a powerful and relatively independent prestigious clan like the Hyuga Clan was a very troublesome presence.
Though never openly stated, weakening the clans' standing in practice and strengthening the village's control over its ninja had been the consistent policy of successive Hokage. Anyone with sense could see it. They understood the Hokage's position, but Ninja Clans placed greater trust in their own strength and tended to resist such measures. Still, they lived in Konoha Ninja Village now, no longer standing alone as they had in the past, so when the pressure grew too great, they would make token concessions to satisfy the other side.
It was, in essence, a contest of strategy. If they played their cards well, Ninja Clans could sacrifice some benefits while largely preserving their standing. Those that handled it poorly, like some of the weaker