The night tightly enveloped the Hyūga Clan Compound.
Unlike the tightly paced footsteps of the usual patrols, the silence tonight was particularly deep and oppressive, like the unsettling calm before a storm.
Only the occasional wind blowing across the eaves let out a faint whine.
Swish! Swish!
Several dark figures, perfectly blended with the night, ghosted silently between the alleyways and courtyards.
They avoided all light, using every shadow as cover. Their movements were as light as cats, landing without a sound, not even raising a noticeable gust of wind with the edges of their clothes.
The dark figures split into pairs, each silently infiltrating different residences.
Two of these figures slipped into a medium-sized Main House (Sōke) dwelling.
One was completely shrouded in a black robe, wearing a mask. The other was also wearing a black robe but had no mask; his face appeared somewhat pale in the dark.
It was Neji Hyūga.
The two stood tacitly on either side of the front gate. Almost simultaneously, gruesome blue veins instantly bulged around their eye sockets. The Byakugan activated, and the interior of the residence was laid bare before them.
One person in the bedroom, one in the restroom—a woman and a child, respectively.
One person in the study—one of the two targets for this operation.
"Why is one target missing?"
Neji Hyūga's gaze locked onto the bright ball of Chakra in the second-floor study. His brow furrowed, but his eyes grew even colder.
He recognized the Chakra signature.
It was one of the two Main House members who had applied the Caged Bird Seal to Takashi Hyūga and Iroha Hyūga in the hospital room.
However, a Main House Elder was missing.
The two exchanged a look. No words were needed, only a slight nod.
In the next instant, they seemed to melt into the night like wisps of smoke, slipping into the first-floor study and the second-floor bedroom, respectively.
Inside the study, the lamps were brightly lit.
A middle-aged man sat behind the desk, his brow slightly furrowed as he read a scroll.
"Hah..."
He put down the scroll and exhaled, leaning back in his chair, closing his eyes which were aching from prolonged reading. He raised a hand and firmly massaged the Jingming point between his eyes, above the bridge of his nose.
A moment later, he stood up and walked to the study door, wrapping his hand around the doorknob. Without any caution, he twisted it and pulled the door open.
But just as the door cracked open.
In his peripheral vision, a streak of cold light suddenly flashed before him. In that instant, he could even smell a faint whiff of blood, as the weapon aimed precisely at his unguarded throat.
Danger!
The sudden chill made the hair on the back of the man's neck stand up!
He instinctively brought his arm, which he hadn't yet lowered, up to protect himself!
Pshh!!
The sound of a blade slicing through flesh rang out. A deep bloody gash appeared on his forearm, and blood immediately gushed forth!
"You..." He barely managed to gasp out a single word in shock and fury.
But the figure in the shadow gave him no chance. As he spoke, the figure was already right up against him!
A hand, condensing sharp Chakra, slammed into his undefended abdomen like an outgoing cannonball!
Bang!!
The strike, infused with the gentle fist's internal force, slammed into his body, making his intestines feel like they were tied in knots and instantly robbing him of all strength and voice.
His legs went weak, and he dropped to his knees with a thud, his body curled up in pain!
And as he knelt, his mouth instinctively opening in agony and horror.
Pfft!
An icy kunai plunged in at an extremely ruthless and precise angle!
The blade scraped past his tongue, pierced the voice-vibrating hard and soft palate, and finally severed his windpipe, exiting from the back of his neck, trailing a spurt of warm flesh and blood!
This single strike completely choked all subsequent words, screams, or even pleas for mercy in his throat!
"Hgh..."
The man's body trembled as he lifted his head. His bloodshot eyes stared in disbelief at the familiar yet utterly cold face before him.
Neji Hyūga?
How is that possible?!
His eyes were filled with shock and disbelief, but they quickly transformed into fear, despair, and supplication.
He knew that if he made a sound, the other person would immediately withdraw the kunai, and he would die instantly!
He didn't want to die. He desperately begged with his eyes, trying to convey a message of surrender.
Unfortunately, Neji Hyūga was far colder and more decisive than he could have imagined.
Pshh!
Neji Hyūga's wrist flicked. He mercilessly pulled out the kunai and reached out to scoop out the Byakugan from the man's sockets.
A splash of pathetic blood blossomed as the man fell backward, spraying onto the carpet at the study door.
But it was at that very moment.
Click.
A slight sound of a door hinge turning suddenly echoed from the other end of the corridor, causing Neji Hyūga to look up sharply.
A boy, about three or four years old, walked out of the restroom, rubbing his sleepy eyes.
He seemed drawn by the noise at the door and instinctively looked over.
Then, he stood frozen in place.
He saw his father, lying in a pool of blood, his body still twitching slightly.
He saw the fluid continuously gushing from his father's neck.
He saw the person standing beside his father's corpse, holding a pair of bloody eyes.
The immense shock blanked his mind. He even forgot to scream, only opening his eyes wide, like a frozen statue.
But Neji Hyūga showed no panic. He merely looked at the boy, a trace of relief appearing on his face, as if something destined to happen had finally occurred.
"Daddy..." The boy opened his mouth, emitting a barely audible sound, like a sleep-talker.
The next moment, a dark figure appeared behind the boy like a ghost. A precise hand-knife gently struck the side of his neck.
The boy's eyes closed, and he collapsed backward, gently caught by the masked Branch House member and laid on the ground.
"I didn't find the other target, only the woman in the bedroom. I knocked her unconscious."
The Branch House member's voice, muffled and hoarse through the mask, said: "What should we do? Should we... clean up this child?"
Looking at the unconscious boy on the ground, Neji Hyūga slowly shook his head.
"It doesn't matter. I never deluded myself into thinking tonight's events could be completely hidden, did I?"
His voice was very soft, but it carried an undeniable calmness: "Just proceed according to our original plan."
"Leave him alive to serve as a witness." He paused, his gaze sweeping over the boy again. "Even if he hates, he will only hate me."
The masked Branch House member fell into a brief silence, the look in his eyes beneath the mask seeming complex.
Just then.
"Aah!!"
A woman's fearful scream suddenly came from another direction, savagely tearing through the false tranquility of the night!
Neji and the Branch House member's expressions changed simultaneously, and they instantly vanished from the bloody study doorway.
Their movements were so fast they left only two blurry afterimages. In the next instant, they stood silently in the shadows of the residence's courtyard.
Once stopped, they immediately scanned the surroundings vigilantly. The scene before them caused their hearts to sink slightly.
Many Main House residences that had already extinguished their lamps and fallen into darkness now began lighting up one after another. Clearly, that scream had woken quite a few people.
However, on the windows that were lighting up, dark red liquid was continually splattering and splashing against the yellow light, like sudden, violently executed paintings!
This was followed by a series of very brief, subtle thuds, as if heavy objects had fallen, or the final, mournful sounds of throats being crushed or cut.
Clearly, other participating Branch House members were operating simultaneously and had encountered unexpected resistance or complications, preventing them from completely suppressing the noise!
"We have activity so quickly, earlier than we expected!" The masked Branch House member's voice was heavy. He looked toward Neji Hyūga.
Neji Hyūga deactivated his Byakugan. His gaze swept over the windows, where new bloodstains were constantly being added. His eyes were cold and serene.
He took a deep breath. A faint scent of blood seemed to already permeate the air.
"Split up!" he said without hesitation. "You immediately go to Hiago Hyūga's residence. Ensure that target must be eliminated. I will go to Hiashi Hyūga's residence!"
The masked Branch House member nodded, then slowly raised his hand, gripping the cold mask on his face, and took it off.
The faint moonlight illuminated the face beneath the mask.
That face was identical to Neji Hyūga's.
This was the cruelest and most crucial part of the plan hatched by Iroha Hyūga and Neji Hyūga.
All Branch House members involved in tonight's operation would, when necessary, reveal themselves with "Neji Hyūga's" face.
Even if their actions were inadvertently witnessed by people other than the targets, even if survivors or witnesses were left behind...
All evidence, all accusations, all hatred, would be directed at only one person.
—Neji Hyūga!
He would become the only public "murderer" of this bloody revolution, bearing all the consequences alone, allowing his other Branch House comrades to remain in the Hyūga Clan and Konoha.
As for himself, he would embark on the path of "defection."
This was Neji Hyūga's own choice.
In his view, the current predicament of the Branch House was largely due to his own actions against the Main House, though it was certainly exacerbated by the long-standing resentment between the two houses.
Moreover, if Neji Hyūga hadn't volunteered to take this responsibility, not so many Branch House members would have been willing to participate, as they couldn't, and wouldn't, defect from Konoha.
However, this didn't stop the other Branch House members from feeling a sense of gratitude and respect for Neji, who made this choice.
The two "Neji Hyūgas" exchanged a silent glance under the moonlight. The air was thick with an indescribable sense of gravity and determination.
"Take care."
The Branch House member who had removed the mask nodded heavily at Neji. His figure shot toward Hiago Hyūga's residence like an arrow released from a bow, quickly merging into the darkness.
Neji Hyūga took one last look at the Main House residences, where subtle sounds continued to emanate and bloody light flashed on the windows. His gaze finally settled on the direction of Hiashi Hyūga's residence.
Tonight, all grievances would end.
His figure moved, swiftly heading toward the core area of the compound.
Meanwhile, the Branch House member who had split from Neji gradually halted his steps after ensuring Neji was far away.
A Root shinobi wearing an Eagle mask lay motionless, perfectly camouflaged in the shadows of the roof tiles high above.
Lord Danzō's mission for him was to monitor all abnormal movements, especially those of the participating Branch House shinobi, to ensure no unexpected incidents occurred.
His gaze, like a hawk's, was fixed intently on the silhouette of the "Branch House member" who had just parted ways with Neji Hyūga in the distance.
However, as he watched with full concentration.
The figure, which was speeding away, slowly began to melt in an incredibly bizarre manner!
It wasn't traditional invisibility or Body Flicker. It was as if the figure was inherently a part of the shadow and was now simply returning to the darkness.
In the blink of an eye, the figure completely vanished from his sight, as if it had never existed!
"What's going on??"
The Eagle-masked Root shinobi's pupils suddenly contracted violently. A strong sense of unease instantly gripped his heart.
Where did he go?
He abruptly snapped back to attention, instinctively reaching out a hand toward his companion, who was also tasked with surveillance and was crouched beside him.
"Hoshi!" His voice was extremely low but held a tremor of undisguised surprise. "Did you see that? That..."
His hand touched his companion's shoulder...
Plop.
A subtle but distinctly clear sound, like something dropping, abruptly sounded in his ear.
The Root shinobi instinctively turned to look at his companion.
The masked head was severed cleanly at the neck, and under his touch, it was silently sliding off the neck.
The eyes beneath the mask still held the cautious expression of focused surveillance from the last moments of life, as if completely unaware that the head had been separated from the body!
What?!
Shock caused the Root shinobi's mind to momentarily blank.
However, during his extremely brief moment of stupefaction, in his peripheral vision, an incredibly subtle streak of cold light silently arced!
Pshh!!
A dull, chilling sound of a blade penetrating a skull rang out!
The spike, which had shot out from the shadow, pierced precisely through one side of his temple, instantly destroying his brain, and then exited through the other side!
The force was so immense, and the speed so fast, that it pinned his head to the other head that had just fallen beside him!
Until the very last moment of death, the Eagle-masked shinobi's eyes retained that unbearable terror and disbelief.
A figure peeled away from the shadow, silently materializing beside the two corpses.
It was the "Branch House member" who should have been heading to Hiago Hyūga's residence.
Or rather, it was "Kage."
He retracted the spike tentacle back into the shadow, slightly tilted his head, looking up at the moonlight in the night sky. Then, his gaze turned toward the direction Neji Hyūga had departed.
The night wind ruffled his robes and carried the distant, increasingly dense sounds of brief screams and clashes.
"Meow."
At the same time, an all-black cat walked with silent, elegant steps, leaping from the ground into his arms, closing its eyes in contentment.
"Did you hear it, too?"
"Kage" gently stroked the cat, chuckling softly with a strange sense of pleasure and coldness, as if talking to the black cat, yet also to himself.
"The wind has risen," he said.
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