On February 27th, Year 39 of Konoha, Hyuga Soushu officially led his unit and departed from Konoha, heading to the distant northern border to assume his new position as commander within the Ninja Force.
At the time of departure, acquaintances such as Hyuga Hizashi and Koryo Jonin came to see him off. Though clearly reluctant, Mahiru's father still smiled and gave his daughter, Mahiru Uchiha, a warm hug before her departure.
Even the Uchiha Clan Leader, who served as head of the Policing Department, personally came to the village entrance with his eldest son, Fugaku Uchiha, to send off Hyuga Soushu for his journey north.
Judging from the level of importance shown, the Uchiha clearly valued Soushu's departure far more than the Hyuga clan, which had only sent representatives from the Branch House.
But this was normal—after all, the Hyuga clan still held onto the much more critical Eastern Coastal Defense Garrison and their secret business dealings with hidden clans in the Land of Water, earning them vastly more than those grueling task execution!
Yet despite strong backing from these two powerful families and a Jonin Unit, when it came to ceremony scale and public attention, Orochimaru significantly overshadowed Soushu during their simultaneous departure.
Following this year's Chunin Exams, Konoha had promoted over three hundred new Chunin. Aside from a few specially selected individuals, all of them were assigned to the Rain Country Frontline Army.
So when it came to troop numbers lining up for departure, Orochimaru ended up with five times more ninja under his command than Soushu. Of course, this was merely a difference in numbers. In terms of actual combat strength, Soushu's Personal Squad—comprising twelve Uchiha ninja and nine Hyuga ninja—could easily defeat Orochimaru's newly promoted Chunin, who barely differed from Genin.
However, ordinary Konoha villagers and bustling foreign merchants knew nothing of the complicated intricacies among ninja. They stubbornly believed only what they saw with their own eyes, assuming their observations represented the truth; they simply thought Konoha truly deserved its title as the greatest Hidden Village in the Ninja World, and that the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's protégés were outstanding young talents—the village's future pillars whose powers ran deep and unfathomable.
As for Soushu and his forces, most people regarded them as merely a minor contingent under Orochimaru's command. Even those slightly informed civilian ninja of Konoha considered Soushu just another noble-born aristocrat who had used family influence to snatch away a hard-earned opportunity rightfully belonging to an elite commoner—a chance for glory through northern service.
Soushu, however, couldn't be bothered to respond to such sour-grape comments.
"This journey spans thousands of miles. I hope you take care."
Hizashi, who had come to bid him farewell, wore a look filled with melancholy but still managed to offer his blessing: "Though your departure takes you far from the village, our family's reach can't stretch that far either. Maybe that's not such a bad thing."
From the perspective of both a Branch House leader and the son of the clan head, there was no reason for Hizashi to say such words—after all, he himself was already one of the beneficiaries of the system. Although his status could never compare to that of the Main House, to ordinary Branch House ninja, the young Hizashi, already preselected as successor to the Branch leadership, was practically like a god among men.
"It seems your mind has also started wandering, cousin Hizashi," Soushu teased lightly.
"There will always be times when we're left with no choice, especially for those of us who live under such circumstances."
Hizashi Hyuga's words carried deep implications.
But what drew the most attention was that he spoke so openly about it, without any pretense or secrecy.
Even the Uchiha Clan Leader seated nearby—who maintained his composure and refrained from commenting—could not help but glance sideways at Hizashi several times in evident surprise.
A complaint expressed so plainly was exceptionally rare among Branch House members, whose very souls had been shackled.
"There will come a time when I ride the mighty winds and break through the towering waves,"
Soushu Hyuga also didn't want to speak too explicitly, so he subtly referenced a famous classical Chinese poetic line.
As the most unconventional Branch House ninja within the entire Hyuga Clan—one who had never actually been punished by the Main House—Soushu had very limited interaction with his fellow Branch members. Many dissenting Branch ninjas avoided contact with him due to fears that his high profile might draw unwanted attention, and frankly, he couldn't even recall many of their names. Yet this didn't prevent the undercurrents within the Branch House from becoming increasingly turbulent.
Meanwhile, Hizashi, who was the clan leader's son yet predestined to become the Branch House leader, felt just like a sandwich caught between two layers—constantly struggling between the authoritarian pressure from the Main House and the resentment of the Branch members.
"You even know haikus, Soushu?"
Hizashi asked somewhat surprised.
"Just slightly," Soushu replied smoothly while shifting the topic. "I've never seriously studied grammar though. I'm afraid it must seem laughable to you, respected cousin."
"Those are merely leisure pursuits for self-cultivation during off hours; as shinobi, we need not concern ourselves with such secondary details."
Hizashi immediately responded.
As for their earlier comments about having no choice and riding the waves, both men acted as though nothing had ever been said.
"Commander Soushu!"
At this moment, Toshimichi Yamanaka—who was in charge of processing their departure from the village—approached respectfully, bowing before saying, "All personnel have completed registration for leaving the village. Please give your orders!"
"Let's move out!"
Hyuga Soushu nodded toward Hizashi, whose expression had gradually turned more melancholic, bidding silent farewell. Then he gave a sharp nod and led his personal squad at full speed northward toward the Northern Border.
Ten thousand miles of wind roll across the cloud-towers, soaring freely across the sky.
Whether due to psychological factors or not, after finally leaving behind the absurdly beautiful Konoha, Soushu felt absolutely liberated rather than even slightly nostalgic about his homeland.
Under constant surveillance and guidance from nine Hyuga ninjas, Soushu led his unit avoiding towns throughout the Land of Fire, advancing rapidly through forests and plains at maximum speed. Unfortunately, only Mahiru Uchiha—who mirrored him completely—could grasp the surging emotions hidden beneath their commander's otherwise expressionless exterior.
Even those martial-faction ninjas who had originally longed for battle and distant horizons were now entirely focused on exerting themselves to keep up with Soushu's figure leaping at the forefront of the formation, having little room left for sentimental reflection.
Some of the weaker ninjas, however, started falling behind the main group after nearly three hours of continuous forced marching due to prolonged physical exhaustion.
However, Hyuga Soushu had no intention of slowing down, merely ordering the Uchiha ninja from his Directly Commanded Units to assist those subordinates who might fall behind.
The awkwardly proud Uchiha, though somewhat reluctant about actively helping others, still gritted their teeth and lent a hand to teammates who were gradually losing steam, all while muttering tsundere remarks under the commander's orders and Mahiru Uchiha's cold stare.
Some explained techniques for prolonged high-speed movement using chakra bursts, some used drugs or ninjutsu to stimulate physical potential, and some even simply carried exhausted Martial Faction ninja on their backs as they dashed forward. Though their methods varied widely, overall, after these twelve Uchiha ninja fell back to cover the rear, the Ninja Force was able to maintain its marching pace.
Although it wasn't convenient to communicate much during the march, Sōshu could sense that an invisible distance which once subtly separated members of the Directly Commanded Units had begun to slowly fade away. Even the usually stoic Uchiha occasionally offered words of encouragement. As for the Martial Faction ninja who received help, they also started forming a preliminary impression of the Uchiha.
So the Uchiha are just a bunch of tsundere types through and through! They aren't nearly as hard to get along with as the rumors in the village made them out to be!
This was precisely what Hyuga Soushu wanted to see.
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