[Note: Read up to Chapter - 71 on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]
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At the entrance of the Konoha Police Force headquarters, Hyuga Hiashi stood calmly, flanked by members of the Hyuga clan.
"Where is Uchiha Kanzou? Tell him to come out," Hiashi demanded.
One of the Policemen — a Jōnin, Uchiha Satoru — sneered without a hint of courtesy.
"Who do you think you are? Just any stray cat or dog thinks they can meet our captain?"
As two of Konoha's great dōjutsu clans, the Uchiha and Hyuga had always harboured a silent disdain for one another. The Uchiha looked down on the Hyuga, and the Hyuga returned the sentiment.
"You're asking for it..." Hyuga Hizashi, standing behind his brother, instantly activated his Byakugan — veins bulging at the temples — and assumed the Gentle Fist stance.
Satoru activated his Sharingan and reached out for the Kunai in his Shinobi Bag, ready to counter. He wasn't the least bit afraid of Hizashi.
"Satoru, stand down," came the commanding voice of Uchiha Souta, the Chief of Staff of the Police Force.
With his Three Tomoe Sharingan activated, he locked onto Hizashi, "If you dare think of making a move on the Konoha Police Force, well, you better be prepared for the consequences. Hyuga-dono…"
"Hizashi, that's enough," Hiashi said flatly, stopping his younger brother in his tracks before turning to the Chief of Staff, "Uchiha Souta, where is your captain? Tell him to come out."
"You can speak to me if you've got something to say. There's no need to trouble Kanzou-sama. He doesn't have time to deal with trivial matters like this."
A flash of disdain appeared in Souta's eyes as he looked at Hiashi. He clearly held the Hyuga clan in contempt.
The newly appointed patriarch, Hyuga Hiashi, was only at the level of an Elite Jōnin — and even then, it was debatable whether he could defeat Souta in a real fight.
'With that level of strength, you think you're qualified to have a dialogue with Kanzou-sama?' he thought mockingly.
"The Hyuga clan members have been arrested, and your people have sealed off our storefronts," Hiashi said coldly. "Don't you Uchiha owe us an explanation?"
"Explanation?" Souta scoffed. "And who are you to demand an explanation from us?"
Souta's tone was firm, his posture unyielding. He wasn't the least bit intimidated by Hiashi.
"If you lay a hand on me," he added to himself, "I'll have you arrested on charges of assaulting a member of the Konoha Police Force."
Don't think that just because Hiashi is the Patriarch of the Hyuga clan, he's untouchable. Even if he is the patriarch, Souta wouldn't hesitate to arrest him.
"You're looking down on the Hyuga clan?" Hiashi said, his eyes flashing dangerously.
"Duh, I am looking down on you! Was that even a question?" nodded Souta, not denying at all. "If you want to fight, go ahead and try because I will continue to look down on the Hyuga clan," Souta replied coldly.
A powerful wave of chakra erupted from Souta. Sensing this, the rest of the Konoha Police Force members revealed their killing intent.
The Hyuga clan? They didn't have what it takes to oppose the Uchiha.
To be fair, the Hyuga Kekkei Genkai wasn't weak—but who among them had truly mastered the Byakugan?
In the hands of the Hyuga clan, the Byakugan was mostly used for long-distance scouting, X-ray Vision (A technique Jiraiya, as well as other perverts of the wider world, really envies the Hyuga Clan for), and near 360-degree vision.
Of course, aside from these, it was still capable of a lot of things, but it was clearly underutilized.
"For the honour of the Hyuga clan—attack!" Hiashi finally lost his composure.
He couldn't stand idly by while others openly insulted the Hyuga clan. As its new leader, how could he command respect if he didn't defend their pride?
Hiashi had always taken the clan's honour seriously—he would never tolerate such contempt.
"I doubt you'll even last—come at us all at once if you must," Souta sneered.
At his signal, all the Uchiha officers from the Konoha Police Force sprang into action, and a chaotic clash between the Uchiha and Hyuga clans erupted.
The Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist was indeed formidable—but they were up against the Uchiha, who could watch each of their movement with more precision than Hyuga themselves.
Even Shin joined the fray.
Among the Hyuga, only Hiashi had reached Elite Jōnin level. His younger brother, Hizashi, was strong, but still a step below that rank because of being a member of the branch family that wasn't taught several secret Jutsu of the Clan.
The imbalance was already beginning to show.
In the end, the Hyuga clan was completely overwhelmed, and the Uchiha emerged victorious.
"What should we do with them?" Shin turned to Souta.
"Arrest them, of course," Souta replied coldly. "They dared to cause a disturbance—handling that is exactly what we, the police, are here for."
"Should we inform Kanzou-sama?" Shin asked.
"No need. Kanzou-sama has important matters to attend to today. Let's not disturb him. We can't afford to embarrass him with something as trivial as this."
They were well aware that this was likely only the beginning. The Hyuga clan was just the first wave—others from different clans might follow.
Not everyone, after all, was as sensible as the Ino–Shika–Chō alliance.
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"What did you just say? You want me to stay by Uchiha Kanzou's side?" Mikoto looked utterly shocked.
Out of nowhere, Fugaku had called her to meet... And they were not sitting opposite each other at a tea shop, the owner of which was an elderly Uchiha woman and her granddaughter named Uchiha Kaede, helping her run the shop as the waitress.
Currently, apart from Fugaku and Mikoto, there was no one present inside… making it a perfect opportunity for discussion.
Mikoto had not expected to be called by Fugaku for a tea… but she had accepted the invitation because she intended to use this opportunity to inform him that she wanted to break off their engagement—something she had already made up her mind about… but before she could do that, Fugaku spoke unexpected words that completely stunned her.
Although she had mentally prepared to end things, the engagement hadn't been formally dissolved yet since her grandfather hadn't had the opportunity to talk to him and was still trying to figure out what to do about it.
So, technically, she was still Uchiha Fugaku's fiancée.
And now… he was the one ending things… no… not only was he ending things, but actually handing her over to Uchiha Kanou!
She had never seen anyone so willingly allow themselves to be humiliated.
With a cold expression, Fugaku said, "From now on, you belong to that bastard. You don't get a say in this—you have to agree."
Gone was the considerate tone he once used with Mikoto.
His demeanour now was cold and indifferent towards her.
Mikoto remained silent, staring at him with the same coldness in her eyes… her contempt for Fugaku was only growing by the minute.
Seeing Mikoto remain silent and look at him with contempt, Fugaku's temper flared.
"What, trying to act like a virtuous woman now? Do you think I don't know what you and that bastard Kanzou have been up to behind my back? At this point, isn't it only fitting that you become his woman? After all… You aren't even ashamed of handing over your things to him!"
His sarcastic tone made Mikoto feel both guilty and wronged.
He spoke as if she had willingly thrown herself at Kanzou, when in truth, she was the victim. If Kanzou hadn't threatened her by using her only remaining family, Mikoto would've chosen death over betrayal or submission.
At the same time, her contempt for Fugaku only grew because it was his incompetence that she was threatened with, and was stolen, having to submit to another man.
Looking at the man who not only didn't confront her or Kanzou about it until now, but actually came to her with the suggestion of offering herself to Uchiha Kanzou, Mikoto felt that he was truly a cuckold.
"Fine by me… even if you hadn't broken it off, I would've. I had only agreed to meet you with that in mind. I, too, want to end our engagement. From now on, there will be nothing between us," Mikoto said calmly.
"Whatever," Fugaku scoffed. He glanced at Mikoto with disdain as if she were the most vile woman.
He was the one destined to become the next Uchiha patriarch—how could he possibly marry a woman who had already lost her purity, especially one who was about to be handed over to Kanzou?
If he didn't break off the engagement now, it would mean publicly admitting he'd been cuckolded.
But by ending it himself, even if Mikoto became Kanzou's woman, he could pretend it had nothing to do with him.
It was a form of spiritual self-consolation—his way of preserving pride in defeat.
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Drop power Powerstonessssssssss!
[Note: Read up to Chapter - 71 on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]