Late at night, the Hokage Building was brightly lit.
Hiruzen had changed into his combat attire, the cold metallic sheen of his armor reflecting under the candlelight.
After Hiashi handed over the notice letter, Shikaku led the analysis of its contents.
Shikaku traced his fingers over the hidden patterns on the parchment, his frown deepening. Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura exchanged whispered speculations, while Shikaku's longtime comrade, Yamanaka Inoichi, closed his eyes to sense the residual Chakra Fluctuations in the handwriting.
Meanwhile, Akimichi Choza's massive figure stood firmly by the window like an unshakable fortress.
[When the pendulum kisses the twelfth mark,
Moonlight shall pity the door without a lock.
Amidst the sigh of the Caged Bird
I shall claim Hamura's gift.
-Shura]
"I've already ordered the Anbu's First Division to provide support. However, to avoid interfering with the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan detection, they are only stationed on the outskirts of the Hyuga Clan's compound," Hiruzen said as he fastened his wrist guards, outlining the following arrangements.
"The Konoha Military Police Force will handle patrols and security on the village's outer perimeter. The Anbu's Second Division will be responsible for internal patrols and security within the village. Yamanaka Inoichi, Akimichi Choza, and Nara Shikaku will lead the Jonin Team and main forces, ready to reinforce the Hyuga Clan's compound at any moment."
Since they had no idea how the enemy might infiltrate, Hiruzen did not deploy all forces at once. Instead, he assigned the Uchiha Clan to the village's outer defenses, the Anbu to the inner areas, and gathered most of the Jonin and Special Jonin near the Hokage Building as a reserve unit.
Additionally, to prevent Shura from using diversionary tactics, Hiruzen ordered all other clans to heighten their vigilance. If Shura was spotted, a signal flare was to be launched immediately!
"Has the content of the notice been deciphered?" After finishing organizing his combat equipment, Hiruzen looked at Shikaku with an eagle-like gaze.
Shikaku spread out the notice and explained, "Hokage-sama, based on the Jonin Team and Advisory Council's analysis-"
"The first line, 'When the pendulum kisses the twelfth mark', likely refers to the twelve hours of the day. The twelfth hour is the Hour of the Rat, which is from 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.."
"The second line, 'Moonlight shall pity the door without a lock,' has two possible interpretations. One refers to the illumination of moonlight, while the other points to the main gate of the Hyuga Clan's compound."
"As for the third line-"
Reaching this, Shikaku looked at Hiashi. To outsiders, the Caged Bird was a closely guarded secret of the Hyuga Clan, so he tread carefully.
"'Caged Bird' likely symbolizes the entire Hyuga Clan." Hiashi said in a deep voice.
Koharu continued the discussion, asking, "Then what does the last line, 'I shall claim Hamura's gift', mean?"
The name Hamura clearly referred to a person, but none present, whether Hiruzen, advisors like Koharu, or even Shikaku, the Jonin Commander, had ever heard of this name before.
They had heard of Hagoromo before. It was a Ninja Clan that was once hostile to the Senju Clan. (T/N: In the RAW, Hagoromo and Hamura's name consisted of two characters, and the first character of their names are the same, hence they connected it like this.)
Later, when employers deemed the Hagoromo Clan unfit for their missions, they replaced them with the Uchiha Clan. For a time, Senju Clan's members even had to face both the Hagoromo and Uchiha Clans in battle.
However, the Hagoromo Clan had since declined.
"I only found a few words about the name Hamura in the family records I read. It seems that he is the ancestor of Hyuga Clan." Hiashi said truthfully.
A thousand years had passed, and the descendants of Hamura had branched into multiple clans. Moreover, Hamura's main family line resided on the moon, while the descendants on Earth were treated like disregarded branch family members.
Thus, the Hyuga and Kaguya Clans had only sparse records of Hamura.
"But the fact that this person knows the name…" Homura adjusted his glasses, his expression grave.
From this single 'notice', it could be inferred that Shura had a deep understanding of the Hyuga Clan… perhaps even a direct connection to them.
Utane turned to Hiashi, who sat across from her, "Then, what exactly is Hamura's gift?"
She had never heard of any legendary ninja tools or treasures passed down in the Hyuga Clan.
The only thing that could be considered a treasure was their Byakugan.
Hiashi was well aware of this, which was why he had gathered all members of the main family for protection.
…
Hyuga Clan's compound.
Many of the branch family's Chunin and above had been dispatched… either to guard the main family's compound or to patrol the clan's perimeter. As a result, the branch family's residences were much emptier than usual.
Five-year-old Neji tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. A sense of foreboding weighed on him.
He sat up and glanced out the window at the full moon, remembering his father's warning: "Don't go anywhere tonight."
Those were his father's last words before being summoned by the main family's elders.
Young Neji didn't know what was happening, but it must have been serious… just like last year when Hinata was kidnapped and mysterious Ninja attacked the Hyuga Clan's compound.
A cool night breeze drifted through the window.
Then, Neji suddenly noticed that someone was sitting on the windowsill.
A figure in a black robe, its edges fluttering in the wind. A fox mask gleamed coldly under the moonlight.
"Shura!" Neji leapt to his feet, his small face tense with vigilance.
As the son of the branch family's head and its future successor, Neji had naturally heard of last year's attack.
His own father had been severely injured by Shura!
"Sharp senses." Menma sat on the windowsill, tilting his head slightly as he observed the Caged Bird on Neji's forehead.
'A genius of the Hyuga Clan's branch family.'
"Byakugan!"
Though only five, Neji had already awakened his Byakugan and received basic training in the Gentle Fist.
But just when Neji opened his Byakugan and was about to call for help, he was surprised to find that in his Byakugan's vision, the figure on the windowsill was completely invisible
"Gone?" Neji deactivated his Byakugan.
But then he saw that the man was still leaning on the windowsill, still looking at him in the same posture.
"How is this possible!" Neji was shocked. He had never encountered such a situation since he opened his eyes.
'This person in front of me, but he can't be seen through Byakugan?!'
For the first time in his life, doubt crept into his mind about his clan's Byakugan.
"It must be unpleasant to be a bird in a cage." Menma stepped down from the windowsill, moving toward Neji with deliberate slowness.
Ningji trembled under the suffocating pressure, frozen in place as cold sweat drenched his back.
Menma placed his right hand on Neji's forehead.
[Secret Technique: Cage Seal]
A surge of violent, Dark Chakra flooded Neji's mind, enveloping the Caged Bird and temporarily suppressing it.
Feeling the slight stimulation on his forehead, Neji's Byakugan and 360-degree vision suddenly expanded.
For the first time since the seal had been branded onto him at age three, he felt... free!
The sensation was like parched earth finally tasting rain. His entire body trembled with overwhelming emotion.
Menma nodded in satisfaction.
Though Neji was still young, that didn't stop Menma from beginning to shape him into a useful pawn.
"Do you want to understand the meaning of freedom? "Do you want to truly... live?"
With those words, Menma vanished from Neji's room.