Snow covered the ground in silence.
Hyūga Hinata stood frozen as three older children jeered at her. They were already old enough for the Academy, bold in the careless way only children could be. Their words weren't clever, just cruel, and that somehow made them worse.
Her eyes filled with tears. She tried to hold them back, but they spilled over anyway, warm drops melting into the snow.
Just then, footsteps crunched behind them.
A calm figure stopped a short distance away, eyes settling on the three boys. The sight of a forehead protector and a sword at the man's waist was enough. Their faces went pale.
"Did your parents never teach you," he said evenly, "not to gang up on someone smaller than you? Especially a girl."
It was Uchiha Yoru.
As he spoke, his gaze flicked briefly past them, toward a thin, poorly dressed child who had just jumped down from a swing nearby. The boy froze the moment he noticed Yoru and stopped in his tracks.
Hinata felt a gentle hand rest on her head.
She looked up, tears clinging to her lashes, and saw a sharp-featured man looking down at her.
"Hyūga clan," he murmured.
Yoru narrowed his eyes slightly, a flicker of amusement crossing his face. So this is how things line up…
"Yoru-niisan."
A blur appeared behind him. Uchiha Shisui landed lightly, his expression tense. His eyes lingered on the distant child for just a second too long.
Shisui knew exactly who that boy was.
And because he knew, he also knew the rule. The Uchiha were not supposed to approach him. Not even accidentally. Any contact could be twisted into something ugly.
Yoru turned away without comment, taking Hinata gently by the hand and leading her off. As he passed, he cast one last glance at the thin child in the distance.
The jinchūriki.
Shisui let out a quiet breath of relief. At least there wouldn't be any misunderstandings.
And yet, his chest felt strangely heavy.
That boy's condition was impossible to miss.
"Shisui," Yoru said calmly as they walked, "buy yourself a new jacket next time. Don't embarrass the Police Force. And don't go back to that shop."
Before Shisui could react, Yoru reached into his pocket, pulled out a gold-colored voucher, and flicked it away as if it were trash.
The wind carried it off.
The voucher drifted, fluttered, and landed squarely on the head of the thin boy standing in the snow.
Uzumaki Naruto blinked.
He pulled the paper off his forehead and stared at it blankly. He looked up toward the two figures walking away and instinctively raised a hand, wanting to shout something.
Then he heard Yoru's distant voice, dismissive, almost annoyed.
Naruto's shoulders slumped.
But when he looked down again, his eyes widened.
On the front: Grand Opening Celebration.On the back: Redeem for one set of winter clothing for children. Limited quantity.
Naruto's fingers tightened around the paper. His hands were thin, veins faintly visible under the skin, rough from the cold.
A drop of water landed on the voucher.
Then another.
He looked up, eyes shining with tears, but his face broke into a wide, genuine grin.
From the shadows nearby, an ANBU operative frowned slightly. After a moment, seeing nothing amiss, they relaxed and vanished again.
Shisui watched from afar, then laughed softly.
"That was mine, you know."
Yoru didn't respond.
Shisui shook his head, smiling despite himself. His brother always looked cold, distant, even ruthless. And yet somehow, the things he did were warmer than most people's words.
For the first time, Shisui felt something crack.
The Third Hokage's image, once so radiant, no longer seemed untouchable.
When they reached the Hyūga compound, Hinata stopped at the gate. She turned, gathered her courage, and bowed deeply.
"Thank you."
Perfect posture. Perfect form. The etiquette of a great clan, even from a trembling child.
Only after they left the Hyūga grounds did Shisui speak again.
"Yoru-niisan… that child earlier—"
Yoru scoffed.
"An ugly political trick," he said flatly. "He's the jinchūriki. You don't win loyalty by kindness alone. You starve someone, freeze them, isolate them… then show up with warmth and smiles. That's what they call the Will of Fire."
Shisui's expression darkened.
"…You mean it's deliberate?"
Yoru sighed.
"Shisui, that kid isn't poor. His parents left him more than enough to live comfortably. And those rumors in the village? You really think the jōnin don't know who he is? Or what that surname means?"
Shisui clenched his fists.
That child was their son. The Fourth Hokage's son.
Yoru continued calmly, almost clinically.
"Other villages tame wild ninja dogs the same way. Beat them down. Starve them. Let them freeze. Then, when they're half-dead, someone appears with food and warmth. Do that a few times, and the animal bonds for life."
Shisui felt sick.
"Yoru-niisan… his father was—"
"I know."
Silence fell.
If this was how the village treated the Fourth Hokage's child, then there truly was no bottom.
Snow still fell when they returned to the Uchiha district. Peaceful. Cold. Isolated.
Inside Yoru's home, warm tea steamed gently.
A guest had been waiting for some time.
"Hizashi-san," Yoru greeted.
Hyūga Hizashi didn't bother with pleasantries. The man who once valued etiquette above all else dropped straight to his knees, pressing his forehead to the floor.
"Yoru-kun," he said hoarsely. "Please. Help us with the Caged Bird."
Yoru smiled faintly.
"No father wants to see his child chained," he said. "But officially, this is all for Orochimaru-sensei."
Hizashi lifted his head and removed his forehead protector, revealing the green seal etched into his skin.
"If Orochimaru-sama can free the branch family," he said firmly, "then the Hyūga branch will stand behind him."
This was no cautious investment.
This was everything.
"Let me examine it first," Yoru said.
Hizashi closed his eyes.
Yoru studied the seal closely, recording every detail.
When he finished, he nodded.
"The Caged Bird isn't just a curse mark," he explained. "It's a sealing technique fused into the brain and optic nerves. It grows alongside your chakra. Removing it outright would destroy the Byakugan… and the mind."
Hizashi nodded slowly. None of this was new.
"Right now," Yoru continued, "there's no way to remove it safely."
Hizashi's shoulders sank.
Then—
"But."
Hizashi looked up sharply.
"There may be another approach," Yoru said. "Instead of removing the seal… what if we add another one?"
Hizashi's breath caught.
"The Nine-Tails' seal is layered," Yoru went on. "A primary seal reinforced by another. The same principle could apply here. If we place a perfect seal over the Caged Bird, it can block external activation."
"In that case," Yoru smiled, "the Caged Bird stops being a leash… and becomes armor."
Hizashi's eyes trembled.
For the first time, real hope took root.