A violent torrent of chakra erupted from Hyuuga Hazan, spreading outward in all directions and annihilating everything around him.
The chakra spheres formed by Kaiten were sent flying one after another. Several of them shattered upon impact, and in the next instant, the figures inside were swallowed by countless microscopic blades of wind.
Faint screams seemed to echo through the air, followed by a spray of blood raining down upon the battlefield.
Even so, two or three chakra spheres managed to remain standing. One of them, in particular, possessed an enormous range and firmly blocked the majority of Hazan's technique.
"As expected of the clan leader, Hyuuga Hiashi… If I ever get the chance, I would truly like to exchange blows with you in the Gentle Fist," Hazan's voice echoed through the dust before gradually fading away.
Hiashi halted his Kaiten and stood in silence, staring at the ruins before him.
Hazan had already escaped using a Wind Body Flicker Technique. Not even Hiashi's Byakugan could capture his presence anymore.
"Hiashi!"
An aged voice sounded beside him. Hiashi turned and saw his father.
"Do what must be done," the old man said, before turning away and leaving.
Perhaps the Hyuuga clan had truly reached a point where change was unavoidable.
What had happened that day would certainly stir a massive upheaval within the clan, leaving deep and lasting consequences.
With the outside world growing increasingly unstable and such a monumental internal crisis—one unseen for a thousand years—what path would the Hyuuga clan take from here?
From atop the Hokage Rock, Hazan gazed down upon Konoha, now reduced to ruins.
His Byakugan eyes were exceptionally pure. As the chakra he had tempered through countless trials flowed into them, his visual range expanded dramatically.
"Just as I suspected… the true power of the Byakugan can only be awakened through Yin–Yang Release. Even using chakra with only a Yang nature has already caused such a terrifying transformation…"
"The Hyuuga clan has never trained chakra affinities, which is why no one ever discovered this secret. Perhaps this incident will serve as a lesson."
His gaze shifted toward the horizon as he switched his Byakugan from Diffusion Mode to Focus Mode. His vision no longer spread in all directions, but concentrated into a single line—like replacing a floodlight with a flashlight.
As a result, his visual range expanded several times over, allowing him to see deep into the forest outside Konoha.
A young couple lay lifeless in a pool of blood. An elderly man—the Third Hokage—held a baby upon the altar. Somewhere deep within that child's body was sealed the vast, abyss-like chakra of the Nine-Tails.
"It's over."
Hazan withdrew his gaze and looked toward the shelters.
There, he saw familiar figures: Kakashi, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, Anko…
The night wind lifted his long black hair, sending it dancing wildly beneath the dark sky.
Scenes from the past flowed through his mind one by one. Had the time finally come to sever all of these ties?
"Those who cannot abandon anything will never gain anything."
"Then… farewell."
With one hand in his pocket, Hazan turned and walked away from Konoha. That night, due to the Nine-Tails, the village's barrier had been destroyed, making escape incredibly easy.
An atmosphere of grief and sorrow blanketed the entire Leaf Village.
It was already morning. The sky was heavy and overcast, and a fine drizzle fell sparsely, as if the heavens themselves were quietly weeping.
Dressed in black mourning clothes, the villagers left their homes and gathered in silence, forming a steady stream toward the cemetery.
The crowd was eerily quiet. Only muffled sobs echoed intermittently from every corner.
In such an atmosphere, even the most optimistic soul could not help but feel sorrow.
Gai walked silently beside Kakashi. Today, he sensed a bone-chilling coldness emanating from his friend, a cold so profound it nearly suffocated him.
"Ka… Kakashi…" Gai opened his mouth, but no words came. He truly could not find anything to say to comfort him.
There was no light left in Kakashi's eyes. His steps moved forward mechanically, without purpose.
After passing an intersection, they saw two more figures ahead: Asuma, and a visibly exhausted Kurenai Yuhi.
An overwhelming sorrow enveloped Kurenai, while Asuma stood beside her, offering pale and powerless words of consolation.
Her father had perished beneath the Nine-Tails' claws.
Among the vast crowd were countless others who shared the same fate, parents, children, siblings, spouses, friends, and lovers lost in that catastrophe.
Among the shinobi alone, over a thousand had been killed or injured.
More than thirty elite jōnin had sacrificed their lives to protect the civilians.
Most heartbreaking of all, the young Fourth Hokage had also fallen in battle. The village's hope seemed to have vanished entirely.
Within the crowd, members of the Uchiha clan walked in silence.
A wide empty space surrounded them. No one approached. The crowd had unconsciously formed a barrier of isolation.
The clan leader, Uchiha Fugaku, clenched the fist hidden beneath his sleeve. It felt as though a massive stone was pressing down on his chest, making it hard to breathe.
The Uchiha clan had not appeared before the villagers.
Nor had they participated in the battle against the Nine-Tails.
That was because Konoha's high command had issued them a direct order: remain within the clan district and take no action whatsoever.
Fugaku did not defy the order.
At the time, the Uchiha were under immense suspicion. He did everything he could to display obedience, hoping to cleanse the accusations hanging over his clan.
But when he saw the villagers' cold gazes, Fugaku realized he had made a grave mistake.
"Who… was it? Who controlled the Nine-Tails? Who is framing the Uchiha?"
Confusion and fear surged within his heart.
Suddenly, his expression stiffened as he noticed a group approaching from another direction.
The same silence. The same oppressive atmosphere.
On their faces were the same confusion and fear.
The Hyuuga clan.
Like the Uchiha, none of them had appeared on the battlefield against the Nine-Tails.
Fugaku had already heard about what had occurred within that clan.
One defector.
Seven dead.
Two branches of the main family completely extinguished.
"The Hyuuga clan produced someone truly extraordinary…" Fugaku thought.
"A pity he defected."
"But then again… perhaps it's not so surprising for something like this to happen in a clan like theirs."
A bitter laugh echoed in his heart. After all, his own clan was hardly in a better position, the true manipulator of the Nine-Tails had yet to be found.
"Within the Uchiha clan… aside from myself, who else could possess the Mangekyō Sharingan?"
The faces of several hardline elders flashed through his mind, only to be dismissed immediately. None of them possessed such ability.
"Uchiha… where do we go from here?"
The crowd gathered at the cemetery gates.
At the very front stood only four figures:
Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage;
Shimura Danzō, leader of Root;
and the advisors Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.
Only these four remained.
Akimichi Torifu had fallen outside the village while suppressing the Nine-Tails, alongside more than a dozen jōnin.
The Hokage's three disciples, the legendary Sannin, were not in the village.
If they had been there… perhaps everything would have been a little easier.
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