He swallowed and went on. "Root judged from the scene that it was an ambush and a struggle. The killer escaped, but was definitely injured."
"Naosuke Hyuga's father, one of the Main Family Elders, took his anger out on the Branch Family attendants assigned to protect him. He directly activated the Caged Bird Seal."
By now Takao Hyuga's voice was hoarse, filled with fear and bleak sorrow. "I watched from afar as they were tortured, rolling on the ground…"
"They kept crying that they were innocent, that they did not do it. Root did not even know who the killer was. It was Naosuke Hyuga who told them to return. In the end they could not even speak and passed out."
Takao Hyuga's body shook violently as if the screams were still ringing in his ears. He lowered his head and sobbed. "When I came here, Rigu and the others had already given the order."
"They ordered a thorough investigation of all Branch Family clan members, house by house, no one spared. Anyone with fresh injuries is to be taken away for questioning."
"No matter the cost, they will find the killer. If the Caged Bird Seal is not enough, they will even ask the Yamanaka Clan for help."
After speaking, Takao Hyuga suddenly raised his head, eyes bloodshot and wet with tears. He lifted his trembling arm and revealed a recently healed wound with scabs. "Th this is from a mission not long ago. Really!"
That wound was the true reason for Takao Hyuga's fear. Yunchuan Hyuga listened quietly, his expression unchanged, then shook his head at the terrified young man. "Do you think those old men will believe you?"
"Brother Yunchuan! Then what should I do?" Takao Hyuga's face turned pale as he grabbed Yunchuan Hyuga's hand like a drowning man clutching driftwood. "I don't want to end up like them. I don't want to feel that pain again!"
That pain felt like a red-hot iron rod driven into the brain, like the soul being torn apart. Anyone who had felt it once never wanted to feel it a second time.
After understanding the whole situation, Yunchuan Hyuga's eyes flickered slightly. "So Neji Hyuga still could not wait and has struck again."
For him, this was not good news, but a major crisis. Once the Main Family used the Caged Bird Seal, his life would be in their hands. With Hizashi Hyuga's personality, that old man would surely use this chance to take revenge, perhaps applying a little extra force during questioning with the Curse Seal and killing him by "accident."
Of course, Yunchuan Hyuga could use Reality Points to forcibly erase his own Caged Bird Seal. But now was not the time.
Once the Curse Seal was removed, he would become the target of the entire Hyuga Clan, both Main Family and Branch Family alike. People did not fear scarcity, only inequality. Moreover, it was not yet time for him to step fully into the open, nor to reveal that he could crack the Curse Seal.
After a moment of thought, he made his decision.
"Xiao," he said in a low voice to the distraught Takao Hyuga. "Go gather all the Branch Family members and bring them here immediately."
"Gather… now?" Takao Hyuga froze.
"Yes, all of them," Yunchuan Hyuga said firmly. "Tell them that if they want to live, they must come at once, before the people of the Main Family arrive."
Seeing the resolve in his eyes, Takao Hyuga swallowed the words he was about to say and nodded hard. "I understand. I'll go right now!"
With that, he turned and rushed into the night, disappearing into the darkness.
While Yunchuan Hyuga and Takao Hyuga were speaking, news of what had happened within the Main Family spread to more ears. One by one, lights came on in the dark houses. As Takao Hyuga knocked on door after door, more figures emerged, and the noise shattered the silence of the night.
Soon, more and more people gathered in the open space before Yunchuan Hyuga's residence. Their faces were filled with confusion and tension, and some were clearly panicked, having recent injuries just like Takao Hyuga.
With the fighting on the front lines intense, the village had sent many Branch Family Ninja on missions. Those without injuries were still at the front, and those who had returned now were naturally wounded and in need of treatment. Hearing that the Main Family planned to use the Curse Seal to interrogate anyone with injuries, fear was their first response.
They also heard that Yunchuan Hyuga intended to help them, and under that pressure they all came, their gazes drawn to the figure standing before the gate. He stood there quietly, straight-backed, moonlight outlining his cold silhouette. The crowd gradually fell silent, leaving only the sound of the night wind.
Yunchuan Hyuga swept his eyes across the uneasy faces, his Pure Byakugan gaze calm and deep. If those old men had conducted a proper investigation, he would have had little to work with, but Hizashi Hyuga's arrogance had given him an opening. This was fine, he would use it to secure his position within the Hyuga Clan.
With that thought, Yunchuan Hyuga spoke.
"Everyone."
His voice was not loud, yet it carried clearly to every ear.
"What are you afraid of?" he asked slowly.
Neji Hyuga leaned his back against the cold door panel, his body slightly hunched as he tried to suppress his rapid, harsh breathing. Cold sweat had already soaked through his thin inner clothes, clinging to his skin and sending waves of chill through him.
It was obvious that the one who killed Naosuke Hyuga was him. Just as Hizashi Hyuga had guessed, he had been injured during the earlier fight with Naosuke Hyuga.
So when he heard that the Main Family had found the body and planned to look for the killer through wounds on the body, he forced down his fear and ran back home. Others could claim their injuries came from missions, but he was not even a Genin, just a kid with no way to explain a knife wound.
Right now, there was only one way to hide it as much as possible. Neji Hyuga did not turn on the light, since any glow might draw unwanted attention.
He groped his way to the heater in the living room and carefully tore open the bandage around his lower abdomen. The wound had stuck to the cloth, and every layer he peeled away came with a faint tearing sound and a muffled groan forced deep in his throat.
Sharp pain surged through his body like an electric shock, covering his forehead in cold sweat. Under the weak moonlight, a vicious knife wound nearly three inches long and deep enough to show flesh was exposed.
The edges of the wound were curled outward, blood still slowly seeping, and the surrounding skin had turned an unhealthy pale from blood loss and pain. He clenched his teeth, endured the dizziness, and placed a Kunai into the heater to burn it red.
The orange firelight flickered, driving away a small patch of darkness and lighting up Neji Hyuga's pale, tense face. The cold metal slowly changed color under the heat, from dull to dark red, then to a blazing bright red.
Neji Hyuga stared at the glowing Kunai, yanked it out, and a wave of heat rushed toward his face. Without hesitation, without giving himself time to think or retreat, he pressed it directly onto the gaping wound.