Swordsmanship combined with lightning.
At a glance, this was clearly the work of a Cloud ninja.
Hyuga Hiashi really hadn't grown a brain at all. The surroundings were unnaturally quiet—how could it possibly be that only Hyuga Arin wanted to make a move?
[Experience: 1567]
[Byakugan]
[Skill: Rotation]
Still, Hiashi's strength hadn't been growing slowly either. He had already reached chūnin-level combat power. He simply hadn't officially become a chūnin yet—likely planning to do so after the war.
Unfortunately, he no longer had that chance.
"Use Byakugan."
A single Byakugan taken from a main-house member was enough to raise Arin's Byakugan by one level.
[Byakugan (lv7) EXP (0/24300) Traits (None)]
"Three more Byakugan and it'll be max level."
Arin had no intention of spending experience points to level up Byakugan. There were items for that—why waste experience?
He looked toward the distant forest.
"Enjoyed the show enough?"
A figure leapt out from the woods, bounding forward until he stopped in front of Arin.
This person had carefully stayed outside the visual range of Hiashi and the Left–Right twins, which was why none of them had noticed him.
The newcomer's expression was calm but heavy.
"You shouldn't have killed Left and Right. They were elite branch-family members."
Arin looked at him with a half-smile.
"Are you lecturing me?"
A terrifying killing intent erupted from Arin's body, tinting even the surrounding air with a faint crimson hue.
The man fell silent for a long time. Finally, he knelt on one knee before Arin.
"Hyuga Hikaru is willing to become your blade."
Arin shook his head in disappointment.
"Have you been kneeling for too long?"
He treated all beings equally.
NPCs were NPCs. Monsters were monsters.
He had no interest in creating another 'main house.'
Hikaru's expression stiffened. He stood back up awkwardly—he had grown used to this posture of submission.
And Arin truly was nothing like those people.
Hikaru touched his forehead protector. If he removed it, the blackened mark beneath would be clearly visible.
Memories surfaced in his mind.
"If I can make your Birdcage Curse Mark stop working, would you dare to oppose the Hyuga main house?"
At Arin's words, Hikaru's face drained of color.
"What nonsense are you spouting?!"
He instantly activated his Byakugan to scan the surroundings. Thankfully, no one else was nearby.
Arin merely looked at him in silence.
After a long pause, Hikaru said, "Prove it to me. Prove that your Birdcage really doesn't work anymore."
Arin chuckled.
"I asked whether you dare to rebel."
Hikaru fell silent again.
Anyone once hailed as a genius carried deep pride in their heart.
Hikaru had simply been crushed again and again by the main house until he willingly devoted everything to them.
But if he truly could break free from the cage trapping the bird…
What would he become then?
Hikaru stared at Arin, trying to find deception on his face. But everything Arin had done—and the newly born bloodline limit he now possessed—proved that he was already irreconcilably opposed to the Hyuga main house.
And if the Birdcage truly no longer bound him, then the main house had no way to deal with Arin at all.
"…I dare!" Hikaru said hoarsely.
"As long as I can be rid of the Birdcage, I'll dare to do anything you ask!"
He had had enough—enough of having every aspect of his life dictated by the main house, enough of being their dog.
Arin walked up and kicked Hikaru behind the knee.
"Squat down. You're too tall—I can't reach."
Damn this height. He'd grown another year, yet hadn't gotten much taller at all.
Hikaru squatted down, lowering himself beneath Arin's height. Arin placed a hand on his forehead.
"Exorcise Nen."
A strange chakra seeped into Hikaru's mind.
It lingered for a long time.
Only when that chakra finally vanished did Arin withdraw his hand.
"You're no longer bound by the Birdcage. You're free."
"As for whether this is true—Hyuga Hiashi will serve as your proof. What you do next is up to you."
Hikaru snapped back to reality.
He still couldn't believe Arin had removed the Birdcage so casually—without using it as a means of control.
The moment his Byakugan's blind spot vanished, he had already believed Arin.
Today, he had personally witnessed Hiashi activate the Birdcage… and it had done absolutely nothing to Arin.
That's right.
Everything today had been arranged by him.
The so-called "Cloud ninja" were nothing more than his Shadow Clones.
The main house had only cut off the branch family's access to jutsu through battle merits—not all other avenues.
At this moment, one really had to praise Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Hikaru had simply chosen to keep it hidden.
The main house's restriction on branch-family jutsu wasn't just due to outdated beliefs—it was also to prevent the branch family from finding a way to solve the Birdcage Curse.
But that era was over.
Arin stepped forward and patted Hikaru on the waist.
"My name is Hyuga Arin. Yours is Hyuga Hikaru. We both have a bright future ahead of us. What path you choose next—that's up to you."
He glanced at Hiashi's corpse.
Killing Hiashi had been on Arin's mind ever since Hiashi used the Birdcage on him.
Hikaru was merely a bonus.
A branch-family member freed from the Birdcage—and one who had already grown into an elite jōnin.
The Hyuga clan was bound to become very interesting.
"I'll leave the rest to you," Arin said, turning to leave toward Shisui's—no, Nawaki's—direction.
Hikaru suddenly asked, "What if I betray you? If I can betray the main house, I might betray you too."
"Doesn't matter," Arin replied calmly.
At worst, it'd just be another monster.
And a branch-family member freed from the Birdcage might even drop a perfectly intact Byakugan.
No loss for him at all.
Hikaru bowed deeply toward Arin's retreating back.
Such breadth of mind…
If this man were to lead the Hyuga clan, he would surely bring them back to their former glory.
Arin didn't care what Hikaru was thinking. He moved swiftly back toward Nawaki.
Soon, he saw where Nawaki and the others had stopped.
He silently used Substitution Jutsu to switch back with himself, then dispelled the Shadow Clone.
The memories of that segment flowed back into his mind.
"Big brother, keep going?" Nawaki asked, looking at the ever-taller mountains ahead. "That's already the border of the Land of Lightning."
"Let's head back," Arin said in a low voice.
"We can't cross into the Land of Lightning without authorization."
"Those Cloud ninja were probably just scouting. They've likely already returned."
This substitution—
Combined with the fact that Arin had used lightning-based sword techniques—
Created the perfect alibi.
As long as he never used Thunder Breathing in front of Konoha ninja, even if Hikaru turned against him, there would be no evidence tying Arin to Hiashi's death.
Everyone knew Hyuga Arin specialized in Fire Release. He had never displayed Lightning Release.
After all—
What kind of thirteen-year-old could create a Fire Release bloodline limit…
and still have time to learn Lightning Release ninjutsu?
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