The Hyuga compound had entered a state of maximum alert. A chilling, murderous aura permeated the entire estate, as if war itself were looming on the horizon.
All of this stemmed from a mysterious "Advance Notice" that had suddenly appeared in Hiashi Hyuga's private study.
When the pendulum kisses the twelfth stroke,
The moonlight shall pity the door without a lock.
Amidst the sighs of the caged bird,
I shall take Hamura's gift.
— Shura
"Clan Head! A report has been made to the Hokage building! However, Lord Hokage is currently out; the ANBU have already gone to contact him!" A ninja from the Branch House knelt on one knee outside the grand meeting hall, his voice tight with tension.
Inside the hall, the Elders of the Main House and the Head of the Branch House, Hizashi Hyuga, had already gathered.
Hiashi sat regally in the seat of the Clan Head. His Byakugan swept coldly over the messenger, and he waved a hand to dismiss him. Only then did the Branch ninja feel as if he had been granted a reprieve, rising and hurrying away.
"That Shura is simply intolerable!"
"Last time, he murdered the Cloud envoy to frame our Hyuga clan and even wounded the Clan Head!"
"There is a limit to patience! If he dares to show himself this time, we will ensure he never leaves alive!"
Several Elders of the Main House discussed the matter with simmering fury, their words laced with humiliation and a deep-seated rage toward Shura.
The prestigious Hyuga clan—the second-largest clan in Konoha and a world-renowned noble lineage—was being openly provoked by a mysterious ninja who had appeared out of nowhere. The intruder had explicitly stated his intent to take a pair of Byakugan! It was a blatant desecration of the Hyuga's dignity.
These Elders, long accustomed to their high status, had never suffered such an insult.
Hiashi looked around the circle of Elders, a flicker of disappointment crossing his eyes.
It had been centuries since the Hyuga clan split into the Main and Branch houses. The Main House consisted of five primary branches, including the Clan Head's line. Each branch heir became an Elder, holding the highest decision-making power. By tradition, only the firstborn would inherit the seat; the second-born would be branded with the Caged Bird seal and relegated to the Branch House.
Thinking of this, Hiashi glanced at his younger twin brother, Hizashi.
Among the high-ranking members in the hall, only Hizashi wore a forehead protector to hide that wretched seal. He was the only Branch member present.
"Hizashi, what do you think his objective is?" Hiashi's voice snapped Hizashi out of his daze.
Hizashi sat formally on the tatami, his voice steady. "Clan Head, I suspect that Shura is a ninja from within our village."
"What?"
"Preposterous!"
"How could that be!"
"Hizashi, do not speak nonsense!"
Hizashi's statement immediately caused an uproar among the Elders. They furrowed their aged brows, loudly rejecting his deduction.
Hiashi raised his hand, suppressing the noise. "I believe Hizashi is not speaking without reason. When we clashed with Shura last time, Hizashi was severely wounded. The enemy clearly understands our clan's techniques very well."
Hiashi offered a brief explanation to the Elders before turning back to his brother. "What lead you to this conclusion?"
"During our last encounter," Hizashi said slowly, "I was shocked to find that Shura was extremely familiar with the Gentle Fist. I could sense faint traces of Konoha-style taijutsu and our own clan's movements in his attacks."
"Furthermore, he has successfully infiltrated Konoha at least twice now. Either he knows the village's sensory barrier so intimately that he can find a loophole to enter undetected, or..."
He let the sentence hang.
But everyone in the room understood his meaning. If it was the former, the man's strength was terrifying—it brought to mind the legends of Madara Uchiha from decades ago. If another Madara appeared, the current Konoha might not be his match. Therefore, the second theory—that he was an insider—was more palatable, if no less disturbing.
"Clan Head!"
As the discussion continued, another Branch ninja arrived with fresh news. "The Third Hokage requests your presence at the Hokage building for an emergency meeting."
Hearing the summons, Hiashi pocketed the "Advance Notice."
"I will discuss our countermeasures with the Hokage. Do not wander about for the next few days," Hiashi said, his Byakugan scanning the Elders.
The Elders felt insulted, their faces turning ashen. But recalling Shura's strength—how he had easily wounded the two Hyuga brothers and escaped the ANBU—they knew they were vulnerable. Most of them were only at the level of Special Jonin or average Jonin.
Thus, the Hyuga compound entered a state of total lockdown. All forces at the Chunin level and above were concentrated around the Main House. The 24-hour use of the Byakugan was authorized, with three teams rotating to ensure every inch of the estate was monitored.
With such tight security and the addition of elite ninjas from the Hokage, Hiashi was confident. He would not let the enemy enter undetected again!
Watching his brother leave, Hizashi kept his eyes lowered, his thoughts unknown.
Meanwhile, the "Phantom Thief" who had issued the notice was far away in the northwestern part of the Land of Fire.
"Is this the place?" Menma, wearing his fox mask, stood on a mountain path.
His Kagura's Mind's Eye was active, sensing a strange chakra fluctuation. Ahead lay a small village built on a mountainside. The villagers lived simple lives, following the rhythm of the sun. The village consisted of about twenty wooden huts scattered across stone-piled foundations.
As Menma appeared, he immediately drew the attention of the villagers working in the fields. A man in a black robe and a fox mask, radiating a sinister aura, was clearly bad news. The villagers fled back into the settlement.
Soon, a dozen men stood nervously at the village gate, brandishing pitchforks, poles, and hoes. Though they tried to look fierce, they were merely commoners. As the mysterious figure drew closer, their bravado crumbled into panic.
Step.
Menma stopped before them. Through the eyes of his white, three-eyed fox mask, his gaze locked onto a scrawny man in the crowd.
"If you don't want to die, hand over the Ketsuryugan—the clan of the red eyes."
With a flick of his wrist, Menma threw a kunai rigged with an explosive tag. It struck a nearby cowshed.
BOOM!
The massive explosion vaporized the shed instantly. The villagers, terrified out of their wits, began to argue and shout in a frenzy.
Before long, an elderly man was pushed forward. Trembling and weeping, he pleaded, "Lord, we truly don't know what this 'Red Eye Clan' is!"
Menma merely pointed his finger at the scrawny man in the crowd.
The villagers looked at one another, then violently shoved the man forward.
"You can't do this! I have a pregnant wife!" the man wailed, begging for mercy.
But the villagers were deaf to his cries. The old village head even spoke up: "Lord, do you need us to grab his wife as well? We only ask that you spare us ordinary people."
Hearing that the once-kind village head was willing to sacrifice his pregnant wife, the man snapped. His eyes suddenly flooded with blood-red chakra, blurring his pupils into a terrifying crimson.