Konoha had always been home to two great clans—one era saw the dominance of the Senju and Uchiha, while another belonged to the Hyūga and Uchiha.
The Senju and Uchiha founded Konoha. One clan gave rise to two Hokage, while the other commanded an entire division—both lived up to their status as prestigious families.
Yet despite its immense strength and numerous ninja within its ranks, the Hyūga Clan had consistently remained outside Konoha's core power structure.
The reason was simple—the Caged Bird Seal.
The Caged Bird Seal was a cursed seal developed by the Hyūga ancestors to prevent the Byakugan from falling into outsiders' hands. Additionally, it allowed the Main Family to destroy the brain tissue of Branch Family members at will.
Because of the Caged Bird Seal, the Branch Family's lives were controlled by the Main Family. Consequently, the Branch Family were inherently barred from ever reaching Konoha's upper echelons.
Likewise, the Caged Bird Seal enabled the Main Family to wield significant power. If they were to control another department, their authority would be impossible to contain.
Therefore, despite its tremendous strength, the Hyūga Clan failed to control any of Konoha's key departments.
The clan elders remained indifferent toward this situation, content merely enjoying support provided by the Branch Family.
But Hiashi Hyūga was different—he was in his prime.
...
Hiashi's rising attracted everyone's attention. Dressed entirely in white, he stood out prominently inside the meeting room.
Although the Hyūga Clan always occupied front seats during high-level meetings, over decades, their participation through speech had been rare. Everyone was curious about what the usually silent Hyūga leader would now have to say.
Without expression, Hiashi spoke coldly, "Today is a high-level meeting, not a courtroom trial. We are here to discuss Konoha's future, not to accuse one another."
His calm yet icy voice spread across the chamber, cooling tempers that had begun to flare.
Though his words carried undertones of criticism, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't want to provoke another formidable enemy on top of his existing tensions with the Uchiha.
He nodded in acknowledgment, conceding, "Alright… let's continue. Elder Homura sees destabilizing elements in the village and insists that Anbu must retain its internal surveillance functions."
Hiashi didn't sit back down but instead scanned the entire room before asking, "Does anyone wish to speak?"
People felt somewhat surprised—Hiashi was clearly taking on the role of an arbitrator.
After a moment of surprise, they quietly accepted Hiashi's role.
In previous Konoha leadership meetings, the Hokage and two Elders acted as judges, while others were participants.
Yet now, with the Hokage faction locked in conflict with the Uchiha, the strong and impartial Hyūga Clan seemed like a natural choice for arbitration.
Aozora calmly remained in his participant role and stood up, asking, "Then how do we define a 'destabilizing element'? Will it entirely depend on the three Elders' subjective judgment?"
Hiruzen and the others sensed something amiss, yet facing Aozora's question, they had no time to think deeply.
Homura Mitokado replied, "I've been part of Konoha since its foundation. I studied under The Second Hokage and have contributed decades to Konoha—I only wish for Konoha's well-being, with no personal motives whatsoever!"
Aozora scoffed, "Wasn't the rogue ninja Danzo saying the same thing too?"
Upon hearing the name Danzo, Homura knew immediately things were about to turn bad.
As expected, Uchiha Aozora spoke up: "Danzo the rogue ninja has been around since the village's founding. He studied under The Second Hokage and supposedly contributed to Konoha for decades... No, in reality he's secretly harmed countless Leaf ninjas over those decades!
"I wonder what became of the ninja labeled as 'unstable elements' by Danzo's faction back then? Weren't they all eliminated prematurely? Tell me, are their remains buried in the underground pits filled with bones beneath Dahe City right now?"
Homura Mitokado responded reluctantly: "That's groundless speculation!"
Hiashi Hyuga noticed that the Hokage faction was growing agitated, so he stopped Uchiha Aozora: "Without evidence, you mustn't make such accusations!"
Aozora nodded and continued passionately: "Perhaps my words remain mere speculation, but what if another Danzo emerged within our leadership?
"Even without another Danzo, leaders are still human. What if a member of your clan draws the ire of those in power and is branded 'disloyal'..."
"Cough cough!"
Hiashi stopped Aozora once more with a deliberate cough, though the seeds of doubt had already sprouted in everyone's hearts.
He looked at the other ninjas who'd clearly been influenced by Uchiha Aozora's words, then reluctantly said to Hiruzen and others: "Although Uchiha Aozora's speech was outrageous, there's some logic to it."
After pausing briefly, he continued: "The Anbu should retain internal monitoring and reporting functions, but we'll eliminate their powers of arrest, interrogation, and detention. Esteemed Hokage, what do you think of this proposal?"
With remarkable fairness, Hiashi presented his suggestion to The Third.
Hiruzen found himself in a difficult position, naturally unwilling to see the Anbu crippled.
Yet now Hiashi wasn't standing in opposition but rather taking an impartial stance, representing numerous neutral ninjas' views.
Previously, when the Hokage faction and Uchiha clashed, it had been a zero-sum game. He was confident that his stature and experience would secure him greater support.
But now that Hiashi had taken this stand, more neutral ninjas followed suit into this "neutral" camp.
If he opposed now, he feared only his most loyal supporters would follow.
He could only sigh inwardly.
Seeing this, the gathered ninjas in the meeting room collectively exhaled deeply.
Partly because they wouldn't have the Anbu sword perpetually hanging over their heads, partly because the tense atmosphere had dissipated.
Earlier, watching the Hokage faction and Uchiha facing off, they'd almost believed open combat might break out in the meeting room.
However, after Hiashi's intervention, both sides reined in their aggression considerably.
Having resolved one issue, Hiashi continued, "Good, let us now discuss the transfer of Intelligence Outpost control."
At this moment, Hiashi seemed transformed into the de facto Hokage chairing this meeting, while the Hokage faction and Uchiha became department leaders with differences seated below.
The Hokage faction sensed something unusual, but since Hiashi hadn't shown bias, they held their complaints temporarily.
Under Hiashi's chairmanship, the meeting progressed steadily despite ongoing discussions.
One by one, various Anbu-related issues were addressed through debate and compromise.
Seated in his place, Uchiha Aozora observed the impassive Hiashi, allowing a faint smile to form.
Uchiha Aozora had never intended to go head-to-head against the Hokage faction in this high-level assembly.
Even if he managed to bring down the Hokage and two elders, the Uchiha clan would still gain little benefit.
Therefore, Aozora had already considered how to engage in confrontation without breaking things apart before the high-level meeting.
The Uchiha would definitely strike hard and go straight for the jugular; otherwise, light and casual attacks wouldn't achieve anything meaningful. However, if the Uchiha attacked recklessly, the Hokage Faction might not be able to withstand it and could eventually escalate to mutual destruction.
Thus, a third party was needed at the high-level meeting to mediate and keep things on track.
The only clan capable of acting as a neutral mediator between the Uchiha and the Hokage Faction was the Hyuga.
The Hyuga and Uchiha were like fire and water—utterly incompatible. The Hokage Faction would never suspect any collusion between the Uchiha and Hyuga.
In fact, if what the Uchiha wanted was the Hokage position, the Hyuga would undoubtedly be the biggest stumbling block in their path.
Fortunately, what the Uchiha truly desired wasn't the Hokage title, and the Hokage Faction couldn't offer the Hyuga the power they craved either.
Outside the window, wind and rain still raged on, though now somewhat calmer than before.
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