"The atmosphere in the village has been really strange lately."
"Tell me about it. We just wrapped up the fighting with Kumogakure, but there's not a shred of celebration anywhere."
Late at night, two shinobi on patrol chatted quietly as they walked.
With many members of the Uchiha clan deployed to the front lines, the Military Police Force was short-handed. Because of that, shinobi with free rotations—people like them—had been temporarily reassigned to police duty.
"You came back from the Cloud front, right? I remember the Yellow Flash was stationed there."
"That's right. The Cloud's A–B Combo was terrifyingly strong. If not for Minato-sama, the Cloud front would've collapsed."
The middle-aged shinobi's voice carried lingering awe.
"But things turned around. The Third Raikage was killed by Iwagakure, and A and B couldn't break through Minato-sama's defenses. They had no choice but to retreat with their forces. The village pressure eased a lot."
"So Minato-sama will probably reinforce the other fronts next? Is the war really going to end because of one man?"
"He really is that strong."
"You're unbelievable…" The other shinobi laughed and shook his head—then suddenly froze.
A scent drifted through the air.
"…Blood?"
Their expressions changed instantly. They exchanged a glance and spread out, searching with caution.
Soon, they found a body slumped in the shadow between buildings.
The corpse lay in a pool of blood. Long black hair spilled across the ground, and the Hyuga clan crest was clearly visible on the clothing. The eye sockets—once home to the Byakugan—were empty.
Upon death, the Caged Bird Seal had automatically destroyed his nerves and eyes.
"It's Hyuga Akimi," the older shinobi said grimly. "A Branch House jōnin…"
He took a deep breath. "I'll secure the scene. You—report to the Hokage immediately."
"Understood!"
…
Inside the Hokage Tower, Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression was heavy.
"Hyuga Akimi… that makes the third case this month. And this time, it was a jōnin."
"Someone is using the Caged Bird Seal to hunt Hyuga Branch House shinobi."
Danzō, whom he had summoned, spoke calmly.
"There's no concrete evidence, but the first two victims were genin. The attacker's own strength likely wasn't high."
"But this time," Danzō continued, "they killed a jōnin without causing any disturbance. Only the Caged Bird could accomplish that."
"According to the investigation," he added evenly, "the external wounds on that Hyuga jōnin were not fatal. Isn't that right?"
Hiruzen turned his gaze sharply toward him.
"…Was it you?"
Danzō met his stare without flinching. "Killing Branch House Hyuga serves no purpose for me."
"But killing Branch House Hyuga serves no purpose for anyone," Hiruzen said, brows knit tight. "Especially not for someone who already controls the Caged Bird."
Those who currently had access to the seal included the Hyuga clan itself, Hiruzen, Danzō, and members of the Caged Bird research group.
Among them, who had a reason to repeatedly target Branch House members?
Danzō spoke again. "The three victims all had close ties to the Main House."
Hiruzen's eyes narrowed. "You're saying… this is retaliation against the Main House?"
"Perhaps not just retaliation."
Danzō produced a file and placed it on the desk.
Hiruzen accepted it in silence—but after reading only the first page, his anger flared.
"Danzō! You dared to send Hyuga shinobi to their deaths using my name?!"
"Dying in service to Konoha is their duty," Danzō replied coolly.
"The two Hyuga shinobi I secretly dispatched to the Mist front were killed in action—not by the Caged Bird."
"There is a Konoha shinobi operating in the shadows," he continued. "He orchestrated that incident—making it appear as though Kirigakure captured a Main House member. His goal was to force us to dismantle the Caged Bird."
"But in reality, Kirigakure never obtained the seal."
"And now," Danzō said flatly, "the one killing Hyuga Branch House members inside Konoha… is the same person."
He looked directly at Hiruzen as the Hokage's fury slowly cooled.
"He is a Branch House member. A very calculating one."
"These killings are both revenge against the Main House and pressure against us."
"To outsiders, it will look like the murders were committed by those researching the Caged Bird. Public opinion within Konoha will turn, forcing us to abolish it."
Three months.
It had been three full months since the supposed capture of the Main House member. Danzō had already begun verifying the inconsistencies long ago.
"This proves nothing," Hiruzen said at last, shaking his head. His voice was steady.
"Your actions may have been seen through by Kirigakure. They could be setting a smokescreen—baiting us into deploying more Hyuga shinobi, then using the Caged Bird to wipe them out in one stroke."
"My agent in Kirigakure is high-ranking," he added, eyes hard. "And he has not obtained any method for activating the Caged Bird—"
Hiruzen's gaze sharpened as he snapped:
"Danzō, don't forget—who was in charge of the Mist front?"
If that ambush had truly been a Konoha shinobi's scheme, Orochimaru would have noticed something was wrong. After all, only a handful of people had the authority to know Hyuga Hisanobu's movements.
An internal plot could never have escaped Orochimaru's notice.
If Danzō's theory were correct, then the first person to suspect would be—
Orochimaru.
Whether through concealment or cooperation, he would be implicated regardless.
Danzō opened his mouth… then closed it again.
Would Orochimaru help a Hyuga Branch House member?
Impossible.
What value could a Branch House Hyuga possibly have?
Orochimaru had no reason to help them dismantle the Caged Bird.
But if that wasn't the case…
Then who was killing Hyuga shinobi inside Konoha?
…
"Too crude."
Hidden in the shadows, Hyuga Yuu watched as Hyuga Miyuki attacked yet another chūnin, and he shook his head faintly.
Even though he had given her the activation method for the Caged Bird, she was still just a fourteen-year-old girl who saw herself as a tool.
Consumed by the pursuit of power, she only targeted opponents she was confident she could handle—absorbing their Byakugan ocular power.
As for jōnin…
She had to consider the risk of being killed before she could activate the seal.
But this approach would eventually expose her.
From weak genin, to chūnin, and finally to jōnin—any fool could see the attacker's strength was steadily increasing.
Soon, even the motive of "killing Hyuga to grow stronger" would surface.
That was why Yuu himself had used the Caged Bird to kill Hyuga Akimi.
To muddy the investigation.
"If this gets framed as retaliation against the Main House," he murmured, "it naturally links back to earlier incidents."
"And the Third Hokage—who could even go easy on Orochimaru's defection—won't suspect him."
"To catch me, they'd have to implicate Orochimaru first."
A dilemma no one wanted to face.
Yuu watched as Miyuki's movements grew noticeably sharper than before and smiled faintly.
"Three pairs of Byakugan already pushed her to the edge of jōnin-level strength."
"That's faster than I expected."
"If you don't find her soon," he thought, "things are going to get interesting."
The evolution of the Tenseigan required more than just the method he'd mentioned to Orochimaru.
There was another path.
Fuse massive numbers of Byakugan.
That was how the Giant Tenseigan was created.
But what if one only fused ocular power?
The answer would reveal itself soon enough.