The Third Elder's forward momentum abruptly ceased.
The ferocity on his face froze completely, turning into extreme pain and confusion.
He lowered his head, staring in disbelief at the black hilt protruding from his abdomen, and the blood rapidly dripping from the blade onto the floor.
Hiashi's gaze remained placid, as if he had just performed a trivial task.
He did not give the Third Elder any chance to react or scream.
He drew the sword.
Bringing out a spray of warm blood that splattered onto the clean floor and the nearby tea set.
And stabbed again.
Still in the same spot, the wound was cruelly expanded and torn open.
Then drew it out again.
And stabbed again.
Clean, swift, and utterly cold-blooded.
There was no furious roar, no unnecessary torture—only the most efficient and undeniable end.
When the dainichi gatsukiri was withdrawn from the Third Elder's abdomen for the third time, the last light in the eyes of this elder, who was usually so condescending and imperious, was completely extinguished.
A meaningless gurgling sound escaped his throat, and then his heavy body slumped softly to the ground like a sack of rags, the blood quickly pooling beneath him into a dazzling crimson stain.
From the sudden attack to his death on the ground, only a few breaths of time had passed.
Inside the tea room, there was a deathly silence.
Only the "drip... drip..." sound of blood falling from the blade remained, along with the frantic chattering "clack clack" of the teeth of the other four elders.
Hiashi flicked the blood beads off the blade, slowly raised his gaze, and let it fall upon the four remaining faces, which were pale as paper and filled with despair.
The blade of the dainichi gatsukiri looked even colder, highlighted by the sheen of blood.
"Hiashi! Hiashi!"
"Hiashi, I am your uncle! Do you truly not remember all that happened in the past?"
Seeing the Third Elder turn into a corpse in the blink of an eye, the Sixth Elder's last shred of courage for a desperate struggle completely shattered.
Scrambling and crawling, he fell heavily to his knees at the edge of the pool of blood with a thud, tears and snot streaming down his face, no longer retaining his usual arrogance, only the most abject pleading.
"I... I am your uncle! I watched you grow up!"
The Sixth Elder's voice was hoarse and broken, laced with a sob.
"I once showed you kindness and care, do you... do you truly not remember any of it?
We are all members of the Main House. Just for the sake of this blood kinship, spare me... spare me this one time!"
"All that happened in the past..."
Hiashi's gaze shifted away from the Sixth Elder and lowered slightly, as if genuinely moved by those words and sinking into some distant memory.
A drop of blood slowly gathered at the tip of the dainichi gatsukiri in his hand, finally falling onto the floor with a distinct "tap," a sound clear enough to make one's heart tremble.
The floodgates of memory burst open, and time flowed back to the night that changed his life.
In the scene, the young Hyuga Hiashi still possessed the sharp edges and youthful vigor that time had not yet smoothed away.
He stood in the Ancestral Hall's council room, facing the six elders, his chest heaving violently with anger.
"I was the one who killed the Hidden Cloud Village's envoy!"
Young Hiashi's voice was firm and resolute, filled with undeniable anger and pride.
"He trespassed into our Hyuga Clan territory at night with malicious intent, even trying to take my daughter Hinata! As the Clan Head and a father, why couldn't I attack him?"
His question echoed in the empty council room.
At that time, Hizashi stood slightly behind him, silent, his pure white eyes lowered, concealing his emotions.
"Nonsense! Utter nonsense!"
The Second Elder, who was still alive then and known for his rigid strictness, slammed the table and shouted sharply, his voice old but full of unquestionable authority.
"Since Hidden Cloud Village dared to send an envoy to sneak in late at night and specifically demanded you 'provide an explanation,' it means they don't care who struck the blow!
What they are after is the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan. Even if you killed their man and they didn't take the Byakugan, they can use this opportunity to delay the peace talks. Konoha Village cannot afford a delay!"
The Second Elder's murky yet sharp gaze swept over young Hiashi and finally settled on Hizashi, his tone cold as iron:
"Hizashi, he looks exactly like you. This is the will of heaven, and it is his 'value' as a member of the Branch House."
Young Hiashi trembled violently, looking sharply at the Second Elder, his eyes filled with disbelief.
The Second Elder ignored his gaze and continued to pronounce judgment in that cruel voice: "When the time comes, we will simply announce externally that Hizashi 'privately' killed the Kumogakure envoy.
To appease Kumogakure's wrath and preserve the 'greater good' of Konoha and the Hyuga, we will hand him over to pay with his life.
He is merely from the Branch House; he was born to exist for the benefit of the Main House and the Hyuga Clan.
Now is the time for him to fulfill this obligation."
"No!"
Young Hiashi's eyes were bloodshot, and he was about to retort.
"Impudence! Where are your manners? Who allowed you to shout in front of your elders?"
The Sixth Elder roared angrily.
The Third Great Ninja War just ended, and the Fourth Hokage died three years ago sealing the Nine-Tailed. Konoha cannot withstand another war.
Do you want the Hyuga to become the culprits of the Village?"
"Brother."
A calm voice rang out, interrupting him.
It was Hizashi.
He raised his head, and his face surprisingly held a strange, almost relieved, calm smile.
He walked up to Hiashi, blocking his furious gaze toward the elders.
"Let it be."
Hizashi said softly, as if discussing a trivial matter that didn't concern him.
Later... Hizashi still died.
He didn't die on the battlefield, but within the Hyuga Clan grounds, dying in the arms of Hiashi—his twin brother.
The memory frame finally froze.
Hizashi, on his deathbed, was pale, his breathing faint.
He looked at the tear-stained, grief-stricken Hiashi, and struggled to lift his hand, seemingly wanting to wipe the tears from his brother's face, but ultimately let it fall weakly.
His lips trembled, and using his last ounce of strength, he said haltingly:
"Brother... don't cry..."
"I... I am not dying... because of my status as the Branch House head... fulfilling the Branch House's duty..."
His pure white eyes reflected Hiashi's face, contorted with grief, and held no resentment, only a clear tenderness and resolve.
"...I am dying as a younger brother... willingly... for my older brother."
As his voice faded, the hand he had tried to lift finally fell limp.
Hizashi's eyes closed forever.
The Caged Bird Seal on his forehead, after being branded on Hizashi for more than twenty years, finally dissipated along with his life.
"Hizashi..."
In reality, Hiashi's lowered eyes suddenly shot up.
They no longer held the haze of memory, but surging, monstrous waves.
It was years of buried pain and regret, burning hatred for the manipulators of that "past" before him, and a ferocious killing intent that was finally unleashed!
He stared intensely at the Sixth Elder, who was kneeling on the ground and still begging for mercy using "all that happened in the past," his voice hoarse and distorted from extreme emotional repression:
"You old beast, you still have the nerve to mention the past?"
The dainichi gatsukiri, carrying the thunder of vengeance and the last whisper of his deceased brother, transformed into a cold light that tore through the night and the hypocrisy, striking down without hesitation!