At the gates of the Hyuga Clan compound, Uchiha Fugaku, accompanied by several of his clan's elite, intercepted Kurama Yunhai, who had just finished his "work" and was walking out of Hyuga territory.
When Fugaku accepted the Hyuga Clan's request yesterday, he had already suspected something about the assassin's jutsu. That very afternoon, he personally visited the Kurama household to verify his suspicions.
The Kurama Clan's patriarch, Kurama Chuxing, received him in person. Upon hearing Fugaku's inquiry, he did not hide the truth about his younger brother—ever since Kurama Yunhai had been taken away by the ANBU's Root Division as a child, he had never returned home.
Within the entire Kurama Clan, the only person to have ever awakened their Kekkei Genkai was none other than Yunhai himself.
Armed with this information, Fugaku had ordered an extensive background check on everyone around the Hyuga residence and assigned watchers to monitor any outsiders entering or leaving the compound.
Those craftsmen responsible for repairing the Hyuga residence weren't just under Hyuga surveillance—Fugaku had men tailing them too.
After several rounds of verification, Fugaku finally confirmed Yunhai's true identity today and immediately led a team to make the arrest.
The capture took place right outside the Hyuga gates. Naturally, the guard squad on duty noticed what was happening. They didn't intervene to stop the Uchiha but sent one man running back inside to report to the higher-ups.
Outside the gate, the moment Yunhai realized his identity had been exposed by the Uchiha, he abandoned all pretense. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled the hammer in his hand straight at Fugaku's head.
"Seize him! Don't let him get away!"
As Yunhai moved, Fugaku's eyes turned crimson—his Sharingan flared, three tomoe spinning in unison. He tilted his head slightly, easily dodging the attack.
At his command, the elite Uchiha behind him—all of whom also possessed three-tomoe Sharingan—moved in perfect sync, rushing Yunhai from every angle.
But Yunhai, trained and hardened in the depths of Root, would not sit still and die. He had no drawing board at hand to manifest his genjutsu illusions into reality, but as a shinobi, he had plenty of other tools at his disposal.
Right before Fugaku's eyes, Yunhai grabbed a nearby craftsman, hoisted the man up as a human shield, and with a pencil pulled from his chest pouch, began drawing rapidly across the man's back—sketching out a jagged bolt of lightning.
The moment the image took form, a sudden flash split the sky—a bolt of lightning tore down from above, crashing into the ground beside Yunhai.
An Uchiha elite who had just leapt in close was instantly struck, collapsing to the ground and losing consciousness.
The change was too sudden. The sudden thunderbolt froze the remaining Uchiha mid-charge, their faces paling.
Even as Yunhai's manifested illusion took form, his own face turned ghostly white. Blood streamed from his nostrils, yet his hand didn't stop—his pencil still scratched furiously, the living "canvas" beneath his fingers serving as his drawing board. Within mere seconds, a long blade took shape.
Manifesting the weapon, Yunhai seized it in his left hand and pressed its edge against the craftsman's throat.
"Stay back—or I'll kill him!"
Few could imagine anyone daring to threaten the proud Uchiha by taking an ordinary civilian hostage. Did he really think the life of a stranger would matter to the Uchiha—especially when one of their own now lay dying, struck down by his jutsu?
Would they possibly hold back now?
Fugaku's expression darkened, his Sharingan gleaming with cold light as he locked eyes on Yunhai. The other craftsmen who had exited the Hyuga compound earlier had already fled, leaving only Yunhai and his hostage surrounded in the courtyard.
The remaining Uchiha glanced at their clan head, silently seeking orders.
"Don't concern yourselves with the hostage," Fugaku said icily. "The target takes priority."
"Permission to kill—granted."
He cast a brief glance toward the Hyuga compound. His son was currently staying there. There was no way he would allow a dangerous assassin to lurk nearby.
This was also his way of repaying the Hyuga's trust.
Since the Nine-Tails' Attack, though other clans in Konoha never said it aloud, they had quietly ostracized the Uchiha in every council and decision. Fugaku, as the clan's representative, had felt this deeply.
Thus, the Hyuga's goodwill had left a strong impression on him.
Between his son's safety and that of the Hyuga, the life of a single craftsman was of no consequence.
At their leader's order, the Uchiha unleashed their attacks—shuriken flew, while another elite completed his hand seals and exhaled a roaring Fireball Jutsu.
"Tch…" Yunhai spat. The hostage was now useless—worse than useless, actually.
He tore the man's shirt open, threw him toward the incoming shuriken, and retreated rapidly while continuing to draw.
The unfortunate craftsman was pierced through midair, falling with a scream. Simultaneously, a wall of earth surged from the ground, blocking the blazing fireball.
BOOM!
The explosion shook the air, sparks scattering. From the wall sprouted countless earthen spikes, launching like machine-gun fire toward Fugaku's team.
"Scatter!" Fugaku barked.
Thanks to the Sharingan's insight, he had already foreseen the attack, guiding his men clear of danger.
Yunhai saw his chance. He could escape! Even surrounded by elite Uchiha, he was sure he could get away.
Blood still poured from his nose, dripping down his chin and onto the stone pavement, yet his mind remained crystal clear.
Just as he prepared to flee, several dark figures leapt from within the Hyuga compound.
One small, slender figure moved faster than all the rest—within the blink of an eye, he was already behind Yunhai.
Yunhai barely had time to turn his head before his gaze met a pair of piercing pale, pearly eyes. A crushing force slammed into his back, agony flaring through his body before darkness consumed him entirely.
CRASH!
Yunhai was sent flying by a single palm strike from Hyuga Satoru, smashing into the earthen wall behind him with a resounding boom.
The blow of the Gentle Fist left him utterly incapacitated—his body limp, his consciousness fading into deep unconsciousness.
Seeing this, the Uchiha immediately ceased their attacks. Without waiting for Fugaku's order, those still standing quickly gathered their fallen comrade—struck by the lightning—and the slain craftsman, then rushed toward Konoha Hospital.
"Impressive…" Fugaku murmured. The young Hyuga's strike had been blindingly fast—faster even than his Sharingan could fully track.
He knew the power of the Hyuga's Gentle Fist well, but to see such speed in one so young far exceeded his expectations.
At the very least, even his own prodigious son couldn't yet match that.
"Clan Head Fugaku," said Satoru as he landed beside him, "was this the man who attacked our Hyuga clan?"
"Yes. His name is Kurama Yunhai—the one who used his Kekkei Genkai ability to launch the assault."
"Kurama?" Satoru frowned. The name rang a bell—it was a minor ninja clan within the village. But as far as he remembered, the Hyuga had never clashed with them.
A thought struck him. He turned to Hyuga Keisuke, who had just arrived. "Keisuke, check his tongue!"
"See if there's a Cursed Seal of Tongue Eradication."
Satoru's face hardened. The possibility dawned on him at once.
Fugaku, hearing that name, was visibly surprised. This kid… knows about that?
Keisuke quickly hauled Yunhai's body from the rubble. Finding the man still breathing, he grew cautious, pried open his mouth, and examined both sides of the tongue carefully.
After checking, Keisuke straightened and shook his head toward Satoru.
"No seal?"
Both Satoru and Fugaku were taken aback.
If Kurama Chuxing hadn't lied, Yunhai should indeed have joined Root—so why didn't he bear the cursed tongue seal?
Fugaku's expression shifted slightly. After a brief pause, he decided not to mention what he knew.
"Keisuke, bring him back. When he wakes up, you'll interrogate him personally."
Satoru wanted no outsiders involved—he trusted only the Hyuga's own methods of extracting the truth. He intended to cut this threat off at the root.
"Yes, sir!"
Keisuke nodded, preparing to carry Yunhai away—but just then, Yunhai's body began to convulse violently.
Activating his Byakugan, Keisuke's face changed. "Lord Satoru! There's foreign chakra surging from his heart—it looks like… a curse mark activating!"
Before he could finish, the chakra erupted. Blood spurted from Yunhai's mouth as his life force plummeted. Within seconds, his body went still—dead.
Everyone stood frozen, forced to watch the curse seal consume him before their eyes, powerless to stop it.
Keisuke dropped the corpse back onto the ground. Satoru's face had gone ashen.
"Keisuke," he said coldly, "summon someone from the Yamanaka Clan to the Hyuga compound."
"Even if he's dead… we'll make him speak."
Fugaku glanced at Satoru, a new light flickering in his eyes. It struck him that he might have underestimated this young man.
He had thought all the Hyuga's recent moves were orchestrated by Hyuga Hiashi's younger brother, Hizashi—but now it seemed the truth was far from that simple.
This young Hyuga Satoru held far more authority within the clan than Fugaku had realized.
At that moment, neither Satoru nor Keisuke bothered to hide their intent. Keisuke bowed respectfully, then hurried off to carry out his orders.
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