"Who is it? Come out!"
The moment that voice reached his ears, Hyuga Hizashi activated his Byakugan without hesitation.
But to his astonishment, in his perception, there was no one around except for Neji.
There was only the sound of the wind, the rustling of leaves, his own breathing, and his heartbeat. It was so quiet that even the chirping of insects seemed to have vanished.
Hyuga Hizashi activated his Byakugan and looked around, but he couldn't find the source of the voice.
"Where are you looking?"
The ethereal voice came again.
This time, Hyuga Hizashi heard it with perfect clarity and turned his head sharply in the direction of the sound.
But there was still no one there.
Trees stood silently before him, their dense branches and leaves swaying in the wind, creating countless shadows that seemed to hide countless figures.
Until a soft footstep was heard approaching slowly.
Just by listening, one could tell the relaxed and leisurely pace of the walker. They were clearly walking within the Hyuga compound, which was full of Byakugan users, yet it felt as if they were strolling through a garden.
After a moment, a figure emerged from the shadows, a blackness like ink that bled into Hyuga Hizashi's Byakugan vision.
The black figure's footsteps stopped in front of him. Hyuga Hizashi stared intently at the face beneath the black cloak, as if trying to penetrate it and see every inch of flesh under the hood.
But under the hood, there was only a thick, dense shadow that churned like a living thing, chewing up and swallowing his probing gaze like a moth to a flame, without any hope of getting even a speck of pity in return.
A monster like the abyss.
The thought suddenly popped into his mind, and a cold sweat trickled down Hyuga Hizashi's forehead.
Someone who could silently infiltrate Konoha, ignoring its sensory barrier, even infiltrating the Hyuga clan's compound, and could ignore the Byakugan's perception.
The person was clearly standing right in front of him, yet he couldn't perceive them at all.
If the other party hadn't spoken, he probably wouldn't have noticed anything until they were standing behind him, raising a hand to slit his throat.
Was this some kind of secret technique?
Or some kind of Kekkei Genkai?
Even the "Transparency Technique" couldn't do this, right?
"Who are you?"
While frantically analyzing the information in his mind, Hyuga Hizashi spoke to buy time, putting his hand in his robe to send a signal of an enemy invasion.
"The moment you send the signal will be enough time for me to cut your throat. Before reinforcements arrive, I can kill that child as well."
A cold, calm statement, laced with an undeniable killing intent.
Hizashi's body instinctively stiffened, and his hand froze.
The bizarre appearance of the person before him and the calmness in their tone made Hyuga Hizashi not dare to doubt the truth of their words in the slightest.
With the strange ability to block perception that the other party had shown, if they really had the power to kill him instantly, they could indeed leave here silently and safely, and no one would even be able to find a trace of them afterwards.
So, did the other party have the power to kill him instantly?
"..."
Hyuga Hizashi took his hand out of his robe and stared at the black shadow in front of him, his voice heavy. "What do you want?"
Yes, he didn't dare to gamble.
This person before him was too strange.
It didn't matter if he died, but Neji was right behind him.
And since the other party hadn't attacked him directly, it meant they might not have any murderous intent.
But Hyuga Hizashi couldn't guess at this moment that the black shadow he was wary of and even feared was actually someone he had met not long ago.
The black shadow, that is, Hyuga Kumo, did not answer Hyuga Hizashi's question, but calmly watched him. The two fell into a dead silence again, with only the rustling of the wind through the leaves, and Hyuga Hizashi's increasingly heavy breathing, and even his gradually quickening heartbeat.
Just as the atmosphere became extremely tense and heavy, and Hyuga Hizashi's fingers twitched, on the verge of making a move...
"You said that all the suffering that child endures will become a treasure that makes him stronger?"
The black shadow in front of him finally spoke. Although its voice was still hoarse and terrifying, Hizashi let out a sigh of relief.
This person was clearly at eye level with him, yet it felt as if they were looking down on him from above, their deep gaze sweeping over him.
It was as if an invisible black hand was holding every inch of his skin, slowly clenching its fist, as if wanting to squeeze out a pool of blood.
"What are you trying to say?"
The last of his rebellious thoughts quietly dissipated. Hyuga Hizashi frowned and said in a deep voice.
"You're deceiving yourself," Hyuga Kumo said calmly. "Suffering is suffering. It is not something to be glorified, nor is it some precious treasure."
"Suffering will only drain a person's blood and flesh, making them sensitive and extreme."
Speaking of which, a hint of mocking laughter entered his tone as he said, "Just like what your parents did to you."
"They shattered your values, and stuffed your head with the values, life, and world they approved of."
"They want you to be obedient, they belittle you to the extreme, they say this is right, they say this is your fate. You want to struggle, to resist, but they change their tune, they shout at you, they cut off your hands and feet, they put you in a cage."
"They hit you, they curse you, they persuade you, they beg you, but they refuse to let you go. They say this is wrong, they say I am right, they say, I'm doing this for your own good. So you give up, you join them."
Watching Hyuga Hizashi's expression gradually turn ugly, Hyuga Kumo's words became sharper and more mocking: "A long time later, you find your child is just like you were before. You think he will be like you, kneeling down and accepting his fate like a dog, so you..."
"Enough!"
An almost irrepressible low shout interrupted Hyuga Kumo's words.
These sharp words were like knives, constantly carving at Hyuga Hizashi's heart, making his whole body tremble.
Every word made him think of the past, of the two blurred faces in his memory, of the words that came out of those two blurred mouths.
"What do you know!" he no longer cared about fear and apprehension, and clenched his teeth. "I, I was doing it for..."
At this point, the last words seemed to get stuck in his throat, making his throat bob up and down slightly.
For Neji's own good?
Isn't that what the other person said?
"Cough! Retch!"
At this thought, Hyuga Hizashi's face suddenly turned pale. He covered his mouth, a strong wave of nausea rising in him.
How disgusting.
Not disgusted with others, but with himself.
He was unwilling to admit in his heart that he really couldn't understand Neji's thoughts, couldn't understand why Neji was so resentful. It was he who had shown murderous intent towards Hinata, it was he who was in the wrong, it was...
Now, he could no longer understand his former rebellious self.
He was born only fifteen minutes later than his older brother, Hyuga Hiashi. Those short fifteen minutes made him a member of the Branch Family, branded him with the Caged Bird Seal, and deprived him of his self and freedom.
He had once resisted and questioned, but now he only felt, isn't this "fate"?
When did it all start?
What was he doing?
"Some birds cannot be caged. Every feather of theirs shines with the radiance of freedom. They are born for the sky."
Hyuga Kumo lifted his foot and slowly walked towards Hizashi, coming to his side. His words were full of enticement: "Hyuga Hizashi, tell me, your choice."
"Do you choose to be a cruel executioner, and personally break the wings of a bird flying towards the sky?"
"Or do you choose to be a father?"