Hyuga Hiashi was naturally hiding in the shadows, quietly observing.
Though he was hiding, he knew that Aoba and Hinata were definitely aware of his presence.
Originally, he had wanted Hinata to preside over the matter of the Caged Bird. After all, for something like this, it was more appropriate for Hinata to handle it.
After all, it was an internal matter of the Hyuga clan.
And with Hinata's status as a member of the main family, even without the Caged Bird, it wouldn't lead to the relationship between the branch and main families becoming too strained.
But since she had called Aoba over, he wasn't going to say anything.
After all, the technique to remove the Caged Bird had been developed by him, and abolishing the Caged Bird was also his proposal.
As all the branch family members of the Hyuga clan gathered in the plaza in front of them, Aoba stepped forward to stand before everyone.
Hinata and Hyuga Natsu stood a step behind.
Without Aoba even needing to say anything, the somewhat noisy atmosphere quickly quieted down.
Aoba's status, to the already traditional and conservative Hyuga clan, was even more respected than that of other ninjas.
Aoba first looked around, a faint smile on his face.
"I know you're all curious why you've suddenly been gathered here. I won't take up too much of your time. Natsu, come forward."
"Yes!"
Hearing her name called, Hyuga Natsu responded and quickly stepped forward.
Then, under the disbelieving gazes of the branch family members, she removed the forehead protector she had worn for many years.
Her forehead was smooth and bare.
There was nothing there.
And certainly not that dark green, eerie mark.
Silence—
Then...
"Waa!"
After a brief moment of silence, the noise erupted like a landslide and tsunami.
"Th-this… what's going on?"
"I remember she's from the branch family too, right?"
"Then where did the Caged Bird on her forehead go?"
"No idea…"
"…"
It was a commotion that couldn't be suppressed anytime soon.
As the personal maid who had taken care of Hinata and Hanabi since childhood, Hyuga Natsu was quite well known within the clan.
So many people recognized her.
But now, the Caged Bird mark on the forehead of this branch family member had suddenly disappeared.
For the Hyuga clan, the Caged Bird was a tradition that had been passed down for nearly a thousand years.
Although it had both advantages and disadvantages, it was also an important support that allowed the Hyuga clan to continue to this day.
And now, this understanding that had been ingrained in their bloodline for a thousand years was suddenly shattered before their eyes. It naturally required some time to process.
Standing at the very front of the branch family, Hyuga Neji looked at Hyuga Natsu's smooth forehead, shock clearly showing in his eyes.
But after coming back to his senses, he couldn't help but subconsciously reach up and touch his own forehead.
Feeling the coldness of his forehead protector, along with the lively noise around him, he seemed to understand what Aoba and Hinata were trying to do.
A sense of unreality suddenly rose in his heart.
Even his whole body felt a bit dazed.
Aoba and Hinata naturally took in the reactions of all the branch family members.
After the atmosphere calmed down slightly, Aoba spoke again, "I believe many of you have already guessed what comes next."
"The existence of the Caged Bird has had both good and bad effect on the Hyuga clan over the years, but in the end, it's a relic of the old era. The new era has no place for it. So starting today, the Caged Bird on each of you will be removed one after another."
Aoba had only come today to announce this matter. After all, the Hyuga clan had several thousand members, and to prevent the Byakugan from being taken by outsiders, it wasn't only ninjas who bore the Caged Bird. Even civilians had it.
However, for most civilians, the Caged Bird was actually just a slightly special mark.
Although the main family could use the Caged Bird to control the branch family, no one would go out of their way to bully ordinary people for no reason.
That didn't fit the underlying logic of the ninja world.
In the ninja world, it had always been more common for civilians to bully the children of ninja clans.
The unruly masses of the Five Great Ninja Villages treated everyone equally when it came to bullying.
In short, Aoba definitely wasn't going to remove the Caged Bird from everyone on the spot. If he did, he probably wouldn't be able to do anything else for the next couple of days.
As his words fell, the plaza once again erupted into even more intense discussion than before.
After all, before, they had only seen that one branch member no longer had the Caged Bird. But now, they were suddenly hearing that it would be abolished entirely.
"Lord Hokage, if the Caged Bird is gone, what if someone steals the Byakugan?"
Amid the noisy discussion, a branch family member voiced this concern.
Compared to removing the Caged Bird, some people would rather have the main family branded with it as well.
However, Hinata answered this question instead, "This is not an issue. In the future, if anyone dares to covet the Hyuga clan's Byakugan, I will reclaim it at any cost."
As she spoke, a faint trace of purple light shimmered within her Byakugan, making people instinctively believe her.
Naturally, Aoba wasn't going to just make an announcement and leave. In front of all the branch family members, he began helping a group of them remove the Caged Bird marks.
Among them was Neji, standing in the front row.
Although his reputation in Konoha had always been quiet due to Naruto and Sasuke overshadowing him, Neji was actually the first among his graduating class to be promoted to jonin.
A talent like that was rare even within the Hyuga clan.
"Neji, it's been a while."
Seeing this nominal brother-in-law again after some time, Aoba couldn't help but smile.
"Th-thank you… Lord Hokage."
Neji's voice trembled slightly. After all, what was about to happen to him could easily be described as something he had long dreamed of.
Seeing this, Aoba didn't continue chatting and simply reassured him, "No need to be nervous. It'll be over soon."
Then he extended a finger and lightly tapped Neji's forehead.
Just as Neji closed his eyes, preparing himself for whatever was coming, the finger on his forehead was already withdrawn.
"Alright, it's finished."
"?"
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