Chapter 5 — Restoring the Hyūga's Sky to Clarity
Hyūga Ritsu stepped forward to examine the "specimen."
The body was already cold, drained of life, but he treated it with the same precision as if it were still alive. From his pouch, he withdrew a scroll and unsealed it upon the ground. With practiced movements, he placed the corpse inside and sealed it away once more.
Every shinobi's corpse was a vault of secrets—
but the body of a Kaguya Jōnin was nothing short of a treasure trove.
There were countless techniques to extract intelligence, memories, or biological data from the dead. If he brought the body back, Hiruko-sensei could help him uncover the hidden principles behind the Shikotsumyaku bloodline. Even if Ritsu couldn't wield all of it himself, the knowledge would be invaluable.
"From here on," he murmured, tightening his grip on the scroll, "the real battle begins."
He took a deep breath, steeling his resolve.
He would not run.
But he also knew that the Main House would never allow him to live freely once they discovered what he had done.
So there was only one choice left—
To set right what was twisted,
to return clarity and justice to the Hyūga name.
"I'll restore the Hyūga to a world of open skies and clean air."
---
Retracing his steps, Ritsu climbed the ten-meter rock shaft, triggered the mechanism, and emerged once again through the hollow tree.
Morning light greeted him. Judging by the sun's angle, it was already past ten.
He activated his Byakugan and expanded his field of vision.
Before the fusion, his Byakugan could extend up to about eight kilometers. Now—his perception stretched to nearly eleven.
Not only had the Shikotsumyaku dissolved the Caged Bird, but it had also enhanced the Byakugan itself.
Sharper, farther, clearer.
Ritsu smirked faintly. "A blessing within the blood."
He moved quickly, following the same path back toward the front lines.
Hours passed. When night finally descended—around nine, perhaps ten—he stopped at a ridge roughly ten kilometers from Konoha's eastern forward camp.
He knelt, activated his Byakugan, and observed from afar.
The camp was still shielded by a massive barrier, preventing him from peering inside. But beyond it, scattered among the woods, were several hidden sentries. One of them—his chakra signature familiar—belonged to a member of the Hyūga Branch Family.
Perfect.
Ritsu waited quietly, concealed among the trees. A minute and a half later, the sentry's face changed—eyes widening in sudden realization. Their Byakugan had locked onto each other across a six-kilometer gap.
Two pairs of pure white eyes met through layers of forest and night.
They saw each other.
Truly saw.
Ritsu lifted one hand and made a simple gesture: Come. We need to talk.
The other Hyūga hesitated, then nodded subtly.
Five seconds later, the sentry formed a "Rin" seal with practiced hands — and in a puff of smoke, a shadow clone appeared beside him.
The original remained prone in the treetop, watching the perimeter.
The clone, silent and cautious, began to move — slipping through the undergrowth, leaping between branches — heading straight toward Ritsu's position.
Six kilometers was nothing for a shinobi — a few light steps, and the distance was gone.
Before long, the shadow clone appeared before Hyūga Ritsu, his face drawn with anxiety.
"Ritsu! You— you're not supposed to be here!" he hissed. "Didn't you defect? What are you doing back? You need to leave! Now! Before Elder Hishō and Elder Daichi notice you — go as far as you can, and don't ever come back!"
"Hishō and Daichi, you say?" Ritsu asked with a faint smile.
The shadow clone's original was Hyūga Hayato, Ritsu's childhood friend — same age, same branch family, both fifteen. A jōnin already, and one of the few people Ritsu truly trusted.
"You're still smiling?!" Hayato snapped, half angry, half desperate. "Ritsu, listen — the clan head and the two elders arrived at the front camp around noon. They hadn't even unpacked before Elder Hishō started shouting that you were to be summoned and punished immediately.
And that bastard Hyūga Taisho—" Hayato's fists trembled, voice rising with rage. "He accused you in front of everyone! Said you stood by and let him be surrounded, that you deliberately delayed to sabotage him — that's why his Byakugan was taken by the Mist-nin!"
By the time he finished, Hayato was breathing hard, fury tightening his jaw.
Ritsu only sighed softly. "Just as I expected."
It was exactly for this reason that he had fled to perform the Oniyaro ritual — to act before the storm broke.
"Hayato, don't waste your anger on him. You know what kind of trash Taisho is. If those Mist-nin hadn't attacked me first, I wouldn't have lifted a finger to save him at all."
"I still can't accept it!" Hayato growled. "How could that fool even compare to you? You made jōnin at eleven! That idiot barely scraped by at sixteen — and only because of his clan name! The fact that someone like him's in the Main House is just— just—"
He cut himself off, shaking with frustration.
"Yes," Ritsu said quietly, his eyes cold. "I can't accept it either."
No one born beneath another's heel ever could.
"Sorry," Hayato muttered after a pause. "Here I am, ranting at you again. You're the one they should be apologizing to."
Ritsu waved it off. "There's no need for that. Anger won't change anything now. Tell me — what's the situation at the front camp? When I didn't return to face judgment, how did the elders react? Any idea what they're planning?"
Hayato frowned, thinking. "Orochimaru-sama met with the clan head and the elders. He told them you were sent out on a reconnaissance mission. Elder Hishō blew up over it, nearly started a fight with Orochimaru-sama, but the clan head and Elder Daichi calmed him down. For now, they're staying at the front camp… waiting for you to return."
"So they'll remain there for a while?" Ritsu's gaze sharpened.
A daring thought flickered to life in his mind.
The clan head, both elders, and many of the loyal Branch enforcers were all away from the village. Meaning — the Hyūga compound in Konoha was nearly empty of the Main House's core power.
That was opportunity.
"Ritsu?" Hayato's voice broke through his thoughts. "Why are you asking this? You should be getting as far from here as possible! If either of those elders spots you, they'll trigger the Caged Bird Seal instantly!"
Even the memory of that pain — the skull-splitting agony — made Hayato's voice tremble. Once was enough to scar anyone for life.
Ritsu smiled faintly. "Thank you, Hayato. That's all I needed to know. Now… forget you ever saw me. Continue your post as if nothing happened."
"Don't worry about me! I'd never sell you out," Hayato said fiercely. "But please—go. Get far away. And don't come back."
With those treasonous words spoken, the shadow clone's form shimmered — and burst into a puff of pale smoke, dispersing into the night air.
Six kilometers away, the original Hayato remained motionless atop his tree perch, performing his duty as lookout — a loyal shinobi, betraying nothing.
Ritsu stood in silence for a long moment, his Byakugan fixed on the distant front-line camp ten kilometers away.
Then, without hesitation, he turned his back on it.
There was nothing there for him now — no truth, no justice, no future.
Everything he sought lay back in Konoha Village.
He exhaled slowly, lowered his stance—
—and ran.
His figure blurred, tearing through the night forest, faster than a wild horse.
Each stride carried him closer to the village… and to the storm he intended to bring down upon the Hyūga Main House.
"You've caged me my whole life," he thought, wind roaring past his ears. "Now it's my turn to break the bars — and remind you that the sky belongs to us all."