Because of jealousy toward Hizashi, Hiashi used the Caged Bird on him for no reason, torturing him, and then beat him so badly he was covered in wounds and almost crippled. News of this quickly spread throughout Konoha.
Along with this news came another story, that Minato, in a fit of rage, went to confront him. Since Hiashi flatly refused to admit anything, the two had a clash.
In the end, the Hyūga clan leader stepped in, launching a surprise attack on Minato and injuring him so severely that he was left unconscious.
The news caused a huge uproar in Konoha.
Who was Minato?
He was the younger brother of the shinobi world's number one medical-nin, and the brother-in-law of the Forth Hokage.
He was also the idol of countless people, the Yellow Flash.
During the dangerous Second Great Ninja War, he led his team in wiping out the Suna infiltration ninjas without suffering a scratch.
In the past six months, he had completed over a dozen S-rank missions, unmatched by anyone in Konoha, and had never been injured even once.
How many enemies today trembled at the mere mention of his name?
Yet who could have imagined that today, in his own village, he was suddenly ambushed by one of his own and gravely injured, and that his attacker was none other than a Hyūga clan member whose reputation in Konoha was already in ruins?
How could anyone tolerate this?
Countless people gathered outside Konoha Hospital of their own accord, eyes red, waiting for Tsunade and Shin to finish treating Minato.
At the same time, they all deeply hated Ryōhei.
Because in everyone's eyes, Ryōhei could never have been a match for Minato.
If it weren't for Minato letting his guard down out of trust for one of his own, would Ryōhei have had any chance of injuring him?
Yet even with Minato trusting him so much, how could he bring himself to strike?
For what happened today, the Hyūga clan would have to give everyone in Konoha an explanation, no matter what.
In your own village, striking down one of your own ninja with such heavy intent, this sort of thing was unheard of.
If this wasn't severely punished, what was to stop it from happening again? How could Konoha ever know peace?
At this moment, Fukuyama arrived outside the hospital with his son. Fugaku stood among the crowd with a worried expression.
Unlike his foolish son, who was full of anxiety, he felt a wave of emotion seeing this familiar scene.
To be fair, Shin and Minato's skill at rousing public sentiment was truly masterful.
Fortunately, the Uchiha clan had pledged loyalty early on, serving wholeheartedly and without ulterior motives, otherwise, who knew who would be in trouble today.
He absolutely did not believe that that Minato could be injured by Ryōhei.
Minato's strength and vigilance were astonishing, even to Fukuyama himself, he wasn't sure he could even get a chance to ambush Minato, let alone Ryōhei.
But this time, he wasn't the one involved, he was just an outsider watching the show.
So he felt oddly pleased, and even began to pity Ryōhei.
Ryōhei, huh? Hyūga clan, huh? Good luck, you'd need it!
---
Inside a certain operating room in Konoha Hospital, at the moment, the area had been sealed off with a barrier.
Minato sat cross-legged on the operating table, wearing a mischievous grin.
Standing next to him were, of course, Shin and Tsunade.
"Ready yet?" Shin gave Minato a flick on the forehead and asked.
"Just go for it. Aim right here, just breaking four ribs, right? Piece of cake!"
Tsunade stood to the side, utterly speechless.
These two brothers… even a self-injury ruse was in their playbook.
Still, with this opportunity, a lot of things could now proceed smoothly.
Wham!
Shin slammed his palm into Minato's chest, making him spit out a mouthful of blood on the spot.
"How many broken?" Shin asked urgently.
"Only two!" Minato grimaced, feeling his chest.
"When did your body get this strong?"
"I've never slacked off in training for a single day. With all the effort you've put into training me, if I couldn't even handle this much, wouldn't that make me a total waste?"
"Cut the nonsense. I'm going again."
"Come on, harder! Give it to me!"
Tsunade was speechless.
What kind of… scandalous words were these?
Such shameful lines… Even she... fine, she had said similar things before. Thinking of that made her face flush red, and she silently swore never to do that again.
"That's about enough." Seeing Minato twitching all over and lying limp on the operating table, Shin nodded in satisfaction. "Tsunade, I'm going to start the treatment."
"Get those people in here to help."
As the barrier was removed, Tsunade ran outside and shouted, "Minato's condition is critical! All squad leaders and above, get in here to assist!"
Her voice carried not only throughout the hospital but also outside, instantly tightening the hearts of everyone gathered there.
Hadn't both the Hokage and Shin already started working together? Why would they still need extra help?
That damned Ryōhei, he really must have been trying to kill Minato! He must have gone all out in that sneak attack!
Hateful.
Absolutely hateful!
---
Inside the operating room, Minato's body was now covered in silver needles, stimulating his chakra flow to speed up healing.
Tsunade was performing the Mystical Palm Technique, linking the countless nerve fibers of his internal organs together so they would remain intact, ensuring not a trace of lasting injury would remain.
Shin had both hands pressed to Minato's chest.
At the same time, he used the Revitalization Technique to restore Minato's caved-in chest, carefully realigned the broken bones, and then hastened their healing.
Around them stood four medical-nin, assigned to hold Minato's hands and feet while continuously injecting chakra to stimulate recovery.
Two of them directed their chakra along with Tsunade's, assisting in repairing Minato's internal organs.
The other two followed Shin's chakra flow, aiding in healing Minato's bones.
With the combined efforts of the six, Minato's condition visibly improved.
Twenty minutes later, after repeated checks, the treatment was complete, and Minato finally opened his eyes.
"How do you feel?" Shin rushed forward, helping him sit up, looking tense.
"I'm fine, it's just a minor injury," Minato replied, his face pale but forcing a smile, even trying to comfort Shin instead.
The four medical-nin standing nearby felt their hearts ache at the sight.
And not just them, at the door, a crowd of medical-nin and nurses who had gathered after the operation ended were also deeply moved.
They had always heard that Minato was kind and considerate, but he was even more so than they'd imagined, comforting others even at a time like this.
Tsunade then spoke up angrily. "Minato, what exactly happened?"
"It's my fault. I said something wrong, which angered Ryōhei. You really can't blame him for this."
Everyone's hearts ached again. Minato, you nearly lost your life, and you were still speaking up for someone like that?
Look at Minato, then look at Ryōhei.
Hyūga clan leader?
So what!
"You're still defending him at a time like this?" Tsunade, echoing everyone's thoughts, gritted her teeth. "I won't wrongly accuse a good man, but I also won't let a bad one go free."
"Striking to kill a fellow ninja, and inside the village no less, this kind of thing must never be tolerated."
"You focus on resting. Leave this matter to me."
With that, she left in a hurry with her people, leaving Shin to look after Minato.