That's right. From the current standpoints of the two villages, Darui must be a "rogue ninja." No matter what his previous identity was, he is now a "rogue ninja."
Only by Darui ending up as a rogue ninja can the peace between the two villages be maintained on the surface and the newly healed scars not be reopened.
How could the Sandaime not understand what Hiashi meant? He also nodded slowly and continued, "In that case, hand this rogue ninja over to the Kumogakure envoys, and let that be the end of the matter."
"Wait, Sarutobi, now the entire Konoha Village knows we've captured a rogue ninja who invaded Konoha. Are you just going to hand him over like that?"
At this moment, the old woman who had been silent beside him, Koharu, finally spoke.
Compared to the dovish Sarutobi Hiruzen, although Koharu was a woman, she was much more ruthless than Sarutobi in many aspects and cared more about face.
Now everyone in Konoha knew someone had invaded. Since it was a rogue ninja who invaded Konoha and was caught, why should he be handed over to the people of Kumogakure? That would seem too weak. This was clearly what Utatane Koharu implied with her words.
"Not only that, Lord Third Hokage. Although the rogue ninja failed to kidnap my son yesterday, he stole a great deal of confidential information from the Hyuga clan. He absolutely cannot be released so easily."
What?! Upon hearing Hiashi's firm words, whether it was Sarutobi Hiruzen, Mitokado Homura, or Utatane Koharu, all of them showed expressions of surprise.
If it were simply a case of the Kumogakure envoys attempting to kidnap someone from the Hyuga compound but failing, then it might be manageable. At most, they could quietly return the person at this juncture, even if it meant losing face. But what if the person stole "classified information"?
In the ninja world, "information" was as important as life itself. The loss of one or two pieces of information could lead to an unknown number of casualties. That's why information management in the major ninja villages was so strict, almost to an outrageous degree.
This is troublesome. At this point, the Sandaime sighed, pipe in mouth, and then said, "If that's the case, then I will discuss with the Kumogakure envoys to see how to resolve this matter."
"How else can it be resolved? Just eliminate that rogue ninja directly and destroy the body on the spot. That settles it."
Seeing that the situation seemed to be getting more and more complicated, the other advisor, Mitokado Homura, also spoke. His approach was clearly more direct, reflecting the decisiveness and ruthlessness of this group of high-ranking advisors.
Of course, this kind of handling was actually very common for ninjas. After all, even dead bodies could yield a lot of information. So not only did Darui have to die, but even his corpse couldn't be taken away by them. This was the best way to avoid future trouble.
Tch. Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the two advisors, then at Hiashi, and said helplessly to the latter, "Send that rogue ninja over. We know how to handle it."
"Yes, thank you, Lord Third Hokage. Then I won't disturb your work any further."
After standing up and bowing slightly, Hiashi expressionlessly opened the door of the Hokage's office and walked out.
However, the moment he stepped out, a smile appeared at the corner of his usually stern mouth—an expression of satisfaction and the privilege of the victor.
...
At 10:00 a.m., Darui, the "rogue ninja" from Kumogakure who had invaded the Hyuga compound, was handed over to Konoha's Anbu.
At 11:00 a.m., Darui, the "rogue ninja" from Kumogakure, was publicly executed by the Kumogakure envoys and Konoha's Anbu, and his body was immediately destroyed.
With Darui's death, the "Young Master Kidnapping Incident" finally came to an end. At the same time, in an extremely simple, ancient courtyard deep within the Hyuga compound, two figures, one large and one small, sat facing each other.
Classical and solemn—these were likely the first four words to come to mind upon seeing this courtyard.
In a green bamboo grove within this courtyard, there was a clear pond where patches of pink water lilies grew.
Not far away, a brick-paved path led to a quiet place. The flowers were deep, and the house was tranquil, showing that the owner here had a great appreciation for life.
However, compared to the sentimental courtyard, the conversation between father and son today wasn't quite as sentimental.
"Darui has been confirmed dead, so this incident is temporarily over."
After taking a sip of juice, Hyuga Yuki looked at the clear pond not far away with an appreciative gaze.
No matter how you looked at it, it felt good to have single-handedly orchestrated the event that led to Darui dying as a rogue ninja. It was truly a great disgrace for a ninja.
"It is indeed a temporary end to our grudge with Kumogakure, but there is no permanent end."
Compared to his young son, the current clan head, Hiashi, obviously saw more things and had a broader perspective.
After conducting investigations from early yesterday morning until this morning, Hiashi had figured out who was behind the attack on the Hyuga clan.
Actually, figuring this out wasn't complicated. You just needed to know who was currently in power in Kumogakure.
Since the Third Raikage, A, had died in battle against Iwagakure not long ago, the newly succeeded Fourth Raikage clearly hadn't yet emerged from the shadow of his father's death and had no intention of taking power in the short term. So, the current "main voice" of "Kumogakure" wasn't the Raikage, but the advisory elder, Rasa.
In fact, this wasn't hard to understand. From Yuki's perspective, whether it was the Third or Fourth Raikage, they were both reckless men with more brawn than brains. It was hard to imagine them sending someone to carry out such a sinister porcelain-touching mission.
Similar to Konoha's organizational structure, the "Advisory Elder" originally held a very important position in the village. To a certain extent, they could even influence the selection of the "Kage." So, it wasn't surprising that Rasa could control "Kumogakure."
"Does that advisory elder named Rasa like our clan's Byakugan so much that he's going all out to seize it?"
Since the description of Kumogakure during this period in the original work wasn't very detailed, Yuki had no way of judging what those guys were thinking.
"Not necessarily. I asked a few elders in the clan, and they have some impression of the name Rasa. He should be an old ninja who experienced the First Great Ninja War. He fought against Konoha on the battlefield and was badly beaten by the Hyuga clan back then."
Speaking of the First Great Ninja War, it seemed like a long time ago, but in this world, it was only a few decades past. Hiashi hadn't even been born at that time.
Just like today's Third Great Ninja War, a fierce confrontation broke out between Kumogakure and Konoha during the First Great Ninja War. At that time, Konoha, under the leadership of the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, defeated Kumogakure.
In the contest with Kumogakure, the Hyuga clan could be said to have contributed greatly, especially their Byakugan and Gentle Fist abilities, which were natural counters to Kumogakure's proficiency in Lightning Release and physical techniques.
No matter how fast your speed, the Byakugan could track you. No matter how strong your Lightning Release, the Gentle Fist could deflect it. Although he had never actually participated in that war, Hiashi knew that Kumogakure had indeed suffered greatly at the hands of his ancestors.
"I see. If he was a participant in the First Great War, it's easy to understand why the advisory elder would be so hostile to the Hyuga clan."
Regarding the First Great Ninja War, Yuki knew much less than Hiashi, so naturally, he couldn't offer any opinions.
"Anyway, I have to remember that guy's name. If there's a chance in the future... The Third Great Ninja War will be over soon, and Kumogakure and Konoha will also enter a period of peace. This opportunity might have to wait a long time."
"Oh? Has it been confirmed that the treaty will be signed soon?"
Although he knew the war would stop around this time, Yuki was still very happy to hear the news. After all, no one liked war.
"The negotiations are almost concluded. There should be a complete ceasefire next month, which will give me a lot of free time."
As he spoke these words, Hiashi suddenly looked at his eldest son with a strange glint in his eyes.
"What are you going to do with the extra time?"
"Of course, it's to train you into a qualified ninja capable of supporting the Hyuga clan."
"Is it that simple? Your expression seems to suggest you're planning some kind of hellish training for me?"
"Hellish training? No, no. First, imagine the hardest training process you've ever seen in your mind."
"Alright, I've imagined it. It's terrifying, and I don't want to die."
"Then multiply that training process you imagined by several dozen times. That's what you have to go through."
Boss, can I reincarnate again? Looking at his father's enthusiastic expression, Hyuga Yuki cursed himself for the first time, wondering why he had to be born. But it was already too late.