From the names, he had already deduced the identity. The person Yuan and Gekko Fūha were discussing was, in all likelihood, Hyuga Tenso.
The current patriarch of the Hyuga clan—a Gentle Fist master whose prowess with the Byakugan was not inferior to Uchiha Tajima or Senju Butsuma.
Moreover, from Gekko Fūha's words, he could deduce that Shimura Ri had actually been killed by the Hyuga clan!
How could this be?
Below, Yuan let out a cold snort and replied, "I, Yuan, have braved death for the Hyuga clan. I have infiltrated the Senju, the Hagoromo, the four Northwestern clans, and strong clans like the Sarutobi and Shimura. Is he going to hold me responsible for a single mistake?"
Yuan continued, "As for Shimura Ri and his lot, one can only say they had bad luck. We had to kill them, so what is there to fear? Even if the idiots in the Sarutobi and Shimura clans rack their brains, they will never suspect that we, the Hyuga, made the move!"
If Sarutobi Furukawa hadn't strictly ordered him not to act rashly, Sarutobi Furuyuki would have drawn his blade and charged in right then.
Inside the room, Gekko Fūha continued to ask, "May I ask, Lord Yuan, what should be our next step?"
"For the time being, hold the troops. The outcome of the war between the Uchiha and Senju is currently unpredictable. It is not the time for us to strike. Once we find an opportunity, my Hyuga clan will surely have the chance to replace the Uchiha and Senju, becoming the veritable number one clan of the Warring States."
Having gathered enough intelligence, Sarutobi Furuyuki prepared to leave.
Suddenly, Yuan's voice inside the room changed pitch. "Not good! The walls have ears! Seize him!"
Sarutobi Furuyuki was startled. I was discovered!
Without time to think, he immediately executed the Body Flicker Technique repeatedly to escape at top speed.
Just as he leapt away, the roof behind him was pierced by a Kunai imbued with wind-attribute chakra. The noise instantly attracted all the surrounding Gekko clan guard ninjas.
Many Gekko ninjas saw a black shadow streak across the sky above the Clan Head's room.
Inside the room, Yuan drew a Tachi and stabbed it straight through Gekko Fūha's heart, then hid in the blind spot behind a bookshelf.
Bang!
A squad of Gekko ninjas burst into the room. Seeing the blood-soaked Gekko Fūha collapsed on the floor, they were momentarily struck speechless with shock. Immediately, they all rushed to Gekko Fūha's side to support him.
When they saw Gekko Fūha's wound, their faces darkened further.
It was no use; the heart had been completely pierced.
"Quick, chase them..." Gekko Fūha spoke with difficulty. Under these circumstances, not a single Gekko ninja noticed that he was actually under the control of Genjutsu.
The ninja supporting Gekko Fūha asked urgently, "Clan Head, who did this to you!?"
"Saru... Saru... It was Sarutobi... Quick, go..."
After struggling to spit out these few words, Gekko Fūha's hand dropped heavily to the ground. He had breathed his last.
"Did you all hear that?" the ninja holding Gekko Fūha said to the surrounding clansmen.
"We heard it clearly. The Clan Head said it was the Sarutobi people!"
"Bastards! Why would the Sarutobi clan ninjas kill the Clan Head?"
"Hurry up and chase them with me!"
"I will go notify the Hyuga immediately. Those Sarutobi bastards, do they really think my Gekko clan is easy to bully?"
The remaining Gekko ninja hoisted Gekko Fūha's corpse onto his back, preparing to carry it to the main hall and summon all clansmen to discuss this grave matter.
He never imagined that the real murderer was hiding behind a bookshelf less than five meters away.
Once the room was empty, Izuna finally emerged from the back. After a cold smile, he quickly departed.
At this moment, every ninja in the Gekko estate was chasing after the black shadow. The remaining ninjas, upon hearing the news of the Clan Head's murder, hurried to gather at the council hall after their initial shock.
No one noticed another black shadow quietly slipping out the back door.
"That should do it. I need to return to Shirotani Pass."
The Hyuga clan lands.
A man of about forty in white robes sat in the main seat of the great hall, listening to his subordinate's report. His pupils were entirely white within his eye sockets.
"What!? Gekko Fūha was killed by a ninja from the Sarutobi clan?"
Hearing this news, the man's expression changed. He muttered to himself in confusion, "Why? It makes no sense. There is no reason for the Sarutobi clan to do such a thing."
This middle-aged man was the current patriarch of the Hyuga clan, Hyuga Tenso. Rumor had it that he was the successor to the Kekkai Genkai who had pushed the abilities of the Byakugan to their limit, a feat unseen in the Hyuga clan for hundreds of years.
His greatest desire was to let the Hyuga replace the Uchiha and Senju, becoming the number one clan in the Warring States.
During the war between the Uchiha and Senju, he had been looking for loopholes, hoping to scrape some flesh off both clans.
However, before he could find an opening, news that the leader of his vassal clan, the Gekko, had been killed reached his ears first.
"Clan Head, everyone in the Gekko clan is now filled with righteous indignation. They are demanding that we, the Hyuga, uphold justice for them. They have even united with the Shiranui, Yamashiro, and others to petition us, hoping to declare war on the Sarutobi and Shimura clans." The Jonin subordinate continued.
"Bastards, is declaring war such a casual matter? Besides, the Sarutobi and Shimura clans are so far away from us. Even if we fight, how much benefit can we gain?"
Hyuga Tenso flung his sleeve in anger. Although he wanted the Hyuga to surpass the Uchiha and Senju, that didn't mean he was a brainless warmonger.
Even a fool could see that fighting a war so far away would minimize profits. It wasn't worth it.
"But Clan Head, if we do not respond, I fear it will be difficult to quell the Gekko clan's fury. Our other vassal clans, like the Yamashiro and Akame, will also be affected," the Hyuga Jonin said worriedly.
Hyuga Tenso pressed his temples and rubbed them a few times before saying, "Take some men over there first. Think of any way to stall the Gekko people. Don't let them act recklessly. I will immediately discuss with the elders how to resolve this matter."
"Yes. But Clan Head, the anger of Gekko Fūha... and the Gekko clan is truly beyond imagination. We cannot hold them for long. Please hurry."
"I know. Go quickly."
"Yes!"
"Great Elder, a letter from the Vice-Clan Head. He hopes to deploy some of the ninjas serving as the family's final internal defense line to the northern Shirotani Pass battlefield as reinforcements."
In a quiet room in a corner of the Uchiha main clan grounds, an intelligence ninja knelt on one knee before the Great Elder, Uchiha Xingzhi, reporting.
" Is he so impatient to weaken the power of us old bones?" the Great Elder said in an unkind tone.
He knew the situation on the northern battlefield was not good.
Although Izuna and the Two-Tails were holding the line, preventing the allied forces of Senju Yuma and Uzumaki Hiro'umi from conquering them for the time being, the massive disparity in combat power meant they were in a state where they couldn't lose, but also couldn't win.
Even so, for Izuna to draw troops from his command—the family's last line of defense—to the front lines appeared to the conservative faction, like the Great Elder, as an attempt by Izuna to weaken them.
"Go back and tell the Vice-Clan Head that we still have to guard against the various Hyuga ninja clans in the south. We cannot spare reinforcements. Please ask the Vice-Clan Head to think of another way himself."
The Great Elder produced a very suitable reason with no obvious flaws.
He couldn't give Izuna troops because he had to guard the south.
Hearing this, the intelligence ninja took a letter from his chest and presented it to the Great Elder, saying, "The Vice-Clan Head said that if you refused reinforcements, I was to give this letter to you."
"Hm?"
The Great Elder was startled, but he took it.
-----
Read up to 20 advanced chapters on my P@treon.
[email protected]/fanfictionsimp