Hizashi and Hiashi were both speechless and didn't know what had just happened. It had been a roller coaster ride for Hizashi. He had simply followed his brother to apprehend the culprits, as Hiashi didn't want whatever occurred to be officially recorded by Konoha.
In the end, both of them were essentially 'captured', and they saw with their own eyes that their fates had changed. Hizashi was so shocked that he had to look at the small mirror on the side of the room to confirm what he was feeling.
The blind spot that he had on the back of his head no longer existed. Additionally, he could instinctively tell that the curse mark was gone. Hiashi just murmured unintelligibly, as he too couldn't believe what had just happened.
John had actually been studying seals and curses for the past few months, along with chaos magic. With the help of Kisuke, who was highly skilled in seals, John and Kisuke had started to understand them from two different perspectives. The curse seal on Hizashi was just another one, and John, with his proficiency in chaos magic, was able to remove it.
"I... I... I don't know what to say," Hizashi said.
"You don't have to say anything. Just go back with this gigai. Tell them you had already decided, and this gigai will be given as compensation to Kumogakure. Meanwhile, your brother will stay here for the time being. If you really want to free your brother, abolish the curse mark problem, untie the factions, and then I will release your brother," Aoto said.
Hizashi trembled a bit when Aoto mentioned abolishing the curse mark as the chief of the Hyuga clan. He hadn't actually considered it before, since the curse mark seemed unremovable. But now he had the power. Not the complete power at the moment, but at least this was a major step forward.
Imitating Hiashi was very easy, since they had practically been brought up together and he had been his shadow his entire life. The more Hizashi thought, the more he realized that Aoto's words made complete sense. He could truly change the fate of the Hyuga clan.
"You follow him from now on and end yourself when he asks you to. Send Hinata over. She needs to know that her father is being held here," Aoto said.
"Huh?" Hizashi was confused and looked at Aoto.
"His daughter deserves to know the truth, and let her come to this place if she wants to. As for Neji, it's up to you whether you want to tell him the truth. He would be a fine ninja even if he thinks he lost his father," Aoto said.
Hizashi was so engrossed in thoughts about the clan that he had almost forgotten about his son. His son would be devastated if he found out that his 'father' had passed away. He would have to reconsider after he got back.
"So, can I go?" Hizashi sheepishly asked. He didn't want to move an inch without permission, for fear of angering them.
"Yes. You follow him," Aoto said and commanded the gigai.
"Can I come and meet my brother?" Hizashi asked.
"Of course you can. I just want to bring your high-and-mighty brother down from the heavens," Aoto said. Hiashi, listening to Aoto, flinched but didn't know what to say. The choking had finally stopped.
Hizashi took one glance at his brother, steeled his heart, and walked out after bowing down to him, asking for forgiveness for the impending betrayal. The gigai followed him out, and Hizashi took long strides, vanishing from the street as fast as he could, fearing that Aoto might change his mind.
Aoto released the magical ropes that had held him immobile. Unlike the last time, Hiashi didn't lunge or start berating Aoto. Instead, he had tears in his eyes. Maybe the tears were of anger, or maybe it was humiliation, but Aoto didn't care.
"What do you want from me?" Hiashi asked, speaking through the tears.
"Do you have anything to offer the world other than those eyes?" Aoto asked.
"You want my eyes?"
"Don't overestimate yourself. Your eyes mean nothing to us. I'm just saying that's all you have to give. You aren't a good chief, not a good father. You're just a shell of a man trying to cling to ancient traditions for no reason, as if you'll lose your identity otherwise."
"Bad father..." Hiashi was a bit confused and didn't understand how he was a bad father.
"How narcissistic can you be? You can't even see that your own daughter is suffering just because she isn't as cruel as the others," Aoto asked. Hiashi was stupefied by what he was hearing. He had never considered this from his daughter's perspective.
He was disappointed with how his daughter was turning out, as he wanted her to lead the clan in the future. He was trying hard to make her strong so she could face the world and lead the Hyuga clan.
"She deserves to know how cruel the world is," Hiashi said.
"She does need to know, but she's just a 5-year-old kid who needs her father's love. Instead, all you give her is a hard time and make her feel less of herself. You all have created a world where even the children aren't spared. Your politics only bring more pain to the people around for no reason. Sometimes I feel that what the Ōtsutsuki Clan does is probably what you all deserve," Aoto said.
"Ōtsutsuki Clan?" Hiashi had a question mark over his head, as he had never heard the name of such a clan in his life.
"Nothing. Just vanish from my sight," Aoto said and sent him to the library. Unlike others, when he was sent to the library it was in a closed space. Though he got to see everything around but he couldn't touch them. He could only see the huge library in its grandiosity and have more questions than answers.
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