Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand paused slightly. With his strong will, even if flames were burning him, his brow wouldn't crease. However, at this moment, in the Hokage's office, a sentence from the twelve-year-old Hyuga Branch House member shocked him to the core.
"If it could satisfy everyone in the village, that would be great."
No demand for greater "power".
No desire for higher "status".
Not even the Hyuga clan was mentioned.
Satisfy everyone in the village...
Hyuga Yuto, in your subconscious, is the village's importance above all else?
The Hyuga clan's school certainly wouldn't instill such thoughts. Did you say this deliberately to me... or was it from the bottom of your heart, even you yourself didn't realize it?
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the twelve-year-old Hyuga Branch House boy in front of him for the first time with seriousness.
Very handsome, very young, with thick calluses on his hands. He must have put in a lot of hard work. The Hyuga prodigy... That's right, after becoming a Genin, you have been away from the Hyuga clan grounds for many years, mostly on missions. You were only six years old when you became a Genin, so the time you received education at the clan school was naturally not that long...
He suddenly thought of the genius who fought alongside him and died for Konoha in the end, Uchiha Kagami.
Even a closed and proud powerful clan would have someone who inherited the Will of Fire...
Hiruzen Sarutobi thought a lot, and finally, he suppressed all the tumbling thoughts and took a deep look at Hyuga Yuto:
"Yuto, step back and get some rest."
"Yes, Lord Hokage." Hyuga Yuto bowed and retreated.
He didn't make any unnecessary movements but left the Hokage building with a relaxed expression.
He had done everything he could, and Hyuga Yuto couldn't predict how things would develop next.
A talented Hyuga Branch House boy with the "Will of Fire"... How would Hiruzen Sarutobi handle it?
If it were sixteen years later, when the plot officially began, the old and decaying Sandaime would most likely only passively observe, at most providing some convenience in the dark.
But now, the one in charge of Konoha was Sandaime in his early fifties. This period of the man was ambitious, daring to make bold actions and drastic decisions, with no regard for consequences.
Hiruzen Sarutobi... Don't disappoint me.
Hyuga Yuto thought this way, and according to his usual personality, he didn't wander around too much and went straight back to the Hyuga clan grounds.
This time, he could enter through the main gate.
The Hyuga clan grounds occupied a large area. The central area was where the Main House resided, and the rest was the residence of the numerous Branch House members. Just by looking at the location and height difference between the two areas, one could understand how deeply rooted the concept of "the Main House is the master of the Hyuga, and the Branch House must protect and serve the Main House" was.
The thousand-year-old rules, the concept of superiority and inferiority, flowed through the bodies of every Hyuga clan member like blood.
The Main House felt that these rules were the natural order.
The Branch House also believed so.
Over the long years, any seeds of rebellion had been completely destroyed.
Hyuga Yuto's home was located in the southwest of the clan grounds, only a little over four hundred meters away from the tall walls, belonging to the marginal area.
However, it was gratifying that his home was spacious. Although there weren't many valuables, his parents loved planting flowers and plants before they died, and they took good care of the yard. When he entered, it felt like visiting a flower and plant garden in his previous life.
He walked through the yard and into the house, starting to tidy up the room and clean.
Hyuga Yuto had been away from home for eighteen days this time, and a layer of dust had accumulated on the tatami.
Cleaning was a chore, but Hyuga Yuto enjoyed it. He was a ninja, and by concentrating chakra on the soles of his feet, he could walk on walls, so he spared no corner, cleaning up cobwebs, dust, and small insects.
After cleaning all the rooms spotless, the sun had already begun to set.
Hyuga Yuto lay on his back on the tatami that smelled of grass, took off his forehead protector, and stroked his smooth forehead. He knew that the ugly Caged Bird Curse Seal was lying there. Although it was painless, Hyuga Yuto always felt that there was a spider spitting silk on his forehead.
The young man suddenly felt disgusted by the scene. He shivered, got up, and went to the kitchen to cook.
Even for a ninja, it was difficult for a twelve-year-old boy to cook delicious food. Being good at wielding a kunai and being able to concentrate chakra in his palm within a tenth of a second didn't mean he understood the heat control and timing of adding seasonings when cooking. Often, a strange-looking cooking utensil would make him flustered.
However, fortunately, Hyuga Yuto only needed to cook a small amount of food.
Because he was alone.
After much effort, a grilled fish, a plate of vegetables, and a bowl of rice were finally done.
The fish was a little burnt, the vegetables were salty enough to make one's throat sore, and the rice was half raw.
Even so, Hyuga Yuto ate happily.
No one in Konoha knew that Hyuga Yuto was actually quite a cheerful person when he was alone.
Born in the Hyuga Branch House, destined to become a slave from birth, if he was still sad when he was alone, Hyuga Yuto would probably not have lived to this day and would have died of depression long ago.
As he ate, Hyuga Yuto suddenly felt a little lonely.
So he quickly got up, ran to a room upstairs, found a box, and took out two kunai inside.
The two kunai still had dried blood on them.
These were some of the few personal belongings of Hyuga Yuto's parents.
Nine years ago, when Hyuga Yuto was three years old.
That year, as a transmigrator, Hyuga Yuto was a complete happy freeloader, born in the Hyuga Branch House, but full of hope for the future.
—He knew the future development of this world, there was the "Child of Prophecy" Naruto Uzumaki, everything would be fine, happy days were all ahead!
Until that day, his father and mother, who were "guards", were sent to the clan grounds covered in blood.
An important figure from the Main House was attacked. As guards, his father and mother fought to the death and protected the life of the Main House member at the cost of severe injuries and near-death.
Whether it was to repay the kindness of raising him or out of fear of the huge change, Hyuga Yuto desperately stayed by the side of his dying parents. No matter whether his parents lived or died, he had to witness it with his own eyes.
However, in the end, Hyuga Yuto did not see the moment his parents died.
Because he was taken away, by brute force, by whips, and by dogma.
The day the Branch House couple died for the Main House was the day their son was branded with the Caged Bird.
The reward for the dead heroes was to brand their descendants as slaves.
The date for applying the curse seal had been set long ago, and it could not be changed no matter what happened. This was the rule, the thousand-year-old rule that the Hyuga clan was so proud of.
When the three-year-old Hyuga Yuto covered his forehead and stumbled towards his parents, all he touched were two cold corpses.
He looked at his lifeless parents and found their mouths open, as if they were saying something.
After thinking for a long time, carefully comparing the lip movements and asking the people who were present at the time, Hyuga Yuto finally understood his parents' common last words —
"Yuto, I'm sorry."
Sorry... Sorry for what?
At this moment.
In the lonely, cold home.
Hyuga Yuto stroked the two blood-stained and rusty kunai and whispered:
"There's nothing to apologize for."
"You didn't do anything wrong... Father, Mother."