"Minato, if the person sitting across from me were the previous Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, I would certainly engage in lengthy discussions about rhetoric aimed at the betterment of Konoha.
Without a doubt, since I took action, I would find a way to justify my actions and back them up with ample evidence.
But the person sitting here is you, Minato. So, I won't deny that my targeting of the Hyuga clan stems largely from personal grudges, and that plays a major role in my actions.
Our experiences are different, Minato, so I don't expect you to understand. Nor do I expect you to remain passive.
You are the Hokage of the village. There are things you must do, just as I have my own reasons for what I do."
As Kawaki Aoba spoke, he stood up, pulled out a stack of documents from his chest, and slammed them on Minato Namikaze's desk.
"This is what I have prepared for dealing with the Hyuga clan, especially the main family and the Third Elder. I'm determined to wipe them all out. I've said all I need to, Minato. You can try to stop me if you wish.
Farewell."
With that, Kawaki Aoba left without another word.
From start to finish, he had not allowed Minato to say a single thing.
It wasn't until he left the Hokage Building that Kawaki Aoba let out a sigh. "Minato is still too naive. He was so easily deceived."
Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze sat in silence, staring at the stack of documents Kawaki Aoba had left behind.
Something felt off about the situation, but Minato didn't dwell on it too much. He began reviewing the documents, wanting to understand why Kawaki Aoba would take such bold steps against the Hyuga clan.
The first few pages detailed various cases of the Hyuga main family exploiting the branch family members. Each example was clearly outlined, with witnesses' signatures included.
Minato had known of such things in the past, but seeing the cases laid out in front of him gave him a sense of frustration and discomfort.
But the Hyuga clan's internal matters were just that—family issues. Even as Hokage, he had no right to interfere, and neither had Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Minato felt a sense of helplessness.
He continued flipping through the pages. Two-thirds of the documents were more of the same: cases of exploitation and abuse. But the remaining third was what Kawaki Aoba wanted Minato to see.
The first piece of evidence was a report about Hyuga Yota. During the Third Shinobi World War, Yota had joined the Underworld organization.
The second piece of information was even more disturbing—a suggestion that the Hyuga clan was currently preparing to align with the Underworld. Minato noted that while Kawaki Aoba's arguments seemed plausible, they were based on vague intelligence and speculation, with little concrete proof.
"Alas, Aoba... Have you truly reached the point where you'll use any means necessary to bring down the Hyuga clan?"
Minato continued to examine the last piece of evidence. It concerned the event that had taken place just the previous night—800 Hyuga ninjas above the rank of Chunin had breached a barrier, only to be captured.
After interrogation, it was revealed that the ninjas had been sent by the Hyuga main family to carry out a vital mission outside the village. The mission was apparently tied to the survival of the entire Hyuga clan, with the promise of a place in the main family for those who succeeded. However, none of the 800 individuals knew the specifics of the mission.
Minato's face twisted in frustration.
He had rushed back without fully understanding the situation, acting only on the knowledge that Kawaki Aoba had made a deadly move against the Hyuga clan. Fearing the worst, he had hastily sent an Anbu squad to summon Kawaki Aoba, even before he had fully grasped the details of the situation.
Looking back, Minato realized his haste had been a mistake.
He quickly ordered his remaining Anbu to launch an investigation into the Hyuga clan. If Kawaki Aoba's claims were true, it would mean a severe crisis for the Hyuga clan.
Minato was deeply troubled. As Hokage, he should be able to resolve the issue, but given the state of the Hyuga clan, it seemed they had reached a point of no return.
Being Hokage was proving to be a far more difficult task than he had ever imagined. Barely into his tenure, he was already dealing with crises that had not occurred in decades.
As he looked over the documents, Minato couldn't help but think of Kawaki Aoba once more. If Aoba is willing, with his abilities...
He quickly closed his eyes, suppressing the thought.
No. He couldn't go down that path. It would be too unfair to Aoba. Besides, Kawaki Aoba wasn't his subordinate.
Everything Aoba had, even though it could be said that Minato had granted it to him, had truly been earned by Aoba's own strength on the battlefield.
Remembering Aoba's words, Minato had already come to a conclusion.
"It seems I'll have to solve this myself. That's the responsibility of the Hokage," Minato thought, letting out a bitter smile as he began to consider how to approach the situation.
Since he couldn't rely on Kawaki Aoba, Minato knew he had to look within the Hyuga clan itself for a breakthrough.
The Hyuga clan was large, and it couldn't be an impenetrable fortress. If he really put his mind to it, he would surely uncover many secrets.
Meanwhile, Kawaki Aoba was thinking along similar lines. Sitting across from his father-in-law, Yuhi Shinku, he muttered, "If Minato wants to uncover the truth, he must start with the Hyuga clan. But his foundation is too shallow, and he's too young.
If I can delay him for another ten days or so, my plans will be set in motion."
However, Yuhi Shinku's face remained expressionless as he fixed Kawaki Aoba with a pair of dead fish eyes.
"So, I still have to handle this myself?"
"Aoba, why don't you calculate how many things I have helped you with these days?"
The corners of Kawaki Aoba's mouth twitched. He was a little embarrassed. Recently, the tasks he'd assigned to his future father-in-law had indeed been quite demanding.
But there was no helping it. Even he himself was splitting into four people to work overtime, forging puppets and a large number of magical tools.
His business had spread far too wide. If he didn't want certain plans to collapse, then he had no choice but to work late into the night.
However, from the look on his father-in-law's face, it seemed like there were some minor grievances.
Kawaki Aoba thought for a moment. It seemed he could only use his ultimate move.
"The only person I can trust right now is you. I'm counting on you, Father-in-law."
At the mention of "Father-in-law," Yuhi Kurenai instantly fell silent. After a long and complicated look at Kawaki Aoba, she silently left with her mission.
Not long after, a ninja approached Kawaki Aoba with a report:
"Lord Aoba, Captain Aokabi has sent news. The Hyuga clan's elite team has been split into seven squads and scattered across the Land of Fire.
Captain Aokabi is worried about alerting the enemy, so he hasn't followed too closely. Instead, he split his own team into seven squads, using the ninja tools you provided to pinpoint their locations, keeping a safe distance."
Kawaki Aoba nodded. "Very good. Send a message to Aokabi that he's doing well. Also, tell him to keep their whereabouts as concealed as possible within the Land of Fire.
Although the Hyuga clan's ninjas aren't likely to be foolish enough to attack the major nobles, there's always a chance that some misguided individuals might do something reckless in a bid to compete for control of the main family.
If you encounter such an incident, don't handle the aftermath for them. Just use the tools I gave you to preserve the evidence."
Having said that, Kawaki Aoba waved the ninja away and summoned other subordinates to keep a close watch on the Hyuga clan. They were to act as though they might rush in to capture individuals at any moment.
Even if they encountered Anbu ninjas, there was no need to interact with them. They were to inform the Anbu that they were acting under the orders of Fire Shadow Assistant Kawaki Aoba, and any troublesome matters should be directed to Fire Shadow for clarification.
This was all part of the plan. What Kawaki Aoba wanted was for things to appear as if they were about to escalate, but the Hyuga clan shouldn't suspect anything.
It was just that, personally handling these trivial matters bothered him. He felt much more at ease when Aokabi was by his side.
But, in the end, there still weren't enough capable people.
A name suddenly crossed Kawaki Aoba's mind—his younger brother, Kabuto, whom he had taken in from the battlefield. With Kabuto's abilities, he would be a far more competent assistant than Aokabi. The only issue was Kabuto's age…
It didn't matter. This was the ninja world, a harsh place where even children under the age of 10 were sent to the battlefield. At worst, he could give Kabuto the title of "genius," have him graduate from the Ninja Academy after a year, and bring him on as an assistant.
Actually, a year was too long. Half a year would be better. He could bring him in as an intern for the remaining six months.
Kawaki Aoba thought this over, satisfied that it was a reasonable plan.
Meanwhile, Kabuto, studying with his new teacher, Yakushi Nonou, suddenly felt a cold chill for no reason.
On the other side, Aokabi had already received Kawaki Aoba's message.
He looked at the magical positioning tool in his hand and frowned deeply.
"Something's off. The direction these people are heading is completely wrong."
Aokabi compared it with the map and confirmed it. If the enemy intended to leave the Land of Fire, their current path was illogical. However, in that direction, there was a large noble family.
It seemed their target was actually a noble from the Land of Fire.
"It seems this so-called clan that values tradition is just another facade." A cold laugh escaped Aokabi's lips, and he immediately activated the advanced high-tech equipment Kawaki Aoba had provided before their mission.
A set of high-altitude drone aerial photography equipment.
As the drone took off, Aokabi expertly maneuvered it, keeping it at an altitude of over a thousand meters to avoid detection by the Hyuga clan's Byakugan. At this height, the Byakugan could detect the drone, but the Byakugan's users wouldn't be able to focus on such a small object so high in the air.
Even if the Hyuga clan noticed, it didn't matter. The Byakugan couldn't threaten the drone at that altitude, and they would never suspect that aerial surveillance was even possible.
This was a crushing victory in terms of both technology and stealth.
After tracking for some time, one of Aokabi's subordinates spoke up: "Captain Aokabi, it's now clear that their target is indeed that noble family. What should we do next?"
"Next… we don't need to do anything." Aokabi's voice was calm, yet his words carried a deep, cryptic weight.
What no one noticed was the flicker of uncertainty in Aokabi's eyes.
Aokabi had been by Kawaki Aoba's side for the longest time and knew him better than anyone else. However, sometimes, Kawaki Aoba's behavior left him baffled. For a competent subordinate, not understanding their superior's motives was a cardinal sin. After all, such a subordinate could be replaced at any time.
And Aokabi was very satisfied with his current position, so he had no desire to be replaced.
Therefore, even if he didn't understand Kawaki Aoba's actions in certain instances, he would do his best to analyze and interpret them.
For example, right now, Aokabi knew that their mission was to track the Hyuga clan's ninjas.
To that end, Lord Aoba had even provided high-tech equipment for surveillance.
However, what Aokabi couldn't understand was why Kawaki Aoba seemed so certain that the Hyuga clan would hand over such incriminating evidence so easily.
Normally, the Hyuga clan would never make such a foolish move.
Attacking nobles was an act that would result in utter ruin if exposed. While more lice may not itch and more debts may not worry, there was a stark difference between the decline of a family and the complete annihilation of a clan.
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