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And Hiruzen? He continued to preach the Will of Fire—how every leaf of the village was connected, how love bound them, how sacrifice defined greatness.
But behind the curtains, behind the pipe smoke and the elderly smile, he knew: the Will of Fire burned brighter the more it consumed.
And sometimes, it consumed the ones who could never say no.
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The Hyuga Main Estate was unnaturally quiet. The aftermath of Hiashi Hyuga's funeral still loomed heavily over the ancestral home. Six main family elders sat behind closed doors in the council chamber, their silhouettes sharp against the flickering lantern light. But their voices were hushed, tight with worry—not over grief, but something darker: power.
Elder Hamuro, the most senior, finally broke the silence. "We must address the matter of the cursed seal."
The others looked to him, some nodding, others visibly tense.
Elder Masaki leaned forward. "Without a family head, the control over the seal is broken. We cannot allow that secret to leave this chamber."
Elder Rei's eyes narrowed. "And we cannot grant Hizashi access to the seal's control, even if he is Hiashi's twin. He remains a branch member. That boundary must remain intact."
"But we cannot have the control either," said Elder Genro, nervously fingering his robes. "If the branch members find out that no one can activate or enforce the seal anymore…"
"They will rebel," said Elder Sayo grimly. "The threat of the seal is what holds the Hyuga together. Without it—"
"There is no order," Elder Dai finished. "The branch family must never learn the truth."
Unknown to them, nestled deep within the shadowed walls of the estate, a figure moved in silence. Neji Hyuga, no longer confined to the branch family quarters, had taken residence in the main family estate—publicly as an act of mourning, privately as part of his growing suspicion.
The transition had been subtle. The elders, reeling from Hiashi's death, saw no reason to question Hizashi's request to let Neji stay temporarily in his late brother's rooms. A few courtesies. A few bows. Nothing more.
But Neji had changed. His True Eyes—his inherited gift from a life before—had begun to manifest beyond even his understanding. The True eyes had evolved into something that day, refined through an unexplainable clarity of perception. Now, Neji could not only see chakra, but hear it, feel its intent, its flows.
He had begun experimentation in secret. Through the eyes that saw lies as threads and deception as smoke, he discovered the inner workings of the Caged Bird Seal.
And more recently, he learned something else: the moment Hiashi died, the estate-wide chakra web that held the activation mechanism of the seal… had gone dormant.
He confirmed it again tonight. Now, peering through the walls, he saw the elders panicking.
No one can activate it, he thought. No one can command it.
Neji didn't smile. His mind was moving too fast.
In the quiet of his chamber, Neji sat cross-legged and activated his True Eyes. The seal on his forehead flared slightly—no longer as a brand of subjugation, but now as a data point.
"Activation keys: null," he murmured. "Resonance response: null. External override: disabled."
A diagram formed in his mind's eye. A lattice of Hyuga chakra signatures, etched into the estate's stone, into the blood of the branch family members, and most importantly, into a central command matrix buried in the estate's altar.
But with Hiashi gone, the root signature—the keystone—was gone too.
He blinked. "There's a backdoor."
He had found a method. If he could reconstruct the control command with a replicated keystone signature… the seal could be redirected.
Not broken, Neji thought. Rewritten.
He did not inform Hizashi. Not yet. His father had calmed the branch members with speeches of unity, patience, and tradition. But Neji saw the cracks.
The branch family was scared, yes—but more than that, they were curious. They'd felt the absence. Some whispered of their seals not flaring during discipline drills. Some tested it.
No pain.
No recoil.
Only silence.
Neji began working late at night. He carefully walked the edges of the estate, mapping the resonance nodes with his eyes. With the faintest pulses of chakra, he tested their integrity. No elder noticed. Not even Hizashi, who had his own hands full keeping branch members from asking too many questions.
In time, Neji built what he called a Mirror Key: a fabricated keystone, using fragments of Hiashi's residual chakra from his room, robes, and ceremonial altar. The Mirror Key wasn't strong enough to enforce obedience… but it was strong enough to issue a command.
That night, Neji stood in the central altar chamber. He wore the ceremonial white robes of the main family. Alone.
He placed the Mirror Key upon the altar.
"I am not the head of the clan," he whispered, "and I have no desire to be."
"But if no one can wield the seal… someone must ensure it cannot be abused."
He activated the seal's resonance web.
It flared weakly, sputtered—and then stabilized.
He reached into the lattice. And with a whisper, he rewrote one command:
"No activation allowed until a blood heir of the main family takes over the control seal. However, a pressure of obedience will always be active"
The lattice accepted the condition. He stepped back. The Mirror Key crumbled to dust.
He turned, cloak swirling.
From now on, the seal would remain dormant unless its bearer agreed.
The next morning, Hizashi found Neji in the garden, meditating.
"There's… something different about you lately," Hizashi said, watching him.
"There's something different about the clan," Neji replied.
They sat in silence.
And the cursed bird slept.
For now.
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