Chapter 531: The Source of Disaster

Chapter 531: Chapter 531: The Source of Disaster

"Uchiha Sasuke, huh? We don’t even know whether he’s alive or dead right now. I’m afraid there’s nothing Kamigami can do."

Without much hesitation, Kagami shook his head and rejected Fugaku’s request.

Naturally, if an opportunity presented itself, Kagami would rescue Neji and Sasuke. But recklessly storming Akatsuki’s base to save them? That was out of the question.

Fugaku’s expression changed. He hadn’t expected Kagami to refuse so decisively, so he said, "I possess a piece of intelligence that your organization would be interested in. If Kamigami is willing to help me rescue my son, I can share this information with you."

"What information?"

"The location of Akatsuki’s base!"

Fugaku stared at Kagami with a calm expression, confident that Kamigami would be interested in this intelligence.

Kagami gave Fugaku a meaningful glance and thought, "Looks like I’ve underestimated him a little."

He had already guessed most of what Fugaku was planning.

Fugaku clearly intended to use the location of Akatsuki’s base as bait to lure Kamigami into launching a surprise attack against Akatsuki.

This way, he could seize the opportunity to rescue Sasuke while also using the situation to force Shinichi to betray Akatsuki and return to the clan, further strengthening the Uchiha.

It was a plan that killed two birds with one stone.

No, three birds with one stone, since he would also be using Kamigami to deal a blow to Akatsuki.

However, Fugaku probably never would have imagined that Shisui, who was standing right beside him, and his own son Itachi were both members of Kamigami.

As for the intelligence he believed to be top secret, Kagami had already learned of it from Shisui and Itachi several days ago.

Seeing that Kagami didn’t immediately respond, Fugaku continued, "The intelligence I possess is absolutely reliable. The Uchiha clan can also assist Kamigami in this operation. With our combined strength, wiping out Akatsuki would be a simple matter."

"You’ve overestimated yourself, and you’ve overestimated me too..."

After grumbling inwardly, Kagami shook his head.

Seeing Kagami refuse once again, Fugaku was rather puzzled. "Why?"

"As for the reason, I’ve already explained it to your Hokage. If you want to know, go ask him yourself!"

After passing Fugaku and Shisui, Kagami hadn’t even reached the end of the street when another familiar face stopped him.

It was none other than Hyuga Hizashi.

...

On a watchtower not far away.

Watching members of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans approach Kamigami’s Homura privately, one after another, Asuma complained with some displeasure, "Hmph! These great clans are always pulling little schemes behind the scenes!"

The growing number of rumors circulating throughout the village that were unfavorable to the Third Hokage had left Asuma uneasy.

Although he had no concrete evidence, he could keenly sense an undercurrent stirring within the village.

Beside him, Kakashi, who was still wrapped in bandages, said, "The Hyuga main family’s eldest daughter and the Uchiha clan leader’s son were both abducted during the chaos. They’re probably approaching Kamigami simply because they want to rescue them."

Asuma curled his lips. "Let’s hope that’s all it is!"

Just then, something caught Asuma’s attention out of the corner of his eye.

He noticed that Kurenai, who was also standing on the watchtower, was gazing absentmindedly at Kamigami’s Homura, who was speaking with Hizashi not far away.

Recalling the recent rumors concerning Kurenai and Kamigami’s Furin, his expression darkened.

He said to Kurenai, "Kurenai, although Kamigami helped us this time, they’re fundamentally no different from Akatsuki. Don’t let them deceive you!"

Kurenai frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"I... I was just..."

The moment Kurenai glared at him, Asuma immediately became flustered.

Kakashi sighed helplessly and had no choice but to come to Asuma’s rescue. "What Asuma said isn’t entirely unreasonable. To this day, Kamigami has continued to conceal its true intentions. But how could a mysterious organization possessing such power possibly have no ulterior motives?"

Kurenai lowered her head.

Asuma hurriedly added, "I know Kamigami’s Furin saved your life, but he’s still a member of Kamigami, not one of us from Konoha. We should keep our distance from them."

Kurenai didn’t argue. Instead, she turned her gaze once again toward Kamigami’s Homura in the distance.

As a Konoha shinobi, Kurenai was no less vigilant than anyone else. There was no way she would recklessly devote herself to repaying someone simply because they had saved her life.

The reason she had fallen for Furin at first sight wasn’t merely because he had saved her. More importantly, she had seen Furin’s face and knew that he was a member of the Hyuga clan and had once been a member of Konoha himself.

In particular, the way Furin had fought with everything he had to protect the village that night only strengthened her conviction that he, too, loved Konoha.

There had to be some reason he couldn’t speak of that had compelled him to join Kamigami.

...

On the street.

Watching Hizashi slowly walk away, Kagami let out a soft sigh.

This time, Hizashi had approached Kagami on behalf of the Hyuga clan, and his purpose was perfectly clear.

He hoped Kamigami would help the Hyuga clan rescue Hinata, who had been abducted by Orochimaru.

Rescuing someone from Orochimaru’s hands was obviously much easier than rescuing someone from Akatsuki.

Moreover, based on Kagami’s understanding of Orochimaru, he deduced that there was a ninety percent chance Orochimaru wouldn’t do anything to Hinata, since Orochimaru had long since lost interest in the Byakugan.

In fact, both within Konoha and throughout the shinobi world, the emergence of more and more Mangekyo Sharingan, along with the appearance of the Rinnegan, known as the ’Eyes of the Sage,’ had caused the Byakugan’s reputation to steadily decline.

The Hyuga clan, which had once barely managed to stand on equal footing with the Uchiha, had now fallen further and further behind the Uchiha clan in terms of status within the village.

But for Hinata’s current predicament, this was clearly not a bad thing. The less highly people regarded the Byakugan, the safer she would be.

The reason Kagami had sighed was that he could clearly sense Hizashi wanted to request help rescuing his son, Neji. Yet, for some reason, Hizashi ultimately couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Kagami could distinctly feel the anguish in Hizashi’s heart.

However, for members of the Hyuga branch family, protecting the main family was their foremost duty.

Between the main family’s eldest daughter and his own son, Hizashi, as a member of the branch family, had no choice.

No matter how worried he was about his son Neji, he had to ensure the safety of the main family’s eldest daughter first.

As a fellow member of the Hyuga branch family, Kagami deeply understood how Hizashi felt.

But he also understood that now was not the best time to make a move against the clan.

Furthermore, for the vast majority of Hyuga clan members, the Caged Bird Seal served a far greater purpose as protection than as a restraint.

Unlike the Uchiha clan, every member of the Hyuga clan could awaken the Byakugan. However, not everyone possessed the aptitude to become a qualified shinobi.

Under such circumstances, without the Caged Bird Seal, the Byakugan in the eye sockets of many mediocre clan members would become the very source of disaster that brought calamity upon them...