Chapter 31

Haruki watched the distracted Hiashi Hyuga. When Hiashi left the hall, he stumbled, almost falling flat, causing Haruki some concern.

"He won't be ruined, right?" Haruki thought.

By previous life's standards, Hiashi Hyuga was just a university student. The basic education in this world was poor, and Hiashi's worldview was not fully formed, making it fragile. Haruki thought of Itachi Uchiha, who was overly smart but lacked sufficient knowledge, leading him down a tragic path.

Hiashi receiving such explosive information from Haruki all at once and becoming flustered was understandable.

His current state could be described as having his worldview shattered. Whether Hiashi would emerge stronger or fall further depended on his choices.

Haruki pondered for a moment and then chuckled. "Whatever," he thought. "Even if Hiashi doesn't follow my plan, the outcome is already set; it would just be more troublesome."

Returning to his senses, Haruki picked up a pen and paused. "I'm really foolish," he muttered, shaking his head and summoning a wood clone with a quick hand sign. "The rest is up to you."

"Understood," the clone replied.

Haruki waved his hand, feeling at ease. "It feels good to slack off," he mused.

He recalled how he had foolishly tried to compile teaching materials himself, forgetting about the cheat-like Shadow Clone Jutsu.

Haruki then headed to the New Konoha bookstore. With the Hyuga issue settled, his next plan involved the bookstore and, by extension, publicity. Additionally, he planned to make some money.

"Omiki, I need you to find these three people," Haruki said, pointing to the authors of three books he had picked up. "Tell them we want them to write stories to our specifications. They will be well compensated."

Omiki nodded. "Understood, sir." He had familiarized himself with these authors since he managed the bookstore.

Unlike rare ninja authors like Jiraiya, most were civilians. In a world where ninjas had an innate superior status, they were naturally more attractive.

"Have you contacted Jiraiya?"

"Yes, we have received a reply. Jiraiya has agreed to your plan," Omiki confirmed.

Haruki smiled slightly. Despite their differences due to Tsunade, Jiraiya rarely made things difficult for him. Overall, Jiraiya was a good person.

"What's the title of his novel?"

"Determined Ninja Tales."

Haruki's mouth twitched. "What a terrible title! It's not appealing at all!" However, it sounded familiar. "Is the protagonist named Naruto?"

"Yes."

Haruki shook his head. It was indeed the rumored book Minato Namikaze liked the most. "Add a suitable subtitle for the promotion."

After pondering briefly, Haruki decided not to change the title to maintain his relationship with Jiraiya. "Destined Child: The Genius Ninja Saving the Ninja World sounds good."

He had initially thought of "Child of Prophecy," but that might raise suspicions as not many knew about the prophecy yet. However, the current title was already exaggerated enough.

Haruki was curious about how Konoha, unaccustomed to shocking news, would react.

"When should we start the promotion?"

"Not in a hurry. Let's wait until tomorrow. We'll also need to help the Hyuga family with the publicity."

Haruki's face lit up with a bright smile. "If Hiashi doesn't disappoint me, things will be much easier."

---

The next day, there was no news from the Hyuga family. But at the research institute, Haruki saw Hiashi and his father, Kazushi.

"Haruki, quite the skillful methods," Kazushi greeted with a slight bow.

"What methods?" Haruki smiled slightly. "If you mean the Caged Bird, it was just a coincidence."

"Coincidence?" Kazushi doubted it. The Caged Bird technique, akin to a forbidden jutsu, couldn't be so easily explained away.

He was convinced Haruki or Orochimaru had targeted the Hyuga family long ago. Unlike Hiashi, Kazushi wasn't easily fooled. Despite knowing Haruki was involved, what could he do now? Scold him? Fight?

This wasn't a hot-blooded anime. The Hyuga family's power wasn't just because of their Byakugan.

"Haruki, Hiashi followed your advice. The elder died of a heart condition."

Kazushi sighed inwardly, giving up resistance. No matter Haruki's intentions, as long as the Hyuga family survived, it was acceptable.

"No, he committed suicide," Haruki corrected.

Kazushi was puzzled. "Why say that?"

"The elder, driven by selfish desires, caused the death of forty branch family members. After days of contemplation, he committed seppuku to atone for his sins," Haruki explained. "Announcing this to Konoha would shift the blame solely onto the elder, painting the rest of the main family as victims."

Kazushi was shaken. The current public opinion was overwhelmingly against the main family. But Haruki's statement shifted all blame onto the elder, suggesting his actions were solitary.

Taking a deep breath, Kazushi remarked, "You can shift the narrative so easily, truly turning the tables."

"It's merely repurposing," Haruki laughed. "The true hero here is Hiashi, not me."

Kazushi hesitated. The sunny, warm smile in front of him felt chilling. He knew Hiashi well enough to know he couldn't have orchestrated the elder's assassination on his own. Haruki must have influenced him.

After a moment of silence, Kazushi asked, "Must the main family abandon the Caged Bird?"

Haruki was silent. Even now, they still hoped to keep it? "It's the only way to quell the branch family's anger."

"But the main family will suffer greatly."

"The main family?" Haruki's smile turned mocking. "What is the main family? Isn't Hizashi your son too? It's absurd! If you can't change your mindset, you might as well let Hiashi take over."

Kazushi's face turned pale. As the Hyuga clan leader, his status was higher than Haruki's. Haruki, at most, was on par with the Sannin, not a student of Hiruzen Sarutobi, and only Tsunade's boyfriend.

Normally, he would treat Haruki as a junior, not wanting to antagonize him due to his medical skills. But now, Haruki's words were blatantly disrespectful.

His face changed several times. Eventually, he conceded, "Please, teach us, Haruki."