Chapter 51: Between Family and Village!

Subconsciously, Ao condensed his Chakra into his right eye.

"Byakugan, activate!"

Afterwards, Ao's vision changed.

The world seemed to turn into black and white, but he could see through objects, expanding his field of view to distant places.

"It's that young man."

"The one next to him is Biwa Juzo."

"Am I using the power of the Byakugan now?"

"The Byakugan is within me."

"I have become despicable..."

A look of shame appeared on Ao's face.

A figure entered the Land of Water, entered the town, looked ahead, then entered the nearby tavern and went straight to the counter.

A member of the Kaguya Clan, upon seeing the newcomer, slightly narrowed their pupils.

"Hizashi, what brings you here?"

Kaguya Kaze quickly led Hyuga Hizashi into the adjacent secret room.

This secret room was soundproof.

After closing the door, Kaguya Kaze couldn't wait to ask, "Kaze, this time, our Hyuga Clan is in big trouble."

Hyuga Hizashi looked at Kaguya Kaze, sighed, and said.

"Perhaps only your Kaguya Clan can help us."

"What trouble?"

Kaguya Kaze's heart skipped a beat.

"Our Hyuga Clan has lost a Byakugan, which fell into the hands of a ninja from your Hidden Mist Village. As you know, the Byakugan of our Hyuga Clan is absolutely not allowed to be lost."

"This concerns the survival of our Hyuga Clan."

Kaguya Kaze frowned.

"Who?"

"Ao."

"Ao?"

Kaguya Kaze paused, saying, "With Ao's strength, he managed to take the Byakugan from your Hyuga Clan?"

Kaguya Kaze knew Ao was a Jonin, but in Kaguya Kaze's impression, Ao wasn't a very strong ninja. Hyuga Hizashi mentioning Ao's name surprised Kaguya Kaze.

Hyuga Hizashi sighed.

"Ao set up traps, arranged ambushes... But ultimately, it was the carelessness of that member of our Hyuga Clan's main family that led to this mistake."

"We don't expect to retrieve the Byakugan, just make it unusable."

"As long as your Kaguya Clan helps our Hyuga Clan in this matter, our Hyuga Clan will owe a tremendous favor to the Kaguya Clan. We will definitely repay the Kaguya Clan accordingly."

"Otherwise, the future days of our Hyuga Clan will be very difficult."

"Please, consider the hundred years of friendship between our Hyuga Clan and your Kaguya Clan, and help us."

"The Byakugan is truly crucial to our Hyuga Clan!"

"If it spreads outside, the significance of my Hyuga Clan's existence will vanish."

Kaguya Kaze remained silent for a long time.

"Hizashi, this matter is significant. I alone can't decide. I must report it to the Clan Head and let him decide."

"Please!"

After Kaguya Kaze brought this news back to the Hidden Mist Village, there were several different opinions within the Kaguya Clan.

One is refusing to help the Hyuga Clan.

"We, the Kaguya Clan of the Hidden Mist Village, indeed have a good relationship with the Hyuga Clan. We usually help each other out with matters, no problem. However, this concerns the interests of the Hidden Mist Village."

"By helping the Hyuga Clan, we would essentially betray the Hidden Mist Village."

"How can the Kaguya Clan maintain itself in the Hidden Mist Village after that?"

Another one seemed hesitant.

"The loss of the Byakugan is indeed a big deal for the Hyuga Clan. We have a long-standing friendship with the Hyuga Clan, spanning over a hundred years, even longer than the history of the ninja village."

"Moreover, seizing the Byakugan is somewhat excessive."

"Simply put, the relationship between our ninja clans and the ninja village is just one of cooperation."

"The clan is our foundation."

"The ninja clans existed before the ninja villages."

A Kaguya ninja seemed dissatisfied with the current state of the Hidden Mist Village.

"The Hidden Mist Village has only been established for a few decades. What was the purpose of our ninja clans joining the village?"

"Wasn't it to seek a more stable environment?"

"But now?"

"Warfare continues to erupt."

"If we win, it's not a problem, but the Hidden Mist Village has lost far more times than it has won."

"Among the major ninja villages, the Hidden Mist Village has always been near the bottom."

"This has caused our Kaguya Clan to lose many resources and benefits."

"If we had joined another ninja village instead of the Hidden Mist Village at the beginning, the situation might have been much better."

"If the Hidden Mist Village were to perish in the wars, would our entire Kaguya Clan have to follow suit and die?"

"The ninja village is just temporary."

"The ninja clans are eternal."

Unconsciously, the main topic of discussion within the Kaguya Clan has changed.

From whether to help the Hyuga Clan solve the issue of the Byakugan, it has evolved into a debate over which is more important: the ninja clans or the ninja village, with each side holding their ground.

"We are aligned with the interests of the village. Stability in the village ensures our own stability. The village's interests should take precedence."

A middle-aged individual stated.

The person opposite him snorted.

"You are loyal to the village, but is the village good to you?"

"The Third Mizukage only ascended to the position of Mizukage with the support of our Kaguya Clan. But what about now?"

"Can't you see his attitude towards us?"

"And what about the other Elders in the village? Can't you see their attitude towards us?"

"They say our Kaguya Clan is inherently evil, with a volatile temperament."

"Our Kaguya Clan has been isolated by the village."

The middle-aged person retorted.

"That's because indeed some of our clan members have gone too far, abusing the civilians under the guise of being ninja clans. This requires internal restraint within the clan."

"Hmph, instead of condemning those who target us, you're blaming our own clan members. Since you think the clan is so bad and the village is so good, then you should leave the clan!"

The middle-aged person's fingers trembled with anger.

"I can't communicate with you at all!"

A figure, after listening to the argument of the crowd for a while, shook their head and walked away.

Someone climbed to a high place and sat down against a rock.

He looked up at the sky.

Then he turned to look at the clan's headquarters.

Afterward, his gaze fell in the direction of the Mizukage's Building.

Kaguya Masui sighed.

"On one side, there's the clan."

"On one side, there's the village."

"How should I choose?"

"The conflict between the clan and the village has become increasingly intense."

"Isn't there any way to resolve this?"

"Why have things become like this?"

---

You can read up to 50 Advanced chapters and support me at patreon.com/Lookar