Chapter 8
A joyful celebration ended on a sour note with the arrival of that young man. Left speechless by Zixu, the boy rolled his eyes and quickly ran off in a panic.
"Thank you," Hyuga Chinano, now calmer, exhaled softly, expressing her gratitude to Zixu. However, her expression soon returned to its usual coldness.
Aburame Hatsuizumi and Zixu exchanged glances but remained silent. Judging from the boy's words, this was clearly an internal issue within the Hyuga clan, something neither of them had any business prying into.
"Let's just leave it at that for today. We're all full, let's go home and get some rest," Zixu said with a casual wave of his hand, signaling that there was no need to dwell on the matter. Since Chinano wasn't planning on explaining, he had no intention of pressing the issue.
Hatsuizumi noticed the tense atmosphere gradually dissipating. Letting out a relieved sigh, he quickly went to settle the bill.
The three parted ways at the entrance of the barbecue restaurant.
---
On the way home, Zixu found himself contemplating the contradictions within Konoha.
"The Main House and the Branch House... The conflict between these two factions seems severe. The Main House is definitely in a position of absolute power. If a dangerous situation were to arise, would the Branch House members be expected to sacrifice themselves to protect them? And even within the Branch House, there are different factions..." Zixu speculated, recalling the exchange between Chinano and that boy.
"But weren't the Hyuga the first clan to align with Konoha during the First Hokage's era? Was this Main and Branch system already in place back then? Or did it only emerge under the Third Hokage's rule?"
The deeper he thought, the more he felt like he was touching on the dark underbelly of Konoha's history.