The two Hyuga main family members seemed aware that the other ninja in the camp didn't like them. In addition, since the Mist Ninja were eyeing the Byakugan greedily, the clan had already instructed them to keep a low profile.
As a result, the two of them rarely appeared in public, usually hiding in their tents. Their daily clothing and meals were delivered by members of the Hyuga branch family.
"Hey, Asana, do those two know how to use the Caged Bird Seal?" Uchiha Yuan asked.
"No, but I heard one of them has some defensive techniques passed down from the main family. What exactly those are, I don't know," replied Hyuga Asana.
"Caged Bird? Isn't that the jutsu the main family uses to protect the branch family?" Yamanaka Kagetsu asked.
"Protect? It's control! What clan 'protects' their own people like that?" Uchiha Yuan rolled his eyes.
"But I think it's exactly because of the Caged Bird that other villages don't have designs on the branch family's Byakugan. So, in a way, it's still protection."
"From that perspective, yes, the Caged Bird Seal does protect the branch family members... but—" Hyuga Asana stopped mid-sentence because she had just seen Orochimaru enter the main family's tent.
"Was that Lord Orochimaru just now?"
"Mhm."
"Does Lord Orochimaru often visit the Hyuga main house?" Kagetsu asked curiously.
"I've never heard of any prior contact between Lord Orochimaru and the Hyuga main house," Asana replied.
Uchiha Yuan sensed something was off. Based on what he knew of Orochimaru, he probably didn't like the Hyuga main family either. Unless there was something important going on, he wouldn't proactively interact with them.
Could it be the Mist Ninja had made a new move to steal the Byakugan?
A few minutes later, Orochimaru exited the Hyuga tent with the two main family members.
"Should we follow?" Kagetsu asked.
"Of course. Our mission is to protect them. We mustn't let them leave our sight." Uchiha Yuan replied and immediately followed.
Hyuga Asana and Yamanaka Kagetsu followed close behind.
They tailed Orochimaru and the Hyuga members to Orochimaru's tent.
"You three come in as well," Orochimaru called from inside.
The trio exchanged glances and then entered.
As soon as he entered the tent, Uchiha Yuan noticed a stretcher on the ground covered with a white sheet.
Then he saw their team's instructor, Shibi Aburame. To Shibi's left stood Uchiha Mei, and to his right were the "Ino" and "Shika" from the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. The Akimichi clan member was not present, nor was the Hyuga branch family jonin.
That meant the body on the stretcher was probably either the Akimichi or the Hyuga jonin.
As Yuan was pondering who it might be, Orochimaru turned to the Hyuga main family and said, "This is the body of the Hyuga branch jonin. He died while confirming the Fourth Mizukage's arrival time. Please verify his identity."
The two main family members lifted the sheet. Underneath was a corpse that had been cut in half.
"Yes, Lord Orochimaru. He was indeed a member of the Hyuga clan," one of them said after confirming.
"Alright. He's your responsibility now. As for the Akimichi jonin, he also met with misfortune. Shibi will explain."
Shibi nodded and began, "After we received the mission to confirm the Fourth Mizukage's movements, we immediately moved beyond the frontlines to the Mist Ninja encampment.
When we arrived, to avoid detection, we split up to reduce our target profile. I used my Parasitic Insects and the Yamanaka clan's Mind Body Transmission Technique to coordinate communications.
We remained hidden near the Mist camp for over 20 days without being discovered.
Uchiha Mei even killed an inconspicuous genin, disguised himself with a Transformation Jutsu, and infiltrated the Mist camp to gather intel.
Thanks to Mei's efforts, we confirmed the general route of the Fourth Mizukage's advance.
We discussed it and decided to wait for him on that route. It was farther from the Mist camp and closer to our own, which meant we could retreat faster after completing our mission.
Upon reaching our destination, we once again split up and went into hiding.
This time, it only took two days before we saw twenty masked Mist ANBU escorting a boy who looked no older than his teens heading toward the Mist camp.
The boy's chakra reserves were immense—almost comparable to Lady Tsunade's. Judging from the escort formation, we were nearly certain he was the Fourth Mizukage.
But his age made me hesitate. I couldn't be sure if he was really the Mizukage, so I wavered on whether to retreat.
Unfortunately, that hesitation cost us. The Akimichi jonin was discovered by a sensory-type ANBU.
That boy—no, the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi—struck immediately, unleashing a massive Waterfall Jutsu even without a water source. The surge of water exposed all of us.
With no other choice, we fought while retreating.
But twenty Mist ANBU plus the Fourth Mizukage were far beyond what six of us could handle. The Hyuga jonin, targeted specifically because of his Byakugan, was cut in half by Yagura's Water Release.
Then, the Akimichi jonin stepped forward. He took the clan's secret medicine and transformed into a giant, blocking the Mist ANBU.
As for the pursuing Fourth Mizukage, he was intercepted by Uchiha Mei. Mei told me to retreat while he held Yagura back.
When we regrouped later, we found Mei's right eye had turned ashen—he must have used some high-cost forbidden jutsu.
That's what happened during the mission."
After Shibi's recounting, everyone in the tent fell silent.
It was a long while before Orochimaru asked, "What do you think of the Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi's strength?"
"Only Uchiha Mei fought him directly. He would know best," Shibi replied.
Everyone turned to Uchiha Mei.
Uchiha Mei spoke with a serious tone, "Yagura's Water Release is very powerful. He can use large-scale water-style jutsu without needing existing water sources. He also possesses unique water techniques. That's what caught me off guard."
(To Be Continued...)