Naruto: Hyuga Warlord

Among the commonly used ninja tools in the Ninja World, Explosive Tags were by far the most powerful, versatile, and widely applicable. Every ninja was intimately familiar with their distinct sound and smell.

Especially one capable of causing such a massive explosion—this could only mean a huge bundle of Explosive Tags had detonated!

Yet what puzzled Hyuga Soushu the most was how someone could possibly transport such an enormous quantity of Explosive Tags into the heart of Hidden Leaf Village without being noticed.

As the clan renowned for mastering Fire Release techniques, the Uchiha members of the Policing Department would never miss Explosive Tags—which were saturated with an unmistakable Fire Release presence—slipping past them unnoticed.

Moreover, with Byakugan users from the Hyuga Clan assisting in surveillance at the village gates, there was absolutely no chance of deception slipping through.

Let's face it—if even the mighty Hyuga Clan, regarded as one of the two top Dojutsu clans in the Ninja World, failed to detect this attack, then Konoha might as well disband right here, right now and skip the embarrassment later on.

So within an instant, Hyuga Soushu narrowed it down to just two possibilities.

The first possibility was an attack launched by a powerful space-time ninjutsu user—someone like Obito Uchiha with Kamui. However, this seemed highly improbable. Anyone with such capabilities wouldn't resort to such a hastily planned Explosive Tag attack when far more devastating techniques were at their disposal.

The second possibility was far simpler and more plausible: there were spies or collaborators hidden within Konoha itself! And not just one—this group must have had deep knowledge of the village and support from inside to gather such an overwhelming number of Explosive Tags.

"Continue the Chunin Exams as scheduled!"

The voice of proctor Jonin Koryo rang out through the high-pitched speakers installed in the monitoring room atop the Tower.

This announcement was simultaneously transmitted to various functional areas, suggesting that either the village authorities—or at least some influential figures—didn't believe the recent explosion posed enough threat to justify stopping the exams.

"Understood."

Hyuga Soushu responded into the communicator first, then sent a message through his earpiece to his seven Chunin observation teams: "Proceed with the exams normally. Let nothing interfere."

But things didn't settle down so easily.

Not long after, Jonin Koryo's voice echoed from the loudspeakers again: "Jonin-level shinobi including Kato Hayan, Yamanaka Toshimichi, and Mitotou Kousuke are to assemble immediately at the entrance of the Death Forest! Jonin Soushu, please continue overseeing the security detail guarding the exam venue."

"Received."

Hyuga Soushu replied with a frown.

Something about how things were playing out felt off.

Surely Konoha wasn't so ill-prepared that it couldn't even deal with a sudden attack like this!

[Byakugan!]

Activating his Byakugan once more, Soushu extended its telescopic vision toward the direction of the village.

The explosion site was still engulfed in thick smoke. Even after a long time, the smoke refused to clear, occasionally broken by distant blasts echoing from within. Though Hyūga Sōshu stood far away and couldn't directly hear the sounds from the blast zone, he could easily gauge the severity of the incident from the panic in the surrounding areas.

Even more alarming—just a short distance from the explosion lay Konoha's cornerstone institution: the Ninja Academy!

That's why securing the safety of the Ninja Academy became the Anbu and Policing Department's top priority—removing threats and evacuating civilians. As for the explosion zone itself, they focused mainly on containment, with only a few Uchiha ninja from the Policing Division moving through the smoke.

But whether it was Hyūga Sōshu or the other Hyūga reinforcements arriving from the village gates, all were certain—there wasn't a single living soul left within the blast zone!

Inside the Hyūga District, the clan head stood with an icy expression; his flawless Byakugan locked unblinkingly onto the smoke rising from the explosion.

Whether the attackers had meticulously planned this strike and already withdrawn, or had simply blown themselves up entirely, leaving no trace behind—the truth remained that although smoke filled the Byakugan's vision, not even the faintest hint of life remained.

In short, this was no accident—it was a cold-blooded, meticulously planned attack!

But then—who had the guts to do something like this?

Better yet—who had the capability?

This wasn't just about slipping past surveillance from the Policing Department and the assisting Byakugan-wielding Hyūga ninja!

It meant that practically every major Konoha division—from the Anbu, Root, Intelligence Division, all the way to the Barrier Unit—was guilty of serious negligence!

Especially if later investigations revealed the attackers had used secret infiltration routes—all those who knew about Konoha's hidden passages would face dire repercussions!

"Father."

Hyūga Hiashi and Hyūga Hizashi appeared silently behind the Hyūga Clan Leader.

"Mobilize all our clan's ninja immediately. Place the compound under armed alert. Anyone approaching without authorization will be executed on sight!"

The Hyūga Clan Leader commanded coldly, "Also, send all women, children, and elders into the emergency shelter!"

"As you command!"

Though taken aback, Hiashi and Hizashi didn't dare question their father—they obeyed without hesitation and got straight to work.

And the Hyūga weren't the only ones taking such action.

Whether it was the ever-watchful Uchiha Clan, or the Hokage's close allies—Ino–Shika–Cho—each clan's immediate response was to mobilize their forces, lock down their district perimeters, and protect their own families. As for what happened elsewhere in the village—let the Anbu and Policing Department deal with it!

"A divided village indeed."

Inside the Hokage Tower office, alone while continuously rubbing his crystal ball to monitor various locations across the village, Third Hokage Sarutobi sighed deeply, sadness etched across his face.

Though this attack wasn't entirely unforeseen, the behavior of the ninja clans today was profoundly disappointing.

Even his own Sarutobi clan was only thinking about protecting themselves at a time like this, with no sign of stepping up for the village.

Meanwhile, the non-elite ninjas were surprisingly stepping up, organizing themselves voluntarily to keep things under control and start checking for possible threats.

"This isn't right!"

Hiashi Sarutobi suddenly noticed a common trait among these civilian ninjas—they were all wearing red armbands tied around their right arms!

"What is this?"

With a grim expression, Hiashi Sarutobi quickly adjusted the distance of his crystal ball's vision, zooming in to identify specific faces.

"They're actually Sakumo's subordinates!"

This couldn't be good.

Immediately, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi rang the bell, summoning an Anbu ninja: "Issue immediate orders for mobilization and martial law! Deploy directly commanded units to maintain order. No personnel shall be allowed to leave their residential areas without prior authorization!"

The Anbu ninja left instantly using Body Flicker.

"Let's see how the Guardian Ninjas and Danzo's guys react now."

Although eager to observe what was happening inside the Death Forest, to avoid alerting Hyuga Soushu—who possessed highly sensitive sensory abilities—Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi suppressed his impulse, quietly waiting for the final outcome.

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