With a creak, the gate to Inuzuka Yū’s courtyard was pushed open.
A member of the Inuzuka Clan walked into the yard and said respectfully,
“Lord Yū, the clan head requests that you come to the meeting hall immediately.”
“I understand.”
Inuzuka Yū forced himself to remain calm as he spoke, but in truth, the unease in his heart had only grown stronger.
His palms were already cold.
Could something have gone wrong after all?
What exactly happened?
Why would his brother call him to the meeting hall so early in the morning?
Although he tried his best to keep himself composed, his feet still felt weak and unsteady.
What…
What exactly was he afraid of?
…
Before long, he arrived at the clan meeting hall.
After entering, he saw his older brother, the head of the Inuzuka Clan, seated at the main seat above.
Yū looked around, but he did not see the two special jōnin he had sent out to deal with that brat Nohara Haruto.
Inwardly, he let out a slight breath of relief.
It seemed this was probably not because of that matter.
In that case, he did not need to worry too much.
But then, he noticed someone in the room who did not belong to the Inuzuka Clan.
Sitting beside his brother was a man wearing a military-green flak jacket, with a head of bright golden hair.
Wasn’t this Konoha’s elite jōnin, Namikaze Minato?
Why was he here?
Yū entered the hall and asked his brother,
“Brother, why did you call me here?”
The Inuzuka Clan head shook his head.
“I’m not the one looking for you.
This is Jōnin Minato.
He came to find you, so I called you over.”
Inuzuka Yū raised an eyebrow and looked at Namikaze Minato with suspicion.
“May I ask why Jōnin Minato suddenly came looking for me?”
He had almost no contact with Namikaze Minato in daily life, so he could not imagine why this man would suddenly come to find him.
Minato was usually extremely gentle and good-tempered.
But after what had happened last night, anger had been suppressed in his heart all this time, along with guilt toward Nohara Rin.
Because of that, his tone inevitably carried a bit more heat than usual.
“Heh.
Inuzuka Yū, shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
Namikaze Minato’s face was stern as he asked directly,
“What have you done recently?”
Inuzuka Yū frowned, and his expression also turned ugly.
Minato had clearly come to the Inuzuka Clan’s territory, yet he was still speaking so rudely.
Had he come here to cause trouble?
Yū’s face also cooled, and he replied without the slightest politeness,
“Heh.
I truly don’t know what Jōnin Minato is talking about.”
“However, for you to rush into our Inuzuka Clan and question me like this, are you looking down on our clan?”
Inuzuka Yū’s forceful attitude only made Minato even angrier.
He no longer had any interest in circling around the issue with him, so he spoke directly and loudly.
“Hmph.
Since you’re so busy that you can’t remember, Inuzuka Yū, I’ll remind you.”
“Last night, Nohara Haruto and I were ambushed by two special jōnin from the Inuzuka Clan.
Afterward, we captured them, and they have already confessed everything!”
“Inuzuka Yū, those two were sent by you to assassinate Nohara Haruto!”
“We have both witnesses and evidence.
Do you still intend to argue?”
Namikaze Minato’s words made everyone present freeze in place.
“I… I…”
Inuzuka Yū stammered for a moment, not knowing how to respond.
Hearing that his two subordinates had been captured, Yū felt his heart sink to the bottom.
His face turned deathly pale.
He forcefully tried to calm himself and keep from revealing too much through his expression, but his weak legs had already begun trembling slightly.
In an instant, countless thoughts rose in his mind.
He tried to figure out how he should answer, while resentment also surged inside him.
Those two useless fools!
They could not even handle such a simple matter!
No wonder they still had not returned.
So they had fallen into Namikaze Minato’s hands.
Now things had become troublesome.
What relationship did Namikaze Minato have with that brat?
Or had Minato merely happened to pass by and saved him by coincidence?
This sudden change had come without the slightest warning, leaving Inuzuka Yū completely caught off guard.
The Inuzuka Clan head’s face also carried a trace of shock.
Earlier, he had still been slightly dissatisfied with Namikaze Minato’s attitude when he came to visit.
But the moment Minato said the name “Nohara Haruto,” he knew this matter was not simple.
Nohara Haruto.
Wasn’t that the brat who had injured his nephew the other day?
The Inuzuka Clan head’s gaze fell on Inuzuka Yū, and he thought to himself,
Could it be that my brother couldn’t restrain himself and secretly sent people to attack that boy?
And Minato happened to run into them?
A surge of anger rose quietly in the clan head’s heart.
He was extremely dissatisfied with his brother’s actions.
What a fool!
Secretly attacking someone inside the village was a serious taboo!
Originally, when Inuzuka Hirono was injured, their Inuzuka Clan had been the side with reason.
But now, because of Inuzuka Yū’s actions, they had become the side without justification.
However, no matter how angry the Inuzuka Clan head was, now was not the time to blame Yū.
After all, Yū was still his younger brother.
At a time like this, he had to protect him.
His gaze darkened, and he slowly said,
“Namikaze Minato, do you know about my nephew being injured by that Nohara Haruto?”