Chapter 587 : Suspicion!

“So, can you remove the seal?”

Hearing Hoka's question, Fujin became quiet once again. Hoka didn't disturb him as he could see that Fujin was in deep thought. After a couple of minutes, disappointment appeared on Hoka's face as Fujin shook his head.

Fujin answered, “Don't get me wrong. I'll help you but don't get your hopes too high. Even though I'm a Grandmaster in Fuinjutsu, I have become one very recently. I lack both experience and skill when compared to the older Grandmasters.

The Byakugan is something every village covets. There is no doubt that other villages would have done everything they could to get their hands on it. Yet, there hasn't been any instance where enemy Grandmasters lifted the Caged Bird Seal and stole the Byakugan.

So, you are asking me to do something that the Grandmasters in Kumo, Kiri, Suna and Iwa haven't been able to do for decades. In addition, there isn't any record of the seal being cracked before the formation of the hidden villages either. It is a seal that hasn't been cracked for centuries.

More importantly, my priority will be ensuring that I don't make a mistake that could cripple or kill you while removing the seal as it'll be pointless if either of that happens. This makes the task even more difficult. So, I can't guarantee that I'll succeed in removing the seal.”

Hoka sighed in relief on hearing Fujin's words. He, of course, knew of the difficulty in doing so. So, he wasn't worried whether Fujin would succeed or not. He just hoped that Fujin would give it a try as that was the only way he could have some hope.

He had already tried learning Fuinjutsu but had found it extremely difficult to comprehend. Considering the sensitive nature of the task, he couldn't risk approaching any other Grandmaster. So, Fujin was his only choice.

He smiled and said, “Thank you, Fujin. I appreciate it! I know how difficult it is and I won't pester you to keep working on it.”

Fujin nodded. That was what he wanted to hear. Hoka continued, “That said, I have one piece of information for you. There was someone who successfully undid the seal and stole a Byakugan. It happened in Kiri. Their Elite Jounin Ao has one Byakugan.”

Fujin replied, “I know of him and even met him during a mission. However, his example isn't something I can follow for you. After all, the Hyuga from whom they extracted the Byakugan is dead. And that's not exactly an option for me, is it?”

Hoka immediately had an awkward expression. He replied, “You are right.”

Fujin added, “Besides, there are too many things that aren't clear in Ao's case. Whatever method they used shouldn't be foolproof. For starters, why did they take only a single eye? Were they unable to save the other or did something else happen?

The anomaly that sticks out the most is why they haven't tried it again. After all, they don't care whether the Hyuga ninjas live or not. Why didn't they harvest one eye from every Hyuga they captured? They could have implanted it into other ninjas like Ao and raised a strong unit. However, there isn't a second case like Ao in Kiri… Is there an issue?”

A weird expression appeared on Hoka's face as Fujin was talking. Hoka shook his head and answered, “Nothing. I just found it strange how casually you mentioned that. It's as if Byakugan was a commodity.”

Fujin shrugged and replied, “That's all that the other villages think of it. You might find it offensive, but unfortunately, there is nothing we can do about it. Anyway, let me observe the Caged Bird Seal. Stay still.”

Hoka followed his instructions as Fujin's eyes began glowing. As Fujin continued observing the Caged Bird Seal, a frown appeared on his face. He analyzed, ‘I was expecting the seal to be somewhat like Danzo's seal and my Phantom. That way, no one will be able to remove the seal without having access to the right imprint. However, this is something else…’

Fujin raised his arm, placed his right palm on Hoka's Forehead and said, “If you feel any pain at all, inform me immediately. Don't delay for even one second.”

Hoka replied, “Alright.”

Fujin gently inserted some chakra into Hoka's head like one would while using the Mystical Palm. It was an application of Medical Ninjutsu to inspect internal injuries. As he inspected the seal, Fujin got a headache.

He stopped inspecting and muttered, “This seal is crazy… I haven't seen anything like this before…”

Hoka asked, “What do you mean?”

Fujin replied, “The seal is connected with too many nerves in your head. If anyone messes with it, it'll activate immediately, killing you and destroying your eyes in the blink of an eye. Don't allow anyone else to inspect and work on your seal. If even a slight mistake happens, it can be deadly.”

Sweat appeared on Hoka's face as he realized how deadly the seal was. His expression became grim. Fujin thought, ‘Even though my and Danzo's seals have a similar feature, our seals are connected to just a couple of important nerves, allowing us to do the job.

However, the Caged Bird Seal is at an entirely different level. Which lunatic created a seal that could connect with so many nerves? The more nerves the seal affects, the more complicated the seal is. A minute mistake could result in death. I wonder how many died while they were experimenting to create the seal…

No wonder no one could remove this seal without destroying the eyes. The one who got Ao the Byakugan might have been extremely lucky.

Still, whoever was the lunatic who created the seal, he should be a genius. This seal might be of the same level as the ones used by Jashins…’

Suddenly, Fujin's eyes widened temporarily as he wondered, ‘Wait a minute. Lunatics… High level of Fuinjutsu… Sacrifices… Don't tell me the Hyuga who created this seal was a follower of Jashin… With the help of a Bishop, creating such a seal isn't an impossibility.

After all, if Hyuga had such high expertise in Fuinjutsu, it doesn't make sense for them to not be known for Fuinjutsu like the Uzumaki clan. Why did all their advancement stop with the Caged Bird Seal?’

Hoka noticed Fujin's eyes widening momentarily and his expression becoming even more serious. He nervously asked, “Did you discover a problem?”

Fujin answered, “Yeah, but it isn't something that'll help you. I was just wondering how the Hyuga clan came up with such a seal. This seal is too advanced and is probably the most complicated seal in Konoha. And we are currently the most advanced village in terms of Fuinjutsu.

If the Hyuga clan could create a seal like the Caged Bird Seal centuries ago, you guys should have been well-known for your Fuinjutsu prowess as well. However, I don't think I have ever heard anyone talking about Hyuga's Fuinjutsu prowess even once. Don't you find that odd?”

Hoka thought for a bit and nodded. He said, “Now that I think about it, Hiashi-sama isn't a Grandmaster in Fuinjutsu. We do have one Grandmaster in Fuinjutsu, but he is from the Branch family. And, he still has the Caged Bird Seal on him. Do you think something fishy had happened?”

Fujin nodded and replied, “Yeah. Unfortunately, it happened way too far in history. Any records related to it would have long been destroyed by the Main family. In fact, I doubt Hiashi even knows anything about the seal apart from how to apply it and how to trigger it. If he was creating it from scratch or could remove it, he'd be a Grandmaster as well.”

Hoka agreed with Fujin's analysis. As much as he wanted to go back to the past and kill the one who created the seal, he knew it was impossible. Besides, the seal was very useful during the warring era. Without it, there was a chance that the Hyuga clan would have been wiped out.

He asked, “So, what are the chances of removing this seal?”