Yinsui-sensei felt a mixture of emotions, especially upon hearing that Araki had been bullied by Sora Hyuga, and yet students like Araki cared about Sora Hyuga. It reminded Yinsui-sensei of the events from yesterday, which left his heart in a complex state.

"Sora Hyuga has gone missing, and it has been three and a half days with no sign of him. I'm afraid the outcome is more likely to be bad than good."

Yinsui-sensei couldn't help but sigh. He knew he shouldn't have shared this with Araki, but keeping it to himself was becoming burdensome. He needed to let it out.

"Just wait here for a moment."

Yinsui-sensei suddenly stood up and walked towards the bar counter. He exchanged a few words with the bartender and came back holding a bottle of sake. The aroma that wafted from it indicated it had a high alcohol content.

"Well, we don't have classes this afternoon, so I'll take you to the medical class, and then I can relax. It has been a serious time for too long. Occasionally, we need to indulge ourselves. I can't even remember the last time I had a drink."

Yinsui-sensei chuckled bitterly as he spoke. He opened the bottle, and the strong scent of alcohol filled the air. Just the smell was intoxicating.

"Araki, you're underage, so you can't drink this. I'll reluctantly enjoy it myself. But I can talk to you a bit. These are things I probably shouldn't share with you, but they're not really secrets, and it's not a big deal."

Yinsui-sensei slowly poured the sake from the bottle. The strong fragrance was quite pungent, and even before drinking it, he felt a bit tipsy. Especially in a bad mood, he wanted an outlet to vent.

At this moment, Yinsui-sensei was already touched by Araki's words. He also felt that Araki had difficulty expressing himself. Even if he said something, it wouldn't spread around.

No matter how tight-lipped someone is, they are not as sealed as the bottle itself.

In Yinsui-sensei's view, even if Araki's mouth could pour out something, it would be similar to a capped bottle, limited to the most basic expressions.

Araki silently watched Yinsui-sensei's actions. He hadn't said anything, yet Yinsui-sensei was willing to speak. This was unexpected for him. He didn't expect Yinsui-sensei to say it outright. It was just a symbolic inquiry, a test to see if Yinsui-sensei suspected him.

Unexpectedly, Yinsui-sensei's true feelings came out.

Araki watched as Yinsui-sensei lifted the sake cup, ready to down its contents with confidence. However, just as the drink approached his lips, Araki lightly took a sip.

Almost in an instant...

Yinsui-sensei's cheeks visibly flushed.

"Do you know?"

"The fact that Sora Hyuga hasn't been attending school for these three days..."

"The Hyuga clan doesn't even know about it!"

"It was only after I went there yesterday that they found out. The esteemed Hyuga clan of Konoha, they don't care about the life or death of their own clan members!"

"It was only when I found the head of the Hyuga clan..."

"At that time, he was practicing with his son, Hiashi, and he was in a very bad mood because I interrupted him. When I finished telling him about Sora Hyuga, he didn't even react."

"Do you know what he said to me?"

Yinsui-sensei suddenly opened up and started talking about last night's events. However, he deliberately restrained his voice, making sure that the people around him couldn't hear.

"I don't know."

Araki shook his head directly. This time, he didn't stammer. The main reason was that there weren't many words to say, and Yinsui-sensei was clearly the kind of person who couldn't handle even a sip of alcohol...

"He said, 'Isn't it just a missing member of a branch family? Is it necessary to make such a fuss?' After that, he resumed practicing with his son, and even his son didn't show the slightest concern. It was as if they were indifferent, as if they weren't their own clan members!"

After Yinsui-sensei finished speaking, he took another heavy sip. He was genuinely puzzled because, after all, he had been a teacher at the ninja school for so many years, and he had only interacted with Sora Hyuga from the Hyuga clan. The rest of the Hyuga clan members were nurtured within the confines of their family.

"Sora... Sora Hyuga... Does he not have parents?" Araki suddenly asked.

"No, he doesn't."

Yinsui-sensei shook his head directly. This was something he was very aware of. He had the background information of every student in the class.

"Sora Hyuga's parents sacrificed themselves on a mission, supposedly to protect the clan head, but I never expected the clan head to be so indifferent!"

Yinsui-sensei grew more and more indignant as he spoke. Even though he used the alcohol as a means to vent, he still felt uncomfortable inside.

Although he didn't know much about the Hyuga clan, he knew they were a prestigious clan in Konoha, often competing with the Uchiha clan for the position of the top clan in the village.

But...

Was this clan really so cold towards its own members?

He couldn't understand!

And he couldn't comprehend it!

Araki didn't ask anything further and just nodded silently. It was just as he had suspected—Sora Hyuga was truly an abandoned child.

Based on his observations over the past three years, he noticed that besides Sora Hyuga, there were no other members of the Hyuga clan at the ninja school.

At this point in time, the Hyuga clan still followed the tradition of cultivating their members internally. They had the privilege of granting ninja headbands to their own, which was the only family in Konoha with such a privilege.

Sora Hyuga's enrollment in the ninja school was, to put it nicely, an attempt by the Hyuga clan to integrate with Konoha. To put it bluntly, he was an experimental guinea pig sent away as an exile.

No Gentle Fist technique from the clan.

No awakened Byakugan.

He could be considered worthless in every aspect.

Just a member of the branch family.

It wasn't surprising that the head of the main family didn't care. Under the Hyuga clan's principles, it made sense.

The reason why Araki acted decisively against Sora Hyuga was because he saw him as a branch member who had no one to love him and yet had the audacity to try to expose him. In order to live a low-profile life, the best option was to eliminate him.

A gentleman does not stand under a collapsing wall!

At this stage, Araki only wanted to quietly accumulate his strength. He wouldn't actively provoke anyone, but if anyone tried to put him in danger, he would preemptively crush that danger.

No action unless necessary.

But once he acted, he would crush the opponent without mercy.

He would never let himself get into trouble.

Araki wasn't in the mood to deal with so many troublesome matters. What he could do was get rid of those who caused trouble for him.

Of course.

Kushina was an exception here.

Kushina hadn't actively caused him trouble and even wanted to be friends with him. The underlying meaning was different.

"Sigh..."

Just then, Yinsui-sensei let out a long sigh, showing his helplessness.

"I had no choice but to approach the Military Police Force. To my surprise, the Uchiha clan, who seemingly had a poor relationship with the Hyuga clan, showed great interest in the matter and immediately began investigating."

Yinsui-sensei continued to drink while speaking, unable to comprehend the situation fully.

In his original thinking,

he believed that the Uchiha clan wouldn't be willing to help, so he went to the Hyuga clan first.

But the result was the opposite.

Even now, he still couldn't understand why.