Walking along the winding path toward the Hokage Tower with his silent ANBU escort, Kei's mind was calculating rapidly.
Since his last, explosive psychological session with Kakashi, Hiruzen Sarutobi had promised to assign him increasingly sensitive missions. However, the Hokage had been remarkably quiet. Over the past three months, Hiruzen hadn't summoned him a single time. It had been Kei who proactively sought out the old man in the dead of night to successfully extort the funding for the Sanatorium.
Therefore, Kei was genuinely looking forward to this sudden summons. He was a master of playing along, of feigning absolute, tearful deference to authority.
His grueling, high-speed brawl with Might Guy had served as a stark reminder: his physical strength was still vastly insufficient to challenge the titans of the shinobi world. He needed more time to develop. He needed to continue growing quietly under the absolute, unquestioned protection of Hiruzen Sarutobi's shadow.
If Kei Hyuga was a bird trapped in a cage, he was specifically a cuckoo.
The cuckoo bird is notorious in the animal kingdom for a terrifying evolutionary trait: brood parasitism. The cuckoo does not build its own nest. Instead, it secretly lays its eggs in the nests of other, smaller birds. The host bird, entirely unaware of the deception, exhausts itself incubating and raising the foreign chick.
The truly monstrous aspect of the cuckoo's survival strategy occurs shortly after hatching. The blind, featherless cuckoo chick will instinctively heave the host bird's legitimate offspring out of the nest, sending them plummeting to their deaths, ensuring it receives the absolute, undivided care and resources of its adoptive parents.
It is because of this ruthless, parasitic life cycle that the cuckoo is often referred to as the 'demon bird.'
And what Kei was currently executing within the walls of Konoha was functionally identical. He was utilizing the Hokage and the Hyuga Main House to incubate his ambitions, hoarding their resources while quietly preparing to push them out of the nest.
Soon, the ANBU led him to the heavy wooden doors of the Hokage's office. Pushing them open, Kei offered his customary, warm smile.
"Lord Third," Kei greeted, bowing respectfully. "You summoned me?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was seated behind a desk overflowing with official scrolls. Seeing the blind doctor enter, the old man smiled, his voice carrying that familiar, grandfatherly warmth. "How have you been, Kei-kun? Is the new Sanatorium operating smoothly?"
"Everything at the facility is proceeding flawlessly," Kei replied, maintaining his bright, humble smile. "I owe the success of the operation entirely to your boundless care, Lord Hokage. It was your vision that made the expansion a reality."
"I merely approved a plot of land," Hiruzen chuckled modestly, looking at the exceedingly polite youth. "I have read the civilian reports. Is it true you are charging the common villagers practically nothing for their consultations?"
Kei nodded solemnly. "From the very day I opened my first, tiny clinic, to the establishment of this new Sanatorium, my solitary goal has been to heal the suffering of this village."
"Seeing the joyous smiles return to the faces of the civilians... it brings me a profound, spiritual satisfaction." Kei's expression shifted into a mask of pure, righteous devotion. "This is the essence of the Will of Fire you have taught me, Lord Third. I strive to learn from your example every single day."
Hearing the boy parrot his own ideology so flawlessly, the harsh, calculating light in Hiruzen's eyes softened considerably.
Initially, Hiruzen hadn't placed too much strategic importance on the blind Hyuga; he had merely viewed Kei as an interesting, unconventional tool for rehabilitating broken ANBU. But the boy had consistently exceeded his expectations. Although Hiruzen hadn't summoned Kei in months, he had kept a team of elite ANBU shadowing the doctor day and night.
The intelligence reports were immaculate. Kei worked grueling hours treating the civilian populace. He routinely provided entirely free, highly effective pediatric care to the forgotten orphans on the outskirts of the village. From every observable metric, Kei Hyuga was a genuinely gentle, deeply compassionate healer who truly believed in the village.
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair. "I received Kakashi's official debriefing regarding your excursion to track down Shinnō. I never expected that traveling physician to be a high-ranking sleeper agent for the Sky Ninja remnants."
"Although Kakashi was the operative who ultimately neutralized the threat, your intelligence gathering and tactical support were vital to the mission's success. Therefore, this is long overdue."
Hiruzen slid a formal, wax-sealed document across the desk. "While your physical combat capabilities may still be developing, the rigid rules of promotion can occasionally be flexed to reward extraordinary service to the village. By my absolute authority as Hokage, I hereby promote you to the rank of Special Jonin."
"Lord Third... isn't this an unprecedented honor?" Kei reached out and accepted the heavy parchment, his smile widening into an expression of profound, overwhelming gratitude.
Internally, Kei wasn't celebrating the title itself; he was celebrating the political access it granted him. Achieving the rank of Jonin meant he had officially transcended the disposable caste of the military. He was now permitted to attend high-level village security briefings. He possessed the legal right to cast a vote of confidence on major administrative decisions.
While he might not wield that voting power immediately, the difference between possessing a seat at the table and standing out in the cold was monumental. More importantly, Hiruzen's decision to bypass the standard exam protocols to hand him the flak jacket meant the Hokage had formally, completely accepted Kei into his inner circle. That political armor was invaluable.
"It is exactly what you deserve, Kei," Hiruzen stood up, walking around the desk to clap a heavy, reassuring hand on the doctor's shoulder. "Furthermore, I have tasked my own medical divisions to actively search for an alternative solution for your blindness."
"Lord Third, I truly do not possess the words to express my gratitude for your boundless generosity," Kei bowed his head, his voice trembling with manufactured emotion. "Once the Sanatorium is fully staffed, I would be deeply honored if you would visit the facility to personally guide our clinical protocols. Would that be possible?"
Hiruzen was slightly taken aback. Most newly promoted Jonin asked for dangerous S-rank missions or advanced jutsu scrolls; Kei was asking him to inspect a civilian hospital. The boy's complete lack of martial ambition was incredibly reassuring.
"We shall discuss a formal inspection when the bureaucratic tide recedes," Hiruzen smiled, smoothly deflecting the invitation. He walked back to his chair. "However, alongside your promotion, I have a highly sensitive assignment I need you to execute."
"Simply state the objective, Lord Third. I will dedicate my life to completing it."
Hiruzen let out a long, heavy sigh, the weight of his failures settling over his hunched shoulders. "Do you remember Orochimaru?"
"Of course I remember him," Kei replied, his tone respectful but cautious. "In a sense, I was one of Lord Orochimaru's final students at the Academy. I never could have imagined his path would twist so darkly."
"Orochimaru's descent into madness was a direct result of my own insufficient oversight. The blood he spilled is entirely my responsibility," Hiruzen said, striking a match and taking a long, slow drag from his pipe. He exhaled a thick cloud of white smoke. "But his violent defection also left deep, festering wounds in the hearts of the people he left behind."
Kei remained silent, projecting the image of a perfect, attentive listener.
"Orochimaru took on a formal apprentice before he fled. I wonder... are you familiar with her?"
"Mitarashi Anko?"
Hiruzen nodded grimly. "Ever since Orochimaru abandoned the village, Anko's psychological state has been dangerously volatile. She is consumed by grief, rage, and a crushing sense of betrayal. The trauma is actively degrading her operational efficiency. I would like you to formally counsel her. See if your methods can help her finally move on from her master's ghost."
"Please, leave the matter entirely to me, Lord Third," Kei said, placing a hand firmly over his heart. "I will utilize every clinical tool at my disposal to guide her through the darkness."
Hiruzen nodded with deep satisfaction. He waved a hand, signaling the briefing was concluded.
Kei bowed and turned to leave. Just as his hand touched the brass handle of the heavy oak doors, Hiruzen's voice called out again.
"Kei. A hypothetical question."
Kei paused, turning his head back toward the desk. "Yes, Lord Hokage?"
"Does the field of clinical psychology possess a definitive methodology for curing hemophobia?"
Kei's mind raced instantly. Hemophobia. The irrational, paralyzing fear of blood. Tsunade.
Masking his internal realization flawlessly, Kei answered with professional detachment. "Psychology can rarely guarantee an absolute, instantaneous cure for any severe phobia, Lord Third. Effective treatment demands that we isolate the original, traumatic catalyst that birthed the fear."
"To cure hemophobia, a therapist must first gently deconstruct the patient's emotional barricades, force them to confront the specific tragedy that broke them, and then slowly, systematically desensitize their panic response."
"Every mind is a unique labyrinth. Without directly evaluating the patient and charting their specific trauma, I cannot provide a statistical guarantee of success."
Hiruzen fell silent, staring at the glowing embers in his pipe. After a long moment of heavy contemplation, he nodded slowly. "I see. Your honesty is appreciated, Kei. You may go. Execute this mission with Anko flawlessly. If you succeed, I will entrust you with significantly more vital operations in the future."
"Yes, Lord Third," Kei replied with crisp, military efficiency, and stepped out of the office.
Left alone in the quiet tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his leather chair. He watched the heavy wooden doors click shut, his mind turning over the doctor's clinical assessment. He took another long drag from his pipe, the thick smoke rapidly filling the office.
He had considered deploying Kei to track down Tsunade and cure her crippling fear of blood, but he ultimately decided to delay the operation. He needed to ensure the village's internal political landscape was absolutely, flawlessly stable before he risked bringing another volatile Sannin back into the fold.
And if Kei Hyuga proved capable of healing the village's deepest psychological wounds... having the doctor securely in his pocket when Tsunade finally returned would be an invaluable asset.