Chapter 130: The Cage Song
The exchanges between the Hyuga and Uchiha clans grew increasingly acrimonious. No matter how the Hyuga attacked, Uchiha Yakuki and Uchiha Eiji kept harping on the fact that the branch family members' fates were out of their own hands, saying it in various ways.
In terms of force, the Senju were never afraid of the Uchiha. However, when it came to arguing, they chose to keep silent during battles and avoid communication to spare themselves the discomfort.
What? You ask what Uchiha Ling is doing?
The Hyuga are already having a hard time dealing with two Uchiha rabble - rousers. Can't you just let the fiercest one enjoy his wine in peace?
But just when the Hyuga finally realized they couldn't out - argue the Uchiha and were about to leave, a song came floating over.
"Through the bamboo bars, through the bamboo bars,
Little bird in the cage,
When will you come out?
On the night of dawn,
The crane and the turtle slipped,
Who's that behind?" [Note*]
Now, the faces of the Hyuga were beyond just looking ugly. What was worse, the instigator kept humming the song over and over again without any intention of stopping.
Uchiha Eiji was almost unilaterally insulting the other side. Even so, he hesitantly peeked at the two empty wine pots on the table. "Only two bottles... Does this shop serve straight alcohol?"
"Not bad. He hasn't started singing out of tune yet..." Uchiha Yakuki reached out to hold Ling's hand that was going for the third wine pot. "Stop drinking."
Ling paused, as if considering, but soon he switched hands to reach for the wine pot. "There won't be such good wine after we leave the Iron Country. Just let me indulge a little."
"Hey, don't really do this in front of the Senju..." Uchiha Yakuki held Ling's hand again, but the next second he met Ling's half - smiling expression. After a brief moment of stiffness, he silently withdrew his hand. "Then one last pot."
"Okay."
Ling nodded and started humming the song again while sipping his wine. But this time, he clearly slowed down after taking a sip.
Compared to his ease, the other two Uchihas were obviously in a state of tension. Uchiha Eiji silently took a sip of tea and then got up to find the boss. Uchiha Yakuki quickly devoured the food on the table. While chewing, he looked up in surprise at the Hyuga team with a green - black complexion, as if wondering why they still hadn't left even though the argument was over.
It even made the breathing of the Hyuga side heavier.
"The Uchiha are really good at provoking others..." Senju Ming patted her belly in satisfaction. "Got it, got it. I'll try it on the Hyuga next time."
"Sis, you can't even out - argue an Uchiha. Just put that thought aside and focus on researching the Strength of a Hundred Technique..."
Senju Ming immediately stood up and gave Senju Chokei a whack on the head. "Stinky little brother, how are you talking to your sister!"
Senju Chokei covered the back of his head, looking as aggrieved as a 1.8 - meter - tall child. "Can you stop hitting me on the head?"
I even feel exhausted just watching you jump up..."
"Hey, you little rascal! Say that again if you dare!"
"Hey, you two! Can you stop clowning around and just watch the show quietly? It's not every day that we can watch something related to the Uchiha up close in such a peaceful manner."
But as Senju Cheng was speaking, his voice got softer and softer. He just stared blankly with his fish - like eyes at Uchiha Yakuki, who carefully carried the plate and left Ling's side, then naturally joined their table. "What do you mean by this?"
"Don't worry, I'm not here to start a fight. I'll just sit here for a while." Uchiha Yakuki calmly sat down in the empty chair, let out a sigh of relief, but soon looked dejected again. "I'm going to be the main force later. I can't stay there... Damn it! I knew I shouldn't have taken on this mission."
Senju Ming watched Uchiha Yakuki sitting there muttering to himself and got curious again. "You don't have to be afraid of him, do you?"
Uchiha Yakuki looked at Senju Ming in surprise and said, "How dare you utter such words?"
"But aren't you two Uchiha members who can fight on the front battlefield?"
"Has your Senju clan members ever held discussions about me?"
The Senju clan members: ...
"No, right?" Uchiha Yakuki shrugged, then pointed behind him. "But they've had discussions about him, haven't they?"
The Senju clan members: ... *2
"So, how dare you guys who've never been on the front battlefield say such things?" Uchiha Yakuki shook his head, looking a bit disappointed. "If you don't believe me, go back and ask Senju clan members. Apart from Uzumaki Yi, that stupid guy who has some mental problem, who among us dared to fight Ling one-on-one from start to finish back then?"
The Senju clan members: ... *3
The Senju clan members unconsciously started to recall according to Uchiha Yakuki's words. They found that when their peers mentioned Ling, they mostly just uncomfortably mentioned bad luck and then changed the topic and left. When the elders occasionally mentioned him, they were filled with killing intent.
They seemed to hear Ling's name more frequently from those Senju clan members who were neither their elders nor their peers.
"So, you Senju are just too careless. And seriously..." Uchiha Yakuki propped his face up and looked at Senju Ming, whose eyebrows were still knitted together. "Don't you really consider my suggestion? It's rare for the Senju clan to have such a cute girl like you. It would be a pity if you died."
Senju Ming got angry again. "You damned Uchiha, you're asking for—"
Bang!
Senju Ming hesitantly looked down at the table. It wasn't her who made the noise?
"Look behind you. The sound clearly came from behind me," Uchiha Yakuki sighed and couldn't help covering his face. "You're so dumb. It's so pitiable..."
Senju Ming stared with wide eyes, and then heard Ling's gentle voice. "Yare yare, I don't have many hobbies, but drinking is definitely one of them... Can I regard this as a provocation?"
Looking over again, he found that the table where Ling was sitting had been smashed into pieces. Uchiha Yakuki picked up the red bean buns he had brought and then wriggled his body to look. When he saw the broken wine pot on the ground, he mumbled, "Wow, there isn't even a familiar face. How dare they..."
Uchiha Eiji also sneaked over furtively. Ignoring Senju Cheng's disdainful look, he sat down beside him. He looked over Uchiha Yakuki's back at the Hyuga who had been pressed to the ground over there. "They're just overly confident and can't take it. Besides, haven't they been getting close to Kaguya lately? Maybe they heard about what you guys did in the Land of Lightning and want to help out?"
"Forget it, it's okay... It's good that someone is helping me wear them out. I'll save myself some energy later." Uchiha Yakuki turned back, holding a red bean bun in his mouth and looking at Uchiha Eiji. "You'd better figure out how to tell Uncle Keiji. Even if you go to the boss, there'll still be plenty of compensation problems later."
"Hey, hey, hey, Help me come up with an idea now... Aren't we best friends?"
Senju Cheng watched the two Uchiha whispering and discussing how to deal with the aftermath. He was a bit puzzled that they had no intention of getting involved in the fight behind them at all. "You're just going to ignore it?"