[Author's Notes]
[This is my first Naruto fanfic. Please let me know if there are any mistakes.]
[Most fanfics focus on Hyuga Branch House members, with nearly none featuring the Main House. Let me give it a try.]
Konoha.
Hyuga Clan.
Inside the clan's ancestral hall.
Countless members of both the Main and Branch Houses gathered for a clan assembly.
The topic of discussion was naturally the Caged Bird Seal.
Disputes between the Main and Branch Houses over this issue were never-ending.
Loud arguments and heated debates raged on, centering around whether to brand the new generation with the Caged Bird Seal.
Some argued that the seal should be applied when the child was only one year old.
Others warned that engraving it too early might hinder the Byakugan's development.
The clamor was so intense it even woke up a child sleeping in the corner.
"Where am I?"
Satori slowly opened his hazy eyes, trying to struggle upright, though he lacked the strength to do so.
A pair of broad, warm hands firmly held him in an embrace, preventing him from moving.
His eyes scanned the room, and Satori suddenly realized he was in an entirely unfamiliar place.
His body also seemed... different somehow.
"Did I… turn into a baby?!"
He darted his eyes around while tiny arms flailed, desperately trying to rise and gather more information.
Inside this traditional Japanese wooden house, a group of people wearing the standard family attire knelt on cushions, their expressions serious.
What caught his attention were their eyes — all purely white without a hint of black.
That bizarre sight instantly triggered a realization—he must have been reincarnated.
And what he heard next only deepened his shock.
Main House, Branch House, the Caged Bird Seal—it all came down to the clan's interests…
Those familiar terms immediately reminded him of an anime he'd been binge-watching.
One of the clans in that series dressed exactly like this, with the same distinctive eye feature.
The Hyuga Clan.
An aristocratic bloodline spanning generations, possessing the Byakugan.
The clan was divided into two parts: the Main House and the Branch House.
The Main House sat high above, protected by the Branch House.
While from childhood, Branch House members bore the 'Caged Bird' cursed seal upon their heads, their very lives controlled by the Main House, compelled to protect the Main House with their lives.
This twisted system aimed to prevent the Byakugan from spreading beyond the clan.
But as time passed, the hearts of the Main House changed.
After centuries of control, the Main House no longer saw the Branch House as family—but as disposable tools they could command at will.
Damn it! How did I end up reincarnated—and into the Hyuga Clan of all places!
Tell me today isn't the day for carving the Caged Bird Seal… Did I just get reincarnated only to have that cursed mark placed on me?!
Satori waved his little arms furiously, his expression full of indignation.
Just moments ago, he had been at home watching anime. After merely yawning, he inexplicably found himself here.
But now he was just an infant, unable to speak clearly.
He wanted to fight back, but he was utterly powerless.
With his rosy cheeks and cute babbling, he looked absolutely adorable.
I'm so screwed… totally and completely screwed…
Just as Satori resigned himself to his fate, a kind and elderly voice rang out.
"Satori, are you hungry, little one?"
"Just wait a little longer. Once the Branch House members get their Caged Bird Seals, I'll take you out to eat."
A voice came from beside his ear.
Satori blinked his big eyes and turned his head toward the source of the sound.
It was the man holding him.
Tall and upright, with handsome features and long black-and-white hair cascading over his shoulders, the man exuded an unusual noble aura.
He didn't look very old, yet the wrinkles on his forehead and strands of white hair gave him a prematurely aged appearance.
"Satori... is that my name?"
"Hyuga Satori... actually sounds pretty good."
Drawing from his knowledge, Satori quickly started piecing things together.
As an adult soul reborn into this world, he thought on a level far beyond what a normal child could.
"Right, he mentioned waiting until the Branch House gets their Cursed Seals. Does that mean I'm part of the Main House?"
In an instant,
His heart raced with rising excitement.
Earlier, believing he'd been reborn into the Branch House, he had only felt fear and unease.
Now, learning he was part of the Main House, everything suddenly felt different.
The Main House ruled from above, controlling the fates of the Branch House members. They never had to work—only wait for the Branch House's offerings.
Constantly guarded by Branch House members, in this brutal ninja world where survival was uncertain from one day to the next, they wouldn't suffer the slightest harm.
And reality proved his thoughts correct.
He, Satori—
Now known as Satori Hyūga,
Was genuinely a member of the Main House.
After the clan meeting concluded, he hadn't received the Caged Bird Seal, meaning he was free instead of being a bird trapped in a tiny cage.
As the days passed and he grew older,
Satori collected various pieces of information, gradually understanding his current circumstances and era.
He was indeed a true Main House member.
The man who had held him earlier was Elder Hyuga Sounmei—the clan's third elder—and also his grandfather.
As for his father, he fell during the Second Great Ninja War, while his mother had died of grief soon after.
He had almost ended up as another orphan at Tomato Orphanage.
Fortunately, he still had his grandfather from the Main House, which greatly improved his standing and quality of life.
At this time, the war had just ended, and relations between the Hidden Villages remained tense, with complex tensions still lingering.
However, within Konoha, being part of the prestigious Hyuga Clan,
He lacked nothing in terms of food or safety within the clan.
During such a chaotic wartime era,
Satori had already begun longing for his past life.
Without experiencing the fires of war, one cannot understand its cruelty.
Whether from the Main House or the Branch House, everyone had to obey the village's orders and go to war when commanded.
Once on the battlefield, everything became uncertain.
The battlefield was like a frenzied meat grinder, harvesting countless lives.
Many Hyūga marched to the battlefield, yet few ever returned alive.
Even the Main House reportedly lost several members in combat.
This showed just how merciless war could be—it wouldn't spare anyone simply because they belonged to a prestigious family or were from the Main House.
At first, Satori Hyūga had been a little confused about Main House members going into battle.
He had assumed the Main House didn't have to risk their lives on the battlefield.
But thinking further,
He recalled that Ao from Mist had taken a Byakugan during the Third Great Ninja War.
Clearly, even the Main House wasn't exempt from combat.
Compared to the Branch House, their living conditions were significantly better.
Not only were they protected by members of the Branch House, but the village also didn't assign them overly dangerous missions.
To survive, Satori Hyūga began feigning a passion for studying and diligent training from an early age.
This allowed him to devour books and master all there was to know about ninjas even at two or three years old.
By age four, he had already awakened his Byakugan and begun extracting chakra, becoming a genuine prodigy within the Hyūga Clan.
Yet by five, his genius status quietly faded, replaced by mockery.
That was because everyone realized this former prodigy, while training in chakra extraction, could only gather a tiny amount each time.
Furthermore, in the Ninja Academy, he spent the entire day napping and doing nothing, clearly giving up on trying.
As a result, his academic performance plummeted to the bottom of the class.
The amount of chakra he could cultivate was pathetically low—he couldn't even perform the foundational Three Basic Jutsu.
You see, chakra is one of the most essential components for any ninja.
No matter what type of ninjutsu you practice, you must use chakra to support it.
In many ways, a ninja with minimal chakra equates to limited potential and weak combat ability.
Even the Hyūga Clan, who relied solely on the Gentle Fist taijutsu style, still required a certain amount of chakra.
Due to these various reasons, Satori Hyūga went from being considered a Main House genius to becoming nothing more than a disgrace.
When he finally reached school age, people started referring to him as the "dead last" of the Hyūga clan.
All of this stemmed from his insufficient chakra reserves, which caused his performance in class to remain consistently poor—always ranked near the bottom.
Some members of the Branch House quietly grew resentful toward him.
"Satori Hyūga, as a Main House member, do you have no shame disgracing our clan?"
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** on the weekend!