As the elders of the Hyūga main family one by one offered up their eyes, this Tenseigan seemed to be drawing ever closer to transformation—yet at the same time, it also seemed infinitely far from that so-called transformation.
When the last elder of the main family handed over his eyes, the secret chamber fell into a deathly silence.
"Clan Head… did we succeed…?"
After a long while, one of the now-blind elders asked in a trembling voice.
"Or… are we still just one step short…?"
Hiashi stared at the massive Tenseigan before him with a trace of despair. Clearly, in his vision, only the very center—just a tiny point—had yet to turn that deep sapphire blue. And yet that tiny point seemed utterly impossible to erode away.
"Leave it to Neji!"
"He will come here. If even I fail, then he will take our place—take the place of our ancestors—and continue forward!"
Hiashi let out a long, desolate sigh. But this outcome was something he had already anticipated.
After all, this Tenseigan had been cultivated by the Hyūga clan for hundreds of years. If it could have succeeded, it likely would have done so long ago. In the end, it was nothing more than his own private desire—to drag the entire clan into one final gamble.
And now, it seemed… he had lost that gamble.
As Hiashi reached toward his Byakugan—as this final pair of eyes sank into the Tenseigan—
—it was as though the Tenseigan had finally met all the necessary conditions. It began to undergo an unimaginable transformation.
The original sapphire-blue light began to ripple like water.
At first, it only spread within the secret chamber.
But as time passed, the light emitted by the Tenseigan began to cover the entire Hyūga estate… then extend beyond it… spreading outward toward the whole of Konohagakure!
Even the moon itself seemed to dim at this moment—
—or rather, it was as if a flicker of sapphire-blue light had also flashed across the moon.
"What is that?"
The ANBU and the Konoha Military Police Force, who had been searching throughout the village for potential enemies, all turned their attention toward the direction of the Hyūga estate.
They could feel it—feel that something terrifying seemed to exist there!
"Quick! Report to the Third! Report to Tsunade-sama! To Keizumi-sama and Jiraiya-sama!"
An alert ANBU squad captain suddenly roared. He didn't know what exactly had happened—but he knew this was far beyond anything he could handle!
...
"So this light… is this the light of the Tenseigan?"
"I can feel it… under this light, my Byakugan seems to be undergoing some kind of change…"
Neji had been staying close to Hinata and Hanabi during this time. He didn't feel at ease leaving these two younger sisters alone—one was too young, and the other was so timid he worried whether she could even take care of herself.
"…Such a warm light…"
Hinata's Byakugan opened unconsciously. She didn't understand what was happening—but at this moment, the light felt like her mother's embrace.
So warm… that her eyes began to moisten.
"No!"
"No!"
"Why is the Tenseigan's light rising from the direction of the Hyūga main estate?!"
"What did the Clan Head and the others… do?!"
Neji's expression changed wildly. He felt that something was very wrong.
After all, not long ago, he had learned that the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon had once slaughtered Hyūga clansmen—precisely to bring about the birth of the Tenseigan.
And now the Tenseigan had been born—
—and it was coming from the Hyūga clan's direction…
"Hinata, take care of Hanabi!"
Neji could no longer care about anything else. He immediately rushed toward the Hyūga main estate.
And across all of Konohagakure—were there only these few who had been alarmed by the Tenseigan's light?
In Naruto's home, he slept soundly. But the Nine-Tails within him seemed somewhat confused.
It sensed something familiar…
—but also not quite familiar.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Sasuke, who had just been about to sleep, saw the sapphire-blue light rising from the distant Hyūga estate.
"The Hyūga clan?"
Sasuke frowned in confusion.
Weren't the main family all imprisoned?
How had the Hyūga clan, without making a sound, stirred up something so enormous?
At Jiraiya's residence—
"Old man, does this remind you of anything?"
Shima sensed the light of the Tenseigan. She seemed to recall that the Great Toad Sage had once mentioned something about this sapphire-blue light—but she was too old, and her memory was unclear.
"Another pair of Sage Eyes!"
"Completely different from the Sage of Six Paths… those eyes… have been born!"
Fukasaku furrowed his white brows tightly. His memory was better—he had already recognized what this sapphire-blue light represented!
"Another pair of Sage Eyes?"
Jiraiya listened to the two toad sages, completely puzzled.
"They are the Sage Eyes of the Sage of Six Paths' younger brother—"
"An eye even more terrifying than the Rinnegan… one that can easily destroy the entire ninja world!"
"But why?"
"Why didn't the Great Toad Sage foresee something this important?"
Shima had clearly remembered now. As she looked toward the Hyūga estate, her eyes were filled with fear and dread.
She still remembered—the Great Toad Sage had once said—that the Sage Eyes of the Sage of Six Paths' younger brother possessed the terrifying power to split the entire planet in half!
...
"What exactly is happening in the Hyūga clan…?"
Inside the Hokage Tower—
Hiruzen had just received news from the ANBU about Utatane Koharu's death.
He had not yet recovered from that shock—when he saw the sapphire-blue light rising from the direction of the Hyūga estate.
Instinctively, he changed into his combat attire and rushed toward the Hyūga estate.
"What are the Hyūga up to?"
"At my age, staying up late is my worst enemy, you know!"
At Tsunade's home—
Tsunade smashed apart the door blocking her way in anger.
Cursing all the while, she still rushed straight toward the Hyūga estate.
...
"So the Hyūga actually created the Tenseigan?"
"How did they even manage that?"
Keizumi stood on the second floor of his house, looking into the distance at the Hyūga estate.
More than anyone else, he could clearly sense it—that direction… truly contained a terrifying power capable of destroying the entire ninja world!
Even his Susanoo seemed… insignificant in the face of that power.
"…Let's just hope it's not what I think it is…"
Keizumi finished putting on his clothes.
He knew certain secrets about the Tenseigan—knew that the Tenseigan on the moon was created by forcibly fusing countless Byakugan together.
As for the Hyūga clan's Tenseigan—he didn't know how it had been created.
But… there was likely only one possibility.
The birth of the Tenseigan did not only alarm Konohagakure—
—it also alerted someone… on the moon!