Hyūga Clan Compound
After leaving the academy, Hinata ran straight home without stopping.
Clutching her report card, she exhaled once to steady herself, then stepped slowly into the courtyard.
The Hyūga clan is strict about rules and etiquette—if she barged in, she would certainly be scolded.
"Father."
Hinata arrived at the study where Hiashi Hyūga was.
"Come in."
A dignified voice answered.
Hinata slid the door open, removed her shoes, and entered the study.
"What is it?"
Hiashi sat cross‑legged on the tatami, a book in hand.
"The monthly exams are over, and the results are out."
Hinata moved forward, knelt before him, the pale soles of her feet turned outward.
"What rank?"
Hiashi asked calmly.
He already knew Class 1‑A, where Hinata studied, inside and out.
The heirs of every major Konoha clan were gathered there—most notably Uchiha Sasuke, younger brother of the prodigy Uchiha Itachi.
Hiashi sighed inwardly.
The Hyūga also had a genius—Neji Hyūga—but sadly he was in the branch family.
As for Hinata, Hiashi had all but given up hope.
Hanabi Hyūga had already been born.
By clan tradition, only one heir may remain in the main family each generation; the rest receive the Caged‑Bird Seal and become a branch family.
Between Hinata and Hanabi, one of them would eventually be branded a branch member.
The seal both prevents the Byakugan from leaking outside the clan and allows the main family to control the branch family.
"Father, please look."
Hinata handed over the report card with hopeful anticipation.
"Hm? First place?"
Hiashi glanced at it, and his expression changed at once.
First place? For a moment he lost his composure—this result was far beyond anything he had expected. He had never imagined Hinata would rank first.
Hinata caught his reaction and her heart leapt. Clearly, her top score had taken him completely by surprise.
"Hinata," Hiashi said after reading, "you did very well. You have not shamed the Hyūga clan."
"Thank you, Father!"
For the first time Hinata heard praise from her father, and excitement lit up her face.
"How did you manage to take first?"
Hiashi asked, curious.
"It was thanks to Kitazawa-sensei's help."
Hinata answered honestly.
Kitazawa? Hiashi mused.
Tokuma Hyūga, whom he had assigned to guard Hinata, had reported on this Kitazawa—the man who taught a lesson to the kids bullying her.
"It seems he is a good teacher."
Hiashi nodded slightly.
"Yes," Hinata said earnestly. "Kitazawa-sensei is amazing!"
A mere chūnin—what's so amazing? At best his teaching was decent, Hiashi thought.
"Kitazawa-sensei taught me tree‑climbing to improve chakra control…"
Hinata began to speak animatedly.
Is this really my daughter? Hiashi watched, finding her almost unfamiliar. In the past, five sentences to him counted as chatty; now she was lively and talkative. The root cause was clearly that Kitazawa-sensei.
Hiashi fell silent. Too late now—Hanabi was born, and the tragedy between him and Hizashi might repeat.
…
Elsewhere
Kitazawa left the Ninja Academy.
Walking through the streets he sighed—having backing really was nice. Both his selection to set the thirty exam questions and Hinata's choice as outstanding student representative were thanks to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Privilege felt good, but Kitazawa knew it all hinged on his status as a teacher and his bond with Naruto Uzumaki. When a real crisis came, he'd have no say in Konoha.
"Strength is what truly matters."
As he walked, he reviewed his missions:
The one‑on‑one match between Hinata and Toranosuke could proceed after the speech. Hinata was far stronger; as long as her personality shifted a bit, victory was assured.
Sending Mizuki to prison would wait—no good chance yet, and any clash would likely mean a fight. Kitazawa knew plenty of jutsu, but his chakra was average—two techniques would drain him.
To play it safe, he needed another power‑up.
Key to that was completing the mission to learn Naruto's Sexy Technique, which would raise his chakra reserve by a tenth. Creating the jutsu wasn't hard, but it would ruin his image as a respectable teacher—and might offend Hiruzen.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin. Could someone else take the fall?
After a moment's thought, his eyes lit up—there was indeed someone:
Kakashi Hatake.
The more Kitazawa considered, the better it fit:
1. Kakashi had the skill to develop it.
2. He was an Icha Icha Paradise fan who already used shameless techniques like Thousand Years of Death.
3. He came from impeccable roots—Hiruzen wouldn't blame him.
With that decided, Kitazawa turned down another street and soon reached Kakashi's house.
"I wonder if he's home."
He knocked. After a moment the door opened to reveal Kakashi—silver hair, most of his face masked.
"Kakashi, I need a favor," Kitazawa began, then lowered his voice. "And you can't tell anyone about this."
"Planning to defect?" Kakashi asked bluntly.
"Of course not! Slander!" Kitazawa protested. "My heart has only one sun—the Hokage!"
"Then what is it?"
Kakashi's dead‑fish eye fixed on him.
"You know Naruto Uzumaki?"
Kitazawa got to the point.
"What are you getting at?" Kakashi's eyes brightened at the familiar name—he'd guarded Naruto even before the boy was born.
"I'm a teacher at the academy now," Kitazawa explained, "and Naruto is one of my students."
"So?" Kakashi asked, puzzled.
"Recently Naruto's developing a jutsu based on the Transformation Technique," Kitazawa sighed. "You know I'm just an ordinary chūnin—I don't have the skill for that. You understand, right?"
"He's only six and already creating jutsu?" Kakashi was amazed, though remembering Naruto was Minato's son made it plausible—the Rasengan, pinnacle of chakra shape transformation, was Minato's own creation. Truly his teacher's son, Kakashi thought.
"You're the Copy Ninja, Konoha's Top Technician—this job can only be yours," Kitazawa said earnestly. "Will you help?"
"Don't call me 'top technician,'" Kakashi muttered. "I'm free tomorrow. Bring Naruto to see me."
Though he had sealed his heart away, he couldn't refuse the son of his sensei.
~~~
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