"Where am I?" Xie Zongqi opened his bleary eyes and glanced around.
The room was a standard Japanese-style tatami space, and Xie Zongqi was currently lying on a futon. Beside him stood an elderly man with shoulder-length hair, dressed in a gray kimono, staring at him with tense concern.
And this old man's pupils were white!
"Souma, are you alright? Don't scare your grandfather like this!" the old man exclaimed, his voice trembling with a mix of agitation and worry.
Though the language was one Xie Zongqi had never heard before, he could somehow understand it perfectly.
He pitied the old man—not only was he blind, but he'd also mistaken Xie Zongqi for his grandson.
Just as he was about to speak, a sharp pain exploded in his head. Darkness swallowed his vision, and Xie Zongqi promptly passed out again in dramatic fashion.
"Souma! Souma! Quick—fetch Lady Tsunade at once!" The kimono-clad elder's voice grew even more frantic as he watched his grandson collapse once more.
Those were the last words Xie Zongqi heard before losing consciousness.
In the darkness, fragmented images flashed before his eyes. Strangely, though he had no memory of these scenes, they felt as though he had lived through them himself.
Finally, the visions surged into his body like a tidal wave.
When he awoke again, three full days and nights had passed since he first opened his eyes.
The same gray-robed elder sat beside him, though now his kimono was disheveled, his long hair unkempt, and his white eyes visibly bloodshot.
Anyone could tell at a glance that the old man hadn't rested or taken care of himself properly in days.
Recalling his initial misunderstanding about the Byakugan, Xie Zongqi flushed with embarrassment.
"Grandfather, I'm sorry for worrying you!"
After inheriting all of his original body's memories, the emotions tied to the old man welled up uncontrollably, twisting Xie Zongqi's heart at the sight.
Yes, by now, Xie Zongqi fully understood what had happened.
He had somehow transmigrated!
He still remembered binge-watching anime all night before this.
As a fourth-year university otaku, Xie Zongqi had planned to indulge in anime during his final year before graduating, leaving behind all things 2D to focus on work.
But he'd overdone it—before he could abandon his 2D life, he'd ended up in a 2D world. What terrible luck.
With both parents alive, a house, a car, and a younger brother in high school, he'd never imagined crossing over to an anime world to start anew!
However, since he had crossed over, he might as well embrace this new life. As for his parents from his previous life, he could only hope his younger brother would take good care of them in his stead.
For now, Xie Zongqi—no, Souma Hyūga(this name will be used hereafter)—knew he had transmigrated into the popular anime Naruto from his past life.
And now, he was a member of the Hyūga clan in Konohagakure, the Hidden Leaf Village of the Land of Fire! Not just any member, but the sole inheritor of the third branch of the Hyūga main family's elder lineage!
The Hyūga main family was divided into nine branches—the clan head's lineage and eight elder lineages.
In each generation, only one person could inherit the main family status, while the rest were relegated to the branch family.
Souma Hyūga—was the sole inheritor of the third branch in this generation. The reason? Both of his parents in this life had passed away, leaving him as the only candidate.
His only remaining family was the elderly man in a gray kimono sitting by his bedside—Kurakawa Hyūga, the elder of the third branch.
Souma's father had been a member of the third branch's main family in the previous generation. Had Kurakawa passed away or retired, Souma's father would have taken over as elder, and Souma would have succeeded him in turn.
Unfortunately, Souma's father had died in the First Shinobi World War, and his mother, consumed by grief, passed away shortly after giving birth to him.
Souma was born in the 23rd year of Konoha's founding. Now, in the spring of the 28th year, he was five years old. By next year, at six, he would be old enough to enter the Ninja Academy.
Returning to the present, after Souma spoke, the old man before him could no longer hold back—tears streamed down his face.
"Good, good… As long as you're awake, that's enough. Souma, Grandpa won't force you to train anymore. Just grow up safe and sound, and take over my position when the time comes."
Kurakawa Hyūgahad never regretted anything as much as he did three days ago. Since Souma's parents had died young, Kurakawa had raised him for the past five years.
Because of this, Kurakawa had pushed Souma to become stronger, hoping he would survive better than his father, who had died too soon.
Thus, Kurakawa had been exceptionally strict with Souma's training.
Three days ago, Souma had collapsed from overexertion.
Of course, the training wasn't entirely without merit. The overtraining was one reason for his collapse, but the other was that Souma had awakened the Byakugan three days prior!
Awakening the Hyūga clan's Byakugan at just five years old—that was nothing short of genius!
While the Byakugan wasn't as difficult to awaken as the Uchiha clan's Sharingan, it was still no easy feat. Most Hyūga clan members awakened theirs after the age of eight.
But Souma was only five, with naturally limited chakra reserves. After overtraining, the sudden awakening of his Byakugan had drained his chakra completely.
Even a seasoned jōnin could faint from chakra exhaustion—let alone a five-year-old child.
Just look at future Sharingan-wielding Kakashi, who constantly overused his chakra and ended up bedridden for months at a time. Truly tragic!
In response to his grandfather's words, Souma didn't reply. Instead, he struggled to sit up on the bed, then clutched his stomach pitifully.
"Grandpa… I'm hungry."
As if on cue, his stomach let out a loud, unmistakable growl.
"Hahaha, alright, Grandpa will have the meal brought to you right away."
Hearing his grandson's hungry voice, Kurakawa Hyūga finally let out a sigh of relief.
Although Lady Tsunade had examined Souma and assured him that he would wake up within three days, as an elderly man, Kurakawa Hyūga couldn't fully relax until he saw his grandson regain his vitality.
Soon after, Kurakawa stepped out to instruct the branch family servants to bring in the meal.
Under the care of a maid from the branch family, Souma ate two full bowls of porridge along with some side dishes. It wasn't that there weren't other dishes available, but after lying in bed for three days and nights, he couldn't immediately indulge in rich, heavy foods upon waking.
The maid's attentive service made Souma quite embarrassed.
Though he had fully inherited the memories and experiences of his current body, his past life's recollections remained intact as well.
Having grown up under the red flag until his twenties in his previous life, he was particularly uncomfortable with the rigid hierarchy and servitude.
To make matters worse, after finishing the meal, the maid proceeded to help him change clothes.
Blushing furiously and suppressing the urge to flee, Souma endured the maid's "hands-on assistance" to complete the arduous task of getting dressed.
Amused by the young master's shyness, the maid deliberately took her time, making the process even slower than usual.
After eating, washing up, and changing, Souma lay back in bed, ready to sleep again. After all, he had woken up late in the evening, and as a five-year-old, his body needed ample rest to support its growth.
Initially, Kurakawa had intended to stay by his grandson's side, but after much persuasion, he finally agreed to get some rest himself.
Three sleepless days and nights had exhausted the old man, who had already lost his son. Now, with his grandson unconscious for so long, even the toughest person would be worn out.
Throughout those three days, Kurakawa hadn't entrusted Souma's care to the maids even once—after all, Souma was his only remaining family in this world, and he couldn't bring himself to leave the boy in anyone else's hands.
Before retiring for the night, Kurakawa instructed the maid to remain on standby in the adjacent room, ready to attend to Souma if needed.
Finally, Souma was left alone in his room.
Now, he had time to reflect on this world and his own circumstances.
Being reborn into the world of Naruto, a place brimming with supernatural powers, meant he had to stay vigilant at all times.
Who knew when a Tailed Beast Bomb might come flying out of nowhere, obliterating everything in its path?
Still, Souma was quite satisfied with his current identity.
Living in Konoha—the strongest shinobi village in the world—meant relative safety, at least in the early stages. The village had remained unscathed through three Great Shinobi Wars, emerging victorious each time. As long as he didn't leave Konoha, he should be fine.
Moreover, being reborn into the Hyūga clan was far better than ending up in the neighboring Uchiha clan.
In his past life, Souma had read plenty of novels, including Naruto fanfics.
Those who transmigrated into the Uchiha clan were either worrying about the impending massacre or already fleeing for their lives after it—truly a tragic fate!
In contrast, he had never heard of the Hyūga clan facing any existential threats.
If all else fails, I could just lay low until the Fourth Shinobi War ends, then latch onto the Seventh Hokage's coattails. Even a dog can ascend to heaven when its master achieves enlightenment—but that would truly be the lowest of choices.
Relying on a Hyūga woman to cling to the Child of Prophecy's coattails? Without an exceptionally thick skin, Souma Hyūga admitted he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Rather than clinging to others, Souma much preferred becoming someone others would rely on.
The shinobi world operated on strength. Without sufficient power, you could only hope for others' mercy—but who could guarantee everyone you met would be merciful?
What satisfied Souma most was that he'd been reborn into the Hyūga main family, not branded with the Caged Bird Seal of the branch family!
Though sharing the same ancestry and bloodline, the branch family were essentially slaves to the main family.
The Caged Bird Seal was a slave's mark!
Had Souma been born into the branch family during this tense period before the Second Shinobi War's outbreak, he'd never have been able to secure treatment from one of the Legendary Sannin, Tsunade.
Not only were branch members treated as slaves by the main family, they also lacked trust from Konoha's leadership. After all, if the Hokage ordered a branch member to act but the main family forbade it, whose orders took precedence?
Upon first transmigrating and inheriting his host's memories, Souma felt profoundly fortunate to avoid the Caged Bird Seal right from the start.
"From now on, I am Souma Hyūga of the Hyūga main family in Konohagakure, Land of Fire." With this declaration, Souma bid farewell to his past self.
"Decision made—starting tomorrow, I'll train harder than ever before."
Contemplating his future, the five-year-old Souma Hyūga finally drifted to sleep.
In his dreams, Souma had become one of the shinobi world's elite. During the Fourth Shinobi War, he grabbed Madara Uchiha by the throat and delivered Madara's own iconic line from his previous life—though in this version, Souma said to Madara: "Madara, do you wish to dance too?"
What teenager hasn't indulged in chuunibyou fantasies?
Now, this former university otaku turned Hyūga main family member was happily dreaming his chuunibyou dreams!