The next morning, as dawn barely tinged the sky, the sounds of training once again filled Souma's courtyard.
Sweat glistened in the air, and a freshly shattered wooden post lay on the ground—the sight that greeted Kurakawa as he passed through the entrance upon waking.
"This kid… He really goes all out!"
Kurakawa still didn't know what to say about his grandson after recalling last night's scene and everything before him now.
"Souma, come have breakfast first. You can continue training later."
Only after watching his grandson complete a set of Gentle Fist techniques and prepare to resume his stance did Kurakawa quickly call out to him.
"Ah, Grandfather, you're awake! Understood, I'll be right there."
Hearing the familiar voice, Souma promptly withdrew his stance, accepted the towel handed by a servant to wipe himself down, and joined Kurakawa to eat the breakfast just served.
"Souma, while your dedication to training is commendable, remember that excess is just as bad as deficiency. You're still growing—irreversible damage to your body would lead to lifelong regret."
Kurakawa didn't mention witnessing Souma's late-night training session, only offering subtle advice.
"Don't worry, Grandfather. I know my limits. If I truly can't handle it, I won't force myself."
Souma spoke with certainty. Perhaps due to his transmigration, though he lacked any golden finger or system, his mental fortitude was unusually strong. After two days of training, he still hadn't felt pushed to his limit.
Hearing this, Kurakawa nodded in approval.
"After breakfast and freshening up, accompany me to the clan head's residence. During the days you were unconscious, both the clan head and other main family members were deeply concerned. Now that you've recovered, it's proper to visit them together."
This surprised Souma.
Right—as the sole heir of the third branch of the main family, he was effectively one of the Hyūga clan's leaders. Waking from unconsciousness was significant enough to warrant informing the other main family members.
"Understood, Grandfather."
After agreeing, the two finished their meal in silence. Once Souma washed up, he followed Kurakawa, who waited by the entrance, toward the clan head's residence.
Along the way, observing the various structures within the Hyūga clan's compound, Souma could only think of words like solemn and austere—the atmosphere was undeniably oppressive.
They soon arrived at the clan head's estate. Since Souma's family belonged to the main lineage, the distance wasn't far.
The Hyūga clan's layout placed the clan head's mansion at the center, surrounded by the residences of the eight branch elders—core members of the main family. Further out lived the branch family shinobi, while the outermost areas housed ordinary clan members without ninja aptitude.
This arrangement was likely standard among most shinobi clans.
The Hyūga clan comprised roughly 1,600 members, with about 400 being shinobi—a quarter of the population. Among them, there were approximately 40 jōnin, with around 180 chūnin and genin each.
The main family, however, consisted of only about 20 individuals. This meant nearly 1,600 branch family members existed solely to serve these twenty people!
As for the neighboring Uchiha clan, their population is roughly around 2,000, with approximately 500 shinobi, accounting for about a quarter of their total. They have nearly 60 jōnin, around 300 chūnin, and about 140 genin.
As the first and second largest clans in Konoha, both clans essentially follow the standard of four civilians supporting the growth of one shinobi.
As for how Souma came to know all this, he gathered the information during his week of bed rest from his grandfather Kurakawa and the branch family servants attending to him.
After waiting briefly outside the clan head's residence, he was ushered into the council hall by a servant.
Souma had initially thought they'd be taken to the reception room. Upon entering the council hall and seeing the gathering of Hyūga clan members, he was momentarily taken aback.
Throughout all this, Kurakawa remained perfectly composed.
He then led Souma to sit on an empty zabuton cushion beside him, with Souma kneeling quietly at his grandfather's side.
Several nearby Hyūga clansmen nodded respectfully to Kurakawa, who returned their greetings with polite smiles—thus completing the formalities.
Souma surveyed the room. Including himself and Kurakawa, there were exactly ten people present, all sharing the distinctive Byakugan eyes and smooth, uncovered foreheads.
Without needing to guess, Souma knew these must all be main family members—likely the current Hyūga clan head and the eight lineage elders, the absolute core of their organization.
The absent main family members were presumably those who hadn't yet inherited elder positions or had already retired.
"Elder Kurakawa, you've arrived. How is Souma's recovery progressing?" The first to speak was a middle-aged man kneeling on the central zabuton.
His position clearly marked him as the Hyūga clan head, a fact Souma immediately recognized.
Indeed, Kurakawa's response confirmed this: "Thank you for your concern, Clan Head. Souma has fully recovered. Come now, Souma, pay your respects to our leader."
"Souma Hyūga, third lineage heir of the main family, greets the Clan Head. Thank you for your kind consideration." Following his grandfather's prompting, Souma performed a formal bow with practiced grace.
"My, how you've grown, Souma," the clan head remarked warmly. "I've seen little of you since your parents passed, but your grandfather has clearly cared for you well. Elder Kurakawa, after this meeting concludes, take a century-old blood ginseng from my stores for Souma's nourishment—a small gesture from me in place of what his parents might have offered."
Truly befitting the Hyūga clan head's stature, his generosity shone through this lavish gift of hundred-year-old blood ginseng.
The unexpected kindness even made the clan head's typically stern features appear welcoming to Souma.
Grandfather and grandson expressed their gratitude once more.
Though as main family members, Kurakawa could have petitioned the clan for such resources, that would have required collective approval—unlike the clan head's immediate access to his personal treasures.
While clan resources demanded deliberation, personal gifts left no room for others' opinions.
"Souma, we still have some matters to discuss with your grandfather. Why don't you rest in the courtyard with the servants for now? Coincidentally, Hiashi didn't go to the academy today—you can play with him and learn about academy knowledge since you'll be enrolling next year."
As expected, they were about to discuss important Hyūga clan matters, and the clan head naturally wanted to send the child Souma away.
After receiving a subtle nod from his grandfather Kurakawa, Souma stood up, bowed respectfully to the clan head and the eight branch elders seated on either side of the council hall, then withdrew.
Once outside, he finally let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't an overreaction—the atmosphere inside had been suffocating, thick with the tension of impending storm clouds.
If his memories from his past life served him right, the Second Shinobi World War was likely on the horizon.
If he recalled correctly, the war would break out in the 29th year of Konoha's founding—just one year from now. It was currently the spring of the 28th year, and by next winter at the latest, a war engulfing the entire shinobi world would erupt.
For the Five Great Nations, the war would merely be a game of strategy, but for smaller nations, it would spell catastrophic ruin.
Though Konoha would ultimately emerge victorious, the casualties suffered along the way would be devastating.
Perhaps due to the influence of his past life, the thought of countless lives being lost weighed heavily on Souma's heart. It was a sign that he hadn't yet fully acclimated to the brutal reality of this shinobi world.
With this somber mood, he followed the clan head's servant into the courtyard.
Shaking off the gloom, he spotted two boys around eight or nine years old sparring in the yard.
They weren't identical, but their resemblance was striking—nearly indistinguishable at a glance.
One was undoubtedly the future Hyūga clan head and the current head's eldest son, Hiashi Hyūga.
The other, who bore an uncanny likeness to Hiashi, must be Hizashi Hyūga—the twin younger brother who, in the original story, would die in his brother's place.
Despite their near-perfect resemblance, Souma could tell them apart immediately upon closer inspection.
After all, the unmistakable Caged Bird seal etched on Hizashi's forehead was impossible to overlook.
Both were the clan head's children—twins, no less—yet their fates diverged drastically simply because one was born minutes earlier than the other.
Hiashi would be served by the entire clan, while Hizashi was condemned to servitude as a branch family slave.
In an ordinary family, such a disparity in status would never exist.
Earlier, when the Hyūga leader dismissed Souma, he had only mentioned his eldest son, Hiashi, without so much as a word about Hizashi, who had already been relegated to the branch family.
To treat one's own children so differently—Souma didn't know what to say.
Perhaps the clan head felt it inappropriate to suddenly bring up a branch family member in front of so many main family elders. Or perhaps he was simply a staunch traditionalist. Who could say?
But for Souma, this was nothing short of a curse.
That's right, Souma is now part of the main family, but who can guarantee that all his descendants will remain in the main family as well?
Children of branch families stay as branch members, while children of the main family aren't necessarily destined to remain in it. If this continues, the branch families will only keep growing.
Just imagine—if he were to have two sons in the future, one would become the master, the other a slave. And then, with grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and beyond... the number of descendants relegated to branch families would only increase. The thought sent a chill down Souma's spine.
No, absolutely not!
Either break the outdated traditions between the main and branch families in the future, or I will never have descendants!
Souma once again made this silent vow to himself.
As the servant led Souma closer, the two brothers in training finally noticed his approach.
"Ah, so it's Souma. Father mentioned you collapsed from overtraining. Because of that, he even increased my usual training intensity," said Hiashi, a fellow member of the main family. Since they often crossed paths, Souma and Hiashi were acquainted.
"Lord Souma, how is your recovery?"
Hiashi's younger brother, Hizashi Hyūga, spoke next. Unlike Hiashi, who belonged to the main family, the original Souma had only met the branch family's Hizashi a handful of times.
The difference in how they addressed Souma alone highlighted the disparity in their statuses.