"Today Sasuke said he's got two people he hates most," Naruto went on, slurping noodles. "One of 'em's you. Watch your back. I don't like the guy either, but he's kinda strong."
"No sweat," Ayato said, suddenly turning to stare straight at him. "You'll protect me, right?"
Naruto froze, eyes wide. The sheer trust hit him like a truck. He could only nod furiously.
Jackpot. Middle-school shōnen melodrama—still undefeated.
Hokage's Office
Danzo stood before Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Hiruzen. Ayato's a ninja now. Time to bring him into Root."
It was phrased as a question; the tone wasn't.
"He has to volunteer," Hiruzen said, puffing his pipe. "Tsunade would never allow forced recruitment."
"Tsunade's not here. This is for the village. We already have one success. Another Senju bloodline would yield even more."
"Still no. Only if he chooses it. The Senju are gone."
"Hmph. Give him a reason he has to join, and the choice is made for him." Danzo shrugged.
Hiruzen glanced at him. "No harming other villagers."
Silence. Permission granted.
Ayato hadn't shown standout talent, but he did own an entire street. If Danzo got his hooks in, brainwashing would follow fast. The property would be "donated" to the village in no time. Even if the brainwashing failed, Danzo's games would burn the kid out. No heirs → village inherits everything. Clean.
Danzo nodded. Deal sealed. Now for the real prize.
"Naruto and Sasuke are genin too."
"You're not touching them." Hiruzen cut him off.
He'd spent years building a bond with Naruto. Three days in Danzo's hands and the kid would be a perfect little weapon. Sasuke was Itachi's leash. Lose the leash, lose Itachi—and Itachi's genius was worth more than the whole Uchiha district had been.
He'd let Itachi spare Sasuke because the kid was mediocre by clan standards. No Sharingan yet, despite graduating top of the class? Proof he wasn't a threat. Genius like Shisui and Itachi had scared Hiruzen once. Turns out they were easy to manipulate. One coup later, the Uchiha were down to a single "failure."
Next target: Hyuga.
Branch family gets a jonin on Kakashi's level. Main family gets a special jonin who only knows genjutsu. Let the kids grow up—vast power gap, reversed social status. Watch the internal drama explode.
Oh, and Yuhi Hong is dating his son Asuma. Gives the main family face, keeps them quiet. Face doesn't teach better jutsu, though.
When this generation matures, his long game will be obvious.
Danzo just gave Hiruzen a long look, tapped his cane, and left.
You forbid me? Cute. You forbid a lot of things.
Back home, Ayato locked himself in his room for chakra training. The courtyard risked the Third's telescope jutsu; only basic workouts happened under the tree.
He watched a bone spike slide out of his forearm.
"Senju and Kaguya—both Otsutsuki offshoots. Yin Release grows bone. Yang Release speeds healing." He tapped his chin. "What if I pump them into the eyes? Eyes and body are separate systems, right?"
Bloodlines were just chakra-nature combos passed down. The Warring States era tried everything, so new ones were rare now. Didn't mean impossible.
Downsides, though: Kaguya → genetic sickness. Senju → low inheritance rate. Uchiha → brain damage. Hyuga → power ceiling.
"Screw it. Experiment time."
Full affinity spread, no specialization. Any nature he wanted, just weaker per unit of chakra. Didn't matter—years of Yin-Yang body tempering had ballooned his reserves. Kid or not, he was already Kakashi-level (pre-Sharingan).
He gritted his teeth and flooded Yang Release into his left eye. No pain. Vision sharpened slightly.
Mirror check: pupil a shade lighter. "Keep feeding Yang… white eye?"
Then Yin Release into the right eye. Sharp sting, then—nothing visible. But different.
"Yin's weird. Yang didn't hurt at all."
Tried Yang in the right eye. Blocked. Like the pathway was sealed.
"Whatever. One Byakugan's a win."
He kept the split feed going—Yang left, Yin right.
Unlike bloodline clans, he had no blueprint. How long until results? No clue.
"Better grab sunglasses before anyone notices."