In Konohagakure, a test was underway inside the Hyuga Clan's training hall.
At the center of the hall, a boy no more than five years old, Hyuga Satoru, took a quiet breath and shifted into the stance of the Gentle Fist. His pale, pearly eyes calmly locked onto Hyuga Hiashi, who stood before him with his hands at his sides.
"Byakugan!"
The moment the word left his lips, veins bulged at the corners of Satoru's eyes. His field of vision changed dramatically, his world suddenly coming alive with chakra pathways and flows.
"Even though I've seen you use the Byakugan many times before, Satoru, it still fills me with pride and astonishment every time."
"You truly are a genius, my son."
Hiashi couldn't help but smile as he spoke. As clan head of the Hyuga—one of Konoha's great dojutsu families—he had already reached the pinnacle of power, prestige, and influence. There was little left in the world for him to pursue… except one thing: producing and training an heir worthy of the Main Family.
And with Satoru's birth, that lifelong mission was already half complete.
As Hiashi's firstborn son, Satoru had shown such extraordinary talent that the entire Hyuga Clan had redefined what they thought a "genius" could be.
Seeing the pride and expectation in his father's eyes, Satoru quietly sighed in his heart.
The Hyuga Clan's vision… is far too narrow.
Even someone like him—at best a competent fighter—was being hailed as a prodigy, the great hope of the clan's future.
The truth was, Satoru hadn't been born in this world at all. His arrival here was nothing more than fate's cruel joke. One moment he'd been working overtime and nodding off at his desk, and the next he'd awakened in the world of Naruto—reborn as Hiashi's son in the Hyuga family.
Unlike many who transmigrated, Satoru's circumstances were remarkably fortunate: both parents alive, a stable household—and recently, his mother had even been confirmed three weeks pregnant. Before long, he'd have a little brother or sister.
It was ironic. In his past life, he'd been alone. Now he was surrounded by a sprawling clan. Yet that didn't mean life was easier.
Loneliness might no longer be an issue, but every aspect of his daily life was tightly arranged by his father, the clan head. Especially after awakening his Byakugan at just over a year old, the clan had made his education their top priority.
With an adult's mind and comprehension, Satoru's growth naturally far outpaced that of other children. And, perhaps more importantly, this new body of his seemed perfectly suited for the Hyuga's taijutsu arts.
Still, knowing the true upper limits of power in this world, Satoru never let his rapid progress get to his head.
A genius? In this world, geniuses were everywhere. Ordinary shinobi had limits—and even as a Hyuga, how far could he really go? Reaching the level of a prodigy like Minato Namikaze? That was already a far-fetched dream. To become as strong as Jiraiya or Orochimaru? He'd count himself lucky.
Realistically, Satoru suspected that once he grew up, his strength might surpass Hiashi's by only a small margin. And that level of power—by the standards of the wars to come—was hardly enough to survive.
But to the Hyuga, he was a once-in-centuries genius, the perfect heir to the Main Family's bloodline.
"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"
In the center of the hall, Satoru thrust his palm forward. High-density chakra surged outward in a blast of compressed force, striking directly toward Hiashi.
The blast of air pressure was so fierce that the Branch Family members watching from the sidelines instinctively raised their arms to shield their faces.
The Vacuum Palm was invisible and intangible to most, but Hiashi, who also possessed the Byakugan, could see it clearly.
"Vacuum Palm? But I've never taught you that—when did you…?"
Hiashi's eyes widened as he dodged aside, Byakugan active, his voice tinged with surprise. When he turned back toward Satoru—
"Isn't Vacuum Palm just a variation of the Gentle Fist?" Satoru replied calmly. "A technique like that—you only need to see it once to understand."
As he spoke, his right hand formed a sword-finger, thrusting toward Hiashi's tenketsu at the hara (abdomen).
The Gentle Fist—the Hyuga's unique taijutsu, used in conjunction with the Byakugan bloodline—was all about precise chakra control. By striking with pinpoint chakra-infused blows, the user could disrupt an opponent's chakra network from within.
The human chakra network was hidden beneath the skin, invisible to the naked eye—but through the Byakugan, every node and pathway became clear. It was for this reason that the Gentle Fist had been refined over generations into one of the Hyuga's foundational secret arts.
Satoru had begun training in the Gentle Fist shortly after learning to walk. Within a single month, he'd mastered the technique of projecting chakra from his fingertips. Once he'd memorized the chakra points across the human body, he'd effectively completed his Gentle Fist foundation.
As for the Vacuum Palm—though considered an advanced Gentle Fist application—for Satoru, it really wasn't that difficult to grasp.
Boom!
The blast struck the wall behind Hiashi, leaving a shallow crater. The force was still rough and unrefined—but enough to injure a human target badly.
Hiashi's Byakugan took in the dented wall, and his smile widened with pride.
His son's prowess reflected well on him as clan head, strengthening both his authority and the Main Family's prestige.
Blocking Satoru's follow-up strike, Hiashi countered with a palm strike toward Satoru's chest. But because of their great height difference, his stance was slightly off—an opening Satoru immediately seized upon.
Planting his hands on Hiashi's wrist, Satoru vaulted upward, twisting midair to drive a kick toward his father's temple. Hiashi managed to raise an arm just in time to block, but the boy had already seized the initiative. Landing smoothly, Satoru pressed the attack low, targeting Hiashi's legs with a flurry of blows.
His movements were seamless—each step light, each punch sharp. Strikes flowed together in a relentless rhythm: straight punches, driving palms, sweeping arcs. Within moments, he'd unleashed over a dozen consecutive attacks, forcing Hiashi back several paces.
The watching Branch Family members gasped in astonishment at the ferocity of the exchange. But soon, confusion flickered across their faces.
There was no denying Satoru's incredible physical skill. Yet his movements… didn't look much like the Gentle Fist at all.
"Lord Satoru's talent and strength are beyond question, but…"
"Did he actually learn the Gentle Fist?"
"Elder Hizashi, what's going on?"
The murmurs rippled through the crowd as Hiashi and Satoru's spar continued. All eyes turned toward Hyuga Hizashi, Hiashi's twin brother.
"Just use your Byakugan, and you'll understand," Hizashi replied evenly, though his eyes gleamed with admiration as he watched his nephew fight.
At this point in time, the brothers' relationship was still cordial. Hizashi's son, Neji, was less than a year old, and while there were moments of quiet resentment, familial affection still outweighed bitterness. For now, he could look upon his prodigious nephew with genuine appreciation.
Following his advice, the Branch Family members activated their Byakugan—and instantly, gasps spread through the hall.
"Wha—what is that?!"
"How… how is that possible? He's only five years old!"
Through the Byakugan, they saw it clearly: Satoru's chakra wasn't just flowing—it was rotating, condensing into a perfect Eight Trigrams pattern beneath his feet. And then, just below his navel, a new tenketsu flared to life—the three hundred sixty-second, a point that shouldn't exist.
Before anyone could speak, Satoru stepped forward—and fine cracks began to crawl across the stone floor.
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