The spiritual body completely manifested itself, floating above the urn.
Its white robe drifted gently within the windless mental world.
His appearance...
Looked extremely similar to Kiyohara.
Almost identical.
The only difference was that he appeared somewhat more mature, and between his brows was the characteristic cool aloofness unique to the Hyuga clan.
Those white eyes stared at Kiyohara expressionlessly.
Kiyohara looked back at him as well.
Two versions of himself silently gazed at one another within the spiritual world.
After a long while...
"A future in the Hyuga clan?"
Kiyohara was the first to speak.
"Yes."
Hyuga Kiyohara nodded calmly.
This version gave Kiyohara a feeling very similar to Hyuga Neji.
Soon afterward, Kiyohara's gaze shifted toward his forehead.
It was hidden beneath a shinobi forehead protector.
Was there a Caged Bird Seal underneath?
Kiyohara was rather concerned about that question.
If this self happened to be from the branch family and he ended up inheriting a Caged Bird Seal across time and space, that would truly be a cruel joke.
"Main family or branch family?"
Kiyohara chose to ask directly.
"Of course, the main family."
Hyuga Kiyohara removed the forehead protector, revealing a smooth, unmarked forehead.
The moment he heard that, Kiyohara relaxed considerably.
"Young me, there is no need to be so nervous."
Seeing Kiyohara's expression, Hyuga Kiyohara smiled faintly.
"Death is the final destination of all things. The Caged Bird Seal is no exception. Once death arrives, it is released as well."
Hyuga Kiyohara shook his head.
Then he began explaining.
To put it simply, the Caged Bird Seal was merely a curse mark engraved upon the brains and Byakugan of branch family members.
Once the recipient died or their eyes were removed, the seal would immediately activate and completely destroy both the eyes and the brain.
The restraint it imposed upon the physical body was indeed powerful. At least up to that point, no branch family member had successfully removed it while still alive.
However, the seal only bound the body.
It could not bind the soul.
"What about Hyuga Hizashi?"
Kiyohara remembered that after Hyuga Hizashi died, he had later been revived through the Impure World Reincarnation technique, and the green Caged Bird Seal pattern had still been visible on his forehead.
"That is because the Edo Tensei body is recreated according to the deceased's appearance while alive, down to every detail. Even clothing is restored. If Hyuga Hizashi had willingly died and exhausted the chakra contained within the Caged Bird Seal, it would effectively have been removed."
Hearing this, Kiyohara nodded slightly.
That made sense.
Thinking carefully about it, the ability of the Caged Bird Seal was to destroy the brain and Byakugan at the moment of death.
Every technique required chakra as its driving force.
Fundamentally, curse mark techniques were also a form of sealing technique.
The Caged Bird Seal was not like the Yin Seal, capable of storing vast amounts of chakra.
Therefore, it was highly likely to be a one-time-use seal that vanished after activation.
Kiyohara recalled that during the Fourth Great Shinobi War, when Neji died, the seal on his forehead had indeed disappeared.
Besides, the Hyuga clan was not the Uzumaki clan.
The relationship between the two clans had never been particularly close.
Although the Hyuga clan's curse seal techniques were impressive, they were not so absurdly overpowered as to defy all logic.
"Then how did you die?"
Kiyohara asked curiously.
"I attempted to fuse with the Tenseigan."
"And then I died."
"..."
The moment he heard that, Kiyohara felt that this future version of himself was unbelievably bold.
Still, if one wanted the Byakugan to become stronger or achieve a meteoric leap in power, then the Tenseigan truly was the best path available.
"Was the purity of your Byakugan sufficient?"
Kiyohara asked.
Receiving Otsutsuki chakra could allow a Byakugan to evolve into a Tenseigan.
However, not every Byakugan possessed the qualifications to undergo that evolution.
Within the Byakugan itself, there existed something akin to the one-tomoe and two-tomoe stages of the Sharingan.
That factor was known as purity.
Otherwise, Otsutsuki Toneri would not have needed to travel all the way to abduct Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi.
There had been countless Byakugan stored on the moon.
If any Byakugan could evolve, he could have simply selected one at random.
Instead, he specifically took Hanabi's eyes and used them as his own, even remarking that they possessed exceptionally high purity.
Unlike the Sharingan, however, Byakugan purity was not visually obvious.
It could not be judged from appearance alone.
"I was still a little short. Not by much, but enough. I stole several reserve Byakugan from the main family's treasury and used experimentation to compensate for the deficiency."
"When the matter was exposed, the Hyuga clan regarded me as a madman who had violated ancestral laws. I fled the village overnight."
"Later, while searching for a path to the moon, I attempted to fuse Sharingan bloodline traits into myself."
"There were some problems with the technology."
"So I failed."
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow.
"That is how you died?"
This was the first time he had encountered a future self who had literally experimented himself to death.
Honestly speaking, if Hyuga Kiyohara had not recklessly modified his own body, then with the Byakugan alone he could have lived quite comfortably as a missing nin.
Even if the Hyuga clan and Konoha sent people after him to reclaim their bloodline.
Possessing the Byakugan meant hiding would not be particularly difficult.
And if all else failed, he could have joined another hidden village.
A bloodline user like him would have been treated as an honored guest almost anywhere.
Of course, the cost might have been his freedom.
"That's right."
Hyuga Kiyohara nodded.
"I never expected you to possess the Sharingan that I longed for."
The spirit of Hyuga Kiyohara floated around him, observing him closely.
"The Byakugan and Sharingan are roughly on the same level. The Sharingan simply has a greater advantage in the early stages."
Kiyohara replied.
At higher levels, both were extremely powerful.
Moreover, the evolution requirements for the Byakugan were actually simpler than those of the Sharingan.
If necessary, one could acquire a high-purity main family Byakugan and then somehow reach the moon, obtaining the means to evolve into a Tenseigan from the descendants of Otsutsuki Hamura.
But creating a Rinnegan from the Sharingan was far more difficult.
One had to obtain both Indra's and Asura's chakra, use them to recreate the Sage of Six Paths' chakra, and then wait through decades of development.
If fortune smiled upon them before they died of old age, the Rinnegan might finally awaken.
The conditions were unbelievably harsh.
To begin with, Kiyohara had absolutely no idea who the current reincarnations of Asura and Indra were.
Because Naruto and Sasuke had not even been born yet.
"The Sharingan is better at snowballing."
"It can copy countless jutsu and continuously improve one's foundation."
Hyuga Kiyohara shook his head.
Kiyohara thought about it and found himself agreeing.
The Sharingan's learning ability truly was exceptional.
"Then what are you final will?"
After chatting casually for a while, this was the matter Kiyohara cared about most.
So he asked the question he always asked.
With the Byakugan, his powers of perception would improve even further.
"Hmm..."
Hyuga Kiyohara rubbed his chin.
"The first one would be revenge against Mist shinobi."
"In my timeline, one of my Byakugan was taken from me. I eventually recovered it, but it had already been damaged."
"That was why I began researching methods to further increase its purity."
Kiyohara frowned.
Wasn't the scope of that revenge a bit too broad?
"Karatachi Yagura."
"I want you to destroy one of Karatachi Yagura's eyes."
Hyuga Kiyohara stated.
The person who had taken his Byakugan was Karatachi Yagura.
"No problem."
Kiyohara agreed immediately.
Due to the changes he had already caused, Yagura had never become the Three-Tails Jinchuriki.
Compared to his original counterpart, his strength should be somewhat weaker.
Completing this last will was entirely feasible.
"And the second one?"
Kiyohara asked.
"Merge Gentle Fist and Strong Fist."
Hyuga Kiyohara replied.
"I thought you were going to ask me to awaken the Tenseigan."
Kiyohara commented.
"My spirit probably won't last that long."
"I don't know which point in time your past belongs to, but Otsutsuki Toneri is not an easy opponent."
Hyuga Kiyohara shook his head.
The puppets stationed on the moon alone were capable of injuring Hiashi, the head of the Hyuga clan.
Even if Toneri himself did not intervene, releasing all of those puppets at once would still create enormous trouble for any hidden village.
Not to mention the ultimate weapon.
Hamura's Tenseigan.
A single attack from it had wiped out all members of the Otsutsuki main family on the moon, allowing the branch family to emerge victorious from their civil war.
As a result, Toneri became the final surviving descendant of the branch family.
"Then to what extent do you mean by fusion?"
Kiyohara asked curiously.
Among Konoha's taijutsu styles, Strong Fist was by far the most widespread.
In fact, throughout the entire shinobi world, Strong Fist dominated.
Gentle Fist, on the other hand, was rarely used outside the Hyuga clan.
After all, Gentle Fist was most effective when striking chakra points.
Differences in anatomy between individuals, combined with the high-speed movement of combat, meant that many shinobis without the Byakugan simply could not accurately target those points.
"Merge Eight Trigrams Air Palm with the Seventh Gate's Daytime Tiger."
"I've always wanted to test whether it would be possible to recreate Kaguya's Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack."
Hyuga Kiyohara said.
"I see."
Kiyohara stroked his chin thoughtfully.
The Seventh Gate was something he could already open, so that aspect posed no problem.
The principle behind Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm was simple.
It released chakra through the palms, producing an attack similar to an air cannon.
According to the databooks, Kaguya Otsutsuki's Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack was also extremely similar to the Hyuga clan's Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm.
The difference lay in the power.
The gap between the two was simply immeasurable.
Even Sasuke, empowered by Six Paths chakra and protected by Complete Body Susanoo, could be shattered directly by that technique.
"Those two techniques probably differ mainly in output and chakra volume."
Kiyohara said.
The concept of combining it with Daytime Tiger was genuinely interesting.
At its core, Daytime Tiger relied on extremely high-speed strikes to compress and launch an air cannon.
If chakra were infused into the attack as well, then the power of Daytime Tiger would undoubtedly increase dramatically.
It might even reach the destructive level of Evening Elephant while using the Eight Gates, perhaps even surpass it.
"More or less."
"You should experiment with it yourself."
"My chakra reserves were always my weakness."
Hyuga Kiyohara shook his head helplessly.
The Hyuga clan possessed countless inheritances left behind by their ancestors.
Unfortunately, they did not inherit the same overwhelming chakra reserves those ancestors once possessed.
This resulted in a situation where the techniques existed, but their true power could never be fully unleashed.
After all, if someone like Six Paths Madara casually used Gentle Fist, every strike would become a lethal killing move. It would no longer occupy its current awkward position of being stronger than average yet falling short of the very top.
Kiyohara nodded.
After continuing his conversation with Hyuga Kiyohara for a while longer, he withdrew from his mindscape.
The next morning, Kakashi was already waiting near the camp.
He was leaning against a tree, holding that familiar orange-covered book in his hand, though his attention was clearly not on the pages.
Hearing approaching footsteps, he looked up and casually stuffed the book into his shinobi pouch.
"You're here?"
Kiyohara stepped into the clearing between the trees. He removed his flak jacket, leaving only the black chainmail armor underneath.
"Yeah. What are we training today?"
Kiyohara asked.
Recently, Kakashi had become particularly fond of sparring with him.
Training this way sharpened practical combat ability at an astonishing pace.
After all, in the original story there had never been a genius like Kiyohara constantly suppressing Kakashi.
As a result, Kakashi had come to regard Kiyohara as an insurmountable mountain standing before him. This drove him to continuously polish his skills, making him far more diligent than his original counterpart.
"Kenjutsu."
Kakashi stood up and drew Yamamaru.
The silver-gray short blade reflected a cold gleam beneath the sunlight. Compared to when Kiyohara had first seen it, the blade had grown noticeably longer, and the curve of its edge had become smoother and more refined.
These were changes that had naturally occurred as Yamamaru continued to grow.
"I want to test that new technique you learned."
Kakashi raised his head, revealing his crimson Sharingan.
"Leaf-Style Willow?"
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. The technique you learned from Senior Kosuke."
Kakashi tightened his grip on the hilt.
"I want to know whether the Sharingan can see through it."
"We'll find out once we try."
Kiyohara drew his own shinobi sword from his waist.
The next second, Kakashi vanished from where he stood.
Lightning Release: Lightning Body Flicker!
His speed was astonishing.
The lightning exploding beneath his feet had not even fully dissipated before the blade had already reached Kiyohara's neck.
Pale violet lightning crackled around Yamamaru's edge.
It was Purple Lightning.
Kiyohara shifted his body.
The blade barely grazed past his neck.
In an instant, he appeared five meters away.
Kakashi activated Lightning Body Flicker again.
Yamamaru slashed horizontally toward Kiyohara's side.
This time, the lightning gathered around the blade was even more intense.
Kiyohara raised his sword to block.
Clang!
The collision of the two blades exploded into a ring of violet electric arcs.
Kakashi's Sharingan spun rapidly, capturing every minute movement Kiyohara made as he attempted to predict his attacks.
But Kiyohara had already predicted Kakashi's prediction.
Every move he made was faster than Kakashi's response.
"Still not enough."
Kiyohara's voice emerged from the gap between clashing blades.
"Your control over Purple Lightning has become more refined, but your offensive rhythm is too simple. Your body's reaction speed can't keep up with your eyes."
Kakashi clenched his teeth.
He knew Kiyohara was telling the truth.
Was this the difference in talent?
No.
That wasn't it.
Taking a deep breath, Kakashi circulated chakra through his body at full speed.
Yamamaru seemed to sense his emotions.
The blade trembled slightly.
The Purple Lightning wrapped around it suddenly swelled in intensity.
A trace of approval flashed through Kiyohara's eyes.
"That's a good state."
He nodded.
If landing a hit was difficult, then expanding the attack range was the answer.
Brute force could sometimes create miracles.
Kiyohara suddenly twisted his wrist.
The force behind his sword instantly increased.
Kakashi was knocked back three steps.
His palms went numb from the impact.
When he looked up again, he saw Kiyohara calmly sheathing his sword and standing there with a faint smile.
"Next, I'm going to attack."
Kiyohara deliberately warned him.
Otherwise, Kakashi might not even be able to see what happened.
Seeing this, Kakashi focused completely.
Kiyohara drew his sword.
The motion was extremely slow.
So slow that it resembled a beginner practicing the most basic sword forms.
Yet Kakashi immediately felt something was wrong.
Something wasn't right.
That sword...
There was something wrong with it.
His vision began to distort.
The surrounding trees, grass, and sky all became blurry.
Countless willow-catkin-like sword shadows surged toward him from every direction.
They obscured his vision.
They disrupted his senses.
The sword shadows possessed no physical form, yet they carried an overwhelming sense of pressure, as though they intended to trap him completely.
It was impossible to tell which were real and which were false.
Kakashi tightened his grip on Yamamaru.
Purple electricity danced along the blade.
Before he could react—
Kiyohara's true sword suddenly emerged from among the countless illusions and slashed directly toward him.
The tip of the blade stopped three centimeters from his throat.
Crack.
The willow-like sword shadows instantly shattered and disappeared.
The forest returned to silence.
The faint chirping of birds drifted through the trees.
Kakashi stood frozen in place, breathing heavily.
Cold sweat slid down his forehead and soaked the edge of his mask.
"So... this is Leaf-Style Willow?"
His voice sounded hoarse.
"Yeah."
Kiyohara sheathed his sword.
"It uses Yin Release chakra to create illusions, then hides the real killing strike among them. The Sharingan can see chakra flow, but the true essence of this technique lies in..."
He paused briefly.
"The transition between illusion and reality."
Kakashi raised a hand and looked at his fingers, which were still trembling slightly.
His Sharingan had failed to see through it.
The problem was not his eyes.
His training simply was not sufficient yet.
He still could not fully draw out the Sharingan's true power.
"This technique..."
He raised his head.
"Can you teach it to me?"
Kiyohara looked at him.
"I don't think Senior Kosuke would mind."
Kiyohara said.
"Still, he should be with the mission teams this afternoon. I'll ask him first."
Kiyohara intended to follow proper procedure.
Kakashi nodded.
Just then, a figure came jogging out from between the trees.
"Kiyohara!"
It was Kurenai's voice.
The two boys turned simultaneously.
Kurenai ran up to Kiyohara, breathing slightly harder than usual as her chest rose and fell.
"Lady Tsunade sent me to notify you."
She paused and glanced at both Kiyohara and Kakashi.
"Were you sparring again?"
"Yeah."
Kiyohara put away his sword.
"What is it?"
Kurenai's expression became serious.
"The outpost you investigated before has suddenly received a large number of additional stone shinobi."
She paused.
"Lady Tsunade says they may be preparing to make a move."
Kiyohara's eyebrow lifted slightly.
As expected.
Iwagakure would never simply sit by and do nothing after Kitsuchi had been captured.
"How many?"
"We're still gathering intelligence, but there are at least three times as many as before."
Kurenai frowned.
"Lady Tsunade wants you back as soon as possible to discuss countermeasures."
"Understood."
Kiyohara nodded.
Kurenai gave a small acknowledgment but did not leave immediately.
Her gaze landed on Yamamaru in Kakashi's hand.
"You and Yamamaru seem to work together really well."
"Yeah. Yamamaru is as obedient as my eight shinobi dogs."
Kakashi replied.
Since he raised eight shinobi hounds, he naturally understood how to get along with summoned creatures. As a result, he and Yamamaru had gotten along extremely well.
"I see."
Kurenai said softly.
Kiyohara could see a hint of envy in her eyes.
So he walked over and naturally reached out, gently rubbing the top of her head.
Kurenai's body stiffened.
The warmth of his hand traveled through her hair, carrying a faint comforting heat.
Her face instantly turned red.
"Y... you... what are you doing...?"
Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
Yet she made no attempt to move away.
"Your combination of genjutsu and Wind Release is becoming more and more sophisticated."
Kiyohara's voice came from above her.
Kurenai looked up.
Kiyohara was looking directly at her.
A faint smile rested within those black eyes.
"Actually, I'm working on a weapon for you too."
Kiyohara said.
Back when he had been conducting experiments in the laboratory, he had already received assistance from Shizune and Rin.
"I've already started developing it."
Kurenai's eyes immediately lit up.
"Really?"
"Really."
Kiyohara withdrew his hand.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Sorry for the late update, I fell asleep.