Noon arrived.
Hyūga Gin walked back toward the Hyūga compound from Konoha Hospital, glancing down at the bandages wrapped around his palm.
With the steadily increasing regenerative ability of his body, the wound on his hand had actually healed completely before he even reached the hospital.
To avoid unnecessary attention, he had deliberately cut his palm again.
Even so, the medical-nin had still marveled at his recovery speed—calling it unusually strong.
Of course, Gin had done this for more than just appearances.
"..."
Lost in thought, he soon reached the edge of a training ground and looked up.
There, surrounded respectfully by several people, stood a familiar figure.
Hyūga Aoi—
the daughter of a Hyūga main family elder.
Her long black hair shimmered under the sunlight, and her sixteen-year-old face still carried a trace of youthful roundness.
Yet her Byakugan eyes were cold and sharp, like blades quenched in ice.
"Get lost!"
She kicked a kneeling branch family member aside without restraint.
The man let out a muffled groan, forcing himself to endure the pain—daring neither to protest nor even to show dissatisfaction.
"Useless trash."
Aoi shot him a look of disgust, then swept her gaze over the other branch members, irritation thick in her voice.
"All useless. Not a single one of you dares to fight back. My father actually sent you to protect me?"
The surrounding branch members kept their heads lowered, their posture humble and obedient, not daring to respond.
Aoi was the only daughter of that main family elder, spoiled since childhood into an arrogant, volatile temperament.
That alone wouldn't have been unusual—many main family children were like this.
The problem was that she loved combat, chased strength obsessively, and constantly demanded to be sent to the battlefield.
In the eyes of the branch family, this was reckless stupidity.
In the eyes of the main family, it was courting death.
This time, after being denied permission to leave the village yet again, she had vented her frustration by demanding the branch members spar with her at full strength.
But how could they dare?
Even though she wasn't old enough to learn the curse seal techniques yet, injuring her—even accidentally—could still lead to punishment via the Caged Bird Seal.
Compared to that soul-rending agony, being verbally abused or lightly beaten was nothing.
If Aoi wished, they would bark like dogs just to avoid that fate.
"Wait."
Aoi suddenly frowned.
"Isn't someone missing?"
The branch members exchanged brief glances.
They all knew who it was.
"Aoi-sama,"
the same Hyūga member who had stopped Gin earlier that morning spoke up hesitantly,
"it's—"
"Aoi-sama, I'm here."
The familiar voice cut in.
That man's body stiffened instinctively, phantom pain blooming again in his bruised abdomen.
Aoi turned sharply.
Her eyes landed on Gin.
"So that's who was missing," she said coldly.
"You useless waste."
Gin ignored the insult. He slightly lowered his head and raised his bandaged hand.
"My apologies, Aoi-sama. I injured my hand. I may not be able to—"
Whoosh!
A sudden gust tore through the air.
Gin instinctively tilted his head aside.
A fist grazed past his ear, the wind of it whipping his tied-back black hair loose.
He lifted his gaze calmly and met a pair of utterly emotionless Byakugan eyes.
"Enough excuses," Aoi said flatly.
"Let me see if you trash have improved at all."
Her fist retracted and flowed into a palm strike aimed straight at his chest.
But in the next instant—
Gin's body drifted away as if weightless, like a leaf caught by the wind, narrowly avoiding the blow.
A flicker of surprise crossed Aoi's face.
Veins bulged around her eyes as she assumed the true Gentle Fist stance.
Her right hand blurred into motion, three fingers aligned, stabbing toward Gin's left shoulder.
"..."
Gin sighed inwardly.
What a hassle.
He hadn't planned to reveal himself this soon—but kneeling like a dog was never an option.
He had endured for three years to gain a chance to change his fate.
If he kept kneeling now, then those three years meant nothing.
So—
Stand tall?
Or earn points?
"I'll stand tall—and earn them."
Gin slowly closed his eyes.
Once again, he entered that state of absolute focus.
Sight, sound, smell, taste, touch—
all physical senses were sealed.
Only spiritual perception remained.
Bang!
His body twisted and leaned back sharply.
Aoi's fingertips skimmed past his nose, slamming into the wooden post behind him and leaving a palm-sized indentation.
Wood splinters rained down, carrying the bitter scent of resin.
Her strikes followed in rapid succession, fists and palms flowing seamlessly—
Yet to Gin's perception, everything was slow.
His blood roared like a tide, heat surging through his body like magma, allowing his flesh to keep pace with his thoughts.
It was as if the world had slowed, and only he still moved at normal speed.
"What…?"
Watching every strike miss despite his eyes being closed, Aoi's pupils contracted.
Excitement flared across her face—quickly replaced by impatience.
Gin saw it.
Every turn left her ribs briefly exposed.
In the next instant, he seized that opening.
His palm curved smoothly across his chest, fishlike in its flexibility, catching her wrist.
His other arm locked onto her elbow—
A twist.
Crack.
Crack.
Two sounds rang out.
One dislocation.
One immediate reset.
The motion was so smooth she didn't even have time to scream—only a sharp, fleeting pain.
Before she could recover, Gin moved again.
His body shuddered minutely, force rippling from spine to arm, snapping outward like a whip.
Bang!
The sound was like bamboo bending past its limit before snapping back, a pale mist bursting into the air.
The blow slammed into Aoi's raised arms, sending her stumbling backward several steps, completely off balance—
If she fell too badly, things would get troublesome.
Gin sighed.
He grabbed her collar and yanked her upright without ceremony.
"Had enough, Aoi-sama?"
He opened his eyes.
Looking into her trembling gaze, he lowered his voice, sharp and cold.
"If you truly want to step onto the battlefield, then at the very least, you should understand this."
"On land soaked in blood—within a family this cruel—you are alive only because countless lives have been sacrificed."
"The living must be worthy of those sacrifices."
"And right now…"
"You are not."
He released her and pushed her back.
Ignoring the stunned, fearful, and shocked looks around them, Gin gave a small, proper bow—then turned and walked away.
His expression remained calm as he left the training ground.
And the moment he stepped out—
The sound he'd been waiting for echoed in his mind.
[Ding!]
[Your lie has been classified as False Sincerity and Unintentional Seduction.
Hyūga Aoi experienced intense emotional fluctuation and entered Self-Doubt.
You gained 300 Reality Points.]
"…Tch. That's slander."
Gin's smile vanished instantly.
Under his breath, he muttered:
"I can't bring myself to deceive women."
Then—
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a familiar figure.
A young boy, face twisted with resentment, stormed out from another courtyard.
That was—
Hyūga Neji.
"Oh?" Gin narrowed his eyes, smiling faintly.
"So my protagonist has finally appeared."
(End of Chapter)