A shinobi's fight and a samurai's fight were fundamentally different. The venue, the tools, the methods, the timing—nothing was fixed. Rather than calling it a fight, it was more accurate to call it a hunt: a contest waged for the express purpose of taking the other's life.
And among the current crop of Academy students, Hinata's greatest strength lay precisely in her acceptance of that brutal reality. Compared to greenhouse flowers like Sakura—"shinobi" in name only—Hinata's defining advantage was her crystal-clear embodiment of a ninja's most essential principle: in combat, show no mercy. Only life and death matter.
Combine that with her ability to assess both sides' conditions without letting any external factor cloud her judgment, and even if you reduced her raw power to the same level as everyone else, her win rate would still be the highest by far.
Thinking you'll bushwhack me with traps laid in the trees? Too bad—I'm not the kind of fool who goes poking into every bush blind.
Watching Sasuke plunge headlong into the forest ahead without a backward glance, Hinata let out a cool smirk. True, it was the right move against the Byakugan.
The Byakugan boasted a wide field of vision and the ability to see through solid objects, but the user's attention was finite. The broader the scope, the harder it became to pick out fine details. In close-quarters combat you could focus on a single person and read their chakra and meridians with complete clarity, but against multiple enemies or in complex terrain, subtle details inevitably slipped through.
That was why even someone as powerful as Kaguya had ultimately been undone by Team 7's coordinated assault—she'd failed to notice Sakura above her head, and a single punch had shattered her last chance to resist.
To counter a Hyuga shinobi one-on-one was effectively impossible; you needed support. Whether that meant teammates or pre-set traps, both could neutralize the Byakugan's advantage. The same applied to the Sharingan. As long as you weren't dealing with Uchiha on the level of Itachi or Madara—the kind who could annihilate you with a glance—combined tactics and trap warfare remained viable. Otherwise, the Uchiha and Hyuga clans wouldn't have suffered so many casualties in the shinobi world wars.
Given that Sasuke had come to her with this challenge of his own accord, Hinata had no qualms about turning the surrounding forest into her own forbidden ground. Sasuke's Thunder-Burial Fist was inherently suited for pairing with metallic ninja tools, and when you added the Uchiha clan's uncanny shuriken techniques and mechanical traps, Hinata had every reason to believe that stepping into those trees would mean an instant face-full of shuriken from every conceivable direction.
"Don't mistake me for some idiot who can only fight up close. I happen to be rather fond of these little throwing toys."
Halting at the forest's edge, Hinata smirked. She casually drew two kunai from the pouch at the small of her back, wound an explosive tag around each handle without a second thought, locked onto Sasuke's position through the trees, and hurled them both without an ounce of restraint.
Under normal circumstances, explosive tags were precious enough to warrant careful rationing. And with an enemy concealed in dense forest, you'd want to be even more judicious—the blast's impact could be blocked by obstacles, and pinpointing the target's location was unreliable.
But.
First: Hinata was rich. Rich enough to throw explosive tags around like scrap paper.
Second: Hinata had the Byakugan. She could see exactly where the enemy was hiding in those trees, and from exactly which angle an attack would land best.
Third: Hinata wasn't stupid. She flatly refused to charge into the forest like an idiot to force a brawl. Instead, she intended to maximize her own advantages and attack from range.
And so—
BOOM!!
The blast of the explosive tags filtered through the layered branches and emerged as a dull, muffled thud. A flock of startled birds fled the canopy in a panic, and black smoke from the burning wreckage curled lazily skyward.
A soot-blackened Sasuke barely managed a combat roll on the ground to shed the force of the explosion. No two ways about it—Hinata's attack had caught him off guard.
He'd painstakingly rigged the forest with traps, and now it looked like every last one had been for nothing. As expected, what made Hinata truly terrifying wasn't just that fist capable of launching a person ten meters into the air—it was her razor-sharp mind and unshakable composure.
Gasping and clutching his bruised left shoulder behind a boulder, Sasuke felt a genuine sting of frustration. To counter Hinata's devastating close-range taijutsu and Byakugan, he'd specifically prepared a trap-laden forest and even mapped out several follow-up tactics for when she entered.
But she hadn't taken the bait at all. She'd cleanly abandoned the seemingly advantageous close-quarters approach and instead turned the tables entirely, opting to simply blast him out of the trees with explosive tags.
"A mind that never wavers and an exceptionally clear head. This child's qualities are truly ideal for the very definition of a shinobi."
In a quiet, elegant courtyard, the Third Hokage watched Hinata through his crystal ball with undisguised admiration. Seated across the tea table from him was the current head of the Hyuga clan—Hinata's "father," Hiashi Hyuga.
"Yes... it's as if that child became a completely different person overnight. Before I even noticed, she'd already grown to this level..."
Watching Hinata in the crystal ball as well, Hiashi's tone carried a distinct note of regret. As the eldest daughter he'd given up on, she had—without his notice—grown into something remarkable entirely on her own. The feeling was akin to having thrown away a rough stone that turned out to contain a priceless gem.
"You didn't invite me here just for tea. Speak plainly. I've seen every sacrifice the Hyuga clan has made for Konoha over the years. And... I've already sworn that nothing like the Uchiha incident will ever happen again."
Gazing placidly into the crystal ball, the Third Hokage's voice took on a faint sigh. He understood Hiashi's concerns perfectly well.
Compared to the Uchiha, the Hyuga clan had been remarkably low-profile. Hiashi himself was loyal to Konoha to the core—which was precisely why the Uchiha had been reduced to ashes while the Hyuga still stood as the village's strongest clan.
"Yes... the truth is, the Academy curriculum is nearly finished, and graduation is approaching. If you wouldn't object, I'd like to request that Hinata be placed on the same team as the children from the Aburame and Inuzuka clans."
Hiashi hesitated before speaking, and his words sharpened the Third Hokage's gaze. The old man's eyes turned slightly keen.
"That child's personality may have changed beyond recognition, but in my judgment, she may actually be less suited to teaming with the Uchiha survivor and the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki. I'm concerned that the combination could produce something far more dangerous."
Having broached the subject, Hiashi's words came more freely now. The clan head's voice was frank and unguarded. "Of course, this is merely my personal opinion."
The Hyuga clan was stable. Hinata, the eldest daughter, had demonstrated extraordinary business acumen. And the younger daughter, Hanabi, possessed exceptional talent in the Gentle Fist. The Hyuga renaissance was well within sight.
At a time like this, why provoke Konoha's highest-risk elements—the Uchiha survivor and the walking time bomb that was the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki?
Moreover, given Hinata's demonstrated leadership ability, teaming her with Shino Aburame and Kiba Inuzuka would all but guarantee she'd assume command. Through that bond, the Hyuga clan could naturally cultivate ties with the Aburame and Inuzuka clans. The Hyuga had no intention of rebelling, but having more voices speaking in your favor was never a bad thing.
"Hiashi, I may not be the right person to say this, but I have to ask—is this request coming from you as a father, or as a clan head?"
Setting down his teacup, the Third Hokage's expression grew complicated. He understood perfectly what Hiashi was proposing: snuffing out potential instability before it could take root. Teaming Hinata with Shino and Kiba would let her cultivate goodwill with those two families. Even if she didn't see herself as a Hyuga shinobi, the Hyuga label she carried would still benefit her clan by extension.
But if she were paired with Sasuke and Naruto—never mind Sasuke's current status as what amounted to a hostage being used as leverage against Itachi Uchiha—the sheer significance of Naruto as the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki meant the risks would be beyond imagination.
That was exactly why, in the original story, Sakura Haruno—the only member of Team 7 who didn't come from a clan—had been chosen as the final piece. The primary reason was simple: she was easy to manage and wouldn't tangle the team in too many political threads.
"I am... the head of the Hyuga clan."
Hiashi could not deny his hesitation. He knew full well where he stood—as a clan leader, not a father.
"Heh. Relax. I'm the Hokage of this village—do you really think I'd make arrangements that would harm it?"
Adjusting the fire-character hat atop his head, the Third gave a warm chuckle, then took a sip of tea. "Mmm, this tea is quite good."
Risk existed at all times—just like that former student of his.
The old man lowered his eyes with a quiet, inward sigh. Regardless, Hiashi had conveyed his words and his meaning. If the Third chose a different arrangement and something went wrong, the Hyuga would bear no responsibility.
But to reject the possibility of greater development simply out of fear of potential trouble—that was the very definition of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Hiashi was only a clan head; the Third was the Hokage of the entire Hidden Leaf Village.
Since Hiashi's first decision to abandon Hinata had already been proven wrong... then perhaps it fell to the Third to correct that mistake on his behalf.