[Chakra reserves have reached their current limit.]
[Assisted breakthrough initiated.]
[Breakthrough complete.]
[Chakra has undergone a qualitative transformation.]
[Chakra Level: Genin.]
Another notification followed almost immediately.
[Shuriken — Proficient: 100%]
[Bottleneck detected.]
[Assisted breakthrough initiated.]
[Breakthrough complete.]
Shuriken
Proficient → Master
Then came the next.
[Kunai — Proficient: 100%]
[Bottleneck detected.]
[Assisted breakthrough initiated.]
[Breakthrough complete.]
Kunai
Proficient → Master
Tenriki’s natural aptitude was apparently exceptional even without the system.
After a little over a month of chakra training, his reserves had finally crossed the threshold of an ordinary genin.
His progress with shuriken and kunai had been even faster.
Thanks to reaching the Transcendent rank in Basic Swordsmanship, the experience and control he had gained carried over into other weapon techniques.
In barely a month, both his shuriken and kunai skills had advanced from Novice to Proficient, then all the way to Master.
And that was only what he allowed other people to see.
Tenriki had deliberately maintained the image of an extraordinary but still somewhat believable prodigy.
Even so, most of the younger Hyuga had practically become his devoted admirers.
They had no idea he already possessed genin-level chakra.
Nor did they know just how absurd his swordsmanship had become.
Now that his chakra had reached a new level, Tenriki decided it was finally time to begin studying the Hyuga Clan’s true combat arts under his father.
His first priority was learning how to release chakra from every chakra point throughout his body.
It wasn’t technically a ninjutsu, but its value was enormous.
Most shinobi could only release chakra efficiently through limited parts of the body, especially the hands and feet.
The Hyuga, however, could expel chakra from chakra points across their entire body.
It was practically cheating.
After that came the Gentle Fist and the Eight Trigrams techniques.
More advanced moves such as 8 Trigrams Palms Rotation and Mountain Crusher would have to wait until his chakra reserves grew larger.
For now, there was no reason to rush.
He was still only three years old.
That evening, the Hyuga family sat together for dinner.
Hiashi Hyuga occupied one side of the table beside his wife, Nami.
Across from them sat Tenriki and Hinata.
Hiashi looked at his son’s straight-backed posture and allowed himself a faint smile.
“Tenriki, I heard you’ve learned to control five shuriken well enough to make them curve even at a hundred meters.”
“Yes, Father.” Tenriki nodded.
“It isn’t particularly difficult for me anymore.”
“Don’t become arrogant.”
Hiashi’s tone was stern, but the satisfaction on his face betrayed him.
“The two Uchiha brothers are both exceptionally talented. If you want worthy rivals, look to them.”
Tenriki nodded.
“Don’t worry. Itachi Uchiha is only a few years older than me. I’ll catch up soon enough.”
He sounded confident.
Internally, however, Tenriki was considerably more cautious.
That’s Itachi we’re talking about.
Raw combat ability was one thing.
Itachi’s genjutsu was another matter entirely.
That was something Tenriki had no intention of underestimating.
“I believe you can,” Hiashi said.
His son’s talent had already surpassed every expectation Hiashi had once held.
In his eyes, Tenriki possessed the potential to stand alongside even the greatest figures in Hyuga history.
For a father—and the head of the clan—it was difficult not to feel proud.
“Father, I want to begin learning the Gentle Fist and the Eight Trigrams techniques.”
Hiashi’s brows rose.
“But you’re only three. Your chakra—”
“It’ll be fine.”
Tenriki smiled.
“I’m a genius, remember?”
Before Hiashi could respond, Tenriki released the chakra he had been suppressing.
A sudden pressure filled the room.
Hiashi froze.
Nami froze with him.
Their chopsticks slipped from their fingers and struck the floor.
Hiashi stared at his son.
“This is…”
“My chakra has already reached the level of a genin,” Tenriki said calmly.
“There was a noticeable qualitative change when I broke through.”
For several seconds, Hiashi said nothing.
“This… this…”
The normally composed clan head actually found himself struggling for words.
It had only been a month.
One month.
Hiashi remembered how long it had taken him to reach the same level when he was young.
A full year.
He stared at his three-year-old son and suddenly felt as though his own childhood training had been a complete waste of time.
The comparison was brutal.
Then, just as suddenly, Hiashi burst into laughter.
It was loud, unrestrained, and filled with genuine satisfaction.
“Good!”
He slapped the table.
“Excellent!”
His grin widened.
“That’s my son!”
Hinata sat beside Tenriki with her cheeks puffed out.
“Brother’s always so amazing…”
She looked down at herself.
“Nobody even notices me.”
Tenriki glanced sideways at her.
Hinata’s frustration wasn’t resentment.
If anything, it had the opposite effect.
Seeing how quickly her brother improved made something stir inside her.
She wanted to become stronger too.
She wanted to catch up.
Even if she could only reach his back for now, she wanted to keep chasing him.
For the next two days, Hiashi postponed his meetings with the Cloud delegation regarding the renegotiation of the ceasefire agreement.
Instead, he devoted his time to personally teaching Tenriki the Gentle Fist and the Eight Trigrams techniques.
Tenriki’s previous training gave him an enormous advantage.
His understanding of chakra control, movement, timing, and combat fundamentals was already far beyond what anyone would expect from a child his age.
So once Hiashi demonstrated the principles behind the Gentle Fist, Tenriki absorbed them frighteningly quickly.
By the third day, the system responded.
[Gentle Fist — Novice: 100%]
[Bottleneck detected.]
[Assisted breakthrough initiated.]
[Breakthrough complete.]
Gentle Fist
Novice → Proficient
Another notification followed.
[Eight Trigrams Palms — Novice: 100%]
[Bottleneck detected.]
[Assisted breakthrough initiated.]
[Breakthrough complete.]
Novice → Proficient
[New Technique Acquired: 8 Trigrams 64 Palms.]
Tenriki’s eyes sharpened.
He stepped onto the training ground and lowered his stance.
One foot slid backward.
His palms rose.
Hiashi’s expression changed the instant he recognized the posture.
Hinata blinked from beside him.
Tenriki moved.
“Gentle Fist: 8 Trigrams 64 Palms!”
He surged toward the wooden training dummy.
“Two palms!”
His hands flashed.
“Four palms!”
Another burst.
“Eight palms!”
“Sixteen palms!”
The strikes accelerated.
“Thirty-two palms!”
Hiashi’s eyes widened.
Tenriki’s arms were becoming difficult to follow.
His hands and body blurred together as he drove forward with relentless precision, each palm carrying the oppressive rhythm of a violent storm.
Then came the final sequence.
“Sixty-four palms!”
The last strike landed.
For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
Cracks spread across the wooden dummy.
One.
Ten.
Dozens.
Then the entire target exploded into fragments, splinters scattering through the air.
Silence filled the training ground.
Hiashi stared at the remains.
Then at his son.
Then back at the remains.
“You mastered it already?”
Tenriki straightened.
Hiashi suddenly felt exhausted.
Not physically.
Existentially.
He had spent years mastering the Gentle Fist.
His son had apparently decided that three days was sufficient.
Beside him, Hinata looked equally devastated.
“Brother’s so strong…”
She glanced at her own hands.
“I haven’t even learned the eighth palm yet…”
Her young pride suffered another direct hit.
Before either of them could say anything else, a Hyuga guard suddenly appeared beside Hiashi.
He knelt and leaned closer, delivering a quiet report.
Hiashi’s expression changed instantly.
“What?”
His eyes widened.
“He awakened it?”
Tenriki turned toward him.
“What happened?”
Hiashi’s earlier excitement disappeared, replaced by a heavy expression.
“Itachi Uchiha.”
He paused.
“He’s awakened the Sharingan.”
Tenriki’s eyes narrowed.
Hiashi exhaled slowly.
“At only eight years old.”