51st year of Konoha, early summer.
The chirping of cicadas echoed endlessly through the courtyard of the Hyuga Main House.
Inside Dojo No.
1, however, the air felt frozen—so oppressive it was suffocating.
”Bang!”
Hyuga Hiashi slammed his hand onto the wooden table beside him, sending splashes of water flying from the teacup.
His brows were tightly furrowed, veins bulging on his forehead.
His pair of pure white eyes stared intently at Hinata, who stood in the middle of the dojo.
”Too slow!
Your movements look like you haven’t eaten in days!
Is the Gentle Fist of the Hyuga clan meant to be a dance to you?!”
Hiashi’s voice rumbled like muffled thunder, echoing across the empty dojo.
A few attendants standing in the corner shrank back in fear, hastily pressing their heads even lower, not daring to make a sound.
Why is the Clan Leader throwing such a massive temper today?
The Young Mistress is only three years old!
In the center of the dojo, Hinata, dressed in a plain white training uniform, pulled her tiny shoulders inward at the sudden roar.
Her dark blue short hair swayed slightly with the motion, while her two chubby little hands anxiously pinched the hem of her shirt.
Water quickly pooled in her striking, cyan-blue eyes, on the verge of spilling over into tears.
She looked as pitiful as could possibly be.
However…
Beneath this weak, cute, and universally adored outer appearance, Hinata’s inner mind had already exploded into a storm of curses.
Roar!
Roar all you damn want!
I’m only three years old!
Three!
Have you ever seen a three-year-old child whip out a ferocious Gentle Fist?
Hinata raised a massive metaphorical middle finger in her head.
With these short arms and legs, it’s already a miracle I can remember dozens of complex starting stances!
And you’re calling me slow?
If you’ve got the guts, shrink your body down to three years old and show me what kind of magic you can pull off!
Besides, I was a 180cm tough guy in my past life!
Now you want me to pinch my voice, take tiny steps, and perform this soft, floppy fist technique?
Do I not care about my own self-respect?!
Hinata felt ridiculously aggrieved.
But this was the Naruto world, where human life was as cheap as dirt.
Before she fully mastered Gojo Satoru’s powers, she had to endure!
Not only did she have to endure, but she also had to act!
”S-Sorry, Father…”
Hinata sniffled, apologizing in a babyish voice.
Tears welled in her eyes, yet she stubbornly refused to let them fall.
Watching his daughter’s aggrieved look, Hiashi tightened the hands he held behind his back.
Did it hurt his heart?
Of course it did!
This was his biological daughter, the apple of his eye!
However, Hiashi’s heart was currently dominated by an anxious frustration over her lack of progress, alongside an undeniable sense of shock!
Just moments ago, Hiashi had kept his Byakugan active the entire time, staring intently at Hinata’s every single move.
On the surface, Hinata’s movements were indeed slow, soft, and completely devoid of power.
But!
Under the piercing vision of the Byakugan, Hiashi had witnessed a scene that made his scalp go numb!
The chakra flow inside Hinata’s body was so perfect it was terrifying!
The core of the Hyuga clan’s Gentle Fist lay in precisely concentrating chakra into the fingertips or palms, then injecting it into the enemy’s chakra points.
This required an insanely high level of chakra control.
Even adult Chunin of the Hyuga clan who had trained for over a decade would exhibit slight leakage or fluctuations in their pathways while channeling chakra.
Yet Hinata?
The chakra within her body moved like soldiers obeying absolute commands!
The instant her mind moved, her chakra would gather at her desired location—instantly, without any resistance, and without wasting a single drop!
It was as effortless as moving her own limbs!
Even more impressively, Hiashi acutely noticed that as she manipulated her chakra, the faint natural energy in the surrounding air seemed to subtly gather around her, joyfully cozying up to her like a welcoming crowd!
This child…
is a monster!
A massive wave of shock washed over Hiashi’s heart.
This level of absolute chakra control, this natural affinity for ambient energy!
If she can master the techniques of the Gentle Fist, her achievements will undoubtedly surpass anyone in the history of the Hyuga clan!
However!
Hiashi looked at Hinata standing in silence with her head lowered, his brows furrowed even deeper.
Her personality is far too soft!
Her attitude toward training is far too slack!
She doesn’t realize at all what kind of terrifying talent she possesses!
She’s just going through the motions to appease my training!
Hiashi took a deep breath, forcing down the wild joy and shock in his heart.
He knew that for a child with extraordinary talent but a passive personality, endless scolding would achieve nothing.
He had to give her pressure!
She had to feel the brutal, cutthroat reality of the shinobi world firsthand!
Only real combat, only a head-to-head clash against peers, could thoroughly spark her competitiveness and force out all her latent potential!
At that thought, Hiashi’s gaze instantly turned cold and unyielding.
He shed the stern father routine and completely returned to his role as the high-and-mighty, ruthless Leader of the Hyuga Clan.
”Come here.”
Hiashi spat out two words coldly.
”Yes, my Lord!”
An attendant standing in the corner scrambled forward immediately, kneeling on one knee with his forehead almost pressed flat against the wooden floorboards.
”Go to the Branch House.”
Hiashi looked down at the attendant, his voice devoid of any warmth.
”Call Hizashi.
Tell him to bring Neji.
Immediately.”
”Understood!
This servant will go right away!”
The attendant trembled, not daring to ask a single question, and scrambled out of the dojo as fast as his legs could carry him.
As the sliding door snapped shut, the dojo fell back into a dead, heavy silence.
Meanwhile, standing in the middle of the room, Hinata completely froze the second she heard the names “Hizashi” and “Neji.”
Her cyan-blue eyes snapped wide open, so shocked she forgot to keep shedding her fake tears.
Holy crap?!
Hinata cursed violently in her head.
Hyuga Neji?!
That tragic genius a year older than me, known as a once-in-a-century prodigy of the Hyuga clan?!
That was the monster who managed to figure out the Main House’s secret techniques—”Kaiten” and “Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms”—all on his own during his Genin days!
Even though Neji was only four years old right now, he had definitely begun practicing Gentle Fist and showing off his terrifying talent!
Why is this old guy suddenly calling Neji over?
Hinata’s brain began spinning rapidly as the Six Eyes’ insane computational ability kicked in to analyze her father’s mindset.
I performed so poorly just now, but instead of punishing me to keep practicing, he called the Branch House’s genius over…
Could it be…
Hinata sucked in a sharp breath of cold air, feeling a chill run straight from the soles of her feet to the top of her head.
Does this old man want Neji to beat me up?!
No doubt about it!
That was definitely it!
Hinata’s teeth ached with annoyance.
What do you call this?
The Catfish Effect?
Trying to stimulate me using the excellence of my peers?
Wanting me to take a beating so I work harder out of shame?
Screw you, Hyuga Hiashi!
Is this how you pit your own biological daughter?!
Hinata gave Hiashi an absolute roasting in her mind.
Although she possessed Gojo Satoru’s template, along with the automated passive defense of the Six Eyes and Limitless, the main problem was that she was only three years old!
Her chakra pathways were as fragile as tofu dregs!
Limitless could easily block Neji’s attacks and stop him from touching her.
However, if she displayed Limitless right in front of Neji and Hiashi, how was she supposed to explain it?
Gentle Fist failing to penetrate, chakra blocked by an invisible barrier…
That wasn’t even within the remote realm of the Byakugan’s abilities!
If I reveal such an absurd ability, won’t this old guy train me to death?
The more Hinata thought about it, the bigger her headache became.
No way.
When Neji tries to attack later, I absolutely cannot counter, nor can I use Limitless to block!
Worst case scenario, I’ll pretend to get sent flying and fake a faint!
Yeah, faking a faint!
Having made up her mind, Hinata took a deep breath, lowered her head again, and continued playing the timid, delicate Young Mistress of the Main House.
Only her two little index fingers were poking against each other so hard that her fingernails were nearly turning white.
Hiashi sat cross-legged in the head seat, lifting his slightly cooled tea to take a sip.
He watched Hinata standing quietly with her head down, the corner of his mouth curving into an almost imperceptible arc.
Are you scared?
It’s good that you’re scared.
I’ve observed Neji in secret.
His talent is indeed remarkably high, and because of his status in the Branch House, he carries a raw, ruthless edge in his bones.
Hinata, my daughter.
Today, your father will make you understand what kind of cruel world you must face as the heir to the Main House!
Time trickled by, minute by minute.
The time it took for an incense stick to burn passed slowly in the suffocating atmosphere.
Outside the dojo, soft footsteps echoed.
Hinata’s ears twitched slightly.
Through the sensory perception of her Six Eyes, she clearly captured the two waves of chakra approaching the door.
One was powerful, restrained, and shrouded in a deep melancholy.
That was Hizashi.
The other, though still young and small, was exceptionally sharp and concentrated—like a dagger that had just been honed.
That was the four-year-old Neji!
”Clan Leader, Hizashi has brought Neji to pay respects.”
From outside the door came Hyuga Hizashi’s respectful and steady voice.
”Enter.”
Hiashi set down his teacup, his voice returning to its usual cold, unreadable composure.
Creak—
The wooden sliding door of the dojo was slowly pulled open, signaling the arrival of the impending sparring session.