Almost every member of the Hyūga Branch Family had a Main Family member they were assigned to serve.
They were called "attendants."
In truth, they were servants.
Not every Main Family member was as gentle as Hyūga Hinata.
If fate was unkind and one was assigned to a cruel master, the role of "attendant" often came bundled with an additional duty—
A living training dummy.
Unfortunately, the Main Family member Gin served happened to be exactly the sort who didn't consider Branch Family lives as lives at all.
As for the man standing in front of him now—
He was merely a dog.
A well-trained one.
The smile on Hyūga Gin's face faded slightly. He ignored the deliberate provocation and continued walking toward the exit.
The Hyūga guard clearly hadn't expected that. Used to Gin's silent submission in the face of rumors and insults, the man's expression darkened.
"Hyūga Gin," he barked sharply, dropping all pretense. "I'm talking to you!"
Gin didn't respond.
He kept walking.
Might Guy shrugged—and followed.
"Trash! I told you to stop!"
Anger exploded behind them, followed by the shrill whistle of air being torn apart.
The guard reached straight for Gin's shoulder, striking without the slightest hint of restraint or kinship.
Guy halted, frowning, about to intervene—
But at the exact moment that hand landed—
Gin's body shuddered.
Like a pine tree violently shedding snow.
A penetrating force surged through his frame and exploded at his shoulder, numbing the attacker's palm instantly.
Before the stunned Hyūga could react—
Gin didn't even turn his head.
His arm bent.
His left foot stepped forward.
His body traced a perfect circle.
The hem of his white robes spun lightly, briefly revealing a lean, well-defined waist as his palm thrust out.
To the guard's eyes—
His right hand was shaken away.
Gin vanished almost like a Body Flicker, lowering his stance—
And his palm was suddenly pressed against the man's abdomen.
Then—
A power far beyond anything he had ever experienced surged forth like a tidal wave.
BOOM!!
The force detonated within half a centimeter.
It was enough to shake stone.
The Hyūga guard's body folded as if struck by a siege ram.
Just as blood was about to burst from his throat—
"Bleeding would be troublesome."
A calm voice spoke.
Gin's right palm rotated upward, elbow sinking down, and he gently tapped the man's chin.
Crack.
A crisp sound rang out.
The blood that had risen into the guard's throat was forced back down.
"Cough—! Cough!!"
His face contorted in agony. Clutching his throat and abdomen, he collapsed to his knees in front of Gin.
"You… you dare—"
His Byakugan bulged slightly, veins bulging as he glared upward.
But the moment his eyes met Gin's—
The rest of his words froze.
An inexplicable chill crawled up his spine.
Like a snake slithering over his skin, tightening inch by inch.
I'm… afraid?
Of him? Of this trash? Impossible—
Gin looked down at him, the gentle smile returning to his face.
He patted the man's shoulder lightly, ignoring the trembling body—
And walked out of the compound with Guy.
"I didn't expect you to go that far!"
Guy's tone remained relaxed as they walked, his curiosity genuine rather than reproachful.
He had heard the rumors about Gin.
But Gin was his friend.
And Guy had never believed those rumors.
Setting everything else aside—
That taijutsu just now, something that blended Gentle Fist with Strong Fist, was something even Guy had never seen.
In his eyes, it far surpassed the stagnant, self-satisfied techniques of the Hyūga elders.
What he didn't understand was why Gin had tolerated the insults for so long.
"Sorry to put on such a display," Gin said apologetically.
"They are my clan, after all. I didn't want to go too far."
Guy shook his head, grinning brightly.
"You were right! Youth must never be defiled!"
[Ding—Your lie has been evaluated as Blatant Nonsense.
Target: Might Guy
Emotional fluctuation: Minor
Trust level: Complete belief
You have obtained 200 .]
Of course—
It was a lie.
Why hadn't he responded before?
On one hand, his plan involving Orochimaru hadn't yet succeeded.
The image of a harmless, useless "failure" had been far more valuable.
On the other hand—
"When a dog barks at the village gate, the other dogs follow suit—
not knowing why they bark at all."
"If you stop to throw stones at every rabid dog,
you'll never get anything else done."
Gin smiled inwardly.
That nameless extra wasn't worth even a shred of emotional response.
This confrontation served two purposes.
First—to test a new technique.
Second—to lay groundwork for what came next.
Only rats hide in gutters.
No one believes a rat's words.
If Danzō Shimura said something, the villagers would scoff—Who's that old man?
But if Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke, no matter how absurd it sounded, people would assume they simply failed to understand.
A lie becomes truth only when spoken by those with authority and power.
The transformation wrought by his bloodline worked from the inside out.
From intangible senses and talent—
To the raw strength of flesh.
Without external interference, the cleansing and reshaping of his body would be slow, gradual—unfolding over many years.
Gin didn't have that kind of time.
To gain more , he needed to approach higher-quality targets.
To increase his value, he needed to show ability.
Today's defiance was only the first step.
If nothing went wrong, news of Orochimaru's human experimentation on him would soon spread further.
Sarutobi had already taken Yamato (Codename: Kinoe) under his wing.
As one of the only two surviving test subjects from Orochimaru's experiments, Gin was guaranteed to draw the attention—and scrutiny—of both Sarutobi and Danzō.
Testing was inevitable.
Thinking of this, Gin's gaze flickered.
He focused inward and silently commanded:
"Materialize item—
a pure Byakugan that can awaken the Tenseigan after fusion."
[Cost: 10,000
Confirm materialization?]
"It's exactly enough?"
He hesitated.
Cautious, he tested another command:
"Materialize item—
the method by which a pure Byakugan and pure Ōtsutsuki bloodline can fuse to awaken the Tenseigan."
[Insufficient points.]
"…."
Gin's expression darkened.
"So I really am missing something."
Good thing he hadn't fallen for the system's trap.
If he had spent everything and ended up with a Byakugan he couldn't even use—
There would be nowhere to cry.
"In that case…"
He frowned slightly.
"…the second method is safer."
The Hyūga Clan's Byakugan were purer than those of the moon-dwelling Ōtsutsuki.
The only problem was quantity.
The moon clan had occupied their territory peacefully for thousands of years.
The Hyūga had not.
Could the Tenseigan be formed by harvesting every awakened Byakugan in the clan…?
"Cough."
The thought startled even him.
Sin. Sin.
Digging out everyone's eyes was far too evil.
He wasn't Uchiha Itachi, that animal.
Only those who had awakened the Byakugan would be useful anyway.
The unawakened were just ordinary people.
Of course—
He wouldn't do it himself.
He already had a better candidate.
Now—
All that remained was to wait for those old monsters—
To reveal their true, ugly faces.
(End of Chapter)