CHAPTER 238: CHAPTER 238: ARE THE HYŪGA JUST... A BIT DUMB?

The low risk of backlash from the Byakugan was a tightly kept Hyūga clan secret, but Hiashi figured that with Kyoichi’s capabilities, he had probably already figured it out.

So—

There was no point in hiding anything.

"You guessed it. The more restrictions a dōjutsu needs, the more likely it is to be exploited by outsiders. That’s why the Sharingan doesn’t require a curse seal."

Kyoichi explained calmly.

"Indeed. Please lend me your insight. If this succeeds, the Hyūga clan’s entire library will be open to you," Hiashi said with a nod. "The Caged Bird exists because the Byakugan is far too easily taken, so we were forced into this cruel system."

"Let’s set aside compensation for now," Kyoichi replied. "What I want to know is—when you say you want to remove the Caged Bird, do you mean just Hizashi’s branch of the family, or the entire Branch House?"

"Of course I mean the entire Branch House," Hiashi replied.

"In that case, as I said before, I don’t have a perfect solution that can guarantee both the safety of the Byakugan and personal freedom at the same time."

Kyoichi didn’t sugarcoat it.

The Caged Bird Seal wasn’t something you could just disable with a simple jutsu. It was a brutal technique targeting the brain and nervous system. Tampering with it recklessly could lead to even more devastating consequences.

So...

Researching a replacement for the Caged Bird was destined to be a long and difficult journey. A quick fix simply didn’t exist.

Hiashi was silent for a moment.

Naturally, he understood how hard this would be. If it were easy, he wouldn’t have come begging for help. As the Hyūga clan head, the fact that he had come to this point showed just how desperate he was for his brother’s sake.

After a few seconds—

"Sigh... This really is asking the impossible. As Hiashi of the Hyūga, I want to break the chains of the Caged Bird. But as the head of the Main House... I don’t want to."

He let out a weary sigh.

This internal contradiction had been eating away at him day after day. Ever since learning Hizashi’s wife was pregnant, he’d been unable to sleep peacefully.

"Honestly, I think the real issue isn’t the jutsu itself, but the clan elders. Would they even approve of your plan? If they don’t, and the village steps in, that’s going to get... messy."

Kyoichi pointed out.

"They? Don’t worry about them," Hiashi said. "The Hyūga Main House has many branches, but only one line truly holds power. If I have a viable alternative, I can push it through."

But...

He still didn’t have that alternative.

Kyoichi thought for a moment, mentally going through various sealing techniques. In the end, his thoughts returned to the Reverse Four Symbols Seal. After a pause, he said:

"If we use the Reverse Four Symbols Seal... maybe it can serve as a replacement."

"Please explain."

Hiashi immediately sat up straight, eyes serious.

"The seal works by inscribing a formula across the body. Upon death, the seal automatically activates and destroys everything in its vicinity. What I’m suggesting is modifying it so that someone else performs the sealing."

"Someone else?"

Hiashi repeated.

As it stood, the Reverse Four Symbols Seal could only be applied by the user. If someone else cast it, several problems would arise. First and foremost—

It’d be easier to break.

Hyūga members might be able to break it themselves. Worse yet, if an enemy managed to crack the seal, it could mean disaster for the entire clan.

"But the Reverse Four Symbols Seal is unique in that its sealing formula isn’t fixed—it can be modified depending on what it’s protecting.

More importantly, the sealing process is split into two stages: application and activation. My idea is to separate those stages."

"Separate them...? You mean, let them choose when to activate it themselves?"

Hiashi caught on quickly.

That would certainly make learning it easier. Activating a jutsu usually required just a bit of chakra or a specific movement or condition.

Compared to the difficulty of an S-rank technique, the activation stage alone would barely qualify as a C-rank move.

Even a genin could manage that.

The only drawback was that the Main House would no longer have direct control over life and death. And if someone’s eyes were suddenly stolen in battle...

There was a chance the seal wouldn’t trigger in time.

"Can it be refined to target just the eyes?"

"Almost impossible."

Kyoichi shook his head.

The head was a fragile and complex part of the body. Modifying a seal to work on it safely was a daunting task. Even splitting the seal into two parts would take a long time to perfect.

Targeting only the eyes?

Might as well wish for the moon.

He wasn’t omnipotent. Research needed to obey the laws of logic.

Hiashi was disappointed, but he knew what Kyoichi proposed was already the best available option. The only problem was... it didn’t exist yet.

It felt like a castle in the sky.

Visible, but unreachable.

"Then I’ll leave it to you. I hope you can perfect it within the next four years. Otherwise..." He sighed deeply. "Kyoichi-kun, you’re the most gifted person I’ve met in my life. I have no choice but to place my hopes in you."

If even Kyoichi couldn’t do it, he really couldn’t imagine anyone else who could.

To remove the Caged Bird entirely...

Might not even be in the Hyūga’s best interest.

That was his belief.

However—

Kyoichi shook his head and said, "Actually, the ones who can truly save the Hyūga... are the Hyūga themselves. The Uchiha’s Sharingan can also be transplanted, but they’ve never developed a technique like the Caged Bird."

"That’s because their eyes come with greater risks."

Hiashi instinctively argued.

"No, it’s because they believe they’re stronger than everyone else. They don’t think anyone can take their eyes. And even if someone did, they wouldn’t know how to use them properly."

Only an Uchiha could awaken the Mangekyō. And every Mangekyō user was a powerhouse. Realistically, having their eyes stolen was nearly impossible.

Not to mention the existence of forbidden jutsu like Izanagi and Izanami.

Having one’s eyes stolen wasn’t something the Uchiha ever really feared. That confidence was part of their legacy.

Granted...

That was all past glory. The modern Uchiha were a different story.

Hiashi fell silent.

Kyoichi had a point. That’s why only Main House members could learn techniques like Rotation.

But—

He also sensed that Kyoichi didn’t approve of the Hyūga’s traditions at all. In fact, he might even despise them.

"Please enlighten me further."

"The Byakugan and Gentle Fist have too low of a ceiling. Your ancestors only practiced these techniques because it was all they had. But the world is different now.

If you keep clinging to the past, you’ll never surpass those who came before you."

If anyone else had said that, Hiashi would have reprimanded them on the spot.

But it was Kyoichi who spoke.

A shinobi who had taken speed to its theoretical limit. A ninja with no weaknesses.

He had every right to look down on the Byakugan and Gentle Fist.

"...I understand now."

Hiashi was silent for a moment before fully digesting Kyoichi’s meaning.

Ninjutsu.

The Hyūga were too closed off.

That had its benefits, but also huge downsides. In today’s shinobi world, that kind of isolationist approach just didn’t work anymore.

"Ninjutsu, taijutsu, even mixed styles—if it can improve Gentle Fist, why not embrace it? Or do you think Hyūga chakra is somehow weaker than others?"

Kyoichi couldn’t help but jab at him.

Treating Gentle Fist like some sacred relic, while ignoring all other forms of shinobi arts... Honestly, it was just absurd.

Hiashi had no retort.

Gentle Fist was hard to master.

But...

Was it harder than all the techniques Kyoichi had learned?

Kyoichi was a once-in-a-generation genius. Hiashi knew no one in the Hyūga could compare. But even then, there were still talented individuals in the clan—like Mukai Hyūga, who had awakened his Byakugan a generation late and still managed to develop portions of the Gentle Fist on his own.

Clearly—

The Hyūga bloodline wasn’t weak.

They had no shortage of gifted members. It was just that the Byakugan and Gentle Fist imposed limits on how far they could go.

Hiashi took a deep breath, then stood and bowed.

"Thank you for your guidance, Kyoichi-kun. I understand what I need to do now. As for the sealing technique, I’ll entrust it to you. The Hyūga clan’s entire library is at your disposal."

"Thank you!"

Kyoichi bowed in return.

The Hyūga’s archives held generations of knowledge—precious material rarely shared with outsiders.

But now...

He had open access. That was a major gift.

"Oh, by the way... Would it be possible to reserve some enrollment slots in the Academy for Hyūga clan members this year?"

Hiashi asked again.

Though—

It was less of a request, and more of a gesture of goodwill.

He wasn’t looking to make enemies with Kyoichi.

"The fact that the Hyūga are even willing to attend the Academy will make the Third Hokage overjoyed. You can speak to him directly—I doubt he’ll say no."

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