Hiruzen Sarutobi entered the Death Forest and followed the intelligence from the Anbu on duty to the approximate location. Based on the clues around him, he quickly arrived at the place where Mingxi and Yuzuru had fought earlier.
"Traces of Fire Release remain here, though its power was limited..."
As Hiruzen Sarutobi made his deductions, he was secretly astonished. If he was not mistaken, Uchiha Akari, a first-year Academy student, already possessed the strength of a Genin. Calling her a genius could not have been more fitting.
"If that is the case, then the title of 'the Hyuga Clan's strongest genius' may truly be well deserved..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi muttered again. After all, according to the Anbu's report, Uchiha Akari had been defeated by Hyuga Yuzuru...
Several years ago, the Hyuga Clan had suddenly announced a major matter to the outside world: a "genius" had been born into their main family, one hailed as the "Hyuga Clan's strongest genius"!
At the time, Hyuga Yuzuru had been only two years old. Now that he was six, his strength surely would not be inferior to that of a Genin—perhaps it was even greater...
After lingering there briefly, Hiruzen Sarutobi once again followed the clues in a certain direction.
Soon, Hiruzen Sarutobi reached the site where Uchiha Shinji had fought the two Anbu. He only paused for a moment before using the Body Flicker Technique toward another location...
Surging Dōjutsu Power intertwined through the Sharingan, forming a terrifying genjutsu that descended upon Yuzuru. With Shinji's strength as a Jonin and the high-quality Dōjutsu Power of his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, subduing a six-year-old first-year Academy student should have been effortless, even if Yuzuru possessed the Byakugan and had some resistance to genjutsu...
Yet reality mercilessly slapped Shinji in the face. No matter how much Dōjutsu Power he expended, Yuzuru seemed immune to genjutsu and remained completely unaffected. He still looked at Shinji with those "indifferent" eyes, as though he were looking at a dead man.
"What kind of monster are you?!"
For the first time, Shinji felt fear. He could accept so-called "geniuses," and he could accept being surpassed by them in the future, but he could not accept a "monster" like Yuzuru!
"I did not want to reveal these eyes, but you seem to have angered 'it.'"
Yuzuru spoke to Shinji in a somewhat cold tone.
"W-What?"
Shinji looked at Yuzuru in confusion, unable to understand what he meant.
Yuzuru did not explain. A sapphire-blue glimmer suddenly burst from the depths of his pure white eyes, gradually spreading through his pupils and transforming them into a noble sapphire hue. They were as profound and captivating as stars, yet they radiated a pressure that made one's heart tremble!
"Your eyes..."
Shinji stared at Yuzuru's eyes in shock. The sapphire blue within those sockets gave him the feeling of facing someone above him, just as when he had first awakened his one-tomoe Sharingan and had been suppressed by clansmen with two-tomoe and Three-Tomoe Sharingan...
To some extent, even Shinji's Three-Tomoe Sharingan feared the sapphire-blue eyes in Yuzuru's sockets!
"These eyes are called the 'Tenseigan.' They are an evolved form of the Byakugan..."
Yuzuru had no intention of concealing it from Shinji. Or rather, he had never been speaking for Shinji's sake in the first place, but for Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was currently hiding on a nearby tree trunk.
"An evolved form of the Byakugan... the Tenseigan?"
Shinji opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but swallowed the words that reached his lips.
That was right...
The Sharingan had evolved forms such as one tomoe, two tomoe, and three tomoe. Then it seemed only natural that the Byakugan would have an evolved form as well!
That was what Shinji thought.
"Tenseigan?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's face filled with surprise. Since the Warring States era, the Hyuga Clan seemed never to have produced an evolved form known as the "Tenseigan."
"Could this be why Hyuga Yuzuru is called the 'strongest Hyuga genius'? I wonder what abilities that 'Tenseigan' possesses..."
Having only just arrived, Hiruzen Sarutobi had not immediately revealed himself to stop Shinji. He had hidden on the branches of a large tree some distance away because he wanted to learn the limits of Yuzuru's strength.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's original plan had been to intervene and save Yuzuru when he was about to be injured or had no other options, thereby earning Yuzuru's goodwill.
Yet in such a brief span of time, he had learned the Hyuga Clan's greatest secret...
"So what if it is an evolved form of the Byakugan?"
Uchiha Shinji withdrew the Dōjutsu Power he had been using for genjutsu. He looked gloomily at Yuzuru, then spoke in a low voice. "At your age and with your physique, how much of those 'eyes' can you really use?"
With that, Shinji rapidly formed hand seals. A trace of killing intent flashed through the depths of his scarlet eyes. He feared the Tenseigan in Yuzuru's sockets, afraid that Yuzuru's growth would affect the future balance between the Uchiha and the Hyuga Clan!
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"
A linear stream of flame shot rapidly from Shinji's mouth, released at a speed that even ordinary Chunin would find difficult to evade!
When the hidden Hiruzen Sarutobi saw this, he immediately realized something was wrong. He swiftly used a ninjutsu to rescue Yuzuru. Whether Yuzuru was the Hyuga Clan's "strongest genius" or not, if he died at the hands of an Uchiha, it would provoke internal conflict between the two great clans, the Hyuga and the Uchiha. For Konoha as it currently stood, that would undoubtedly be a troublesome issue difficult to resolve. Moreover, Yuzuru possessed the Tenseigan, an evolved form of the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan. His existence was immensely important to both the Hyuga Clan and the village. Hiruzen could not allow anything to happen to him!
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
A broad earthen wall nearly several meters wide abruptly rose before Yuzuru, blocking the swift linear flames rushing toward him at the critical moment and isolating the formidable blazing fire outside.
At the same time, a figure instantly appeared before Yuzuru. When his gaze fell upon the latter, a gentle smile appeared on his stern face.
"Don't worry. With me here, no one can hurt you!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke with a domineering tone.
Yuzuru looked up at Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had appeared before him, but said nothing. There was no excitement or delight on his face either. This differed somewhat from what Hiruzen had expected, leaving him standing there awkwardly as the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
As an Academy student, Yuzuru had just been personally rescued by him, the Hokage. Did he not have any reaction at all?
Hiruzen Sarutobi was puzzled.
"Lord Hokage?!"
When Shinji saw his Fire Release blocked, he had initially wanted to continue attacking. But upon recognizing the identity of the man standing before Yuzuru, he cried out in terror as cold sweat instantly broke out across his back.
"Uchiha Shinji, as a veteran ninja of the village, you ignored its regulations and attacked a comrade. And your target was a student who had only just entered the Academy!"
Shinji's outcry shifted Hiruzen Sarutobi's embarrassment away. He addressed him sternly, his tone extremely hostile.
"And it seemed you even harbored killing intent just now..."
This was the true reason for Hiruzen Sarutobi's anger. The Uchiha's arrogance really needed to be thoroughly dealt with!
"..."
Shinji immediately fell silent. He could not refute it, because he truly had entertained the thought of killing Yuzuru just now.
"Lord Hokage, Shinji-senpai and I were merely 'sparring' just now."
At that moment, Yuzuru, who had remained silent all along, finally spoke. Yet his words left both Hiruzen Sarutobi and Uchiha Shinji utterly surprised.
Was this Hyuga boy pleading for Uchiha Shinji...?
Before you continue