In the end, Shikamaru agreed as well.
After all, all his good friends were going. Ino agreed too.
As for Neji, as a member of the Branch Family, he had to protect Young Miss Hinata of the Main Family, so he went as well.
What surprised everyone was that Rock was going too.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm going because of Hyuga."
Rock looked at Hinata with fighting spirit written all over his face.
"Hey, if you want to challenge Hinata, you'll have to get past me first!" Naruto jumped up and said.
"I see. So as long as I defeat you, I can challenge Hyuga? This is really getting my blood pumping!"
"These two idiots..."
Everyone was speechless.
Tenten said, "In that case, count me in. If we're having a barbecue by the river, I'll provide the grill."
"I... I'm going too."
"Woof... woof."
The weakened Kiba Inuzuka raised his hand, while the little white dog on his head barked weakly as well.
"Are you going, Sasuke?"
Hinata looked around. It wouldn't do if they were short-handed.
"Hmph, I'm not interested in childish make-believe games."
Sasuke snorted coldly, looking somewhat arrogant.
Aren't you a child yourself?
Everyone was speechless.
"Sasuke, you little tsundere."
Naruto immediately began mocking him. The term tsundere had spread from Hinata.
"You're the tsundere, you brat!" Sasuke jumped up.
Ever since Hinata had called Sasuke a tsundere, the label had stuck to him. Everyone in the class knew about it, and Naruto used the word to mock Sasuke every day.
"I'm going too!"
What Sakura was thinking was that having a barbecue with Sasuke would be a great opportunity to grow closer to him.
Ino had clearly thought of the same thing. She pulled the arguing Naruto aside and tried to persuade Sasuke.
But Sasuke refused again.
Hinata said, "Very good. Since Sasuke has agreed, we'll meet by the river this afternoon."
Sasuke said, "Hey, when did I agree?"
Everyone said, "Awesome! See you by the river!"
Sasuke said, "Hey, don't ignore me!"
Everyone dispersed and went home to prepare.
Only Sasuke was left standing there, veins bulging on his forehead.
Sasuke roared, "Don't ignore me!"
After returning home, Hyuga Hiashi was already waiting for Hinata.
Hiashi said, "You're back."
Hinata said, "I'm home, Father."
"Big Sister!"
Hanabi, who had heard that Hinata was back, called out as she threw herself into Hinata's arms.
Nestled in Hinata's embrace, Hanabi said, "You smell nice."
If Hinata had not deliberately dispersed the strange odor on her body, Hanabi would probably have thrown up by now.
"Hanabi, I need to talk to your sister. Go play for now."
"Okay."
Hanabi reluctantly climbed out of Hinata's arms.
"Be good, Hanabi. Go play first."
After sending Hanabi away, Hyuga Hiashi looked at Hinata. "You weren't hurt today, were you?"
Hinata shook her head. "No."
"This time, they were only some half-baked Puppet Corpses. Other than their numbers, only that giant made of bones at the end was worth looking at."
"I only learned about the village's sudden test not long ago. Since it was only Puppet Corpses, they probably didn't want you to face something you couldn't handle right from the start."
"But this kind of test probably won't happen just once. Next time, you should encounter stronger Puppet Corpses."
"Mm."
Hinata indicated that she understood.
Hyuga Hiashi looked at Hinata, his expression incomparably solemn. "Then what did you think of those Puppet Corpses?"
Hinata responded, "They were vulnerable. But I feel that whoever controlled them held back. Otherwise, those Puppet Corpses wouldn't have fallen apart after just a few blows."
"Ah, right. Father, I want a pair of gloves and gauntlets."
Hyuga Hiashi said, "You're right, but those Puppet Corpses may be even stronger than you think."
"Those Puppet Corpses... for ordinary ninja, they could be considered impossible to deal with."
Hinata thought of the Blood Corpse she had controlled, which had been smashed completely into bloody water. They really were difficult to deal with.
"I'll have the gloves and gauntlets arranged."
Neji also went to find his father, Hizashi Hyuga.
Hizashi looked at the completely uninjured Hiashi and asked, "How was it?"
Neji said, "Those Puppet Corpses were more troublesome than the information suggested. With my strength, I simply couldn't deal with too many of them."
Hizashi said, "Only Puppet Corpses appeared this time because the village wanted you to adapt first. Next, you'll probably encounter even stronger enemies."
In the Uchiha compound, Uchiha Fugaku listened to his son.
"No matter what, this was only the beginning. Things probably won't be this simple from now on."
"Yes, I understand, Father. I won't disappoint you!"
Sasuke was filled with fighting spirit.
Tenten was fiddling with her bladed weapons.
Rock, accompanied by Might Guy, was running laps around Hidden Leaf Village.
"This is youth!"
Shikamaru sat beneath the eaves, seemingly lost in thought.
Choji ate potato chips.
Ino and Sakura were thinking about how to win Sasuke's favor during the barbecue by the river that afternoon.
Shino was observing the listless insects in the insect nest.
These were the insects that had crawled over the Skeleton Giant's joints, but their vitality was now extremely weak.
Even in the insect nest, the environment most suitable for these insects, no one knew how many would survive.
Kiba Inuzuka and his little white dog were replenishing their energy, and neither of them ate very gracefully.
After Naruto returned home, he set an alarm and collapsed onto his bed, fast asleep.
The village's sudden test had let everyone understand for the first time just how troublesome those Bizarre Creatures were. Even though they had only faced the most ordinary Puppet Corpses.
At the Hokage Building in Hidden Leaf Village.
The Third Hokage looked at the documents in his hand. There was a photograph of Hinata on them.
This report confirmed Hinata's!
Although he had always heard that the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan was a genius—
This time, however, the Hyuga Clan's eldest daughter had revealed her true strength to everyone for the first time.
Only then did Sarutobi Hiruzen realize that Hyuga Hinata's strength was already no weaker than that of a special jonin!
In terms of Taijutsu alone, she had even reached the level of a jonin.
That reminded him of the genius Kakashi Hatake.
He had once been just as dazzling, but ever since Obito and Rin died...
"Ah..."
The Third Hokage sighed and continued looking through the documents in his hand.
Besides what Hidden Leaf Village had investigated, the documents also contained the village's think tank's speculation regarding Hyuga Hinata.
One particular point caught his attention.
"Bloodline Ancestor Regression!"
He was no stranger to the term, and he had already guessed that Hinata had undergone Bloodline Ancestor Regression.
The pair of horns on her forehead was proof enough.
But what he had not expected was that the talent brought about by Hinata's Bloodline Ancestor Regression would be so astonishing.
Moreover, the Hyuga Clan had kept it so well hidden. If Hinata had not revealed her strength this time, he would still have been kept in the dark.
As for how to treat the Hyuga Clan's genius, he had already given it some thought.
If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching for the author. It may have simply been renamed!
At readers' request, a VIP membership ad-free feature is now available.
Click to view
Before you continue