Birds and Hope

"Then let's celebrate tomorrow. Rin, come see me tonight."

Yayoi's expression turned serious the moment he heard Rin's words.

Yan's smile vanished too, and she looked at Rin with concern.

The curse known as the Caged Bird, which bound its victims for all eternity, was infamous.

Thinking that her teammate would have such a vicious Cursed Seal branded on her, Yan couldn't help feeling sorry for her.

But she was also strangely curious.

What state of mind let Rin accept such a tragic fate so calmly, even openly?

Or was there something she held close to her heart that made her feel so secure, as though she had nothing in the world to fear?

It was hard not to feel both pity and curiosity.

Teacher Utsugi then gave his students one final lesson.

He taught them how to survive on the battlefield.

His was the only voice in the classroom. Every student listened intently.

After experiencing the atmosphere of a battlefield, few of them could avoid thinking about their future.

Yayoi took off his Konoha Forehead Protector and studied the one he had earned in yesterday's simple Three Basic Jutsu exam.

For some reason, he felt as if something was missing from it.

Maybe it needs a line across it.

The thought came to Yayoi out of nowhere.

The setting sun hung over the mountains at dusk.

It looked like an old man nearing the end of his life.

A bird soared through the sky and landed on the roof of the Ancestral Hall.

The little bird seemed to be watching Rin.

Rin walked through the Hyuga Clan Territory toward the Main Family's Ancestral Hall.

Hiashi, the chosen next Clan Leader, was waiting for her at the entrance.

"You're here."

"..."

"As a member of the Branch Family, you've delayed this long enough. Your graduation today was the final deadline."

Hiashi sighed as he looked at the silent Rin.

"Follow me."

The Main Family elders sat inside the Ancestral Hall.

Rin's uncle was among them. He glanced at her, then turned away as though he couldn't bear to look at her.

After bringing Rin inside, Hiashi stepped aside. His younger brother Hizashi stood on the other side.

Hizashi looked at Rin with a complicated expression, as if he were seeing himself.

But Rin was much luckier than he had been. She had been allowed to wait until now to receive the Caged Bird.

It was because of that exception that he and Hiashi, the future leaders of the Branch Family and Main Family, had come to witness it.

"Rin, Temple Person pleaded on your behalf because your emotional trauma kept your Byakugan from opening properly.

But according to clan tradition, you must now receive the Caged Bird."

The old man spoke with authority.

He was Elder Hyuga, one of the Hyuga Clan's most senior elders.

"Begin."

Rin had nothing more to say. The time had come, and there was no avoiding it.

To break the Hyuga Clan's Caged Bird, she first had to be branded with it.

Elder Hyuga extended an aged finger and touched the center of Rin's forehead.

Under his hand, the Cursed Seal slowly took shape. A large cross began to form on her brow.

Beads of sweat covered her smooth, fair skin from the intense pain.

But Rin never cried out. She only gritted her teeth and thought of the day she had met Yayoi.

Rin was fortunate. She carried a belief and a hope that other members of the Branch Family did not have.

Holding on to that hope, she endured in silence.

At last, a minute later, the Cursed Seal was complete.

"Rin."

Hyuga Jiren turned to look at her. When he saw the Caged Bird on her forehead, he fell silent.

"Elder Hyuga, may I leave?"

Rin's gaze was calm, without even a trace of emotion.

Even Elder Hyuga was surprised.

Every member of the Branch Family resented the clan when branded with the Caged Bird. Some even came to hate the Main Family.

Yet this girl named Rin had endured it without a change in expression. He could see no resentment in her at all.

He trusted his judgment of people, and he saw no hatred in Rin's eyes.

"Go home, child. But remember, the Branch Family and the Main Family are both children of the Hyuga Clan."

After a moment's thought, Elder Hyuga gave it no more attention and motioned for Rin to leave.

Hyuga Jiren was about to stand, but Rin stopped him with a look.

She then turned without hesitation and walked toward the door.

For reasons Hizashi couldn't explain, he found himself following her.

Hiashi frowned and followed too.

What they saw next was almost impossible to believe.

A bird descended from the sky and landed on Rin's hand.

She wore a white ninja outfit, her soft, long hair falling on either side of her face. The evening glow seemed to cloak her in gold.

"Fly, little bird."

It was the first time Hiashi and Hizashi had heard any emotion in Rin's voice.

As if carrying the most beautiful hope in the world, the bird spread its wings and flew freely into the sky.

Seeming to sense the people behind her, Rin glanced back, then looked away.

There was a light in her eyes. Her former coldness and calm had fallen away, revealing the beauty hidden deep within them.

Rin left, though neither brother knew where she went.

Hiashi and Hizashi watched her walk away from the Main Family's Ancestral Hall, one step at a time.

Perhaps she wanted to wander through the village and clear her head. Or perhaps she would hide in a corner and weep.

That was what Hizashi thought, but then he gave a rueful smile.

Because neither was possible.

What kind of eyes had those been? They were full of hope, as though they held everything good in the world.

Those were eyes no one in the Branch Family should have had. Yet he had seen them with his own eyes.

Hizashi didn't know why Rin could still be full of hope after receiving the Caged Bird, a seal that took away her control over her own fate.

But in that moment, he felt as though he had been saved.

It was a kind of salvation for the Branch Family. He began to wonder what this member of his clan would do.

It was as though all the defiance and resistance he had felt as a child now rested with this girl he barely knew.

"There's a kind of bird that can never be caged, because every feather it has shines with freedom."

"The Caged Bird won't bind you. That's my promise, and I keep my promises."

Yayoi looked at the girl sitting beside him and stroked her head.

His touch was gentle, as though he were smoothing a bird's feathers.

"I believe you."

Rin met his gaze steadily. Her eyes held faith—faith in him.

"Let me collect some data."

Yayoi smiled and gently brushed her forehead, lifting a strand of hair.

"All right. I'll cooperate."

Yayoi then collected data on Rin's body and compared it with the data from before.

Years of research with Orochimaru had shown him that, strictly speaking, the Caged Bird was an ordinary Cursed Seal.

But Yin-Yang Release appeared to have given it a special property.

It was rooted in the Byakugan and acted upon the nerves.