"'Food chain'—what a cruel term."
Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and licked his lips. Then, as a thought struck him, he turned to Hizashi Hyuga and asked,
"Hizashi, the Caged Bird Seal was originally meant to protect the Byakugan, so why divide the clan into the Main House and Branch Family instead of placing the seal on everyone?"
Hizashi's blank expression showed a hint of hesitation. After a moment, he answered,
"Only the Main House has the ability to place the Caged Bird Seal. That way, at least one person will always be left unsealed. The descendants of the Branch Family must have the seal placed on them, or else, once they reach a certain age, the Byakugan will be destroyed by the chakra inherited from the previous generation..."
As he spoke, Hizashi's face filled with resentment and humiliation. Becoming part of the Branch Family meant that it wasn't only his own fate he had to bear; his descendants would also be trapped in the Caged Bird's cycle.
Orochimaru nodded. As an outsider, he saw things differently from Hizashi, with a cooler and clearer perspective. He felt genuine admiration for the Hyuga clan member who had created the Caged Bird Seal.
Putting aside the Main House's oppression of the Branch Family, the Caged Bird Seal protected the Branch Family in every way imaginable, both from above, against the Byakugan's bloodline limit, and from below, against their bloodline being passed on.
Especially the latter. If the other large and small shinobi villages could get their hands on the Byakugan bloodline, their female ninja probably wouldn't hesitate to make a sacrifice.
Orochimaru suspected that the Caged Bird Seal acted directly on the chakra spirit body. It was a highly advanced soul-based ninjutsu and well worth studying.
"But the Caged Bird Seal is