An Apology!

"Gentle Fist-Eight Trigrams Two Palms!"

Boom!

In the middle of the hallway, Masamune Hyuga sent a short-haired boy flying with a single palm strike, his face filled with disdain: "Someone like you isn't even worthy of using Taijutsu!"

Whoosh!

The crowd erupted into a clamor, whispering among themselves.

"He got hit again, how pitiful."

"I heard his father is that legendary Eternal Genin who can't do anything but Taijutsu."

"Doesn't the Hyuga Clan only use Taijutsu too?"

"That's different. The Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist is the strongest Taijutsu in the ninja world!"

"Hmph, what's so great about that? Didn't he get beaten by Uchiha Houka until he wet his pants yesterday?"

"Hey, hey, is that true? Is that really true?"

"I heard he wet his pants too, but that can't be real, right?"

"It's true. His pants were soaked at the time and gave off a stench. Student Houka wouldn't even perform the Seal of Reconciliation with him."

His cool demeanor lasting less than three seconds, Masamune Hyuga's eyes turned white—well, even whiter—as he heard the chattering of the students around him.

"Shut up! You guys don't know anything!" Masamune Hyuga shouted, his face flushed red and his neck veins bulging with anger and anxiety. "If anyone dares to bring this up again and humiliate my Hyuga Clan, I'll beat them until they can't speak!"

After all, the Hyuga Clan was a prestigious family in Konoha with a fearsome reputation, so the average student didn't dare to retort.

Fortunately, Houka was from Class 2.

"Yo, yo, yo, young man, did you wash your hands after wetting your pants yesterday?" Houka walked over leisurely and pulled the little boy lying on the ground up. Upon closer inspection, sure enough, those outrageously thick eyebrows leapt out at him. It was none other than the future renowned and noble Blue Beast of Konoha, Might Guy!

"Uchiha Houka!!!"

Enemies are always especially hostile when they meet, but Masamune Hyuga was an oddity; his eyes were especially white!

"That would be me." Houka looked at Might Guy and smiled. "Are you alright?"

"Ah, I, I'm fine." Might Guy panted. "Thank you."

Houka did a quick mental calculation. Might Guy and Kakashi were the same age, only five years old this year. His Taijutsu was likely still in the foundational stage, with little combat power to speak of.

"Uchiha Houka, don't think you can frame me for wetting my pants just by splashing water on them! I grew out of those childish tricks when I was four!" Masamune Hyuga roared, stiffening his neck.

"Are you proud of that?" Houka looked at him askance.

"Pfft~ Hahaha."

"That's too funny, hahaha."

The surrounding students clutched their stomachs and laughed heartily.

Upon hearing this, Masamune Hyuga's face turned as red as a monkey's backside.

When he returned home yesterday, he had cried to his father, which naturally earned him a Fist of Love. He was sternly told to handle it himself, and if he caused a scene that damaged the reputation of the Hyuga Clan, he would not be forgiven!

Therefore, Masamune Hyuga had spent the whole night thinking of a way to clear his name regarding the pants-wetting incident.

But now, it seemed this method had backfired.

"Nobody is allowed to laugh! Shut up, all of you, shut up!" Masamune Hyuga was frantic, waving his arms and threatening the surrounding students, but the more he threatened them, the louder they laughed.

Houka looked at Might Guy beside him and asked, "Student, what is your name?"

"My name is Might Guy, you can just call me Guy!" Might Guy said, lowering his head.

"Might Guy?" Houka asked again, "Alright, Guy, why did Masamune Hyuga hit you?"

"Bastard, you want to stand up for this guy? Uchiha Houka, don't think I really can't beat you!" Masamune Hyuga roared.

Houka ignored him entirely.

Guy looked at Masamune Hyuga, then at Houka, and lowered his head: "Because I, I am a Taijutsu practitioner."

"A Taijutsu practitioner, huh." Houka knew, of course. In a few decades, you would be the number one Taijutsu user in the ninja world.

"Someone like you isn't even worthy of practicing Taijutsu!" Masamune Hyuga clamored. "Because you don't understand what Taijutsu is at all!"

Guy clenched his fists, unconvinced. "That's not true, my Taijutsu was taught to me by my father!"

"Can the Taijutsu of that Eternal Genin even be called Taijutsu?" Masamune Hyuga seemed to have regained his long-lost sense of superiority. He lifted his head to look down at Guy and scoffed, "My Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist is the number one Taijutsu in the ninja world!"

Guy gritted his teeth, unwilling to accept it, but he had no way to refute him.

Houka patted Guy on the shoulder and said, "The world is constantly changing and developing. Being number one now doesn't mean you will be in the future. Guy, I believe you can surpass the Gentle Fist and forge your own style of Taijutsu!"

Encouraged by Houka, Guy's eyes suddenly blazed with raging flames: "That's right! My father said the same thing. He also told me that youth is meant to be burned, and passion is meant to be squandered!"

Guy revealed his pearly white teeth. Behind him, an ocean roared, and the background was a beam of sunlight so dazzling it was blinding!

"..." Houka's eye twitched. Has he already become like this at such a young age?

Then, he turned his head to look at Masamune Hyuga: "You, apologize to Guy!"

"What?" Masamune Hyuga couldn't believe it. He gritted his teeth and said, "You want me to apologize to him? Are you kidding me! Who do you think you are? Who do you think he is? What do you think my Hyuga Clan is?! Make me apologize to him? Impossible!"

Masamune Hyuga was merely a member of a Branch House within the powerful Hyuga Clan, but his attitude absolutely represented the stance of the vast majority of noble clans in Konoha.

At this time, Konoha had been established for less than forty years, yet the noble clans had already risen to prominence. To civilian ninjas, these clans occupied vast resources and held immense power, their words carrying absolute weight; they were unreachable existences. Class antagonism was gradually forming and becoming inevitable, and among them, the Uchiha Clan and the Hyuga Clan were undoubtedly the leaders!

Making a noble clan descendant apologize to a common ninja might not be considered a major event, but it certainly wasn't a trivial one either.

At the very least, Masamune Hyuga knew that if he apologized to Might Guy today, his father would beat him half to death when he got home that night, then drag him to the Main House to beg for forgiveness!

"The Hyuga Clan is a noble clan of Konoha, having always provided the village with a large number of excellent Taijutsu ninjas, maintaining peace for Konoha and even the Land of Fire. During the First Shinobi World War and the Second Shinobi World War, they made enormous contributions and produced countless heroic figures worthy of song and tears! They sacrificed their lives to create a better tomorrow and future for the Land of Fire, for Konoha, and for the Hyuga Clan, but..." Houka wore a look of sorrow, his eyes full of acting, "if they saw their descendants turn into someone like you, how heartbroken would they be?"

"You, you're spouting nonsense!" Masamune Hyuga was flustered, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.

"Beating a civilian classmate in public, insulting his Taijutsu, and then acting proud and refusing to repent, not believing you did anything wrong! Masamune Hyuga, are you worthy of your ancestors? Are you worthy of those Hyuga heroes who died in the First and Second Wars? Or is this simply the upbringing of your Hyuga Clan?"

Masamune Hyuga was completely panicked. Even though he was just a six-year-old brat, he knew how much of an impact these words would have on the Hyuga Clan if they spread, especially regarding their reputation, which would likely plummet and invite the scorn and disgust of countless civilian ninjas!

"No, it's not like that, you're lying, you're lying!" Masamune Hyuga shouted in defense, but his tone was pale and weak; no one believed him at all.

Houka looked at him indifferently.

All the surrounding students also fell into an eerie silence; most of these students... were from civilian backgrounds!!

Finally, Masamune Hyuga trembled and could no longer hold on. He walked step by step toward Might Guy and said through gritted teeth, "I'm sorry."

"I can't hear you," Houka said.

"I! AM! SORRY!!!" Masamune Hyuga roared.

"If apologies were useful, what would we need the Police Force for?" Houka scoffed.

Masamune Hyuga couldn't take it anymore. You were the one who asked for an apology, but the moment I finished, you said apologies were useless—you can't just play with people like that!

Masamune Hyuga was so aggrieved he broke down, let out a wail, and turned to run away while wiping his tears.

"Sigh, children these days are really pampered; they cry after just a few words," Houka shrugged with an innocent look. "You all saw it, I didn't hit him; he started crying all on his own."

The students nearby looked at him speechlessly, but many of the civilian students began to look at him with a subtle change in their eyes.

Especially Guy, who was standing next to him, looking at him with eyes full of admiration.

Houka's vanity was not satisfied in the slightest, and he waved his hand, saying, "Alright, everyone disperse, class is about to start."