Under Hiashi's tutelage, Kamizuki learned how to mold chakra on his first day. It took him less than two hours to successfully draw out a thread of chakra.
His older sister Hinata was much slower than her younger brother Kamizuki. It took her a full two days to draw out her first thread of chakra.
Still, Hinata had managed to mold chakra within the time Hiashi had expected, and she hadn't disappointed him.
Even Hatake Kakashi, the greatest prodigy in Konoha at the time, had taken nearly ten hours to successfully mold chakra.
At this rate, there was no one in Konoha—or, no, in the entire Ninja World—who could match Kamizuki.
Today was January 1, the first day of the new year. Every year on New Year's Day, all members of the Hyuga Clan, whether from the Main Family or the Branch House, gathered at the clan compound to celebrate.
The Hyuga Clan was divided into the Hyuga Main House and the Hyuga Branch House.
The Main Family: the true inheritors of the Hyuga Clan, entrusted with the responsibility of protecting and advancing the clan.
The Branch House: the protectors of the Hyuga Main House. Their duty was to protect the Main Family.
There could only be one heir to the Main Family. If there were several descendants in the same generation, the most outstanding one would be chosen to inherit the Main Family, while the rest would become members of the Branch House. (In the future, either Hinata or Kamizuki would become part of the Branch House.)
In other words, there was only one person in the Main Family per generation. Thus, even after a thousand years, the Hyuga Clan would still have only one Main Family, while the Branch House would always serve as its protectors.
Under the leadership of the Hyuga Clan's head, Hiashi Hyuga, the clan members gathered for the grand ceremony to honor their ancestors.
Afterward, Hiashi took Hinata and Kamizuki to pay their New Year's respects to the clan elders, one by one.
As the current head of the Hyuga Clan, Hiashi placed great importance on such formalities.
Not long after Hiashi returned to his seat as clan head, Hizashi Hyuga arrived with his five-year-old son, Hyuga Neji, to pay his respects. Thanks to the butterfly effect Kamizuki had set in motion, Hizashi had survived. (Of course, only Kamizuki knew that his arrival was the reason Hizashi had escaped death.)
This was the first time Hinata and Kamizuki had met their cousin, not counting when they were babies.
At the time, Neji looked like a little boy, much as he did in the anime. At five, he was about as tall as the four-year-old Kamizuki. He wore a white kimono, his hair hanging casually over his shoulders, and the "Caged Bird" Cursed Seal shared by all members of the Hyuga Branch House had already been carved into his forehead. When he saw Hinata and Kamizuki, he gave them only a slight bow, his face still wearing the same defiant look as in the anime.
The "Caged Bird" Cursed Seal was a blue mark on the forehead of a Hyuga Branch House member, made up of intersecting lines and two hooks facing in opposite directions. The Hyuga Main House placed this seal on Branch House members to restrict their Byakugan. It would remain in place until the wearer's death.
It also allowed the Hyuga Main House to destroy the brain tissue of anyone bearing the seal at will. It was a Cursed Seal unique to the Hyuga Main House.
Back when Kamizuki had watched the anime on Earth in his previous life, he'd always felt that the "Caged Bird" Cursed Seal was completely unnecessary. It not only restricted the Branch House's use of the Byakugan, but also hindered the Hyuga Clan's development.
What Kamizuki didn't know was that Hiashi felt the same way. That was why, so far, Hiashi hadn't announced whether he or Hinata would inherit the Main Family.
The Hyuga Clan's New Year celebrations and ancestor-worship ceremony lasted all day. Only after Hiashi made his final announcement did the clan members disperse and return to their homes.
After the new year came the start of a new term at the Konoha Ninja Academy.
Konoha Ninja Academy: the starting point of every ninja's training. After completing their basic training at the Academy, the ninjas would be assigned to different teams and train under their instructors. They would also take on missions suited to their respective ranks.
It was founded by the Second, Senju Tobirama. At the time, the land was in a period of war, and establishing an academy was an urgent necessity to ensure stable, effective combat training and education.
The Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen, inherited responsibility for running the entire Ninja Academy. He placed particular importance on nurturing talent and devoted himself to that goal.
Kamizuki's plan for this year was for him and Hinata to attend the Ninja Academy.
So, from the start of the year, he kept asking Hiashi to let him attend the Academy. But Hiashi refused, saying he was too young.
In the end, Kamizuki had no choice but to use his trump card: he appealed to his mother, Hyuga Huayan. Under Huayan's pillow-talk campaign, Hiashi finally agreed.
However, Hiashi only agreed to let Kamizuki attend. He wouldn't let Hinata go.
His reason was that Kamizuki's talent and aptitude just barely met the Academy's standards, while Hinata's were still far below the requirements.
Of course, that was just an excuse Hiashi had come up with. Kamizuki and Hinata had both trained hard during this time, and they had made great progress.
Kamizuki had improved especially quickly. His chakra had reached the level of a Genin, and he could now perform the Eight Trigrams Twenty-Four Palms. There was no doubt that his strength was already at Genin level.
As for Hinata, she was only a little stronger than her counterpart in the original story.
When Hyuga Huayan told them the news, Kamizuki was overjoyed. At last, he'd get to attend the Ninja Academy that year.
Little Hinata, standing beside him, looked rather downcast. She was disappointed that she couldn't go to school with her younger brother.
The next day, Hinata still felt unhappy, so she decided to go out for a walk by herself.
Hinata Hyuga wandered aimlessly through the streets of Konoha, wearing an expression that said she was very unhappy.
She didn't know how long she'd been walking. The farther she went, the more desolate it became, and the fewer people she saw. Eventually, she reached an alley where not a soul could be seen. Just as she turned a corner, three unruly little brats suddenly jumped out behind her and blocked her way.
The three brats didn't look much older than Hinata, perhaps six or seven.
They surrounded her with wicked grins. Little Hinata had never encountered anything like this before. She was so frightened that she froze, forgetting to fight back.
Before you continue