A Small Figure, Otsutsuki-No, Hyuga Yuto

Konoha, Taiichi.

Seeing his three disciples' "bitter and resentful" expressions, Taiichi burst out laughing.

How long has it been since I last witnessed this scene? My medicine still feels so special.

Seeing that the three of them were gradually recovering their strength, Taiichi also composed himself and became serious again.

"Consider this a lesson for you. Cultivating Senjutsu is fraught with risks. In the future, when you cultivate on your own, you must be extremely careful and not stumble on this."

"Yes, Teacher Yi!" The three of them forced themselves to be energetic, but their voices still sounded listless.

"Then, everyone continue practicing for the rest of the time. I will supervise you to prevent you from losing control again."

Taiichi made a promise: the first time is to learn a lesson, and only after that will it be considered formal cultivation.

The three children looked at each other, clearly still shaken by what had just happened.

In the end, Jiangtai was the most carefree, and was the first to sit cross-legged and begin absorbing Natural Energy.

With the leader taking the lead, Itachi and Yami were not to be outdone and began practicing as well.

Taiichi came up behind the three of them, squinted and carefully examined them. He saw that Natural Energy was slowly gathering into their bodies. Having learned from their first experience, the three of them became more cautious.

However, some things cannot be overcome simply by being cautious. With weak Chakra Quantity and poor Chakra Control, these hard conditions make it extremely difficult for the three of them to succeed.

Sure enough, things went out of control again, this time it was Yami.

In Taiichi, the gathering of Natural Energy around her suddenly accelerated. Before she even realized it, Taiyi Taiichi Body Flicker behind her, his Chakra condensing in his palm, and struck her with it.

The violent Chakra impact directly dispersed the bit of Senjutsu Chakra that Yami had just fused with; without it as a catalyst, the Natural Energy stabilized.

But just as that ended, Itachi ran into trouble too.

Using the same method, he also struck out with a palm, dispersing Itachi's Senjutsu Chakra and pulling Itachi back from the brink of losing control.

Just as Yami and Itachi were about to thank him, they saw Taiichi put his index finger to his lips, making a shushing gesture.

The two followed the teacher's gaze and saw Jiangtai with his brows furrowed, as if he were constipated and straining desperately.

They could also see Natural Energy, and they could naturally sense that the Natural Energy around Jiangtai was like a cassette tape, gathering into Jiangtai's body in fits and starts.

This... is acceptable?

The two immediately understood the benefits of Jiangtai's actions.

Although Jiangtai's method is less efficient than their continuous absorption, it undoubtedly allows for better control over the fused Senjutsu Chakra within his body.

The two turned to look at their teacher, wanting to see what the teacher thought, but all they saw was a satisfied smile.

The two exchanged a glance: Well, it seems the teacher doesn't object to individual innovative ideas.

Two minutes later, Jiangtai finally couldn't hold on any longer and was shattered by Taiichi's palm strike, which dispersed the Senjutsu Chakra within his body.

Thus, the three little ones' first training in Senjutsu officially ended.

"Tell me your thoughts," Taiichi said with a smile, looking at the three of them.

"It was so hard! I didn't even feel anything before it was over," Yami pouted, the first to complain.

Itachi nodded. He wasn't much Yami; he hadn't even had time to control himself before Taiichi dispersed his Senjutsu Chakra. However, he also had his own problems.

"Teacher, can we use Jiangtai's method?"

"That's a good question." Taiichi nodded in affirmation of Itachi's thinking, then explained, "Cultivation is a very personal matter. Everyone has their own ideas, and what suits him may not suit you. But you can try different methods until you find the one that suits you best."

Taiichi's words made Itachi lower his head in deep thought, while Jiangtai's eyebrows danced with pride, his smug expression impossible to hide.

Upon seeing this, Taiichi immediately poured cold water on the situation, saying, "Of course, the methods we teach daily are all verified and the most orthodox. While these methods may not be the best, they are definitely the safest and most reliable. Compared to those who get carried away and practice haphazardly, they might end up hurting themselves."

Jiangtai's face stiffened, and he stood frozen in place. Although he knew that Taiichi was not talking about him, he still felt a chill in his heart.

"Teacher, is this okay? When I was practicing just now, I felt like my Chakra flow wasn't smooth."

Taiichi rolled his Taiichi, feeling utterly speechless, but still patiently explained, "When you absorb Natural Energy in such a fragmented way, your Chakra will naturally be affected, and it's normal for its flow to be impaired."

Jiangtai's eyes widened, and he nodded repeatedly, looking as if he had suddenly realized something. Yami and Itachi were speechless, and felt an urge to beat him up.

After the three finished sharing their thoughts, Taiichi concluded, "You all currently have too little Chakra Quantity and lack sufficient Chakra Control. Moreover, you've only just begun practicing, so this is quite normal. You don't need to be discouraged or underestimate yourselves."

Taiichi encouraged everyone, especially Yami, who was clearly stuck in a rut, still bothered by her performance and not satisfied with it.

However, Taiichi's encouragement didn't seem to have any effect. Yami kept her eyes downcast, tapping her chest repeatedly with her two index fingers.

Upon Taiichi's eyes lit up, and he had an idea.

"Do you know how many people in Konoha can use Sage Mode?" Taiichi lowered his voice, leaned close to the three of them, and asked mysteriously.

As expected, Yami's attention was drawn to them. The three of them exchanged glances and shook their heads, then turned their curious gazes to Taiichi, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Taiichi held up three fingers and gave the three little ones a smug smile.

"Three. In the entire Hidden Konoha, or rather, in the entire Ninja World, there are currently only three people who can use Sage Mode."

"Oh! (second tone)"*3

The three children gasped. Although they all knew that their teacher was now imparting the highest level of inheritance to them, they never expected it to be such a rare inheritance.

Taiichi's smile widened as he continued to "educate" the three, "Of these three, besides your teacher, I achieved Sage Mode through self-exploration, the other two both practiced the Sage's inheritance passed down from the sacred Mount Myoboku."

"Oh! (fourth tone)"*3

The three little ones blinked their big eyes, their faces full of amazement, and at the same time, they felt a sense of pride and recognition. Their teacher was indeed different, and so were they.

"You must understand that, as Sannin, Lord Orochimaru and Teacher Tsunade are also contractors of the Holy Lands, yet they are unable to learn the Sage's teachings of their respective Holy Lands."

At this point, Taiichi looked around nervously, as if he had done something wrong, and whispered, "Do you know how long it took Jiraiya- sensei to learn Sage Mode?"

The three little ones' eyes widened immediately, filled with a thirst for knowledge.

"Twelve years. From just starting to learn to mastering it, even Jiraiya -sensei took twelve years."

"Ah!"*3

Now, the three little ones were truly frightened. They had been learning Sage Mode for almost two months, but they hadn't felt much difficulty. They had simply followed the teacher's instructions step by step, and naturally, they had reached this point.

If we're talking about difficulties, the attempt we just made was the first time we encountered real challenges.

Unexpectedly, the training of others was so arduous; Lord Jiraiya took 12 years.

"Don't be so surprised. Cultivating Senjutsu is inherently a very dangerous and difficult thing. Your progress can already be described as quite rapid. So no matter what difficulties you encounter in the future, don't be discouraged. You have already defeated 99.99% of people and are among the best."

The three of them had a gleam in their eyes, clearly very impressed by what Taiichi said, and were now as energetic as if they had been injected with chicken blood.

"Teacher, hurry up! I feel full of power. Let's continue our cultivation." Jiangtai couldn't wait any longer and immediately sat down cross-legged, urging Taiichi.

Yami and Itachi, their faces flushed, followed Jiangtai and sat down cross-legged.

"Alright, since you're all so enthusiastic, let's continue."

Taiichi narrowed his eyes, looking like a fox who had stolen a chicken, and took two or three steps to stand behind the three of them, providing cover.

They practiced like this until the moon was high in the sky. The three little ones were starting to lose their energy, but they still wanted to continue. Only then did Taiichi have to tell them to stop.

"Alright, that's all for today. Go back and rest. From now on, come here to practice every day. Don't practice alone at home. There's no one there to help you disperse your Senjutsu Chakra, and you've all experienced the consequences. It's not worth it."

The three nodded, understanding Taiichi's meaning. They agreed and dragged their weary bodies home.

Yuto Otsutsuki —no, it should now be called Hyuga Yuto —because the Ōtsutsuki Clan merged into the Hyuga Clan, the original clan members all abandoned the Otsutsuki surname and changed their Hyuga.

The same goes Hyuga Yuto.

He was initially ordered to win over the Hyuga Clan, but his overconfidence led to the failure of the operation.

If that were all, it would be fine, but the infuriating thing is that the Hyuga Clan turned around and reported him.

The result was self-evident: he was arrested and interrogated, not to mention the immense suffering he endured, which is beyond words.

What bothers him most is that the current predicament of the entire Ōtsutsuki Clan can be said to be caused by his incompetence.

In a sense, he was the culprit behind the disappearance of the Otsutsuki surname on the moon.

Now that the Otsutsuki have joined the Hyuga, he has naturally been released, but who knows the grievances he feels?

Today was his turn to add the Curse Mark, and since he had nothing to do at home, he arrived at the scene early.

Unexpectedly, they witnessed Taichi Matsushita removing the Caged Bird Seal from a member of the Hyuga Branch Family.

Hyuga Yuto stood in the shadows of the Curse Mark Room, his eyes fixed on the figure in the center of the room, his teeth grinding together.

After a flurry of hand Hand Seals that left everyone bewildered, Hyuga Yuto still couldn't figure out the specifics of the technique. However, the Chakra fluctuations were unusually intense, making it clear without even looking that it was no ordinary matter. It was no wonder that an outsider was needed to break the curse; apparently, no one in the Hyuga possessed such strength.

As the Curse Mark disappeared, the Branch Family ninja raised his hand to touch his forehead, which was now free of restraint. His body trembled violently uncontrollably, and finally, unable to suppress it, he covered his face and let out a low sob—the joy of regaining his freedom.

But the voice pierced Yuto's heart like a needle. Freedom? Ha, it's just a more respectable cage! He subconsciously touched his equally smooth forehead, where new marks would soon be etched.

At that moment, Taiichi, having completed his task for the day, turned around.

Their eyes met.

In that instant, Yuto felt his blood freeze! The figure before him suddenly overlapped with the nightmare of that courtyard in his memory, and then even his arms and neck seemed to experience phantom pain.

Even after so much time has passed, that day remains a nightmare he can never forget.

He abruptly lowered his head, unable to look any longer, his body trembling uncontrollably.

After that, Yuto was like a puppet, mechanically following everyone else's lead.

Throughout the entire process, apart from the initial glance, Taichi Matsushita never looked at him a second time, as if the two had never met before.

How could this be?

How could this be?

How could you ignore me?

Everything I have now is thanks to you!

The ceremony ended, and dusk fell.

Yuto practically fled the Curse Mark room, stumbling and rushing into an abandoned old training ground on the edge of the Hyuga Clan Compound.

Here, weeds grow rampant, and the broken walls cast distorted and eerie shadows in the dim light.

Once it was confirmed that no one was around, the long-suppressed volcano finally erupted violently!

"Hyuga — Konoha— " A beastly growl escaped his throat, his voice distorted by extreme rage, "A bunch of greedy robbers! Thieves!!"

He slammed his fist into a broken wooden stake beside him, sending wood chips flying and instantly drawing blood from his knuckles, but he was completely unaware.

"What utter bullshit cooperation! What utter protection! They're just after our moon's power and the true potential of the Byakugan!"

He abruptly looked up, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the brightly lit Hokage Building in the distance, as if trying to pierce through it with his gaze. "Minato Namikaze! You hypocritical devil!"

The phantom pain in my arms and neck returned, clearer than ever, accompanied by that indifferent face.

"Taichi Matsushita!" he spat out the name through gritted teeth. "Monster! Executioner! What are you? You're nothing but a mad dog kept by Konoha!"

You broke my hand! You knocked me unconscious like you were crushing an insect! You treated me like this, and now you don't even—you don't even remember me at all!

He roared hysterically, waving his fists at the empty ruins, spitting as he spoke, like a madman.

"You just wait—you all just wait!" He gasped for breath, his chest heaving, his voice venomous and hoarse, "One day! One Hyuga, I will make you pay tenfold! A hundredfold for this shame, this pain! Hyuga? Konoha? And you, Taichi Matsushita— "

He was so engrossed in his furious curses that he was completely unaware that something he could never have imagined was lurking in the shadows at his feet.

Less than a foot below the surface.

Its eerie, half-black, half-white body was perfectly concealed, like the deepest soil.

His half-white face had a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth, and his yellow eyes gleamed with an intriguing light in the darkness.

"Did you hear that? Someone's swearing!"

"Hiss... This is truly... an unexpected bonus." Black Zetsu murmured sinisterly, with a greedy glint in his eyes, as if he had discovered a treasure. "The remnant of the Otsutsuki on the moon— Hyuga Yuto? Ha, a pathetic wretch utterly consumed by fear and hatred."