Anti-Peeping Technique

Ever since she'd asked Ito Makoto to teach Sakura chakra control, Mika had left Makoto in Haruno Mebuki's care every day before going to work.

Haruno Mebuki was happy that Sakura had a playmate her own age. One child or two made little difference to her.

But Ito Makoto himself was thoroughly unhappy. He might only be three years old, but his soul was still that of an adult, and spending all day with a three-year-old was incredibly boring. Even if she was the future heroine of Naruto.

Fortunately, Sakura wasn't the Sakura of the future yet. For now, she was just a quiet little girl with no violent tendencies. Every day, she worked hard to learn chakra control and prepare for her entrance into the Ninja Academy.

All he had to do was answer a few questions, and that was enough to get him through the day. The rest of the time, he could practice his ninjutsu and work on his cellular activation training.

He had a lot of secrets. Having only just escaped the Uchiha Clan, he didn't know whether Anbu or members of the Uchiha Clan were watching him, so he had to keep everything hidden and couldn't risk using any of it. Even at home.

According to the Uchiha Clan's pact, anyone who awakened the Sharingan had to return to the Uchiha Clan. Having just escaped that cesspit, Ito Makoto had no desire to go back. Add the Third Hokage, who spent all day peeping at people with a crystal ball; Danzo, who coveted the Uchiha Clan; and Konoha's Anbu, who patrolled everywhere, and there was practically nowhere in the village where he felt safe.

Whether he was at home or outside, Ito Makoto felt deeply uneasy, afraid he might doze off and accidentally reveal his Rinnegan.

As a result, he was constantly on edge, always feeling as if someone was watching him. The tension was wearing on him.

He could hide his Sharingan and Rinnegan for a short time, but if he went too long without using them, his skills would grow rusty.

Just as even the strongest person would lose muscle tone after going a long time without exercise, the Sharingan and Rinnegan wouldn't deteriorate if left unused, but their growth would inevitably be delayed.

That left Ito Makoto at a loss. He wasn't someone who could rely on cheats. In the original story, Naruto graduated at twelve, still struggling to control his chakra. Four years later, he was fighting Six Paths Madara, leaping from Genin straight to Six Paths Level in just four years.

Ito Makoto had no confidence that he could reach Six Paths Level in four years, even with the Rinnegan from birth. All he could do was make the most of the twelve years between now and the Fourth Shinobi World War, training hard and learning to protect himself and his family.

That was why he had to find a way to train his abilities while avoiding surveillance.

I need a counter-surveillance technique, one that can at least tell me if someone is watching me, Ito Makoto thought.

But that seemed incredibly difficult. He knew plenty about Naruto's ninjutsu from his memories of the original story, and Sensory Ninjutsu seemed like the only way to do it.

However, Sensory Ninjutsu could only detect the locations of people with chakra in their bodies. If the Third Hokage was using a crystal ball to watch him, Sensory Ninjutsu might be able to detect the Third Hokage's location, but it couldn't tell whether he was watching Makoto. Only a technique that could sense someone's gaze might be able to detect the Third Hokage's surveillance.

He searched through his memories, but couldn't find any ninjutsu that could do what he needed—not even Naruto's Sense of Good and Evil.

But this world was reality, not a manga. When it came to understanding the real world, he was far behind his mother, who had lived in it for over twenty years. He still needed to ask her for help.

"A counter-surveillance technique, one that can sense someone's gaze? There is one!"

That evening, Ito Makoto brought up the problem with his mother. To his surprise, Mika immediately gave him an answer that delighted him.

"Every woman in the Hyuga Clan knows a technique that can sense when someone is watching her, allowing her to find the person keeping an eye on her. I have a friend who knows it. I heard her mention it once."

"Can I learn it?" Ito Makoto asked.

"I'm not sure. I'll take you to visit her tomorrow. I still haven't thanked her for helping me put away my wages last time, so I can do that while we're there."

The following evening, Ito Mika bought some gifts and took Ito Makoto with her to the Hyuga Clan compound.

Unlike the Uchiha Clan compound, the Hyuga Clan's grounds were closer to the village. The entire compound was laid out in layers: the buildings on the outskirts were rather plain, while those at the center were more elegant. The outer buildings surrounded the inner grounds like guards.

With Mika leading the way, they arrived at a courtyard relatively close to the center.

A beautiful woman with long hair came out to greet them, followed by a child about the same age as Ito Makoto.

Makoto had no chance to get a word in. Mika and the woman exchanged pleasantries for a while, then led the two children into the reception room.

Compared to ordinary homes, the Hyuga Clan's great household seemed very old-fashioned. They even still sat on their knees when receiving guests. Ito Makoto hated sitting that way; doing it for too long could lead to bowlegs, as it did for many people in modern Japan. People in ancient China had also knelt to sit, but they used stools, which prevented bowlegs.

The older and more powerful a family in Konoha was, the more they liked this whole kneeling-and-sitting business. The Uchiha did it, and so did the Hyuga. Ordinary families, on the other hand, had normal reception rooms.

"Well, well," the long-haired woman said with a bright smile at Mika. "I can hardly believe you'd bring a child to visit me. It's like a dream."

"Come on, we've been friends and classmates since we were little," Mika replied. "I've always wanted to visit your home. I just never had the chance."

"I didn't mean you, of course. How could that wonderful husband of yours possibly give you a chance to come here? But at least you've finally gotten rid of that bastard." The woman's voice was full of indignation. "I knew from the start that Uchiha Kenji was no good. I kept telling you to stay away from him, but you still fell for his act and married him."

"It's all in the past now. I don't want to talk about it anymore." Mika looked a little downcast. The past had left her with nothing but wounds. She pulled herself together and introduced them.

"I haven't introduced you yet. Xiao Cheng, this is your Aunt Yuko. Yuko, this is my son, Ito Makoto."

"Hello, Aunt Yuko." Ito Makoto bowed politely.

"Xiao Cheng is such a good boy." Hyuga Yuko smiled, resting a hand on the shoulder of the child sitting on his knees beside her. "This is my son, Neji Hyuga. He's a year older than Xiao Cheng, so he should be like an older brother to him."

Neji Hyuga? Was this the home of Hizashi Hyuga and Neji Hyuga? Ito Makoto was secretly astonished. Without even realizing it, he'd met one of the Konoha 12 from the original story.

Ito Makoto quietly glanced at the boy sitting beside Hyuga Yuko, silent and still on his knees. Neji already had a white bandage wrapped around his forehead. It looked like he'd already been given the Caged Bird Seal.

"Hello, Neji," Ito Makoto greeted him. That was the downside of being little: you had to bow and greet everyone you met.

Neji returned the bow.

"Xiao Cheng, Mika told me you wanted to learn that technique for sensing when someone is watching you?" Hyuga Yuko cut in, wearing an enigmatic smile.

"That's right, Aunt Yuko. I'm missing a way to detect surveillance. If that technique isn't a secret technique of the Hyuga Clan, I'd like to learn it."

Ito Makoto spoke with conviction.

"It's certainly not a secret technique. I don't mind teaching it to you, but do you know why it was created?"

Ito Makoto shook his head. How could he know why the technique had been created?

Hyuga Yuko gave a mischievous smile and began to explain.

"The technique was created by a woman among the ancestors of the Hyuga Clan. As you know, the Byakugan can see through things and see at a distance. Even walls can't stop it."

"Before this technique was invented, Hyuga men used their Byakugan to peep into the women's bathhouse with impunity. In the end, the women of the Hyuga Clan couldn't take it anymore and came up with this technique."

"If someone is peeping, you can sense their gaze even through a wall and pinpoint their location. That's why the technique is called the Anti-Peeping Jutsu. It's a technique every Hyuga woman must learn to keep herself safe while bathing."

Holy crap. Ito Makoto was stunned. Did the men of the Hyuga Clan really get up to that much mischief? Had it actually gotten so bad that they had to develop a countermeasure? Using the Byakugan to peep into a bathhouse was an insult to that Kekkei Genkai.

But was this technique why Reversed Hinata in the Infinite Tsukuyomi had been able to catch Reversed Neji peeping so quickly? That seemed very likely.

Seeing Ito Makoto's stunned expression, Hyuga Yuko smiled enigmatically. "Xiao Cheng, you're so young and already want to learn this technique. Don't tell me you've run into the same problem and had a little girl peeping on you?"

Ito Makoto shook his head as hard as he could. He didn't want to get dragged into Aunt Yuko's gossip at such a young age.

"Enough, Yuko. Stop teasing Xiao Cheng. Since it can be taught to outsiders, just teach him the technique." Seeing her son being picked on, Mika stepped in to stop it.

With Mika's intervention, Yuko stopped joking around and began seriously teaching Ito Makoto the Anti-Peeping Jutsu.

The principle behind the technique was very simple: release chakra from all over the body to form a layer of chakra over the skin.

Since chakra was a mixture of spiritual and physical energy, it was very sensitive to the spiritual energy contained in a gaze. This let the user sense someone's gaze and, by analyzing its direction, work out where it came from.

But actually performing the technique was very difficult. The Hyuga Clan were far better than anyone else at controlling their chakra points. They could release chakra from all 361 points, so forming a chakra layer was as easy for them as eating or drinking. For ordinary people, doing that was incredibly difficult.

"Xiao Cheng, the principle of this technique is simple, but it's difficult to perform. It took me three days to master it. You're not a member of the Hyuga Clan, but if you practice and put in enough time, you can do it too."

Hyuga Yuko didn't expect Ito Makoto to learn it in one go. She demonstrated the technique once, then pointed out the chakra points he needed to release chakra from one by one.

With Hyuga Yuko's help, Ito Makoto quickly mastered the technique. He also learned the precise locations of all 361 chakra points in his body. His Rinnegan could show him the chakra network, but not the points themselves. This filled in a gap in his knowledge.

As his chakra circulated, Ito Makoto began trying to perform the technique. A faint blue light gradually appeared around him.

"Is that a chakra layer?" Seeing the blue light cover his whole body, Hyuga Yuko was astonished. It was one of the signs that the technique had worked. How could a three-year-old boy from outside the Hyuga Clan have mastered the technique so quickly?

Neji, sitting nearby, was dumbfounded too. From the moment his mother started explaining, he'd been trying to master the technique as well, but he still hadn't figured it out. Yet this boy had learned it so quickly. His father had called him a genius, and he was a member of the Hyuga Clan. How could he lose so easily to an ordinary child from another clan?

Watching the astonished mother and son, Mika smiled with satisfaction.

That was it. At last, she wasn't the only one who knew how monstrous this little guy was. As his mother, she'd been utterly crushed by him before. Now, at last, someone else could share the experience.

The chakra layer gave Ito Makoto what felt like a new sense. Invisible spiritual energy struck it like raindrops. Even with his eyes closed, Ito Makoto could clearly feel the gazes of his mother, Aunt Yuko, and Neji Hyuga.

He drew in his chakra. The faint blue light vanished, and Ito Makoto opened his eyes.

"Aunt Yuko, I've mastered the technique. Thank you very much for teaching me."

"Haha, you're welcome." Yuko gave an awkward laugh. She felt a little guilty accepting his thanks. She hadn't really done anything; she'd just explained the technique, and this little guy had mastered it on his first try.

Still, Xiao Cheng's talent was astonishing. She couldn't possibly be the first to notice. Thinking that, she shot a glare at Mika, who sat there without a word. Honestly! She hadn't said anything at first—was she deliberately waiting for Yuko to embarrass herself? Yuko had even boasted earlier that it had taken her three days to master the technique.