Hyuga Hiashi's eyes flickered with surprise, but he quickly returned to normal.
He hadn't heard the title "genius ninja" in a long time.
Konoha had once been a place where talents emerged in droves.
Hyuga Hiashi had seen plenty of geniuses in his time!
For example, Shisui and Itachi of the Uchiha Clan.
Or Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake, the son of the White Fang of Konoha.
Without exception, they were all geniuses among geniuses.
The cream of the crop.
How old was Naruto?
He had already learned to use the Rasengan and successfully performed it.
His future looked bright...
Hyuga Hiashi had heard a lot about the Rasengan.
During the Third Shinobi World War,
he had led the Hyuga Clan into battle as well.
On the battlefield,
Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash, had relied on this original jutsu
to make a name for himself.
Countless enemy shinobi had been terrified at the very mention of him.
For years,
Hiashi had only heard that Lord Jiraiya, one of the Konoha Sannin, could use it.
That showed just how difficult it was to master!
Hyuga Hiashi knew that it wasn't because Jiraiya didn't want to teach it to the other shinobi in the village.
Rather, even if he taught them personally,
even the High Shinobi
might not be able to learn it.
The gap between people couldn't be made up for through hard work alone.
Sometimes, if you lacked the aptitude, that was simply your limit.
You could train yourself to death, and it still wouldn't help!
How many shinobi in the world didn't work hard at mastering jutsu?
As if!
They all trained like their lives depended on it.
But some people were so untalented that the best they could ever hope to become was a Chunin.
Or even just a Genin.
Hyuga Hiashi nodded and said solemnly,
"Impressive. Having figured out the Rasengan on your own, you deserve to be called a genius!"
He was simply giving an honest assessment!
Hyuga Ichiro looked astonished.
He stared at Hyuga Hiashi, dumbfounded.
He had followed the Patriarch for so long.
He had rarely seen Hyuga Hiashi praise a shinobi.
And now Naruto, who had only just graduated from the Ninja Academy and become a Genin,
had received such high praise from the Patriarch!
It seemed his future prospects were limitless.
So he mustered his courage and brought up another thing his people had discovered.
"Patriarch, our men have seen that the young lady seems to be getting quite close to Naruto."
Hyuga Ichiro kept his eyes fixed on Hyuga Hiashi.
He was afraid that he might say the wrong thing.
Hyuga Hiashi might slap him dead on the spot.
In the past,
he probably wouldn't have slapped him dead...
At most, he'd have thrown him out, beaten him, and punished him.
But this time, it concerned Hinata!
Hinata was Hyuga Hiashi's eldest daughter.
She was still so young...
And yet Naruto had already won her over.
It was simply outrageous!
Getting on Naruto's good side now
would surely send the Hyuga Clan's standing soaring in the future.
They'd rise with the tide.
That was only Hyuga Ichiro's opinion, though.
It wasn't Hyuga Hiashi's.
What was that saying again...
A subordinate shouldn't talk back to his superior.
Otherwise, Hyuga Ichiro would have to run laps around the training ground right now!
As he ran, he'd have to shout, "I'm sorry, Brother Hiashi!"
He'd keep running until Hyuga Hiashi was satisfied!
When Hyuga Hiashi heard that his daughter had been getting close to Naruto lately,
his Byakugan widened slightly.
His thoughts grew complicated!
After all, she was his daughter, and the future heir of the Hyuga Clan!
By rights,
she couldn't marry outside the clan!
They had to preserve the purity of the Byakugan bloodline!
So she could only marry someone from within the clan.
Marrying outside the clan was strictly forbidden.
After all, if Naruto, who had no Kekkei Genkai, married Hinata,
their children's
dōjutsu would be greatly weakened!
(Himawari: Grandpa ==, do you think you're funny?)
That was an indisputable fact.
It was basic knowledge.
That was also the fundamental reason why many powerful clans with Kekkei Genkai
forbade their members from marrying outside the clan.
It was impossible to tell from Hyuga Hiashi's expression whether he was pleased or angry.
"Why didn't you report this sooner?"
"I..."
Hyuga Ichiro was at a loss for words.
"Enough, enough. You can go now."
"Yes, Patriarch!"
"Uh..."
The wooden door closed softly.
Hyuga Hiashi was left alone in the wooden house.
After a long while, Hyuga Hiashi slowly opened his eyes.
He murmured to himself,
"Letting Hinata marry outside the clan is out of the question!"
"But given the strength and talent Naruto has shown, he could be worth winning over."
"If Naruto really can reach the level of his father, Minato Namikaze, and become a Kage Level shinobi,"
"then this marriage might not be entirely out of the question..."
Reaching Kage Level was incredibly difficult!
And that wasn't all.
Even if someone had the ability,
each village had only a handful of Kage positions.
You could count them on one hand.
And the Hokage of Konoha, one of the Five Great Nations,
was an especially high-profile position.
It held supreme authority.
Having the Hokage as a son-in-law—
how glorious would that be!!!
Hyuga Hiashi couldn't help fantasizing about it.
But soon, he shook his head.
"Heh... Becoming Hokage isn't easy. It's not something you can just do."
"I don't know how many clans have had their eyes on that position for years."
"No matter how strong Naruto gets, he'll never sit in that seat."
"At best, he's just more talented than most."
Was Shisui Uchiha strong?
Very strong!
And yet he still couldn't become Hokage.
He could only be used as a pawn.
Was Kakashi Hatake strong?
Pretty strong.
He'd racked up plenty of feats that struck fear into people's hearts!
And he still couldn't become Hokage!
Konoha had produced far too many geniuses.
Hyuga Hiashi had seen plenty of them.
So without thinking, he classified Naruto as a genius ninja.
Not a once-in-a-generation prodigy.
In short,
Hyuga Hiashi didn't want to marry his daughter outside the clan.
To put it plainly,
Naruto didn't have enough to offer.
His future achievements were limited.
He hadn't given Hyuga Hiashi a reason to—
make a decision that went against his ancestors.
At this point in time, Hyuga Hiashi
wasn't solely focused on maximizing his own interests!
There was no helping it.
The Hyuga Clan had passed down through the generations,
and their Pupil Power had gradually weakened.
Each generation was weaker than the last.
As Patriarch, he had to make decisions for the many families within the Hyuga Clan.
One wrong step, and they could lose everything.
The Hyuga Clan's name might disappear from history.
He absolutely couldn't allow that to happen.
It could only be said that Hyuga Hiashi wasn't wrong.
After all, those in high positions couldn't just look after their own families.
If they did, what would happen to all the other families in the clan?
Would they all have to suffer together?
Knock, knock, knock...
"Patriarch, the young lady is back."
Hyuga Ichiro's voice came from outside the door again.
Hyuga Hiashi furrowed his brow and replied in an unhurried tone.
"She's back. So what? Why make such a fuss?"
"Do you really need to report every little thing to me?"
"Do you think I don't have enough to do already? That I'm not busy enough?"
Hyuga Ichiro sounded utterly flustered, his voice on the verge of tears.
"No, Patriarch, that's not what I meant. It's just that the young lady brought Naruto back with her. They came together."
"So... I thought I should let you know."
Riiiip—
Someone yanked the wooden door open.
"What?!! Why didn't you come report this to me sooner?!"
P.S. I'm on a roll! Any free gifts?
Just a few more chapters like this, then things will get back on track.
Before you continue