The Ninja Academy's system and curriculum had matured over the years.
The Will of Fire had its own course, essentially a "politics class," alongside lessons in traps, ninjutsu, throwing, Taijutsu, and other subjects.
Another half year passed in the blink of an eye. During that time, he had established overwhelming dominance among the first-years to secure more resources.
The passive boost from his Byakugan and Mangekyō Sharingan had already put his strength beyond the scope of the Ninja Academy.
With the Caged Bird Seal, he was naturally excluded from consideration for the title of Darkness of Konoha, so he had no fear of attracting covetous attention by showing off his talent.
Back to the midterm exams.
"So you still don't understand, Uchiha? The gap between our strength can't be erased with a single Great Fireball Technique."
Aoike withdrew the Kunai pressed against Sasuke's shoulder. Under the teacher's watchful eye, he performed the Seal of Reconciliation and strolled off the platform.
Behind him, Sasuke stared helplessly at the scene, propping himself up with one hand as he gasped for air.
He'd lost.
"I lost without a doubt!" he cried out resentfully in his heart. Even after using the Great Fireball Technique he'd learned from his father, he'd still been defeated.
His opponent had used nothing but the Body Replacement Technique from beginning to end, and had toyed with him the whole time.
Sasuke raised his head and stared at Aoike's back, shouting, "I'll definitely beat you next time!"
Aoike paused at his words and glanced back over his shoulder.
"I'll look forward to it, Uchiha."
Then he paid no more attention to Sasuke, whose face was growing redder by the second, or the lovestruck little kids below the platform.
Instead, he continued practicing Sensory Ninjutsu.
The eyes of the Otsutsuki Branch Family were removed at birth, leaving them to perceive the world through the mind's eye formed from chakra. It was keen, but its range certainly couldn't match the Byakugan.
After defeating her opponent, Hinata happily searched the crowd for a white-haired figure. When Aoike met those familiar white eyes, he smiled back.
Only when Hinata came down from the platform and stood before him did he offer her a warm compliment.
"That was a beautiful fight, Hinata."
Their long acquaintance had made it less likely for Hinata to turn into a little steam engine, though her cheeks were still rosy.
"Thank you, Big Brother Aoike." The smile on Hinata's face would last until the end of the school day.
After years of training under Hiashi's harsh discipline, Hinata had come to see her bodyguard, Aoike, as a shelter from the storm.
Hinata was easy to please now. A little patience and care were enough to earn him a special place in her heart.
Because of the combat exams, it was nearly dusk by the time they returned to the clan compound after school.
Even after enrolling in the Ninja Academy, Hinata still had lessons at the clan school when she got home.
As Hinata's bodyguard, Aoike endured a lecture from the clan head, complete with reprimands, warnings, and encouragement. Along the way, he also suffered plenty of sidelong looks, mostly questioning, jealous, or cold.
When he was about a hundred meters from the clan head's residence, a strange gust of wind passed by in an instant.
"They've finally come?" Aoike pressed down the corners of his mouth, suppressing a smile.
He kept a moderate distance. The Otsutsuki's senses were exceptionally sharp.
On the other side...
"...Look, that's the girl. Her name is Hinata Hyuga. Concentrate and try to sense her."
Otsutsuki Toneri and his father watched Hinata through the mind's eye they had formed with chakra.
"...Mm, she's a very cute girl."
"...Come back and marry her in ten years. Make her your bride."
After spying for a while, the two of them left Konoha. Little did they know that while they coveted Hinata, Aoike was coveting them too.
Aoike watched the direction they had come from and used his Byakugan to its fullest, seeing more than ten kilometers in a single direction. He kept looking until they were completely out of sight.
After deactivating his Byakugan, he memorized the direction they had left in. All he needed now was a suitable opportunity to send a Shadow Clone out of the village. His plan had gotten off to a good start.
During the holidays, Aoike's main task was sparring with Hinata. Since he had defeated the Uchiha Clan Head's son in the combat exam, the hostility toward him in the Hyuga Clan Compound had eased considerably. Still, plenty of people gossiped that he was "living off a woman" or had "impure blood."
Time slipped by unnoticed.
The holiday seemed to last only a few days before it was over.
That afternoon, Hyuga Hiashi kept Aoike behind under the pretext of an assessment.
The two figures, one large and one small, exchanged blows in the evening glow. Hiashi had spent years mastering the Gentle Fist. His movements were soft yet sharp, and he kept Aoike firmly on the defensive.
Their two pairs of Byakugan tracked each other's movements, constantly searching for openings. As expected, the pure Taijutsu contest ended with Aoike's defeat.
With his hands behind his back, Hiashi pointed out Aoike's shortcomings.
After a long while, he sighed, as if he were looking at a rare, imperfect piece of uncarved jade.
"I can't teach you anything more about the Byakugan's perception. The only things holding you back now are your physical strength and chakra reserves."
"As long as you keep practicing, reaching beyond the level of a jonin someday is no empty boast."
Aoike calmly ate his flatbread as he listened to the advice.
With the Caged Bird Seal in place, no matter how strong the Branch House became, it could never threaten the Main House. So Hyuga Hiashi didn't fear Aoike's displayed talent.
When Aoike returned home, he finally stopped holding back and sank to the ground, visibly weakened.
Even putting everything he had into it at six years old, he couldn't force Hiashi to take a single step back. The man was an elite jonin, a top-tier combatant even by the late stages of the Fourth Shinobi World War.
His physical strength was what held him back now, and improving it would take time.
The ability of his left Mangekyō was Heavenly Controller of Fate. By touching a target he had chosen, he could steal their "life force."
For example, he could choose a great tree and steal its vitality, or choose an Otsutsuki and steal their chakra.
But his body was too weak at present. The cost and gain of stealing were inversely related for him; even breaking even counted as a loss, let alone paying more than he gained.
Whenever he felt tempted, he would recall Itachi's miserable fate, and his mind would immediately settle.
And every now and then, he would look at the moon. That put him in an even better mood.