The Cage

"How about it?" The scarlet Sharingan reflected Aoike's image. "Fight me with everything you've got."

"This time, I'm definitely the one who will win!"

Sasuke's activation of his eyes drew a flurry of discussion from the crowd.

"Is that the legendary Sharingan?"

"So cool."

"Move aside, Wide-Forehead, you're blocking my view of Aoike-sama's face."

"Ino-pig, what do you know? Sasuke is the coolest one!"

"Wide-Forehead!"

"Ino-pig!"

Ah~!

Aoike was indifferent to the chatter, though he felt a flicker of surprise at Sasuke awakening his eyes.

"I've heard that line so many times I'm sick of it. I hope you've actually improved."

After speaking, he formed the Seal of Confrontation under the teacher's watchful gaze.

The fated duel between the Byakugan and the Sharingan had reappeared after the Uchiha clan's annihilation, and the number of onlookers gathering around the sparring platform began to grow.

"Ninja sparring exercise, begin!"

The moment Iruka's hand dropped, the Byakugan activated in unison.

Since Sasuke wanted to go all out, he might as well take this a little seriously.

The two accelerated toward each other. Sasuke fired three shuriken at Aoike in a 'pin' formation. Aoike used one hand to deflect the shuriken with two kunai, while his other hand caught a still-spinning shuriken and spun around to throw it back at Sasuke.

Looking closely, one could see a thin film of wind chakra clinging to Aoike's fingertips; it was this wind film that allowed the shuriken to be thrown back at an even greater speed without losing its rotation.

Sasuke was forced to interrupt his hand seals, and it was this momentary hesitation that allowed Aoike's Gentle Fist to arrive first. The force was so great that Sasuke was left momentarily suspended in the air.

Bang.

The Sasuke who was struck transformed into smoke, and a replacement log flew backward.

Aoike didn't change his expression; he turned around and pushed out with both hands. Sasuke, his sneak attack failed, had no choice but to roll and slide a long distance to dissipate the force.

The moment he stabilized his stance, the final seal for the Fireball Jutsu was cast. A massive fireball followed the trajectory of his retreat, rushing headlong toward Aoike.

He stood with one hand behind his back, ready to strike.

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"

The fireball was pierced through by a single palm strike, the remaining flames bursting like scattered sparks before extinguishing.

Just as the classmates were marveling, Sasuke seized the opening created by Aoike's attack. He curled his lips into a smirk and pulled hard with both hands, causing the shuriken that had been deflected earlier to fly back at a tricky angle.

How will you handle this now?

Confidence bloomed on Sasuke's face. His Sharingan remained locked on Aoike, and the taunts he had been rehearsing in his head for over a year finally seemed to have a use.

"Is that all you've got?"

Contrary to Sasuke's expectations, the expression on Aoike's face remained as calm as ever.

He had seen through the wires on the shuriken long ago, and Sasuke's moves were well within his predictions. His purpose in letting the battle drag on until now was naturally to demonstrate his own value to the onlookers.

It would have been easy to dodge, but that wasn't what Aoike wanted.

So, to the shock of everyone present, a pale blue chakra swirled around Aoike.

"Eight Trigrams—Heavenly Spin!"

The shuriken were deflected out of the arena, and the wires were severed by the high-speed rotating chakra. Sasuke, having regained his senses, refused to give up; he formed hand seals, intending to turn his last bit of chakra into a fireball.

Aoike, having finished demonstrating the Gentle Fist, stopped holding back. With a Body Flicker, he pressed his fingertips against Sasuke's chest.

"Eight Trigrams—Thirty-Two Palms!"

"Eight Trigrams—Sixty-Four Palms!"

Sasuke's swaying figure looked like a puppet in the wind. All his acupoints were sealed, and his Fire Release jutsu was cut short, a few wisps of flame drifting from his mouth before dissipating in the breeze.

In the moment Sasuke was stunned by the barrage, he realized he had already fallen from the air to the ground. Aoike didn't deliver the final strike, merely tapping his forehead with two fingers.

"That's enough, Sasuke."

After speaking, he formed the Seal of Reconciliation and stepped off the stage with a flourish, leaving a dejected Sasuke standing in the wind, the surroundings deathly silent.

Aside from Hinata, a blonde girl rushed up first.

"Aoike, Aoike, those last few moves were so cool! What were they called?"

"Do you have any plans for the break? Do you want to go out together?"

Because he had to visit the cemetery to pay his respects, Aoike had bought flowers and met Ino before school started. Since they were in the same class, Ino was the person he interacted with most besides Hinata.

"Maybe next time. I have some things to take care of this break."

After a polite refusal, he stood to the side to plan the finishing touches for his new technique.

Outside the arena------

Even by deliberately avoiding close-quarters combat, he was still crushed head-on.

Iruka tallied up Sasuke's moves. Since the Clone Jutsu and Transformation Jutsu were useless against the Byakugan, he had simply abandoned them to save chakra for the Fire Style techniques he excelled at.

Unfortunately, the Aoike Association had too many tricks up their sleeve, and when paired with a 359-degree perspective Byakugan, it was difficult to gain any advantage against him.

If only Sasuke had one more tomoe in his eyes, knew a few more ninjutsu, and had a larger chakra pool...

Well, that was asking a bit too much of Sasuke.

Iruka felt a pang of pity for Sasuke's predicament in his heart; he was already outstanding enough, but it was a pity his opponent was simply stronger.

He even saw a glimpse of Kakashi's younger self in Aoike.

Inside the Hokage's office

Sarutobi Hiruzen watched the images transmitted by the crystal ball, his aged face hidden behind a veil of smoke.

Another new genius has emerged in the village, though it's a pity he's from the Hyuga clan's branch family.

He glanced at the file on Aoike sitting on his desk.

Uh, He's also a mixed-blood Uchiha.

The thought he'd had of making an exception and recruiting him into the Anbu after graduation vanished in an instant.

As for Danzo, who stood to the side, he didn't even need to be mentioned. With one eye closed in feigned sleep, he recalled the sealing jutsu on Aoike's forehead and didn't even have the desire to speak.

And just like that, The door to the Hokage's office passed another day in peace.

As the holidays arrived, aside from refining his new techniques, Aoike spent his time sparring with Hinata. Although her Gentle Fist had improved significantly during this period, she was still held back by her state of mind and the pressure from her family, which caused her strikes to lack the necessary force.

There was nothing Aoike could do to teach her that; he could only hope she would slowly change as she grew.

The holidays hadn't even lasted a few days before an unexpected visitor arrived at his door.

"Sasuke, is there something you need?"

Sasuke stood before the door, his face flushed red.

The speech he had prepared in advance was stuck in his throat, making it difficult to speak.

Aoike couldn't just leave him standing at the door; if word got out that the last survivor of the Uchiha clan was being bullied by a member of the Hyuga branch family, it would be a massive headache.

He poured a glass of ice water, set it in front of Sasuke, and leaned back on the sofa with a casual air.

"Speak up. Is there something you find hard to say?"

Sasuke wasn't one to dwell on things, so he spoke immediately.

"I want to ask you to be my coach and teach me taijutsu."

"Huh~?"