Judo, Secret Arts

A few days later...

"Jia, Ning Xue, today Mommy is going to test your chakra nature. If you're capable, I'll teach you the secret arts of the Land of Snow in the future," a gentle female voice drifted into Ning Xue's ears.

It was his mother, Hyuga Yuki.

"Secret arts?" Ning Xue was somewhat puzzled.

No way, is this something he can learn right now? It sounds incredibly impressive.

It couldn't possibly be that in this world, three-year-olds have to start the miserable life of grueling training.

Time returned to the previous day.

Hyuga Ning and Yuki watched as he touched his forehead with a mirror from time to time in the room; the two of them felt quite helpless and heartbroken about this.

At this moment, Ning suddenly spoke up.

"I'm sorry, Yuki. If I weren't from the branch family, perhaps I wouldn't have let our child suffer like this." As he said this, his eyes were filled with sorrow.

"No, Ning... this isn't your fault. I know this is the inescapable fate of you branch family members. You tried to persuade me, but I still wanted to be with you... and even if it hadn't been with me, it would have been the same. It's just that he is still so small." The woman wept, looking at the child with a heart full of pain.

Hyuga Ning was silent for a moment, as if he had made up his mind. "Therefore, we must make him stronger. Tomorrow... you teach him that. At the very least, give him an extra layer of power to protect himself. I will also see what kind of chakra nature this child... has inherited."

He knew that changing the Caged Bird seal was hopeless, but allowing his son to live as strongly as possible under the shackles was the only struggle he could manage as a father.

In fact, the moment he fell in love with Yuki, he had already thought about this; he had even said as much before.

Yet, she still walked toward him.

He had considered that if the child didn't have the Byakugan, he would secretly raise him outside.

But if they were discovered... he didn't dare to gamble.

So, when Ning Xue was born and possessed the Byakugan, he was happy, but after this emotion faded, it was replaced by guilt.

He had failed Yuki and Ning Xue.

Time returned to the present.

Hyuga Yuki gently led Ning Xue to the courtyard. She took out a special piece of chakra test paper and explained softly.

"Ning Xue, channel your chakra into this. It will tell us your chakra nature."

Ning Xue nodded and focused his mind; for someone with an adult soul, this wasn't too difficult. He slowly channeled his faint chakra into the test paper.

In an instant, part of the test paper became damp, while another part split neatly down the middle!

"This is..." A flash of pleasant surprise crossed Hyuga Yuki's eyes. "Water nature, and Wind nature! That is a very excellent combination of natures, Ning Xue."

In the evening, when Hyuga Ning returned home and learned the news, a rare trace of relief appeared on his stern face.

"Wind and Water... a very good combination. This means you will have high potential in ninjutsu in the future."

He gently patted Ning Xue on the head.

"But remember, even the best talent requires arduous training."

The next day, the real training began.

What Hyuga Yuki taught was not a powerful offensive ninjutsu, but the foundation of the secret arts from her homeland, the Land of Snow—the exquisite control of Water-style chakra.

The most basic training was for Ning Xue to condense chakra at his fingertips and attempt to freeze the moisture in the air to form the tiniest snowflake.

This required extremely precise control over chakra. Ning Xue sat cross-legged in the courtyard, his small face flushed red, yet only a faint, wispy mist swirled around his fingertips. He failed time and time again.

Hyuga Ning began to teach him the basics of the clan: the starting stance of the Gentle Fist and the most rudimentary knowledge of the chakra meridian system. Boring posture practice and memorization of the meridians filled Ning Xue's days.

The Caged Bird seal on his forehead seemed to radiate a cold weight at every moment, reminding him of his future constraints.

But Ning Xue did not complain; his gaze remained calm, even carrying a focus that surpassed his age.

The mediocre memories of his past life and the clear predicament of the present made him understand that this was his only path to survival.

At night, he would even sneak out of bed to continue trying to condense that unfinished snowflake.

But is this what he wanted?

Now, returning to Ning Xue's perspective.

"Damn it, this world really starts teaching such difficult stuff when you're this small. Three years old! I feel like this world is very dangerous; better to just grind and get ahead," the little Ning Xue's expression held something that didn't belong to his age... ferocity?

(It wasn't that it was hard to learn, but that he was currently in Konoha.)

He remembered his good friend saying that there would be something like a Fourth Great Ninja War in the future.

And what he didn't know was that there was a pair of white eyes watching him from next door.

One morning, several weeks later, when Hyuga Ning pushed open the door, he saw Ning Xue extending his finger. A tiny ice crystal, smaller than a fingernail and with slightly rough edges, but undeniably possessing a hexagonal outline, was trembling as it hovered above his fingertip, refracting a faint and brilliant light under the rising sun.

Ning Xue looked up, his pure white eyes devoid of any childish showing off, holding only a trace of imperceptible exhaustion and the satisfaction of finally achieving his goal.

Hyuga Ning stood at the doorway, silent for a long time.

He knew well that Konoha was not suited for practicing Ice Release, yet this child had successfully condensed it.

Perhaps this child's path was destined to be even more arduous than he had imagined, or perhaps... even more extraordinary.

After his thoughts settled, Hyuga Ning walked over to Ning Xue, crouched down, patted his head, and offered praise.

"Little Ning Xue is truly impressive, a little genius indeed, to have condensed an ice crystal so quickly."

Hyuga Ning's praise caused a slight ripple in Ning Xue's heart, but it quickly subsided. He knew this was merely an insignificant starting point on a long road.

"Thank you, Father." Ning Xue responded softly, dissipating the ice crystal at his fingertips.

Hyuga Ning stood up, his expression returning to its usual sternness.

"Chakra control is the foundation, but as members of the Hyuga clan, especially those of the branch family, the Gentle Fist is the basis of our survival. Starting today, I will begin formally teaching you the fundamentals of Gentle Fist taijutsu."

He assumed a steady opening stance—the preparatory posture for the "Eight Trigrams Palms." Naturally, he did not condense chakra at his fingertips; it was purely the form.

"Watch closely, Ning Xue. The Eight Trigrams Palms does not rely on brute force, but on precisely striking chakra into the opponent's meridian system to block their chakra flow and cause internal damage. Its core lies in precision and penetration."

Hyuga Ning demonstrated the movements slowly while explaining the key points.

"Your footing must be steady, your force must be concentrated at a single point, and the trajectory of your strikes must be without the slightest deviation."

Ning Xue observed every subtle movement of his father with focus, striving to etch every detail into his mind.

The advantages of the Byakugan and his mature mindset began to manifest at this moment; he could see his father's method of force generation and the subtle shifts in his center of gravity more clearly than an ordinary person, and he remembered them.

"Come, try to imitate my movements," Hyuga Ning signaled.

Ning Xue took a deep breath and mimicked the posture.

The body of a three-year-old child was delicate and lacked coordination, making his movements appear clumsy and unsteady.

However, he adjusted his breathing, tried hard to recall his father's demonstration, and corrected his posture bit by bit.

Hyuga Ning did not rush to correct him, choosing instead to observe carefully.

He was surprised to find that although Ning Xue's movements were unrefined, he had grasped the core points with remarkable accuracy, especially the intent to concentrate his entire body's strength into a single point—a level of understanding completely unlike that of a three-year-old.

"Here, sink your waist another three parts." Hyuga Ning stepped forward and gently pressed his hand against Ning Xue's waist and abdomen.

"Your center of gravity must be as steady as a rock. When throwing a punch, the power rises from the ground, passes through the waist and abdomen, flows through the arm, and finally concentrates at the fingertips."

He patiently adjusted Ning Xue's posture, guiding him to feel the sequence of force generation.

In the days that followed, Ning Xue's life became completely regimented.

In the morning, he followed his mother, Xue, for chakra control training, continuing to refine his micro-manipulation of wind and water attribute chakra, attempting to condense larger and sturdier ice crystals, and even beginning to make initial attempts at manipulating small droplets of water.

In the afternoon, it was unwavering Gentle Fist training. Hyuga Ning began by teaching the most basic footwork and stances, requiring Ning Xue to practice every movement thousands of times until it became muscle memory.

Monotony, exhaustion, and even being sternly corrected by his father for incorrect posture became a daily routine.