Gratitude for the Nine-Tails Rebellion

"So this is the Caged Bird seal?"

Staring at the mark on his forehead reflected in the mirror, Hyuga Gen couldn't help but mutter to himself.

I wonder if there's any way to remove it, he thought, lost in contemplation.

He remembered from the Shippuden lore that this technique was tied to the Byakugan and the soul, making it impossible to undo. It only vanished upon death; even the Caged Bird seal on Hyuga Neji's forehead only disappeared after he died during the Fourth Great Ninja War.

The official explanation for the creation of this technique was to prevent the loss of the Byakugan and protect members of the branch family during wartime, though who exactly created it remained unknown.

Of course, the reasons for its creation didn't matter; what mattered was that with this curse seal, his life and death could be decided by a single thought from the main family.

As it stood, as long as he followed the rules, there shouldn't be much of a problem. Hyuga Hiashi was, after all, a relatively enlightened clan head.

Still, the fact that his life was not his own—that a mere whim from someone else could result in his death—made it impossible to feel truly at ease.

"Forget it, no use dwelling on it. I'll look for a solution later. For now, the most important thing is to improve my own strength."

As long as he behaved, things should be fine, so Hyuga Gen pushed the thought to the back of his mind.

"Young Master, dinner is ready. Your grandfather is waiting for you to come down and eat," a voice called from outside the door.

"Alright, I'm coming," Hyuga Gen replied, not having time to overthink it as he quickly stepped out.

"Thank you, Aunt Hui," Hyuga Gen said casually.

Watching him, Hyuga Hui couldn't help but feel that ever since the young master's injury, he seemed different than before, though it was a welcome change.

After greeting his grandfather, Hyuga Gen sat at the table and began to eat. The meal was quiet; the food wasn't exactly gourmet, but it was decent enough.

Hyuga Hui occasionally placed food into their bowls. When it was just the three of them, she ate with them, a privilege earned from years of caring for the old man.

Eating in silence, with only the sound of bowls and chopsticks, felt a bit awkward for Hyuga Gen.

"Aunt Hui, please get me another bowl of rice, thank you." He was already getting used to it. He had tried to get the rice himself earlier, but Aunt Hui had insisted on doing it, so he eventually just started asking her directly.

"Your appetite has grown quite a bit lately," Hyuga Kamen remarked, sounding rather pleased.

He was very happy with the recent changes in his grandson. Ever since the Nine-Tails incident, the boy had changed significantly. Fortunately, these were all positive developments, and he was glad to see it—perhaps his grandson had finally grown up and become sensible.

Hyuga Gen didn't respond, feeling a bit embarrassed.

It's not just grown a bit; I've practically become a bottomless pit.

He had been refining chakra constantly, which consumed a massive amount of energy. He could replenish some of it through food, so he had been eating more.

Since arriving in this world, he hadn't stopped refining chakra. Having watched Shippuden, he knew just how important a person's chakra reserves were.

It was like fuel in a vehicle; without enough fuel, how could it run fast or go the distance?

Hyuga Gen's parents had also been ninjas. They were rarely home and eventually died on the battlefield of the Great Ninja War, which made him deeply resentful of ninjas and the profession itself.

Because of this, no matter how his grandfather tried to teach him, he never studied seriously, as he hated it to his core. However, the Hyuga Gen now inhabited by Xie Wenxing was actually very interested in ninjas.

He wanted to learn everything—Transformation Jutsu, Shadow Clones, and even bug-tier techniques like the Flying Thunder God. If he could learn those, it would be even better.

After being discharged from the hospital, Hyuga Gen began a routine of running every morning, knowing it was an excellent way to train both his body and his mental fortitude.

Since chakra reserves were built upon physical and mental foundations, his reserves should increase rapidly as his physical fitness improved.

The results were exactly as he had expected; his chakra levels were growing steadily.

The rice arrived, and Hyuga Gen buried his head back into his meal.

In his memories, the relationship between the grandfather and grandson hadn't been great. Every time he came to Hyuga Kamen's place, it meant his parents were about to leave for a mission.

He would cry every time, and Hyuga Kamen, being a stern man, hated crying children. When he tried to teach Hyuga Gen clan techniques, the boy would refuse to learn properly out of pure spite.

He disliked ninjas because they took his parents away, leaving them with little time together. He didn't understand the "greater good" of the village; he just wanted his parents by his side.

He didn't want to learn anything related to being a ninja, but he was forced to learn some basics, so he would intentionally perform poorly, pretending he had no talent.

Of course, what no one knew was that he had a photographic memory for everything he studied, and his talent was naturally exceptional.

When he learned that his son and daughter-in-law had died, Hyuga Kamen seemed to age overnight. He stopped forcing Hyuga Gen to study and let him live a life of neglect.

When the boy accidentally discovered his parents had died on the battlefield, he became silent. He finally understood why his grandfather had stopped pushing him. He didn't even cry at his parents' funeral; he was like a wooden doll.

From then on, he didn't speak to anyone, except for the little girl next door.

That girl was Hyuga Natsu. Since coming to his grandfather's house, she was the only one who could make him happy. He always wanted to be with her and play with her.

During the Nine-Tails incident, they happened to be playing outside. When they were caught in the path of falling debris, Hyuga Gen had protected Hyuga Natsu without a second thought, losing his life in the process—and thus, the new Hyuga Gen was born.

"Brother Dongyi, you're already eating?" A small head suddenly poked in from the doorway.

"It's Xia. Come here, let Grandpa hold you." Hyuga Kamen seemed to transform into a different person.

"Grandpa Kamen, hello."

Hyuga Natsu smiled sweetly as she greeted him.

"Xia, is something the matter?"

Hyuga Kamen picked her up and asked kindly.

"Nothing much, just that Mother made something delicious and told me to come invite Brother Dongyi to our house for dinner."

"He's already eaten, there's no need—"

"Xia, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Then what are you waiting for? Come on, let's go together."

Hyuga Kamen hadn't even finished his sentence before Hyuga Gen interrupted him, excitedly pulling Hyuga Natsu toward the exit.

"Goodbye, Grandpa Kamen."

Turning back to say this to Hyuga Kamen, Hyuga Natsu followed Hyuga Gen away.

"This child, really..." Hyuga Kamen shook his head with a helpless smile.

"Isn't this quite good? It's better than before when he wouldn't say a word. During that time, I was truly afraid that the young master might meet with some accident."

Hyuga Hui spoke with lingering fear, as if recalling something.

"That's true."

Thinking back to how Hyuga Gen used to look—blank and expressionless, saying nothing at all—Hyuga Kamen also felt a sense of dread, terrified that his only grandson might come to harm.

He suddenly felt a sense of gratitude toward the Nine-Tails' Rampage; it hadn't caused him any significant loss, and this time, it had placed the Hyuga clan's arch-rival, the Uchiha, in the eye of the storm.

He knew that perhaps the spring of the Hyuga clan was finally arriving.