Where's the Head?

Although the original story did not say much about the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan, the fact that the Uchiha and the Hyuga Clan had remained rivals since Konoha's founding undoubtedly showed that the gap between their bloodline limits was not that great.

In actual combat, the Byakugan's abilities were even far more practical than the Sharingan's.

Especially in certain wars, where they could play a decisive role. That was why the village treated the Hyūga far better.

The Insight Eye allowed one to observe even the tiniest changes in the environment seen through their eyes.

The Far-seeing Eye allowed one to see things across a wider range, and with enough effort, its viewing distance could be continuously increased.

The X-ray Eye could see through objects. Aside from seeing through the human body's Meridians, bones, and Tenketsu, it could also penetrate most obstructions, such as trees and houses.

Combined, these three abilities meant that as long as someone possessed Hyūga blood, had enough talent to awaken the Byakugan, and developed these abilities to their fullest—

Then, in battle, no matter how an enemy hid or what techniques they used to conceal themselves, they would be almost completely exposed and locked onto by the Hyuga Clan. There would be no possibility of evading their perception.

The enemy's every movement would be known, even when they used ninjutsu and how much Chakra their body had consumed. Everything would be exposed within the Hyuga Clan's sight.

How could they lose under those circumstances?

Even if they truly could not win, they would definitely be capable of avoiding danger in advance.

And that was not even counting the other powerful abilities of the Byakugan still waiting to be developed.

Thus, the reason the Hyuga Clan had never truly shone was not because the abilities granted by their bloodline were weak, but because they lacked geniuses capable of developing them.

But now... that genius had appeared!

"Fire Release, Great Dragon Fire Technique!"

Roiling flames resembling a true dragon spewed from the Uchiha Jonin's mouth, charging wildly through the dense forest. No obstacle could halt its advance.

The immense destructive power of a B-rank ninjutsu was displayed to the fullest under his precise Chakra control and Chakra nature transformation.

But unfortunately, just like the combined ninjutsu earlier, this fire dragon was intercepted by the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm Souji and Seisai unleashed together. It exploded midair, once again setting this forest ablaze.

As a Secret Technique passed down by the Hyūga for a thousand years, the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm was no weaker than ordinary Five Elemental Release in power. Its strength depended on the amount of compressed Chakra behind it.

Within the thick smoke created by the explosion, the two Uchiha figures flickered rapidly.

The distance had widened, and they attempted to counterattack once more.

"Genjutsu, Unknown Fire!"

The Byakugan meant powerful sensory abilities, capable of firmly locking onto an enemy's location.

But at the same time, the effects brought by the Byakugan also made the Hyuga Clan particularly susceptible to visual Genjutsu.

Souji and Seisai, who had been pursuing them relentlessly, came to a halt amid the branches.

They had not managed to close their Byakugan at the very instant the Genjutsu was cast.

The otherwise unremarkable Uchiha Chunin, who had remained under his companion's protection the entire time, actually possessed a Three Tomoe Sharingan beneath his mask!

They realized it when they felt the mental confusion and disorientation brought by the Genjutsu.

Unknown Fire was merely a C-rank visual Genjutsu. It absolutely could not have affected two battle-hardened Chunin like them. Only when enhanced by the hypnotic power of a Three Tomoe Sharingan could it possess such potent bewildering power.

Dispelling Genjutsu required time.

The Uchiha Sharingan's greatest strength lay in the replication abilities granted by the copying eye. It could copy an enemy's movements, ninjutsu, Genjutsu, and even taijutsu.

But when facing a bloodline-limit clan like the Hyūga, whose entire skill set was almost entirely Secret Techniques, the copying eye was practically useless. The only ability that could have an effect in battle was the Hypnosis Eye.

The instant the Uchiha Chunin cast the Genjutsu, the Uchiha Jonin had already formed hand seals at high speed.

"Fire Release, Great Dragon Fire Technique!"

He unleashed the B-rank ninjutsu once again, and the fire dragon spewing from his mouth was even more powerful than before.

His first use of the Great Dragon Fire Technique had been meant to create an inferno and an explosion.

If those two Hyūga had realized within the earlier fog that they would cast Genjutsu and had closed their Byakugan to avoid it—

Then the Uchiha would have used the cover of the thick smoke to launch their assault.

But if those two Hyūga had not realized they would cast Genjutsu and had not been on guard, then... the Genjutsu and this second Great Dragon Fire Technique would be their true killing move.

As for that Hyuga Main Family member hiding in secret...

Although their earlier exchange had shown that the little fellow was something of a prodigy, possessing Genin-level strength at such a young age—

A Genin was still a Genin. Even if he hid in the shadows, he could not stop this counterattack in the face of such a killing move!

That... was what they believed.

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"

But what the two Uchiha had not expected was that Souji Hyuga and Seisai, who should have been bewildered by the Genjutsu, acted as though nothing had happened. They once again unleashed highly compressed Chakra palm strikes, interrupting the Great Dragon Fire Technique yet again.

Their counterattack had failed, and the two Uchiha fled once more.

Once again, it became a chase, one side fleeing while the other pursued.

"I'll stay behind and cover your retreat. Abandon this mission. You need to get back alive and tell Clan Head Fugaku everything that happened here. If I don't make it back, please take good care of my family."

Decisively, after seeing the two Hyūga ignore the Genjutsu they had cast, the Uchiha Jonin who had remained silent all this time directly announced that they were abandoning the operation.

Though he did not know exactly what had happened, the facts were clear.

His companion's Genjutsu had absolutely not gone wrong, and those two Hyūga had indeed entered a confused state.

Yet, for some reason, they had escaped the Genjutsu in an extremely short time.

But that was impossible!

Enhanced by the Hypnosis Eye, the Genjutsu they cast was absolutely not something ordinary shinobi could easily break free from.

The repeated blows had already sent this Jonin's pride crashing to the Valley Floor. He was no longer thinking about how to complete the mission successfully, but how to return to the village alive.

"Captain..."

Hearing his captain's order, the Uchiha Chunin was somewhat dazed.

The sudden attack, the desperate flight, the attempted counterattack, the failed counterattack, then another desperate flight.

The entire process seemed long, but in truth, less than ten minutes had passed. Even now, his mind was still buzzing.

They had clearly come to assassinate them. Those three Hyūga were supposed to be the targets. How had things suddenly turned out like this?

They had held the absolute advantage. Those two Hyūga Chunin had even been dragging along dead weight, so how had the battle suddenly become like this? Why were they the ones fleeing while the other side gave chase?

"Your talent is better than mine. You awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan at such a young age. What you lack is only sufficient combat experience."

Before the Uchiha Chunin could finish, the Jonin interrupted him. "Leave now. I'll hold them back. You have to return alive. Your future is more valuable than mine!"

"Captain..."

Emotion surged into the Uchiha Chunin's heart. The fear and panic within him seemed to be forcibly suppressed at once. "I can't leave. I'll stay with—"

Swept up by his emotions, he cast aside all reason. Just as he was about to say something about refusing to abandon his companion—

The next moment, he suddenly felt a stabbing pain in his neck. Then, what he saw before him was a familiar figure.

That was... his body.

Only now, that body no longer had a head.

Where was the head?