Taijutsu

"Our Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist is a form of taijutsu that directly strikes an opponent's meridians and acupoints, even damaging their internal organs!"

"However, accurately hitting an enemy's meridians and acupoints requires keen perception, which is why the Byakugan is essential for using the Gentle Fist! Without the Byakugan's assistance, even if others learn the Gentle Fist, they cannot fully bring out its power!" Hyuga Huo Jian stood nearby, guiding his son's taijutsu training.

Ever since assessing Yizhe's abilities, Huo Jian had been very satisfied with every aspect of him, except for his son's taijutsu.

Yizhe had become too obsessed with all kinds of flashy ninjutsu, to the point that his ninjutsu far surpassed his taijutsu. For the Hyuga Clan, renowned for taijutsu, this was practically a disgrace.

At the same time, having such weak taijutsu was not conducive to Yizhe's future growth.

Thus, Huo Jian began training his son to strengthen his taijutsu, and it became his only source of entertainment while he was idling at home.

"Father! Isn't this enough taijutsu training already?" Yizhe did not dare defy Huo Jian's wishes, but he was still somewhat unwilling.

Even now, he hoped his father would not be too demanding, so he tested the waters. "No matter how strong taijutsu is, it can't withstand a barrage of ninjutsu!"

"What does a child like you know? Do you think taijutsu can't deal with a ninjutsu bombardment?" Hearing his son question taijutsu's capabilities, Huo Jian angrily rebuked him.

He could not let his son develop the mistaken impression that taijutsu was inferior to ninjutsu and then look down on its value. On the battlefield, that could be fatal!

"First of all, ninja who specialize in taijutsu have extremely strong physical qualities. That means advantages in speed, endurance, strength, and even vitality!"

"I won't even mention endurance and strength. On the battlefield, the difference in speed is often the difference between life and death! If I had been just a little faster back then, perhaps my hand would not be like this now!" Whenever Huo Jian recalled the past, he could not help but sigh with emotion.

"Father..." Yizhe did not know how to comfort him for a moment.

"Ha, ha, ha—" Huo Jian laughed loudly. "It's nothing! Maybe I really am getting old! Lately, I keep remembering the past!"

"Do you know how to increase your chakra reserves?" Huo Jian abruptly changed the subject. Rather than continuing to talk about taijutsu, he brought up chakra reserves.

Chakra reserves had always weighed on Yizhe's mind. At this stage, he had very little chakra. Each time he practiced, after casting only a few ninjutsu, his chakra would be depleted.

For Yizhe, who was obsessed with ninjutsu, that was simply unbearable. Thus, he had always been looking for a way to increase his chakra reserves.

"Oh? Father, you have a way?" Yizhe instantly became interested.

"The essence of chakra is the fusion of the human body's physical energy and spiritual energy. Your spiritual energy has been exceptional since childhood. Therefore, what limits your chakra reserves is your physical energy!"

"Do you understand now?" Huo Jian asked.

"Stronger taijutsu means improved physical qualities, which means greater physical energy! So that's it, so that's it!" A single remark awakened him from his dream. Yizhe was not stupid, and he immediately understood what his father meant.

"Greater vitality also means that the same technique can produce different results on different people. Some may collapse at the slightest touch, while others may suffer only minor injuries!"

"Looking across the Ninja World, aside from a few exceptions with unusual constitutions, any powerful ninja has no glaring weaknesses in either taijutsu or ninjutsu!" Huo Jian continued to patiently persuade him.

"But Father, you still haven't said how taijutsu-type ninja should deal with ninjutsu they cannot dodge!" Yizhe understood his father's good intentions, but he wanted the answer to that question even more.

"Our Hyuga Clan has a taijutsu technique called Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven! It is known as the 'absolute defense'! As for other taijutsu-type ninja, they more or less know some defensive taijutsu as well." Mentioning Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, Huo Jian could not help showing a trace of pride.

"What! It's that powerful? Tell me about it!" Yizhe was shocked. This was the first time he had heard of such a formidable technique.

"Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven is a taijutsu technique where one spins at high speed while releasing chakra from every acupoint in the body to protect oneself. The stronger the user, the stronger the technique!"

"It can repel all physical attacks, defend against ninjutsu attacks, and has no blind spots in any direction!" Huo Jian described it without the slightest exaggeration.

"Hiss—" Yizhe sucked in a breath.

"Father, you know it too, right?" Yizhe forced down the excitement in his heart and asked softly. His intentions were obvious.

He had to learn such a powerful technique! It was a life-saving move at critical moments.

"Want to learn it?"

"Yes!" The boy nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at grain.

Huo Jian neither refused nor agreed. With a bitter smile, he said, "Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven is a secret technique passed down by the Main House. Even after all my arduous training, I have only grasped the barest surface of it. I still have not understood its crucial intricacies!"

"So, if you want to fully master Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, you will have to work hard on your own!" Huo Jian said earnestly.

It seemed there was no hope of learning the complete Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven from his father. Yizhe could not help feeling disappointed.

For a long time afterward, Yizhe willingly began intensive taijutsu training.

He was greatly interested in Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, but his father only knew its superficial aspects and had no intention of teaching it to him. He merely offered guidance from the side.

In order to master Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, Yizhe began diligently studying the human body's meridians and acupoints. With the Byakugan assisting him, his progress was quite rapid.

However, that alone was still not enough to master Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven. Yet it was not without gains. As he gradually became familiar with the body's meridians and acupoints, Yizhe instead mastered the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. One might say he had planted willows without intending to, only to find them flourishing in the shade.

Every bit of Yizhe's progress fell under Huo Jian's watchful eye, and he felt deeply gratified. Although Yizhe had not mastered Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, mastering the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms still counted as a modest accomplishment.

After all, even to learn the incomplete version of Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, Huo Jian himself had spent nearly two years. He did not believe Yizhe could develop even a rough foundation for it in such a short time.

Not long after the war ended, the Third Hokage stepped down. Jiraiya's disciple, Minato Namikaze, had earned the great title of the Yellow Flash on the battlefield. With his illustrious achievements, the people of Konoha elected him as the Fourth Hokage.

Yizhe accompanied Jiraiya to attend the Fourth Hokage's inauguration ceremony.

Minato Namikaze was a sunny young man with golden hair. He looked a little childish and melodramatic, and Yizhe had no idea what Jiraiya had seen in him back then.

Yizhe was quite curious about that.

"Hey, Jiraiya! Isn't there another one among your Three Legendary Ninja called Orochimaru? Where is he? Point him out so I can have a look!" The Hokage's inauguration ceremony was terribly boring. Yizhe had become impatient and wanted to find some amusement.

"Him? He didn't come! He's probably hiding in some pitch-black cave doing research! If you saw him once, you wouldn't want to see him a second time!" Jiraiya knew his fellow disciple well. Orochimaru was not someone who fit in with others.

"What a pity! I wanted to take this opportunity to meet the last of the Three Legendary Ninja!" Yizhe was somewhat disappointed.

"Th-then who is that red-haired woman in the back? The Fourth Hokage looks pretty afraid of her!" Yizhe noticed that the Yellow Flash, famous throughout the Ninja World, was acting meek and submissive before a woman.

"Oh, her? She's Minato's girlfriend, Kushina Uzumaki!" Although Jiraiya did not elaborate, Yizhe could still sense that she was far from ordinary.

A terrifying power lay within her. That was Yizhe's intuition.