The Death of Hizashi

Yuun trained the Gentle Fist alone in silence. Unlike the Strong Fist, which could make one stronger through sheer hard work, the Gentle Fist was a taijutsu style that placed great emphasis on talent. Without sufficient talent, no matter how hard one worked, the results would be half the effort for twice the gain. Yet while the Gentle Fist required talent, even the greatest talent would be wasted without long-term training. Yuun did not think being a transmigrator made him particularly extraordinary. Not every transmigrator possessed Long Ao's aptitude and luck. If he wanted to grow stronger, he had to train with his feet firmly on the ground.

After practicing the Gentle Fist all afternoon, Yuun made no breakthrough, but that was perfectly normal. He had kept up efforts like today's for more than a year. Still, he was not discouraged. Even without any so-called breakthrough, he could feel his strength continuing to grow. Even though Itachi had awakened the Sharingan, he was confident he could defeat him.

Yuun returned at dusk, picking up takeout on the way home for dinner. Since becoming a Genin, he had not eaten in the clan dining hall, usually taking care of his meals himself. Although several years had passed, Yuun still remembered many things from his previous life, especially the plots he recalled most often. He knew that tonight, the leader of those Kumogakure shinobi would try to abduct the three-year-old Hinata Hyuga, only to be instantly killed by Hinata's father, the head of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Hiashi.

In his previous life, Yuun had always found it strange. As negotiators from an enemy nation, the Cloud Shinobi could not possibly have gone unmonitored by Konoha's Anbu. Yet that shinobi leader had still managed to infiltrate the Hyuga Estate without alerting anyone, evade the Hyuga Clan members whose eyes could see through things, and abduct Hinata. The level of stealth he displayed had to be at least that of an Elite Jonin.

Yet when Hiashi discovered him, he neither immediately threatened him with the hostage nor abandoned Hinata and prepared to fight. Instead, he actually rushed forward to engage the Hyuga Clan in close combat, only to be instantly killed in one move. That level was not even comparable to a Chunin. Had Hidden Cloud fought Konoha for so long without obtaining information on Konoha's key figures? Otherwise, how could someone so weak dare engage Hiashi, who was at least an Elite Jonin, in close quarters? Yuun did not believe Hidden Cloud lacked even basic intelligence on its mortal enemy. Besides, it was also strange for that Cloud Shinobi leader to be killed so easily. The abilities he had displayed earlier should not have made him so easy to deal with.

Yuun had long decided not to involve himself in matters shrouded in so much suspicion. In any case, Hiashi would stop that Cloud Shinobi leader without his help. He stayed quietly at home for a day and a night. When he woke up on the third day and was about to eat breakfast, Yuun heard a knock at the door. When he opened it, he found Hizashi Hyuga standing there, his expression calm.

"Teacher Hizashi?" Yuun froze.

"Am I not welcome?" Hizashi looked calm, as though nothing had happened.

"No, of course not." Yuun hurriedly stepped aside. "Please, come in."

"You're curious why I came?" Hizashi did not seem surprised by Yuun's somewhat strange reaction. "I've come to ask you for a few favors."

"Please tell me." Seeing Hizashi's calm expression, Yuun guessed what had happened and answered solemnly.

"It's nothing much. I think you may already know." Seeing Yuun's serious expression, Hizashi mistakenly assumed that Yuun knew already. "I'm going to die."

"..." Yuun responded with silence. There was no denying that Hizashi had treated him very well. As a teacher, Hizashi had been beyond reproach toward Yuun. But Yuun had no power to change anything now. Only then did he understand why the Cloud Shinobi leader had died so cleanly. It had been a scheme by Hidden Cloud to obtain the Byakugan.

From the high-profile publicity before the Cloud Shinobi leader arrived in Konoha, which let Konoha's citizens know that Hidden Cloud was about to sign a peace treaty with Konoha, to the leader's arrogant attitude upon arrival, that arrogance had undoubtedly offended a large number of war hawks. But it had also misled the peace faction, causing them to assume from the start that Hidden Cloud did not truly want peace talks. With that preconception in place, the peace faction would do their best to help Hidden Cloud achieve its goals throughout the events that followed.

Then came the Cloud Shinobi leader's infiltration of the Hyuga Estate, his abduction of Hinata, his discovery by Hiashi, and finally his death at Hiashi's hands. They wanted the Byakugan but did not want to continue fighting Konoha, so they could only do their best to create a situation where Konoha was at fault. The best method was to have the Hyuga Clan kill Hidden Cloud's lead negotiator, giving them an excuse to demand that the Hyuga Clan pay with a life. What followed did not stray far from their expectations. The only thing they had not anticipated was that the Hyuga Clan possessed the Caged Bird Curse Mark.

It was all an open scheme. Hidden Cloud had openly played Konoha for fools in front of everyone, yet Konoha could only swallow this silent loss. Before countless civilians yearning for peace, even the Hokage could only choose to compromise. The strength and influence needed to save Hizashi were far too great. Even if the Hokage personally intervened, he might not have been able to save Hizashi, just as with the White Fang back then. A thousand voices could melt gold.

Having understood all this, what could Yuun possibly say to Hizashi? Anything he said would be an insult to a man sacrificing himself for the village.

"Actually, this is good too. I may not be able to choose how I live, but at least I can choose how I die." Hizashi seemed to be speaking to Yuun, yet also to himself. "I chose death for Neji Hyuga, for the clan, and for the village. I think Neji will understand my choice someday."

"..." Yuun did not respond. He knew that what Hizashi needed now was neither comfort nor complaints, so he merely listened quietly.

Hizashi did not say much. More often, the two sat facing each other in silence, remaining that way until the setting sun sank low.

Glancing at the sun outside the window as it neared the horizon, Hizashi took a scroll from his robes and handed it to Yuun. "This contains the training methods after Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms, including the Vacuum Palm you've always wanted to learn, as well as some of my insights into the Gentle Fist." Hizashi hesitated, as though considering something. Only after a long while did he take an envelope from his robes. "This contains some of my research over the years into the Caged Bird. Read it if you're interested. Otherwise, burn it."

Yuun did not hesitate. He accepted both the scroll and envelope at once. Seeing this, a faint smile appeared on Hizashi's calm face. "I have to go. Help me take good care of Neji."

"Take care, Teacher." Yuun bowed deeply. This was the first time since transmigrating that he had desired power so desperately.

"Don't be sad. At this moment, I am free." Hizashi patted Yuun on the shoulder. "Freedom tastes wonderful."

"I'll take good care of Neji." Yuun lowered his head, fighting back the urge to cry.

"Are you Yuun?"

"I am truly, deeply sorry."

"Then... do you hate me?"

"Yuun, would you like to learn the Gentle Fist from me...?"

"Haha, Yuun, you're going to have a junior disciple."

"The Hyuga have our own pride. We do not need those flashy ninjutsu to remain a powerful ninja clan! See through the enemy! Attack the enemy! Defeat the enemy! We are the strongest spear, and we are the strongest shield! So long as a pair of Byakugan exists in this world, the Gentle Fist will be passed down forever!"