Eight Trigrams Gentle Fist

Hyuga Hiashi hosted them for lunch.

Dao Yi met the mysterious clan head's wife, a gentle and beautiful woman.

Hanabi Hyuga was very curious about Dao Yi. Her big eyes kept sneaking glances at him, though who knew what was going through that little head of hers.

After bidding farewell to the clan head's family, Dao Yi arrived at Konoha Hospital and clocked in for work.

The hospital job was stable and well-paid. He could also conduct a few little experiments on the side. Dao Yi was quite satisfied with it.

He made it to the end of the workday without anything major happening.

After work, he went home.

Knock, knock!

Dao Yi opened the courtyard gate and found Neji Hyuga standing outside with a stern face.

"Come in."

Dao Yi turned and walked into the small courtyard, while Neji Hyuga silently followed.

They sat down beside the stone table, and Dao Yi continued drinking his tea.

After finishing the tea in his cup, he got up to leave.

Neji Hyuga hurriedly stopped him and could not help asking,

"The clan head sent me to find you. I heard from him that you are the strongest in the Hyuga Clan."

"Oh? The clan head thinks that highly of me? As for whether I'm the strongest in the Hyuga Clan, I don't know. Even if I am, so what?"

"As the acknowledged dead last and disgrace of the Hyuga Clan, I need to verify it myself!"

Neji Hyuga assumed a Gentle Fist stance and launched an attack at Dao Yi.

Byakugan! Activate!

Eight Trigrams: Thirty-Two Palms!

Two palms, four palms, eight palms, sixteen palms, thirty-two palms!

With one hand, Dao Yi casually blocked every attack.

Dao Yi did not move a single step. He simply watched his opponent in silence, waiting for Neji Hyuga to make another move.

Damn it, he's actually this strong. Is that careless attitude meant to look down on me?

Neji Hyuga's arms had gone numb, and he hurriedly used chakra to ease them.

Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms!

Two palms, four palms, eight palms, sixteen palms, thirty-two palms... sixty-four palms!

"Your technique isn't practiced enough. You're forcing it too much."

Still using only one hand, Dao Yi casually tapped Neji a few times.

Neji's arms completely lost all feeling. His face went ashen as he began doubting his life.

This has to be a lie, right? How could the gap be this huge? I couldn't even touch the corner of his clothes. Am I really a genius? Then what kind of strength does Dao Yi possess?

"Brother Neji! Are you all right?"

Hinata Hyuga, who had been watching for a while, hurried over and looked at Neji Hyuga worriedly.

"Hinata, don't worry about him. The meridians and acupoints in his arms are just blocked. They'll recover soon... Let's begin."

Hinata walked over to Dao Yi, and the two began their usual Gentle Fist training.

Neji Hyuga came back to his senses, and feeling gradually returned to his arms.

He watched the two seriously as they practiced Gentle Fist. It seemed somewhat different from what he had learned.

Over the past two years, whenever he sparred with Hinata, he had always felt that her method of exerting force was strange. He had assumed it was a secret technique of the main family, but now it seemed very likely to have something to do with Dao Yi.

"Are you practicing Gentle Fist? Why does it always feel like something is off?"

Once the two stopped, Neji Hyuga could not help asking.

"I incorporated another kind of martial art into Gentle Fist."

Hyuga Gentle Fist and Eight Trigrams Linked Palms shared a similar principle. Dao Yi had extracted the essence of both martial arts and fused them into one.

Hyuga Gentle Fist was a taijutsu famous throughout the Ninja World. The Hyuga Clan had relied on it to preserve their family and survive the chaotic Warring States Era.

To say it was weak would probably make all those killed by Gentle Fist climb out of their coffins. But to say it was powerful, its upper limit was somewhat low.

The martial arts from his previous life and Hyuga Gentle Fist each had their own strengths and weaknesses.

"Dao Yi... Brother Dao Yi, I want to become stronger. Please teach me. I'm begging you."

"Hinata, teach him Eight Trigrams Gentle Fist."

After giving the instruction, Dao Yi sat cross-legged beneath a tree and began his evening breathing cultivation.

Bratty kids and awkward little punks were the most annoying.

"O-Okay! Brother Dao Yi!"

It was Hinata's first time being a teacher, and she was both nervous and excited. After teaching haltingly for more than half an hour, she finally managed to complete the task.

Once Neji Hyuga had roughly grasped it, the two left together.

Not long after they left, a crow landed in front of Dao Yi.

"Itachi Uchiha, why are you here again?"

Dao Yi did not want to get close to the Uchiha Clan. They were nothing but trouble. He had not even shaken off Izumi Uchiha, and now another one had appeared.

"Sorry for troubling you. But please rest assured, no one else will know about our meeting."

The crow transformed into human form. Itachi Uchiha's aura seemed even gloomier than before.

"Don't let negative emotions destroy your reason."

Dao Yi gave him a well-meaning reminder.

Itachi Uchiha had been affected even more deeply by the Mangekyo Sharingan. Dao Yi was only willing to offer that reminder out of consideration for Izumi Uchiha.

Itachi Uchiha steadied his emotions, thought for a moment, and asked,

"You seem to know a great deal about the Mangekyo Sharingan?"

"Have you heard the saying that the people who understand you best are often your enemies? The Hyuga Clan and the Uchiha Clan have been hostile for nearly a thousand years. The Uchiha Clan must also possess plenty of intelligence on the Senju Clan and the Hyuga Clan, right?"

"You're right. The Uchiha Clan does have detailed intelligence on all the major ninja clans."

"Go on. What did you come here for this time?"

"I asked my father to do that thing, but it failed. The Hokage was interested at first, but the three elder advisors vetoed it... I thought about it all day, but I couldn't understand the meaning behind this test. That's why I came to find you."

Itachi Uchiha considered himself rather intelligent, yet he could not understand Dao Yi's intention at all. It left him feeling frustrated, and he could only come here to humbly seek guidance.

"If they agreed to that proposal, the Uchiha Clan would have a legitimate reason to leave the village. That would mean they had not yet considered resolving the Uchiha Clan issue through force. After all, if they moved against the Uchiha Clan, the Uchiha outside the village would become a major problem."

If even part of the Uchiha Clan truly defected, the higher-ups led by the Third Hokage would lose sleep.

"Conversely, it means they have already steeled themselves for the worst-case scenario of resolving the matter by force."

After hearing that conclusion, Itachi Uchiha was enveloped by a chill.

After calming himself, Itachi Uchiha continued,

"But the Hokage approved of the plan. If we persuaded the Hokage..."

"Itachi Uchiha, you're still too young... You simply don't understand how terrifying the human heart can be, much less the true nature of creatures called politicians."

Itachi Uchiha looked at Dao Yi with an odd expression.

I admit that you're smarter than me, Dao Yi, but aren't you the same age as me? What's with that old senior tone?

Dao Yi's skin was thick enough that he directly ignored his expression. Damn it, I forgot our ages again. Whatever. No point pretending to be young anymore.

"I heard that you possessed the mindset of a Hokage at seven. If you were the Hokage right now, how would you resolve this problem?"

After calming down and thinking for a long time, Itachi Uchiha's expression became increasingly ugly.

"Looks like you understand now."

Dao Yi admired his opponent's wonderfully expressive face and smiled faintly.

"If it were you, there would definitely be a peaceful solution, right?"

"I'm not a god!... With the Uchiha Clan's arrogance, they probably would not accept a proposal to defect. The higher-ups would not sit by and allow such a thing to happen either. Even if you decided to defect, it would be useless. If you were lucky, perhaps a few of you could escape, then hide everywhere while avoiding pursuit. If you were unlucky, the entire clan would be wiped out."

"True. I can be certain of that. With their arrogance, they would never flee like beaten dogs."

That trait of his clansmen was probably one of the few things Itachi Uchiha acknowledged about them. Of course, it was also an extremely troublesome trait.

"So, just as I said this morning, if Shisui Uchiha had not died, you would still have some room to maneuver. Now, you only have one opening left: Shimura Danzō."

"I can't do it!"

Itachi Uchiha wanted badly to kill Danzo and avenge Shisui Uchiha, but he could not do it.

Danzo had Root guards. Killing him would be extremely difficult. If the fight dragged on even a little, Konoha's other ninja would arrive as reinforcements, and he would still have no hope of escape.

Even if he succeeded, keeping it from leaking out would be impossible. What awaited the Uchiha Clan afterward would be utter ruin.

Striking upward against one's superiors and attacking the higher-ups would be brutally suppressed in any village.

"Of course you can't do it alone."

Dao Yi very much wanted to kill Danzo. Itachi Uchiha and the others were undoubtedly the most suitable tools for the job.

"You mean the other clansmen? I know their strength very well... Wait, you mean my father?"

Hearing those words a second time, Itachi Uchiha's heart trembled. Uchiha Fugaku rarely acted, so Itachi Uchiha did not know much about his strength.

"That's right."

"You mean my father has been hiding his strength?"

"Mangekyo Sharingan."

Dao Yi spoke softly.