Kicho's Byakugan

Shocked!

Aoi and Rinko emerged from the room in white kimono-style maid outfits, preparing to carry out their usual cleaning.

They saw Kicho in the open courtyard, using a wooden post to practice the Gentle Fist, and both widened their eyes in disbelief.

She was no longer wearing luxurious, expensive clothing, nor did she have any gold or jade ornaments that looked costly and fragile. She wore only a simple light-purple skintight ninja outfit.

Even the iron bracers, leg guards, breastplate, and other defensive gear used on the battlefield had been carefully strapped on.

This was the combat attire she had often worn back when she was in the Hyuga Clan.

Her slender, alluring body had transformed into the purest instrument of murder.

Moreover, the seemingly soft Gentle Fist strikes penetrated the thick, sturdy wooden post, leaving countless straight little holes behind it, as though it had been riddled by bullets.

Fine, needle-like streams of chakra shot through the holes in the penetrated post and into the air. Even snow-covered branches more than ten meters away began to shake violently.

If it had been a body of flesh and blood, it would most likely have been pierced with countless bloody holes.

Thus, even a school like the Gentle Fist had evolved many different striking methods after being tempered by the Warring States Era, all for the sake of killing efficiently.

Transforming the chakra expelled from her palms into needle-like piercing force, then striking with it through the methods of the Gentle Fist, was precisely Kicho's specialty.

Furthermore, to concentrate the force more effectively, the chakra Kicho compressed was tougher than ordinary chakra. That was the key to piercing an enemy's body.

Clearly, this was an efficient killing technique forged through countless life-and-death battles on the battlefield.

Its purpose was not to block an enemy's chakra and ninjutsu, but to use the Gentle Fist to kill them outright.

After all, the highest form of attacking an enemy was to kill them in a single blow.

In Kicho's eyes, the slow bleeding inflicted by traditional Gentle Fist techniques was simply far too inefficient for killing.

"L-Lady Kicho, are you training?"

Aoi's mouth fell open as she stammered.

Rinko nodded heavily as well, as though she were dreaming.

"Didn't I tell you yesterday that I would train properly from now on?"

Kicho stopped moving, tilted her head, and gave the two of them a strange look.

"..."

Aoi and Rinko felt ashamed inside.

They had thought that was merely Kicho's excuse to brush them off. They had not believed she would change so easily.

"Come to think of it, Lady Kicho's Gentle Fist seems much sharper than before."

Rinko walked over, examined the holes punched through the wooden post, and was utterly astonished.

Kicho's fighting style was no secret within the Hyuga Clan.

Her Variant Gentle Fist was not unique within the Hyuga Clan either.

The reason geniuses were geniuses was that they could incorporate their own understanding into the foundation of traditional Gentle Fist techniques.

As a result, this kind of Variant Gentle Fist was something one either understood or did not. It simply could not be widely taught.

Moreover, the differences in each person's chakra control and degree of Byakugan training were also key factors.

The Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist was, ultimately, a technique that worked in tandem with the Byakugan.

It was just that the Gentle Fist Kicho had displayed in the past should not have possessed such strong penetrating power.

Although it could easily pierce through thirty-centimeter special wooden posts and strike farther targets, the path of penetration had been rough and lacked such smoothness.

But upon closer examination now, one would discover that the paths inside the holes Kicho created with her Gentle Fist were no longer rough, and no wood fragments remained.

Clearly, both her speed and force had reached a higher level.

"Let me see... Ah, it really is true. Lady Kicho, could it be that you've been secretly training alone when we weren't looking?"

Aoi also went over to inspect the wooden post. Once she discovered its secret, her mouth immediately fell open.

After all, in their eyes, Kicho had practically wasted away these past three months. Her lifestyle had been utterly decadent, and she had likely even forgotten that she was a ninja. If her strength had merely remained at its former level, that would already have been proof of exceptional talent.

Yet Kicho's strength had miraculously not stagnated. Instead, it had risen to another level.

It was simply unbelievable.

"Aren't you two the ones who know best what I've been doing lately?"

"Uh... that's true."

Aoi and Rinko were utterly baffled now.

"Then what could be the reason?"

The two looked at Kicho expectantly, hoping she could give them an answer.

"Hmm... It should be because my state of mind is different."

That was how Kicho explained it.

"My state of mind?"

Aoi and Rinko exchanged glances, unable to quite understand what Kicho meant.

What did this have to do with one's state of mind?

Still, a ninja who maintained a calm state of mind could indeed bring out her full strength.

Kicho did not continue explaining, nor did she need to explain it to them.

Besides, memories concerning the Hyuga Clan were not something she liked to bring up.

Within that rigid clan, the family she belonged to was the most rigid of all, with the strictest hierarchy.

Before coming to the Land of Night, everything about her had been restrained and controlled.

Whether going to war, undergoing daily training, or even getting married, none of it had anything to do with her own will.

She had merely been raised that way, then made to follow the path the clan had planned in order to secure benefits for it.

Within that clan, the name "Hyuga Kicho" had nothing to do with the person herself. It was merely the name of a weapon, the designation of a tool.

That name could have belonged to anyone else. It had been given to her only because, when she was born, they happened to name her using that designation.

She had believed that she would never have any chance to resist in her life. She had also realized that if things continued this way, she would eventually be unable to bear the pressure. She would either die in battle or suffer a mental breakdown and die.

But in the Land of Night...

She felt like a real living person.

She could live according to her own wishes and do things that had once been completely unlike her. She no longer had to worry about others restraining her, nor was there anyone telling her what she could or could not do.

She gradually realized that while she had been in the clan, she had always been suppressing her own heart.

Therefore, she needed an entirely different way to vent all the gloom she had accumulated within the clan in an unrestrained manner.

That was also why her husband had indulged her so much. Over the past three months, he had not criticized her indulgent lifestyle in the slightest and had even seemed to encourage her in secret.

Perhaps he had seen through her long ago and silently accepted her past.

On their wedding night, when she had held a blade defensively and pretended to be strong, her husband had likely been secretly laughing inside.

Thinking of that, Kicho could not help feeling embarrassed.

Hadn't he seen through everything?

Oh, he truly had seen everything.

Every posture she had taken had been laid bare before him. He had possessed every part of her without exception, and she had become that man's.

Even so, she was happy at this moment.

Oda Yayoi—this man would be her husband through life and death. Kicho's heart was filled with that thought.

People like these two probably would never understand.

Kicho cast another glance at Aoi and Rinko.

If they had not been selected to accompany her in marriage, their predetermined fate would have been to become cannon fodder, tools used by the clan to fill the front lines.

They were ninja, but they lacked much talent. At their age, they had only awakened the Byakugan and could use the most basic Gentle Fist techniques.

Kicho could kill ninja of that level in an instant whenever she wished.

The reason they had lived safely until now was also because they were women. Even if they could not be used to fill the front lines, they could still be used for childbirth.

Kicho practiced until noon. Only when Aoi and Rinko brought lunch did she temporarily end her morning Gentle Fist training.

After eating, Kicho did not continue training. She merely activated her Byakugan to exercise her eyesight.

The Inner Court of the General's Residence was enormous. At its widest point, it stretched for a full kilometer.

But for the Byakugan, that distance could be taken in at a glance.

Elite ninja of the Hyuga Clan generally had Byakugan observation ranges exceeding one kilometer. When focusing on a single direction, they could reach more than five kilometers.

The strongest clan heads could observe places beyond a radius of seven kilometers. If they focused on one direction, their sight could extend beyond thirty kilometers.

It was said that the Gentle Fist they used could even pierce into the bodies of Tailed Beasts, disrupting their Tailed-Beast Chakra and inflicting severe damage.

But my husband can subdue Tailed Beasts. Perhaps he is also a ninja on the clan head's level.

Kicho could not help recalling rumors she had heard about Yayoi in the past.

There were many powerful ninja in this era, but a ninja capable of capturing Tailed Beasts would be considered a great hero anywhere.

Tailed Beasts had simple attack patterns and massive bodies, making them easy targets for concentrated attacks. Yet their resistance to damage far surpassed that of ninja, and their destructive power was equally terrifying.

To powerful ninja, Tailed Beasts were merely troublesome, not impossible to deal with. To the weak, Tailed Beasts were invincible natural disasters that could not be opposed.

Clearly, she was among the weak.

The Gentle Fist she had developed now could not even penetrate a Tailed Beast's hide. In an encounter, she would have only one fate: death.

"I still can't see through the barrier here..."

Kicho used her Byakugan to look at the barrier enveloping the Inner Court.

The barrier's surface was invisible and colorless, and it did not block sunlight or moonlight from outside.

Yet under the Byakugan's observation, the barrier appeared as a blue sphere covered in dense curse markings, blocking the Byakugan's sight.

In fact, when observing from the Inner Court outward, one could see outside with the naked eye. But once the Byakugan was used, the barrier interfered instead, limiting one's field of vision.

Only from outside looking in could one see nothing clearly, whether with the naked eye or the Byakugan.

The underground was the same. There should have been a vast subterranean space below, but it too was protected by the barrier, leaving the Byakugan's vision completely blurred.

"The facilities here are quite important, so this kind of barrier was set up."

A voice came from afar and drew closer. Yayoi appeared in the corridor and walked over.

"My husband."

Kicho jogged over, fluttering like a beautiful butterfly, and threw herself into Yayoi's arms.

"You came back a little early today, my husband."

Kicho raised her head, deeply puzzled.

It was still only afternoon. According to Yayoi's usual habits, he should not have returned until after nightfall.

Sometimes it was nine o'clock, sometimes eight. Even the earliest he had returned had been close to seven.

"Irori is quite capable. With her helping me handle matters, I've saved a great deal of time. Besides, I need to prepare for going to the Land of Fire soon, so I have to get proper rest beforehand."

Yayoi gently patted the girl's back.

The ninja outfit felt different from a kimono, but the parts he could feel were just as soft.

"Were you training just now?"

"Yes, I was training my Byakugan's ocular power."

"By observing distance?"

Yayoi asked curiously.

To be honest, he truly did not know how the strength of the Byakugan's ocular power was classified.

If it were like the Sharingan, he could instead directly determine the level of ocular power.

One Tomoe, Two Tomoe, Three Tomoe, and even the Mangekyo all had clear ranks.

The strength of the Byakugan's ocular power was difficult to distinguish from appearance alone.

"That is one method, but observation distance alone is useless without precision. A ninja's attention is limited. Being able to find the most crucial details in a complicated environment is the proper use of the Byakugan."

In Kicho's view, using the Byakugan solely to pursue distance was putting the cart before the horse.

The Byakugan was indeed an auxiliary eye, but it was an auxiliary eye meant to coordinate with combat, not a purely supportive ocular technique.

"For example, I can easily see the flow of chakra within ninjutsu. Taking Fire Release as an example, as long as I use the Byakugan to clearly see the chakra flow pattern in the flames, then touch it with the Gentle Fist and instantly disrupt the chakra flow within the flames, I can split apart the Fire Release technique. I can break it without even needing to dodge."

"That is quite a novel fighting method. Then without the barrier blocking it, how far can your Byakugan see?"

Yayoi asked curiously.

Kicho was slightly speechless. Hadn't he circled back to distance again?

"I can observe everything within a four-kilometer radius. If I focus on one direction, I can see places eighteen kilometers away."

"That far?"

Surprise appeared on Yayoi's face.

He knew that adult elite ninja of the Hyuga Clan generally had observation radii between one and two kilometers. Even when concentrating on a single direction, they could only see about five kilometers away.

"That is because my Byakugan purity is very high. The Byakugan's ocular power is related to purity. Both distance and precision are connected to the Byakugan's purity. By the way, the clan doesn't know this secret. That means, my husband, you possess even more of my 'firsts.'"

The corners of Kicho's lips curled up as she showed off her hidden ability like a child.

This was the only way she had used to resist her father, Hyuga Hideto, while she was in the clan.

If the fact that her Byakugan purity was exceptionally high had been exposed, she would never have been sent away as a marriage alliance candidate.

Sometimes, she was grateful that she had hidden this fact, allowing her to have her current opportunity.

Perhaps this was precisely one link in the chain of fate.

"Does a high-purity Byakugan have any new abilities?"

Yayoi was puzzled by this.

Although Kicho said so, it seemed to be no different in essence from an ordinary Byakugan.

After all, no matter how much one trained the Byakugan's observation range, it still could not compare to Sensory Ninjutsu.

The sensing range of Sensory Ninjutsu was generally several kilometers or more, and some could even reach hundreds of kilometers.

"This... There seem to be some vague records within the clan. The higher the purity of the Byakugan, the more likely it is that one can gain new ocular techniques through certain methods. But those records are too vague, and their contents are severely incomplete... Perhaps certain secrets are passed down orally only between the clan head and the next clan head."

Kicho thought for a moment before answering Yayoi's question.

Anything recorded carried the risk of being leaked. Oral transmission might be old-fashioned, but it was the best way to preserve secrets.

"Also, that secret seems to involve an extremely ancient figure—the Sage of Six Paths. The Hyuga Clan's records also mentioned a monster with ten tails. It sounds somewhat similar to the current Tailed Beasts."

Hearing Kicho's inadvertent words, Yayoi's heart jolted.

The Sage of Six Paths.

A monster with ten tails.

In this era, the Sage of Six Paths was no different from a figure of myth.

There were rumors that ninja clans such as the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki were descendants of the Sage of Six Paths.

And not just those three clans—countries such as the Land of Lightning were also said to have descendants of the Sage of Six Paths among them.

As for the ten-tailed monster, he immediately thought of the Ten-Tails mentioned by "Madara" at the Five Kage Summit in the original story, as well as the Eye of the Moon plan that sought to plunge the entire world into an illusion.

He had not expected such an ancient legend to be passed down within the Hyuga Clan as well.

Perhaps the Hyuga Clan also had some connection to the Sage of Six Paths.

"Dear husband, you're going to the Land of Fire next, aren't you?"

Kicho's voice rang by his ear, pulling him back to reality.

"Yes. Konoha's First Hokage inauguration ceremony will be held in two weeks. I'll officially set out for the Land of Fire in four days. Quite a few daimyo from other countries have already left ahead of time."

"Then I'm coming too."

"Alright."

Seeing the determination in Kicho's eyes, Yayoi paused, stroked her hair, and smiled as he nodded.

Kicho smiled as well, her slender fingers lightly tracing circles over Yayoi's chest, sending faint tingles of itchiness through him.

Her body was soft and boneless, and she radiated an alluring, seductive charm.

"Tonight, let's have dinner together..."