Hyuga Clan Bloodline

Chiba Shun nodded, then suddenly thought of something and hurriedly asked, "A, were those female shinobi willing?"

Chiba Shun felt somewhat awkward asking that, considering he had been the one to suggest that the female shinobi offer themselves.

A said, "Of course they were willing."

"I handled this personally. I secretly spread the news among some female shinobi, and they all fought to go to the Land of Moon."

"I selected several dozen Chunin."

"Those three were the ones I chose with the cleanest backgrounds."

Chiba Shun was stunned. "Huh?"

A said strangely, "If they get pregnant, the child they give birth to could very likely be descended from the Hyuga Clan, one of the strongest shinobi clans in the ninja world."

"There's also a high chance the child will possess a top-tier Kekkei Genkai like the Byakugan. Who wouldn't want that?"

Chiba Shun froze for a moment. Uh...

It seemed he still had not adapted to this shinobi world. He did not understand everyone's thirst for power.

Nor did he understand the allure of the Kekkei Genkai!

The Byakugan was one of the most powerful Kekkei Genkai of all!

Forget unmarried female shinobi—even many who already had partners would be willing if given the chance.

Who would not want their child to be a genius?

A said, "Since the child has not been born yet, we can't confirm whether it will inherit the Byakugan, so your mission rank has not been determined."

"Only after the child is truly born and the village truly possesses the Byakugan Kekkei Genkai will Father record the mission for you."

Chiba Shun waved his hand, indicating that he was in no hurry.

He had just received the reward for an S-rank Mission three months ago. Although he had spent heavily over the past three months, he still had more than five hundred thousand ryo left. He was not short on money for now.

A hesitated for a moment before saying, "Your suggestion earlier was good. How about you make a trip to the Land of Moon and meet Akira Hyuga?"

"You know about this matter, you started it, and you're more professional at handling this sort of thing."

Chiba Shun blinked. Professional? How was he professional?

But he did not refuse. He nodded and said, "Alright."

Chiba Shun packed up and left with A.

Not far away, Aoki Yuyi walked out of the office. Watching their receding backs, his expression was unreadable.

Several days later, Chiba Shun arrived in the Land of Moon.

After A reported Chiba Shun's proposal to the Third Raikage, the Third Raikage agreed to let Chiba Shun carry out this mission.

In the Third Raikage's eyes, Chiba Shun had been the reason Akira Hyuga was persuaded last time. Now that Kumogakure intended to press its advantage, it was naturally best to send Chiba Shun again.

If he sent someone else, the Third Raikage worried they would ruin everything.

Chiba Shun had not come alone. He was accompanied by the already-pregnant female shinobi, as well as four Elite Jonin ANBU squads assigned to escort her.

That was right. Kumogakure's escort detail for this pregnant woman was far more substantial than the one that had escorted Chiba Shun's Ninja Academy exchange group.

Chiba Shun arrived and glanced at the female Chunin named Yanoi. She wore a smile the entire time, and every movement she made showed careful concern for protecting her belly.

That smile was filled with anticipation for the future.

Even a fool could see how excited she was to be carrying the bloodline of the Hyuga Clan.

It made Chiba Shun feel somewhat ashamed of his earlier thoughts.

And when Chiba Shun arrived at that tavern in Sunshine Town, Land of Moon, and saw the other female shinobi waiting there, that feeling became even stronger.

There were more than twenty female shinobi in total, and their gazes toward Yanoi were filled with envy.

Chiba Shun waited in the tavern for seven days before Akira Hyuga finally arrived for his second round of planting his seed.

Akira Hyuga brought three rookie Genin with him.

Pretending nothing was amiss, he entered the tavern. He first used his Byakugan to scan the surroundings as though conducting reconnaissance, then took his three subordinates to enjoy a good meal.

Others could not tell, but Chiba Shun could sense that Akira Hyuga's breathing seemed to stop for an instant.

Chiba Shun glanced at Yanoi and knew that Akira Hyuga had probably noticed.

He did not react and simply waited quietly.

A moment later, Akira Hyuga and his three companions finished their feast.

Akira Hyuga assigned his three subordinates a mission to gather intelligence outside, then waited a little longer.

Only after confirming that his three subordinates had gone far away did he approach Chiba Shun. He pointed at Yanoi excitedly and asked Chiba Shun, "Is that my child?"

Chiba Shun nodded and asked, "You're Akira Hyuga?"

Akira Hyuga nodded. He ignored Chiba Shun, instead looking around before saying, "Kumogakure takes my child very seriously."

Chiba Shun smiled. "Of course. These are all ANBU directly under Lord Raikage."

"Your child will at the very least be taken as a disciple by an Elite Jonin in the future!"

"And he will receive abundant resources. His growth will go smoothly."

"However, as I said before, Kumogakure does not want just one child of the Hyuga Clan. We want a Hyuga Clan!"

"So, Senior Akira Hyuga, I'll have to trouble you again tonight!"

Akira Hyuga took several deep breaths before saying, "Understood."

After saying that, he glanced at Yanoi again, then returned to his seat.

That night, Akira Hyuga entered several more female shinobi's rooms.

But after he finished and was about to return to his room to rest, Chiba Shun found him again.

Akira Hyuga frowned and demanded in a low voice, "My subordinates are in the room next door. Do you want me to expose myself?"

Chiba Shun shook his head. "Don't worry. Kumogakure bears no ill will toward the Hyuga Branch House."

"I came to ask for your help with something."

As he spoke, Chiba Shun handed Akira Hyuga a blank scroll and a pen.

Akira Hyuga frowned. "What do you mean?"

Chiba Shun explained, "Write down every secret technique of the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist that you know."

Akira Hyuga angrily said, "Kumogakure actually dares to covet our Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist?!"

Chiba Shun smiled. "Senior Akira Hyuga, you worry too much. The Gentle Fist requires the Byakugan to use. Without the Byakugan, the Gentle Fist is nothing."

"The Gentle Fist you write down will be handed to your child in the future!"

Akira Hyuga's anger subsided somewhat at those words, but he still hesitated.

Leaving behind his bloodline, he could deceive himself into believing that it was resistance against the Main House. But if he wrote down the Gentle Fist, that would be betraying Konoha—and betraying himself.

His hatred for the Main House was beyond words, but he still possessed some sense of belonging toward Konoha.

Chiba Shun sighed. "Senior Akira Hyuga, you still haven't changed your way of thinking."

"Even now, your stance is still on Konoha's side, the Hyuga Clan's side, and the Hyuga Main House's side."

"It seems you've become too accustomed to being a slave of the Hyuga Main House."

"The Gentle Fist isn't yours. It isn't the Hyuga Branch House's. It belongs to the Hyuga Main House. In the Hyuga Main House's eyes, the fact that you know the Gentle Fist is a gift they bestowed upon you!"

"The reason they bestowed it upon you is because you make such good dogs."

Akira Hyuga immediately activated his Byakugan and glared angrily at Chiba Shun.

Chiba Shun did not care. Anger was good. Without anger, how could he possibly break Akira Hyuga's fixed way of thinking?

He continued, "Remember, your life is already over. You should place all your hopes on your child, who is destined to breathe free air!"

Akira Hyuga's entire body trembled at those words. He hesitated for a long while before finally accepting the paper and pen.

He did not avoid Chiba Shun. Instead, he followed Chiba Shun into a room and quickly wrote down every secret Gentle Fist technique he knew.

He wrote very seriously, recording not only the secret Gentle Fist techniques but also methods for training the Byakugan.

He even documented how he had once learned to use the Byakugan and how he had learned the Gentle Fist.

It included a great deal of training insight, as well as the speed at which members of the Hyuga Branch House cultivated various secret techniques.

After he finished, Chiba Shun put the papers away and asked, "What about Main House secret techniques like Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven and Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm?"

Akira Hyuga took a deep breath. He was not surprised that Chiba Shun knew those secret techniques.

He said evenly, "Only Branch House members who are highly trusted by the Main House, or who have rendered great service, can learn the Main House's secret techniques."

"I have never learned Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven or Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm."

Chiba Shun nodded, then said in a casual tone, "Then when you return to Konoha this time, please invite several shinobi who share your resentment toward the Hyuga Main House to come to the Land of Moon."

Akira Hyuga's expression changed. He activated his Byakugan at once, and this time, he even assumed a Gentle Fist stance.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Four figures rapidly appeared in the room. They were one of the four ANBU squads guarding Yanoi.

Chiba Shun shook his head at the ANBU squad captain, signaling him not to act rashly.

Only then did he explain to Akira Hyuga, "I heard that in order to preserve the purity of the Byakugan, the Hyuga Clan always marries within the clan?"

"But even if they marry within the clan, they probably do not go so far as to have siblings marry each other, right?"

"Senior Akira Hyuga, you need to think about your child."

"They will grow up and marry as well. They can't marry outsiders every time, can they?"

"If they marry outsiders again and again, perhaps in only a few generations, the Hyuga Clan's bloodline will be cut off."

"Besides, neither you nor I can be certain. What if your child's Byakugan is not pure enough?"

"If your child can marry someone like himself, I believe their descendants' Byakugan can become even purer."

"Only a pure Byakugan has the possibility of advancing!"

Akira Hyuga took a deep breath and asked, "What kind of eyes does the Byakugan become after it evolves?"

Chiba Shun smiled. "Lord Raikage said those eyes are called the Tenseigan!"

"But I don't know the specifics."

Akira Hyuga's expression became somewhat strange, as though he were yearning for those legendary eyes.

After a while, he left the room without saying a word.

Seeing this, the ANBU squad captain waved his hand and left the room with his subordinates.

He did not ask Chiba Shun anything. His only mission was to protect Yanoi's safety; he did not care how Chiba Shun carried out his mission.

The next day, a somewhat exhausted Akira Hyuga left the tavern with his three subordinates.

Chiba Shun also left with Yanoi and the three female shinobi who had spent the night with Akira Hyuga.

If those three were not pregnant, they would return here next time.