The Hyuga Clan's Genius

As time passed, the company of Tsunade, Mito Uzumaki, Nawaki, Uchiha Yi, and Uchiha Mikoto gradually gave Kushina Uzumaki a sense of belonging in Konoha.

Kushina knew war could break out at any moment. She did not want Konoha to suffer the same disaster as Uzushio Village.

She did not want Uchiha Yi and the others to go through what she had endured.

Hyuga Rinka glanced at Kushina, unsure what she meant, then introduced herself. "I'm Hyuga Rinka. I specialize in Gentle Fist. There's nothing I particularly like or dislike.

"As for my dream, I suppose it's to become strong enough to take control of my own fate!"

"To become strong and take control of your own fate? Not a bad ambition." Tsunade gave Rinka a thoughtful look. The Hyuga Main Family might not be full of idlers, but few of its members were truly driven.

She had not expected a Hyuga who wanted to grow stronger to join her team. Now she wanted to see how far Rinka could go.

Rinka met Tsunade's gaze with easy confidence. Tsunade was one of Konoha's finest female ninja, and Rinka hoped to learn a thing or two from her.

"All right. I have a fair idea of Yi's and Kushina's abilities. Next, you'll fight Yi so I can see what you can do. Give it everything you've got, or you'll lose badly." Tsunade glanced at Yi with a mischievous glint in her eye and pointed at him.

Kushina was too young and had trained for too little time to be Rinka's match. Yi was another matter.

Tsunade doubted anyone their age could beat him. Nawaki could not, and Minato Namikaze would have a hard time catching up. Only Jiraiya remained convinced that Minato would one day catch up to Yi, perhaps even surpass him.

Yi could take Rinka down a peg and make the proud young lady a little easier to manage on Tsunade's team.

How Yi and Rinka got along afterward was not Tsunade's problem.

If they clicked, they would naturally work together closely. Jiraiya and Orochimaru rarely saw eye to eye, yet in battle they still trusted each other to watch their backs.

If they could not work together, there was no need for Tsunade to force it. Once war broke out, Kushina would return to school, and Yi could join Nawaki's team.

As for Rinka, the Hyuga Clan was unlikely to let a member of the Main Family go to the battlefield.

Tsunade was practical about such things.

"Yes!" Rinka was taken aback for a moment. She had not expected Tsunade to pit her against Yi, but it suited her just fine. She wanted to see what the Uchiha Clan's foremost genius could do.

After all, Rinka was arguably the Hyuga Clan's own hidden genius. She was no weaker than Hyuga Hiashi, despite being a year younger than him.

This was the perfect chance for the Hyuga Clan's foremost genius to test the Uchiha Clan's.

Uchiha Fugaku: I'm the Uchiha Clan's foremost genius.

Rinka looked at Yi with open fighting spirit. Yi sighed helplessly. As expected, Tsunade had no intention of making things easy for him.

"Then I look forward to our match." Yi formed the Seal of Confrontation toward Rinka. She returned it, then darted toward him like a leopard and struck with her palm.

Yi hurried to block. They settled into a Taijutsu exchange, with Yi parrying Rinka's attacks one after another.

The sharp smacks of their blows rang across the training ground. Tsunade watched with a curious expression. Yi was stronger than Rinka; that much was certain.

Young as he was, Yi already had the strength of a Chunin. But Rinka's performance exceeded Tsunade's expectations. She really was impressive.

More strikingly, Yi and Rinka fought as though they were both Hyuga. Tsunade could have understood it if Yi had activated his Sharingan and turned Rinka's own methods against her. But he had not even activated it.

And the Sharingan was not the Byakugan, with its extraordinary powers of perception. Yet Yi was using the Hyuga Clan's methods to fight Rinka.

Anyone who did not know better might have taken Yi for a Hyuga himself.

Fortunately, he was not using Gentle Fist. Otherwise, the Hyuga Clan might have been in an uproar.

Yi, however, was not having as easy a time as Tsunade imagined. He intended to beat Rinka with Taijutsu, but he also had to keep her from sealing his Chakra with a strike to his Chakra Points. If he slipped up and lost, it would be humiliating.

Rinka kept attacking, growing more anxious and angry with every strike. Yi seemed to know Gentle Fist intimately. Each time she attacked, he was already in position to block her, as though he had anticipated her move.

His Taijutsu was better than hers, and he understood Gentle Fist. Rinka soon realized both, but that only made her more determined to win.

Still pressing her attack, she drew a deep breath. "Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

There it is.

A faint smile touched Yi's lips. The instant Rinka's first palm struck him, his figure dissolved into a shadow and vanished.

"A clone? A Shadow Clone! When?" Rinka startled. As she activated her Byakugan and searched for Yi, his voice rang out without warning. "Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu!"

Something seized Rinka's ankle. Before she could resist, it dragged her into the earth, leaving only her head above the surface.

Yi appeared beside her at just the right moment. Looking up at his handsome face, Rinka could not hide the frustration on hers.

"That was great! You won, Yi!" Kushina cheered in delight.

"Kushina, she's your teammate too!" Tsunade shot her an exasperated look. Then she walked over and helped Yi pull Rinka free. As they hauled her up, Tsunade asked Yi, "You formed the signs for the Shadow Clone and Transformation Technique with one hand, then used a stone by your foot to disguise it. But Rinka has the Byakugan. How did you know she wouldn't see through it?"