Chapter 363: 363 – Meeting Hiashi Hyuga!

Leaving the Hokage Building, Kitazawa went straight to the Ninja Academy.

“Iruka,” he said, “who hasn’t returned yet?”

“The Third Hokage,” Iruka replied.

“Alright. When he does, inform me. Also—have the Genius Class assemble at nine in the morning the day after tomorrow.”

Kitazawa paused, then added, “Compile the rankings for the practical exam as well.”

“Understood, Kitazawa-senpai.”

“Thanks for your hard work.”

Kitazawa returned home.

Kurenai was awake now, standing in the courtyard and studying her newly summoned beast—Ohmadori.

“How is it?” he asked.

“It hasn’t acknowledged me at all,” she said with a frown.

“That’s normal,” Kitazawa replied. “Its previous master was the Second Mizukage, Gengetsu Hōzuki.”

“Then what do I do?” Kurenai asked nervously. “Does that mean it doesn’t recognize me as its master?”

“It’s simple,” Kitazawa said with a smile.

“Beat it.”

“What kind of joke is that?” Kurenai elbowed him.

“I’m serious,” he replied calmly. “It hasn’t recognized your strength yet.”

Kurenai froze. “…That actually makes sense.”

Then she hesitated. “But what if I hurt it?”

“Then do this,” Kitazawa said after a moment’s thought.

“Show it.”

“Let’s go behind the house.”

Kurenai strode forward, seized the Ohmadori, and lifted it clean off the ground.

Behind the house, Kurenai set the Ohmadori down.

She clenched her fist.

“Watch this punch.”

The next instant, her monstrous strength erupted.

Boom!

Her fist slammed into the ground. Cracks spread like a spiderweb, and chunks of earth and stone flew in every direction.

Ohmadori trembled violently.

“Ohmadori,” Kurenai said calmly as she stepped closer, “if you don’t speak up now, I’ll punch your shell next.”

“…Ku—Kurenai… Lady Kurenai.”

A soft, trembling voice finally rang out.

Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.

A female clam, then.

“Great!” Kurenai’s face lit up instantly. “That worked perfectly!”

Kitazawa wasn’t surprised.

Gengetsu had been dead for many years. Whatever loyalty the Ohmadori once held had long since faded. Faced with Kurenai’s overwhelming strength, submission came easily.

“Kitazawa-sensei.”

Kurenai suddenly stepped in front of him, smiling brightly.

“…?”

Kitazawa looked at her in confusion.

“I’ve already mastered the Self-Affliction Curse Seal,” she said. “What should I learn next?”

Instead of answering, Kitazawa raised his hand and gave her a light smack on the rear.

“What are you doing?!”

Kurenai yelped, instinctively covering herself.

“That’s your punishment for teasing me,” Kitazawa said calmly, his gaze flicking—briefly—over her swaying hips.

“Next, I’ll teach you a new Ninjutsu: Yin Release: Rasengan.”

“Yin Release… Rasengan?”

Her attention snapped back immediately. “How is it different from Wind Release: Rasengan?”

She had already learned Wind Release: Rasengan to perform the Hurricane Water Vortex Technique alongside him.

“Wind Release: Rasengan enhances speed and cutting power,” Kitazawa explained.

“Yin Release: Rasengan focuses on mental interference and spiritual damage.”

The real reason, of course, was the Taiji Rasengan.

“Then teach me right now!”

Kurenai’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“In two days,” Kitazawa replied with a faint smile.

“I haven’t learned it yet.”

“….”

Kurenai fell silent.

She understood immediately.

He was planning to learn it on the spot.

To modify the Rasengan and master Yin Release in just two days…

Monstrous was the only word that fit.

The gap between them was terrifying.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Nine in the morning.

Kitazawa and Kurenai arrived at the Ninja Academy.

The last remaining team had returned safely under Hiruzen, marking the official end of the Genius Class’s final exams.

“I will now announce the rankings for the practical exam.”

Kitazawa accepted the report from Iruka Umino and stepped before the class.

Every student straightened.

He smiled faintly and began reading out the names of those who earned full marks.

Besides Sasuke, Naruto, and Hinata, two more names followed:

Kurama Yakumo.

Kiba Inuzuka.

The mission had been unpredictable—perfection wasn’t impossible.

“…Why are there so many perfect scores?” Kiba groaned quietly.

He had hoped a flawless practical score would push him into the top three—or even first place.

But now? Impossible.

Five perfect scores—and worse, the other four consistently ranked higher than him in theory.

Sasuke, on the other hand, felt a surge of confidence.

His theoretical ranking was usually third.

Naruto was always below him.

Hinata and Yakumo were the real threats—but only by a narrow margin.

As long as he stayed third, overall first place would still be his.

“Next, the theoretical exam rankings,” Kitazawa announced.

“First place: Nara Shikamaru.

Second place: Sakura Haruno.”

No surprises there.

Sasuke’s gaze sharpened, tension flickering in his eyes.

“Sasuke-kun, third place is definitely yours!” Sakura said quickly, trying to reassure him.

“Third place,” Kitazawa continued, “Hyūga Neji.”

“…Huh?” Sakura froze, then hurriedly added,

“It’s fine! Neji’s practical score was lower than yours!”

“Fourth place,” Kitazawa said calmly, “Hyūga Hinata.”

Sakura went completely blank.

Hinata had tied Sasuke for first in the practical exam—and now her theoretical ranking was higher.

That meant—

Sasuke’s overall ranking…

“…Am I cursed?”

Sakura silently questioned every decision she’d ever made.

Sasuke’s lips twitched.

Perfect score in practice—and still losing first place.

At this point, he was almost used to it.

“…Am I first?”

Hinata finally realized, her eyes widening in disbelief.

She wasn’t obsessed with rankings—but this still made her heart leap.

“Final ranking,” Kitazawa announced.

“First place: Hyūga Hinata.”

A ripple of reaction spread through the room.

“Everyone here is incredible!” Shion exclaimed.

She suddenly wondered if she’d ever make it into the top eighteen herself.

“You’ll get used to it.” Ino said dryly.

“This semester’s final exams are officially over,” Kitazawa said with a smile.

“Starting tomorrow—Summer Vacation. I hope you all enjoy it.”

“Dismissed.”

“Goodbye, Kitazawa-sensei!”

The students filed out one by one.

Hiruzen, Kakashi, Chen, and the others also departed.

Just as Kitazawa prepared to leave with Kurenai, Kimimaro approached hesitantly.

“Kitazawa-sensei,” he said softly.

“My Shikotsumyaku… has reached a bottleneck.”

Since joining the Genius Class, he had been practicing Dance of the Larch on his own—but still couldn’t fully master it.

Anxiety weighed heavily on him.

In truth, his progress wasn’t slow at all.

The problem was everyone else was improving at an absurd rate.

He used to rank comfortably in the top five.

Now, he only managed it when luck was on his side.

[Current Mission: Help Kimimaro master Shikotsumyaku: Dance of the Larch.]

[Mission Reward: 30% Shikotsumyaku.]

1

[Accept?]

Kitazawa twitched.

I’m glad you triggered a mission…

But how exactly am I supposed to teach a technique I don’t even have?

Unless—

You give me the reward first.

Kitazawa fell into thought.

He had no intention of declining the mission. With that extra 30%, he would officially possess Shikotsumyaku.

The real problem was how to help Kimimaro.

Kimimaro’s slow progress wasn’t due to lack of talent—it was because no one had ever taught him. He had been relying entirely on self-study.

Kitazawa’s first instinct was straightforward: use Edo Tensei to summon a Jonin from the Kaguya Clan and have them instruct Kimimaro directly.

…But explaining that would be a nightmare.

“Give me the Ninjutsu scroll for Shikotsumyaku: Dance of the Larch,” Kitazawa said after a moment.

He planned to study it himself first.

If he could learn it, problem solved.

If he couldn’t, he could still break it down and guide Kimimaro through the essentials.

After all, he was already an all-element master, with mastery across numerous disciplines. More importantly, his own Shikotsumyaku had reached 70%.

And if even that failed?

Then he’d fall back on Edo Tensei—summon a Kaguya Clan Jonin, learn the core principles firsthand, and pass them on.

Either way, he needed to learn Shikotsumyaku techniques himself sooner or later.

In that sense, it was killing two birds with one stone.

Kimimaro froze for a moment.

He’d approached Kitazawa with little more than hope—yet now, his teacher genuinely seemed to have a plan.

Suppressing the surge of anticipation in his chest, Kimimaro quickly handed over the scroll.

“You can head back for now,” Kitazawa said, storing it away.

“Mhm.”

Kimimaro nodded and left with Jūgo.

Back home, Kurenai went to continue practicing Yin Release: Rasengan, while Kitazawa opened the scroll Kimimaro had given him.

Shikotsumyaku: Dance of the Larch allowed the user to instantly generate dozens of bones across their entire body—serving both offense and defense.

Even more troublesome was its rebounding force, especially effective against Taijutsu specialists.

On paper, it sounded simple.

In practice? A nightmare.

To make matters worse, the scroll itself was sparse—bare-bones explanations with little insight into actual execution.

Kitazawa considered visiting the former site of the Kaguya Clan to look for experience notes.

And if none existed…

Then I’ll just be a grave robber again.

A sudden thought made him pause.

The Kaguya Clan had been wiped out by Kirigakure.

Which meant—under normal circumstances—the Hidden Mist Village should have collected all relevant data on Shikotsumyaku.

…Itachi.

Itachi could infiltrate Kirigakure and retrieve the information.

But that would have to wait until he finished investigating the Hyuga Main Family Elder.

Kitazawa closed the scroll, stepped outside, and joined Kurenai—though he focused on training the Wood Clone.

The next day marked the first day of summer vacation.

Many Genius Class students still showed up at the Ninja Academy to train—including Shion, who had originally planned to return to the Land of Demons.

That worked out just fine.

Kitazawa introduced her to a new method of chakra control training.

She had nearly mastered tree climbing and water surface walking, but for someone with power like hers, that wasn’t enough.

At minimum, she needed proficient-level chakra control—roughly equivalent to an average Jōnin.

The training method was familiar, yet harsher.

Water Surface Walking—but not on calm water.

Kitazawa “borrowed” Samehada from Naruto and tossed it into the Ninja Academy’s artificial lake.

As it writhed instinctively, the surface of the water rippled and surged unpredictably.

Given Samehada’s nature as a chakra-devouring aquatic creature, this was arguably the most appropriate use for it.

One week later.

ANBU Base.

Kitazawa met with Itachi.

“Kitazawa-sama,” Itachi said, producing a scroll.

“This details Hyuga Teikyō’s activities over the past month.”

A whole month…

No wonder it had taken so long.

Kitazawa opened the scroll and scanned it quickly.

Soon, he found what he was looking for.

During multiple Hyuga Clan meetings, Hyuga Teikyō had clashed repeatedly with Hiashi—always over the same issue.

Hyuga Hanabi.

Specifically, whether the Caged Bird Seal should be applied to her.

Hiashi’s official stance was familiar:

He claimed he intended to choose the most outstanding successor between Hinata and Hanabi.

The same excuse he’d used in the original timeline.

But now?

It no longer held water.

In the past, Hinata had been timid—she’d even lost sparring matches to Hanabi.

Back then, Hiashi’s reasoning had been reasonable.

Now, however, Hinata was overwhelmingly talented.

Neither Teikyō nor the other elders believed Hanabi stood a chance of surpassing her.

Hiashi was under immense pressure.

At this rate, Hanabi might not escape the seal as she once had.

Unless Tsunade intervened.

…Part of this is my fault, Kitazawa admitted inwardly.

Without him, Hinata wouldn’t have eclipsed Hanabi so completely.

Still, this situation worked in his favor.

It gave Hiashi every reason to accept the Modified Caged Bird Seal.

“Thank you for your hard work, Itachi,” Kitazawa said, lifting his gaze.

“But I have one more task for you.”

“Please give the order.”

“I need information on Shikotsumyaku,” Kitazawa said evenly.

“Kirigakure should have records.”

“I understand. I’ll depart for the Hidden Mist Village tomorrow.”

No hesitation.

Shikotsumyaku was a Bloodline Limit—valuable, but obsolete now that no users remained.

With the Mangekyō Sharingan, infiltration would be trivial.

“You’re dismissed. Get some rest,” Kitazawa said.

Itachi bowed and departed.

After rereading the scroll once more, Kitazawa made his decision.

He would go see Hiashi directly.

“Konan, I’m heading out. You don’t need to follow,” he said.

She appeared, nodded, and vanished again.

She had returned to Konoha only yesterday after spending a week handling Akatsuki affairs.

The Hyuga Clan Compound was quiet.

Hinata and Neji were training at the Academy—but Hanabi was there.

At just four years old, she was already practicing Gentle Fist fundamentals.

Children of major clans always started early.

Some, like Itachi, were outright monstrous—killing on the battlefield at the same age.

“There are four mistakes in that strike,” Kitazawa said after watching quietly.

“Eh?”

Hanabi turned—and instantly lit up.

“Kitazawa-sensei!”

She’d heard countless stories about him from Hinata.

“Where’s your father?” Kitazawa asked, patting her head.

“In the study!” she said, pointing eagerly.

“I’ll go see him, then.”

He took two steps before feeling a tug at his sleeve.

“Kitazawa-sensei,” Hanabi asked, tilting her head.

“What were the four mistakes?”

Unlike Hinata, she was lively and bold.

“Make a fist. Raise your arm.”

She complied instantly.

“This angle is wrong,” he said, gently nudging her arm.

“Raise it three centimeters to the left.”

She corrected it at once.

“And here,” he continued, pointing out each flaw with calm precision.

Her eyes shone.

“Thank you! I want to join the Genius Class someday too!”

“That’s not a dream,” Kitazawa said, nodding. “It’s inevitable.”

“Kitazawa-sensei—Father!”

Hanabi suddenly noticed Hiashi stepping out of the study.

“Practice on your own,” Kitazawa said gently, patting her head once more.

“Your father and I have something to discuss.”

Then he turned toward Hiashi—and the real conversation began.

——————

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