On one side, Hinata Katyu continued to teach his control techniques with calm precision. On the other, Hyuga Hoshimi returned home in a disheveled, almost panicked state. He didn't go to the Ninja Academy, nor did he look for Maito Dai to train Taijutsu. Instead, he went straight home.
As soon as he stepped inside, Hoshimi collapsed onto the floor like a puppet with its strings cut, his body limp and trembling. His mind replayed what had just happened — the unbearable pain, the humiliation, the terror.
Even now, he could still feel the agony carved into his bones from when the Caged Bird Seal had been activated.
His hand rose to his forehead, touching the cursed mark that had not yet been completely erased. A flash of resentment burned in his eyes.
"So this is the Caged Bird Seal… what a terrifying shackle."
No wonder the Branch Family members feared it so deeply. Even though the Branch Family far outnumbered the Main Family — and even though many of them were stronger — no one had ever dared to rebel.
With this curse in place, the Main Family only needed a thought to activate it. The pain was so excruciating that even a person with the strongest will in the world would collapse within minutes.
Hoshimi swallowed hard, his breathing shaky.
"That kind of pain… I never want to experience it again."
For a moment, his gaze turned inward, calm but cold. Over the past month, the rate at which Evil Breaking was eroding the seal had noticeably increased. By his estimation, it was already around thirty percent.
Two more months — that was all he needed. Two more months, and he would finally destroy the Caged Bird Seal's binding.
He repeated that to himself again and again, as if trying to convince his own trembling heart. But the more he thought about it, the more suffocating the resentment became.
Why should the Hyuga Main Family hold control over his life and death?
Why should he, someone who only sought to grow stronger, be punished for it?
Just because he was born a Branch Family member?
Hoshimi clenched his fists. The world around him felt drenched in malice — invisible, oppressive, like a giant hand squeezing his throat until he could barely breathe.
His eyes reddened, the fury in his chest growing more violent by the second.
If he had been born an Uchiha, he thought bitterly, he might have awakened the Sharingan by now. But he wasn't an Uchiha. He was a Hyuga. And no matter how much rage, pain, or despair he felt, it did nothing to strengthen him.
Instead, it only weakened him. His training suffered. His focus wavered. His hand seals grew sloppy. And his experience gains — once steady and abundant — plummeted.
"Child—Tiger—Ox—Boar—"
He froze mid-seal, eyes widening.
"No—! I messed up!"
A surge of chaotic chakra burst inside him before he could react. The energy backfired, slamming into his chest. He coughed violently, a streak of blood trickling down from the corner of his lips.
When he finally stabilized his chakra, he sat there trembling, his breath shallow. He wiped his mouth, staring at the crimson on his hand.
His eyes were completely bloodshot now — feral, unhinged.
"Damn it… what's happening to me? Am I developing a heart demon?"
He gave a bitter laugh. Of course not. This wasn't some cultivation world filled with inner devils and qi deviation. But still — these emotions, this turmoil — they were eating away at his focus and will.
In any system of growth, chaos of the mind was poison.
Hoshimi knew himself well. He had never been a magnanimous man. Even before transmigrating into this world, he was petty and vindictive. When someone wronged him, he remembered it — for years, maybe a lifetime.
But in his previous life, such thoughts were useless. He had been a nobody — an insignificant, low-level worker in a world governed by laws. Revenge, defiance, resistance — those things were luxuries he couldn't afford.
He had lived a small life, one where even a minor violation of the rules could destroy him.
But now…
Now he lived in a world ruled by power. A cruel, chaotic world where strength dictated everything.
"I have a cheat," he muttered to himself, his voice trembling with conviction. "My strength already rivals that of an Elite Jonin."
His lips curled into a faint smile.
An Elite Jonin — in this era, that level of power could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the leaders of minor clans. Without boasting, he could already be considered one of the strongest members of the Hyuga Branch Family.
When no Kage-level ninja was around, he could move freely, unchecked.
So then—
"Damn it… I can't wait any longer."
Two months felt like an eternity. His hatred burned too fiercely to be restrained.
"Revenge doesn't wait overnight. That's who I really am."
His breathing quickened, his thoughts turning sharp and vicious.
"An old geezer with one foot in the grave, and a useless brat who's not even a Genin — and they dare trample over me? I've been giving them too much face."
He clenched his fists tighter, his nails digging into his palms until blood welled up.
"Revenge… I'll have my revenge."
The decision, though reckless, brought an eerie calm. The haze in his mind lifted, replaced by a piercing clarity. His chakra, which had been erratic moments before, suddenly grew vigorous and lively.
He blinked, surprised.
"My chakra… it just increased?"
He could feel it — a definite surge of power. His energy pathways felt wider, more responsive.
This unexpected change startled him, but realization slowly dawned.
Chakra was born from the union of spiritual and physical energy. If his mind had reached a new extreme of clarity — perhaps that was why his chakra had strengthened.
Still, he didn't linger on the theory. He had no time to test hypotheses.
He had a purpose — a goal that burned hotter than reason.
The Hyuga Clan's inner workings were still a mystery to him. As a Branch Family member, he wasn't allowed near the core halls of power. But he knew enough about their current situation.
The Third Great Ninja War was still raging. Many of the Branch Family's most capable shinobi were deployed to distant battlefields, unable to return.
And those Branch Family members were also the Main Family's primary shield.
In other words — the Hyuga Main Family was at its most vulnerable.
A cold gleam flickered in Hoshimi's eyes.
"The Branch Family numbers far exceed the Main Family's. In peacetime, each Main Family member would have several Branch Family Jonin guarding them. Without Kage-level strength, it'd be impossible to touch them. But now…"
He smirked.
"Now, with most of the strong ones gone, even the remaining few can't protect everyone."
His mind quickly formed a plan.
"For example — Hyuga Sōtai. He's only protected by a Special Jonin."
Hoshimi had spent over a year around Sōtai; he knew his habits, his routines, his guard's schedule.
"A Special Jonin, huh? Just a Chunin with a unique skill. And for the Hyuga, that skill's just sharper Byakugan perception."
He scoffed, the contempt in his tone thick.
"Before I merged with Hashirama's cells, maybe that guy could've posed some threat. But now?"
His lips curled upward into a cold smile.
"Now, I've surpassed him completely. Killing him would be effortless."
His thoughts turned darker, more savage.
"And without his protector, Hyuga Sōtai… that pathetic whelp will be at my mercy. Whether I cripple him or kill him — well, that'll depend on my mood."
A sinister thrill coursed through him. The image of Sōtai's terrified face flashed in his mind, and for the first time in days, Hoshimi smiled — genuinely smiled.
He had long since stopped seeing that Special Jonin guard as a fellow Branch Family member. In his mind, that man was already dead.
In truth, relationships among the Branch Family were shallow, almost nonexistent. They rarely interacted, and most treated one another like distant strangers.
Hoshimi's warm connection with Hyuga Tetsu's family was an exception — a rare one.
The Main Family had designed it that way, of course. Isolation bred obedience. Unity among the Branch Family would be too dangerous — too threatening.
"The Main Family keeps us divided," Hoshimi muttered bitterly. "They know a united Branch Family could crush them."
He rose from the floor, eyes burning with resolve. His chakra pulsed, steady and fierce, echoing the turmoil in his chest.
The pain, the humiliation, the curse on his forehead — they all coalesced into a single, blazing conviction.
Two months? No. He would not wait.
This was his moment.
"Revenge doesn't wait overnight," he whispered again, the words carrying like a promise to himself.
He would strike while the Hyuga Main Family was weakest — before the war ended, before the strong returned.
For years, the Main Family had treated the Branch like tools — expendable, disposable, subhuman. But now, one of their tools had awakened.
Hyuga Hoshimi's eyes glowed faintly in the dim light, his Byakugan pulsing with quiet fury.
Soon, the Hyuga Clan would learn the truth — that even a caged bird, once its chains were broken, could become a predator.
And when that day came, not even the heavens of the Hyuga would be safe.
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