Chapter 94: New Direction
In the battle between Sasuke and Mizuki, the result was predictable—Mizuki won.
Uchiha Sasuke was undoubtedly talented, but he was still too young and inexperienced, never having ventured outside the sheltered world of the village. Mizuki, on the other hand, was a seasoned Chunin. While his personality left much to be desired, his strength was undeniable.
Thanks to the intelligence network built by the Hyuga clan, Ryosuke had a clear understanding of Mizuki's background. The man had completed nearly a hundred B-rank missions and even participated in the Third Great Ninja War. He was a textbook example of a pure, hard-working ninja—one without exceptional talent but who compensated through grit and relentless pursuit of power.
That might also explain his arrogance.
But despite his pride, Mizuki's strength had a ceiling. This victory over Sasuke might well be the peak of his career.
To Ryosuke, it was an entertaining little farce at best. He didn't learn anything valuable from their exchange. Hinata, however, stood beside him watching intently, clearly trying to absorb their fighting styles.
When they returned home from the Academy, Hiashi still hadn't come back. Neither had Hizashi. Neji had already asked multiple times where his father was, clearly anxious. It was obvious he relied heavily on Hizashi, even if he didn't say it outright.
But Ryosuke had no answers. He had no idea when their meeting would end.
"Big Sis! Let's train today, okay?"
Hanabi's voice broke the silence. The little girl had been stuck at home practicing all day and now clung to Hinata's arm, eager to drag her to the training ground.
Hinata let herself be pulled, but her feet didn't move. She turned her head to Ryosuke, clearly waiting for his reaction.
"Go ahead," Ryosuke smiled, waving her on. "I've got something else to handle. I probably won't be able to guide you two until tonight. Just make sure you're back before dinner."
From the day Hinata truly started changing, it was Ryosuke—not her father—who guided her training. But ever since he'd returned from his mission to the Land of Waves, he hadn't had a chance to work with her again. He figured she was probably eager for his input.
Still, something more important needed his attention now.
"C'mon, let's go!" Hanabi tugged again, and this time Hinata moved, gently holding her little sister's hand to keep her from tripping as they walked.
Ryosuke watched them leave, the sisters walking side by side in quiet harmony. A complicated expression flickered in his eyes.
Next year, Hanabi would turn four. According to clan tradition, that was the age she would receive the Caged Bird Seal and be branded as a member of the branch family. No one could say whether the two girls would still be this close after that.
The outcome depended on two men—Hiashi and Hizashi.
But that was still a year away. Right now, he had more pressing concerns.
Ryosuke turned away and headed for his room.
The moment he opened the thin sliding door, he was greeted by a mountain of scrolls stacked almost to the ceiling. Each one represented a piece of knowledge the Hyuga clan had gathered over the past thousand years—ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu, and more.
Before leaving on his last mission, Ryosuke had asked Hiashi to arrange this for him.
Most people assumed the Hyuga clan didn't bother with ninjutsu or genjutsu. But that wasn't because they couldn't. They simply didn't see the point in diverting attention from their bloodline-specific arts.
Their legacy was packed with specialized techniques refined through generations, tailored perfectly for the Byakugan. Even the most basic form—Gentle Fist—was enough to occupy a Hyuga's entire life. Many members never progressed past the fundamentals. Only a select few mastered the deeper techniques.
In that light, it made sense they didn't waste time on more "common" skills.
But Ryosuke was different. He had the time. He had the ability. And most importantly—he had ambition.
If he wanted to become stronger, he had to master more than just Hyuga tradition.
The limiter in his mind allowed him to evolve and break past barriers—but only within the confines of his existing skills. Without a foundational ability, there could be no evolution.
For instance, Byakugan Lv.1 couldn't become Lv.2 unless he had already awakened it. No base, no upgrade.
So, to grow stronger, he needed to acquire new abilities—starting with these scrolls.
Physical training was already part of his daily life. But his progress in Byakugan development had stalled. Abilities like clairvoyance or emotional insight were intriguing but unreliable—mostly passive, and difficult to expand like his illusion or aura manipulation skills.
That left him only one option: master more techniques.
From what he knew, ninja techniques came in multiple layers. At the base were the standard elemental jutsu anyone could learn. Above that were unique abilities categorized into three higher tiers:
Bloodline Limit (Kekkei Genkai)
Bloodline Selection (Kekkei Tōta)
Bloodline Network (Kekkei Mōra)
All of these depended on chakra attributes—fire, water, wind, lightning, earth, yin, and yang. Every ninja had some combination of these attributes in their body, with varying dominance. For instance, if someone's chakra leaned heavily toward wind, they'd find wind-style ninjutsu easier to master.
That said, chakra nature wasn't set in stone. As a ninja's skills evolved, their control over chakra would grow, eventually allowing them to unlock and manipulate additional elements.
That was why most Jonin had at least two chakra affinities.
The current Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was said to possess all five elemental attributes—a feat inherited from his father, Sarutobi Sasuke, who had mastered all five chakra transformations.
Bloodline Selection and Bloodline Network techniques were born from combining three or more chakra types.
Meanwhile, the Bloodline Limit typically referred to special abilities like advanced elemental fusion (e.g., Ice Release, Wood Release), dojutsu (like the Byakugan or Sharingan), or even body-based transformations.
What Ryosuke wanted… was to walk the path of Kaguya Otsutsuki—to master all seven chakra natures and form his own Bloodline Network.
But before he could even begin, he had to study—and the mountain of scrolls before him was step one.
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