Itachi glared fiercely at the ever-mischievous Hyuga Hoshimi, his patience already thinning. After a long exhale, he sat back down, utterly helpless before the chaos this boy brought wherever he went.
Then came Hyuga Hoshimi's turn to introduce himself.
He stood up calmly, a confident smile tugging at his lips. "My name is Hyuga Hoshimi. I'm also from the Hyuga Clan, but a member of the Branch Family. I don't have any particular hobbies. As for my dream… perhaps it's to make the Hyuga Clan stand above all others."
Since Hoshimi served as Yuto's bodyguard, the young heir naturally paid attention to his introduction. Hearing that lofty declaration, Yuto couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Although his talent isn't extraordinary, that determination… not bad at all, he thought.
Across the room, Itachi studied Hoshimi with a more complex gaze. Something about the boy's words didn't quite sit right with him.
He knew well the strict hierarchy of the Hyuga Clan — the Main Family ruling over the Branch Family through the cursed seal that bound their fates. The Branch Family lived to serve, never to surpass.
Because of that system, many Branch Family members harbored resentment toward their so-called kin.
So hearing a Branch Family member speak of raising the Hyuga Clan above all others was… odd.
Coming from a Main Family child, such words would be natural — even expected. But from a Branch Family member? It was almost contradictory.
Still, Itachi decided not to overthink it. Maybe he just has strong conviction, he reasoned. That's not necessarily a bad thing.
He decided he should re-evaluate this strange Hyuga boy — until, of course, Hoshimi sat back down, leaned in close, and whispered, "So? How was it? My lines just now were pretty good, right? I practiced for days!"
Itachi froze.
His earlier thoughts instantly crumbled into dust.
I knew it… I shouldn't have expected anything from this guy!
Suppressing a groan, Itachi could only sigh inwardly. The flicker of respect he'd just developed vanished completely.
Now, in his eyes, Hyuga Hoshimi was nothing more than a nuisance.
The rest of the day went by uneventfully — just the first day of school, after all. Soon, the bell rang to signal the end of classes.
After tidying up his new textbooks, Itachi stood and left the Ninja Academy. But as he walked through the quiet streets, a subtle prickle ran down his neck.
Someone was following him.
He didn't need to question how he knew — battlefield instincts honed in blood were whispering the truth.
He remembered his father's teachings: Never alert your tail too soon.
So, forcing down his tension, he kept walking, pace steady, breathing calm. He turned corners, changed directions, circled through several intersections… yet the presence behind him didn't fade.
If anything, it was drawing closer.
His hand slowly slipped into his ninja pouch, fingers brushing the cold edge of a shuriken. Just as he was about to strike—
"Itachi-chan! Why are you walking so fast?"
A familiar, annoyingly cheerful voice called out.
Before he could react, a hand clapped down on his shoulder. Warm breath tickled the back of his neck.
Itachi stiffened. Dread filled him — a very specific kind of dread. He turned his head mechanically, already knowing what he'd see.
Sure enough, it was that guy.
Hyuga Hoshimi.
Veins pulsed at his temples. His small fists clenched tight, his whole body trembling with the urge to lash out.
But the strict upbringing of the Uchiha Clan held him back. His face remained stoic, though his tightly gritted teeth betrayed his inner turmoil.
"Why is it you?" he asked through clenched teeth. "And why are you following me?"
He waited, silent and tense, his free hand still hovering near his weapon pouch.
"Following you?" Hoshimi blinked innocently. "Of course I'm following you! I've never been to the Uchiha territory before. Don't I need you to lead the way?"
He spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"That uncle this morning said he'd give me a C-Rank Ninjutsu! What, Itachi-chan, are you trying to go back on your word already?"
Two veins popped on Itachi's forehead. His grip tightened around his shuriken.
This boy's ability to infuriate people was truly a Kekkei Genkai of its own.
How could perfectly normal words sound so irritating when he said them?
And to think — as a Hyuga, he had the audacity to casually stroll into Uchiha territory, their long-standing rivals, just for the sake of a C-Rank technique!
It was unbelievable.
But Itachi had no choice. His father had been the one to make that promise, and it was for his own training. He couldn't just refuse now.
He took several deep breaths to calm himself, though his forehead lines only seemed to deepen.
In just a few short hours of knowing Hyuga Hoshimi, Itachi felt as though he had aged several years.
If this guy's going to keep pestering me like this every day, he thought despairingly, then the path of a ninja might truly be one of endless suffering.
But as his father always said — a ninja must learn to endure the pain ordinary people cannot.
Re-embracing that creed, Itachi managed to regain a semblance of composure. His tone was indifferent as he said, "Fine. The Uchiha Clan isn't so poor that we'd go back on our word for one C-Rank Ninjutsu. Follow me."
With that, he turned and led Hoshimi through the village streets.
After several turns, they arrived at the grand entrance of the Uchiha Clan's district.
Seeing the vast expanse of elegant, time-worn buildings, Hoshimi's eyes widened in awe.
As expected of the Uchiha, he thought. Even more prosperous than the Hyuga — their heritage runs deep, even in their architecture.
All around, people came and went — Uchiha shinobi in dark uniforms, each radiating quiet strength. Many of them gave off an unmistakable sense of danger.
Even without activating his Byakugan, Hoshimi could tell: most of these men and women had awakened at least the Two-Tomoe Sharingan.
In the ninja world, the Uchiha truly were a clan blessed by heaven. Their Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan, was both terrifying and beautiful.
Generally speaking, a single-tomoe Sharingan already placed one at Genin level. Two tomoe equaled a Chunin's might, and three tomoe rivaled Jonin!
Activation alone increased their chakra and perception dramatically, granting a near-instant leap in power.
Their growth was like a rocket launching toward the heavens.
If not for the difficulty of awakening the Sharingan — which required intense emotional trauma — every Uchiha would've been a prodigy.
Even so, within the clan today, over a thousand members had awakened their Sharingan, and dozens had reached Three Tomoe.
That meant over a thousand battle-ready ninja, and several dozen elite Jonin-level warriors — an astonishing concentration of power.
It was no wonder the Uchiha Clan remained one of Konoha's cornerstones.
Hyuga Hoshimi couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.
If he could choose, he would have loved to be born Uchiha.
Both the Hyuga and Uchiha descended from the Sage of Six Paths, both inheriting aspects of his eye power — but somehow, the Uchiha's eyes just seemed… cooler.
The Byakugan, despite being formidable, lacked intermediate evolutions. At best, it could evolve directly into the Tenseigan, skipping everything in between.
Without his strange "experience point" panel that allowed him to track his Byakugan's growth, Hoshimi wouldn't even know whether it was evolving at all.
The Uchiha's Sharingan, though, was different. It evolved step by step — from One Tomoe, to Two, to Three, then to the Mangekyo, the Eternal Mangekyo, and finally the Rinnegan.
Each stage brought a tangible, visible leap in power. Each transformation was a testament to growth, a ladder every Uchiha could climb.
The Byakugan couldn't compete with that clarity or that sense of progression.
What's more, the Uchiha Clan didn't suffer under anything like the Caged Bird Seal. There was no discrimination, no oppression. Within their ranks, strength spoke loudest. Talent was respected, nurtured, and rewarded.
That meritocratic culture was something the rigid, decaying Hyuga Clan could never understand.
If Hoshimi had been born Uchiha, he probably wouldn't have bothered hiding his talents at all.
But there was no if.
This was the hand fate had dealt him.
As he followed behind Itachi, he couldn't help but glance around once more — admiration and envy blending in his gaze.
The proud Uchiha symbols painted on every wall seemed to radiate confidence, a declaration of supremacy.
He felt a small spark ignite inside him.
One day, he swore, he would make the Hyuga Clan just as strong, just as united, just as free.
Even if he had to grind for every ounce of strength to do it.
Itachi, walking ahead, didn't notice the quiet determination forming behind him. He was too busy sighing inwardly, already bracing himself for whatever nonsense this Hyuga troublemaker would bring next.
For now, though, peace — or something close to it — settled over the Uchiha compound, as the two young heirs of rival clans stepped across its ancient stone paths, their destinies slowly beginning to intertwine.