"Onii-chan, uwuwuuu…"
On December 12th, Hanabi, the little sister-in-law, finally made her long-awaited reappearance.
After stepping into the traditional-style house, she found Izayoi sitting on a tatami mat surrounded by a pile of scrolls. Without hesitation, Hanabi threw herself into his arms and let out a fake sob full of grievances.
"What's wrong?"
Izayoi casually tossed aside the ninjutsu scroll in his hand, hugged the little sister-in-law back, and gently patted her on the back as he asked, "Who bullied my Hanabi? Tell Onii-chan, and Onii-chan will use the Transformation Technique to go avenge you."
"Pfft…"
Hanabi, who had been faking her crying to look pitiful, couldn't help but laugh.
Still, she kept up the act, wiping her dry eyes with her fingers and looking up at Izayoi with a pitiful expression. "It's Father… and the elders."
A cold glint flashed in Izayoi's eyes. He said in a low voice, "Are they forcing you to have the Caged Bird Seal placed on you?"
If that were the case, then it would be necessary for him to pay the Hyuga Clan a visit.
If Wood Release wasn't intimidating enough, then he'd let them taste the power of the Tenseigan.
He and Hinata's relationship was already that obvious, and they still dared to force Hanabi to receive the Caged Bird Seal…
A prestigious clan with no Kage-level fighters—where did they get the courage?
"Caged Bird Seal? What's that?"
Hanabi blinked in confusion, clearly unaware of the clan's cruel tradition.
But seeing Izayoi's terrifying expression, Hanabi realized she might've gone too far. She quickly pouted and said, "Father and the elders have just been acting weird lately. They're making me train more every day and keep saying stuff like 'If you stay lazy like this, how can you shoulder the clan's honor?' They have people waiting for me at the school gate every day after class, and they don't even let me go out on weekends. They won't let big sis take me out either, so I haven't had any time to come play with Onii-chan…"
"…"
Izayoi was speechless, his expression somewhere between amusement and exasperation.
He had thought the Hyuga Clan was acting recklessly, preparing to challenge him—this Wood Release user—head-on.
But it turned out they were still quite pragmatic. They had already accepted that the eldest daughter would be married off and had begun grooming the younger daughter as the next heiress.
Even his future father-in-law seemed to share that plan.
No wonder Hanabi hadn't come to visit him these past few months.
He had thought it was due to the new school term in September, plus Hinata not waiting for Hanabi after class, and the Hyuga family not allowing her to go out alone.
Turns out she had been grounded at home.
Izayoi gently pinched Hanabi's cheek and smiled as he asked, "Then how did you manage to come today?"
"The elders gave permission today."
Hanabi pulled an envelope from her pocket and handed it to Izayoi. "They told me to deliver this to Onii-chan personally, no matter what."
Curious, Izayoi accepted the envelope and opened it.
Inside was just a single invitation letter.
When he read the words on it, the corners of his mouth slowly curved upward.
"Onii-chan, what does it say?"
Seeing Izayoi's expression, Hanabi curiously got up and climbed onto his back, resting her chin on his shoulder to look at the invitation with him.
After a moment, she pouted and said in dissatisfaction, "Father and the elders are so unfair. For my birthday party, they didn't send you an invitation. But for big sis's birthday, they're making me deliver one. That's totally biased!"
Then she started tugging on Izayoi's hair and "throwing a tantrum," saying, "I don't care! Onii-chan has to come to my birthday next year!"
"Yes, yes…"
Izayoi, his hair now a messy bird's nest, quickly raised his hands in surrender and promised, "Next year, I'll definitely be there for your birthday. Even if they don't invite me, I'll shamelessly crash the party!"
In fact, he had already planned to celebrate Hanabi's birthday separately this year—just like how the Hyuga sisters always celebrated his birthday every year.
But unfortunately, Hanabi's birthday—March 27th—was right during the time Izayoi's Tenseigan was undergoing its awakening.
By the time that was over, Hanabi's birthday had already passed.
Of course, Hanabi had no idea about any of this.
Now that she had Izayoi's promise, she finally settled down. Hugging him from behind, she kissed his cheek and giggled, "Hehe… then it's settled! If Onii-chan breaks his promise, Hanabi will sneak laxatives and spit into your milk!"
"Hmm?"
Izayoi's gaze suddenly turned sharp. He pulled Hanabi to the front, squeezed her cheeks, and smiled with a slightly sinister tone, "Spit in my milk? Where did you even learn such a prank? Tell me—have you already done it before?!"
"N-No…"
Hanabi mumbled, "I only ever secretly drank Onii-chan's milk…"
"How is that any better?! Wait—shouldn't that be obvious?"
"Hehe… I added water to it."
"No wonder it tasted weird a few times—you're asking for it!"
Izayoi gave her a forehead flick, and the two began roughhousing on the tatami.
It was just like when he hadn't seen Hinata in a month—reunion felt like a mini honeymoon.
After nearly two months apart from his little sister-in-law, Izayoi had missed his clingy little cuddle buddy dearly.
Hanabi's longing for him was even stronger than his for her.
In the original story, Hanabi became a sis-con because after she developed self-awareness, only her big sister treated her kindly and gently.
The elders and her father were all serious and strict.
Originally, she idolized her sister. But after she beat Hinata in a spar, she was burdened with the elders' expectations and began being trained with the family's "honor" ideology—forced to grow up early into a "little adult."
Still, in front of Hinata, she remained a sweet little sister.
But Izayoi's arrival had changed both Hinata and Hanabi.
Hinata in the original was shy and had no idea how to take care of a kid.
Izayoi, with the experience of two lifetimes, not only had the time and patience but also the knowledge and power to nurture Hanabi.
With him, Hanabi didn't need to mind etiquette—she could fully be herself. Onii-chan would always accept her.
Even if she made mistakes, he would gently guide her with stories instead of yelling or scolding.
The only times he was serious were during training sessions—to improve her strength. And afterwards, he would let her "bite him" to vent and heal her injuries.
Though Izayoi was only five years older than her, and hadn't even graduated when she entered the academy, he was already so amazing.
Whether compared to classmates, seniors, or even academy teachers—none could match up to him.
As a result, Hanabi admired Izayoi even more than she did her father.
Over the years, instead of turning into a sis-con like in the original, Hanabi became a full-on bro-con.
This was the first time since gaining self-awareness that she had been away from Izayoi for so long.
In the middle of their play-fighting, she suddenly snuggled into Izayoi's chest and choked up a little. "Onii-chan… I missed you so much…"
Izayoi was momentarily stunned, then gently patted her head with a smile. "If you don't want to train at home anymore, just come train at Onii-chan's place like before. I'll guide you myself."
"Really?"
Hanabi's misty eyes instantly lit up, but she quickly lowered her head in disappointment. "No… Father and the elders would never allow it."
"I'll write a letter for you to bring back," Izayoi said with a confident smile, his tone full of dominance. "Once they read it, they'll agree."
Why did he go through with the Konoha Collapse Plan and directly eliminate Shimura Danzo and Root?
Why didn't he just sneak into the Hokage building after discovering the new system, abduct Yamato, reveal his Wood Release (purple bloodline), and occasionally attack Konoha disguised as Tendo Pain—just to farm perks without killing anyone?
Because more than any of that, Izayoi wanted to turn Konoha into his own clean land.
If Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo were still around, even if he had Wood Release, he would never have his current status or this level of freedom.
With them gone and Tsunade in charge, Izayoi was now Konoha's future—and on paper, one of its strongest.
He could be polite and respectful to his elders…
But he could also not eat beef.
Izayoi was sure that the pragmatic Hyuga Clan would agree.
And if they didn't—he'd make them agree.
Of course, Hanabi had no idea her onii-chan was even more domineering than she imagined.
Hearing his words, she raised her hands in glee. "Yay! I get to be with Onii-chan again!"
"Onii-chan, I love you to death!"
She hugged Izayoi's neck and planted another kiss on his left cheek, then climbed onto his shoulders and shouted, "Onii-chan, carry me high! I wanna go outside and see the scenery!"
"Yes, yes…"
Izayoi, as always, let the little sister-in-law boss him around. Fingers interlocked, he stood up and carried her to the garden for a walk.
"Onii-chan, are all the fish in that pond the ones you caught?"
"Hahaha, of course! Hanabi always knows exactly what to notice first."
"Hehe… Onii-chan, those trees—did you make them with Wood Release too?"
"Some of them, yes. But those cherry blossom trees—I brought those specially from Sakura Street."
"Onii-chan! I see a swing! I want to swing on it!"
"No problem. That's there just for you."
"Onii-chan! Get the camera! Let's take pictures together!"
"Oh right, I almost forgot…"
For the rest of the day, Izayoi stayed with Hanabi, playing around the new house.
After getting bored with the garden and traditional buildings, the two of them headed over to the villa side.
Although the weather had already turned cold, the indoor pool was heated. Hanabi, born into a prestigious clan, wasn't interested in the traditional architecture, but she really liked the modern-style villa.
Especially things like the pool — Hanabi had never experienced it before.
So after putting on the school swimsuit Izayoi had tailored for her, Hanabi jumped into the heated pool and enjoyed a nice swim.
"The water's not cold at all. Onii-chan, come swim with me!"
"Alright."
Wearing only a pair of swim trunks, Izayoi jumped in too, and the two began a swimming race.
After swimming, they went to the indoor sports court where Izayoi taught his little sister-in-law how to play table tennis and basketball.
Izayoi didn't know if the Shinobi World had ball sports or not.
But he figured them out anyway, and besides the court, he had even set up a game room.
Whenever the bug boys came over and Izayoi didn't have time to entertain them, he'd toss them in there to play games, sports, or fight in the arena outside to pass the time.
Tsunade also often brought Shizune over to play cards with Hinata and Karin — she always ended up as the charity champion.
After playing with his little sister-in-law until the evening, Karin had already finished her training and was in the kitchen cooking.
Hinata also came over looking for Hanabi, and went to help in the kitchen too.
So the two sisters ended up having dinner right there at Izayoi's home.
After eating their fill, the four of them rested for a while, then changed into their school swimsuits to soak in the private hot spring bath.
"Gururu…"
Watching Hinata's Squirtle float on the surface, Karin kept only her nose and eyes above the water, blowing bubbles in the hot spring.
"Onii-chan, why isn't this hot spring open-air?"
Hanabi sat next to Izayoi, looking up at the wooden ceiling.
"It can be open-air. Hanabi, do you want to see the night sky?" Izayoi smiled.
"Mhm mhm…"
Hanabi nodded repeatedly and smiled, "It didn't snow today, so the sky should be really pretty."
"In that case, let's open it up."
Izayoi got up, activated the barrier, and pressed a button — the mechanized wooden roof retracted instantly.
"So beautiful!"
The three girls' cheers immediately echoed from the hot spring.
Izayoi didn't go over right away. Instead, he went to the kitchen to prepare a fruit platter and some drinks.
Glancing at the sake he had prepared especially for Tsunade, Izayoi hesitated for a moment, but warmed it up and brought it along too.
Soaking in a hot spring while drinking sake — Izayoi had heard of it before, but never tried it himself.
Since the atmosphere tonight was nice, Izayoi decided to break one of the three shinobi taboos.
When Izayoi returned to the hot spring with the snacks and drinks, it instantly caused an uproar.
"Eh! Izayoi-kun, you're going to drink? Isn't that one of the shinobi's three taboos?" Karin looked shocked.
"Izayoi-kun, th-this isn't good, right?" Hinata fidgeted with her fingers, eyes looking away shyly.
"Hehe… Onii-chan, Hanabi will pour for you~"
Only Hanabi, bold and carefree, didn't care about shinobi taboos at all. She picked up the sake bottle and poured a cup for Izayoi.
"Just trying a bit shouldn't be a problem. I'm just curious." Izayoi smiled and took a sip, his eyebrows twitching slightly.
"Onii-chan, how does it taste?" Hanabi immediately asked curiously.
Hinata and Karin also looked over.
"It's a little sweet — the type called 'amakuchi.'" Izayoi smacked his lips and looked at Hinata and Karin with a smile. "Want to try a little?"
"No no no…"
The well-behaved Hinata and Karin quickly waved their hands and shook their heads.
"Onii-chan, why didn't you ask me?" Hanabi pouted.
"If you dare to sneak a drink, I'll smack you," Izayoi warned with a clenched fist.
"Onii-chan, you're so mean!"
Hanabi cupped a handful of hot water and splashed it at Izayoi's face.
"You dare splash me? Take this!" Izayoi tossed the cup and splashed back.
"Onii-chan's bullying me! Onee-chan, Karin-onee-chan, come help me!"
"Hanabi, don't cause trouble," Hinata said helplessly.
Karin smiled and responded, "Hanabi, I'll help you!"
The two girls started to gang up on Izayoi, splashing water all over him.
Gradually, someone began to break the rules — they started using chakra, and the water turned into jets. One of them accidentally hit Hinata, who was resting quietly in a corner with her eyes closed.
The towel wrapped around her hair came loose instantly, turning her into a soaked mess.
Hinata opened her pale-purple Byakugan — her gaze now sharp and cold.
"Gentle Fist… Eight Trigrams: Water Palm!"
A pillar of water exploded into the air — in an instant, the once warm and cozy hot spring turned into a battlefield.