Chapter 25: A Clash of Clans
"Shinra, Nawaki, what are you two doing blocking the entrance?" The future Ino-Shika-Cho trio—Yamanaka Inoichi, Nara Shikaku, and Akimichi Choza—walked up to them.
"It's Shinra. He looks like he just found a treasure or something," Nawaki explained, pointing.
"Idiot," Shinra said, reaching out and flicking Nawaki squarely on the forehead.
"Ow! That hurt! You jerk! If you make me stupid, I'll never let you go!" Nawaki cried, clutching the reddening spot.
"Don't worry," Shinra replied calmly. "If you get beaten stupid, you won't be able to bother me anymore."
"Why not?" Nawaki asked, genuinely confused.
Shinra looked at him with the deeply patient expression one reserves for the simple-minded. "Because by then," he said slowly, "you'll already be an idiot."
With that, he stepped past Nawaki and into the school grounds, leaving the Senju heir standing there, processing the insult.
"Let's go, you idiot," Inoichi said, clapping a laughing Nawaki on the shoulder and pulling him along.
"Damn you, Hyuga Shinra! Wait for me!" Nawaki yelled, finally snapping out of it and rushing after him.
Before Nawaki could launch into a proper tirade, Shinra pointed towards a growing crowd further down the path. "Looks like a show over there. Let's check it out."
"Huh?" Nawaki's attention was instantly diverted. A natural busybody, he forgot all about Shinra and sprinted towards the commotion.
"What's going on over there?" Inoichi asked, peering into the distance.
Shinra gave him a flat look. "That's a stupid question. I just got here. How should I know?"
Inoichi had the decency to look embarrassed. It had been a silly thing to ask.
"Looks like some kind of confrontation, though," Shinra mused. "You guys going to take a look?"
"I don't like trouble. You go ahead," Nara Shikaku mumbled, his eyes already half-closed in anticipation of a nap.
His protest was useless. Inoichi and Choza grabbed an arm each and began forcibly dragging their lazy friend towards the crowd.
Shinra didn't follow them. It wasn't that he wasn't curious, but he had spotted a much more appealing sight at the school gate: Uchiha Mikoto.
"Mikoto! Over here!" he called, waving.
Seeing him, Mikoto quickly walked over, a gentle smile gracing her features. "You're early today, Shinra."
Not this again, Shinra thought, resisting the urge to sigh. He'd been late one time and it seemed to have permanently altered everyone's expectations.
"Let's go see what the fuss is about," he said instead of answering. He casually took her small, delicate hand in his and began leading her towards the gathering.
Mikoto's face flushed a bright pink. She gave a token, half-hearted struggle before letting him lead her, her heart hammering a frantic rhythm against her ribs.
When they reached the edge of the crowd, Shinra saw the source of the tension: Hyuga Hiashi and several other Hyuga children were in a standoff with a group from the Uchiha clan.
"What's going on? Is Uchiha Ken trying to get revenge?" Shinra asked, tapping Namikaze Minato on the shoulder. The blonde boy was already there, observing intently.
Before Minato could answer, Mikoto tugged on Shinra's sleeve and whispered, "The one leading the Uchiha is Uchiha Fugaku, the clan head's son."
"Oh?" Shinra's interest was piqued.
"From what I heard," Minato explained quietly, "Uchiha Fugaku beat up a Hyuga clansman and said he was going to 'step on the Hyuga family.' Hiashi happened to overhear and confronted him."
Shinra peered through the crowd and recognized the beaten Hyuga boy. "Isn't that Hyuga Steelplate? Hyuga Teppanyaki's older brother? Why did Fugaku pick a fight with him?"
"Uchiha Fugaku! I challenge you!" Hyuga Hiashi's voice was cold, his pupil-less white eyes fixed on Fugaku with palpable killing intent.
Hyuga Hizashi, standing beside his brother, looked anxious, wanting to stop him but unsure how. Uchiha Fugaku was older and nearly ready to graduate from the academy. The odds of Hiashi winning were slim to none.
"Hiashi! You need to calm down," Shinra called out in a tone of mock concern. "You know he's stronger than you. If you get beaten up too, the Hyuga clan will lose even more face."
"What? You think I'm inferior to him?" Hiashi snarled, his fury now directed at Shinra.
"Hiashi, I think Shinra has a point. You're being irrational," Nara Shikaku added calmly, his analytical mind seeing no favorable outcome.
"Brother, let it go for now. We can settle this later," Hizashi pleaded.
"Hmph! I will prove to all of you that the Uchiha are nothing!" Hiashi was beyond listening to reason.
"You have a death wish. Fine. I'll teach you a lesson. I accept your challenge," Uchiha Fugaku declared, his head held high as he looked down his nose at Hiashi.
The sheer condescension in Fugaku's expression made Hiashi see red. The veins around his Byakugan bulged grotesquely, making him look almost monstrous.
"Die! Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"
His Byakugan activated, the blue veins around his eyes throbbing. A shimmering diagram of the Eight Trigrams briefly appeared around him, and his hands became a blur as he launched a flurry of strikes aimed at every major chakra point on Fugaku's body. A direct hit would have been devastating.
But Uchiha Fugaku wasn't so easily caught. A single comma-shaped tomoe spun to life in each of his eyes—the Sharingan. Though it was only the first stage, it was more than enough to perceive and track Hiashi's high-speed assault.
To the watching crowd, Hiashi's attacks were a blur. To Fugaku, they were telegraphed and slow. He twisted and weaved with minimal, almost lazy movements, effortlessly evading every single palm strike.
It all happened in the space of a few seconds, leaving the onlookers in an awed frenzy.
"That's the Hyuga's Gentle Fist! And the Uchiha's Sharingan! They're so powerful!"
"I wish I had one of those!"
The air buzzed with excited chatter and explanations for those who didn't recognize the famed dojutsu.
"We'll step in after Hiashi loses," Nawaki muttered, clenching his fists, a competitive fire in his eyes. "He's in our class. We can't let him get bullied."
Seeing Nawaki's excitement, Shinra smirked. "I think you just want an excuse to fight."
As Hiashi finished his flurry, his body came to a sudden stop, and he stood panting, his chest heaving. While the Sixty-Four Palms was a foundational technique, the chakra cost for a child his age was significant. He could maybe manage it one more time, but that would leave him completely drained and defeated without Fugaku even laying a hand on him.
Realizing this, Hiashi abandoned his taijutsu. He drew a kunai from his pouch, settling into a defensive stance, his eyes never leaving his smug opponent. The fight was far from over, but the momentum had decisively shifted.