Looking at his newly updated attribute panel, Riku's lips curved slightly in satisfaction.
The life-and-death battle with Shisui had pushed almost all his skills to a new level—especially his Konoha Style: Iron Fist technique, which had advanced by two whole levels. No wonder everything had felt sharper, faster, more fluid in the middle of that intense fight.
Yet even after all that improvement, Shisui had still managed to suppress him completely.
In the end, Riku had been forced to use his trump card—Byakugan: Intimidation.
Riku couldn't help but sigh. The Uchiha Clan of the Naruto world truly was blessed beyond measure.
Compared to the Hyuga Clan—who were also descended from the Sage of Six Paths and inherited a Sage's Eye—the Uchiha were on an entirely different level. The number of geniuses they produced was almost unfair.
First there was Uchiha Shisui, then Uchiha Itachi, and then Uchiha Obito.
All three belonged to the same generation, and each had awakened the fearsome Mangekyō Sharingan, earning their place among the elite Kage-level experts.
If not for their madness—their obsessive ideals and destructive impulses—the Uchiha Clan might never have fallen. Instead, they might have continued producing geniuses that would shape the ninja world.
If Riku had been born an Uchiha, he would have been proud to call such a clan his own.
But as a Hyuga, that pride was harder to muster.
Why could those lunatics wear colored contacts, summon giant spectral warriors, and awaken one godlike Dōjutsu after another… while he, a transmigrator blessed with a golden finger, had to grind his way up slowly, one step at a time?
It was unfair. Completely, infuriatingly unfair.
But Riku also knew that in this world, fairness didn't exist. From the moment one was born, bloodline decided destiny.
Without a powerful heritage, a person's potential was fixed from the start. Even geniuses like Orochimaru and Jiraiya could only reach the limits of Kage-level strength. Beyond that—toward the realm of legends like Uchiha Madara or Senju Hashirama—was impossible.
Still, Riku wasn't without hope.
His Hyuga bloodline carried the Sage's lineage, and the Byakugan was a treasure with untapped potential.
On top of that, he had successfully fused with Hashirama's cells, gaining a pseudo Sage Body akin to the Senju Clan's.
All of this gave Riku a much higher ceiling than most ninjas could ever dream of.
But, as the saying went—children make choices, adults want it all.
As a transmigrator, Riku wanted everything: the Sage Body, the Byakugan, and yes, the Uchiha's "colored contacts" too.
To reach that dream, he would likely need to fuse with Uchiha blood one day. And for that… he'd need Orochimaru's help.
He clearly remembered that in the original timeline, Orochimaru had once created an experimental subject who successfully transplanted the Uchiha bloodline—and even awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
That was proof enough. Orochimaru truly was the man who held the core technology of the ninja world in his hands.
"Of course," Riku muttered to himself, "external power isn't everything. My internal cultivation has to keep up too. High-level ninjutsu, weapons, techniques—I need all of it."
But then he frowned. "And every one of those is the tightly guarded treasure of some powerful clan. Getting them won't be easy..."
Just as he was deep in thought, a familiar, anxious voice called from outside his door.
"Riku! Riku! Open up quickly—something big's happened!"
Riku blinked, his focus snapping back. That voice—he recognized it instantly.
He opened the door to find Hyuga Piao standing there, pale and trembling.
"Piao?" Riku asked, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
"Riku, haven't you heard? Something terrible's happened to the Hyuga Clan!" Piao's voice cracked with panic. "A few minutes ago, Elder Hyuga Sōtai from the Main Family was attacked on his way home! The attacker's suspected to be a Kage-level expert!"
"The Clan Head has already gathered all of our fighting forces at the Main Family compound. Even my dad's been called in!"
His eyes welled up with tears. "If that terrifying person attacks again, won't my dad—and everyone else—be in danger?"
"What?" Riku frowned deeply. "But Uncle Tie already lost his ninja status, didn't he? Why would they summon him again?"
He hadn't expected the Main Family to act this ruthlessly—or perhaps he had underestimated how far they were willing to go in a crisis.
"I don't know," Piao said, shaking his head. "But almost every Branch Family member with any combat experience has been ordered to gather!"
His small fists trembled. "They said it's an emergency, but... Riku, I don't want anything to happen to my dad…"
Looking at him, Riku's expression softened.
Piao was only six years old—just like him—and had already lost his mother. The thought of losing his father too must have felt unbearable.
Riku exhaled quietly and forced a calm smile. "Don't worry, Piao. Things might not be as bad as you think. This is Konoha—we still have Hokage-sama, the strongest ninja alive. Even if the attacker's powerful, he wouldn't dare to strike again so soon."
"Maybe, while we're talking, that guy's already been captured by the village's Anbu. After all, this is the Hidden Leaf Village—the strongest in the world."
"And besides," Riku continued, "our Hyuga Clan is one of Konoha's great families. Hiashi-sama, the Clan Head, is an extraordinary shinobi. He won't let our people be harmed easily."
He didn't fully believe his own words—but they were enough to reassure Piao.
And indeed, the logic held up. Even a six-year-old could understand that.
Piao sniffed, his panic easing. "Riku... thank you. I feel a lot better now."
Riku nodded. "And remember, Uncle Tie might not be an active ninja anymore, but he used to be a Chunin—and a veteran of the battlefield. He still has experience. If danger comes, he'll know how to survive."
It wasn't exactly heroic advice, but in this world, surviving was its own kind of wisdom.
Piao wiped his eyes and nodded again.
After a pause, Riku asked, "By the way, you said the attacker was a Kage-level expert? How did they determine that?"
Now that his friend had calmed down, curiosity resurfaced.
"Oh, that," Piao said quickly. "That's what the Anbu said! They investigated personally, so it must be true."
"And I heard that the major clan heads were present when the report came out, so it wasn't decided lightly."
He shuddered. "It's scary to think about. I heard that even among the big clans, not many have true Kage-level experts!"
With the tension fading, Piao began to ramble again—his natural curiosity overtaking fear.
"Hey, Riku, do you think our Hyuga Clan has a Kage-level expert? If we do, then that person must be stronger than the attacker, right? After all, we have the Byakugan—one of the strongest Kekkei Genkai in existence!"
Riku looked at him, smiling faintly.
He didn't want to crush Piao's childlike pride, but he also knew that kind of thinking could be dangerous for a Branch Family child.
"Piao," he said gently, "you're too naïve. Even if the Hyuga Clan does have a Kage-level expert, do you really think they'd use that power to protect us?"
He tapped his own forehead.
The mark of the Caged Bird Seal.
Piao froze. The pride on his face faded instantly as memories flooded back—the day the Main Family elders branded that mark onto his skin, their cold, detached eyes as they watched him tremble in pain.
Those weren't the eyes of family. They were the eyes of masters looking down on servants.
He fell silent, his lips trembling slightly.
Riku sighed inwardly. That was the cruel reality of their clan.
No matter how much power the Hyuga possessed, the Branch Family would never be more than tools—shields to protect the Main Family.
And in the end, even if they gave their lives for the clan, no one would remember their names.
Riku looked out the window, where the sun was dipping behind Konoha's rooftops, bathing the village in a golden glow.
The world looked peaceful on the surface, but beneath that calm veneer, darkness was always waiting to strike.
Power. Bloodline. Fate.
Everything in this world revolved around them.
And if he wanted to survive—if he wanted to stand above it all—he needed more than just hard work.
He needed strength that could break through fate itself.
Even if it meant walking the same dangerous path as those "lunatics" from the Uchiha Clan.
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