[Hyuga Clan]
The courtyard of the Hyuga compound was silent except for the sound of soft steps on stone. Hinata and Neji stood opposite each other, both in their training stances, eyes locked. Hiashi Hyuga watched from the side, his arms folded, his face as unreadable as ever.
Usually, when Hinata sparred with Neji, she was hesitant. Her strikes were weak, her steps timid. But today was different. Each thrust of her palm carried force. Each movent had more sharpness than before. She still couldn't match Neji's speed or precision, but she wasn't backing away like she always did.
This ti around, she was actually throwing punches like she ant to hit the target and not just to show that she was fighting.
Still, Neji deflected her strikes with ease, his expression calm on the surface. But inside, he was grinding his teeth.
The heiress, he knew, was frail, unsure, easy to predict, and lacked resolution. Yet now, her palms were driving forward with intent, her stance holding firm.
It wasn't that he disliked Hinata, no. But he didn't like seeing her improve. His superiority over the clan heiress was his only legitimate victory over the fate bestowed upon him. He didn't like it.
Hiashi, though stoic as ever, took notice of these changes in Hinata. He always noticed, as a clan head and as a father. He just never showed it to Hinata.
His pale eyes followed every motion carefully. The difference was clear—his daughter was improving. It was not genius or sudden talent, but improvent nonetheless.
After years of trying to make any difference in Hinata's ek and shy behavior, putting her through rigorous training, from punishnt to insult and then outright avoiding her, he had tried everything but couldn't see the result he wished to see in his daughter. Now, however, he was seeing it.
He recalled that recently she had begun joining the other children for morning exercises. Nothing else ca to mind that could have brought this change in his daughter.
He was rather surprised when Hinata asked for his permission to join those children in their morning training.
In any other situation, Hiashi would have denied it. Normal training for a Hyuga was pointless. They had a systematic training routine to hone the Byakugan, passed down in their clan for centuries. Why waste ti on anything else?
But this ti, he agreed.
The only reason Hiashi agreed so quickly when Hinata asked for permission was because of the boy.
Sukuna Haruno.
Hiashi had his n dig up intel about him and found nothing special. He was just like any other civilian kid. However, that civilian kid was able to almost beat the guard he had assigned to Hinata.
He was arguably the strongest in their class, and from what Hiashi had learned, the only thing he was weak in was Ninjutsu.
Again, none of this gave Hiashi a solid reason to agree to his daughter's request, until he learned just how many other kids trained with him. Even Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchuriki, and those two Uchiha kids, Fugaku's orphans, trained there.
Hiashi thought that maybe interacting with them would make his daughter bolder and more confident. And so he agreed, not thinking much about it since most of the clan had already moved past Hinata, already considering Hanabi as the candidate for the next Clan Head position.
But, to his surprise, his daughter was actually showing improvent.
Hiashi sighed at this. Ultimately, no matter what, one of his daughters would face the sa fate as his brother once did.
Neji, anwhile, felt a sting of resentnt. He was from the branch family. He had clawed his way up with nothing but hard work and natural talent. No one handed him secret techniques. No one gave him special training. Yet he had surpassed many Hyuga children already. Still, seeing Hinata—the heiress—grow stronger pricked at him. It reminded him of the cage that bound him.
Hinata pressed forward again, her face red with effort. Her strikes were blocked, her defense broken, and soon Neji had her on the ground.
"Stop." Hiashi ended the match. It was obvious that Hinata had a long way to go before she could beat Neji, but the improvent was there.
Hiashi's gaze lingered on her as she stood back up. She was far from strong enough, but at least now, she was moving in the right direction.
And though Neji said nothing, he was already planning to increase his own training from now on.
...
[Uchiha Clan]
Kiyomi sat in front of Izumi, Sharingan glaring, both looking into each other's eyes.
The lesson today was on Genjutsu again. She had been practicing for hours, determined to get better. Izumi corrected her when she slipped, showing her tricks to sharpen illusions and break out of them faster.
Though there were not many Genjutsu ninja in the world, especially not skilled enough to trap an Uchiha in their Genjutsu, learning how to use it was still valuable.
Kiyomi followed with almost desperate intensity. She had been like this ever since she was rescued from the Root base—throwing herself into hard training day and night.
After a while, Izumi stopped and looked at her with soft eyes. "Kiyomi, why are you pushing yourself this hard lately… Is what happened back then still bothering you?" she asked in a slightly worried tone.
Kiyomi lowered her gaze for a mont, her eyes and mind tired of constant Genjutsu battles. Then she clenched her fists. "Yes… but it's not just that. You know how Sasuke is. He's pushing himself hard recently. So I don't want to be left behind." She replied, but Izumi didn't believe her excuses.
"It is Itachi," Izumi said, practically shutting Kiyomi up.
Sigh…
Izumi wasn't surprised. Her own reason was the sa. She wanted to find Itachi more than anything. For a long ti, she had carried that burden alone, not wanting Kiyomi to suffer. But seeing the girl's determination, Izumi finally decided it was ti to share the truth.
'I guess it can't be helped. If I never tell her, then she'll go out to find the answers herself. That would be even worse.'
"Kiyomi," Izumi said softly, "you know about Danzo and Root. I told you what little I could back then, more than even Sasuke knows. But I never told you why you were taken, or the bigger truth behind the night of the massacre."
Kiyomi's eyes shot up. Was she finally going to get the truth she had been asking for? Izumi had refused to explain anything to her before, even when she begged. What changed now?
Kiyomi saw as the Sharingan in Izumi's eyes slowly began to morph, changing its pattern. The strange, powerful design reflected in her eyes as she looked straight at Kiyomi.
"What? What is that?" Kiyomi was taken aback. Unlike Sasuke, she had never seen Itachi's Mangekyo, and Mangekyo itself was a hidden secret to many mbers of the Uchiha clan unless they achieved a high enough rank.
This was Kiyomi's first ti coming face to face with a Mangekyo.
"It's a Mangekyo Sharingan." Izumi sighed and slowly explained what this power was. The more she explained, the more Kiyomi's amazent rose. She hadn't even known that a power like this existed in her blood.
"Listen carefully..." Izumi, once she explained what a Mangekyo was, finally began to reveal what she wished to explain to the little girl.
"Danzo was not just the leader of Root. He was a village elder. He had always been anti-Uchiha, and after the Nine-Tails' night, this suppression only grew stronger."
Kiyomi's breath caught. "So… Danzo was the man who kidnapped . He was behind it all?" she asked, not even bothering to ask why. There was no point. In this world, everyone hated soone. It was natural. Reason didn't matter.
Izumi nodded. "Him, and the higher-ups of Konoha. They even forced Itachi's hand. They made him choose to kill his clan."
"What!"
Kiyomi's mouth fell open. Her eyes trembled. The village was behind this?
"So… Itachi was forced? He didn't just choose this?"
Her blood boiled, her hands trembling. Rage, confusion, sorrow—all of it crashed inside her.
Izumi placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Itachi still made the choice. But he wasn't alone in it. The higher-ups made sure of that. And Danzo… he was the mastermind behind it all."
Kiyomi felt like her understanding of the world was shifting. Did anyone in the clan know? They were just blaming Itachi.
Why hadn't Izumi said anything to the others?
"That's why I've sworn to find Itachi myself. I am the strongest Uchiha left. It's my burden to carry."
Kiyomi's eyes stung with tears. She wanted to scream, to demand why Itachi never told her. But the shock of so many truths left her silent.
"So… Itachi, he too has these eyes. Like yours?" she asked, unsure but already guessing.
Izumi just gave a small nod.
"Do you know what this ans, right?" Izumi asked.
"..."
Upon getting no response from the younger girl, she answered it herself.
"This ans that only I can face Itachi. Only a Mangekyo can beat another Mangekyo."
Kiyomi didn't say anything. She suddenly felt that all her effort so far was aningless. She had worked so hard, only to be told she could never be strong enough just because others unlocked eyes she lacked.
She hated this feeling. Once again, she felt powerless. More than anything, she hated the feeling that there was no way for her to gain strength—that diocrity was her fate.
Izumi hesitated before saying the last part. "There's sothing else you need to know. The Mangekyo gives us great power, but it cos with a price. Slowly, it steals our sight. I haven't used mine much, but already… my vision is not the sa."
Kiyomi's chest tightened. "Your eyes… they'll go blind?"
Izumi smiled faintly, though it didn't reach her eyes. "One day, yes. But only if I keep using my Mangekyo. That's the weight of these eyes."
Kiyomi clenched her fists again.
"Don't worry, I don't plan on using them until I find Itachi. In the anti, I intend to get stronger and search for his whereabouts.
And that's why I want you not to push yourself so much, okay?" Izumi smiled. But Kiyomi didn't share the feeling. She just felt useless.
...
A/N : Just a little base before the ti skip. So that what happens in the future makes sense.
xxx
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