Hyuga Bin!
Autumn, Year 37 of the Hidden Leaf Calendar.
Hyuga Bin strode along a tree-lined path in Konoha Village, his short legs moving with quiet pride.
Today, he planned to stop by the food stalls on the village's main street to buy a few skewers of his favorite tricolor dango.
"Bin! I challenge you!"
Before reaching the food district, Hyuga Bin heard a familiar, impassioned voice behind him.
He turned around, already sighing at the sight of Uchiha Obito, marching toward him with fire in his eyes. Obito, who liked to call himself the genius of the Uchiha clan and the clan's future, was clearly gearing up for yet another duel.
As someone with the body of a three-and-a-half-year-old but the soul of a man in his twenties, Hyuga Bin had no desire to entertain Obito's tenth challenge today—especially since it would likely end with Obito crying again, for the tenth time.
So this time, Hyuga Bin rejected him directly.
"Obito, I'm not fighting you today…"
---
The story of Hyuga Bin began over three years ago.
Back then, he wasn't called Hyuga Bin. His name was Li Bin—a simple name, just one character. His friends back in his original world affectionately called him "ABin" or "Brother Bin."
(And no, he didn't have a girlfriend named Yuhui—despite what tropes might suggest.)
The night before he was transported, Li Bin had been lying in bed reading a web novel. When he closed the book and drifted off to sleep, he expected to wake up the next morning like usual.
Instead, he woke up to the unfamiliar cries of a baby—his cries—and realized he had been reborn into the world of Naruto, as an infant of the Hyuga clan.
At first, he rejected this reality. After all, how could a peaceful life under socialism compare to the bloody world of shinobi filled with war, death, and tragedy?
What's more, in his previous life he had been a bright young man with "three 18s" (18 in age, intelligence, and appearance, he would've argued). He had promise. Potential. A future.
Here, in this dangerous world, even from the moment of his birth, he was looked down upon. As a member of the branch family of the Hyuga clan, his status was low, and his fate would one day include the cursed Caged Bird Seal.
But denial changed nothing.
After a brief depression—he even refused milk for a while—he began to accept his fate and consider the possibilities.
---
As a time traveler, Hyuga Bin had one distinct advantage: foreknowledge. He had watched anime like Naruto, Bleach, Darker than Black, and Parasyte. He understood the major arcs, the outcomes, the power systems. He wasn't walking blind into this world.
He also loved web novels. And if those stories had taught him anything, it was this: a transmigrator needs a golden finger—some sort of cheat system.
His favorites were two kinds of stories: the sign-in system and the steady cultivation type. He loved both, and secretly hoped for the former.
He knew the odds. As a Hyuga branch family member with no major bloodline mutation or secret heritage, becoming a powerhouse like the Sage of Six Paths through hard work alone was virtually impossible.
So he placed his hopes on a system.
He fantasized about it while lying in his crib, daydreaming between naps and feedings. He imagined the perfect story, something that could've been serialized on a fanfiction site for over a million words.
---
Title: "Ten Years of Signing In at Konoha: I, Hyuga Bin, Am Invincible!"
Synopsis:
Li Bin transmigrates into the Naruto world and becomes Hyuga Bin, the lowest-ranked member of the Hyuga clan. Without talent, without status, he's ridiculed and ignored—until his golden finger finally activates: the [Sign-In System].
Sign in at the Hyuga Compound: Reward — [Rinnegan]!
Sign in at the Hokage's Office: Reward — [Flying Thunder God Jutsu]!
Sign in at Hokage Rock: Reward — [Wood Release]!
Everywhere in the village was a potential power-up point. For ten years, Hyuga Bin signed in daily, training in secret, always cautious.
Then came the Third Shinobi World War. As a Genin, Hyuga Bin was deployed to the front lines...
---
Of course, that was all fantasy.
In reality, no golden finger ever arrived.
He waited two full years—grew from a drooling baby to a boy who could run through the streets of Konoha. But still, nothing. Every day, he silently repeated, "Sign in!" in his head, like a prayer.
No system came.
Eventually, Hyuga Bin gave up hope and began training the old-fashioned way.
Fortunately, the physical development of children in the Naruto world far outpaced that of real-world children. By age two, he could already start basic taijutsu and chakra exercises.
With no system to rely on, he committed himself to training. His goals were simple:
Awaken the Byakugan.
Master Gentle Fist.
Reach jōnin-level strength before the war breaks out.
Even though the Hyuga clan was born with the "white eyes," the Byakugan's insight abilities still required activation and training. He trained hard for a year and a half, until he could hold his own against Hyuga peers a year older than him. His Byakugan had also begun to awaken.
He also sparred with several children who would one day be his classmates at the Ninja Academy:
The so-called "genius" Uchiha Obito (spoiler: not a genius).
The "child prodigy" Hatake Kakashi.
The overly enthusiastic Might Guy.
Hyuga Bin quickly realized his natural talent wasn't at the top, but neither was it at the bottom. He wasn't a genius, but he wasn't trash either.
Right now, he could beat Obito more often than not and even held a slight edge over Kakashi—though mostly due to hard work, not talent.
He knew once they entered the Academy, Kakashi's lead would become obvious.
If everything proceeded normally, Hyuga Bin estimated he would reach the level of an average jōnin. Unfortunately, in this war-torn era of Naruto, jōnin were nothing special. Kage-level shinobi were everywhere, and even relics like Kakuzu could casually eliminate jōnin-level threats.
---
"Obito, I'm not fighting you today…"
Hyuga Bin answered flatly, turning to leave.
"Bin, are you scared to accept my challenge?!"
Obito's voice cracked in indignation. Hyuga Bin didn't even look back.
"Damn it! It's not up to you!"
Fuming, Obito clenched his fists and charged. He had been training obsessively for a month in preparation for this fight. He would not let Hyuga Bin brush him off again!
This time, he would win! He would redeem himself from nine tearful defeats!
---
Thud!
Just a few steps into his dramatic charge, the self-proclaimed Uchiha genius tripped on a small, unnoticed stone.
He hit the ground face-first.