Throughout the entire summer vacation, Izanami had been training with Hinata.
Every day began with him first confirming Ino Yamanaka's location, then using the Transformation Technique to disguise himself as her before inviting Hinata out. The two would head to a secluded training ground, where they practiced Tree Climbing or engaged in taijutsu sparring.
With her newfound friendship and growing confidence, Hinata underwent remarkable changes over the summer. These changes weren't limited to her strength—her temperament had matured noticeably as well.
Hiashi Hyuga, the head of the Hyuga Clan, was the first to notice the transformation in his eldest daughter.
When he learned that Hinata had begun practicing Water Walking, he understood that she wasn't merely playing or making friends. Something more serious was going on.
Meanwhile, Izanami's shadow clone sensed that someone was secretly observing them.
Instead of hiding, Izanami saw this as an opportunity to test Hiashi's attitude.
That day, Izanami found a reason to demonstrate Water Walking in front of Hinata.
In addition, he performed the Shadow Clone Technique and showcased a low-level Wind Release, completely overpowering Hinata in taijutsu during sparring.
The very next day, Izanami once again disguised himself as Ino Yamanaka and visited the Hyuga Clan to invite Hinata out.
When Hinata came out without interference, he knew Hiashi had given his silent approval.
This prestigious clan leader had acknowledged their training—at least for now.
Izanami's identity was no secret among the major ninja clans.
An orphaned commoner from a ninja family, who hadn't even completed three semesters at the Ninja Academy, had already mastered Tree Climbing and Water Walking—skills not taught until later—and could also perform the Shadow Clone Technique and a low-level Wind Release.
This level of talent and chakra reserves made him an undeniable genius among commoners.
Training with such a prodigy gave Hinata motivation like never before.
Her dedication could be seen in how she continued practicing Water Walking at home, along with the notable changes in her demeanor.
Though Hiashi had once felt disappointed in Hinata's performance, he had yet to recognize Hanabi's potential and had not given up on his eldest daughter.
Seeing such dramatic improvement resulting from a mere friendship, Hiashi couldn't help but feel pleased.
The idea of separating the pair never crossed his mind.
First, they were still young—this had to be innocent friendship.
Second, from his perspective, Izanami and Hinata were incompatible.
The Hyuga Clan's Byakugan was not to be diluted.
To Hiashi, Izanami was simply a tool—a catalyst to help Hinata grow.
He would continue to monitor them, and should anything change, he would step in to deliver the cold, unyielding reality.
Unless Izanami became as exceptional as the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, the two had no future.
Of course, neither Izanami nor Hinata knew any of this.
Seeing no opposition from Hiashi, Izanami felt fully at ease.
He began teaching Hinata the Three Body Technique and chakra control skills, using taijutsu sparring to try and trigger Hinata's red talent entry.
The summer was a fruitful period for both of them.
Hinata had already mastered Tree Climbing and Water Walking, and had also learned the Three Body Technique.
However, possibly due to her limited chakra reserves, she had not yet succeeded in learning the Shadow Clone Technique.
Still, her Gentle Fist skills had greatly improved.
Among Izanami's talent entries was "Medical Genius."
His mother in this life had been a Medical Ninja, and she had left behind scrolls of basic medical ninjutsu. Izanami had already mastered these techniques.
In his efforts to trigger the "Byakugan Princess" red entry, Izanami initially held back during sparring to give Hinata time to adapt.
But shortly afterward, he went all out—mercilessly pummeling Hinata during every session.
Afterward, he would heal her injuries using medical ninjutsu.
This cycle of intense sparring and healing continued throughout the vacation.
While Neji Hyuga harbored resentment toward Hinata, he never dared to hurt her under Hiashi's watchful gaze.
But Izanami had no such reservations.
He beat her without hesitation, regardless of gender.
And then he'd comfort her afterward.
This brutal regimen rapidly increased Hinata's combat experience.
Her attacks grew sharper, more decisive.
She had grown used to the beatings—and the healing that followed.
This Hinata would not be like the canon version—too soft to hurt her younger sister—leading to her loss against Hanabi, who was five years her junior.
Thanks to such dramatic changes, Hiashi fully accepted Izanami and Hinata's interactions, even referring to them privately as "trysts."
Despite failing to trigger the Byakugan Princess red entry, Izanami's own growth was substantial.
Through relentless taijutsu practice with Hinata, he successfully replicated the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist.
After confirming Hiashi's attitude, Izanami convinced Hinata to discreetly bring him a human acupoint chart and a Gentle Fist scroll under the pretense of needing them for instruction.
Izanami quickly mastered both the human acupoint diagram and the technique of injecting chakra into specific points.
He wasn't particularly interested in the Eight Trigrams Palm, but the ability to block chakra flow by striking pressure points fascinated him.
He believed it would be especially useful in future battles.
Though the red entry didn't activate, Izanami still gained two talent entries from Hinata over the summer.
The first was a blue-tier Chakra Control entry—one he already had.
At that moment, a system prompt echoed in his mind:"Ding! You have obtained the talent entry [Chakra Control (Blue)]. It overlaps with your own talent entry. Merge or decompose?"Izanami chose to merge them.
Although the color didn't advance to purple, he felt a noticeable improvement in his chakra control abilities.
That was when he finally understood how Sakura Haruno had managed to surpass both Hinata—who had trained in Gentle Fist since childhood—and Shizune—Tsunade's direct apprentice—in just three years.
It was like the difference between having an Ōtsutsuki bloodline and being a Hyuga from the Moon branch.
Even if both have Byakugan, the quality differs greatly.
Just as two blue-tier Chakra Controls wouldn't turn into a purple-tier, two Byakugan entries wouldn't evolve into the Tenseigan or Reincarnation Eye.
Still, purple-tier Chakra Control allowed Sakura to master complex Medical Ninjutsu, the Senju-style Chakra burst, and even the S-rank difficulty Yin Seal and Hundred Healings Technique in only three years.
The second entry Izanami acquired was Bloodline Limit: Byakugan (Purple).
Unfortunately, this wasn't the coveted red "Byakugan Princess" entry.
If Izanami hadn't already possessed Byakugan, this would have simply granted him a pair.
But it didn't come with the purity associated with Hinata's unique heritage.
He chose to decompose it.
Merging it would only marginally improve his Byakugan purity.
To awaken the Reincarnation Eye would take much more.
The Ōtsutsuki Clan had sacrificed the Byakugan of their entire branch family to evolve one.
Even that likely required the pure Byakugan of the main family.
Given his own Ōtsutsuki heritage, his Byakugan purity already exceeded that of most Hyuga.
Wasting two purple entries for a small boost was pointless.
Upon decomposition, Izanami received over a thousand points, and his talent panel updated:
[Host: Izanami]
[Talent Entries]Ōtsutsuki Bloodline (Red)Super Kage Potential (Gold)Bloodline Limit: Byakugan (Purple)Full Attribute Constitution (Purple)Medical Genius (Blue) [+]Chakra Control (Blue) [+][Points: 1791]
The plus (+) signs after Medical Genius and Chakra Control indicated that both could now be upgraded.
This was the true purpose of the points system.
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