Chapter 13: Chapter 13: The Thoughts of the Sannin
High up in the main hall, Jiraiya widened his eyes and turned his head, looking at his teacher with an inquiring expression.
Having been master and disciple for many years, their bond was as close as father and son. Hiruzen Sarutobi understood what Jiraiya wanted to ask:
"It shouldn't be a secret technique passed down through the Hyuga clan... Moreover, for the Byakugan, this method of attacking by emitting chakra to form armor is quite rare."
"I knew it." Jiraiya stroked his chin and sighed, "The moment that kid started, I thought he was going to use the Rasengan."
"Oh? The one developed by Minato?"
"Similar, but this jutsu doesn't have the compression and rotational power of the Rasengan. This kid seems to have borrowed a lot from the Gentle Fist's application of force, increasing its penetration and hardness... This jutsu is probably not fully developed."
"What a genius," Hiruzen Sarutobi praised.
"A pity for such a good seedling." Jiraiya snorted with dissatisfaction. This dissatisfaction, of course, was not directed at Hyuga Yuto.
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked down silently.
Below, Uchiha Shota was being helped back by his clan members. It seemed that he wasn't seriously injured. Hyuga Yuto stood where he was, waiting for the next battle. Behind this fine jade, the Hyuga clan members were not cheering. On the contrary, Hyuga Shinshi and the girl from the main family seemed to have different emotions in their eyes.
Those emotions were definitely not "joy" and "pride."
Taking everything in, the Third Hokage's dissatisfaction with the Hyuga clan deepened.
Long ago, the Hyuga's influence was much greater than it is now. The Byakugan, used in war, was an invincible weapon. There was a time when even the "Uchiha" and "Senju" had to give way to the Hyuga.
But the system of the main and branch families completely destroyed the Hyuga's flourishing vitality.
They became complacent and stagnant, each generation weaker than the last. Even when geniuses appeared, they often died prematurely due to various reasons.
By now, the Hyuga clan had not seen a shadow-level powerhouse for a long time.
During Hiruzen Sarutobi's tenure as Hokage, "weakening the influence of the ninja clans" had always been one of his unwavering policies. This had never changed.
But the Hyuga clan was an oddity – they didn't need him to weaken them, they actively castrated themselves.
Year after year, the Hyuga clan continued to decline, relying on their bloodline limit and the remaining prestige of their ancestors to maintain their dignity and barely survive.
The entire clan was like caged birds, trapped in the system of the main and branch families.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed silently, using a certain jutsu to suppress his voice into a thin line, and secretly spoke to his three beloved disciples:
"You all know the reason why I gathered you here. Tell me... what are your thoughts?"
The teacher's question did not receive any response from his disciples.
Orochimaru sat there calmly, quietly watching the battles in the courtyard, occasionally taking a sip of tea.
Jiraiya sneakily took out a small notebook, dipped some ink on the tip of his pen, and was writing something, looking as if inspiration had struck him.
Tsunade was the worst. She acted as if she hadn't heard anything and drank bowl after bowl of sake. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were glazed over and dazed. People who didn't know better would think that the Senju clan's "Sage Body" was naturally intolerant to alcohol.
Hiruzen Sarutobi rolled his eyes in exasperation.
As their master, he knew his disciples all too well.
"Let the Sannin take on disciples, stimulate the Uchiha and Hyuga, and make them contribute more people and effort during the war." This plan sounded beautiful and reliable, but there was an important prerequisite – the Sannin had to be willing to take on disciples.
Children were hard to manage when they grew up, let alone three shadow-level masters in their prime.
The Sannin were all resistant to taking on disciples.
At this time, Orochimaru, although he had already started his human experiments, was still loyal to Konoha. As the Third Hokage grew older, he was preparing to compete for the position of the Fourth Hokage.
Taking on a member of the Uchiha or Hyuga clan, although it would gain the support of both clans, this apprenticeship was ultimately just for manipulation. Who knows what kind of trouble it might cause in the future, so it was better not to take the initiative to get involved.
As for Jiraiya, although he was quite willing to teach young people something, after the Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku made the prophecy that "your disciple will bring about major changes to the ninja world," Jiraiya became very cautious about taking on disciples.
And Tsunade... was purely because of her psychological illness.
After the deaths of her younger brother, Nawaki, and her lover, Dan Kato, Tsunade developed a severe phobia of blood. As a ninja, being afraid of blood was a huge flaw. Therefore, Tsunade became disheartened, left Konoha, and wandered around with the young Shizune, too lazy to care about the affairs of the village.
The Sannin were in a state of defiance. Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't scold his disciples in front of so many people, so he could only endure it and sit in his seat, watching the battles of the young boys and girls in the courtyard.
Time passed, and soon, the four Uchiha and four Hyuga geniuses had all taken their turns.
Among them, the most stunning performance was naturally Hyuga Yuto.
His excellent physical skills and Gentle Fist techniques honed through steady training, his genius self-created ninjutsu "Lion's Fang Bite," his sharp observation skills, and his excellent judgment allowed him to stand out among his peers, almost dominating them.
After all, these people were just "ordinary geniuses."
True monsters, such as the still-young Uchiha Shisui and the Uchiha Itachi still in his mother's womb, couldn't possibly be here. That's why Hyuga Yuto was able to win so easily.
The young boys and girls had all shown themselves, and the banquet returned to its original state. No one was seriously injured, and the Sarutobi clan had a dedicated medical team. Not long after, the eight geniuses all returned to their seats.
After eating and drinking for a while, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly coughed dryly and stretched:
"Everyone, our Sarutobi clan was once famous in the ninja world for our research on plants. Even now, this clan's land still preserves the rare flowers and fruits cultivated by our ancestors. Let's all move around. We'll meet back here in a quarter of an hour."
Everyone was stunned, and immediately understood the Third Hokage's intention: He wanted to send them away and have a private talk with the Sannin, definitely about taking on disciples!
Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi exchanged a few pleasantries and respectfully took their leave with their clan members.
In the main hall, the over-fifty-year-old Hiruzen Sarutobi stood with his hands behind his back for a long time. Finally, he slowly turned around and said wearily:
"Little Tsunade, Jiraiya... Huh?"
He was about to express his feelings and persuade the Sannin, but when he turned around, he found that all three of his disciples were gone.
While their master was gathering his thoughts, the disciples had already slipped away.
"You three little brats..." In the main hall, Hiruzen Sarutobi tugged at his beard, almost losing his composure and cursing.
...
Meanwhile.
In a fragrant garden somewhere in the Sarutobi clan's land, Hyuga Yuto stopped.
He bowed and saluted, as polite and respectful as he had been taught in the clan:
"Young Master Shinji, Lady Miko."
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