Chapter 430: Changing Faces
Hiashi's voice rose with agitation, carrying a sense of desperation:
"I will absolutely not allow it!"
He repeated, as if trying to brand this determination into the air with his voice:
"No matter what your reason is, Hanabi must stay in Hidden Leaf Village! Stay in a place where I can protect her..."
"I can allow Hinata, who has become a Ninja, to go on missions, but I will absolutely not allow them to go to places far beyond their capabilities. Moreover, Hanabi isn't even a Ninja yet!"
Seemingly feeling that wasn't enough, Hiashi took a deep breath. He slightly tilted his chin, speaking in a tone that shouldn't appear on the face of someone like him—almost provocative yet tinged with tragedy:
"Unless you kill me right now!"
He pointed at himself.
"Otherwise, I will absolutely not sign that damn leave application. Don't even think about it!"
Hanabi's small face turned pale with fright, and she tightly grabbed Naruto's arm, her eyes filled with terror and confusion.
She had never seen her father lose his composure so much, being so intense.
Naruto was also stunned; he hadn't expected Hiashi's reaction to be so fierce, reaching the point of using his own life as a threat.
It seemed he had still underestimated the status of Hinata and Hanabi in Hiashi's heart.
The expression on Naruto's face quickly shifted from brief astonishment back to calm, even carrying a hint of thoughtfulness.
He didn't take the bait of Hiashi's "kill me" remark, nor did he continue to argue the necessity of "vision" and "growth."
Naruto slightly regretted replacing Might Guy so early, especially since the person taking over was Hiashi.
Seeing Hiashi's resolute appearance, Naruto's original plan wavered slightly.
Intending to make one last attempt, he spoke a simple sentence that was no different from a clap of thunder to Hyuga Hiashi:
"Recently, I found a way to make the Byakugan evolve."
"..."
Time seemed to be infinitely stretched and frozen at this moment.
Just a second ago, Hyuga Hiashi, who had been like an enraged lion with his hair standing on end and slamming the table, froze solid.
The expression on his face—a mix of anger, determination, and even a hint of tragedy—instantly solidified, and then, like a sand sculpture blown by the wind, tiny cracks began to appear.
In those white eyes burning with cold flames, the pupils first constricted violently and then began to tremble intensely. The anger within was extinguished as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over it with a "hiss," replaced by extreme shock and disbelief.
Byakugan evolution?
As the former Clan Chief of the Hyuga Clan and one of the people in Hidden Leaf Village with the deepest research into the Byakugan, Hiashi knew the weight of these words better than anyone.
That was the Breakthrough the Hyuga Clan had dreamed of for thousands of years; it was the key to breaking the Bloodline shackles and stepping toward a higher level.
It was the ultimate mystery that countless ancestors had exhausted their hearts' blood for but failed to obtain!
The Uchiha's Sharingan was actually quite similar to the Byakugan before evolving into the Mangekyo, but the Uchiha's Sharingan could evolve into the Mangekyo Sharingan.
That was the power of a god. At the end of the Sengoku period, the battle between Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama was entirely in the Domain of gods; Mortals couldn't even manage to peek from nearby.
Now hearing that the Byakugan could also evolve, how could Hiashi not be shocked?
Naruto said he found a way to make the Byakugan evolve?
This impact directly hit the deepest persistence and desire in Hiashi's Soul as a Clan Chief and leader of the Hyuga Clan.
A deathly silence lasted for about two or three seconds in the office.
Then, Hiashi's stiff body, like a rusted machine, unnaturally relaxed bit by bit.
If the other party mastered the method of Byakugan evolution, there was no doubt that Naruto would definitely let Hinata and Hanabi's Byakugan evolve first.
Hiashi's arms, which were propped on the desk, were pulled back, trembling slightly.
The expression on his face changed rapidly like a kaleidoscope: shock, doubt, ecstasy, embarrassment, regret...
Ultimately, it forcibly transformed into an extremely unnatural smile.
His skin was still a bit thin, and even his speech became stuttered:
"Cough... cough cough... well... Ho-Hokage-sama..."
He tried hard to make his tone sound normal, but the effect was poor.
"Actually... just now... what I said just now... that... was a jo-joke! Yes! A joke! Haha... ha..."
He gave two dry laughs, but the laughter sounded even more awkward in the silent office.
Hanabi pulled on Naruto's sleeve to hide her face, not wanting to see her father's current appearance.
He wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead with his hand, his eyes wandering, not daring to look directly at Naruto's knowing and slightly teasing gaze.
"Wi-with your strength, Hokage-sama... well... unfathomable, invincible in the Ninja World, surely... surely you can easily and thoroughly protect my daughters' safety! Yes! Absolutely no problem!"
"Going out to see the world and gain experience is... is a good thing for young people! I... I was just worried for a moment and was talking nonsense! Hokage-sama, please don't take it to heart!"
If the evolution of the Byakugan could be as strong as the Mangekyo Sharingan, he wouldn't need to worry about Hanabi and Hinata in the future.
At least the future strength of the two of them would be greater than his own.
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Deep inside a narrow cave that was dark and damp, the air filled with the scent of moss and some kind of ancient rock. The cave walls were not completely pitch black; unknown minerals or a special type of fungi emitted a faint green fluorescence, barely outlining the cave's contours but adding a bit more mystery and eeriness.
Adult Naruto's arm turned golden, illuminating the rugged and uneven ground ahead.
He walked at the very front with steady steps.
Uzumaki Yuji followed closely behind, carefully using Chakra attached to the soles of his feet to prevent slipping, while Simba transformed back into a puppy form convenient for moving in narrow spaces, following closely at Naruto's feet.
The sound of dripping water came from the depths, rhythmic and ethereal, as if striking the strings of time.
They walked for a long time, and the cave gradually became more open, finally arriving at a relatively spacious cavern.
In the center of the cavern was a circular pool about three or four meters in diameter.
The pool water was green and very transparent; the surface was calm and without ripples, like a large piece of fine jade, clearly reflecting the rock walls above and those scattered points of green fluorescence.
The edge of the pool fit seamlessly with the surrounding rocks; one couldn't see where the water source came from or where it flowed, as if it had existed here since ancient times.
Adult Naruto stopped by the pool, raising the Chakra light in his hand slightly to illuminate the surface.
He crouched down, gently stroking Simba's head as it approached with his free hand while looking at the pool.
On the water's surface, the figures of the three of them were clearly reflected: Adult Naruto's calm face, Yuji's slightly curious and alert face, and Simba's agile eyes.
The reflections were exceptionally clear due to the absolute stillness of the water, and even the texture of the clothes on their bodies was faintly visible.
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