Four years passed quietly, like quicksand through one's fingers.
Everything was calm during these four years. It wasn't that Hyuga Hinata wanted it this way; there really just wasn't much happening.
It couldn't be helped; Kishimoto wrote it that way, and the plot mostly takes place after Uzumaki Naruto's graduation.
Even though Danzo Shimura had been monitoring her, even he couldn't discover anything from his position.
A seemingly peaceful night.
Sitting upright in her room, Hyuga Hinata was at the critical moment of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Stage.
As early as a year ago, she had reached the ninth level of Qi Refining. She had been stabilizing her cultivation since then. Foundation Establishment was particularly important, so Hyuga Hinata was very cautious. Even when she felt she could break through, she chose to continue solidifying her Foundation and suppressed the urge to advance.
Until today, she felt her cultivation was completely saturated and had no choice but to break through.
Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment are separated by only one realm, but it is a leap in the level of life and the true starting point of the path to immortality.
The Spiritual Energy of the Great Perfection of Qi Refining within her body had been compressed and purified to the extreme, like a dam filled with floodwaters, waiting for the final moment to break through the barrier.
In the Qi Sea of her Dantian, the vortex of Spiritual Energy spun frantically.
But Foundation Establishment was no small matter. Even with the concealment of a Formation, the sudden burst of energy fluctuations was still difficult to isolate completely.
"Boom!!"
An invisible, vast ripple of energy suddenly spread out with Hyuga Hinata's courtyard as the center!
It wasn't the violent nature of Chakra, but a more ancient, purer aura that seemed to originate from the Origin of heaven and earth.
In an instant, the night sky above the courtyard seemed to warp for a moment, and an unusual fluctuation filled the air—one that was refreshing yet inspired awe.
Within the Hyuga Clan Compound, countless clan members who were cultivating or resting suddenly opened their Byakugan and looked toward the depths of the Main House in shock and uncertainty.
Hyuga Hiashi appeared at his study window in an instant, his pure white eyes staring fixedly at the direction of Hyuga Hinata's courtyard. His face was filled with unprecedented shock and gravity.
"This aura... what's going on? Has Hyuga Hinata lost control?"
In the Hokage Office, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was about to rest, suddenly stood up and rushed to the window. His sharp gaze scanned the village, eventually settling on the direction of the Hyuga Clan Compound.
"This energy... it's definitely not Chakra! Could it be Senjutsu? No, it's completely different. Just what is happening?"
In the Root base, Danzo Shimura's single eye flashed with a cold light, and he slammed his cane heavily onto the ground.
"Quickly search the entire Konoha and find the source of this energy."
Danzo Shimura issued the order, and all of Root was mobilized.
The Third Hokage also sent out the Anbu.
Root and Anbu moved quickly through Konoha Village, trying to find the anomaly.
Fortunately, this fluctuation came and went quickly, receding like a tide, as if it were just everyone's illusion.
Inside the courtyard, Hyuga Hinata slowly opened her eyes.
She felt the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Energy within her body, which was more than ten times thicker than during the Qi Refining stage and had undergone a qualitative change. She also felt the incredibly stable Foundation Establishment Dao Base in her Dantian, which was slowly absorbing external Spiritual Energy on its own. Her heart was at peace.
"Phew, I've finally established my Foundation."
She gently exhaled a breath of turbid air; surprisingly, this breath carried a faint fragrance.
"The commotion seems to have been a bit larger than expected. It couldn't be completely hidden. However, it should still be within a controllable range."
She quickly activated the Breath Concealment Technique to perfectly hide her aura. From the outside, she looked no different than usual, though her temperament seemed more reserved and profound.
The Third Hokage and Danzo Shimura, naturally, found nothing.
Seeing that his daughter was fine, Hyuga Hiashi didn't ask anything.
Over these years, Hyuga Hinata had grown a bit taller, and her strength had become even more terrifying.
Hyuga Hiashi would occasionally spar with Hyuga Hinata, and he clearly felt that her strength was greater and her speed was faster.
The pressure during their battles had also increased... Several months later, at the Ninja Academy graduation exam.
The atmosphere in the classroom was tense and expectant.
As a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Hyuga Hinata's mindset was even more transcendent, watching this assessment that decided the fate of many children like an outsider.
"Sakura Haruno, pass!"
"Uchiha Sasuke, pass!"
"Hyuga Hinata, pass!"
Hyuga Hinata casually created a flawless Clone powered by Chakra and passed easily. She noticed that the noisy orange figure was still absent.
[What kind of trouble is that guy Uzumaki Naruto getting into again? I've already helped him avoid quite a few detours.]
[Wait... it couldn't be...]
It wasn't until the assessment was nearing its end that the classroom door was suddenly slammed open.
Uzumaki Naruto clutched his stomach, his face pale and his steps unsteady as he rushed in, carrying a faint scent of expired seasoning packets.
Hyuga Hinata covered her face. As expected.
"Iruka-sensei! Wait for me!"
Uzumaki Naruto wailed, his voice trembling.
"Uzumaki Naruto! What's wrong with you?"
Iruka was both angry and anxious.
"I... I ate discounted, expired cup noodles for three days straight... I've... I've had such bad diarrhea that I'm about to collapse..."
Uzumaki Naruto explained weakly, looking both pitiful and ridiculous.
The classroom suddenly erupted in loud laughter.
"Expired cup noodles? For three days straight?"
"As expected of Uzumaki Naruto!"
"How could he be so careless?"
At Iruka's urging, Uzumaki Naruto endured his discomfort and formed hand seals.
"Cl... Clone Jutsu!"
*Poof.*
A Clone appeared, slumped on the ground and no better than the one from two years ago.
"Fail!" Iruka announced helplessly.
Uzumaki Naruto was instantly petrified. Massive disappointment and grievance almost overwhelmed him, and tears welled up in his eyes.
Hyuga Hinata was speechless. It seemed he still had to take the detours he was meant to take. This Genin exam had a grudge against him; it was his bane.
The graduation ceremony proceeded with Uzumaki Naruto's disappointment serving as the backdrop.
After school, Hyuga Hinata didn't leave immediately. With a slight movement of her Divine Sense, she saw Mizuki "coincidentally" meeting the despondent Uzumaki Naruto not far from the school gate.
[I'm also getting to see the live version.]
Mizuki was telling Uzumaki Naruto that story about "unfair exams" and "graduating by stealing the scroll." The despondent Uzumaki Naruto would definitely give it a try.
Hyuga Hinata had no interest in stealing the scroll of seals. To her, a Cultivator, its reference value was limited, though some things inside were quite broken.
For example, Flying Thunder God and Edo Tensei; those two were broken.
Multiple Shadow Clones was also very broken; in a cultivation novel, it could even serve as a Golden Finger.
The main point was that the progress of the Clones' cultivation would be fed back to the main body after they dissipated.
This was truly insane. Although the fatigue would also be transferred to the main body, compared to the benefits it brought, you just had to make sure you didn't work yourself to death.
Hyuga Hinata decided to follow secretly. She swiped a piece of cloth from someone's house and wrapped herself up completely.
She planned to intercept the scroll of seals halfway and record the broken techniques inside for future use.
Since her Foundation Establishment, Hyuga Hinata found that her memory had improved significantly, to the point where she could achieve Photographic Memory.
When the time comes, wouldn't it be wonderful to just scan through everything?