"Visual deception."
But this led back to a dead end.
The Byakugan possesses 360-degree X-ray vision and long-range sight, capable of discerning even the most minute Chakra flow within the human body. How could it possibly be deceived?
"Genjutsu, without direct physical contact, can invade an opponent's mind through the resonance and connection of Yin Release Chakra."
Though the Shadow Clone complained of fatigue, its mind was still racing, trying to find inspiration from other techniques.
"According to Minato, Sealing Techniques and Cursed Seals both require a medium to activate."
"Some involve direct body contact, like the Four Symbols Seal."
"While others, like the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Chains, use physical chains formed from Chakra to transmit and suppress."
"The medium for the Caged Bird Seal is already etched onto the foreheads of the branch family members."
"The key lies in the 'key'."
Aokawa, the main body, stood up and paced back and forth in the narrow Barracks.
"The cursed Seal that activates the Caged Bird Seal, which is the 'key', is held by the main family."
"Assuming the Caged Bird Seal is activated by transmitting signals through Chakra, just like Genjutsu and other Sealing Techniques."
"If you are from the main family, how do you prevent the branch family's Byakugan from seeing this transmitted Chakra?"
This was the core contradiction.
Since it's a signal, it must have a carrier.
If there's a carrier, the Byakugan can see it.
If it can see it, it can defend against it.
This was a paradox.
The two scratched their heads, and the Shadow Clone said in a somewhat resigned tone, "Just use a type of Chakra that even the Byakugan can't see."
"There's no such thing in this world."
The main body directly refuted, "Chakra is Chakra. Even if its nature or frequency is different, it's still Chakra."
"Even the Tailed Beast's Chakra can be seen clearly by the Byakugan."
"Even my spirit particles, when gathered to a certain extent, can be observed by the Byakugan."
The Shadow Clone tossed its pen, leaned back, and the chair let out a tortured squeal.
"What if it's a higher-dimensional power?"
"For example, Uchiha Madara's legendary 'Limbo', which exists in another spatial dimension, cannot be seen by the current Hyuga Byakugan."
"That's one line of thought." The main body frowned in contemplation, then shook its head. "But since any main family member, even a useless one, can activate the Caged Bird Seal just by learning that Seal."
"This indicates that the activation threshold is extremely low, and it's definitely not some higher-dimensional attack."
"If those bloated pigs in the main family could master spatial dimension power, they wouldn't be in their current sorry state."
The discussion once again reached an impasse.
A deathly silence fell over the Barracks.
After a long time, the two still hadn't found a solution.
The Shadow Clone collapsed weakly onto the bed, looking half-dead, as if it had just endured a three-day and three-night battle.
"I'm so tired, really."
"Thinking is more tiring than fighting the Eight-Tails."
"A large number of brain cells have died, and my Chakra is almost depleted."
The Shadow Clone yawned, its form beginning to become somewhat ethereal and unstable.
"Once I dispel, all this fatigue will return to you. You can think about it slowly yourself; I'm going to return to the embrace of nature."
The main body glanced at it and said coldly, "Don't think about being lazy. Once you dispel, I'll just summon you again."
"You must solve this problem for me."
The Shadow Clone rolled over, turning its back to the main body, its voice full of unyielding defiance.
"That won't be me anymore."
"That will be a brand new me, one who hasn't suffered this kind of mental torment."
"I am like a meteor, brief and beautiful, burning out and gone."
"Stop being so moody."
The main body walked over and kicked the bed leg, "Hurry up and use your brain."
"Think from another perspective."
"If you were the ancestor who created the Caged Bird Seal, and you needed to control a group of people who also possessed X-ray eyes, what would you do?"
"If you were from the main family, how would you make the Byakugan unable to see specific Chakra?"
Annoyed by the kick, the Shadow Clone abruptly sat up, its hair disheveled.
"If I were from the main family, I'd just blind all the branch family's eyes!"
"Then they wouldn't see any damned Chakra, and what control? Just raise them as Blind Monks!"
"What are you thinking?" The main body was speechless. "What good would a blind branch family be? The Hyuga Clan relies on those eyes."
"How would they go to the Battlefield if they were blind? How would they carry out missions? Raise a bunch of freeloading blind people?"
The Shadow Clone stared blankly at the ceiling, muttering nonsense.
"Then make them both blind and not blind."
"That is, Schrödinger's blindness."
"Not blind normally, but blind at crucial moments."
"How could you even do that...?" The main body was about to retort to this illogical nonsense, but his voice suddenly stopped.
He froze in place.
It was as if something had exploded in his mind.
A flash of lightning pierced through the thick fog of his thoughts.
The Shadow Clone also seemed to sense the main body's thought fluctuations and sprang up from the bed, sitting upright.
The two stared at each other, eyes wide.
The fatigue in their eyes vanished, replaced by a nearly frantic excitement.
"Blind when the Caged Bird Seal activates, not blind when it doesn't," the Shadow Clone said rapidly.
"No!" The main body immediately corrected, his voice trembling slightly. "Blind only to the Chakra that activates the Caged Bird Seal, not to other Chakra!"
"The structure of the human eye is far more complex than we imagine."
Aokawa, the main body, took out a fresh piece of white paper and quickly sketched an anatomical diagram of an eyeball.
"On the retina, there are Rod Cells responsible for sensing light and dark, and Cone Cells responsible for sensing color."
The tip of his pen pressed firmly on the back of the eyeball.
"And the reason why the Uchiha Clan and the Hyuga Clan can see Chakra."
"It's because we have an extra type of cell compared to ordinary people, which we can call 'Chakra Cone Cells'."
The Shadow Clone rubbed its temples, forcing itself to keep up with the main body's train of thought: "So if the cells that perceive a specific frequency of Chakra are destroyed or shielded..."
"Then the Byakugan would become 'colorblind' to that frequency of Chakra?"
"Exactly." The main body's gaze was burning. "As long as it cannot be observed, it cannot be defended against."
"But the sensory cells on the surface of the eyeball are too fragile, and their number is vast, like the sands of the Ganges."
"It's unrealistic to precisely destroy tens of millions of specific cells without damaging vision."
Aokawa shook his head, drawing a thick line along the back of the eyeball with his pen.
"If it were me, I'd have a more thorough method."
"Directly sever the optic nerve responsible for transmitting that specific frequency signal."
The Shadow Clone leaned in for a look, then pouted.
"That's also difficult."
"The optic nerve is the brain's most intricate transmission line, with thousands of nerve bundles intertwined."
"One set of optic nerves often connects to several, or even more, different frequencies of Chakra Cone Cells."
"It's like a tangled mess of wires."
"If you cut one, it might interrupt the visual signals for the entire area."
"Then, let alone not seeing specific Chakra, they might not even be able to see people clearly."
"No, you don't need to cut them all."
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