[On the other hand, the rigid Main House/Branch House system has also restricted the growth of the Hyūga clan, leaving the entire clan lifeless. The Main House enjoys abundant resources but shoulders fewer responsibilities, while the Branch House does all the hard and dirty work yet is oppressed by the Main House.]
[If it weren't for the Caged Bird curse mark, given the contradictions between the Main House and Branch House, the Hyūga clan would likely have already perished from internal strife.]
Within the Hyūga clan, it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone seemed to have been frozen by the press of a pause button.
Even the cicadas in the trees wisely stopped their chirping. Only the fallen leaves in the courtyard continued to drift in the wind.
The Sky Screen had laid bare the contradictions between the Hyūga Main House and Branch House for the entire Shinobi World to see.
"Heh… The Sky Screen is wrong about this…" an elderly Main House elder said dryly, his voice tinged with embarrassment. At the same time, his eyes darted around, seemingly observing the expressions of the Branch House members, trying to catch any trace of discontent.
The Branch House members watching the Sky Screen, having grown up in a long-suppressed environment, had long developed a masterful ability to keep their expressions neutral. Their faces were blank. If it weren't for the Caged Bird curse marks etched on their foreheads, one might think the Sky Screen wasn't talking about them at all.
Some of them even voluntarily refuted the Sky Screen.
"The Sky Screen is talking nonsense, right? What dissatisfaction could we in the Branch House possibly have?"
"Exactly, exactly! The Main House has been good to us!"
"The Caged Bird is meant to protect the Byakugan. We all understand that!"
Voices rose and fell, sounding as if they were genuinely defending the clan system.
But what they truly felt inside—there was no way to know.
After all, the Branch House was such a large group. How could their thoughts possibly be unanimous?
Some recognized the protective function of the Caged Bird. The Hyūga were an ancient clan spanning a thousand years; even for the Branch House, their standard of living was definitely among the best in the Shinobi World.
Birth, aging, illness, and death were all covered by the clan. When they went out on missions, others still held them in high regard. And after all, they were still part of the same clan—there was a baseline; abuse had its limits.
Moreover, even if they left the clan, would they be free from oppression elsewhere? Life would probably be much harder. They had seen how wandering shinobis lived.
For this group, the Caged Bird, while uncomfortable, was still bearable. Like wearing a pair of ill-fitting shoes: they chafed with every step, but it was still better than walking barefoot on gravel.
But for another portion of the Branch House, it was a different story.
For them, freedom was more precious than anything else.
The feeling of having life and death controlled by someone else's hands was utterly unbearable!
Every night before going to sleep, they had to think long and hard: Did I do anything wrong today? Did I displease the Main House? Did I… bring death upon myself?
Living like that—even one day was too many.
And it was one thing that they themselves were in the Branch House, but under this system, their children and grandchildren would also be in the Branch House, forever with no chance to rise above.
This group made up a larger portion, but they rarely showed it. They only silently buried all their emotions deep in their hearts.
Of course, there were also a very few Branch House members who truly embraced this system. They felt that as long as they pleased and served the Main House well, they could also place themselves above other Branch House members.
[The basis for distinguishing between the Main House and Branch House depends entirely on birth order. Twin brothers: the one born a minute earlier becomes Main House, while the one born later becomes Branch House, with no hope of ever changing that status in the future.]
[With the vast majority of the clan—the Branch House—locked out of any path for advancement, their motivation to strive is insufficient, leading to a lack of talent within the clan. Compared to the Uchiha, another Dojutsu clan that has produced a continuous line of Kage-level powerhouses, the upper limit of the Hyūga clan is essentially capped at Elite Jōnin. It's truly a pity.]
Hiashi furrowed his brow slightly. Was this referring to him and Hizashi?
The two of them were born only minutes apart, yet their fates were worlds apart. He was a Main House member, the Clan Head, enjoying all the glory and resources. While Hizashi was a Branch House member, forever destined to stand behind him.
To be honest, as a beneficiary of the system, he had previously quite enjoyed the Main House/Branch House structure.
After all, who didn't like the taste of power?
But Hizashi's death had pained him for a long time. Whenever he thought of the look in Hizashi's eyes before he died, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep. It had also made him begin to question the rationality of the Hyūga clan's thousand-year-old Main House/Branch House system.
More importantly, Hiashi turned to look at Hinata and Hanabi beside him. His expression growing increasingly grim.
Both of his daughters were still young. No matter which one became Main House and which became Branch House, he couldn't bring himself to accept either of them being branded with the Caged Bird and relegated to the Branch House.
The very thought of it cut his heart like a knife.
Both were his flesh and blood. How could he choose?
He couldn't. And now, Hiashi just wanted to know… was this system truly right?
[Of course, when it comes to the implementation of the Main House/Branch House system, the Hyūga clan also has a flexible baseline.]
Hmm?
Every single member of the Hyūga clan immediately looked up.
A flexible baseline? What did that mean?
Judging by the tone, there were actually exceptions to the Main House/Branch House system. Hizashi, Neji, and others held their breath, preparing to carefully record this "exception" they had dreamed of.
Unfortunately, they were soon disappointed.
[For example, take the family of the Seventh Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto. Three out of the four people in that family have Byakugan, and they are all well past the age of three. Yet no one went to brand them with the Caged Bird. In particular, Hyūga Hinata was excluded early on from being a Main House heir, yet no one dared to strip her of that status until the very end—let alone brand her with the Caged Bird.]
On the Sky Screen, an image slowly appeared: a family photo of four people.
Uzumaki Naruto, with short hair and dressed in casual clothes, had a sunny smile on his face.
Hyūga Hinata, with long black hair and a gentle, tender appearance, leaned against Naruto, her eyes full of happiness.
Then there were also two children. One, Uzumaki Boruto, who had inherited Naruto's blonde hair and wore a mischievous smile—the kind that made you want to ruffle his hair. The other, Uzumaki Himawari, who had inherited dark hair and a sweet, lovely smile, with a hint of Hinata in her features.
Sure enough, of the four, Hinata and Himawari had the most obvious Byakugan, their pure white eyes strikingly prominent in the image.
As for Boruto's left eye… it didn't seem to be a Byakugan at all?
---
[Future Timeline]
"Dad, Dad! Look, it's us!"
Himawari's young voice rang out. She pushed off from Naruto, landing on the ground, and pointed at the image on the Sky Screen in surprise.
Caught off guard, even Naruto couldn't help but wince and rub his stomach.
And the moment this photo appeared, it instantly sent shockwaves through countless timelines of the Shinobi World.
*****
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