Chapter 6: Izayoi's Pn

  "Izayoi-kun, that's great! We succeeded!"

  Leaving the cn grounds together with Izayoi, Hinata could no longer contain her excitement, her voice trembling slightly.

  "Calm down. Be careful your father didn't send guards to secretly follow us and overhear you," Izayoi reminded her with a smile.

  Hearing this, Hinata quickly covered her small mouth and peeked around stealthily, looking utterly adorable.

  "Let's go, I'll take you somewhere."

  Izayoi wasn't certain if guards were secretly following or not. He didn't dispel his Transformation Technique yet, instead leading Hinata away from the central streets and towards a training ground in the wilderness.

  "Shadow Clone Technique!"

  After entering the forest, Izayoi created a Shadow Clone, which then vanished using the Body Flicker Technique.

  A short while ter, Izayoi dispelled the Transformation Technique.

  Seeing this, Hinata looked delighted. "Izayoi-kun, does that mean no one is following us?"

  "Mm, it's confirmed. No one's following us." Izayoi nodded and grinned. "Later, I'll teach you a skill. Practice it at home, and if your father sees it, he probably won't stop you from going out anymore."

  Hearing this, the joy on Hinata's face deepened.

  Transforming into Ino Yamanaka to invite Hinata out – this was Izayoi's pn. If he had gone himself, it would have been impossible for Hinata to come out. At best, it would have been a wasted trip. At worst, Neji Hyūga might have been ordered to find and warn him, or he might have been moved to a different seat in css, or even transferred to another css altogether.

  A child might not understand why. But Izayoi knew clearly these were the methods adults used. In this world with Daimyo and nobles, css divisions were even more pronounced than in his previous life. Hinata was the young dy of a prestigious ninja cn, while Izayoi was merely a commoner orphan without even a surname. A vast chasm separated them.

  If Izayoi were a girl, there might have been some hope of becoming friends with Hinata. But he was male. To prevent Hinata from falling for him, and also to prevent the Kekkei Genkai from being leaked, neither Hiashi Hyūga nor the Main Family elders would allow Izayoi and Hinata to become too close.

  Unless... Izayoi's value was extremely high. If he were a commoner genius worth recruiting, he might qualify to marry into the Hyūga family. If he were like Naruto Uzumaki, a Hero of Konoha, a Savior of the Shinobi World, only then could he possibly marry the Main Family's eldest daughter.

  Until he proved his worth, Izayoi could only resort to small tricks.

  Ino Yamanaka was the young dy of the Yamanaka cn, one of the new generation's Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Even if her strength was cking, her future prospects, utilizing her cn's secret techniques, positioned her to become a major figure in the Intelligence Department, someone holding real power. The Ino-Shika-Cho were also steadfast allies. Among the Konoha 9, if anyone was qualified to be Hinata's friend, it was undoubtedly Ino Yamanaka.

  Only by transforming into Ino could he successfully invite Hinata out, with a high probability of not being followed by guards.

  If it weren't for the worry that as his strength continuously increased, the gap between him and Hinata would widen, making it progressively harder to obtain her Red trait, Izayoi genuinely wouldn't want to take such risks. Once the first major exam arrived and he earned the title of top student ("chief student"), he would have a bit more standing.

  However, compared to Naruto's and Sasuke's Red traits, Izayoi was more eager to obtain Hinata's. As long as he awakened the Tenseigan, he would have nothing to fear. Therefore, he didn't want to miss the opportunity this vacation presented.

  Arriving at the deserted training ground, Izayoi looked at Hinata and asked, "Hinata, have you learned the Three Basic Academy Techniques yet?"

  "Not yet," Hinata shook her head. "Father wants me to focus on practicing the Gentle Fist. I can only practice other ninjutsu in my spare time after the school teaches them."

  "In that case, I won't teach you the Three Basic Techniques either." Izayoi smiled. "I'll teach you a skill that can improve your chakra control. Whether it's for practicing your cn's Gentle Fist or learning the Shadow Clone Technique, it will allow you to get twice the result with half the effort."

  Hinata's beautiful eyes widened in astonishment. "Izayoi-kun, y-you're going to teach me the Shadow Clone Technique?"

  "That's right." Izayoi nodded. "In the future, my main body will rarely go to school. You can come find me here anytime, or practice the Shadow Clone Technique. Like me, you can secretly send a clone to css while your main body comes here to train with me."

  Hearing this, Hinata was clearly tempted. Ever since learning Izayoi attended school via Shadow Clone, Hinata had wanted to learn the technique herself. Not for any other reason than simply not wanting to be left too far behind by Izayoi. But just as she had said, Hiashi Hyūga only wanted her to focus on Gentle Fist, wouldn't teach her anything else, and didn't allow her to learn other things. Forget the Shadow Clone Technique; Hinata didn't even know the Three Basic Academy Techniques.

  Now, hearing that Izayoi wanted to teach her the Shadow Clone Technique, meaning she could secretly come here every day to train with him – enjoying both friendship and the freedom she craved – Hinata was naturally incredibly moved.

  Seeing her expression, Izayoi knew her thoughts.

  "Follow me, I'll teach you how to improve your chakra control." Izayoi smiled at Hinata, then walked over to a massive tree that would take several people to encircle.

  He formed the Ram hand seal with both hands and said to Hinata, "Through the hand seal, focus chakra at the soles of your feet, then overcome your fear, like this..."

  Under Hinata's wide-eyed, astonished gaze, Izayoi lifted his right foot and pced it on the tree trunk. As soon as his right foot nded, he lifted his left foot onto the trunk as well. With both feet off the ground, his body stood horizontally straight in front of Hinata.

  Then, step by step, as if walking on ft ground, Izayoi walked from the base of the tree to its very top. Turning to face Hinata below, Izayoi's body formed a right angle against the tree trunk. He smiled, "Walking up trees using your feet – this is the skill I'm teaching you."

  "S-so amazing!" Hinata stared, dumbfounded, at Izayoi defying gravity.

  Walking back down the tree, Izayoi smiled, "Tree walking is just the first stage. There's also the more difficult water walking."

  "As long as you master these two skills, whether it's the Three Basic Techniques, the Shadow Clone Technique, or even the Body Flicker Technique, none of them will pose any difficulty for you."

  "C-can I really learn it?" Hinata cked confidence.

  "Don't underestimate yourself. You're the young dy of the Hyūga Cn." Izayoi patted Hinata's shoulder encouragingly. "Go on, try it. Don't be afraid of falling; I'll catch you."

  He added pyfully, sounding like he was teasing, "But if you get left too far behind, I won't wait for you, you know."

  This st sentence, however, solidified Hinata's resolve. She nodded firmly, "Mm!"

  She had already disappointed her father; she absolutely couldn't disappoint Izayoi now, nor did she want to lose her only friend.

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