11 The Degree of Hyuga Clan's Power

Then, after Hikari mentioned that he would take some time to decide which of the three paths to focus on more in the future, Takumi's demeanor shifted to a more serious tone. 

He began to share with Hikari several important facts about the Byakugan that Hikari hadn't known or was only vaguely aware of, both from his past life's knowledge and his current life's experiences.

Takumi explained that there was a strict rule against activating the Byakugan within Konoha village itself, except within the confines of the Hyuga compound.

This rule was established by mutual agreement during the founding of Konoha. The concern was that the Hyuga clan, being located close to important buildings like the Hokage's office and other clan compounds, could inadvertently uncover sensitive information or violate the privacy of villagers, including potentially observing individuals beneath their clothes.

Such surveillance was deemed unacceptable by the rest of the village, leading to the prohibition of Byakugan use outside the Hyuga compound without explicit permission from Konoha's authorities, except under special circumstances such as a village-wide emergency. Violating this agreement would lead to severe consequences.

Furthermore, Takumi revealed that around the Hyuga clan's extensive compound, a powerful spiritual barrier had been erected, supplemented with special minerals. This barrier was under the direct supervision of Konoha's Barrier Team, ensuring that members of the Hyuga clan could not use their Byakugan to peer outside of Konoha from within their compound. 

Not just surrounding the compound, but also within it, many similar barriers have been erected, like around the Fifth Elder's residence. This barrier served to prevent any other members of the Hyuga clan from peering inside, ensuring a layer of privacy and security.

Hikari also learned that the much-discussed, so-called 'blind spot' in the 360-degree vision of the Byakugan was not as significant a weakness as he had thought. Interestingly, this limitation was predominantly applicable to members of the Side Branch of the Hyuga clan.

And nowadays it is often employed tactically by the Side Branch members on the battlefield, serving more as a means to mislead opponents into underestimating the Byakugan user.

This strategic use of the blind spot could be leveraged to bait enemies in the direction that was already predicted, drawing them into a false sense of security before springing a trap. 

As Hikari's curiosity grew, he began to ask Takumi a series of questions, to which Takumi was willing to provide detailed answers, helping Hikari clear up many important doubts.

Given that Hikari hadn't been able to directly engage with all the relevant materials Takumi had previously provided him before, as he could with a living expert of the highest order within the Hyuga clan, he was eager to acquire a more comprehensive understanding now.

Through their conversation, Hikari came to realize a significant misconception from his previous life: the notion that the Hyuga clan was 'foolish' for not utilizing ninjutsu, genjutsu, and other techniques was entirely unfounded.

Contrary to this belief, the Hyuga did not solely rely on the Gentle Fist technique, it was just the basis of their overall skillset, but many individual members were also proficient in ninjutsu, genjutsu, medical jutsu, and even fuinjutsu (sealing techniques).

In fact, a significant portion of Konoha's most skilled medical experts were Hyuga clan members. Their Byakugan and proficiency in the Gentle Fist made them exceptionally talented in medical fields for several reasons.

Firstly, the Hyuga's ability to see the chakra pathways and points within the body with their Byakugan provided them with unique insights into the human anatomy, allowing for more precise and effective medical treatment. This internal vision enabled them to diagnose conditions and injuries with a level of detail that was unmatched by other medical ninja.

Secondly, their mastery of the Gentle Fist allowed them to manipulate the body's chakra system directly. Some Hyuga medics could use this knowledge to stimulate the healing process, even in the heat of battle, by enhancing chakra and blood flow within their own bodies or their patients'.

This capability to kickstart the body's natural healing mechanisms and improve overall vitality made the Hyuga invaluable on the battlefield and in medical facilities alike.

This, coupled with their roles in reconnaissance and intelligence gathering, arguably positioned the Hyuga clan as even more valuable for Konoha overall than the Uchiha clan who were more frontal fighters, which also increased the varying toward them in the eyes of the rest of the village.

The Byakugan's ability to see vast distances and through obstacles made Hyuga members key assets in surveillance and information collection, contributing significantly to the village's strategic capabilities.

This understanding underscored why the Hyuga clan held a position in Konoha comparable to that of the Uchiha clan. Unlike the Uchihas, who were more overt and, at times, perceived as arrogant about their prowess, the Hyugas preferred to maintain a low profile, quietly consolidating their strength.

They didn't boast about their capabilities; instead, they were the backbone of the village's support and auxiliary functions. This approach not only secured them wealth and power on par with the Uchiha clan but also earned them a more favorable reputation for their versatility and reliability within the village.

Regarding interrogating prisoners or gathering intelligence from enemies, similar to how the Uchiha clan might use their Sharingan, the Hyuga clan could achieve comparable results.

Their advanced observational skills, enhanced by the Byakugan, allow them to notice the smallest changes in a person's body and mental state by observing their chakra flow.

This ability to see subtle shifts gives them an edge in extracting information or understanding an enemy's intentions, making the Hyuga's techniques just as effective for intelligence gathering as those of the Uchiha.

The misconceptions of netizens from his previous life got even more amusing to Hikari, especially after learning that the Hyuga clan was also exceptionally skilled even in genjutsu itself, not on the level of the Uchica clan, by they were way ahead of nearly everyone else.

In fact, the clan boasted numerous genjutsu experts, with some clansmen specializing in this area alone achieving the level of Elite Jonin just through that.

The Fifth Elder, Takumi, who stood before him, served as a prime example. In his past life, Hikari might have doubted such a claim, but after checking it multiple times, he became convinced. This elder, along with his entire Fifth Lineage, excelled in genjutsu, making it their main area of higher-level expertise after mastering the Gentle Fist taijutsu techniques too.

The unique abilities of the Byakugan, such as clairvoyance, long-distance vision, and 360-degree perception, naturally complemented the use of genjutsu. 

These capabilities allowed Hyuga shinobi to cast illusions on their opponents suddenly and from great distances, and positions from which they didn't expect it, while also leveraging their insight into the opponent's chakra flow.

Additionally, their adeptness in manipulating Yin chakra within an opponent's chakra system could enhance the effectiveness and duration of their illusions, making them more potent and difficult to counter.

Indeed, Hikari realized that the Hyuga clan had developed numerous unique, strong genjutsu techniques over the hundreds of years, designed to leverage the unique capabilities of their Byakugan and to integrate seamlessly with the foundational Gentle Fist main techniques.

This realization led him to hypothesize that the reason many of these advanced techniques were not mentioned in the original stories was due to their being closely guarded secrets of the Main Branch.

He believed that these techniques were learned only by Takumi, the clan leader, the other Elders, and their lineages. This meant that the most powerful moves of the Hyuga clan were hidden from the Side Branch members who often fought in battles.

These Side Branch members might know basic ways to channel a little of their Yin genjutsu chakra in their Gentle Fist attacks if they were exceptionally lucky or talented to learn that on their own, but they didn't have access to the more advanced techniques. And this is not only the case with genjutsu techniques, but many other techniques as well.

Furthermore, Hikari also knew that the Hyuga clan wasn't just good at using genjutsu; they were also really hard to trick with it. Thanks to their Byakugan, they could see when someone was about to use genjutsu on them by noticing changes in that person's chakra.

Plus, Hyuga clan members who were good at controlling their chakra could break free from genjutsu, on their own, easily.

And not only that, Hikari also confirmed that some Jonin and Elite Jonin of the Hyuga clan could use their Byakugan to see weak points in an enemy's ninjutsu attacks.

So, besides being skilled at using and defending against genjutsu, the Hyuga clan also had an edge in dealing with various ninjutsu like Shadow Clones and others, including various chakra nature transformation ninjutsu techniques.

Their ability to observe chakra made it easy for them to spot the difference between a clone and a real person.

With this insight, they could either easily break through these attacks or counter them effectively using their Gentle Fist technique.

Splitting, deflecting, and outright destroying elemental ninjutsu attacks also wasn't impossible for them.

Takumi brought up these points as he began to shift the conversation towards finally starting to teach Hikari more about the Gentle Fist next.