When Shinji returned to his residence, he saw Hyuga Ayari lazily lounging on the sofa, a pure white dog nestled in her arms.
She was much older than Shinji, already an adult. Her appearance was seven or eight parts similar to Hyuga Ayano's, but her temperament was more serene.
Shinji walked over, poured himself a glass of water, and then sat down on the other side of the sofa.
"I remember locking the door."
"Am I not welcome?"
Ayari glanced at him with an indifferent expression, one hand continuously stroking the dog's soft fur.
The white dog belonged to Shinji.
Ayari, fond of the animal, often visited his home to play with it.
Before leaving for the battlefield, Shinji had given Hyuga Ayari his house key, originally intending for her to occasionally help clean his room.
In his memories, their relationship was quite close, their residences adjacent. Shinji had once harbored a lot of admiration for this beautiful older woman.
But it could only remain as admiration.
Like her sister, Ayari was already engaged. Her fiancé was Hiashi's younger brother.
It was normal for a young boy to admire an older and exceptional woman.
Perhaps Ayari had long been aware of this, but she didn't take it seriously.
There was a significant age gap between them. In a couple of years, Ayari might have children, while Shinji would still be a clueless child.
"Subi."
Hearing Shinji's call, the dog lying in Ayari's arms immediately got up and ran towards him, affectionately rubbing against his leg. Shinji picked it up with one hand and placed it on his lap.
Seeing the dog being called away, Ayari showed a helpless expression.
She slowly sat up, casually tossing her long hair behind her back. Watching Shinji quietly petting the dog, a complex look appeared in her eyes.
Her young neighbor had suddenly changed after returning from the battlefield.
He felt entirely different from before, becoming silent and withdrawn. He used to run to her place for any and all reasons, sometimes to the point of annoying her.
But after returning, he hadn't proactively sought her out once, hadn't talked much, and hadn't mentioned a word about the battlefield.
She learned from the clan that all of Shinji's teammates had died during a mission, leaving him as the sole survivor, even losing his eyes in the process.
Was it because the blow was too heavy? Ayari felt pity.
War was cruel and unavoidable.
She took the initiative to start a conversation: "Did you meet Lord Minato?"
"Yes."
"How is he?"
"Just like the stories say."
"I heard he's very likely to be the next Hokage."
"I've heard that too."
"... Is Lord Minato easy to get along with?"
"He's quite amiable."
The conversation ended after just a few sentences.
With Namikaze Minato's current skyrocketing fame in Konoha, most people would talk endlessly about his heroic deeds when he was mentioned.
However, Shinji seemed to have no interest in continuing the conversation.
Ayari felt helpless, wondering if she should just leave. At that moment, Shinji suddenly asked, "Does the clan have many Byakugan stored?"
The topic changed so abruptly that Ayari didn't react for a moment: "There are quite a few, I think..."
After careful consideration, she added, "The deceased heads of the main family always leave behind intact Byakugan.
"Some exceptional members of the branch family also have their Byakugan removed by the clan head before their death. These Byakugan are preserved through special methods. After generations of accumulation, the number must be quite significant."
"Where are these eyes kept?" Shinji asked further.
"How would I know? Only Lord Hiashi and the person in charge of managing them would know," Ayari said with a chuckle.
Then she felt it was strange and asked Shinji, "Why are you asking about this?"
Although Byakugan transplants were rare among the Hyuga clan, there had been quite a few cases in the past.
If a clan member's eyes were injured in battle or suffered from some eye disease, the clan would arrange for an eye transplant.
Therefore, there were never any blind people in the Hyuga clan.
However, Shinji's case, where his Byakugan were destroyed due to the activation of the Caged Bird Curse Seal, was the first of its kind.
Shinji said calmly, "Nothing much. It's just that I'll be getting a new eye soon, but I don't know whose eye I'll be using. It feels strange, so I was wondering if I could observe those eyes beforehand."
Ayari found it amusing and said, "What's there to see? They're just human eyeballs, probably quite nasty."
After saying that, she felt it was being inconsiderate.
Considering Shinji's current situation, it was understandable that he would be concerned about such things.
After a moment of contemplation, Ayari said, "This kind of thing probably requires Lord Hiashi's approval."
She thought Shinji was worried about his eyes. Indeed, Shinji was worried, but for entirely different reasons than Ayari imagined.
The Hyuga clan, a prominent family in Konoha, was characterized by their unique Kekkei Genkai, the Byakugan, which was exclusive to them in the entire ninja world.
This was an honor for the Hyuga.
But Shinji wanted to get rid of it.
The reason the Hyuga wanted to give him a new Byakugan was to impose the Caged Bird Curse Seal on him again and shackle him.
Otherwise, why would Hiashi go to great lengths to convene a meeting with the clan elders to discuss a mediocre branch family member with average strength and talent?
How could he avoid all of this...?
Currently, he was utterly incapable of opposing the entire Hyuga clan with his strength alone.
Unfortunately, he didn't have the kind of system found in third-rate novels where sleeping with women made him stronger.
His only advantage was his knowledge of this world and the course of history.
If he couldn't escape this fate, wouldn't he still be controlled by others no matter how strong he became?
"Shinji?"
Shinji looked up, meeting Ayari's gaze. Her clear, white eyes were gentle as water, fixedly gazing at him.
"What are you worried about?" she asked.
What was he worried about? The clan had so many Byakugan; there was bound to be one suitable for him.
Moreover, with the clan paying so much attention to his situation, what was there to worry about? Shouldn't he feel honored?
Ayari couldn't understand. She looked at Shinji's dark eyes. Was it because they didn't belong to him that his gaze felt so unfamiliar...?
Subi, lying on Shinji's lap, looked up at the two of them, then lowered his head again to continue enjoying Shinji's petting.
The room was quiet, the only sound being the ticking of the clock on the wall.
Tick-tock, tick-tock...
Shinji sighed softly, "Sister Ayari."
Ayari was slightly startled.
Since Shinji's return, she hadn't heard him address her this way very often.
"I just... I don't know what the future will be like," Shinji said calmly.
Ayari remained silent.
Looking at the troubled young man, she remained silent for a long time before saying, "Don't worry, there's bound to be a Byakugan compatible with you... If you want to see them, I'll ask Hizashi to put in a good word."
"Thank you, Sister Ayari."
Ayari simply smiled faintly, "Don't think too much about it. Just focus on recovering for now."