Hyuga Asana had just absorbed a massive amount of information, and her head felt a bit dizzy.
But as a researcher, she wasn't one to be overwhelmed by mere knowledge. After a short pause, she said, "Yuan, I've understood most of it now—let's get back to talking about the Byakugan.
After one evolution, the Caged Bird Seal's effect on me has noticeably weakened. I now have the same 360-degree vision as the main branch, and the seal can no longer kill me instantly.
So if my Byakugan continues evolving, I should be able to break free from the Caged Bird Seal completely.
So, Yuan—do you know how my Byakugan can continue to evolve?"
Uchiha Yuan recalled that in the original story, Ōtsutsuki Toneri awakened the Tenseigan by using Hyuga Hanabi's Byakugan along with the chakra of the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon.
He organized his thoughts and replied, "I have a lead. The Byakugan of the Hyuga comes from the lineage of the Sage of Six Paths' brother. Your bloodline split in two when Ōtsutsuki Hamura went to the moon—those who stayed became the Hyuga, those who went became the Ōtsutsuki on the moon.
Logically, your two clans have complementary bloodlines and chakra. So to evolve your Byakugan, you may need their chakra or lineage."
"So we need to figure out how to get to the moon, right?" Asana asked.
Yuan nodded.
"I see... then I guess my eyes won't be evolving anytime soon."
"Don't be so pessimistic. There's a passage between Earth and the moon. The Ōtsutsuki on the moon travel back and forth using it. If we find it—or just wait for them to come—we'll have our chance."
Asana's eyes lit up. Having a passage made things much easier, and waiting in ambush was also an option.
After parting with her, Yuan returned to the Uchiha clan.
As the saying goes: "A new official sets three fires." After taking command of the Third Division, Uchiha Yuan enacted several reforms that most Uchiha considered radical—this was his three fires.
Conveniently, the Police Department's reform overlapped with the Fourth Hokage's election, and the village was too distracted to interfere.
Now, the Third Division had a completely new attitude.
Uchiha members were getting along very well with members from other clans.
Under Yuan's strict orders, the division's law enforcement had become much more civil.
As a result, even the general public's impression of the Uchiha had improved.
But this also meant the Third Division was now extremely busy—especially with civilian ninja actively applying to join.
They lacked manpower, and expansion was necessary—but not just anyone could join the Police Force. A thorough selection process was needed.
Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze, the new Hokage, was also lighting his three fires.
During the one-month transition period, Minato had taken over part of the ANBU from the Third Hokage. This portion wasn't loyal to any faction—they served only the village.
After retirement, the Third Hokage took three-quarters of ANBU—including the ANBU captain—with him. Only the purely village-loyal ANBU remained.
These loyal members now accounted for only a quarter of the original ANBU. It was clearly insufficient.
Minato's first major move as Hokage was to address this shortfall.
First, he needed to choose a new ANBU captain.
ANBU was the most secretive and powerful arm of the Hokage. This role must be given to someone completely trustworthy.
Minato didn't have many options. After careful thought, he decided Kakashi would be his top candidate.
This decision was based on three reasons:
Kakashi was his disciple. Since graduating from the academy at five, Kakashi had followed him closely—completely trustworthy.
Kakashi's talent and strength. Though not yet 14, he had the power of an elite jōnin. With some time in ANBU, he would gain the experience needed for leadership.
After the tragedies with Obito and Rin, Minato wanted Kakashi close by—under his protection. If anything happened to Kakashi, Minato would regret it for life.
The only problem now was that Kakashi's Sharingan had just evolved—he needed time to adjust before officially joining ANBU.
As for the rest of the vacant ANBU positions, Minato planned to recruit mainly from civilian ninjas, with a few from the Hyuga and Uchiha as well.
Minato didn't fully trust the Hyuga clan. They had supported him largely because of Hyuga Asana, a branch member whose rise threatened the main family.
If Orochimaru had become Hokage—as Asana's teacher—the Hyuga main family would've been in serious trouble.
Another reason was that during the Third Hokage's long tenure, he had always supported the Sarutobi clan, making them too powerful.
The continuous growth of the Sarutobi clan has put some pressure on the Hyuga and Uchiha clan.
Now that Hiruzen had retired, the Sarutobi clan had lost their greatest backing. Their growth would naturally slow down.
Without the threat of the Sarutobi clan, Minato believed the Hyuga and Uchiha would not help him as the Hokage with all their strength.
That said, the Uchiha were more trustworthy. Their status in the village was awkward—they desperately wanted to improve their position.
In this way, they and Minato shared a common goal—a natural alliance.
Also, due to subconscious impressions from the Roran memory, Minato instinctively felt that Uchiha Yuan could be trusted.
He wanted to get closer to the Uchiha.
However, most Uchiha clan members still didn't care for him as Hokage. The only ones he could interact with were Yuan and Uchiha Fugaku.
Of course, recruiting ANBU wasn't something that could be done overnight. Once he finalized the recruitment strategy, Minato turned his attention to another matter.
That was to unite the Uchiha, Hyuga, Ino-Shika-Cho, and other major Konoha clans to reduce the influence and control held by the two elder advisors and Danzo Shimura.
(To Be Continued...)