Early morning in the Hyuga Compound.
Saiguu stood in the center of the training grounds, arms crossed, a distinct scowl on her face as the clan elders surrounded her like a flock of judgmental pigeons. It was barely 6 AM, and they had dragged her out of bed for yet another round of unsolicited lectures.
They weren't outright angry with her. Oh no, they were too dignified for that. But the passive-aggressive aura practically leaked from their pores.
"As a young genius of the Hyuga Clan," one elder began, his tone steeped in condescension, "you should not be associating with that Evil Uchiha and those… commoners."
His pale eyes narrowed, deep wrinkles folding in disapproval as he looked down at her like she was some wayward child.
Saiguu resisted the urge to roll her eyes into another dimension.
Here we go again.
Their words entered her left ear and exited cleanly out the right. She was so done with this sermon. It was practically on repeat at this point.
Let them whine. They wouldn't dare put the Caged Bird Seal on her. She was too valuable, a rising prodigy of the main family. Branding her would be a public reputation disaster, and the Hyuga prized their reputation almost as much as their precious Byakugan.
And if they do?
She smirked internally.
Her good friend, Kadoya Sen- I mean Uchiha, was learning Fūinjutsu directly from Lady Mito herself. One word from her, and he'd find a way to bust the seal wide open. Probably make a flashy scene out of it, too.
So what if the elders beat her around a little? That was nothing new. She could handle bruises. Bruises healed. But bending to their will? Never.
Another elder sighed dramatically, clearly frustrated that she wasn't groveling or reciting the clan doctrine with tears in her eyes. Her indifference was like a kunai to their pride.
To them, she was a tragedy. A wasted talent.
A genius led astray by the "Evil Uchiha."
Damn you, Evil Uchiha, one of them probably cursed silently.
Saiguu just yawned, clearly unimpressed.
...
"Achoo!"
Kadoya sneezed out of nowhere, blinking in mild confusion. Across the table, Natsumi raised an eyebrow mid-bite.
"Kadoya, did you catch a cold?" she asked, concern slipping into her tone.
Kadoya frowned, rubbing his nose. "Me? Catch a cold?" He scoffed.
He is a water specialist and a walking flame.
How could he catch a cold?
He leaned back in his chair with a smirk. "Nah, someone's probably badmouthing me. Must be some old geezer cursing me for punching his precious grandkids."
Natsumi exhaled a long, resigned sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Great," she muttered. "When did my little brother turn into a little devil?"
...
Back at the Hyuga Compound, the elder who had been cursing Kadoya just moments earlier suddenly sneezed.
"Did I just catch a cold…?" he muttered, confused, before deciding to shuffle back inside in case his old bones really were starting to fail him.
Meanwhile, in the training grounds, chaos had already unfolded.
A dozen young Hyuga children, ages ranging from eight to eleven, lay sprawled across the ground, groaning and thoroughly defeated. Standing in the center, completely untouched and unbothered, was none other than Saiguu Hyuga.
Earlier, the elders had tried to lecture her, again.
"You shouldn't associate with the Evil Uchiha or those… commoners," one elder had said, wrinkled face practically sagging with judgment.
Saiguu had barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes into the back of her skull.
Then she'd smiled, that kind of smile.
"Oh? Then tell me, is there even a single Hyuga my age or in the academy who can keep up with me in training?"
The elders had exchanged smug glances. Genius or not, she was still just one girl. Surely a group of hand-picked young Hyuga could humble her.
And so, they threw the kids at her.
And she flattened every last one of them, without breaking a sweat.
Honestly, this didn't even count as a warm-up compared to sparring with Kadoya.
"Pathetic!" she declared, dusting off her sleeves. "Not even half as good as Kadoya."
She narrowed her gaze back at the elders, who now looked far less smug and far more uncomfortable.
They were still scowling, but she could practically smell the regret in the air.
"Lady Saiguu, I will be your opponent this time."
A new voice rang out across the training ground, and Saiguu's expression immediately darkened like a thundercloud rolling in.
Stepping forward was a member of the branch family, clad in a Chunin vest.
Are they serious…? she thought, her brow twitching. They're actually sending a Chunin to fight an Academy student now?
"Yeah right," she scoffed aloud. "Do you take me for a fool?"
Her gaze swept over the elders before falling on the poor Chunin, who already looked like he regretted being born that morning.
"Sending a Chunin to fight an Academy student? Honestly, you're starting to act more shameless than Kadoya," she added, voice dripping with disdain.
The Chunin flinched slightly at the comparison, and a few elders stiffened in indignation.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go. They wanted to humiliate Kadoya by proving he was a bad influence, for someone beneath a proud Hyuga genius like Saiguu. They expected her to drift toward a "proper" clan member.
Instead, she had effortlessly defeated a dozen of their brightest children and was now openly mocking their authority.
And this poor soul was their last-ditch effort. A pawn sacrificed to save face.
But he knew the truth, whether he won or lost, he'd lose. If he beat her, he'd be a thug bullying a student. If he lost? He'd become a joke that would echo through the clan for years.
"I'm not interested," Saiguu said flatly, turning her back on him. "I'm not even a genin yet, and you seriously expect me to fight a Chunin?"
She paused, just long enough for her words to sting.
"If you're all trying to prove a point, at least try not to look desperate. It's pathetic. You're making the Hyuga name sound like an insult."
With that, she walked away, unbothered, unafraid, and completely done with their games.
The elders seethed in silence, but their hands were tied. They couldn't punish her openly. She was a main house prodigy, and marking her with the Caged Bird Seal now would only reveal their pettiness to the entire village.
Damn that Evil Uchiha… one of them thought bitterly.
"Dad, please do something!" Hiroto cried out, scrambling to his feet and rushing over to his father in a panic as Saiguu walked off without sparing him a glance.
The elder Hyuga glared down at him, clearly unimpressed.
"Do something? What the hell do you expect me to do, brat!?" he snapped, eyes narrowing. "If you spent less time whining and more time training, this wouldn't have happened in the first place!"
Hiroto flinched at the harsh words, but his father wasn't done. Though he was furious yesterday when Hiroto came home half-naked and humiliated, the truth behind the incident had left him even more bitter.
It wasn't even Saiguu who had done the damage.
It was Kadoya Uchiha.
A single boy, from the Uchiha clan, had turned his son into a joke, and all over a girl.
The situation was ridiculous. Yes, it involved the future of the Hyuga clan and possibly their ties with the Uchiha, but at the end of the day… they were just kids. If adults got too involved now, it would only worsen the divide between the younger and older generations, and risk long-term consequences.
"Let it go," an elder muttered under his breath, turning away.
But Hiroto refused to give up.
Seeing his father wasn't going to help, he made one last, desperate move.
"Saiguu-chan!" he called out, running after her like a lost puppy. "Please! Just give me a chance! I can prove myself- I really love you!"
Saiguu stopped mid-step, shoulders stiff. Her patience was already worn thin, and now this?
"…Then what do you love about me?" she asked dryly, glancing back with a look that could cut stone.
Hiroto blinked, caught off guard, but then, with a proud smile, he puffed out his chest and answered confidently:
"I love your black hair! It's long, sleek, and beautiful! You're like an elegant princess-!"
He never got to finish.
Saiguu pulled out a kunai and, without a word, sliced off her long black hair, letting it fall to the ground like dead leaves in autumn.
"…There. Now leave me alone," she said coldly, turning away once again.
"W-Wha…!? Why!? Why won't you just give me a chance!?" Hiroto yelled after her, still desperate, clinging to whatever pride he had left.
Saiguu didn't even turn this time.
"Beat Kadoya Senju. Then we'll talk."
And with that, she left the Hyuga Compound, hair shorter, patience gone, and annoyed.
...
Walking into class, Saiguu barely took three steps before the entire room quieted down.
All eyes were on her.
Her normally long, elegant black hair, gone. Replaced by a short, choppy cut that framed her face with an unapologetic sharpness.
Most students just stared, too afraid or too awkward to say anything.
Only her friends dared to approach.
"Saiguu… your hair…" Kushina said carefully, eyes wide in shock.
"I cut it," Saiguu replied, voice calm and unreadable.
"Yo-!"
Kadoya stepped up with a wave, only for Saiguu to spin around and clock him in the face.
With a dramatic poof, his body exploded into a flock of white doves that fluttered across the classroom.
Everyone stared.
Saiguu blinked.
"…Okay, so he is real."
"Did Kadoya do something to piss you off again?" Minato asked, blinking as the real Kadoya emerged from behind him, rubbing the back of his neck with a sigh.
"No. I thought someone was impersonating him with the Transformation Jutsu." Saiguu said flatly. "Wouldn't be the first time."
Some students once tried to pretend to be Kadoya Uchiha by using the Transformation Jutsu to bully others before they got discovered by the real Kadoya and his friends, and those students got sent to the hospital.
"Honestly, same," Minato muttered, nodding along. "It's the safest assumption these days."
Kushina: Nods in agreement.
Kadoya: "…"
For a moment, he genuinely considered going home and climbing back into bed.
He came early today, on purpose, to make things right.
Now he was wondering why he even bothered.
Trying to shake it off, he cleared his throat. "So… about yesterday…"
"If it's about Hiroto, don't worry about it," Saiguu said before he could finish. "I asked you to help. You did."
Kadoya paused, slightly caught off guard by how calmly she said that. Then, from his pocket, he pulled out a small blue ribbon.
"Well… still felt like I should apologize. So, I got you something."
He held it out to her: a neatly folded Ribbon of Friendship.
Saiguu blinked, surprised for a second. Her gaze softened, and the corner of her lips curved ever so slightly.
She took it gently, her fingers brushing against his.
"Thanks," she said quietly. "I really appreciate the effort."
Kadoya smiled, just a bit.
Say what you want about him being shameless or thick-skinned, he always knew how to treat his friends right.
...
At that very moment, somewhere in a casino within the Land of Fire…
A man dressed in a sharp black-and-gold kimono sat at a gambling table, surrounded by stacks of chips and an aura of effortless confidence.
With slicked-back blond hair and red-lensed contacts, he looked every bit like a young aristocrat, almost like a golden king in disguise.
This was Kadoya's clone, operating under a new alias: Kadoya Tsukasa.
He had been winning nonstop, every game, every hand, every spin, like fate itself was dealing him a royal flush. The casino staff were sweating, and other gamblers were either in awe or clinging to superstition.
Then, he spotted her.
Tsunade.
The infamous gambler. Legendary kunoichi. His teacher.
Kadoya Tsukasa's smile curled when he saw her confidently stride up to his table, pockets likely lighter than ever.
Normally, they'd avoid each other. She'd lose her funds, come to him for more, curse her luck, and storm off.
But this time… she didn't recognize him.
She only saw a smug pretty boy in golden threads.
"I'm back!" Tsunade declared, slamming her palm on the table. "And today, I'm feeling lucky! I'm betting high!"
Kadoya Tsukasa calmly set his chips.
"Then I'll bet low."
The result? Low wins.
Tsunade: "Tch. Whatever. High!"
Kadoya: "Low."
Tch-low wins.
"High!"
"Low."
"High."
"Low."
"High!"
"Low."
High. Low. High. Low.
Ten rounds in a row. Ten crushing losses for Tsunade.
By now, a small crowd had gathered, whispering, staring, and losing their collective minds.
Everyone: "…"
It was like watching a comedy skit on repeat, except it was real. Somehow, Tsunade had bet high ten times in a row and lost every single one.
Talk about Senju luck.
Even the dealer didn't know whether to feel bad or just be impressed.
Kadoya Tsukasa leaned back in his chair, sipping his tea, utterly composed.
"Maybe Lady Luck just doesn't like you," he said smoothly, voice light and teasing.
Tsunade's eyebrow twitched.
Her instincts were screaming at her that this man was definitely mocking her.
But she couldn't quite place why he felt familiar.