The mutation happened so quickly that Hinata barely had time to react. She only felt a sudden swelling sensation in her eyes, and in the next moment, the other pair of Byakugan before her had shriveled up and completely died.
Standing nearby, Aoba witnessed everything unfold and knew that he had made the right move.
Whether it was the Rinnegan or the Tenseigan, neither could be awakened easily. It might seem like a personal effort, but in reality, there were hidden restrictions that needed to be met.
Without understanding the secrets of the Ōtsutsuki Clan and the Sage of Six Paths, it was nearly impossible to uncover these limitations.
The reason Hinata was targeted by Toneri Ōtsutsuki was because her eyes had this potential. The same applied to Hanabi. Toneri himself likely lacked this potential, which is why he sought to steal Hanabi's eyes.
His ultimate goal was likely to combine his bloodline with Hinata's so that their offspring would, at the genetic level, be closer to Kaguya Ōtsutsuki than ever before.
Once Hinata regained her composure, Aoba conducted a series of examinations on her.
"How do you feel?" he asked.
"I feel… good. Not just normal, but really good. I don't feel any discomfort, on the contrary, I feel incredibly comfortable," Hinata replied.
Aoba nodded. This matched the results of his tests. It seemed that absorbing just one pair of Byakugan wasn't enough to awaken the Tenseigan.
Unlike the Sharingan, the Byakugan's inherent ocular power was relatively weak. When absorbed, it wasn't just the hidden ocular energy that was extracted, the entire Byakugan was drained dry.
Subsequent tests confirmed that Hinata's Byakugan had strengthened significantly, but there was no fundamental transformation.
Based on his memories of the original story and the clues it provided, Aoba had now uncovered the secret of the Byakugan's evolution.
The method was simple, the Byakugan evolved by absorbing other Byakugan. However, not just anyone could do this. Only a very small number of individuals with a pure bloodline had the ability to absorb the eyes of others.
This was likely the origin of the Hyuga clan's branch family system.
The Main Branch consisted of those with the purest bloodline, and their descendants had the highest likelihood of developing evolutionary potential in their Byakugan.
Meanwhile, the Branch Family existed solely to provide their eyes to the Main Branch.
This kind of oppressive system was bound to cause dissatisfaction. It was highly likely that the Hyuga clan had split apart because of this very issue.
And now, Aoba realized a truth that the Hyuga clan itself might not want to know...
The Caged Bird Seal might not serve any special purpose at all.
It was merely a means for the Main Branch to control the Branch Family. Otherwise, how could they ensure that the Branch Family would obediently offer up their Byakugan?
Unfortunately, the Hyuga clan had long forgotten the original reason for the Main and Branch division, as well as the true purpose of the Caged Bird Seal.
Instead, the seal had simply become a tool for maintaining power.
But perhaps it was fortunate that they had forgotten, otherwise, the Hyuga clan might not even exist anymore.
The branch of the Ōtsutsuki Clan that resided on the Moon were descendants of Hamura Ōtsutsuki. They also had a Main and Branch Family system, but in their case, the Branch Family rebelled and wiped out the Main Family.
Toneri was a descendant of the Branch Family, which meant that he himself could not awaken the Tenseigan. That was why he traveled to the ninja world to steal Hanabi's eyes.
This was also likely the origin of the giant Tenseigan on the Moon. That colossal eye must have existed before, but it wasn't originally so massive or powerful.
However, after the Branch Family overthrew the Main Family, they found themselves unable to absorb Byakugan, so instead, they gathered all the Byakugan and offered them to the giant Tenseigan. That was how it grew to its current enormous size.
Toneri's plan to combine his bloodline with Hinata's likely stemmed from this same issue.
As a Branch Family descendant, his bloodline was inferior, meaning he could never awaken the Tenseigan on his own.
Thus, he needed a Main Family descendant, someone with a purer bloodline, to improve his offspring's genetics, giving his future descendants the potential to awaken the Tenseigan naturally.
But now, Toneri had lost his chance.
And not only had he lost his chance, Aoba, having unraveled the secret of the Byakugan, had now set his sights on him.
That massive Tenseigan on the Moon contained an unimaginable amount of ocular power.
If Toneri, after taking Hanabi's eyes, had been able to awaken the Tenseigan, then it was highly likely that the giant Tenseigan played a role in that awakening.
Such a valuable resource, it would be a waste to destroy it.
Toneri's opinions on the matter were irrelevant.
Aoba had already claimed the giant Tenseigan for himself.
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Currently on Chapter 320 - Finding Another Path of Power