Chapter 3: The Life I Have Always Yearned For

After lying down for two hours, Harano finally gave up.

Ha! So what if he didn’t have a legendary martial arts manual or any secret ninja tools? With the memories he possessed and this godlike perspective, couldn’t he activate a few cheats himself?

Thankfully, his well-honed otaku mindset—take life as it comes—had rescued him once again.

He sprang up nimbly, scampered to the large mirror in the corner of his room, and began striking poses.

There was no helping it—the Hyuga clan’s genes were simply outstanding. Gazing at the adorable boy in the mirror with his straight, silky hair, Harano couldn't help but want to pinch his own cheeks.

He was just too cute!

Creak!

While Harano was still admiring himself in the classic Thinker pose, the door to his room was suddenly pulled open.

“Ah! Young Master Harano, you’re finally awake!” came a gentle and delighted female voice.

Harano instantly composed himself, adopting a calm and dignified stance. “Tomoko, as a member of the Hyuga clan, one must remain composed and collected. Don’t be startled so easily.”

He knew that voice all too well—he recognized immediately who had come.

The newcomer was named Hyuga Tomoko, a young maid responsible for taking care of his daily needs.

Tomoko appeared to be a girl of eleven or twelve. She wore a pale blue kimono, her hair tied up in a bun, with a waterfall of black tresses cascading down her back.

Her large, dewy eyes sparkled on her porcelain-like face, adding an extra touch of beauty.

The only flaw was the blue cross-shaped seal and the twin hooked marks on her forehead.

Those marks completely marred the striking beauty of her face.

Tomoko belonged to the branch family of the Hyuga clan. Since entering the ninja academy at six, she had demonstrated remarkable talent, always ranking first in her class.

She even outperformed the Uchiha children of her generation, a testament to her astonishing gifts, no less than the future Neji Hyuga.

Therefore, Harano’s grandfather, the Hyuga clan’s elder, had branded her with the Caged Bird Seal before she even graduated.

After graduation, she was assigned to care for Harano’s daily life.

The elder was thinking ahead, wanting to ensure Harano had a strong retainer after his passing, so that even if Harano never amounted to much, he wouldn’t be bullied.

Of course, the original Harano never understood this. How could a five-year-old boy comprehend such things?

After all, not everyone was a genius like Itachi.

So, half a year ago, when twelve-year-old Tomoko graduated from the academy, unlike her peers who became Genin and joined Jonin-led teams to complete missions, she returned home to care for Harano full time.

Now, standing with his back to Tomoko, reflecting on his current pampered life compared to his past hardships, Harano felt his nose sting and his eyes grow moist.

This was the very life he had dreamed of countless nights in his previous life—a beautiful girl by his side, more money than he could spend, wealth and power. Could life be any more perfect?

“Please don’t be sad, Lord Harano. Although your sudden collapse frightened the elder, you’re awake now. I’ll go inform him at once,” Tomoko said gently, removing her shoes as she walked over. Upon seeing the look on Harano’s face, she hurriedly pulled him before her and softly wiped the moisture from the corner of his eyes.

Harano: Uh…!

Forget it, he thought. There was no point explaining!

“Come on, Tomoko. I want to see Grandpa too.” Grabbing Tomoko’s hand, Harano trotted out the door on his short little legs.

Stepping over the threshold, Harano instinctively sat down on it, lifting his small feet.

Tomoko knelt down tenderly and put on his socks and shoes.

Looking at Tomoko, who, even when crouching, was as tall as he was, Harano decided they would have bone broth for dinner tonight.

His height was a fatal flaw!

He wasn’t even as tall as the girl—how could he possibly show off with her in public like this?

“Let’s go, Lord Harano.” After helping him with his shoes and gently wrapping him in a cream-colored little jacket, Tomoko once again took Harano’s small hand.

As Tomoko helped him dress, Harano’s eyes wandered over the opulent house that was now his home.

For someone who had grown up sleeping in communal dormitories and six-bed rooms in school, and who, after finally earning his own money, could only afford a tiny fifteen-square-meter apartment, this courtyard—over a hundred square meters just for the yard—was a dream mansion.

The courtyard was a classic Japanese garden, reminiscent of the ancient courtyards of old China where Harano had lived in his past life.

Facing the main gate, corridors and rooms stretched out on both sides. A path of blue stone led straight to the innermost bedroom.

Of course, the bedroom was used not only for sleeping; when guests came, they could be entertained on the tatami mats, eating and chatting.

Though, at the moment, Harano had no friends to invite.

It was now March, and the five or six cherry trees in the yard were in full bloom. Each gentle breeze sent showers of pink petals drifting down like rain.

Holding Tomoko’s hand, Harano walked through the petal storms.

Turning slightly, he looked up at the gentle, beautiful girl beside him, as tranquil as cherry blossoms. Yet the mark of the Caged Bird on her forehead seemed impossibly harsh.

“No wonder Neji Hyuga would come to hate the main family so much. Tomoko, too, is a genius; what of her fate?” Harano thought.

“Tomoko, do you resent my grandfather?” Harano suddenly asked.

Tomoko paused; Harano could clearly feel her hand tense.

“Of course not, Lord Harano. The elder is someone everyone respects and loves. How could I possibly resent him?” she said, crouching down to gently pluck a petal from Harano’s head, her lovely face breaking into a broad smile.

In her eyes, Harano saw no hatred at all, only endless gentleness.

“Don’t worry, Tomoko. I’ll help you remove that ugly mark someday,” Harano promised, then strode up the stone steps to the main gate, leading the way.

Hearing his words, Tomoko froze, her eyes full of confusion.

But a moment later, she regained her gentle smile.

She reached up and touched her forehead, her eyes glimmering with a mysterious light—something more than usual, impossible to name.

She shook her head slightly, scattering petals from her hair. Watching the small figure walk out the gate, Tomoko’s lips curved in a faint smile as she rose to follow.

Catching up to that tiny silhouette, she once more took his little hand in hers.

Once outside, they found themselves in a two-meter-wide alley stretching left and right.

Harano knew his grandfather’s home was to the left, while the right led to the family’s administrative quarters.

Since he had fainted in the morning and now it was already late afternoon, he didn’t know whether his grandfather was at home resting or still out handling clan affairs.

So he looked up at Tomoko, eyes blinking expectantly.

“Lord Harano, the elder is still working. Let’s go to him now,” she said with a gentle smile, leading him down the right side of the alley.

After walking about ten minutes, they reached the end of the alley, rounded two corners, and came to a broad street.

On either side stood rows of tall buildings with stone walls, tightly shut iron gates, and windows barred with steel rods.

Harano had been here often and knew that these fortress-like buildings were the Hyuga clan’s warehouses, storing precious supplies—herbs, secret medicines, weapons, and equipment.

His grandfather, the clan elder Hiashi Hyuga, was responsible for managing all the clan’s resources.

Without his grandfather’s signature, not even the clan head could access these goods at will.

Thanks to this responsibility, his grandfather held immense power and status within the clan—a man who could walk with his head held high.

Yet despite his power, the elder was a man of integrity and strict fairness.

A few years ago, when the Second Great Ninja War erupted and casualties mounted, the clan’s forces were severely depleted.

Resolutely, his grandfather sent both Harano’s father and his mother—who had just given birth to Harano—off to war.

As expected, they never returned, and Harano became an orphan in this life as well.

He had no memories of his parents, and his grandfather, burdened with guilt, doted on the young Harano all the more.

Though the elder lost his son and daughter-in-law, he gained the respect and love of the entire clan.

This was why Tomoko bore no grudge against the elder for being branded with the Caged Bird Seal.

While Harano was still pondering what his unknown parents might have been like if they had lived, they reached the end of the street.

There stood a detached house. Its hallway doors stood wide open.

Inside, a dozen people bustled about with documents, moving from window to window for signatures and seals.

Most wore cream-colored jackets and Leaf Village forehead protectors, their Byakugan eyes marking them as Hyuga.

Following Tomoko into the room, Harano nodded greetings to those he passed, all while scanning for his grandfather.

Finally, they reached the back of the room, where a tall desk stood piled with documents. Behind it sat an elderly man.

His long hair was gray and white, his white kimono immaculate. His square face was deeply lined with wrinkles.

Despite his age, his Byakugan eyes shone brightly, exuding the aura of a leader.

Sensing something, the elder looked up. Upon seeing the small figure approaching, the sternness on his face vanished, replaced by a warm and kindly smile.