Chapter 11: The Gap Between the Academically Talented and the Geniuses - The White Eyed Princess of Konoha

## Chapter 11: The Gap Between the Academically Talented and the Geniuses **Stared!** **Secret Observation!** This afternoon's lesson was Taijutsu, meaning school ended earlier than usual. Hinata, not keen on heading home early, had both her and Neji's pocket money with her. It would be quite disrespectful to keep the delicacies of Konoha waiting for too long. She hadn't gotten far from the school gate when Hinata sensed someone tailing her. "Could someone be after the Byakugan?" Byakugan! Hinata's heart fluttered with worry as she swiftly activated her Byakugan to survey her surroundings. The Uchiha clan's Sharingan requires a stimulus to be activated, with each evolution representing a painful experience. In contrast, the Hyuga family's Byakugan is much easier to activate. As long as there's sufficient chakra and knowledge of how to open it, the Byakugan naturally activates. "......" Aside from Hyuga Tokuma hidden nearby, those trailing her were none other than those two brats, Naruto and Sasuke. Following me? Hinata shivered slightly. "Could they have some inappropriate thoughts about me?" She dismissed the thought, assuming she was overthinking it; after all, those two boys weren't even in puberty yet, lacking the capability for such things. Casually deactivating her Byakugan, Hinata decided to ignore these two prodigies, especially with Hyuga Tokuma providing protection. The logic of like repels like didn’t apply to Naruto and Sasuke. From a reincarnated souls' perspective, these two could be described as being locked in a love-hate relationship spanning a thousand years. Once she reached the food street, Hinata's arms quickly filled with a heap of snacks. Even though she had the soul of an adult, it was worth pondering whether the soul controlled the body or if the body’s physiological responses dictated the soul's actions. Ever since she was reincarnated as a child, especially a girl, Hinata noticed her behavior increasingly resembled that of a kid. Sitting atop the Hokage Rock, Hinata gazed over the entire village of Konoha. With a dango in one hand and red bean soup in the other, she felt utterly content. Not far from Hinata, Sasuke hid behind a tree, secretly observing her. Of course, Sasuke wasn't motivated by lust, plotting anything nefarious against Hinata. Such thoughts were far from his nature. Sasuke simply wanted to see how Hinata trained on a regular basis. Burdened with deep-seated vengeance, what Sasuke yearned for most was power. As for why Naruto was there, he had actually been trailing Sasuke. Hinata was practically the first friend Naruto had made at the ninja academy, yet somehow, the person he was most concerned about was Sasuke. Even though Naruto and Sasuke had barely exchanged words, Naruto found Sasuke's arrogance hard to swallow and often provoked Sasuke, using it as a way to draw attention from others. But some unseen force seemed to pull them together, laying the foundation for the bond between Naruto and Sasuke, a bond forged almost subconsciously. "Did she really come here just to snack?" Sasuke couldn’t comprehend Hinata's behavior at all. In ninja school, Hinata would either daydream in class or secretly snack with Chōji. Sometimes, she’d lay her head on her desk to sleep or read a novel. Even during outdoor classes, Hinata rarely focused on training. Take shuriken practice, for instance. While others practiced by repeatedly throwing the weapon at a target and retrieving it, Hinata would just toss the teacher’s shuriken at a target and disappear. You might find her napping under the shade of a tree. Yet, despite her lack of earnest studying, Hinata always ranked first in class exams, leaving Sasuke perpetually in second place. Sasuke couldn’t surpass Hinata in any subject; at best, he could tie if he scored perfectly. In Taijutsu class, if Hinata took their sparring a bit seriously, Sasuke would barely manage to withstand a few of her moves. After finishing two skewers of dango, Hinata wedged the sticks between her fingers. With a slight flick of her wrist, the sticks shot through the air, embedding themselves in the tree Sasuke and Naruto were hiding behind. "You've followed me all this way. Might as well come out!" Had anyone else been tailing her, Hinata might have acted like she hadn’t noticed. But Sasuke and Naruto were saviors—the future leaders of the ninja world. One couldn't be too careful with such important figures. With their cover blown by Hinata, Naruto and Sasuke stepped out from hiding. Without sparing Naruto a glance, Sasuke demanded, "Do you ever train?" Oh! Hearing this, Hinata became intrigued. Sasuke was clearly irked! "Let me explain to you the difference between a prodigy and an overachiever," Hinata thought. Nodding earnestly, she replied, "Yes, training is tiring. I only train about two hours a day at most." "......" Sasuke and Naruto were speechless. Setting aside their narrative advantages, both Sasuke and Naruto actually trained diligently—albeit not to Lee’s self-torturous extent—but each session left them battered and bruised. In the original story, Naruto faced genuine life-threatening risks while training with the Rasenshuriken. Naturally, Sasuke believed Hinata to be lying and expressed his dissatisfaction, "How could you possibly be that powerful?" Hinata took a bite of her dango, gazing innocently at Sasuke, and chuckled, "Maybe because I have exceptionally good talent!" Hinata did aspire to grow strong. According to the timeline, in about ten years, Uchiha Obito would declare war during the Five Kage Summit, instigating the Fourth Great Ninja War. But training was so strenuous. If Hinata were a hard-working person, she wouldn’t have been labeled a 'poor student' in her past life. Upon graduating, the previous Hinata even earned the nickname of a 'couch potato,' rivaling the Akimichi clan in size. Initially, Hinata was eager about the magical ninjutsu after her traversal. But over time… well, it just wasn’t as fascinating; nothing extraordinary. Moreover, Hinata's innate talent was unparalleled in the history of the ninja world. Just by casually training, her power would rapidly grow. At seven, Hinata possessed the strength of a Chunin, albeit with insufficient chakra and a lack of combat experience, leaving her unprepared for life-or-death battles. Observing Sasuke’s dismay, he quietly questioned whether effort paled in comparison to natural genius. Uchiha Itachi had always been the pinnacle of genius in Sasuke's mind. Yet now, unable to best Hinata, how could he possibly seek revenge against Uchiha Itachi? Seeing Sasuke's despondence, Naruto couldn't stand it and shouted, "I'll definitely defeat you both!" "Mm! Do your best!" Hinata responded with a sweet smile. Naruto blushed furiously, body stiffening with embarrassment. Such an innocent child. Reluctant to be too hard on Sasuke, Hinata added, "Alright! Don’t follow me around anymore. You could spend this time better by training. Your talent is quite good; the gap compared to mine just happens to be significant." In the storyline of "Naruto," since the beginning of the "Shippuden" series, Sasuke developed a somewhat misplaced belief of being 'invincible,' fearlessly challenging anyone. Had it not been for continuous protection from those around him, by the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War, Sasuke's grave might have grown over with grass.