Naruto: Can the Byakugan evolve? Its relationship with the Tenseigan, explained

Modified Jan 04, 2024 09:11 GMT

Naruto and the evolution of the Byakugan (Image via Studio Pierrot).

While Naruto is a largely successful series, there is no denying that there are concepts that could have used more development, with the Hyuga clan and the entire Byakugan dojutsu being a prime example of this. A lot of fans have felt that the Hyuga and the Byakugan fell behind the likes of the Sharingan and the Rinnegan, which is a valid criticism in terms of how it was used in the original series.

However, there is a question among Naruto fans who are not up to date with Boruto or haven't seen or read the sequel altogether: Can the Byakugan evolve? It is a logical question considering how the series continues to progress in terms of power scaling and how some elements of the franchise's lore have been expanded upon.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the Naruto series.

Byakugan can evolve in the Naruto franchise

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The Byakugan is an ability in Naruto that belongs to the Hyuga clan and they can have a wider range of view with this dojutsu, thus becoming much more capable fighters. However, while this ability was initially introduced in the series as superior to the Uchiha clan's Sharingan, the latter went on to possess different abilities and skills while the Byakugan was left behind in the story.

Also Check:- 10 Sharingan users in Naruto ranked from most powerful to least

The Byakugan does have an evolution but it is only attainable by the moon clan of the Otsutsuki, so people of the Hyuga family, such as Hinata and Neji, wouldn't have been capable of achieving it. It is known as the Tenseigan and is fairly similar to the Rinnegan in terms of the abilities that it has, although it is fair to say that the former is more powerful than the latter.

The movie Naruto the Last explored and introduced this concept and showed that a much more powerful version of the Tenseigan could be achieved if members of the Otsutsuki could combine it with the chakra of a Hyuga.

This resulted in the Chakra Mode that the antagonist of the film used, with some variations being introduced throughout the Boruto series.

Why the Hyuga clan was sidelined in Naruto

The Hyuga clan being sidelined in Naruto is perhaps one of the biggest complaints fans have about the original series and it makes sense. They were heralded as a clan that was on the same level as the Uchiha but the story proved that not to be the case, with the likes of Sasuke, Itachi, Obito, and Madara far surpassing any Hyuga in the history of the series.

Furthermore, beyond power scaling, the two most prominent Hyuga members of the series, Hinata and Neji, were woefully wasted throughout the vast majority of the original story.

Hinata had a lot of room to grow from her early days as a shy girl without a fighting spirit but the story never gave her room to grow and improve beyond a couple of filler episodes and scenes in the anime, courtesy of Studio Pierrot.

Neji is perhaps the biggest offender of being a wasted character in the series since he had such a strong start in the Chunin Exam, with a lot of people seeing him as a promising ninja at the same level as Sasuke and Gaara.

He was also a strong foil for Naruto earlier in the story and Neji's backstory about the branches of the Hyuga family was quite compelling, adding another strong element to his character redemption, only to be underutilized in Shippuden and having an underwhelming death in the Fourth Great Ninja War.

Final thoughts

Simply put, the Byakugan can evolve when it comes to the members of the Otsutsuki clan but people like Hinata or Neji can't go beyond the classic version. When it comes to the moon people, that improved version is known as the Teinseigan.

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