Hanabi Hyūga

**Hanabi Hyūga** (日向ハナビ, *Hyūga Hanabi*) is a kunoichi from Konohagakure and a member of the Hyūga clan.

## Background

Hanabi is the younger daughter of the Hyūga clan's head, Hiashi Hyūga. In the anime, while always looking up to her older sister Hinata and wanting to spend more time with her, Hinata's duties as the future heiress of their clan made it hard for the two sisters to have any quality time together. Watching Hinata and seeing her as strong yet so kind, Hanabi aspired to be more like Hinata. Later, Hanabi watched her sister's training, only to witness Neji trying to harm her and he was later stopped by Hiashi, who then activated his curse seal. She was soon approached by her grandfather, who explained that the Hyūga clan must go to extremes sometimes to protect their secrets and everyone has a set path in life that they must endure. Hanabi also spied on Hinata as she would often leave home to watch Naruto Uzumaki from afar, making her wonder why Hinata was so fixated on the social outcast.

During sparring sessions between Hanabi and her sister, Hanabi's talent began to shine, amazing everyone by being about on par with her older sister despite their age difference. Later, as Hinata's progress began to be questioned, their grandfather suggested training Hinata to be the heiress, and ultimately, a duel was held between Hanabi and Hinata to decide the future of their clan. While Hanabi found an opening to win the fight, she hesitated to strike down her sister, allowing Hinata to counter-attack and win the duel, much to Hanabi's distaste at hurting her sister.

Ultimately, as Hinata showed more talent and confidence than her younger sister Hanabi, their father decided to make Hinata the heiress to the clan, and focused his grueling training regimen on her instead of her sister, whose training he considered to be a waste of time. As Hinata continued to train under her father, believing the words of her grandfather that all are tied to an unchanging fate, Hinata became determined to prove herself worthy of being the next head of the Hyūga clan.

## Personality

Hanabi's character was not expanded on in the manga very much. In the anime, Hanabi seems to be a quiet, polite and respectful girl, although she seems to open up to people a bit easier than her sister. Unlike how Hinata once was, Hanabi is more confident. In the anime, since a young age, Hanabi adored her elder sister, always wanting to spend time with Hinata and just being close to her. She was also sad when she learned the harsh conditions Hinata had to endure. When Hanabi learned of the harsh nature the Hyūga lived by and that her older sister would be expected to lead her clan, Hanabi gradually became more hardened, similar to Neji's original views in pre-destined fate and its inescapable nature, determined to not let her sister let their clan down as the future leader.

After seeing her sister rise beyond everyone's expectations and grow so strong, Hanabi regained much of her previous joyful demeanour. Also in the anime, she gained great respect for the social outcast, Naruto. This came not only from changing the views of both Neji and Hinata for the better by inspiring them, but also convincing herself of being able to shape her own fate.

She is also supportive of Hinata's feelings for Naruto, as shown two years after the war. Hanabi is also described as a "fashionable young woman and extravagant in her tastes". By adulthood, Hanabi matured considerably, taking her duties as a jōnin sensei and future clan head very seriously. She is noted to be a very strict teacher in the former. She is shown to dote on her niece and nephews Himawari, Haruto, and Boruto, gushing over them when they came to visit the Hyūga estate. At the same time, she encourages them to be independent and only ask for help with their problems only after they tried everything else. Hanabi also takes great pride in her cooking, comically showing annoyance when Boruto stated that her sister was better. Overall, Hanabi still has a strong compassion for Boruto, strongly wanting to see him succeed. To which, she has developed a strong bond with Konohamaru Sarutobi, who also sees Boruto as a younger brother. Hanabi is also a fan of the *Extreme: Shinobi Picture Scrolls* card game, having an extensive collection of her own, and knowing just as much about it as Boruto and his friends.

As the leader of Team 15, Hanabi proves herself being extremely strict and tough on her students, seen when she urged Namida to hone her skills in Water Release, and refused to take easy on the young kunoichi despite Namida's cries for help. Whenever her students disobey her or put themselves in unnecessary risk, Hanabi can become incredibly ruthless and hostile, seen as when she angrily scolded and reprimanded Wasabi and Namida for taking action against a group of missing-nin who were in the Bingo Book. Nevertheless, Hanabi strives to help her students achieve their full potential, and enjoys spending time with them, even when off-duty.