Byakugan Eyes is a Dojutsu (Eye Technique)—a powerful ninja ability in the Naruto anime world. Regarded as one of the three great dojutsu, the Byakugan eye, which is the “all seeing white eye,” is the dōjutsu kekkei genkai (unique hereditary ability) of the Ōtsutsuki and Hyūga clans. Byakugan eyes is a distinct eye technique in the Naruto Anime, Novel, Manga, and games.
What Is Byakugan?
Byakugan literally means White Eye. It is a distinct eye technique that occurs naturally in the members of the Hyuga clan, and as such only the Naruto characters from the Hyuga house possess it. This is because, unlike the other eye techniques, the Byakugan is available from birth to its users. However, on very rare occasions, it can be activated in one eye by anyone who is a descendant of Hyuga even if they have a diluted bloodline.
The Byakugan eye is enlarged, with white featureless irides and no visible pupils. Once it is activated, there will be an increased blood flow causing the pupils to become better defined. This increase in blood flow will also cause the veins around the temple to become bulgy.
While people from the full Hyuga bloodline have the Byakugan, it is not everyone who can activate it because there is a steep requirement of very grueling and intense training for its activation. For some, intense stress can also automatically activate the Byakugan whether or not the user has figured out how to use it. More importantly, the Byakugan should not be used too often because it wears the user out to the extent that they may not be able to use it until they have rested.
One of the most intriguing aspects of the Byakugan is the fact that it has a 360-degree field of vision and its range will largely rest on the expertise of the user. For example, Neji Hyuga could only see to the range of 50 meters in Part I, but by Part II, he had graduated in expertise and as such, his range improved to 800 meters.
The Byakugan eyes possess several abilities, including using infrared to detect a target through their body heat, determining the development of one’s chakra, including telling if a person can mold chakra at all. For instance, Kaguya’s Byakugan gave her the ability to peek into the minds of her targets to ascertain their sentiments and thoughts and even to search through their memories.
She could do this to such an extent that Hamura tsutsuki could not repel her with his own Byakugan. Also, Kaguya could produce chakra pulses from her Byakugan to subdue her targets. With the Byakugan’s ability to look through the ground, see through walls, into pockets, and through a person’s body, it gives its user the unique advantage of analyzing and estimating the opponent’s abilities and fighting strategy.
Anyone who possesses the Byakugan automatically has a certain sixth sense for knowing what chakra an opponent possesses, can identify a clone from an actual person, and knows when their opponent does genjutsu. Even though it tells them what chakra the opponent possesses, byakugan will not protect from all of the above, it will only make its user’s genjutsu more potent. A clear example of this is when Kaguya tsutsuki subdued entire nations just combining her Byakugan with the Infinite Tsukuyomi. For the likes of Momoshiki, the byakugan goes as far as being able to tell people’s fate.
The various abilities of this eye technique make it highly coveted; thus, the Hyuga clan devised a custom of branding most of its members with cursed seals; so when individuals branded with the cursed seal pass away, their Byakugan is destroyed. This practice was created to prevent the Byakugan from being acquired by foes.
For example, Kumogakure and Danzō Shimura. This does not mean it has never been acquired by an enemy because it has, but in such cases, it will have deficiencies as we saw in the case of Ao of Kirigakure.
Byakugan Blind Spot
Byakugan is a great enhancer but this does not mean it does not have faults because it has a blindspot that has become its greatest weakness. It is hard to understand how this blindspot came about since it has a 360-degree range and can see in all directions. The blindspot is located at the rear end of the peripheral vision just behind the nape of the neck above the thoracic vertebrae. This blindspot was clearly displayed at the time when Neji fought a sound Ninja 4 trying to get to Sasuke.
Does Boruto Have Byakugan Eyes?
Arguments have differed regarding the state of Borutu’s eyes and whether or not he has Byakugan eyes. In truth, Boruto cannot be counted among the characters who possess the Byakugan, but then this just raises the question of why his eyes are the way they are. The answer to that is very simple, Boruto’s Dojutsu is unique called Jougan aka the pure eye, it is unique to him alone and makes his eye look like byakugan.
In truth, it was not only the fans of the series who assumed that Boriuto has byakugan, even Boruto himself thought that was the case since he is the son of Naruto and Hinata which gave him a diluted Hyuga bloodline because his mother is a descendant of the Hyuga clan and possesses a Byakugan. That was far from the case.
Characters With Byakugan
The Byakugan eyes belong to members of the Hyugan clan, each with varying strength in wielding the Byakugan. Here are some of the Naruto Characters of the Hyuga clan and their Byakugan eyes.
Himawari Byakugan
Himawari is the younger brother of Boruto which would make him Hinata and Naruto Uzumaki’s second child. Himawari inherited the Byakugan eyes as a result of her mother Hinata being a hyuga descendant. At the age of three, after witnessing Boruto rip her favorite toy to pieces, Himawari unconsciously awoke the Byakugan out of rage. Her grandfather, Hiashi, openly praised her for awakening it at such an early age in the anime.
When the byakugan is activated, her eyes which are usually blue will turn white and featureless like the Byakugan is known for. Despite having no prior training before awakening it, she adapted quickly to its abilities and employed them effectively even though the blind spot still affected her.
Hinata Byakugan
Hinata was an heiress of the Hyuga clan, daughter of Hiashi Hyuga, and a kunoichi of Konohagakure. However, the clan decided she was not fit to lead the clan and demoted her. She eventually married Naruto to become a part of the Uzumaki clan. Being a full-blooded Hyuga Hinata was born with the byakugan and all the power it holds. The blind spot also applies to her. She frequently helps others track and scout the area for their target(s).
When she is focused, she can see up to 20 kilometers and has an assault pinpoint accuracy which she shares with others to enhance their own among the many other things she can do.
Neji Byakugan
Neji was a shinobi of Konohagakure’s Hyuga clan, the son of Hizashi. He possesses the Byakugan eyes as a Hyuga. Though it was a typical dojutsu in his clan, Neji’s was regarded as being particularly potent. With these eyes, he has nearly 360° of a penetrative field of vision. Over time, he could extend the range of his Byakugan, whereas, in Part I, he could only see objects from a distance of 50 meters. In Part II, he could see things from a distance of at least 800 meters.
Hamura Byakugan
Hamura is Princess Kaguya’s child and one of the first two people to be born with the capacity to use chakra. Hamura is the ancestor of the Hyuga clan and the founder of the Shinobi of the Moon. His Byakugan sight can extend its range in one direction to at least 20 kilometers and can recognize chakra by the exact people it comes from, recognize when genjutsu is being utilized, and tell some sorts of clones apart from the genuine thing. His capacity to perceive chakra more clearly than the Sharingan is debatably his byakugan’s strongest trait.
Is the Byakugan stronger than the Sharingan?
The debate about Byakugan and Sharingan is as old as the show itself and even though the proponents of Byakugan make a good case, there is no denying the fact that the Sharingan has some definite advantages. In Kakashi’s words, the Byakugan is superior to the Sharingan because it has a better “penetrating perceptive ability.” However, because it cannot hypnotize human targets or copy techniques that it sees, it sometimes may appear that the Byakugan’s abilities are inferior to those of the Sharingan. In the end, the strength of each one depends on the expertise of the user.
Major Difference:
- Sharingan enables one to see Chakra and grants enhanced perception. The Eye of Hypnotism lets the user use Visual Genjutsu.
- Byakugan has a 360-degree diameter field of vision, the ability to see kilometers wide, follow high-speed movements, see chakra and the chakra system, and can widen the range of genjutsu.
Byakugan Vs Sharingan Vs Rinnegan Compared
Hagoromo Otsukiki also called the “Sage of Six Paths,” is the source of the Byakugan, Sharingan, and Rinnegan, all of which are dojutsu. Even though they are all regarded as bloodline traits (Kekki Genkai), they each have unique skills and attributes. The decision of which Dojutsu is superior is more often than not subjective owing to sentiments, although the Rinnegan is widely regarded as the strongest of the three. However, below is an analysis of the three great Dojutsu:
Byakugan
- Byakugan is a pure white eye
The Byakugan eyes have several skills, including 360-degree vision save for a blind spot, the ability to use infrared to detect targets by their body heat, and the ability to gauge one’s chakra growth, including the ability to determine whether a person can even mold chakra.
Sharingan
- Sharingan is red with three black tomoe marks.
Any magical, illusory, or martial art that is seen can be predicted, memorized, and copied by the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan. It does not appear at birth automatically; instead, it only shows up when the person carrying it experiences intense emotional stress.
Rinnegan
- Rinnegan typically has a white eye with numerous coiling rings in it.
The Rinnegan grants its owner access to all variations of the chakra’s properties as well as the ability to employ six different types of power, each linked to one of the six Buddhist worlds; the puppeteer technique, a particular variation of the recall technique, mind-reading, the ability to absorb any magical technique, the power to raise the dead, and the control of gravitational fields.
Therefore, The Rinnegan Dojutsu gives its user the largest number of abilities and enhances the individual’s powers to a higher level. Sharingan and Byakugan eyes don’t compare well to the Rinnegan, although they can come very close when wielded by a skilled user.
Is there a Golden Byakugan?
There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding whether or not there is a golden Byakugan and what it can or cannot do. However, there is a popular belief among fans of the show that the reference to the Golden Byakugan is just a reference to the upgraded version of the original Byakugan. This began with Urashiki and Momoshiki whose Byakugans were golden and could do more than anticipated.
About how their golden Byakugan came about, Momoshiki’s Byakugan eyes turned golden after he absorbed Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki’s power and Urashiki’s Byakugan became golden after he consumed the chakra he collected with his eyes. However, the creators of the Anime haven’t created an actual Golden Byakugan.
