Let's discuss that after this whole arc finishes
No, this isn't really up for debate. Ao's Byakugan not being his trump card is bad writing since it causes all the previous build up to fall flat.
Let's see all the build up we have:
Bolt's Byakugan blood is mentioned, showing it will be significant to his future. The portrayal of Bolt being able to move in freezed time while Sasuke can only look also gives the reader the impression that Bolt's eye is, potentially, greater than Sasuke's. This makes the readers anticipate future developments in regards to Bolt's bloodline and lineage. Even more so when the Ootsutsuki are presented as the ultimate enemies here.
The anime builds on these by introducing the Jougan, clearly and blatantly connected to the Byakugan both in their naming schemes, general appearance, abilities, and even hinted at a connection by characters like Hanabi, Hinata, and Bolt himself. It mentions things such as prophecies, and the power of the Jogan being the key to Earth's safety.
At this point, most readers who aren't salty Uchiha faps have generally accepted that Bolt's Hyuga blood is a major factor in his powers and future. And if one's common sense isn't enough, Momoshiki even hammers it in that Bolt's eyes and Byakugan alien blood are key to his growth.
Then Ao is brought back from the dead. Characters being shown to still be alive is not uncommon in stories, but when you consider all the facets of Ao's character and the circumstances in which he died, him being brought back makes no sense. He was a comedy character with only two defining traits, his fear of Mei and his Byakugan who should have died in what is more or less a nuclear bomb explosion. Yet here he is for some reason working for a group tied to the Byakugan aliens. Then we even have Konohmaru calling him the Byakugan Assassin, a clear indication that even before the war, the Byakugan was a major factor in his combat abilities. Why give him this epithet if it's not going to go anywhere?
So if his Byakugan is not a major factor to his character? Like I said, bad writing.
Whether intentional or not, this is the set up Kodachi gave us as an expectation, both from a meta POV when observing Ao as a character and from an in-universe POV when observing the character connections.
