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[Goal 2: Reach 118/150 Collections to receive additional chapter]
[Goal 3: Leave a Review 2/15 to receive additional chapter]
Dear 118 collections, the unspoken warriors, Thank you for being a part of the journey.
[Let's make it 150 Collections, we are so close, come on bois]
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moshi moshi
Neji nodded. "Hinata's birthday."
"And?"
"I'll be branded."
Hizashi's hands tightened around his robe sleeves. "I want to stop it. But I can't. I'm sorry."
Neji looked at him. "It's okay I have a plan."
There was no arrogance in his voice. Only certainty.
And for the first time, Hizashi didn't correct him.
Later that night, when Neji lay in bed, he activated his Byakugan once more—just to see the ceiling through layers of wooden grain and beams. Then he focused harder, deeper, calling to that other eye hidden within the bloodline.
For a second, the world pulsed.
A flash of blue.
Faint shapes—the Caged Bird Seal etched like an energy code across his father's forehead, pulsing in silent rhythm. He focused… tried to trace it.
His eyes ached. The vision faltered. The blue dimmed.
He collapsed into sleep.
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A pale dusk had begun to settle over the Hyuga compound. Shadows stretched across the clean stone paths, and the wind carried a strange stillness with it. Inside the modest branch house of Hizashi Hyuga, an unexpected knock shattered the silence. A young Hyuga clan member stood at the door, straight-backed and cold-eyed.
"The clan head has called for your presence. And Neji's."
Hizashi paused for a moment, his eyes sharp. His breath hitched, only for a heartbeat, before he masked it with calm composure.
"We will be on our way," he said smoothly.
The Hyuga messenger nodded. "Very well. I shall take my leave."
As the door shut, Hizashi turned to his son. Neji stood there, small and still, his five-year-old frame unmoved by the message. His face held the same expression it had when he was told he would be tested in chakra molding—serene, unreadable.
"It's time, isn't it?" Neji asked softly.
Hizashi's chest tightened. There was something in his son's voice that felt too old for his age. But he only nodded.
At the Main Family compound, tension brewed like an unsaid truth. Hiashi Hyuga stood at the center of the training grounds, arms crossed, his voice biting through the courtyard.
"Hinata, activate your Byakugan."
The little girl, still trembling from the last exchange, stepped forward. "Y-Yes, Father... Byakugan!" she called, barely above a whisper. The veins around her eyes pulsed.
Hiashi's cold gaze narrowed. "Attack. Faster. Again. Fiercer!"
Hinata stepped in with all the hesitation of a deer on ice, her movements wide, defenseless. Every punch she threw lacked conviction, but she kept trying, fueled by the fear of failure more than any desire to win.
"You are too slow. Your strikes are soft. You disgrace the Hyuga name," Hiashi spat.
Hinata winced and bowed. "Y-Yes, Father. I'll try harder."
Meanwhile, Neji and Hizashi arrived at the scene. They stood quietly, letting the harsh training session continue. Hizashi's face was unreadable. Neji, however, was already reading the emotional winds with his dormant True Eyes—catching the subtle changes in Hiashi's tone, the underlying satisfaction when Hinata obeyed, and the cold disappointment when she faltered.
Finally, Hiashi ended the session with a sharp clap of his hands.
Turning toward the new arrivals, he offered a smile too polished to be sincere.
"Ah, Hizashi. Neji. Good of you to come."
Hiashi's gaze turned to the boy, and his smile deepened. "Neji, how are you doing, my boy?"
In that moment, Neji saw something his father could not: an undercurrent of calculation. Hiashi's chakra flow shimmered slightly—his intention cloaked in the subtle deceit that would go unnoticed by anyone without True Eyes.
Neji responded like the perfect child. He bowed slightly. "I am doing well, Hiashi-sama."
Hizashi raised an eyebrow, briefly surprised by his son's tone and behavior, but remained silent.
Hiashi's chest swelled slightly. The child was respectful. Unspoiled by rebellion or resentment. Perfect.
"Good. Good. Then let me introduce you to someone important."
He gestured to the girl beside him, who peeked shyly from behind her sleeve.
"This is my daughter. Hinata Hyuga."
Hinata stumbled into a small bow. "He-Hello... I am Hi-Hinata Hyuga."
Neji's heart ached unexpectedly. There was fear in her voice, the same kind he'd seen in the eyes of servants in the compound—constant, weary fear.
He smiled, soft and warm. "Hello, Hinata-sama. I am Neji Hyuga."
Hinata blinked up at him. The kindness in his eyes... it was different. No weight. No demand. No shame. Just a child being kind to another child. Something she had almost forgotten could exist.
"Neji-san..." she whispered.
Hiashi's pride rose. He had expected awkwardness, maybe a little jealousy. Instead, Neji's deference only fueled his plan to mold the boy into the perfect protector.
"Excellent. Neji, you and Hinata shall spar."
Hiashi's voice was sweet, casual. But Neji's mind caught the tactical undertone. This wasn't a playful match—it was an assessment, a cloaked examination.
Hiashi turned to act as referee. "Ready... go!"
Hinata activated her Byakugan again, her face already paler than usual. Neji mirrored her, and as his veins bulged, he internally lowered his chakra circulation. He would not show his full strength. Not today.
The two charged. Hinata's movements were hesitant but focused. Neji deliberately stumbled in his counter. He struck too wide, defended too slow. His chest heaved with false exhaustion.
Hinata hesitated. Her palm hovered, her breathing quickened. She didn't want to hurt him.
"Keep going," Hiashi barked. "Don't stop."
Hinata flinched. "Y-Yes, Father."
A strike to his side sent him to the ground. He gasped, then lay still.
"I... I'm sorry, Neji-san," Hinata whispered.
Neji pushed himself up, brushing tears from his eyes—tears summoned with precise emotional recall, not pain. "It's okay, Hinata-sama. You're strong."
Hiashi observed from the sidelines, intrigued. Hinata had managed to dominate. Maybe his pressure was working. Maybe Neji wasn't as dangerous as feared. He glanced at Hizashi, whose face was rigid with concern. Hizashi activated his Byakugan. His eyes widened. Something wasn't right.
Instantly in response, Hiashi's chakra flared and Hiashi's hands flashed into a Ram seal. Chakra surged.
A bolt of searing pain struck Hizashi's forehead.
The Caged Bird Seal pulsed.
Hizashi collapsed to one knee, a grunt of pain escaping his lips.
"Hizashi," Hiashi said coldly, "You activated your Byakugan aggressively during a spar between children. That is treason. You will be confined for two days."
Neji didn't move, but used his True Eyes to scan both his father and his uncle—memorising chakra fluctuations, emotional patterns, the secret micro-expressions betraying intent when the seal was activated. He burned the moment into his memory.
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Sayonara