Hyuga Hizashi was in pain.
He didn't know what he should do.
He wanted to persuade Neji to give up on the idea of "breaking the caged bird," but when they were alone, he couldn't bring himself to say it.
If it weren't for the fact that the child of Minato Namikaze came from the future, he might've begged Naruto to remove his own curse mark as well.
Yes.
What bird locked in a cage wouldn't yearn to escape?
He wanted it too.
But on the other hand...
He felt a bit jealous.
A glimpse of the future had already been laid before him.
He would sacrifice himself for the Hyuga clan.
He could never break free from the "Caged Bird."
That negative emotion lingering in his heart had almost become a tangible obsession, making him instinctively want to stop everything.
A month later.
Lee and Tenten were found.
In the kingdom of Rōran, atop the tower sealing the "Dragon Vein."
"We're going back already?" Lee exclaimed in shock. "We just arrived in this era!"
"I still wanted to see Guy-sensei in his youth."
Kakashi lazily glanced with his dead-fish eyes. "No need. Just look in a mirror."
"You really aren't Guy's kid?"
"Of course not." Lee stood with hands on hips, laughing shyly but proudly. "So I really do look that much like Guy-sensei?"
Tenten said nothing, her gaze fixed on Neji.
The boy with the Byakugan...
No—after four years, he had become a man.
He looked at Naruto and bowed in request, "Lord Naruto, please remove my Caged Bird here and now."
"Does Lady Hinata truly support Neji?" asked Hyuga Hizashi.
Naruto didn't respond. He just waved his hand.
Neji knelt before him.
Hinata didn't want to answer, but after glancing at Naruto, then at Karin, and remembering the words she had said that night, she clenched her fists:"I support him."
"This so-called 'protection' is no different from imprisonment."
"It shouldn't exist anymore."
"And..."
"This is something Naruto promised."
"Neither I, nor Uncle Hizashi, nor even the entire Hyuga clan has the power to change Naruto's will."
As she spoke—
Naruto reached out and touched the curse mark on Neji's forehead.
A vague silhouette surged from within Neji's body.
It was his soul.
However, Naruto didn't fully extract it—only the head emerged from the body.
But even as a "soul,"
The Caged Bird seal remained branded on his forehead, even more vividly.
"Spirit Transformation Technique?" muttered Akimichi Choza.
Naruto glanced at him but kept working.
At his fingertips, a sealing technique unfolded. The small chakra within Neji's soul flowed, forming a formation that completely enveloped the Caged Bird curse.
The green "diagonal cross"-shaped seal was slowly erased.
This was a transformation deep within the soul—
Erasing something that had been rooted in the soul for decades.
Just like Naruto had said—
The seal itself wasn't complex. But Neji's soul and strength were too weak, so the process brought immense pain.
His soul trembled and flickered unsteadily.
Until the final trace of green vanished—
Only then did the pain end.
Naruto pushed Neji's soul back into his body. "It's done."
Hyuga Hizashi murmured, "So... the Caged Bird really can be broken."
"Every seal and prison has a way to break it," Naruto replied casually, looking at him. "No one did it before because none of you were willing to learn."
"And others didn't dare offend the Hyuga clan."
"You're not afraid of offending the Hyuga clan?" Hizashi asked. "We are—"
He didn't finish his sentence.
The reactions of those around him made him hesitate.
Karin couldn't help but laugh.
Naruto just smiled and shook his head.
Neji clicked his tongue.
Hinata looked at her uncle with concern—
As if he had just told a joke.
"I'm not afraid of the Hyuga clan," Neji said, struggling to push himself up. "Much less would Naruto be."
Hizashi lowered his head and said no more.
"You probably suspected already," Neji continued, touching his forehead.
Tenten handed him a mirror.
Neji took it and saw his smooth, unmarked forehead.
Hizashi softly said, "Yes, I had suspected."
"You're my child."
"And Lady Hinata... she's my brother's child, isn't she?"
Neji lingered on the mirror, his gaze drifting past it to his father."I used to dream so many times about how joyful I'd be if I ever broke this hateful curse."
"But..."
"Now I can't seem to feel the emotions from those dreams."
"I originally planned to ask Lord Naruto to break the seal once we returned to the future."
"But standing here now, about to return, I realize—I had to let you witness this with your own eyes."
"The cage of the branch family... from today onward, is shattered."
Naruto clapped and summoned a scroll with a summoning technique, tossing it to Neji.
"This is the technique to break the Caged Bird," he explained. "Even without me, any regular jonin could undo it."
Neji solemnly stored it away.
Hizashi's gaze followed the scroll, and he sighed."This will be a disaster for the Hyuga clan."
"For the main family, maybe," Neji shook his head. "But for the branch family, definitely not."
Hizashi said no more.
Naruto spread a sealing formation across the ground.
The Dragon Vein was opened, and a stream of violet chakra poured out.
"Time to go back?" Minato said quietly. "Naruto, since you're also skilled in sealing techniques, I'll leave it to you to seal our memories."
"It'll be safer if you do it instead of me."
Naruto nodded.
Several dozen minutes later—
The violet light gradually faded.
The five-person team stood in place, confused and disoriented.
Every detail matched the version without a single error!
"Why are we here?" Kakashi looked around blankly.
They had just departed from the Leaf...
How did they suddenly end up here?
The formations and seals all looked exactly like the "Dragon Vein."
Minato was the first to react—he could feel a seal in his mind, hiding a portion of his memory.
Undoubtedly, it covered everything from the moment they left the village until now.
He instinctively wanted to probe the seal.
Even though—
There were no signs of resistance on his body, and his Flying Thunder God Technique hadn't activated—his special kunai were still intact in his pouch.
Which meant, the seal had been placed willingly.
Unlocking it wouldn't be appropriate.
But he still wanted to read the seal's traces to uncover any clues.
Unexpectedly—
He couldn't even sense the seal.
Whoever placed this seal... their skill was unparalleled. The greatest he had ever seen.
Even stronger than Uzumaki Mito.
"Sensei?" Kakashi asked.
"Looks like the rumors are true," Minato said softly. He turned to Hyuga Hizashi, "Sorry, Lord Hizashi, I had concealed something before we arrived."
"There were reports of a Byakugan appearing in Rōran, supposedly from the future."
"Now it seems..."
"It was true."
"And we likely had deep interactions with them."
He looked again. "Six people... and maybe a summoned beast like a ninja dog or cat."
The footprints on the ground still revealed traces of their presence.
But that was all he could gather.
Aburame Shi raised his hand. "Some of my kikaichū are missing."
"The death marks are fresh."
"I must've tried to retain some of their chakra, but they noticed."
Minato's face turned serious. "Good thing they noticed. That was a dangerous act."
"We mustn't interfere with the future in any way."
"Keep searching Rōran."
"Once we confirm everything, we'll return to report."
The team responded.
This little ripple in the past left no impact on the future.
In the abandoned tower of the ancient kingdom of Rōran—
The six of them landed steadily.
"We're back," said Tenten, peeking out. The discarded centipede puppet was still on the ground without any dust. Time hadn't passed.
The Dragon Vein still emitted violet light—
Huge, intense chakra was still surging.
Naruto approached, raised his hand, and began the sealing technique.
He had to seal this chakra.
"Lord Naruto," Neji stepped forward and bowed. "I must leave you for a while."
"Aside from reporting to Konoha—"
"There are... family matters I must handle."
Naruto nodded. "Go ahead."
"My deepest apologies, Lord Naruto," Neji bowed again. "I've made a willful and selfish decision."
"If I were to die in Konoha..."
Naruto tilted his head and smiled gently. "Don't fear death."
"Go and do what you want without hesitation."
"I can't explain now, but know this—Soul Society is an organization of spirits."
"Even if you die, you can still serve me."
Neji looked up at him in surprise, then nodded firmly. "Yes, Lord Naruto."
With a gesture, his team vanished.
Naruto carefully sealed the Dragon Vein.
"Are we going to the Land of Demons next?" Karin asked, tiptoeing beside him as the tower quaked slightly.
"You want to see what happens to Neji after he returns to Konoha?" Naruto smiled.
Karin nodded. "Mm, I'm really curious."
"You didn't just remove his seal—"
"You even gave him the technique to break it."
"I feel like something huge is going to happen in Konoha."
Naruto took her hand and used Shunpo to step out of the tower."I'm curious too—"
"Curious what Neji will choose to do."
"And what the Hyuga clan and Konoha will choose at this point in time."
"Let's go see."
There's plenty of time.
Fire Country – Konoha.
After half a day's journey, Neji and his group returned to the village.
But...
He didn't report the mission right away—instead, he went straight to the Hyuga clan.
(End of Chapter)