A final, precise two-fingered strike hit the trunk. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, with a sharp crack, the tree splintered and crashed forward, landing heavily on the forest floor.
Neji Hyuga stood amidst the devastation, his Byakugan active. The two fingers of each hand he had used as weapons dripped with blood. All around him, the clearing was littered with similar tree stumps, a testament to his intense training session.
"It's not enough," Neji muttered, his voice low. 'The power is there, but the efficiency isn't. I need to reduce the number of strikes.'
With a focused thought, he channeled chakra to his hands, the shallow cuts on his fingers knitting themselves closed. Wiping away the blood, he turned and left the training ground. On his path back to the Hyuga compound, he passed another training area and saw a classmate drilling alone.
It was Rock Lee, a boy known for his sheer determination. Lee was fiercely punching and kicking a wooden post, his movements powerful but unrefined. Neji offered only a brief, disinterested glance before continuing on his way. He had no time for idle chatter or making friends.
Lee, catching sight of Neji's retreating back, paused his training. Curiosity got the better of him, and he walked over to the area Neji had just left. His eyes widened in surprise at the sight of the destroyed trees, each one felled not with brute force, but with pinpoint accuracy.
'So the genius of the class works hard, too,' Lee thought, a new wave of respect and motivation washing over him. He clenched his fists, a fiery determination igniting in his eyes. "Yosh! I must train even harder to surpass a genius!"
Unaware of the inspiration he had left in his wake, Neji walked on, his mind already crafting the next step in his plan.
'My chakra control still needs refinement. The basic regimen is mastered. It's time to begin phase two of my training.'
Back at his home, he grabbed a custom-made, sealed box containing normal threads and placed it on the table.
Neji's right hand began glowing blue as his Byakugan activated. He focused, attempting to sever a single thread inside without damaging the box itself.
His first attempt failed instantly; his chakra blade made contact with the thread with a sharp clang of metal on metal. He tried again and again, each effort failing in the same way, until his chakra was nearly depleted.
Noting the time, he gave up for the night and went to sleep.
The Next Day
In the Academy, the teacher lectured at the front of the class. Meanwhile, Neji was focused on his desk, using chakra to guide the cells of a leaf, knitting them back together. The two classmates sitting near him whispered, confused by his actions.
"Psst, do you know what he's doing?"
"I have no idea. You sit closer to him, why don't you ask?"
"No way, he's scary."
Neji ignored them, his concentration entirely on the leaf.
After a few minutes, the teacher noticed Neji wasn't paying attention. He wanted to be angry, but he couldn't, Neji was the class's top scorer. The reason for his perfect grades was simple: he didn't want anyone bothering him about his studies while he trained during class.
'Just wait, Hyuga Neji,' the teacher thought. 'The moment your scores slip, I'm going to lecture you about it.'
The bell rang, cutting his thoughts short. "Remember to do your homework," the teacher said before leaving the room.
Soon, another instructor entered. "Everybody, let's head to the training ground!"
A wave of excitement went through the class. The two Hyuga clansmen, Katsuro and Soshu, were especially eager. They glanced at Neji and whispered.
"Good, he's been wasting his chakra all morning," Katsuro said. "You have a chance now, Soshu."
"I know," Soshu replied with a grim smile. "I can't wait to break his legs."
Once the class arrived at the training ground, the teacher called for volunteers. "Does anyone want to fight first?"
Soshu immediately raised his hand. "Me! I want to fight against Neji."
Neji glanced at him, stood up, and walked forward. Soshu smirked as he stepped forward to face him.
"I'm going to make sure you can't move after this fight," Soshu taunted.
Neji's expression remained utterly unchanged, which only annoyed Soshu more.
"Focus," the teacher interjected. "Perform the seal of confrontation."
Neji and Soshu formed the hand signs.
"...Start!" the teacher said.
In an instant, Neji activated his Byakugan. He rushed forward, using a minuscule amount of chakra to enhance his speed. Soshu couldn't even see him coming. Neji struck a single tenketsu point on his chest with precise, controlled chakra.
The impact was immediate. Soshu collapsed to his knees, gasping for air he couldn't draw into his paralyzed lungs.
The teacher rushed over. "Neji, open his tenketsu point. Now!"
Neji delivered another precise strike, releasing the blockage. Soshu fell forward, his hands on the ground as he gulped down air, horrified that he had just escaped death. He looked up and saw the pure, unadulterated pity in Neji's eyes. He felt utterly humiliated.
"Neji, why did you do that?" the teacher asked, though he already knew the answer.
"He asked for it," Neji stated flatly.
The teacher sighed. He couldn't blame Neji, not after Soshu's threat. He decided the Hyuga clan could handle the matter themselves and could only hope Neji would be safe from their internal politics.
"Both of you, perform the seal of reconciliation."
Neji did it effortlessly while Soshu struggled, his body still weak from oxygen deprivation. They returned to the crowd.
"Are you okay?" Katsuro asked.
"Don't talk to me," Soshu spat, furious at his own weakness. He had been so sure he could win against a drained Neji.
"Okay," Katsuro said, stepping back.
The rest of the class watched Neji with renewed fear. But one student, Rock Lee, felt only motivation burning in his chest after witnessing the fight.
"Who else wants to choose an opponent?" the teacher asked.
Lee's hand shot into the air. "I want to fight against Neji!"
The teacher looked at Neji. "Will you accept?"
Neji looked at the determined boy. "If you want to fight me, become the second strongest in the class first."
Lee nodded, accepting the challenge without complaint.
Then, an Uchiha in the class, annoyed by Neji's display, raised his hand. "Then I can fight you, right, Hyuga?"
"Yes, Uchiha," Neji said, his tone cool and unchanging.
"Come forward then, Hyuga Neji and Uchiha Rikudo," the teacher said.
Before the teacher could even give the instruction, Neji and Rikudo had already performed the seal of confrontation.
"I will show you why the Uchiha are the strongest!" Rikudo declared.
Neji ignored him. The thought was inconsequential. 'The so-called strongest clan was massacred. What is the point of being the strongest if you can all be wiped out?'
"Ready... Go!" the teacher yelled.
The match ended almost identically to the previous one. In a blur of motion, Neji used a two-finger strike directly to Rikudo's forehead, knocking the Uchiha boy out cold.
It was profoundly anticlimactic.
Neji felt nothing from beating another child. If anything, he felt a slight twinge of guilt at defeating someone so utterly defenseless against him.
Without a word, he returned to his seat and resumed practicing with his leaf, tuning out the rest of the sparring matches.
When class ended, everyone quickly headed to the cafeteria for lunch.
As Neji walked back to the classroom to retrieve his bento, he found Lee following him. Neji took his seat and placed his lunch on the desk. Lee did the same, sitting right beside him.
As they began to eat, Neji broke the silence. "What is it you want to ask?"
"How did you get so strong?" Lee blurted out. "I know you train hard, but I want to know your method."
"That kind of information costs money," Neji said flatly. "A shinobi's training routine is a valuable secret."
"Eh? I have to pay?" Lee's face fell. He had been so hopeful.
"Even if you paid, my training routine wouldn't work for you," Neji added.
"Eh? Why not?" Lee asked, his desperation clear.
"My training relies on the Byakugan," Neji explained. "And I've heard a rumor that you have a special physique. That you are unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu."
"Yes," Lee said, his voice heavy with dejection. "That is true."
"If you want to get stronger, you should read more books. Research the why behind your limitation," Neji advised. "Then, build a training regimen around that understanding. That is the best advice I can give you."
Lee felt a sudden sting in his eyes. Everyone else had used his disability to put him down, but Neji was the first to treat it as a simple fact, a problem to be analyzed and overcome.
"Thank you, Neji," Lee said, his voice thick with emotion. "No one has ever been this kind to me... best friend."
"You're welcome," Neji said. A small, almost imperceptible smile touched his lips, but nobody noticed.
Neji helped Lee for a simple, pragmatic reason: in the future, Lee would likely become his teammate. There was nothing wrong with helping someone in need, but stronger allies were always preferable to weaker ones.
A fleeting image of Tenten crossing Neji mind. He shook the thought away. He had more important things to focus on, namely his own strength.
. . . .
Neji was walking back home, still practicing with the leaf, his Byakugan activated as he tried to guide its cellular structure. Suddenly, a person entered his range and stood directly in his path. He released the leaf and stared at the intruder.
Neji's hand stilled. The leaf, its purpose forgotten, spiraled to the ground. His pearlescent eyes, devoid of warmth, lifted to meet the intruder's.
It was his grandfather.
Neji's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. "What do you want?"
Hikaru's face crinkled into a smile that failed to warm his pale eyes. "It seems my grandchildren have forgotten their manners. A lesson in respect appears to be in order."
"Activate the seal, then," Neji's voice was flat, a challenge. "You saw my father as a tool, not a son. Why would I see you as anything but the man who held the leash?"
A faint twitch at the corner of Hikaru's mouth was the only sign of his irritation. 'The boy doesn't even flinch.' He stood protected, a fact as solid as the ground beneath their feet. To move against him without cause was to challenge the Clan Head himself.
A slow, deliberate nod. "So. You know the truth of that day." Hikaru's tone was lighter now, probing.
"State your business," Neji repeated, the words sharp and final.
"The first lesson is respect." The air grew heavy. A pressure, thick and menacing, rolled off the old man, a killing intent laced with chakra meant to crush his spirit and freeze his blood.
But Neji stood firm, unaffected. He used chakra from his tenketsu points to form a barrier, expelling any foreign energy before it could touch him.
Hikaru's false smile vanished, his eyes narrowing as he truly saw the boy for the first time. "A prodigy of a prodigy," he murmured, the words tasting of reluctant awe and bitter irony. "Hiashi did not exaggerate. A pity... such talent is wasted in the Branch House."
The pieces clicked into place in Neji's mind. This wasn't a social call. "This was a test?"
Hikaru offered only that cold, evaluating silence.
Neji turned his back, a deliberate and profound insult. "A waste of my time."
As the boy walked away, Hizashi's boasts and Hiashi's rare, earnest praise finally made sense to Hikaru. The hype was not just real; it had perhaps been understated.
"I expect great things from you now on, Neji," Hikaru called out to his retreating grandson.
Neji didn't break stride, but under his breath, he muttered a vow only he could hear. "You'll see more than you expect. I will dismantle this clan you call the strongest."
He walked on, unaware that Hikaru would one day come to regret not killing him where he stood.