"Absolutely… we absolutely cannot let him reach that point!"
An elder shot to his feet, voice hoarse, eyes filled with resolve—and a trace of ruthlessness.
"We must… we must find a way to completely secure Neji's loyalty as soon as possible. Or… before he fully turns toward Uzumaki Naruto…"
He did not finish the sentence.
He didn't need to.
Everyone present understood.
For the survival of the clan, extreme measures might have to be considered.
Hyūga Hiashi remained seated at the head of the chamber, silent. His fists were clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.
His pale Byakugan swept across the panicked elders. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and steady, carrying the authority of a clan head.
"Calm yourselves."
"The sky projection reveals only a possible future. Neji… is the pride of the Hyūga Clan. He is also my nephew. I believe his heart is not ruled by hatred alone."
Within the projection—
Faced with Naruto's question, Hyūga Neji fell into prolonged silence.
The wind carried the scent of scorched earth, stirring the loose strands of hair at his forehead—and the scar that had only just begun to heal within his heart.
In his pale eyes reflected the desolation of ruins… and fragments of cold, unjust memories.
After a long time, Neji finally spoke. His voice was calm—almost deliberately rational.
"My father… made his own choice."
He paused, as if persuading himself.
"When he chose to die in Lord Hiashi's place… he was free."
"He chose to protect his brother. To protect the village. And he chose… to leave me a different path."
"As for the Main House and the Branch House…"
Neji's gaze drifted toward the direction of the Hyūga compound. It too was being rebuilt, but its structure remained unchanged.
"I trust Lord Hiashi. And I trust Hinata. They will bring change. Hinata… is not like the Main House of the past."
Yet when Naruto heard this, he did not look relieved.
Instead, he forced a faint smile—one so strained it looked like a mask too heavy to bear.
There was no agreement in it.
Only exhaustion.
And something colder.
Neji's heart sank.
He knew Naruto well. That was not his usual smile.
"Naruto. What's really going on?" Neji stepped closer, voice firm. "You are completely unlike yourself. What happened?"
Naruto lowered his head. After a long silence, he drew in a deep breath—as if bracing himself to face a truth he had long avoided.
When he looked up again, his once-clear blue eyes were shadowed. Deep. Almost cold.
"Neji…"
His voice was soft—but it carried an unsettling weight.
"Nothing… is going to change."
"…What?"
"I've met a lot of people these past few days," Naruto continued, eerily calm.
"Survivors. Shinobi rebuilding. Old acquaintances…"
"I thought about things I'd never allowed myself to think about before."
His gaze swept across the ruins—then seemed to pierce through time itself.
"And I realized… no matter how warm their smiles are now… no matter how much admiration or gratitude they show…"
His tone sharpened with bitter self-mockery.
"To me… they're the same."
"The same as before. The ones who looked at me, avoided me, called me 'demon fox,' threw stones at me…"
"In essence, they haven't changed at all."
"No! That's not true!" Neji cut in sharply, disbelief clear on his face. "Naruto, wake up! They truly admire you now. They're grateful you saved the village. That's not the same!"
"You don't understand, Neji!" Naruto shook his head violently, his voice rising—raw with suppressed anguish.
"They acknowledge 'Uzumaki Naruto, the hero who saved the village'!"
"They acknowledge the strength. The power. The tool that protects them!"
"Not the lonely Uzumaki Naruto who needed to be accepted!"
"They haven't changed. They never will."
"Their smiles, their admiration—it's all built on usefulness. On strength. On the safety I provide."
"And if one day I lose that strength… or fail to meet their expectations…"
He laughed once, hollow and brittle.
"Those smiles will turn right back into fear. Into coldness. Into hatred."
His words struck like hailstones—shattering the fragile warmth that had formed after the disaster.
"And it's not just them…"
Naruto's gaze sharpened, almost piercing.
"Konoha itself hasn't changed."
"The leadership still plays political games. The clans still guard their interests. The mission system is still cold."
"And the so-called Will of Fire… heh. Just a convenient slogan."
He even turned his criticism toward the new Hokage.
"Even Granny Tsunade… she's just the continuation of the Third's system."
"Different face. Same structure."
"Maybe she wants change. But how much can she change?"
"Can she dismantle the entrenched clan power?"
"Can she erase the invisible gap between shinobi and civilians?"
"Can she make sure that every so-called 'dead last' or 'monster' like I once was… is treated equally?"
His final words were delivered with chilling clarity.
"Nothing has changed."
"The ruins became buildings. That's all."
"I changed—from the hated 'demon fox'… into a 'hero' they depend on."
"But the rotten roots of this village—its hypocrisy, its injustice—those haven't changed."
He looked up at the sky.
"This world… is rotten to the core."
Neji stood frozen.
He stared at Naruto—the friend who seemed to have aged ten years in a single night.
Ten years older.
Ten years colder.
A ringing filled his ears.
Was this… still the Naruto he knew?
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789