Digging Out My Own Eyes!

Konoha, Hyuga Compound.

Bang!

A wooden post that had long endured countless blows snapped and fell to the ground. The five-year-old Byakugan boy in a white training uniform breathed slightly heavily, his clothes soaked with sweat.

"Neji!"

Watching Neji train, Hiashi immediately thought of Hizashi and called out to him with some reluctance.

The training figure paused, then turned around and looked at Hiashi respectfully.

"Greetings, Clan Head!"

Neji turned and bowed, making it even harder for the Hyuga Clan Head, burdened with unspoken troubles, to speak.

The coldness Neji revealed made Hiashi sigh inwardly. He had held him in his arms before; he had been so adorable, sensible, and talented.

Yet now, he had become like this. The Main Family and the Branch Family made Hiashi sigh inwardly.

And today, their relationship would likely worsen once again.

Because there were two matters he had no choice but to tell him.

"There is something I must tell you!"

Neji quietly looked at Hiashi without a ripple of emotion, because he had already guessed it.

"Your father, Hizashi Hyuga, sacrificed himself for the clan and the village."

Neji did not show much expression. He merely looked calmly at Hiashi, but that gaze was more than Hiashi could bear.

After all, Neji had known long ago. Once he had failed to protect Hinata and allowed her to be taken, he could no longer stop any of this.

Only after a long while did Neji speak.

"Did Father leave any final words?"

It was not that he was cold by nature. As a transmigrator, he had known this would happen long ago, but he had been unable to change anything.

"He said... he was sorry. He failed to keep his promise to you."

Hiashi was Hizashi's biological elder brother, yet their statuses had been worlds apart.

Now, facing his own nephew, he was both a member of the Main Family and the Clan Head. He had no choice but to maintain the proper attitude and suppress himself.

"I understand."

Neji was so calm that even he found it frightening. Looking at his prematurely mature nephew, Hiashi did not know what to say.

"Does the Clan Head have anything else?"

Seeing that Hiashi had no intention of leaving, Neji asked. Still, he understood what it was about.

"Your father pleaded for you and delayed it for a year. That ceremony can no longer be postponed."

That was right. At five years old, he should originally have been branded with the Caged Bird Seal when he was four.

But he had begged his father, and Hizashi had pleaded with Hiashi, allowing it to be delayed until now.

He had hoped this time would be different, that Hizashi would survive. It seemed he had thought too much.

Now that Hizashi was dead, Hiashi could no longer withstand the pressure from within the clan. As a member of the Main Family, he had to make a stand so that those from the Branch Family could rest easy.

After all, it had already been delayed for a year. They could not refrain from branding him with the Caged Bird Seal simply because he was the Main Family's biological nephew.

Only one branch of the Main Family was permitted. This was a rule passed down through generations, as well as a necessary measure to prevent the Hyuga Clan from being coveted by others.

The Main Family bore all outside scrutiny and threats, while the Branch Family had to protect the Main Family.

"I understand."

The moment his words fell, Neji's next action shocked Hiashi.

He raised two fingers and gouged!

Neji dug out both of his own eyes with his own hands. He did not even grunt, much less cry out in pain.

His tone had been calm, yet he committed such a cruel act at that moment. Even Hiashi was stunned and failed to stop him in time.

He simply stopped the bleeding and treated the wounds, moving with the practiced skill of someone who had prepared for this many times.

Hiashi's vision swam. This...

A thousand words could not describe what he felt.

When he looked again, Neji had already wrapped bandages around his head and put on a black blindfold.

He placed the pair of still fairly clean, exquisite Byakugan into Hiashi's stiff hands, then left directly after leaving him a single sentence.

"This is my answer. I apologize for troubling the Clan Head."

Hiashi's heart trembled violently. His hands shook as he stared at the exquisite Byakugan in his hands.

He staggered back several steps before stopping against a pillar.

For a Moment, in that empty training ground, Hiashi could no longer hold back his tears.

As Clan Head, as Hizashi's elder brother, did he not want to save Hizashi? Did he not want to change the circumstances of the Main Family and the Branch Family?

He had always wanted to, but without the Caged Bird Seal, the Hyuga Clan would become the most coveted prize in everyone else's eyes!

Countless clan members would die, their Byakugan would be taken, and some might even be imprisoned. Even Konoha would be unable to protect them.

Because unlike the Uchiha Clan, they had no restrictions. Most of them could awaken the Byakugan, making it immensely practical.

He had thought Neji was mature enough to compare with Uchiha Itachi, mature enough to understand.

But the result had been so extreme, so unyielding.

He had personally dug out his own Byakugan and handed them over!

Hiashi gave a bitter smile. "Main Family, Branch Family... this is Neji's answer. His answer!"

"An answer from a five-year-old child!"

"My Hyuga Clan has fallen this far!"

He had lacked the strength to protect Hizashi, his younger brother. Now, he did not even have the strength to protect Neji.

He had driven him to gouge out his own eyes rather than accept the Caged Bird Seal!

He accepted this answer. He would never allow anyone in the clan to speak another word of gossip about Neji.

After all, the Caged Bird Seal had been created based on the Byakugan. Without the Byakugan, no one knew whether the Caged Bird Seal could even succeed.

There had never been such a precedent. Neji's decisiveness made the outcome impossible for him to predict.

He carefully protected Neji's eyes. If possible, there might still be a chance to reattach them. After all, Neji was far too young for such a delicate operation, perhaps...

Only... only Lady Tsunade could do it!

Hiashi hurried off, stripped of his usual Main Family bearing. With a sorrowful expression, he headed toward the Hokage Building.

Unfortunately, it would all prove fruitless in the end!

Neji, who had personally dug out his own eyes, used the Observation Haki he had only just begun to master to sense his surroundings, so moving around was not a problem.

As he walked through the Hyuga Compound, a small figure spoke softly behind him after he rounded a corner.

"Brother Neji!"

It was Hinata. Having only just awakened from fright, she had no idea what had happened.

Seeing Brother Neji, who had always treated her so well, she called out happily.

Neji felt the faint pain in his eye sockets and sighed softly before turning around.

"Ah! Brother Neji, are your eyes hurt?"

Seeing Neji's bandages and black blindfold, Hinata became deeply worried and hurriedly cried out, thinking his eyes had merely been injured.

Neji placed a hand on Hinata's little head and smiled as he coaxed her.

"It's fine. I just used my Chakra improperly and hurt them a little. They'll heal soon."

Hinata carefully touched Neji's cheek, afraid of touching his wounds, and said in a soft, sweet voice.

"Is that so? Then Brother Neji has to be careful. You mustn't push yourself. You work too hard every time you train."

"How can I become stronger without working hard? How can I protect Little Hinata?"

Neji pinched Hinata's little nose, making her wrinkle it slightly from the ticklish feeling. She protested stubbornly.

"Then I want to protect Brother Neji too, so Brother Neji won't have to work so hard. I want to become stronger too!"

"Then I'll look forward to it. But Brother Neji has something to do now. Can I play with Hinata next time?"

Feeling warmth seep through the bandages around his eye sockets, it seemed his Life Return had not yet been trained well enough.

He patted her head again, making Hinata obediently settle down.

"Mm! Then Brother Neji should rest properly. You're not allowed to train while you're injured."

"Alright, I promise."

Neji held out his little finger and hooked it with Hinata's small hand. Together, they said,

"Pinky promise, sealed for a hundred years, never to change!"

A trembling newbie timidly poked their head out from the sewer: Was this the world of the strong?