Neji: Give Me Ten Years, and I'll Give You a Great Kumogakure

"Creak!"

The office door swung open from the inside, and Samui beckoned to Neji.

The moment that would decide his fate had arrived.

Neji took a deep breath and strode into the Raikage's Office.

The Raikage's Office was outrageously bare. There was only a desk, a sofa, and some exercise equipment. That was all.

Maybe there were too many valuables, and breaking them would be a waste of money?

A burly young man sat behind the desk, studying Neji with interest.

He had short blond hair and was bare-chested, with muscles bulging all over his body, solid as if they had been forged from steel.

The Fourth Raikage, Yozuki A!

Standing respectfully beside Yozuki A was a one-eyed middle-aged man. A hint of curiosity showed in his gaze as he looked at Neji.

He hadn't had much screen time in the original story, but Neji remembered him fairly well.

Dodai, an elder advisor of Kumogakure, had served two Raikage in succession. Held in high regard, he was the "brains" behind generations of Raikage.

"Hyuga Neji greets Lord Raikage and Senior Dodai."

Neji knelt on one knee and spoke politely.

"Neji, few little brats interest me. You're one of the rare ones."

The Fourth Raikage scrutinized Hyuga Neji curiously, then discreetly signaled to Dodai.

Dodai folded his arms across his chest, a haughty look on his face.

"Hyuga Neji, you chose to defect to Kumogakure, so you must understand your own situation. I've already advised Lord Raikage to raise you as a stud."

If they really intended to raise him as a stud, there was no need to spell it out.

Neji knew the test had begun.

He took a deep breath, but his childish face showed no sign of panic. He was as calm as a stone.

"You probably don't even know what a stud is, do you?"

Dodai couldn't understand why Neji was so calm. He narrowed his eyes and continued.

"It means locking you in a small room. You'd have food and clothes, and you'd be safe, but you'd never be free."

"Everyone in the village could come to play with you, from six-year-old girls to sixty-year-old grannies, until your life came to an end."

Dodai described the miserable fate of a stud in a menacing tone.

Any ordinary child would have been scared stiff by now.

But Neji remained unruffled, completely unfazed by Dodai's threats.

The sight made Dodai start taking Neji seriously.

This Hyuga Neji really was no ordinary child. He was alarmingly precocious, nothing like a four-year-old.

Then Neji looked at Yozuki A and pressed his lips together.

"Lord Raikage, give me ten years, and I'll give you a great Kumogakure."

The words had barely left his mouth when Yozuki A looked stunned. Even Dodai, who usually kept his emotions hidden, showed a flicker of surprise in his eye.

It was clearly an outrageous boast, but paired with Neji's utterly expressionless childish face, it managed to stun both Yozuki A and Dodai.

But only for a moment.

Dodai quickly recovered, deliberately letting anger show on his face. "Hmph. You little brat don't know your place. What can you possibly guarantee, huh?"

Neji looked at Dodai and spoke with conviction. "Senior Dodai, my body possesses the Hyuga clan's ultimate power. Just give me enough time, and I can help Kumogakure dominate the Shinobi World."

Yozuki A leaned forward slightly in his burly chair, seeming very interested in the "ultimate power" Neji had mentioned.

"Oh?"

A sharp glint crossed Dodai's eye as he pressed on coldly. "What ultimate power? Let's hear it."

"The Byakugan and Sharingan are known as the Shinobi World's two great ocular techniques. The Three-Tomoe Sharingan can evolve further into the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan."

"We know all that. Get to the point."

Dodai narrowed his one eye.

Though the Byakugan and Sharingan were known as the Shinobi World's two great ocular techniques, the Byakugan excelled in strategic value. In terms of individual power, it was inferior to the Sharingan.

What was more, the Sharingan could evolve into the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Once it reached the Mangekyō stage, its power underwent a qualitative leap, with a minimum strength of Kage Level.

"The point is, the Byakugan can evolve just like the Sharingan. These eyes of mine can evolve into the Tenseigan, a power on a level above the Mangekyō Sharingan."

Whether someone could awaken the Tenseigan with only the Hyuga clan's bloodline was still unknown.

He was just making a grand promise, so whether it was true didn't really matter.

"The Tenseigan?"

Dodai furrowed his brows.

The Byakugan could evolve? And into the Tenseigan, which was even stronger than the Mangekyō Sharingan?

Did Hyuga Hiashi know about this?

It sounded like a complete fantasy to him.

Meanwhile, Yozuki A, seated behind his desk, seemed to have thought of something and leaned forward again.

"Decades ago, the Uchiha clan produced a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan. But since Konoha was founded, the Hyuga clan has never produced the 'Tenseigan' you speak of. So what proof do you have?"

Dodai pressed him with a stern expression.

"Senior Dodai, the Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan vanished from the Shinobi World decades ago. The Tenseigan is an ultimate power beyond the Mangekyō Sharingan, so naturally, it isn't easy to awaken."

"Heh. Then I can only assume you have no way to prove the Tenseigan exists, and everything you said before was a lie."

He's tough to fool!

Neji drew a sharp breath, thought for a moment, then spoke. "I heard from my father that the Hyuga clan's history clearly records the Tenseigan appearing in the past."

Dodai folded his arms across his chest and asked with a smile, "If it appeared before, who awakened the Tenseigan?"

"The legendary shinobi, Hyuga Tenin!"

Neji answered without hesitation.

Hyuga Tenin had never clearly appeared in the original story.

But that didn't stop Neji from trying to fool Dodai.

"Hyuga Tenin?"

The highest level of strength was having a name that sounded powerful all on its own.

Dodai pondered Neji's words for a while and believed about half of what he said.

If a four-year-old could calmly invent unbelievable terms like "Tenseigan" and "Hyuga Tenin" under interrogation, that alone meant he was no ordinary child.

Of course, he only believed half.

"I have the potential to awaken the Tenseigan. That's what gives me confidence. But I can't provide any concrete proof. Whether you believe me or not is Lord Raikage's choice. What I can guarantee is that, given time, I can bring Kumogakure an opportunity unlike any it has ever seen. Of course, I understand that Lord Raikage holds a high position and has many things to consider. But letting me join Kumogakure will bring more benefits than drawbacks. It all comes down to whether Lord Raikage has the courage to make a big gamble."

Neji stared at Yozuki A and spoke in a low, firm voice.

"My courage, you say?"

Yozuki A looked at Hyuga Neji, whose expression remained unchanged. He tapped the desk with his fingers, then suddenly smiled.

"Neji, you're a very interesting little brat. I agree. Starting today, you're a member of Kumogakure, and you'll receive the highest level of benefits. All of Kumogakure's training resources and secret techniques will be available to you, no strings attached."