Gaze! Kin of the Clan

With all the matches concluded, Neji found Hinata, who had also advanced, and the two hurried back to the Hyuga Clan.

Deep into the night, Neji personally escorted Hinata to the Main Branch residence.

After seeing Hinata inside, a maid of about thirty-five years old stood outside.

The maid also possessed the Byakugan, though its purity was low, suggesting a weak bloodline.

"Young Master Neji, you passed the exam, didn't you?"

"Aunt Haru, this is the Main Branch."

Neji reminded her in a low voice.

"It's fine."

This was Hyuga Haru, the servant who had attended to Hinata since she was a child.

In the past, Haru had been close with Hizashi Hyuga, who treated her like a younger sister; ever since Neji was born and subsequently assigned to the Branch Family, she had always called him Young Master Neji.

Even when Neji reminded her, she would inevitably call him that in private.

"Yes, a narrow victory. The official matches will be held in a month."

"That's wonderful. If that's the case, the gossip within the clan should die down a bit, right?"

"Perhaps. I'll be going now."

Emerging from the Main Branch, Neji headed toward his own living quarters through the night.

It wasn't exactly a life of humiliation or poverty; after all, the Main Branch was merely a single lineage, and the Branch Family made up the majority, so he wasn't exactly pushed into a corner.

Yet, even within the Branch Family, Neji was an orphan with supposedly poor talent, which led to him being ostracized by the others.

Accustomed to wandering in the night, it was only under this veil of darkness that Neji could avoid the strange, judgmental gazes of others.

And the night was also the most suitable time for deep contemplation.

Judging by Aunt Haru's words, there were still many people within the clan discussing the fact that he had mastered the Rotation. If that were the case...

Then among those who had inexplicably come to watch the exams, there must have been spies from the Hyuga Clan sent to observe him, right?

Fortunately, Neji had been prepared; during his battle with Gaara, he had been absolutely airtight.

The next step was to continue growing stronger. He had encountered too many monsters during these Chunin Exams.

Kabuto, Gaara, Orochimaru—they were all threats to Konoha.

With his current strength, he could barely even prove his worth within the clan; to truly face those people, he feared he was completely out of his depth.

Returning home, he lay down on his bed and enjoyed a comfortable, deep sleep.

Despite the constant strife of the Branch Family, it was at least a place where he could sleep soundly—the only peaceful rest he had experienced in years.

However, the next morning, Neji rose out of habit.

At the first light of dawn, Neji's figure was already present at the training ground.

"Ha!"

"Hmph!"

From morning until night, he never stopped.

At dusk, Haru brought him a bento.

"Young Master Neji, do your best in the exams. Prove your talent; you are a hardworking, good child! Just like your father!"

Neji bowed to thank her every time, even though she was a servant of the Hyuga Clan, ranking even lower than the Branch Family.

Just as Haru called him Young Master in private, they ignored the absurd rules of the clan when they were alone.

The next day was the same.

Whenever Neji encountered clansmen in the narrow streets, he would hear their whispers.

The gossiping women were particularly fond of stabbing people in the back.

"Is that the guy? Hyuga Neji? The ninja with no talent."

"I guess you need to practice when your talent is that poor, right?"

"I heard he got lucky and made it to the finals of the Chunin Exams! We'll see him make a fool of himself then..."

Neji turned back coldly. The fat woman immediately put on a look of carefree indifference, not feeling the slightest bit of shame.

"Ma'am, your cat is about to run away!"

Neji simply refined his chakra, using a Wind Style-infused Rotation. He flicked a blade of wind with lethal precision, and the rope tethering the cat was instantly severed.

"Meow!"

Sensitive to the strange sound of the wind, the fat cat was naturally startled; it scrambled wildly and bolted away.

"Oh my, oh my! Mimi! Mimi! Don't run!"

"Come back!"

The fat woman hopped back and forth on the wooden floor with her bare feet, looking utterly ridiculous.

"Heh!"

"You brat, stop laughing! Hurry up and help me find Mimi!"

Neji shrugged. "Sorry, ma'am, I'm off to train. You could try commissioning other genin to help you find your cat. Oh, and since the Chunin Exams are coming up soon, the pay for genin is going to increase!"

Neji walked away with a grin, feeling quite cheerful.

He never stopped playing these games of wits with the villagers, but he found them endlessly amusing.

Compared to the genuine dangers lurking outside, Neji never took these ignorant fools to heart.

It was only at the training grounds that Neji became truly serious.

"Gentle Fist... 1,000th repetition!"

He landed the final strike against the wooden post, his body heavy with exhaustion.

Host: Hyuga Neji
Age: 13
Basic Ninja Skills (including shurikenjutsu and all fundamentals) Proficiency: 85.9% (Reach 100% to complete the novice stage and activate the Proficiency Consumption System!)
Rank: Konoha Genin
Ninjutsu: None
Taijutsu: Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike (37994/100000), Eight Trigrams Palms: Heavenly Spin (28729/30000), Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms (27634/30000), Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm (13993/30000), Eight Trigrams Body Strike (10494/30000)
Genjutsu: None
Bloodline Limit: Byakugan (27638/30000)
Basic Items: Military Ration Pill *2, Explosive Tag *10, Crow Fern Special Herb *5
Advanced Items: None
Special Items: None

"Still over sixty thousand proficiency points to reach the next realm? This difficulty is truly inhuman!"

Neji collapsed onto the ground. Over the past eight years, he had spent five years just learning to use the Byakugan proficiently.

It took him another three years to master all his taijutsu.

Now, he had a long road ahead to refine these techniques even further.

Fortunately, his recent real-combat experiences seemed to provide a significant boost; this was likely a shortcut worth risking his life for.

With Orochimaru appearing in the village, he had no choice but to find a way to grow stronger quickly.

If the situation turned dire in the future, what would he do if he lacked even the ability to protect himself? Was he destined to become one of the Konoha 12 who perished in the chaos of war?

Whoosh!

Neji instantly sensed something flying toward him. His body, still lying on the ground, rolled instinctively, dodging three stones that came hurtling in succession.

He backflipped to his feet and snapped his head around to look.

"Yo, that movement—truly perfect!"

It was Hyuga Gintoki, sporting a head of silver hair—a color Neji found deeply unpleasant.

Beside him stood the green-haired Hyuga Aota. The two were cousins, and for years, they had been filled with malice toward Neji.

Gintoki: "I heard you did pretty well in the Chunin Exams, kid? You actually made it to the finals!"

Aota: "How impressive!"

Neji took a deep breath. The bet with the elders was to be settled at the clan meeting.

The chance of being deceived was slim, and now, he no longer needed to avoid real combat.

"You two came at the perfect time. Don't you usually want to fight me? Good, my training for today isn't over yet."

"Training? Ha! What's the point of a loser training?"

Gintoki sneered, hands shoved deep into his pockets, never believing for a second that Neji would dare lay a hand on him.

"Ah!"

The next moment, a violent force slammed into his body, sending him flying several meters away, completely caught off guard.

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm."

Aota froze, staring at Neji in shock.

"You bastard, what do you think you're doing?" Aota instinctively shifted into a defensive stance.

"We are both of the same clan, so why is there such a massive gap between us?"

Neji spoke, but he simply brushed past Aota, having no interest in acknowledging him, and headed straight... toward where Gintoki lay!