The Dossier! Secrets of the Hyuga Clan

"Hinata?"

Neji froze, never having expected that he would be matched against Hinata!

Was the plot from the original story truly going to play out? But the current Neji would never lay a hand on his cousin, Hinata.

Even though Hinata was currently undergoing special training under Kurenai Yuhi, she was still lacking the experience to put up a serious fight against him.

"That's right, Neji. This time you'll be facing Hinata. Given your strength, winning shouldn't be difficult."

"Ah..."

Neji responded perfunctorily, but what he truly cared about was not whether he could win.

"If it's Neji, there shouldn't be any problem," Tenten said.

Ino: "Are you kidding? How could Neji possibly lose to his own cousin?"

Shikamaru: "We've all trained this hard; it's the same regardless of who he faces..."

Choji: "Neji, you've got this!"

Everyone's perception of Neji had been completely refreshed.

Now, they were all convinced that Neji's strength was guaranteed.

They had witnessed Neji's hard work and had experienced it firsthand.

Aside from Asuma, who had intervened midway, everyone else had cut corners, but Neji had completed the entire regimen thoroughly; such perseverance alone was worthy of formidable strength.

"What about me? What about me?"

"The subsequent match-ups are Sasuke versus Temari, Ino versus Sakura, Shikamaru versus Shino, Naruto versus Kankuro..."

"Huh? Why am I fighting Sakura?"

They began a heated discussion about the Chunin Exams twenty days later, while Neji fell into deep thought.

Hinata, huh? I should advise her to forfeit.

Neji thought to himself.

"What?"

Neji's eyes widened as he looked at the sorrowful Hyuga Haru.

Haru nodded and continued, "Young Master Neji, I believe in you. But they insist on doing this; they want to lock up Lady Hinata because, regarding the suspicions against you, they are adamant that Hinata is the prime suspect..."

"Damn it!"

Neji stepped back, clenching his fists tightly.

"Where is Hyuga Hiashi? Where is Hyuga Hiashi?"

Seeing Neji so enraged, Haru was somewhat startled.

"The Clan Head... he didn't say anything."

Neji turned around and, with a "whoosh," leaped out of the courtyard.

This child? Haru's eyes were filled with worry, and she suddenly regretted telling Neji about it.

But she also didn't think there was anything Neji, just a child, could do. He was just like her—a servant who couldn't change anything.

Members of the Branch Family all had to accept their fate.

"Bang!"

The door was pushed open, but due to the excessive force, it slammed against the wall.

"The Branch Family is so ill-mannered; it seems my management has been lacking." Hyuga Tenshu, that cunning-looking Branch Family elder, spoke.

He walked over slowly, looking at the furious Neji.

Behind him stood a somewhat surprised Hiashi.

"Neji, why are you here?"

Hiashi was taken aback, and Neji hadn't expected to find the two of them in a secret meeting at a time like this.

But in his current state, how could Neji care about such things?

"Why lock up Hinata? If you have suspicions about me, why not just come at me directly? Is this how the Main Branch does things?"

Although he already had an understanding of the Main Branch, he still couldn't break the bad habit of constantly bringing up the Main Branch and Branch Family. But generally speaking, in Neji's eyes now, the elders of the Branch Family were the more detestable source of rot.

"Why are you getting so worked up, child? Hinata is merely being protected. Otherwise, as her father, could Hiashi just watch his own child be in danger?"

Tenshu said, stroking the small tuft of beard on his chin.

Hiashi hesitated for a moment before nodding slightly.

"That's right, Neji. This matter isn't your fault; don't be misled by the rumors within the clan."

Neji was left speechless.

There was too little he could change as he was now.

However, as Hiashi had said, no matter how unscrupulous they were, it was unlikely that Hiashi would personally do anything harmful to his own daughter.

Neji admitted that he had been acting on impulse, so he turned and left.

When it came down to it, it was only because he was too weak!

That night, Neji trained until late, right up until the sky began to drizzle.

"..." Watching the rain grow heavier, Neji packed his things and quickly left the training ground.

Standing behind a large tree the entire time was a figure, the veins around his Byakugan bulging with chakra. He was a middle-aged man, appearing to be about thirty-five years old.

Early the next morning, Neji's figure appeared at the training ground once again.

After a round of training, Neji collapsed to the ground, exhausted, as the system prompted him.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for reaching 30,000 proficiency in Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, breaking through to the 'Beginner' realm! Reward: Byakugan Purity +1%!"

Host: Hyuga Neji
Age: 13
Basic Ninja Skills (including shurikenjutsu and all other fundamentals) Proficiency: 94.8% (Reach 100% to complete the novice phase and activate the proficiency consumption system!)
Rank: Konoha Genin
Ninjutsu: Wind Style: Gale Palm (12959/30000)
Taijutsu: Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike (73979/100000), Eight Trigrams Palms: Heavenly Spin (47703/100000), Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms (30834/30000), Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm (21729/30000), Eight Trigrams Body Strike (16911/30000)
Genjutsu: None
Bloodline Limit: Byakugan (45990/100000)
Byakugan Purity: 13%
Basic Items: Explosive Tag *10, Crow Fern Special Herb *2
Advanced Items: None
Special Items: None

"Yo, isn't this the genius of the Hyuga Clan who is about to become a Chunin, Neji?"

It was the voice of Aota.

Neji stood up quickly and saw that, unexpectedly, Aota was alone today.

"Don't look around. Gintoki was arrested for interrogating Hinata without authorization. The clan elders are wary of the Main Branch, so he went on his own."

"What did you say?"

Neji's eyes widened, his fists clenching tight.

"Don't worry, he didn't actually do anything to Hinata; the elders caught him in the end. I think you..."

Thwack. Aota's brows furrowed as he flew backward, saliva spraying from his mouth.

Neji had pulled his punch; otherwise, a direct strike to the chest would have surely resulted in him coughing up blood.

Neji's expression was dark.

"You!"

Neji glared at him, and Aota was so frightened he shut his mouth immediately.

Aota had seen with his own eyes how Neji had suppressed Hyuga Gintoki that day.

Gintoki was considered the most talented of their generation in the clan, yet Neji was already completely above him.

Given such an exaggerated gap, he simply could not believe that Neji had strengthened his power on his own.

"Hyuga Neji, your teacher said, is the scroll in your hands?"

"Scroll?"

Neji turned back. He had expected to gain no information, but suddenly, he became interested.

"Don't play dumb! The ancestral scroll that my grandfather has been searching for—did the clan leader give it to you in secret? Or did your father steal it? Yes... it must have been your father who stole it! Otherwise, how could the scroll have vanished by this generation of the Main Branch!?"

"Ugh!"

Neji had already lunged forward, grabbing Aota by the collar.

"You..."

"If your mouth can't stay shut, I will kill you."

His gaze was sharp, icy, and cold!

Neji meant every word.

Fear appeared in Aota's eyes. The "trash" they had bullied day and night now possessed a truly different aura; his first instinct was to save his own life!

"What do you know about the scroll?"

Neji's question led Aota to mistakenly believe that he had discovered a secret he shouldn't have.

If he didn't speak properly now, he would be silenced!

"I—I only know that the scroll was passed down by our ancestors. For thousands of years, only one genius from two generations ago, Hyuga Tenin, had mastered everything written on it... By this generation, the scroll has disappeared."