Chapter 17

When he saw the massive chakra inside Sasuke, Neji had braced himself for it, but he was still shaken.

What surprised him even more was that the chakra in Sasuke's body was still flowing nonstop...

So this was the Uchiha genius Lee had mentioned?

"Hello, Hyuga Neji."

"Did you come over here to train with us?"

Sasuke spoke first, his tone extremely casual.

He did not take Hyuga Neji's cold expression to heart at all. "Mm."

Neji only answered, then said nothing more.

But then he changed tack—"But if you're too useless, don't blame me for being rude."

After saying that, he directly assumed the opening stance of the Eight Trigrams Palm, his movements clean and crisp.

Lee grabbed Naruto, who was still dazed, and dragged him toward the rest area. "Neji is really strong. Let's watch them fight first."

"Come on, come on, go stand off to the side."

The corner of Sasuke's mouth curled up, and he also assumed the Uchiha-style taijutsu stance. "I probably won't disappoint you."

"But since we're fighting, how about we add a wager?"

"If you lose, then until you surpass me, you listen to my arrangements."

"If I lose, same thing."

He threw out the bet directly. "Fine."

"But I won't lose."

The moment Neji's voice fell, he had already vanished from where he stood.

He was so fast that even Lee froze for a moment.

He had not expected this guy to have gotten stronger again. "Bang!"

Sasuke raised his hand and blocked the palm Neji chopped down at him.

At the same time, the Lightning Release surging from his arm directly knocked away the chakra attached to Neji's Gentle Fist.

Neji's palm trembled. Sensing the prickling force of that lightning, he immediately twisted his body and used a strange posture to shed the force.

Lowering his body, his palm went straight for Sasuke's waist, striking over without the slightest mercy. "Bzzzt, bzzzt, bzzzt..."

Before Neji's palm could land, lightning suddenly exploded all around Sasuke, forcibly driving Neji back.

Sasuke's heart jumped too.

Being single in his last life was one thing, but he was still a kid in this life. This guy came up and tried to ruin his happiness for the rest of his life?

Ruthless enough.

Looks like he had to get a little serious.

After all, this was a public training ground, so Sasuke usually did not reveal many of his trump cards.

But Neji was clearly not someone he could handle while keeping things hidden. "Boom!"

The next second, Sasuke disappeared from where he stood.

A cracked footprint was left on the ground. "Bang!"

Before Neji could react, a fist had already smashed into his back.

It also carried a surge of violent lightning.

The moment the lightning burrowed into his body, Neji felt as if every cell in his body was screaming.

Fortunately, that feeling did not last long. Neji gritted his teeth and forced himself not to make a sound.

But the trace of contempt in his eyes had completely turned into solemnity.

Every day, he swung his palms until they went numb.

Every day, he pushed past the limits of his Byakugan.

Every day, he stared at that courtyard belonging to the main family and clenched his fists.

No.

If he admitted defeat from such a small blow, then he would not be called Hyuga Neji. "Eight Trigrams Four Palms!"

"First Palm: Sky Rush!"

"Second Palm: Acupoint Lock!"

"Third Palm: Meridian Split!"

"Fourth Palm: Gate Opening!"

Neji directly brought out his trump card, determined to fight Uchiha Sasuke to the end.

With every palm he struck, the chakra in his hands increased by another measure.

By the time the fourth palm was stacked on top, both his speed and strength had already reached the limit that his body could withstand. "Lightning Release: Little White Worm."

Sasuke raised a hand, and a field of white lightning immediately appeared around him.

When Neji charged over, that white lightning met his palm head-on. "Bzzzt, bzzzt, bzzzt..."

That familiar corrosive feeling and numbness wrapped around him again.

But in this state, Neji was not someone this bit of Lightning Release could stop. "Bang!"

The next second, Neji's palm struck Sasuke solidly.

"You lost."

The corner of Neji's mouth curled up, his smile carrying a hint of confidence. "I lost just like that?"

"Not quite, right?"

"Neji, you couldn't get through."

The moment Sasuke's voice fell, his whole body flew backward and hit the ground with a dull thud. "Sasuke!"

Naruto's expression changed, and he hurriedly rushed over to help him up, looking him up and down.

There was only so much he could see, but at the very least, he knew—Sasuke was injured. "A genius... is only that much?"

"That kid from the Hyuga Clan is worth keeping an eye on."

"If his little family conflict is used well, it might produce some results."

In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the crystal ball before him.

The Telescope Technique was active, and he had seen this battle perfectly clearly.

For two children to fight to this degree was already quite good...

To be honest, the old man was truly busy.

On one hand, he had to balance the power of every clan, and on the other, he had to keep an eye on the interests of the higher-ups.

On one hand, he had to handle all the big and small matters in the village, and on the other, he had to see whether any promising seedlings had appeared.

He even had to do a little something on the side...

Cough, cough. Getting off topic.

Back on Sasuke's side.

Naruto helped him over to sit at the edge of the spectator seats, and only then did he slowly adjust his position.

That sense of being watched had disappeared—looks like Hiruzen Sarutobi had already withdrawn. "I lost."

"The bet we talked about earlier, I'll honor it."

"When I beat you one day, then it'll be your turn to listen to me."

Neji gritted his teeth and shouted.

Only he himself knew that Sasuke had not been knocked away by him at all.

In that instant, Sasuke had done so many things—

Lightning Release had locked down his movement.

A kunai had already reached the edge of his palm.

As long as Sasuke had wanted it, the one lying on the ground would not have been him, Neji, but Neji himself.

Neji could not understand. He had clearly won, so why did Sasuke still pretend to lose?

What was going on inside this kid's head?

"Lee, Naruto."

"Today, you two train with Neji."

"Neji, don't think about all that messy stuff. Properly feel out your own condition."

After Sasuke finished speaking, he made a show of sitting cross-legged and began "healing." "What?"

Neji froze.

He seemed to understand Sasuke's words, and yet it felt as if he had grasped nothing. "This..."

The next second, he sensed that something was wrong inside his body.

The cluster of Lightning Release Sasuke had driven into his body was still operating even now.

The most critical part was—those strands of Lightning Release were tempering his cells.

People of the Hyuga Clan were no strangers to this sort of thing.

It was just that when they normally tempered their bodies, they relied on expensive medicinal herbs or medicinal liquids.

But now, a single ninjutsu had done it?

"Neji, hurry up!"

Rock Lee was already urging him. "You injured Sasuke just now, so this time I'm going to help him get back at you!"

Naruto puffed out his cheeks, looking unhappy. "Fine."

The corner of Neji's mouth lifted again.

Even he himself did not notice that smile.

The three of them soon tangled into a fight.

As for Sasuke, he sat motionless at the side, staring at the changes in Neji's body.

A genius from one of Konoha's old established clans was worth taking a proper look at.

He discovered that although people of the Hyuga Clan could not match the Uzumaki Clan in physical toughness, the resilience of their meridians was truly absurd.

After chakra surged into his body, there was no need to be overly cautious at all.

He could simply open things up and help refine it.

As for that Lightning Release: Little White Worm, it was actually a trick Sasuke had come up with while studying Lightning God Mode.

It allowed Lightning Release to leave his body and still be freely controlled for a period of time, as if it had eyes.

That way, when he tempered Naruto and the others' bodies in the future, he would not have to stay rooted beside them.

Time passed little by little.

Naruto, Neji, and Lee were all lying on the ground, their bodies feeling as if they had fallen apart.

That fight just now had truly wrung out the last bit of their strength.

He had to admit, this kind of practical combat training was really... brutal enough. "Gurgle..."

"Gurgle, gurgle..."

"Gurgle..."

Three throats cried out at the same time. "Hahaha—I'm hungry! I'm going back to eat a huge meal!"

Naruto flipped over and scrambled up, grabbing the bag beside him and trying to run. "Naruto, let's go eat ramen."

"Neji and Lee too. My treat."

Sasuke opened his eyes and smiled as he called out to the three of them.

The moment Naruto heard the word ramen, his legs seemed to nail themselves to the ground.

Lee did not think too much either and nodded directly.

Only Neji looked toward Sasuke somewhat awkwardly. "There are four of us."

"And... it seems like we can all eat quite a lot."

There was a bit of difficulty in Neji's words.

At their age, plus the exertion from earlier, their appetites definitely would not be small. "It's fine."

"My brother just gave me allowance."

"Let's go."

As Sasuke spoke, he headed toward Ichiraku Ramen.

In his heart, he could not help sighing that the Hyuga Clan's upbringing really had something to it.

Neji was only six years old, yet he already knew to consider others.

Inside Ichiraku Ramen. "Another serving!"

"Me too!"

"Add another bowl for me too!"

The three of them really did have fierce combat strength.

Empty bowls had already been stacked into a pile on the table.

Sasuke had not expended much, so after finishing five bowls, he set down his chopsticks.

After fighting for almost two hours, all three of them ate until they became balls.

At first, Neji was still quite reserved, but later, for some reason, he started competing with them over who could eat more.

In the end, Naruto directly took first place with nineteen bowls.

Neji had fifteen, and Lee had sixteen. "Uncle, this is fifty thousand."

"Keep the rest here for now."

"If my classmates come to eat in the future, just deduct it from this."

"We'll be leaving first."

Sasuke put down the money and left the ramen shop together with the three of them.

On the road, Naruto and Lee started getting serious again.

They wanted to compete over who could run one lap around the village first.

As a result, they split up halfway.

Sasuke and Neji walked in the same direction side by side. "Sasuke, you Uchiha..."

After they had walked for a while, Neji spoke.

But he had never been much of a talker, and after getting half a sentence out, he swallowed it back. "What is it?"

"Neji, do you have some opinion about us Uchiha?"

Sasuke picked up the thread without hesitation. "No..."

"I just feel like you're not quite the same as the Uchiha in the rumors."

"With talent like that, you're not flashy at all."

"And you're sincere with your friends, too."

"You're... pretty good."

An unnatural blush actually drifted across Neji's face.

He really lived up to his famous tsundere personality. Even as a kid, he was unbelievably stubborn. "Thanks."

"From now on, I guess we're friends."

"Oh, right. Take this."

As soon as he finished speaking, Sasuke raised a hand, and a cluster of glowing white little insects emerged from his palm, their aura warm and gentle. "This thing can help you temper your body, but you can't use it too much. If you overdo it, it'll hurt you instead."

"There's something sealed inside you. These little insects can gnaw it away bit by bit, too."

"And Hinata counts as my friend too, okay!"

After saying that, Sasuke waved, turned, and ran off into the distance.

The Uchiha Clan Compound was nowhere near the center of the village, and it was completely out of the way from Neji's route home. "Sasuke..."

Bzzzt—hiss!

Neji raised his finger, and that little white insect followed the motion and burrowed into his skin.

A familiar sensation immediately surged through his entire body.

Unlike when they had exchanged blows earlier, this little insect was clearly much gentler, tempering his cells inch by inch.

What made Neji's heart jolt even more was that he keenly sensed it—the aura of that Lightning Release was actually eroding the mark on his forehead.

The Caged Bird!

The discovery left Neji frozen where he stood.

One had to know, the Caged Bird was a sealing technique developed by the Hyuga Clan over generations, specifically designed to restrain the Byakugan bloodline.

For so many years, no one had ever been able to shake it in the slightest. "Hinata... what does she know?"

The girl who kept calling him "Brother Neji" surfaced in his mind, and Neji's expression became especially awkward.

His fists clenched until they cracked, and his face darkened as if water might drip from it.

Yet strangely, that hostility pressing down on his heart seemed to be dispersing little by little.

His whole body actually felt indescribably light. "Looks like I've made a pretty unusual friend..."

Neji shook his head, throwing all those messy thoughts to the back of his mind.

He turned his head to glance in the direction of the Hyuga Clan Compound, then slowly moved his feet and left the spot.

The Uchiha Clan Compound. "What?"

"Lord Shisui is coming back to join the Police Force?"

"Shisui Uchiha? Wasn't that guy in the Anbu? He must have had enough of being pushed around by the Third, so now he wants to come back to the Police Force, huh..."

"Enough. He's still a clansman, one of our brothers. Besides, Shisui really is capable."

"What does the clan head say? They're just letting him join the Police Force directly like this?"