"Who?"
Neji Hyuga was immersed in grief when he suddenly heard a somewhat off-key voice.
He could not help but stare in surprise, frowning.
Who was so blind as to disturb him at a time like this?
He turned to look.
There stood a child even younger than himself not far away, a blade of grass hanging from his mouth. Those strange Double Pupils were studying him with keen interest.
Double Pupils met the Byakugan!
As Neji looked at Xuan Yu, his eyes were filled with curiosity. Even though this was their first meeting, he had a poor impression of this child around his own age.
Too flamboyant, too naive.
"My name is Uchiha Xuan Yu!" Xuan Yu looked at Neji, a trace of pity in his Double Pupils. "How about being my friend? I won't treat you badly!"
Over the past few days, he had learned the full story of Hizashi Hyuga through various means. The Third Hokage had been weak, allowing the Hyuga Clan's murderer to go free, and poor Hizashi Hyuga had become the scapegoat.
And besides,
he had heard that the Hyuga Clan elders had gone to Neji's home and threatened Hizashi Hyuga with the lives of his wife and son, forcing him to commit suicide. In the end, Hizashi Hyuga had compromised.
He met Hyuga Hiashi once, then took his own life at the Clan Head's Residence.
However, Neji's Mother had likely fallen gravely ill due to Hizashi's death, or perhaps because she had been injured that day. She had been bedridden ever since and could not even attend Hizashi Hyuga's funeral.
"No. I don't need friends!" Neji Hyuga firmly shook his head. He did not want to pay Xuan Yu any mind, merely staring silently at his father's gravestone, unsure what he was thinking.