The goal: Tenseigan

"Urgh..." Neji felt sick enough to vomit at the sight of Hyuga Hiashi acting that way.

Someone like him... tsk! Neji genuinely felt his stomach churn.

That feeling did not fade until that evening.

Once his body returned to normal, Neji let out a relieved breath. He never wanted to experience that tearing agony again.

I have to find a way. Rather than live like a slave, I might as well take those Main Family beasts down with me. Neji would never accept remaining a slave forever.

He could stomach bowing and scraping for a while, but if it went on forever, he would rather die.

My only hope is the Tenseigan. After weighing his options, Neji finally settled on using the Tenseigan's power to forcibly break the Caged Bird Seal.

The Tenseigan was a bloodline dōjutsu evolved from the Byakugan. Its power surpassed even the Rinnegan, and the Tenseigan Chakra Mode that came with it was immensely powerful.

It was not as though Neji had never considered other methods, such as using the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu to summon members of the Main Family and see whether they knew how to undo the Caged Bird Seal.

But that approach simply would not work. Konoha's Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu was beyond his reach, and outside Konoha, the version Orochimaru possessed was equally beyond what his current strength allowed him to pursue.

Rather than pursue the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, he would be better off pursuing the Tenseigan.

At least to Neji, evolving the Tenseigan seemed easier. He was far too weak right now to bargain with someone as dangerous as Orochimaru.

He also knew the methods for evolving the Byakugan into the Tenseigan. One was to fuse a large number of Byakugan into a giant Tenseigan. The other was to combine the Ōtsutsuki Clan's chakra with the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan, evolving it into the Tenseigan.

The first method produced a giant Tenseigan, which was not Neji's goal. Nor did he currently have the ability to obtain a large number of Byakugan.

What he needed was a Tenseigan evolved through the second method, born from combining the Ōtsutsuki Clan's chakra with his own Byakugan.

I may not have the Ōtsutsuki Clan's chakra, but Konoha has the ingredients to synthesize it. The corners of Neji's lips rose slightly.

Though he had no ready-made Ōtsutsuki Clan chakra, he could obtain the materials needed to synthesize it.

Those materials were none other than Naruto's main male lead, Naruto Uzumaki, and its second male lead, Sasuke Uchiha.

The former was the reincarnation of the chakra of the Sage of Six Paths Hagoromo Otsutsuki's younger son, while the latter was the reincarnation of his elder son's chakra. Combining Asura's and Indra's chakra would draw out the chakra of the Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo Otsutsuki.

The key to awakening the Rinnegan was to fuse Asura's chakra with Indra's and then draw out the Sage of Six Paths' chakra. Only then could the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan gradually transform into the Rinnegan.

Whether that could actually awaken the Tenseigan remained uncertain. He did not know whether the Ōtsutsuki Clan chakra required for the Tenseigan specifically meant Hagoromo Otsutsuki's chakra or that of his descendants.

But there was no doubt that the Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo Otsutsuki, belonged to the Ōtsutsuki Clan. His chakra was unquestionably Ōtsutsuki Clan chakra; the only question was whether it met the Tenseigan's requirements.

Given his situation, success would leave him free to soar. If he failed, he could always take the Hyuga Clan down with him.

Then the crucial part is transplanting Naruto's and Sasuke's cells. Neji thought it over and decided to find an opportunity to get close to the two of them first.

Transplanting their cells would not be much of a problem. Neither of them was Hashirama Senju with his Wood Release, so their cells were not as dangerous to transplant as Hashirama cells.

Even Asura could not use Wood Release. In the entire Senju Clan, only Hashirama Senju could use it, which suggested that Hashirama was likely a very exceptional individual.

Aside from the cells of someone as exceptional as Hashirama Senju, transplanting other people's cells was quite safe.

After all, Rin Nohara had transplanted Obito Uchiha's entire Sharingan into Kakashi Hatake. Apart from being unable to turn the Sharingan on and off at will, Kakashi had suffered no ill effects.

Kabuto Yakushi had gone even further. He had transplanted cells from all five of them—the Sound Four and Orochimaru—and even transplanted cells from a nonhuman white snake.

Clearly, transplanting cells from individuals without such unusual traits was not dangerous. It merely required some proficiency in medical ninjutsu.

For the Hyuga Clan, medical ninjutsu, with its need for precise control, was practically tailor-made for their abilities.

Even if Hyuga Hiashi refuses, I can just learn it secretly on my own. Neji had formed a plan.

On his third day after arriving in this world, a Monday, he went to Konoha's school for classes as usual.

If he remembered correctly, there would be an exchange between the sixth and fifth grades on Tuesday. He could take that opportunity to get acquainted with them first.

"Morning, Neji!" As soon as he entered the classroom, Tenten, dressed in a qipao with her hair in buns, greeted him with a smile.

"Morning, Tenten."

"Neji, how about a fiery showdown between men during this afternoon's practical class?" Dressed entirely in green, Rock Lee brimmed with enthusiasm as he gave a thumbs-up and flashed a mouthful of white teeth.

"Lee, you should think about how you're going to graduate first. If I remember correctly, the graduation exam tests ninjutsu." Neji smiled faintly.

"Ah!" Rock Lee's enthusiasm instantly turned into a cloud of gloom. "I'm doomed! I can't use ninjutsu at all!"

"It's all right. Don't you have that Teacher Guy you mentioned? Ask him to think of something." Neji walked over and patted his shoulder.

Rock Lee had not become Might Guy's student only after graduation. Might Guy had taken an interest in him before he graduated.

Neji seems a little different. He actually teased Lee on purpose... Dressed in her Chinese-style outfit, Tenten watched Neji with curiosity.

Like an eggplant wilted by frost, Rock Lee slumped into his seat, utterly drained of energy.

The Ninja Academy's lessons were extremely dull, and many students simply fell fast asleep.

Neji did not dare do the same, however. As a member of the Hyuga Clan, he had to be especially careful about his words and actions. The Main Family did not treat the Branch Family as human. If word got back that he had slept in class, he might well be subjected to the Caged Bird Seal.

When he returned that evening, Neji sought out Hyuga Hiashi and told him that he wanted to learn medical ninjutsu.

It would be best if he could obtain medical ninjutsu from Hyuga Hiashi. If Hiashi refused, he would have to find a way to learn it secretly on his own.

"Tell me why you want to divide your attention by studying medical ninjutsu. I told you that your duty is to protect Hinata." Hyuga Hiashi stood before the window with his hands behind his back. Only his stern, cold voice reached Neji.