The Caged Bird Seal

Sasuke looked puzzled. "Taijutsu?"

"That's right. At this stage, Taijutsu is your best option." Neji nodded. "Your Fire Release Ninjutsu is already decent, and without a teacher, you'll have a hard time improving your genjutsu. But for Taijutsu, you can use your Sharingan to watch and copy people at the training grounds."

Neji's reminder was like a break in the clouds. Sasuke suddenly saw a path forward.

"That's right! And not just Taijutsu—I can do the same with other ninjutsu. My Sharingan can already copy techniques. I can visit Konoha's training grounds and pick up a few while I'm there." Everything clicked for Sasuke.

"Look at you, taking an idea and running with it." Neji laughed.

"Don't underestimate the Uchiha!" Sasuke said proudly.

"One warning: don't sneak around to watch them. Do it openly," Neji said.

"Openly?" Sasuke asked.

"Exactly. Even if someone catches you, don't admit you're using the Sharingan to copy ninjutsu. Say you came to observe real ninja fighting, and that they move too fast for you to follow without the Sharingan." Neji had already prepared an excuse for him.

"Why are you so good at this? It's like you've been planning it for ages." Sasuke's mouth twitched. He had a feeling he was being led into a trap.

"Don't put words in my mouth. I'm just making a suggestion. The final decision is yours." Neji grinned.

"Sure." Sasuke gave him a dry smile.

"Where did you go today?" When Neji returned to the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Keisuke, an elder of the Main Family, was waiting to question him.

After a brief silence, Neji said, "Elder, Sasuke Uchiha asked me to spar with him."

Hyuga Keisuke looked over Neji's sweat-soaked clothes. "Didn't I tell you to stop associating with that Uchiha Clan orphan? Do my words mean nothing to you?"

"Elder, I had no choice this time. Sasuke Uchiha staked his clan's honor on the match. For the sake of the Hyuga Clan's honor, I had to accept," Neji said.

"Hmph!" Hyuga Keisuke's face darkened. "What right does a member of the Branch Family have to represent the Hyuga Clan's name and honor? Don't you think too highly of yourself?"

"It won't happen again, Elder." Neji lowered his head.

Hyuga Keisuke spoke coldly. "Do you think being the clan head's nephew makes you different from the rest of the Branch Family?"

"I have never thought that." Neji kept his head bowed.

"Hmph! Byakugan!" Hyuga Keisuke suddenly activated his Byakugan. Staring at Neji, he said coldly, "Just as I thought. You say that, but you're still defiant. Why is your fist clenched so tightly inside your sleeve?"

Neji said nothing. The bastard's words had infuriated him.

"Looks like you need a lesson, or you'll forget who belongs to the Main Family." Hyuga Keisuke sneered and formed a hand sign.

In an instant, tearing pain shot through Neji's head. It felt as though his skull had truly split open.

"Ah..." Neji let out a low groan. Clutching his head, he lost his footing from the pain and fell to the floor.

"This is your punishment for disrespecting the Main Family." Hyuga Keisuke watched Neji lying on the floor. A flicker of pleasure entered his eyes, and a faint smile touched his lips.

"Ah—" It felt as though a drill were boring into Neji's brain. The pain was far worse than losing an arm.

"Hmph. This time was only a minor punishment. If you dare harbor ill will toward the Main Family again, it won't be so simple." With a cold smile, Hyuga Keisuke strode away.

"Hah... hah..." Once the Caged Bird Seal stopped, Neji slowly rose to his feet, breathing hard.

Neji watched Hyuga Keisuke's retreating back with impassive eyes, as though he were looking at a dead man.

After shutting the door, Neji went into the side room and sat on a cushion.

When the Caged Bird Seal had activated just now, Neji had sensed something different from before.

To withstand its torment, he had instinctively gathered Chakra in his eyes and brain.

He had clearly felt some of the Chakra around his eyes being absorbed.

Without the Caged Bird Seal interfering, Neji could clearly feel his Byakugan pulsing in a strangely soothing rhythm.

Feeling that rhythm in his eyes, Neji broke into a huge grin. "I can feel it. These eyes are absorbing Chakra. What a wonderful feeling!"

"Haha... just wait, Main Family..." Days of effort had finally borne fruit. Neji tried to contain himself, but he still laughed aloud.

"Byakugan!" Neji activated his Byakugan, hoping to find the source of the change in his eyes. But through its vision, his Chakra looked no different from before.

"So I still can't see what's happening..." Disappointed, Neji deactivated his Byakugan.

Early the next morning, the Ninja Academy's graduation exam officially began.

A technique as basic as the Three-Body Technique was child's play for Neji.

As expected, Neji graduated without a hitch.

Their homeroom teacher, Omori Kyohei, stood at the front of the classroom and read out the team assignments.

"Team One: Kono Hideki, Tazaki Shuji, Tagami Saho."

"Team Three: Neji Hyuga, Tenten, Rock Lee!"

"Yes! I'm on the same team as Neji, my eternal rival and a genius!" Dressed in a bright green bodysuit, Rock Lee flashed Neji a thumbs-up and a dazzling smile beneath his bowl cut.

At the sight of Rock Lee's trademark gleaming teeth, Neji's eye twitched. He really was one of a kind.

"Neji!" Tenten was delighted too, though she seemed a little shy.

Neji noticed her shyness but pretended he hadn't. Right now, he couldn't accept a girl's feelings.

If his plan succeeded, they would no longer be on the same side. If it failed, he couldn't accept her feelings while the Caged Bird Seal still bound him.

The Caged Bird Seal restricted too much of his life!

Until he broke the Caged Bird Seal, Neji could never truly live as a normal person.

As things stood, Neji Hyuga was nothing but a slave to the Hyuga Clan's Main Family.

Disappointed by Neji's lack of response, Tenten changed the subject. "Lee, do you know who our team leader will be?"

Thrilled to have graduated, Rock Lee turned to her. "Tenten, I think it might be Teacher Guy. After all, I've officially become his student."

Tenten pressed a hand to her forehead. "What does your teacher have to do with the rest of us? Do you think Lord Hokage will let you pull strings?"

"Huh?" Lee panicked at her words. He had genuinely believed Might Guy would become Team Three's teacher.

Please let it be Teacher Guy. Please don't let it be another ninja... Rock Lee prayed.