Chapter 30 - look! People of the clan

After all the games were over, Neji found Hinata, who had also advanced, and the two hurriedly returned to the Hyuga clan.

Late that night, Neji personally escorted Hinata to her residence.

As they arrived, a thirty-five-year-old maid was waiting outside.

The maid possessed the Byakugan, but her bloodline purity was low, indicating a weaker lineage.

"Master Neji, did you pass the exam?"

"Auntie Chun, this is the Zong family," Neji reminded her in a low voice.

"Nothing."

This maid, Hyuga Haru, had served Hinata since childhood. In the past, she shared a close bond with Hyuga Hizashi, who treated her like a sister. Since Neji's birth, she had always called him "Neji boy," and even after Neji's reminder, she continued to do so in private.

"Well, I narrowly won, and there will be an official match in a month."

"Great! In that case, there should be fewer rumors circulating in the family, right?"

"Yeah. Well, I'll take my leave now."

After parting ways, Neji headed toward his home in the darkness.

Living in the branch house wasn't about humiliation or poverty. The Hyuga clan was not extensive, and the branch house had enough space, so Neji was not crammed into a corner.

However, even in the branch house, Neji's exceptional talent made him a target for others. Those without parents were often ostracized.

He was used to walking in the night, where no one could see his pain or pity him.

Night was the perfect time for contemplation.

From Auntie Chun's words, it seemed many in the clan had been discussing the possibility of learning Revolving Heaven on their own. If that were the case...

It would mean that among the spectators during the exam, there were likely spies from the Hyuga clan watching him, right?

Fortunately, Neji had prepared thoroughly. In his match against Gaara, he had not revealed any weaknesses.

The next step was to grow stronger. Neji had encountered many formidable opponents during the Chūnin exam.

Tou, Gaara, Orochimaru—each represented a significant threat to Konoha.

As for Neji's current strength, he struggled to prove himself within the clan. To face these individuals, he feared he lacked the stamina.

When he finally arrived home, he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.

Despite the constant disputes in the branch house, it was the only place that offered him peace—a rare moment of rest in the past years.

The next morning, Neji woke up as usual.

It was still dark, but he was already on the training ground.

"Ha!"

"Humph!"

He practiced relentlessly from morning to night.

In the evening, Haru Hyuga brought him a bento.

"Master Neji, you need to do your best for the exam. Prove your talent! You're a good kid who works hard—just like your father!"

Neji bowed and thanked Haru every time. Even though she was a servant of the Hyuga clan, lower than the branch house, he respected her deeply. Just as Chun called him "Young Master" in private, they ignored the clan's absurd rules among themselves.

The next day was similar.

As Neji walked through the streets and alleys, he overheard gossip from his clansmen.

The older women loved to gossip about the younger generation.

"That's Hyuga Neji? A ninja with no talent."

"Why practice when he's so talentless?"

"I heard he got lucky in the final exam! He'll be embarrassed when it counts!"

Neji turned his head indifferently, and the plump woman immediately put on a smug expression, showing no shame.

"Auntie, your cat is escaping!"

As Neji focused his chakra, he used a wind-based Revolving Heaven technique, cutting the rope that tied the cat.

"Meow!"

The fat cat, sensitive to the sudden gust of wind, panicked and scurried away.

"Ah! Mimi! Come back!"

The woman jumped around barefoot on the wooden floor, creating a comical scene.

"Haha!"

"Boy, don't laugh! Get Mimi back for me!"

Neji shrugged. "Sorry, Auntie, but I need to train. You might want to ask another Genin for help. Besides, with the Chūnin exam coming up, their rewards will increase!"

With a smile, Neji left her behind, feeling in good spirits.

While Neji didn't shy away from confronting the people in the village, he never let their comments affect him.

Compared to the real dangers outside, the opinions of these uninformed fools didn't matter to him.

In the practice field, Neji maintained his seriousness.

"Gentle Fist... for the thousandth time!"

He struck the wooden post with exhaustion.

"Host: Hyuga Neji

Age: 13 years

Ninja Basic Skills (including all fundamental skills such as throwing) Proficiency Progress: 85.9% (Reaching 100% completes the novice stage and activates the proficiency consumption system!)

Grade: Konoha Village Genin

Ninjutsu: None

Physical Exercises: Gentle Fist·Pointing (37994/100000), Eight Trigrams Palms·Revolving Heaven (28729/30000), Eight Trigrams·Sixty-Four Palms (27634/30000), Eight Trigrams·Empty Palms (13993/30000), Eight Trigrams·One Shot (10494/30000)

Illusion: None

Blood Succession Boundary: Byakugan (27638/30000)

Basic Items: Bingliang Pill*2, Detonation Talismans*10, Ujue Trait Herb*5

Advanced Items: None

Special Items: None"

"Over 60,000 proficiency just to reach the next level? That's inhumane!"

Neji lay on the ground. In the past eight years, he had spent five years mastering the Byakugan.

It took him another three years to learn all the physical skills.

The next step was to refine those skills even further, which would be a long journey.

Fortunately, recent actual combat experiences seemed to have greatly improved him. This was likely a shortcut, albeit a risky one.

With Orochimaru's appearance in the village, Neji needed to find a way to grow stronger quickly.

What if the situation turned dire, and he lacked the ability to protect himself? Did he want to end up like the twelve Xiaoqiang who died in battle?

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, Neji sensed something hit him. Rolling to evade, he narrowly missed three rocks that came flying toward him.

Jumping to his feet, he turned to see who had thrown them.

"Oh, that was a perfect maneuver!"

It was Hyuga Gintoki, his silver hair instantly making Neji feel annoyed.

Beside him stood Hyuga Aota, green-haired and equally contemptuous, both cousins who had long harbored animosity toward Neji.

"I heard you did well in the Chūnin exam? Made it to the finals!" Gintoki taunted.

"Impressive!" Aota added mockingly.

Neji took a deep breath, reminded of the wager with the elder regarding clan standing.

With the possibility of deception unlikely, he felt confident facing them.

"You two came at the right time. Don't you usually want to fight me? Well then, let's get started—I'm not done training yet."

"Training? Ha! What can a waste like you do?" Gintoki scoffed, hands shoved in his pockets, clearly underestimating Neji.

"What?!"

In an instant, Neji unleashed a powerful force, knocking Gintoki several meters away unexpectedly.

"Eight Trigrams·Empty Palm."

Aota gasped, staring at Neji in shock.

"What do you want?" Aota instinctively prepared to defend himself.

"Why is there such a significant gap among the clan members?" Neji replied coolly, brushing past Aota and heading directly toward Gintoki.

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