I've had enough already

Minato's introduction surprised me; I did not expect to be in an alternate universe.

He frowned once he heard my response.

Why? Perhaps he expected a 'I adore Konoha unconditionally even if they make me a slave.'

Anyway, now he knows that I don't like my clan. Maybe he, as the protagonist's father and a synonym of virtue, will help me.

There wasn't much to highlight from the other fights; they were all filler characters. Oh yes, TenTen won her match.

—————————-

To my dismay, I returned to the Hyuga clan.

Contrary to what one might think, winning at the academy didn't sit well with me; they were 12 years old, for Christ's sake.

On the way, I saw Hinata looking at me with fear.

Trying to improve our relationship, I went and greeted her.

"Hello, Hinata-Sama," I smiled at her.

"C- Cousin, have you done something wrong lately? The leaders want you to meet with them."

I was surprised. What did the elders want from me now? Did I do something wrong?

"Thanks for letting me know; I'll go see what I did."

Hinata was surprised that I didn't look at her with hatred.

Still scared, she nodded and left.

Poor girl, she seemed traumatized.

I sighed. How can I fix our relationship?

Thinking about how I could earn points with Hinata, I went to the clan leaders' hall.

"Neji," Hiashi said coldly.

"Greetings, esteemed patriarch," I knelt down.

In front of me were Hiashi and the six elders.

"We have heard about your 'idle chat' with the Hokage. It seems you are not happy with how we do things."

Damn.

Do I have spies whenever I go to the academy? No, it's a waste of resources; they must have put a spy on me when they found out that today was the day the Fourth Hokage came to the academy.

"I just told him I liked the academy," I defended myself calmly thanks to Neji's nature.

"You told him you preferred the academy and Konoha over the Hyuga clan."

"Well, there's a thing called diversity of opinion," I got tired of this farce; it was obvious that there was no escape.

"Who taught you about 'diversity of opinion'? You are a Hyuga; the clan comes above everything."

"No one."

The elders and Hiashi frowned.

Hideki, my grandfather and a scoundrel who marked his son Hizashi, got furious.

"Boy, remember what you were born for. We didn't raise you to be a brat; it's your destiny to protect the Hyuga clan," Hideki shouted at me.

"I understand; I will put the clan above Konoha," I told them.

Not a chance.

The frowns did not disappear even then.

"Don't ever try to expose us to outsiders. I know what you're after," said an elder, my aunt Himiko.

That surprised me.

"What am I after?" I feigned surprise.

"You seek not to fulfill your duty to the main branch. Hiashi, punish him," this woman has always had something against me from the beginning; I know it well from my memories as Neji.

Hiashi ignored her and asked his own question.

"Why didn't you use the Hyuga style?"

He was referring to the capoeira I used against Rock Lee today.

"He didn't deserve to see our clan's style," I lied again.

This angered Hiashi.

"It seems you don't learn."

And he activated the seal.

"Ahhhhhhh."

——————————

I was fed up; I spent a day bedridden because of those slavers.

I examined the dusty table wedged in the corner of the room. It was an isolated table, darkened by the large shelves full of books and scrolls. It was the perfect place to spend time away from prying eyes.

Since I couldn't learn seals from anywhere, I would learn everything I could from here.

I occupied Konoha's General Library. The building was vast and extensive. It had many levels and floors. The lower floors were archives and heavily guarded by active shinobi. They were accessible with high-level clearance. There were few occupants on the second-floor shelves.

It was early in the morning, and the library had just opened its doors to the general public.

I began my studies with the history section. I piled book after book, using the stool and ladder to reach the higher shelves. I gathered books and scrolls on Shinobi wars, the art of being a Shinobi, military tactics, the clans of Konohagakure, the establishment of the village, geography, medicine, the landscape of the Elemental Nations, the economy, and works of fiction, geopolitics. I glanced at the children's section out of curiosity and grabbed some books.

Hours passed in silence as I read quickly, absorbing the dry information with difficulty. The texts were dry and tedious. Weeks passed, and I became a regular at the library. The shinobi at the reception desk looked at me with carefully blank faces as I passed by them to my designated corner.

I kept reading for months, covering a substantial amount of topics. I noticed a pattern in the history books and children's literature. Konohagakure used a high level of propaganda, and its narrative was one-sided.

I realized how the Senju family received all the accolades while the Uchiha were ignored.

The occupation of being a shinobi was romanticized as the most honorable path. The Will of Fire was celebrated on a pedestal, and the village served as one big family unit.

I lifted my head from the book.

Family?

I had no family, I thought bitterly.

I delved into a heroic story of brothers, brave and honorable Konoha-nin. Hours passed as I drank in every word. The feats of Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama. It was a story of heroes with martyrdom, service, and sacrifice.

I kept reading.

I frowned at this new discovery. Permanence. A shinobi served for life and was not allowed to leave the village except on a mission. Those who left the village were hunted and labeled as missing, deserters to the village. Being a shinobi was to be chained to the village for life. It was a life sentence to serve until death.

This meant I couldn't leave Konoha peacefully once I got rid of the seal.

I hid my face in the book when a wave of nausea overcame me. I reread the words and frowned.

Becoming a shinobi was giving up my life.

I shook my head.

Not only did I not want to be from the Hyuga clan, I didn't want to be a tool of Konoha. I wanted to follow my own true nindo.

To summarize, I know from the canon that Konoha was awful. They made Kakashi's father commit suicide, experimented on children, sent orphans to the root, forgave Orochimaru's and Sasuke's actions at the end of Shippuden, my slavery, bullying, indoctrination, participation in all wars, indiscriminate genocide of the Uchiha clan by a totalitarian government, etc.

I've decided.

Sorry, Naruto, but when I free myself from my seal, I will aim to become Hokage.

Why Hokage and not a ronin?

Well, because being the highest in the hierarchy would make me truly free.

But isn't the Hokage basically a public official at the orders of a Daimyo?

Well, after the Hyuga revolution, if I still want to be Hokage, I will 'kindly' explain to the Daimyo that things will be done my way. After all, the Hokage is a military minister.

Although, honestly, I doubt I can become Hokage without a coup like the Uchiha.

Hokages follow a succession line; only the disciples of previous Hokages become one.

In the anime, it was clear favoritism. Only Fugaku and Dan, Tsunade's boyfriend, ran for Hokage without being disciples of the previous one and failed.

Maybe in this AU, that caused the coup...

By the way, thanks to my memories, I know Dan is alive too. I heard he divorced Tsunade once he didn't become Hokage, problems in love.

Rumor has it that Dan used Tsunade to gain prestige and become Hokage.

Kawaki, on the other hand, is dead because Tsunade was still the last Senju.

So Tsunade is out of the village.

Oh, and I did some research, and Rin is dead. How do I know? Basically, since Naruto is the Hokage's son, his Jinchuriki status is not taboo. Since it's not taboo, I can perfectly ask how many Bijuu Konoha has, and the answer was 'only one.'

So Rin, the previous Jinchuriki of the Sanbi, is dead.

So Obito being in Akatsuki is a thing.

I'll leave that to Naruto and Sasuke.

Although, thinking about it, to be Hokage, I needed achievements, although I hope in this AU the Fourth Ninja War doesn't happen; it was a Kishimoto's wild idea.

A pity that Rin died. Now with Tsunade out of Konoha, I have no one to teach me medical jutsus.

No matter, I will find someone.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Konoha Hospital, everything is a constant hustle. The clean, medicinal aroma of the hallways fills my lungs as I walk, looking for someone who can guide me.

I will learn to use Iryo Ninjutsu.

I just need to use my Byakugan and see how the medical ninja students do it.

So here I was, in a hospital chair, with my Byakugan stealthily activated, motivated to learn.

I hope I have the same observational skills for medical ninjutsu as I do for learning the Kaiten.

I concentrated on looking through the walls in search of trainees.

Thinking that maybe I could see someone resuscitating a fish or something.

I spent hours observing the rooms, waiting to see someone use medical ninjutsu.

Until finally, I found someone.

Wait a minute, isn't that Kabuto?

Gray hair, glasses, no doubt it's him.

I saw the spy concentrating and placing his hands on the back of a ninja with an injury, seemingly from some projectiles in the back.

Focused, I observed how Kabuto's Chakra flowed from his hands. With my Byakugan, I could see how his Chakra nodes radiated vital energy into the target, and it turned green.

But what's the difference between blue and green? The density?

That must be it, there must be various ways to channel chakra.

I then grabbed my wrist similar to how Sasuke does the Chidori.

My hand glowed with a blue gas.

Apply more chakra?

The gas turned bluer.

Maybe less.

I also started thinking about what blood is made of. Blood is living tissue made up of liquids and solids. The liquid part, called plasma, contains water, salts, and proteins. More than half of the body is plasma. The solid part of the blood contains red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.

Bingo, my hand shone with a green gas.

It wasn't as dense as Kabuto's. In fact, it seemed colorless even to the Byakugan, but I could see it turning a bit green.

"Neji, right?"

I turned to find a kindly-looking old man.

"Yes, Third Hokage-Sama."

"Just as I thought, you're just a curious child, eh? Hahaha," the old man laughed.

"I don't understand, did I do something wrong?" I asked.

"No, no, I have been observing you for a while. I have to say, you are a dedicated and curious person. Not many children choose healing."

He was spying on me? I didn't even notice.

"I see the rumors are true, you are a genius, learning Iryo Ninjutsu with just a glance," continued the ex-Hokage.

A smug smile crossed my face; I couldn't help it.

"Thank you, Hokage-Sama."

"You've caught my attention, come with me to my home."

Maybe Minato told him to spy on me with his magic ball?

"I'd be delighted, Hokage-Sama."

The Sarutobi residence was full of adult ninjas, probably jounin.

In the library, I found out that the Sarutobi clan has a lot of influence and properties in the village.

Hiruzen led me to his garden.

We walked in silence until we reached a large tree.

"Tell me, Neji-kun, what do you think of Konoha?"

"I can't know, I haven't been anywhere else."

"Hahaha, no, no, I mean its people," Hiruzen continued, pretending to be kindly.

"There are people I like."

"And your clan?"

I shuddered.

"I am very well in the Hyuga clan," I said robotically.

"Right now, we are not being watched, child, you can say what you think. There are anti-Byakugan seals here."

That surprised me. Without hesitation, I took the opportunity.

"I will answer you with another question. Do you think the Hyuga clan uses slaves?"

Hiruzen looked thoughtful, but sadly, his response was that of a politician, that is, he said something without saying anything.

"It's a difficult question; we are still thinking about it. The Hyuga clan doesn't seem to think so."

That's because only the main branch speaks, I wanted to say.

"Sorry, it seems it wasn't a good answer. But I'll tell you something, if there is someone capable of changing the Hyuga clan, it's you."

"How?"

"By contributing to Konoha. I always think that if you give to the village, in the end, it will recognize you."

Yeah, right. I'll die like in the canon.

"I want to tell you something about our village, Konoha. Imagine it as a big tree, where each leaf is a clan. The Nara, with their intelligence, are the leaves that analyze the wind. The Yamanaka, with their ability to connect minds, remind us of the importance of communication. The Akimichi, with their strength, show the value of mutual support.

You, from the Hyuga clan, are a leaf that illuminates the others with your unique vision. In Konoha, every leaf is essential. Together, we withstand storms and thrive. The true strength of our village is in our unity and cooperation.

Always remember to work together, like the leaves of a tree. That way, Konoha will be a place of peace and prosperity."

Have you already cut off the Uchiha clan's leaf? I wanted to ask.

"I'll think about what you said. Can I go now?" I didn't want to be indoctrinated. I knew I wouldn't get anything out of that advice.

Hiruzen nodded, and I left.

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Hiruzen's POV

This child...

It will be difficult to ensure his loyalty to Konoha like Itachi and Shisui.

Undoubtedly, he was a genius, to learn a medical jutsu with just one glance.

And he's in the branch of his clan. It is well known that the secondary branch citizens don't have the same resources as the main branch.

If only he hadn't been born in the secondary branch.

Obviously, I wasn't going to help him; convincing the clan that currently holds the title of Konoha's strongest would only induce problems.

It all started this morning when Minato-kun recommended that I take a look at the Hyuga prodigy because his response at the academy wasn't to his liking.

So I used the crystal ball to spy on him these days.

To be honest, it was a stupid mission, in my opinion.

The child was a slave, it didn't matter if he fell into darkness, he could never get rid of the seal on his forehead.

But now maybe I understand a bit why the request was made.

The boy wasn't only a genius in taijutsu, but also in iryo jutsu!

To learn it with just one glance and without sharingan shows that he has above-average intelligence.

"I will have to report this to Minato-kun."