Chapter 176: Bird Flies When The Cage Opens

Hizashi Hyūga was in turmoil.

He didn't know what to do.

He wanted to convince Neji to abandon the idea of breaking the "Caged Bird," but when the moment came, he couldn't bring himself to say the words.

If it weren't for the fact that Minato's son was from the future, he might have even asked Naruto to remove his own curse mark.

Yes, what bird trapped in a cage doesn't dream of freedom?

He wanted that too.

But on the other hand, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy.

The future was right there in front of him—a future where he would sacrifice himself for the Hyūga clan, never breaking the "Caged Bird."

This dark thought festered inside him, almost becoming an obsession, driving him to instinctively want to stop it from happening.

A month later, Lee and Tenten were found in the tower of the Rōran Kingdom, where the "Dragon Vein" was sealed.

"Are we going back already?" Lee asked, shocked. "We just got here!"

"I wanted to see a younger version of Guy-sensei."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "You want to see a younger Guy? Just look in the mirror."

"Are you sure you're not Guy's kid?"

"Of course not," Lee replied, standing proudly with his hands on his hips, laughing shyly. "Do I really resemble Guy-sensei that much?"

Tenten said nothing, her eyes fixed on Neji.

The boy with the Byakugan... No, after four years, he was a man now.

He looked at Naruto and bowed, "Naruto-sama, please remove the Caged Bird here."

"Does Hinata-sama really support Neji?" Hizashi Hyūga asked.

Naruto ignored him and waved his hand.

Neji knelt before him.

Hinata didn't want to answer, but after glancing at Naruto and then at Karin, she remembered what she had said that night and clenched her fists. "I support him."

"This thing called 'protection' is no different from imprisonment. It shouldn't exist anymore."

"And besides, this is something Naruto agreed to."

"Neither I, Uncle Hizashi, nor even the entire Hyūga clan can change Naruto's will."

As she spoke, Naruto reached out and touched the curse mark on Neji's forehead.

A faint silhouette emerged from within Neji's body—it was his soul. But Naruto didn't fully extract it; only the head separated from the body.

Even as a soul, the "Caged Bird" was still engraved on his forehead, even more vividly.

"Spirit Transformation Technique?" Chōza Akimichi muttered.

Naruto glanced at him but didn't stop what he was doing.

With a flick of his finger, the technique unfolded, and the scarce chakra in Neji's soul formed a seal that completely enveloped the Caged Bird curse mark. The green, cross-shaped curse mark slowly faded away.

This was a transformation at the deepest level of the soul—removing something that had been embedded for decades, something incredibly stubborn.

Just as Naruto had said, the curse mark wasn't complicated, but Neji's soul and strength were too weak. He endured tremendous pain during the process. His soul trembled and flickered.

It wasn't until the last bit of green was erased that the pain finally ceased.

Naruto pushed Neji's soul back into his body. "It's done."

Hizashi Hyūga murmured, "So, the Caged Bird really can be broken."

"All seals and restraints can be undone," Naruto responded casually, looking at him. "The reason it wasn't done before is because you didn't want to learn. And others didn't dare risk offending the Hyūga clan."

Hizashi looked at him, "Aren't you afraid of offending the Hyūga clan? We are..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

The reactions of those around him made him hesitate.

Karin couldn't help but laugh.

Naruto smiled and shook his head.

Neji clicked his tongue.

Hinata looked at him worriedly.

It was as if what he had just said was some kind of joke.

"I'm not afraid of the Hyūga clan," Neji said, struggling to stand. "Much less Naruto."

Hizashi lowered his head and fell silent.

"You probably guessed already," Neji continued, touching his forehead.

Tenten pulled out a mirror and handed it to him.

Neji took it and saw his smooth, fair forehead reflected back at him.

Hizashi spoke softly, "Yes, I guessed."

"You are my child."

"And Hinata-sama... she's my brother's child, right?"

Neji couldn't take his eyes off the mirror, then looked past it to his father. "I've dreamed many times about how happy I would be once this cursed mark was broken."

"But..."

"I can't seem to replicate the emotions I had in those dreams now."

"I had originally planned to wait until I returned to the future to ask Naruto-sama to remove the curse mark."

"But as I stood here, about to go back, I realized I had to let you see it with your own eyes."

"The cage of the branch family has been completely shattered as of today."

Naruto clapped his hands, summoning a scroll that he tossed to Neji.

"This is the technique to break the Caged Bird," he explained. "Even without my help, an ordinary jōnin could break this curse mark."

Neji solemnly accepted and stored it.

Hizashi's gaze followed the scroll, and he sighed. "This is a disaster for the Hyūga clan."

"Perhaps it is for the main family," Neji shook his head. "But for the branch family, it definitely isn't."

Hizashi said nothing more.

Naruto reached out and unfolded the seal on the ground.

The Dragon Vein opened, releasing a stream of purple chakra.

"Is it time to go back?" Minato Namikaze asked softly. "Naruto, since you're also skilled in sealing techniques, I'd like you to be the one to seal our memories. You doing it would be safer than me doing it."

Naruto nodded.

Several minutes later, the purple light gradually faded.

The five members of the team stood in place, a bit lost.

"How did we end up here?" Kakashi asked, looking around with a confused expression. Weren't we just leaving Konoha? How did we suddenly end up here?

The seal and markings before him looked increasingly like the "Dragon Vein."

Minato was the first to realize something. He could feel a seal in his mind, hiding a portion of his memory. Most likely, this seal contained everything that happened after they left the village until just now.

He instinctively wanted to break the seal.

Although there were no signs of resistance in his body—he hadn't activated the Flying Thunder God Technique, and all his special kunai were still in his pouch. This indicated that the seal had been left voluntarily.

He wouldn't undo it.

But he wanted to see if he could learn anything from the seal.

Unexpectedly, he couldn't detect the seal. The person who set up this seal was extremely skilled—the best he had ever encountered in his life. Even better than Mito Uzumaki.

"Sensei?" Kakashi looked up.

"It seems the rumors were true," Minato said quietly, glancing at Hizashi Hyūga. "I'm sorry, Hizashi, before we arrived, I withheld a piece of information from you."

"The Byakugan spotted in Rōran is suspected to belong to someone who has returned from the future."

"And now it seems... that was indeed the case."

"And we must have had extensive contact with them."

He glanced around. "Six people, yes... with a summoning animal like a ninja dog or cat."

The footprints on the ground left many clues.

But these were the only things he could deduce.

Shibi Aburame raised his hand, his tone somber. "Some of my kikaichū are missing."

"The signs of their death are fresh. I must have tried to retain some of the other party's chakra, but they noticed."

Minato's expression grew serious. "It's fortunate they noticed. That was a very dangerous action."

"We shouldn't interfere with the future in any way."

"Let's continue searching Rōran."

"Confirm the results and then report back to the village."

The rest of the team agreed.

This small ripple in the past didn't seem to have caused any changes to the future.

In the ancient kingdom of Rōran, within the abandoned tower...

Six people landed smoothly.

"We're back," Tenten said, peering around. The abandoned puppets of Mukade were still lying on the ground, without any dust, indicating time hadn't changed.

The Dragon Vein still radiated purple light.

A massive, intense chakra flowed.

Naruto approached, reaching out his hand, channeling his spiritual energy as he began to seal the chakra.

"Naruto-sama," Neji approached, bowing as he spoke. "I must leave your side for a while."

"I need to report back to Konoha about the mission. And there are some family matters... that need to be handled."

Naruto nodded. "Go ahead."

"My deepest apologies, Naruto-sama," Neji bowed again. "I made a selfish and reckless decision."

"If I die in Konoha this time..."

Naruto turned to him, smiling faintly. "Don't be afraid of death."

"Go and do what you want with confidence."

"It's hard to explain right now, but know this: the Seireitei is an organization for souls."

"Even if you die, you can continue to serve me."

Neji looked up, surprised at Naruto's words, and nodded. "Yes, Naruto-sama."

With a gesture, his team disappeared.

Naruto carefully sealed the Dragon Vein.

"Are we going to the Land of Demons next?" Karin asked as he put away the scroll, balancing on her toes as the tower swayed.

"Do you want to see what happens when Neji returns to Konoha?" Naruto asked, smiling at her.

Karin nodded. "Yes, I'm very curious."

"Naruto, you didn't just remove his curse mark. You also gave him the method to break the Caged Bird curse mark. It feels like something big is going to happen in Konoha."

Naruto took her hand, stepping out of the tower with a flash. "I'm curious to see what Neji will choose to do."

"And even more curious about what the Hyūga clan and Konoha will decide at this moment."

"Let's go see."

They had plenty of time.

In the Land of Fire, Konoha...

After half a day of traveling, Neji and his team returned to the village.

But he didn't report in right away. Instead, he headed straight for the Hyūga clan.