Chapter 6 - Assemble! Chūnin exam begins

Neji made a promise during the Hyuga clan's assembly, one that quickly spread throughout the clan. For as long as anyone could remember, the name "Hyuga Neji" had been associated with failure and mediocrity.

Though the clan had mostly written him off, rumors sometimes circulated about how Neji often trained alone, striking at practice posts. But no one took him seriously.

"I've seen him practicing with Tenten, but his talent is terrible. I respect hard work, but he's chasing a foolish dream…"

"Yeah, I bet he's trying to secretly learn the clan's secret techniques!"

"If it wasn't for Lady Hinata's kind nature, someone would've already reported him! He's probably trying to kidnap her—"

"Shhh! Don't talk like that!"

Two women sweeping the entrance of the Hyuga clan quickly fell silent as they noticed Neji approaching.

"Oh, Neji-san! Where are you off to today?" They gave him a nervous smile, but Neji just nodded and bowed slightly before continuing on his way. He was used to the whispers, and he had long since learned that it was pointless to respond.

This time, though, he was determined. The Chūnin exams would be his chance to prove his strength and silence them all.

"Miss Hinata!" the two women suddenly called out as they spotted her approaching. Their attitudes shifted immediately. "You're going to take the Chūnin exam, right? You'll definitely be promoted!"

Hinata barely acknowledged them, giving only a soft "Mm" in response as she walked past Neji without a word.

Neji continued forward but heard Hinata call out, "Brother Neji!"

He turned to see her blushing but smiling at him.

"Do your best in the exam," she encouraged him shyly.

Neji smiled back. "You too, Hinata. Go meet Lady Kurenai."

Hinata gave him a soft nod before hurrying away. Neji, on the other hand, headed towards the back mountain forest.

It was still early in the morning, the crisp air filled with the sounds of birds.

"This should be good," Neji murmured to himself, finding a sturdy tree. He began his training routine.

...

Hours passed as Neji struck the tree over and over, sweat dripping down his face. With one final blow, he exhaled heavily and brought up his mental training panel.

"Eight Trigrams Air Palm, Proficiency: 9999/10000."

Neji smiled. His hard work was paying off—he had almost mastered the technique.

Even though he was exhausted, he focused his chakra and aimed at the tree again. "Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!"

The entire tree shook violently, and a single leaf fluttered to the ground, followed by many others.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host. Your Eight Trigrams Air Palm has reached full proficiency! You are awarded 10 Bingliang Pills!"

Neji grinned at the notification. Perfect timing. He quickly consumed one of the pills to restore his chakra and energy, grimacing slightly at the bitter taste. But that didn't bother him; the boost it provided was worth it.

"Neji, are you out here training this early again?"

Neji turned to see Tenten approaching. She gasped when she noticed the tree littered with fallen leaves.

"How much training did you do? The tree looks like it's been destroyed!"

Neji chuckled. "That was just a warm-up."

Tenten shook her head. "You push yourself too hard. Hard work is important, but only when done the right way. Don't waste your energy on pointless training."

Neji just nodded, not really paying attention to her words. Soon after, Guy-sensei and Rock Lee arrived, and Guy began explaining the plan for the Chūnin exams.

"Is there anyone you're particularly interested in for the exam?" Guy asked the team with a grin.

Tenten and Neji remained silent, but Lee jumped in eagerly. "There's a genius from the Uchiha clan among the participants. I can't wait to challenge him!"

Tenten sighed. "You should focus on our team first. I heard the first and second rounds are group battles!"

Lee looked at Neji excitedly. "You'll be giving it your all, right, Neji-kun?"

After a moment's hesitation, Neji nodded quietly.

...

After a quick lunch, Neji returned to his training, uninterested in Lee's plan to challenge Uchiha Sasuke.

By the time Neji reached the exam hall, it was already crowded with participants. He spotted a large group gathered around a young man with glasses. Squinting, Neji recognized several familiar faces: Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Ino Yamanaka.

The man in the center, Kabuto Yakushi, pointed at different cards with his finger, explaining the profiles of some of the participants.

"Rock Lee—this guy doesn't know ninjutsu, but he's an expert in taijutsu."

When Kabuto finally reached Neji's card, he smirked. "Hyuga Neji, a weak ninja with poor talent. Hardly worth mentioning."

Neji overheard but remained calm. He had nothing to prove to Kabuto.

Unexpectedly, Rock Lee jumped to his defense. "Don't talk about Neji like that! He's made incredible progress!"

Tenten tried to calm Lee down, but Neji simply sighed. He couldn't tell if Lee was helping his case or making things worse.

"Quiet!" A loud voice cut through the noise, and all eyes turned toward the center of the room.

Morino Ibiki, the proctor, had arrived.

"Enough chatter," Ibiki said coldly. "You're all acting like a bunch of nervous children! The Chūnin exam is about to begin. Show some backbone."

With that, Ibiki's fierce gaze swept over the crowd, silencing everyone.

"The time is up, and the assembly is over. I hereby announce... the Chūnin exam has officially begun!"

🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂

Din_hamine here:

I deeply appreciate your support since the beginning of this exciting journey!

I hope each chapter has provided incredible moments. If you like my work and would like to support the continuation of this fanfic, consider becoming a patron with plans starting at $5!. As a token of gratitude, I offer access to more than 20 extra chapters

🖤patreon.com/Reacher001🖤

Visit our Patreon for more:

https://www.patreon.com/Reacher001.

Extra Content Already Available.

**End of Chapter**