Change is Initiated (3)

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[Uzumaki Naruto's POV]

A mirthful chuckle almost escaped me after what Hinata said to Neji. I knew the girl was hiding her fierce nature, but I had never expected her to be that crude against Neji. My subtle nudging had succeeded. I had corrupted the young heiress.

"Are you challenging me on a duel?" Neji asked quietly.

"You couldn't even understand that?" Hinata quirked an eyebrow.

Her mannerisms reminded me of myself. She took me as a role model to become confident. It was not wrong, but I wished she had assumed her personality. Embracing someone's persona to boost your confidence won't fly in the long run, after all.

"Uzumaki-san, can you become our referee?" Neji asked politely.

"Sure."

I moved between the two and told them to do the seal of confrontation. Raising my hand, I let the fight begin. Neji immediately went for the offensive. Hinata was forced to defend herself, but she remained calm throughout the barrage of the attacks. In the fifteen seconds they traded blows, they were pretty even.

Byakugan soon came into play as both fighters were unable to gain the upper hand over the other. The strike became even more precise. Chakra was constantly expelled from their Tenketsu. When the Chakra expulsion peaked, it created enough force to knock the other back without touching them.

The fight quickly turned into a stalemate. It was honestly quite unexpected. Despite Hinata's hidden potential, Neji was a prodigy who trained himself tirelessly. I had expected Hinata to hold her ground, but Neji would eventually beat her. However, Hinata still held her ground and hadn't shown any sign of slowing down yet. This battle would be won by who had the most stamina.

"Hakke Kūshō!"

Hinata pushed one palm forward and sent a wave of Chakra at Neji.

"Hakke Kūhekishō!"

Neji countered it by pushing his palms forward and sending a stronger wave of his own.

The two waves clashed. Hinata's lost, predictably. Neji's Chakra wave hit Hinata, but she negated it with a spin. That was a creative way to use a half-assed Hakkeshō Kaiten. Regardless, it gave a gap for Neji to exploit.

"Hakke—"

Before Neji could execute his killing move, though, Hinata glared fiercely at him. As surprising as it was, a glare wouldn't do much in such a precarious situation. However, Hinata didn't only show a glare. She twisted her body and assumed an offensive stance.

"Hakke Jūroku Shō!"

Hinata moved faster than she had ever been, dwarfing Neji in speed. She executed her moves meanwhile Neji struggled to defend himself. Two consecutive strikes made two. Another two consecutive strikes made four. Four consecutive strikes made it eight. Eight consecutive strikes made it sixteen. Neji received immobilizing sixteen strikes in less than five seconds.

"Heuk!"

He groaned and keeled over. Hinata stood before him, looking at him decisively with her fierce Byakugan. Neji painfully looked up while gritting his teeth. He struggled to speak but was very determined to speak his mind.

"I see…" he stammered. "I was wrong. I thought fate had dictated that you would lose to me. In the end, we were destined to be below the main family forever. But if that is the case, I guess I shall accept it. No one can run from the fate they are born with, after all."

Neji's speech didn't even sound bitter. It was full of acceptance. He felt cathartic after saying that. Listening to him was another story, though. It felt like listening to a man who had abandoned all hope, a loser with nothing on his hands. My eyes went to the living room which was in direct view of the backyard. I wondered how Hiashi would react to Neji's declaration.

"Naruto-san told me that fate is a bullshit. No one has a predetermined future. You pave your future by yourself. The thing you call fate is a scapegoat when you do nothing in your life," Hinata declared. "I thought I was not fit for a Hyūga. I thought I was born into the wrong family. I thought I would forever be a failure. But that is wrong. Look at me."

Neji smiled self-deprecatingly. "Hinata-sama, you are of the main family. You are fated to have a glorious future. I might have outshone you, but that is because you haven't bloomed yet. I failed to see it because my interpretation of fate was shallow. Now, I understood. No matter how well we do initially, the main family will outshine us eventually." Neji paused and continued softly, "Just like my father."

Hiashi stirred from inside the house. Hinata clutched her chest, tearing up at her cousin's pathetic declaration.

"You used to say my fate was to forever be below you, but I managed to beat you today. Instead of thinking fate is not defined, you think you misinterpreted my fate. What if your fate is like that too? Have you never considered that? Of course, it would be better to disregard fate." Hinata said meekly. "But even if there is fate, are you satisfied with it? Don't you want to change it? After all, we have free will. That is what makes us… human."

"Free will…" Neji grunted as he faced his body upward. "I guess that is right…"

I let silence take over the place for a few seconds before declaring Hinata the winner. Hanabi and Karin cheered, sharing the same brain cell for the first time. They jumped at Hinata and hugged her much to her embarrassment. I smirked at the scene before moving to Neji.

I checked his Tenketsu and found out that Hinata had held back. His Tenketsu were only half-closed. Her kindness was commendable, but her control over her technique was even more. Hinata might be even more amazing than I gave her credit for.

"A- Are you okay, Neji-kun?" Hinata approached us.

"Yes. Uzumaki-san here is doing a good job at healing me," Neji replied politely. "I will pay for the treatment later, Uzumaki-san."

"Well, you just pulled a massive stick out of your ass. I know how hard it is, so consider this a gift from me," I dismissed.

"But I didn't…"

As expected of Hyūga, they didn't understand that phrase. I didn't bother explaining what the phrase meant. They would find out what it meant eventually. Of course, it would be better if Hanabi didn't figure it out soon. She had enough colorful words in her arsenal already. I didn't want to be labeled a bad influence. I even rarely cursed, damn it!

"Good job, Hinata," I praised after treating Neji. "You now have courage. Nurture it and I am sure you will become a great Kunoichi!"

"T- Thanks, Naruto-kun!"

I smiled faintly at the meek girl and patted her head. Her face reddened and I sensed a hint of arousal. I held back a wry smile. Knowing these Genin were different constitutionally and mentally from children on Earth didn't lessen the instinctual chill. Although, admittedly, it was quite hypocritical of me to say it given my physical age.

My mind might have matured, but why does it matter? I was still 14 at the end of the day.

…

Clack!

One week after the Hyūga reconciliation, I found myself playing shogi with Konoha's Jōnin Commander, Nara Shikaku. We had played three games which ended in a draw. This was our fourth game and we might encounter a stalemate soon. None of us was determined to win, but we still wanted to know who was better.

"Anyway, I almost forgot about what I should have been talking about," I broke the three-hour-long silence. "It is about the Anbu."

"Hm. I know," Shikaku hummed. "The Sandaime also discussed it with me. We are still figuring out the best way to root them out."

"We can demolish their facilities." Sensing a rebuttal from Shikaku, I clarified, "Of course, I know we can't risk that man doing something destructive with his men. As such, locating them is the first thing we should do."

"Well… yeah. Anyway, what is your Lance doing there?" Shikaku asked suspiciously.

"Are you expecting me to explain my tactics to you?" I shrugged.

"I shoot my shot."

Silence reigned over once again. Shikaku promoted his Rook into a Dragon and an assuring smile bloomed on his face. My Lance moved, capturing the pawn. Frowning, he captured my Lance with his Knight. I moved my Dragon and checked the King. He moved the Horse before the King to block the check. In response, I pushed my Pawn forward.

"Oh…"

Shikaku realized what I was doing when it was too late. His King was surrounded by the pieces that should have been protecting it but giving no way to escape instead. A wry smile marred his face as he moved his promoted Pawn, a futile defense in the losing game. I moved my Knight and delivered the checkmate. Shikaku looked upward and sighed in defeat.

"We can't have that happen to our King, can we?" he muttered.

"Find a way to mobilize all Jōnin with me. I will identify the rats out of them," I suggested.

"Easy for you to say," Shikaku grumbled. "That old hawk will smell something fishy."

"Suna is at risk of being involved in a proxy war after Iwa's fiasco in Kusa. We can mobilize Konoha's Jōnin massively there."

"Are you going to eliminate them there? But that will only work if Iwa… oh, you are planning to use them as a scapegoat," Shikaku hummed. "What will you do with Danzō's suspicion, then?"

"That is for you to think about. Eliminate his networks before he realizes what happens."

As Shikaku hummed in contemplation, his wife opened the door and called us in.

"Dinner is ready. Stop playing and come inside."

Yoshino was the only fire we didn't want to play with, so we happily obliged.