Chinya took Neji's side in front of all the Hyuga ninja gathered there.
With a mocking tone, Chinya said, "Then, Hizashi, I'll be taking Neji with me. Today's been a complete waste of time thanks to some hopelessly confused people, so I need to start training Neji right away."
Hizashi smiled politely. "Chinya, thank you for your trouble."
Just as Chinya was about to leave with Neji, he turned and asked, "Hizashi, care to come along? See exactly how I train Neji?"
Hizashi cast a sidelong glance at Hiashi Hyuga.
Hiashi Hyuga's face darkened as if shrouded by an ominous cloud, heavy and oppressive.
Hizashi chuckled lightly. "No need, Chinya. I'm still confined to quarters myself, so I'll pass."
Inside, Chinya sighed. It seemed Hizashi's decision hadn't changed—his loyalty to the Hyuga Clan remained firm.
Neji looked up at his father questioningly.
He himself had just been confined to quarters the day before. If he could leave with Chinya, why wouldn't his father take this chance?
Chinya turned toward Hiashi Hyuga. "Oh, that's right, Clan Leader Hyuga. You proclaim yourself the absolute leader of the Hyuga Clan, where every member must obey your command. So… may I take Neji with me now, or do you still insist on wasting time?"
Hiashi clenched his fists tightly, practically spitting out the word through gritted teeth: "Fine!"
Upon hearing Hiashi's reluctant permission, Chinya sneered disdainfully. "Hmph. Clan Leader of the Hyuga? The Hyuga Clan itself? A hopelessly stubborn lot indeed."
Taking Neji by the hand, Chinya left the Hyuga clan estate.
Furious and humiliated, Hiashi's eyes burned with rage—his [Byakugan] nearly turned blood-red.
Neji gazed at Chinya with admiration.
In the entire history of the clan, no one had ever dared speak to Hiashi like that before.
And not only did Chinya dare to do so—Hiashi could only endure it.
Neji recalled what Hizashi had told him: *What Hizashi had told him was: "Today, your teacher will give you your first lesson—the very first lesson called 'Power.'"*
Was this the benefit of possessing strength?
If he had power, his father wouldn't have been confined, tormented, or bullied!
Power...
In the depths of his soul, Neji silently vowed to grow more powerful than anyone alive!
I want to protect my father!
After watching Chinya lead Neji away, Hizashi spoke to Hiashi Hyuga. "Clan Leader Hyuga, I've prepared myself already. If you wish to punish me with the harshest penalty available, go ahead. I'll accept everything."
Hiashi glared angrily at his near-identical twin brother.
Indeed, he wanted to punish Hizashi—but he didn't dare.
Now that Neji was protected by Chinya, it meant Hizashi too had Chinya standing behind him.
The traditionally cautious Hiashi Hyuga didn't dare take any risks. Otherwise, he wouldn't have conceded earlier.
Suppressing his fury, Hiashi coldly muttered, "Mind yourself well," then stormed off in a huff.
Letting out a soft breath, Hizashi returned to his room.
Hiashi Hyuga sought out the elders of the Hyuga Clan to discuss what should be done next.
When the elders heard that Chinya had forcefully taken Neji Hyuga, each of them flew into a rage, shouting furiously and calling Hizashi and Neji traitors who turned against their own family.
Hiashi was already seething with frustration. When he saw the elders cursing angrily without discussing any solutions, his irritation only deepened.
However, since they were senior in seniority, Hiashi forced himself to suppress his emotions and patiently urged the elders to return to the matter at hand.
"The most urgent matter now is how to disassociate our Hyuga Clan from this Chinya. We absolutely must not allow The Third to misunderstand!"
"Hiashi, it would be better to explain this matter to The Third as soon as possible. You need to make it clear that this was Hizashi's decision alone and has nothing to do with us."
"That's right. Especially you, Hiashi, must emphasize that you tried to stop Chinya from taking Neji but were defeated by him, so The Third will know you resisted."
"At the same time, we also need to express our loyalty to The Third clearly. If The Third shows any dissatisfaction toward you, immediately declare your willingness to expel both Hizashi and Neji from the Hyuga Clan!"
Frowning, Hiashi said, "But if I exile them from the Hyuga Clan, what happens if Chinya comes looking for trouble later? And what about the Byakugan?"
The elder continued, "There's no need to worry about that, Hiashi. Remember, no matter how strong Chinya is, he is still just one person. Even at its weakest, Konoha remains one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
Right now, The Third's focus is on the Uchiha Clan. It is certain that the Uchiha Clan will decline eventually, and when that happens, our Hyuga Clan will become the strongest ninja clan in Konoha.
Since the founding of the village, our Hyuga Clan has always followed the rules and obeyed every Hokage's orders, avoiding conflict and contention. That is why every past Hokage trusted us. Moreover, our Byakugan holds great strategic value to Konoha—they need our strength.
Although we have had rebels like Hizashi and Neji within our clan, there are only two of them. Therefore, as long as we report this to The Third promptly, he won't blame us for it. If Chinya dares to cause trouble, The Third will definitely help us.
As for the Byakugan, Hizashi and Neji have both been branded with the Caged Bird Seal. As long as we wish, we can destroy the Byakugan anytime. Although The Third knows about the Caged Bird Curse Seal, you, Hiashi, should proactively inform him yourself. After exiling Hizashi and Neji from the Hyuga Clan, submit the decision of whether to destroy their Byakugan to The Third, to demonstrate our loyalty."
Hiashi thought for a moment and nodded. "Then I'll go see The Third now."
Immediately afterward, Hiashi left the Hyuga Clan Grounds and headed toward the Hokage Tower to find Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Upon arriving at the Hokage Tower, Hiashi successfully met with Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As soon as he saw Hiruzen Sarutobi, Hiashi Hyuga dramatically described to him the events that had just occurred, stressing how they had tried to prevent Chinya from taking Neji Hyuga, but Chinya had ignored them and forcibly taken Neji with him.
Hiruzen was not surprised, as the Anbu had already reported everything to him before Hiashi arrived.
On Minato Namikaze's wedding day, Hiruzen also learned that Chinya wanted to take Neji Hyuga as his disciple.
Later, after Chinya openly confronted the Konoha leadership in the Meeting Room, Hiruzen believed Hizashi Hyuga would back off and distance himself from Chinya. He never expected that following the birth of Uzumaki Sōnagi, Hizashi still brought Neji Hyuga to visit Chinya.
After learning about this matter, Hiruzen realized that Hizashi Hyuga had not given up on making Neji Hyuga Chinya's disciple.
When Hiruzen found out that Chinya had gone to the Hyuga Clan Grounds to pick up Neji Hyuga, he waited—waited to see whether Hiashi would act as if nothing had happened or come to explain the situation.
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