⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯Chapter 225 : Chapter 225 Do You Want to Escape the Caged Bird? [2/3]
Chapter 225: Do You Want to Escape the Caged Bird? [2/3]
At noon, Hyuga Neji walked out of the school and arrived at the Training Ground on the outskirts of the village.
"Teacher."
"You were first before, so I owe you two lessons. I asked you to come here this time because I wanted to ask what you want to learn."
Masahiko smiled.
Neji remained silent for a long time. A few seconds later, he looked up and said, "Teacher, can I—"
[Author's Note: At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name. Read great books and choose the best.]
"Hmm?"
"It's nothing."
Neji's mood turned somber.
Masahiko pretended not to notice and asked, "Neji, how is your Chakra control practice going?"
"I've been practicing as much as possible, but it still feels like something is missing."
Neji replied.
Masahiko said, "It's alright. As you get older, these things will gradually improve. For now, you can start focusing on improving your body—"
"I will teach you how to control your body muscles and use Chakra to activate your bodily functions, making your explosive power even stronger."
With that, Masahiko made his move.
Neji activated his Byakugan and carefully observed everything.
One punch—
The wooden dummy was smashed to pieces.
A look of shock appeared in Neji's eyes.
This punch seemed ordinary, but internally, Chakra was activating the cells and muscles, mobilizing the power of the entire arm.
So strong!
"Do you need me to demonstrate again?"
"No need!"
He took a deep breath.
Although the Byakugan doesn't have as many functions as the Sharingan, it is even more powerful in terms of insight.
Through detailed close-up observation, he could see Masahiko's Chakra and muscle state, understanding how the technique was performed.
"Then practice. If you can fully master this technique, your Taijutsu will reach a new level."
"Yes!"
At the Training Ground, Neji practiced his Taijutsu over and over again.
He even forgot—
That there were other classes in the afternoon.
Finally, he was so exhausted he couldn't get up and slumped against a tree.
Neji looked at the sky, covering his forehead with his hand, his eyes vacant.
What's the use of having strong Taijutsu?
The Caged Bird on his forehead was always shackling his soul, and the Hyuga Main House—
Neji clenched his fists.
The Hyuga Main House!
"Do you hate them?"
A strange voice echoed from outside the woods.
Neji opened his eyes, activated his Byakugan, used Body Flicker to move to the other side, and gripped a Kunai tightly.
Before him was a strange person.
His back was hunched high, and the Chakra pathways in the front of his body were very strange, not like those of a living person.
The voice from just now sounded like two voices overlapping.
"Who are you?"
Neji's gaze was heavy.
Ranmaru, acting with ease, said, "Who I am is not important. What matters is who you are and what you need."
The overlapping voices and short sentences both felt eerie.
The other party's Chakra state made him feel even more terrified.
Neji raised his hands, assuming the starting stance of the Eight Trigrams Palm, and asked cautiously, "I don't understand what you're talking about!"
"Don't you want to escape?"
Ranmaru asked indifferently, following the lines transmitted via the Mind Transmission Jutsu.
Neji clenched his fists.
Escape?
He certainly wanted to!
But was it possible?
The other person said, "I have a way."
"Who are you?"
Neji asked again.
Ranmaru replied coldly, "Kaguya, a distant relative of the Hyuga."
"The Kaguya Clan?"
Neji was stunned for a second.
He frowned.
Neji had heard of the Kaguya Clan, but he wasn't very clear about the two being distant relatives; he only vaguely remembered Hiashi and the others going out sometimes.
Neji said, "You said escape—how can it be done?"
"I will grant you the Shikotsumyaku. Kaguya and Hyuga, powers merging, returning to the origin."
Ranmaru had been isolated from the world for a long time and didn't interact much with people, so this was the level of fluency he could manage for now.
Neji clenched his fists.
He didn't understand what power merging or returning to the origin meant, but he knew the other party spoke as if it were a serious matter. Furthermore, he knew that an enemy with the Shikotsumyaku had indeed appeared in Konoha before.
Maybe the other person really had a way?
Neji's heart skipped a beat.
However.
Growing up, the one thing he knew best was that no one would be good to him for no reason, except for his parents.
Including his clansmen.
"What do I need to do?"
"Experiment. Dangerous."
Ranmaru was brief and direct.
Neji couldn't help but smile and said, "My life never belonged to me anyway. As long as the manner of my death is mine to choose, I have nothing left to lose."
He looked up at Ranmaru.
"How do I need to cooperate with you?"
"Hide, grow stronger. I will find you again. For now, I will temporarily seal your memory; it will automatically unseal when your Chakra is exhausted."
Overlapping voices came from the other person.
In the next second, the other party appeared instantly in front of him.
Neji was startled, but he was covered by a wave of Chakra.
The powerful Chakra left him with no ability to resist.
A moment later— "Goodbye."
Ranmaru was brief and direct, his figure transforming into Hiruko's appearance.
"If questioned, you can describe this form."
"I understand."
Neji nodded.
Before long, the strangely shaped, hunched Ninja disappeared.
Neji knew that the other person wasn't actually hunched.
This person's real body might be very small, and the exterior was just a puppet.
But a Human Puppet—
Just thinking about it made Neji shudder.
Wouldn't cooperating with such a person be too risky?
However.
Thinking of the Hyuga Main House, Neji's resolve hardened again.
He loathed the Main Family.
Especially Hiashi Hyuga.
Hyūga Hinata and Hyuga Hanabi—reasonably, a successor should have been determined long ago, but now both are being delayed on the grounds that the successor has not yet been decided.
This is the Main Family.
They do not allow the Branch Family to disobey, yet they themselves can easily trample over the rules.
There is no fairness here!
After his anger passed, he saw the approaching Konoha Ninjas through his Byakugan and immediately stumbled to the ground.
Before long.
Swish, swish, swish!
One figure after another used Body Flicker to land in front of him.
Seeing Neji's pale face, they looked at each other, and then the leader asked, "Are you okay?"
The one leading the team was a female Ninja.
Neji was dazed and only snapped out of it when he heard the question, nodding slightly.
Afterward, his face remained pale.
"Who was he? Why... did this happen?"
"Who did you encounter?"
"I—"
Neji's expression was unsightly, and his body showed signs of weakness as he recalled and described the other party's appearance.
A short while later.
The Hokage Building.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's brow furrowed, and he said, "Hiruko again?"
"From the description, it's very likely to be him."
Uzuki Yugao said.
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded slightly and said calmly, "I see. Increase the search for Hiruko and send someone to have Masahiko come over."
"Yes!"
Uzuki Yugao turned and left.
A short while later, Masahiko arrived. After hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, he also recounted his interaction with Neji.
Additionally—
"I believe Hiruko's base is either in the area of the Land of Grass to the north or on an island in the sea to the east."
Masahiko replied calmly, "I have already sent people out to search and sent messages to the borders. If he hasn't left the Land of Fire yet, there should be news soon."
"He hasn't given up on that research yet; we need to find him as soon as possible."
Hiruzen Sarutobi paused for a moment and said, "Tenzō and Kakashi have gone to the northwest border, so for the Anbu side, I can only trouble you."
"Yes, I will certainly do my best!"
Masahiko left as requested.
Hiruzen Sarutobi smoked his pipe, frowning in silence.
Hiruko—
First, he aimed for Five Senses Control, and now it's Neji's Byakugan. But Neji is from the Branch Family; even if he were captured, the Byakugan would be destroyed.
Is his target the Main Family?
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