"Those who hold others back will always be a burden. That's an unchangeable fate."
Neji continued coldly, though he wasn't emotionless by nature. In fact, what he was saying now was actually a self-directed mockery.
His destiny had been sealed from the start. Eventually, he would become nothing more than a branch member filled with no hope.
The Hyuga Clan had never produced any famous ninja throughout the Ninja World, probably because of the Cage Bird Seal.
After all, not every member of the Main House was naturally gifted. Yet the entire Hyuga Clan remained bound by this restrictive Cage Bird Seal, preventing them from producing top-tier experts.
Surely, this was the true tragedy of the Hyuga Clan.
They claimed it was to protect their Kekkei Genkai, but through such practices, the Hyuga bloodline could never reach its full potential.
Ultimately, it was simply for the benefit of a select few. After all, even the Uchiha Clan didn't have similar cursed seals.
"You damn bastard!"
Naruto clenched his fist and rushed toward Neji. But in his current rage, he couldn't tap into the Nine-Tails' chakra like he used to.
Orochimaru had first placed the Eight Trigrams Seal on him and later added the Five Elements Seal, cutting off his connection to the Nine-Tails' chakra completely.
BOOM!!!
A massive crashing sound came, along with the destruction of a wall.
"What happened?"
Sakura asked in astonishment. She hadn't seen anything before Naruto was already sent flying.
Ino followed up with a question, "Was it Neji?"
After all, Naruto charged directly at Neji, and Neji definitely had the capability to accomplish something like that.
"No! It was Shiki."
Lee's pupils slightly contracted as he stared intently at Shiki, who now stood facing Neji.
Lee originally wanted to be the one to stop Naruto, because he wanted to prove to Neji that even without talent, one could still become a powerful ninja.
A person's fate isn't set at birth!
However, he saw Shiki instantly appear beside Naruto.
Shiki moved so blazingly fast it was unbelievable. Without opening the Second Gate (Healing Gate) of his Eight Gates, Lee knew his normal speed could not keep up.
He had always known Shiki possessed abnormal recovery abilities. After every training session where Shiki became completely exhausted, he could quickly restore himself.
Therefore, in regular training, Lee was actually inferior to Shiki.
"Shiki... again? What the hell?! How could he do something like this to Naruto?"
Everyone still refused to believe it. However, the figure standing opposite Neji looked furious beyond control. His aura suppressed and intimidated everyone around.
Seiji Ito also stared intensely. He witnessed everything.
It was indeed Shiki who arrived at Neji's front first with superior speed and then kicked Naruto flying with a spinning kick.
However, unlike others who were confused, he wasn't lost—because he was Shiki's comrade.
"That's because Shiki Uzumaki truly sees Hinata as family to him."
While you were all amazed that Hinata could keep getting back up, Shiki Uzumaki's expression remained heavy. He didn't want his imouto getting hurt.
Seiji Ito's voice, as though sighing, came to a stop, making the nearby Genin feel somewhat awkward.
Even Shikamaru Nara fell into deep thought.
Yet in the next moment, an intense voice rang out—seemingly like a declaration—but its target was only one person.
"Naruto, you better reflect properly! Your philosophy isn't wrong, but that's because you carry the Uzumaki bloodline! Not everyone should sacrifice their life for such useless fights!"
Underneath the ruined wall that had crumbled, the dust still hadn't settled. No one responded—whether Naruto had lost consciousness or was simply blaming himself for Shiki's words remained unclear.
After saying those words, Shiki directed his cold gaze toward Neji Hyuga.
Neji seemed to have sensed this already too, meeting Shiki's eyes with equally sharp hostility.
Around the two, space naturally opened up as if by coincidence, leaving a clear area for them. It was as though everyone instinctively predicted another fight was about to erupt here.
Yet these two combatants were just twelve or thirteen years old—even though both possessed strength far beyond their peers, and even though both had already spilled blood before.
Shiki, however, didn't immediately attack—he instead asked a question. "Neji Hyuga, do you truly believe your fate has already been decided?"
Neji replied, "Not only mine, but yours as well—and everyone else in this world—has already been determined. Things that cannot be changed will never change."
"Then let's play a game. Just like what you did to Hinata." Shiki stared into Neji's purely white eyes, and said coldly.
A game?
The surrounding spectators were confused—the final match of this Chunin Exams preliminary round had ended; they could've all gone home.
But thanks to this final twist, everyone's interest was reignited. But exactly what kind of "game" was Shiki talking about?
Chapter 160: A Battle with Neji
Yuuma Akimoto pursed her lips, saying, "Although my nii-san is usually someone who enjoys joking around, even he wouldn't seriously start playing games at a time like this, right?"
Shikamaru Nara's lazy voice responded, "That's right. Obviously Shiki isn't really going to play any childish games now. If we combine what Shiki just mentioned with what Neji previously did to Hinata using his Byakugan, we can probably understand his meaning."
After speaking, Shikamaru couldn't help tightening his expression too. What exactly did Shiki intend to do?
"What an annoying little brat," Temari stood on the spectator seats, watching Shiki stepping forward again on behalf of some girl, causing her lips to curl slightly.
"Why does it feel like every girl in Konoha has some connection with this guy called Shiki Uzumaki?"
Kankuro Sabaku couldn't resist commenting either. "Probably only Konoha would have such loosely disciplined Ninja."
Meanwhile, standing before Shiki, Neji Hyuga displayed not the slightest emotional fluctuation. In his view, the person confronting him now was simply seeking revenge—for Hinata's sake.
Because he caused Hinata pain, this man called Shiki Uzumaki must have that same pain inflicted upon himself. Everything was destined. But the one standing before him now will end up blaming himself for his own failure.
This is fate—already decided from the start.
Just as I cannot escape the 'Cage Bird' [a cursed seal passed down in the Hyūga branch family], there's no way you can defeat me.
"If you've got any laughable tricks," Neji spoke with bone-chilling coldness, "why don't we skip the act and fight properly?"
He hadn't intended to be this way when he first stepped onto the arena. In fact, he hadn't planned to go all-out against Hinata.
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