"Quiet!"
Genma Shiranui's voice cut through the private chatter of the genin on the field. His gaze shifted between Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga as he announced in a deep voice, "First match: Neji Hyuga versus Naruto Uzumaki."
After a moment of silence, the other genin candidates retreated to the edges of the arena, leaving only Naruto and Neji to face each other. Upon seeing the contestants for the first match, the audience stands immediately came alive with excitement.
The head of the Hyuga clan frowned, watching the white-eyed youth below. "So the first match is Neji and Naruto?" he said softly.
"Father, who will win?" Hanabi Hyuga's small face wrinkled with concern as she looked at the two on the field.
Hiashi Hyuga was silent for a moment, not answering. His feelings were particularly complex, as both contestants were connected to him.
Neji Hyuga was the genius of the clan, one of the faces maintaining the Hyuga's prestige as a noble family of Konoha. He was also his younger brother's son. However, during the preliminaries, Neji had disregarded his cousin Hinata's status and their family ties, striking her down and nearly taking her life. The incident had deeply saddened Hiashi.
His brother, before his death, had entrusted Neji's care to him. He never expected that Neji, because of the Caged Bird Seal and his father's death, would grow so distant from the main family.
Hiashi's original intention had been to use the conflict between the main and branch families to motivate Neji to train harder. But after Neji injured Hinata, Hiashi discovered that the resentment in Neji seemed to be growing, almost to an irreconcilable point...
This was an extremely tricky problem.
As for Naruto Uzumaki, not only had he healed Hinata's injuries, but he had also recovered the lost main family Byakugan, doing a great service for the entire Hyuga clan.
After thinking for a long time, Hiashi turned to his younger daughter. "Hanabi, who do you hope will win?"
"I don't know." Hanabi's face was very serious as she spoke. "On one hand, I hope Naruto wins, because he healed my sister. But for the family, I hope Cousin Neji wins. As someone with the Byakugan, he absolutely cannot lose."
"Is that so?" Hiashi shook his head, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with his daughter's view. For the reputation of the Hyuga clan, it would be better for Neji to win. But for Neji's own growth, Hiashi hoped he might encounter a setback. That way, it could at least help resolve the knot of hatred in the young man's heart. After all, a genius at the height of his powers wouldn't listen to an old clan head explain the secrets of the past.
In a corner of the stands, Might Guy flashed his brilliant smile at his friend. "Kakashi! Neji will definitely win today!"
"Ahem..." Kakashi Hatake coughed lightly. "I hope so," he said in a low voice. "That guy Naruto has been improving very quickly..."
"Hahahaha..." Might Guy clapped Kakashi's shoulder hard and laughed loudly. "I heard from Tenten that Neji has mastered an incredible jutsu!"
"...Oh." The jonin leader of Team 7 wore a cool expression. Kakashi knew very well that there was probably no ninja in all of Konoha who could handle Naruto, let alone a genin like Neji. His friend really had no idea. Even if Naruto's strength hadn't grown, the "Spiral Wheel" move that had defeated Gaara in the preliminaries was not something Neji could handle.
After a short while, an update came from Genma Shiranui. The final tournament would forbid the use of techniques like Sage Mode.
Might Guy looked at the proctors with some confusion. "Sage Mode? Kakashi, have you heard of it? Why would the Hokage forbid it in this exam?"
"Yeah." Kakashi glanced unhappily at the highest stand where the Third Hokage sat. "Maybe the Hokage is afraid Naruto might accidentally kill the other candidates..." he said softly.
His student was being targeted again. Before the fight even began, his strongest trump card was banned.
Naruto, however, didn't care at all. He looked at his opponent, a slight smile on his lips. "Last year's top student, huh? Sounds pretty amazing..."
"I don't think so." A hint of seriousness flashed in Neji's eyes, and his voice was heavy. "Although your trump card has been banned, it feels like this won't be a fair victory..."
"The fight hasn't even started, and you're already declaring your own victory?" Naruto waved his hand and chuckled. "I have something to tell you. I have many trump cards... so many that even I can't count them all."
"Is that so?" The veins by Neji's temples bulged. With his Byakugan, he stared intently at Naruto's entire body. The white-eyed youth slowly bent his knees and took a fighting stance. "Then let me experience them one by one..."
Swoosh!
Naruto's figure suddenly rushed forward. His speed was so fast that it created a gust of wind, messing up Neji's hair.
So fast! Neji's face grew more serious. He quickly raised his arm and barely blocked Naruto's fist.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The clash of fist and palm created sonic booms.
And so strong! Neji muttered to himself. He activated the Hyuga clan's unique taijutsu, the Gentle Fist, deflecting the power of Naruto's punches. Not satisfied with just that, Neji brought his fingers together and took the opportunity to strike at Naruto's arm, aiming to block his chakra flow.
However, just as his fingers were about to land, his expression changed. "No, it's a trap..."
"Spiral Shockwave!"
A chakra shockwave suddenly shot out from Naruto's palm, instantly knocking the unprepared Neji to the ground. The white-eyed youth flew backwards. When Neji struggled to get up, blood was seeping from the corner of his mouth. His gaze toward Naruto turned ice-cold.
For him, this blow was too humiliating.
"Don't look at me like that." Naruto's smile faded as he looked at Neji coldly. "This is payback. Last month, your palm strike almost shattered Hinata's heart."
Hearing this, Neji was stunned for a moment. He wiped the blood from his mouth, bent his body again, and said with a cold laugh, "Heh, another protector of the main family?"
"No. I just feel like I should do this." Naruto spread his hands and walked slowly towards Neji, his footsteps seeming to land on Neji's heart. "And the harder I hit you, the more right it feels."
As he walked, the chakra on Naruto's body surged. A golden cloak covered his body. The powerful chakra immediately attracted everyone's attention.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, couldn't help but stand up, looking in disbelief at the golden figure below. "The Nine-Tails' chakra... how could it become so peaceful..."
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Bonus:
Neji Hyuga: Just say it if you want to kill me!
Naruto Uzumaki: What? No way, I'm not that kind of person!
Neji Hyuga: You think I'm a fool? I saw you hit Orochimaru just like this with my own eyes!
Naruto Uzumaki: You saw wrong. That was Six Paths Sage Mode. This is Kurama Mode!
Neji Hyuga: Is there any difference?
Naruto Uzumaki: Not really. Beating you is child's play either way.