Chapter 91: Hyuga Neji
"Naruto-kun… you were amazing!"
Hinata mustered her courage, shot Naruto a quick glance, then lowered her head again, too shy to look at him.
"Haha, not really! The editing was just top-notch. My acting was so-so."
Praised, Naruto laughed. He didn't think he had much acting talent.
Nine-Tails: You claim you can't act? I don't buy it!
"Hey, hey! Big brother Naruto, did you fall for Princess of the Storm? Hanabi really wants to know!"
Hanabi tugged Naruto's hand and asked.
She lacked her big sister's shyness, tilting her small face up, pure-white eyes sparkling with curiosity.
The question made Hinata beside them prick her ears; she wanted to know too.
"I didn't fall for her."
Naruto rubbed Hanabi's head.
"I only went to the Land of Snow to finish a mission. Most of the scenes you saw were reshoots. No falling in love at all."
Koyuki Kazahana was just a client; however beautiful, she was destined to be a passing traveler in his life.
Still, she was gorgeous—who doesn't glance twice at a beauty?
The three of them got up and left the cinema.
Right then, a loud, energetic voice cut through the surrounding noise.
"Yo, Naruto!"
The trio turned. Not far away, Might Guy was waving at Naruto.
Beside Guy, Kakashi was absorbed in make-out tactics, while the three members of Team Guy sized Naruto up.
"Guy-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, you're here for the movie too!"
Naruto walked over with a grin.
Kakashi lifted his gaze from the book; his visible right eye curved in a smile.
"Yeah, just checking how the film turned out."
"I never expected Naruto to have acting talent. Passionate youth blooms everywhere! You must've worked incredibly hard!"
Guy gave a big thumbs-up.
"Haha, no way—it's the director and backstage crew who were awesome."
Guy didn't drop his belief that Naruto had trained hard; he slapped the green-clad, bowl-cut boy beside him.
"Lee!"
Guy's voice rose.
"This is the Naruto I told you about—also the Yoya in the film!"
He pointed at Naruto, eyes blazing at his prized pupil.
"He's a year below you, but he's studied taijutsu with me far longer! His effort in taijutsu rivals yours!"
The moment his name was called, Rock Lee straightened, eyes shining even brighter.
He stepped forward without hesitation and thrust his right hand at Naruto.
"Hi, I'm Rock Lee—call me Lee. These two are my teammates Tenten and Neji."
Tenten gave Naruto a friendly nod.
"Hi, I'm Tenten."
Neji simply stated his name without even nodding.
"Hyuga Neji."
"Hey, Lee. I'm Uzumaki Naruto. These two are my friends Hinata and Hanabi."
Naruto shook Lee's hand and introduced the sisters.
"Big Brother Lee, Big Sister Tenten, and Big Brother Neji—hi!"
Hanabi greeted them cheerfully.
"Greetings, Second Miss."
Neji greeted Hanabi with a blank face.
Under his calm surface, rage already roared in Neji's heart; his fists clenched so hard his knuckles whitened and veins bulged.
Intense resentment churned inside him.
Both were second children; his father had been branded with the Caged Bird Seal, yet the eldest's second daughter had not.
Why?
Why did the Hyuga split into main and branch families?
Why must the branch family die for the main family?
"Hey, Naruto, how about a match with Neji?"
Sensing Neji's mood, Guy suggested.
"Neji's wanted to spar with you for a long time."
Neji's hands slowly relaxed; he had indeed wanted to test Naruto's skills.
——————————
They found a nearby training ground.
Kakashi, still reading, couldn't care less whether Naruto would lose to Neji.
He was wondering why Comical Author of Lanling hadn't updated in so long.
Since buying the bonus volume, there'd been no word of the next installment.
Guy's energetic figure plopped beside Kakashi, threw a muscular arm around his shoulders, and dragged him out of his "literary world" back to reality.
Guy teased,
"Kakashi, you don't seem worried about whether Naruto might lose."
Guy's gaze swept over Kakashi's book, then to the two about to fight.
Kakashi swayed from Guy's hug but didn't look up; his exposed right eye merely flicked away from the page for an instant, tone lazy yet absolutely trusting:
"Mm."
He answered as if stating a plain fact.
"Naruto's plenty strong."
Then he kept flipping through make-out tactics, as though the exchange had been nothing.
Guy wasn't surprised by Kakashi's "indifference"; he grinned, accepted the answer, and voiced equal confidence in his own student:
"True—Naruto is strong."
Guy heartily agreed, then added with certainty, "But Neji's no slouch either!"
His keen eyes turned to the center of the field, eager for the coming "youth showdown."
On the field, Naruto and Neji stepped to the center and faced each other.
Both grew serious; the earlier relaxed vibe was replaced by fighting spirit.
In unison they raised their right hands, palms meeting, and smoothly formed the Seal of Confrontation that marked a spar.
On the sidelines, the audience grew excited. Hanabi grabbed Hinata's hand, bouncing and shouting toward Naruto:
"Go, big brother Naruto!"
Her clear voice rang out, full of support and encouragement for him.
Standing beside her, Hinata—still shy, cheeks pink—followed Naruto with her eyes and quietly echoed her sister's cheer, offering silent support.
On the other side of the field, Lee showed equal enthusiasm.
He punched the air and bellowed toward Neji in his trademark booming voice:
"Give it your all, Neji!"
His shout brimmed with trust and hope in his teammate.
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