Chapter 598: The Activated State of the Will of Bullying
After hearing about Guy and Kakashi's past, Neji fell silent.
He had never imagined that everyone had suffered some degree of bullying.
But if that was true, why couldn't they understand him?
"Then why can't you understand me? As fellow victims, you should know exactly how I feel. You should be helping me!"
Neji shouted at the two of them in confusion.
"Neji, you've misunderstood something."
Guy shook his head and pointed at Tenten.
"Tenten said that if you gave up, we'd forgive you. That's only Tenten's wish. We never said we'd forgive you."
"We were only unhappy because you said we couldn't understand or had never experienced what you went through, so we corrected you."
"We understand you, but we won't forgive you."
Kakashi nodded in agreement with Guy.
"Because your dream is built on trampling our dreams. You're far too selfish, Neji!"
Kakashi's rebuke echoed like thunder, leaving Neji frozen in place.
It sounded incredibly imposing.
Very cool.
But after thinking about it...
Something felt off.
What exactly were Kakashi and Guy's dreams?
How had he trampled on them?
Neji lowered his head and glanced at the little dog.
He seemed to realize something.
"That's right, Neji! While Kakashi and I were arguing, you actually took advantage of the chance to snatch the little dog first! That's unforgivable!"
Guy pointed at Neji with an angry expression.
"...So what are you planning to do? Don't forget, if you attack me, neither of you will have any place left in Konoha."
Neji gradually calmed down.
Since the conflict had already happened, there was nothing he could do.
He couldn't leave this place, so the only way to clear himself of being a Bond-Type Ninja was to rely on the little dog. Conflict was unavoidable.
In Neji's eyes, Guy tearing off his clothes clearly meant he was planning to drag Neji down with him personally.
But if they did that, they'd lose any chance of turning things around.
They would be nailed to Konoha's pillar of shame forever.
"Heh, Neji, you're too naive. Why would we need to do it ourselves?"
Kakashi walked over, picked up the little dog from the ground, gently patted its head, and sighed.
"Our first love has already been tainted by you. It's no longer worthy of being our goal."
"...Then what exactly are you trying to do?"
Neji was baffled.
Had these two battle royale fanatics transformed from Bond-Type Ninjas into furry lovers... and then into pure romance believers?
"You overlooked one thing. The little dog was brought here by Kiba. It listens to Kiba, and Kiba is on our side."
Kakashi rested a finger against the bridge of his nose, wearing an expression that said, You're finished.
"Go! Akaru! Transform into Kiba and attack Neji!"
Like a Pokémon trainer giving commands, Kakashi issued the order.
Then, with incredible speed, he pulled a camera out of his ninja pouch.
Clearly, this camera had originally been prepared to record the battle royale.
Now it had found the perfect use.
In this world, Akamaru was female.
Her name was Akaru.
Although Inuzuka Kiba had betrayed his clan's traditions by hating dogs and loving cats instead, Akaru, as the ninja dog assigned to him since childhood, was willing to give everything for Kiba.
So, just like the second female lead in a tragic romance drama, Akaru didn't hesitate to sacrifice her own dignity as a dog for the sake of the male lead, Kiba.
And now...
She would continue sacrificing everything for him.
Akaru used the Beast Mimicry Ninja Art.
Originally, this technique was supposed to be practiced together by Kiba and her.
But because Kiba hated dogs, she had secretly practiced it all by herself.
Akaru had learned how to transform into Kiba, dreaming that one day she could happily perform Fang Passing Fang alongside him.
She never imagined that the first time she officially transformed into Kiba...
...would be to do something like this while wearing Kiba's appearance.
The so-called Beast Mimicry Ninja Art was, in simple terms, just a Transformation Technique.
A dog became a human.
A human became a dog.
A human and a dog transformed together into one giant dog.
Naruto and the toads had even transformed together into the Nine-Tails before.
It really wasn't that difficult.
And speaking of the Transformation Technique...
It was impossible not to mention Naruto's Sexy Technique series.
Now, without anyone teaching her, Akaru used Kiba's version of the Reverse Sexy Technique.
Perhaps after enduring Kiba's constant rejection for so many years, Akaru had already developed twisted feelings toward him.
As Akaru, transformed into Kiba, pounced on Neji...
Kakashi immediately started taking pictures with the camera.
Click! Click! Click!
"Neji, you're finished. We'll tell the Hokage-sama that you're not a furry lover at all. You're only pretending. You took the little dog for one reason only—to make the little dog transform into Kiba!"
Kakashi quickly put the camera away before Neji could destroy it.
"As expected of Konoha's legendary technician... truly cunning beyond compare. Someone like me could never compete..."
Neji collapsed to his knees in despair.
His eyes were lifeless as he let Akaru, transformed into Kiba, do whatever she wanted to him.
---
Meanwhile, at the Hyuga Clan.
Kushina arrived in her Golden Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and stopped Hinata, who was in the green-chakra Tenseigan Mode.
Meanwhile, Naruto hurried over and helped up the many Hyuga clan members who had nearly been slaughtered by Hinata.
He shared the Nine-Tails' chakra with them, allowing their injuries to recover.
"Is everyone alright? Don't be afraid! The Hokage and I are here to save you!"
Naruto flashed the Hyuga clan a bright smile.
The Hyuga clan members froze for a moment.
Then they enthusiastically replied—
"Whose damn furry escaped without being tied up?"
"Save us? We're the Hyuga Clan, Konoha's strongest clan. Do we need someone like you to save us?"
"Exactly. Do you even qualify? Maybe you don't!"
"Bah! Don't touch me with your filthy hands! You dirty, lowly creature!"
"Everyone, don't say that. Naruto really did save us. I think he's still quite attractive. Why don't we later..."
"Good idea! Tie him up and sell him! We'll get a good price!"
Naruto stood there, completely stunned by the overwhelming hostility from the Hyuga clan.
He didn't even react when someone threw a stone at him.
Why?
Why were they treating him like this when he had been nothing but kind to them?
He hadn't done anything wrong.
Naruto hurriedly recalled all the information he had investigated recently, afraid he had overlooked something.
Has the Naruto of this world offended the Hyuga Clan before?
No.
Not at all.
Watching Naruto's experience...
Even the audience outside was confused.
Everyone had already gotten used to the Will of Bullying.
But this time, something was different.
It seemed that Naruto's kindness had instead stimulated and strengthened the Will of Bullying.
Their malice had become even more intense.
Why?
The viewing team on Kirigakure's beach couldn't understand it.
But over in Amegakure, Shiromo gave an explanation.
"This is actually quite normal. There was once a country called Masala Country. They had a similar tradition." (Masala Country = India)
"In that country, the Senju and Uchiha were considered noble, while the Inuzuka and Aburame were considered lowly."
"Whenever you encountered an Inuzuka ninja there, you absolutely couldn't show them kindness. You had to bully them and insult them."
"Otherwise, they would think you were lower than they were and would turn around and bully you instead."
"Once, a tourist visited Masala Country. He simply smiled kindly at an Inuzuka gatekeeper outside an inn."
"As a result, the gatekeeper brutally assaulted him."
(End of this chapter)