Naruto Fanfiction

chapter 9

chapter 9-Preliminaries

(3rd p.o.v)

Ryuu stepped up next to Sakura and asked what was going on and whether he had been failed.

"You were allowed to continue," Sakura assured him. "We're being selected at random to fight. So far, the Sound Village kid with the gauntlet and the hunch back beat Choji, me and Ino tied so we both lost, Shikamaru beat the Sound Village girl, Shino, the kid with the trench coat from the Leaf, beat the other Sound Village guy, Tenten lost to the Sand Village girl with the fan, The Sand Village boy with the face paint beat one of the leaf village with the purple clothes, Naruto beat Kiba, barely, and Sasuke fought one of the Hidden Leaf guys and won but almost had all of his chakra stolen."

"Right," Ryuu nodded just as the screen where the matches were shown displayed Hinata and Neji's name. "Oh dear."

"What?" Sakura questioned.

"If I remember right, Hinata was too gentle to stand a chance against Neji," Ryuu stated as both Hyugas moved to the ring and stood facing each other.

"I never thought that you and I would have to face each other, Hinata," Neji commented.

"Nor I Brother," Hinata replied.

"Brother?" Sakura questioned.

"They're both descended from the Hyuga clan," Kakashi, who had just returned from wherever he had been, stated. "One of the most ancient and honorable clans of the Hidden Leaf Village, not actually brother and sister."

"Okay, but they are related, right?" Sakura questioned.

"Yes, in the way that branches of a great tree are related to its trunk," Kakashi stated. "Technically, they're more like cousins."

"So, it's like a family feud," Sakura stated.

"Kind of," Kakashi nodded.

"They're starting," Naruto stated.

"Alright, you may begin when ready," Hayate, who Ryuu was happy to see was the judge of the fights, stated.

"Before we do this, a word of advice," Neji offered. "Hinata, listen to me. Withdraw now. You know you were never meant to be a ninja."

Hinata's eyes widened in surprise and hurt but Neji wasn't done.

"You're too kind and gentle," Neji explained. "You seek harmony and avoid conflict. You allow yourself to be easily swayed by others. Admit it, you have no confidence. You feel inferior to everyone else here. It would have been better for you to simply remain a genin. But to register for the Chunin Exams you need a team of three people. You never even wanted to take part in these exams but Shino and Kiba did, and you couldn't bare to let your teammates down, could you?"

"No!" Hinata practically pleaded. "You're wrong! You're wrong! I wanted...I had to find out...I did it because it I wanted to see if I could change."

After several moments, Neji said, "Hinata, you are the pampered offspring of the Hyuga's Main Branch."

"What?" Hinata said in surprise.

"People can't change no matter how hard they try," Neji stated coldly.

Hinata's eyes were instantly filled with hurt while her face showed shock. She believed him, at least in part.

"They can't run away from their true nature," Neji continued. "A failure will always be a failure."

Ryuu noticed Naruto gripping the hand rail tightly, nearing the end of his patience.

"People are judged by their true nature," Neji stated. "It is the way of the world. That is why we have an elite, and why we have outcasts. We can change our physical appearance. We can improve our skills with training and study. But ultimately, we are judged by what we cannot change. What can't be changed, must be endured. We are who we are Hinata. And we must live with it."

By now, Hinata was on the verge of tears, and Naruto was only still on the balcony because Kakashi had a hold on his arm.

"Just as I must live with the face that you were born into the elite of our clan, while I am from a lesser branch," Neji stated. "I understand these things because I see the world clearly, with my Byakugan. Despite your brave words, what you're really thinking is that you'd like to run, run as far away from here as you can."

"No!" Hinata cried. "You're wrong! You're wrong about me!"

"Byakugan?" Sakura questioned Kakashi.

"It's the Kekkei Genkai, or Bloodline Trait of the Hyuga Clan," Kakashi stated.

they all turned back to the Hyugas in time to see Neji form a hand seals and say, "Byakugan!"

Veins began to stand out at the sides of his face and smaller ones in his iris and his pupils became more distinct. The simple act of him activating his Byakugan was enough to make Hinata shake in fear. After a moment, she looked away, unable to look him in the eye.

"My eyes cannot be deceived," Neji finally said. "A moment ago, in the slightest of movements, your eyes drifted to the upper left corner of the room. I saw, at that moment, you were thinking of your past. Bitter past. And then, almost immediately after your gaze drifted to the lower right. It was a mere flicker of the eyes but to me it revealed all of your mental and physical suffering. You're seeing your old self, and wondering if your life is prepared you for this moment. You're picturing the outcome of the battle. You see yourself losing!"

Hinata gasped and Naruto growled in frustration. Ryuu subtly shook his head but Naruto ignored him.

"And the way you're holding your arms in front of your body like that?" Neji sneered. "It tells me that you're trying to build a wall between us to keep me at bay. You want me to keep from reading the deepest recesses of your mind. And why? Because everything I've said is true! Shall I go on?"

Kakashi tightened his grip but knew that it was futile.

"That familiar gesture of putting your finger to your lips," Neji continued. "I know that it's a desperate attempt to suppress your rising panic. Made all the more desperate by the fact that you know it's futile! It's all futile Hinata. You are what you are. Whether you admit it or not. You already know-"

"Enough already!" Naruto finally shouted. "Who the hell gave you the right to tell her what she can an can't be? Just shut the fuck up and mind your own damn business! You call her a coward but she's not the one who's trying to talk you out of actually fighting! Come on Hinata! Show him just how strong you are!"

Hinata stared at him for a moment before her head fell. Neji glared up at Naruto then looked back at Hinata and his eyes widened. A moment later, Hinata looked up at him with a determined stare.

"If you don't forfeit the match, you know what will happen," Neji warned.

Hinata responded by beginning to make hand seals.

I won't run away, Hinata thought. Never again. No more hiding!

She finished her seals and activated her Byakugan. Ryuu sighed knowing, as did everyone else in the room, that the fight was over. There was no way Hinata could beat Neji.

She took a stance and said, "Defend yourself, my brother."

Neji mirrored her stance and said, "Very well then."

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