[11] Training Hard
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moshi moshi
"Again," Hizashi said, this time his voice lacking sharpness. "And faster."
Neji obeyed, repeating the step-spin-strike, over and over until sweat pooled at his brow and his breath shortened. He didn't complain. He never did. Every step, every movement, was etched with silent purpose. The only thing louder than his footsteps was the sound of his will.
In the corner of the training yard, Neji's mother watched, her hands clasped nervously. She had always feared the intensity that came over Hizashi during training—but it had grown fiercer lately. The closer Hinata's birthday came, the more Hizashi's strikes became less like a father's and more like a soldier's.
During a pause, Hizashi looked down at his son, noting the fatigue in his shoulders, the sweat streaking his jaw. But there was no fear. Only resolve.
"You don't need to push so hard," Hizashi murmured, "You're still a child."
"I don't have time to be a child," Neji replied, meeting his father's eyes.
That sentence struck Hizashi deeper than any palm strike ever could.
Their sessions often ended in silence, but the silence was never empty. It was filled with what was left unsaid—the fear, the determination, the fragile hope that maybe, just maybe, Neji could find a way out.
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Later that evening, as the stars climbed overhead, Neji sat cross-legged in the small room that had become his sanctuary. A paper lantern cast soft orange light on the walls. He had a scroll open, sketched diagrams of chakra coils and Hyuga clan genealogy sprawled in childish strokes. He didn't fully understand it all, but he was piecing together the story.
The Byakugan had awakened months ago during a spar—his emotions had surged, his mind had focused, and suddenly the world changed. The veins bulged from his temple, and for the first time, he saw chakra. It had felt natural, almost like breathing. Hizashi had been proud, perhaps even afraid.
But the True Eyes had remained dormant—only surfacing in rare flickers when Neji's emotions overflowed. It was as if the Byakugan was a gateway, but the True Eyes... they were a world beyond.
He had tried to train them in secret. Meditation. Micro chakra control. Focusing his breath into one-pointed stillness. But results were frustratingly slow. When the blue light sparked behind his vision, it gave him a glimpse—just a glimpse—of the layers beneath chakra, of unseen lattice structures inside seals, like mathematical models folded in on themselves.
Neji scribbled something onto the parchment: "Caged Bird—glyph sequence has six-fold symmetry. Possible frequency-based disruptor?"
He didn't know what it meant yet. He didn't have to. He had to find out quick.
"Your form is improving," Hizashi said the next morning as Neji landed a precise strike near his shoulder. "But remember—chakra is not just force. It's intention. The Byakugan reveals your enemy's weakness. But your mind must choose what to do with that knowledge."
"Understood," Neji said, correcting his stance immediately.
They transitioned into the Eight Trigrams practice. Hizashi drew a circle in the dirt with his sandal and stepped into the center. "Begin."
Neji stepped forward, weaving his chakra into a defensive pattern.
"Two Palms." His hands moved like gusts.
"Four Palms." His feet glided, the inner spiral of the rotation beginning.
"Eight Palms!" Sweat flew from his brow. His father deflected, corrected, countered.
"Sixteen—!" Hizashi's voice rang, then stopped.
Neji faltered, chest heaving.
"Too soon," Hizashi said. "Don't chase numbers. Perfect the form. Mastery is precision, not repetition."
Neji nodded. Even in fatigue, he absorbed everything.
As the day waned, and the dojo emptied, Hizashi sat beside his son under the maple tree just outside the training ground.
"Your eyes…" Hizashi began slowly. "I saw something strange during our session."
Neji looked up.
"A flash. Like blue fire behind your irises."
"…I didn't notice."
"You're talented, Neji. More than I ever was. But power without understanding is dangerous."
"I want to understand. I need to."
They sat in silence for a moment.
"You know what's coming soon, don't you?" Hizashi asked.
Neji nodded. "Hinata's birthday."
"And?"
"I'll be branded."
Hizashi's hands tightened around his robe sleeves. "I want to stop it. But I can't. I'm sorry."
Neji looked at him. "It's okay I have a plan."
There was no arrogance in his voice. Only certainty.
And for the first time, Hizashi didn't correct him.
Later that night, when Neji lay in bed, he activated his Byakugan once more—just to see the ceiling through layers of wooden grain and beams. Then he focused harder, deeper, calling to that other eye hidden within the bloodline.
For a second, the world pulsed.
A flash of blue.
Faint shapes—the Caged Bird Seal etched like an energy code across his father's forehead, pulsing in silent rhythm. He focused… tried to trace it.
His eyes ached. The vision faltered. The blue dimmed.
He collapsed into sleep.
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[Goal 2: Reach 101/150 Collections to receive additional chapter]
Dear 101 collections, the unspoken warriors, Thank you for being a part of the journey.
[Let's make it 150 Collections, we are so close, come on bois]
Special Thanks this week:
Afreensha77777777 [7 Stones], Kido_TO [6 Stones], Chess_9900 [2 Stones], haken_brot_0373 [1 Stone]
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Sayonara