"What a coincidence."
Teizawa murmured under his breath, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
He had already been planning to leave.
He had not expected to run into something this useful right before his departure.
Hyuga Hinata, Konoha's publicly acknowledged yamato nadeshiko.
Gentle, virtuous, considerate.
Her figure was also first-rate...
Though with the kimono she was wearing now, it was impossible to tell.
But according to the original story's development, in a few more years, her figure would be enough to rival Tsunade's.
As for Hanabi, she was still too young.
But it would not hurt to build a good relationship early.
Neji, meanwhile, was a man.
But as a genius of the Hyuga branch family, his value was not low either.
Teizawa pulled his thoughts back and walked toward the three of them.
"Everyone from the Hyuga clan..."
His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, carrying just the right amount of courtesy, clear and distinct beneath the morning light.
Hinata's steps suddenly stopped.
She raised her head, and a flash of surprise crossed those pale eyes of hers.
There was also a hint of indescribable panic.
She had seen this man from a distance before.
More importantly, she knew exactly who he was. The Kazekage of Sunagakure.
That identity alone was enough to make her nervous.
Instinctively, she pulled Hanabi behind her.
Only then did she realize...
This was Konoha, not Sunagakure.
There was no need to protect her little sister like this.
"Ka... Kazekage-sama?"
Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, and a faint blush had already risen across her cheeks.
Hanabi poked her head out from behind her sister.
Her large pale eyes studied the unfamiliar young man in front of her with curiosity.
"Big Sister, who is he?"
Neji said nothing.
He only shifted slightly, shielding the two girls behind him.
His gaze was cold and wary.
Like a blade drawn from its sheath.
Teizawa took in all three of their reactions, and the smile at the corner of his mouth deepened.
"My name is Teizawa. I am the Kazekage of Sunagakure."
His gaze fell on Hanabi's face, and his tone softened a little.
"You must be Hanabi, right? Your sister mentions you often."
Hinata: "..."
Eh?
She did not even know him, much less had she ever spoken to him.
When had she mentioned Hanabi to him?
But Teizawa's domineering tone made her, with her timid personality, too afraid to speak up and deny it.
Hanabi blinked. She looked at Teizawa, then at her sister, her little face full of confusion.
"Big Sister never mentioned you..."
Her childish voice was clear and soft. "I've never heard her say your name."
Hinata's face grew even redder.
This was the Kage of an entire village. Was it really okay to speak to him so bluntly?
"Hanabi... don't be rude..."
Her voice was soft and urgent.
She wanted nothing more than to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.
Teizawa laughed, his smile dazzling beneath the morning light.
"It's fine. She's a child. Innocence is a good thing."
His gaze shifted to Neji.
"Hyuga Neji, I have heard much about you."
"Konoha's genius ninja. A prodigy of the Hyuga branch family rarely seen in a hundred years."
Neji's brows furrowed slightly.
"You flatter me, Kazekage-sama."
His voice was cool and distant, neither servile nor overbearing.
Teizawa did not care about his coldness.
Instead, he took another half step forward.
"I have always been interested in the Hyuga clan's Byakugan... No, perhaps I should say I am interested in the Hyuga bloodline itself."
His gaze moved from Neji's face to Hinata's, then back again.
"Unfortunately, I am out of time today. The next time I come to Konoha, I hope I can have a proper exchange with the Hyuga clan."
Hinata lowered her head and did not dare answer.
She had no idea what to say.
Neji's face remained expressionless, but a subtle trace of vigilance flashed through his Byakugan.
Hanabi, however, was straightforward. She tilted her little face up and looked at Teizawa.
"Are you leaving?"
Teizawa crouched down, his expression kind.
"That's right. I'm returning to Sunagakure. Next time I come, I'll bring you a gift."
Hanabi's eyes lit up.
"What gift?"
"Hanabi..." Hinata finally spoke, her voice a little louder than before. "Don't do that..."
Teizawa stood up, amusement in his eyes.
"Hinata, your sister is very cute. The next time we meet, I hope we can have a proper talk."
He did not wait for Hinata's reply before preparing to turn and leave.
However, at the very instant Teizawa was about to turn around, that long-absent mechanical voice rang out in his mind without warning.
[Ding! Detected that the host has come into contact with Konoha's tragic young man. Host, please make your choice...]
Teizawa's footsteps abruptly stopped.
[Option One: Ignore Hyuga Neji's destined death and turn around to leave. Reward: Byakugan.]
[Option Two: Rewrite Hyuga Neji's ending and tempt him. Reward: Method to break the Caged Bird.]
Hm?
The foot he had just lifted landed back on the ground.
It was as if his entire body had been nailed in place.
Konoha's tragic young man...
Was that not exactly what Neji was?
Of the Konoha Twelve, Neji was the only one who died in the end.
His whole life, he had tried to escape the fate of the branch family.
He had pushed himself desperately to grow stronger. Desperately tried to prove himself.
And in the end, he still died protecting Hinata of the main family.
His death, to put it bluntly, was just a stroke of the author's pen to help push Naruto and Hinata's relationship forward.
Teizawa remembered the scene in the original story where Neji fell.
The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
The author casually drew a few panels and killed off a character.
Then dressed it up as "elevating the theme."
Elevating, his ass.
He pulled his thoughts back and began weighing the rewards of the two options.
The Byakugan?
Frankly, with his current level of strength, a support-type tool like the Byakugan was not that useful.
Seeing through chakra flow, X-ray vision, long-distance sight...
It sounded impressive.
But for him, magnetic sensory perception could do everything the Byakugan could, and more.
If it were the Tenseigan, he might consider it.
But the second option...
A method to break the Caged Bird.
Teizawa's pupils constricted slightly.
The Hyuga branch family's desire for freedom had already reached an almost obsessive degree.
They had been bound by the Caged Bird seal for generations.
Every generation of branch family children was marked with that humiliating seal from birth.
They spent their entire lives living in the shadow of the main family.
Their entire lives locked inside that "birdcage."
They dreamed of breaking free from that shackle. They dreamed of gaining freedom.
If someone told them now...
That the Caged Bird could be undone...
The branch family would rebel in minutes.
So as long as he mastered the method to break the Caged Bird, he could instantly win the goodwill of hundreds of Hyuga branch family members.
One pair of Byakugan versus hundreds of pairs of Byakugan...
Was there even a choice?
Besides, why had the Byakugan become something the major ninja villages fought over?
Kumogakure had tried to seize the Byakugan.
Kirigakure had also obtained one.
Why?
It was not because of its direct combat power.
It was because of its strategic value to a ninja village.
X-ray vision, near-perfect all-around observation, ultra-long-range reconnaissance...
On the battlefield, that ability meant an intelligence advantage.
In defense, it was an iron wall.
In daily patrols, it could expose every conspiracy before it took root.
A single Byakugan was already enough to make every major ninja village drool.
If hundreds of Byakugan all ended up belonging to his Sunagakure...
The corners of Teizawa's mouth slowly rose.
He quickly made his choice.
He would abduct Hyuga Neji.
No, not just Neji.
He would abduct the entire Hyuga branch family.
He would have them rebuild a new Hyuga clan in Sunagakure.
Once the Caged Bird was broken, would those branch family ninja stay in Konoha and continue being treated like tools?
No.
They would follow the person who could give them freedom.
(End of Chapter)
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