Chapter 1: I am Neji?
Hi, I'm new at this, so I would appreciate your feedback if you liked the chapter. :D
Regarding the pairings, I would like to know if you want me to add the harem tag or if you have any specific pairings in mind. I will do what the readers prefer in that aspect.
Here is the story.
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The reincarnated one felt someone calling him.
"Boy, wake up, that habit is not worthy of a Hyuga."
He heard something in his head, and the voice grew louder and louder. Shortly after, he felt someone hit him. "Brat, you are not allowed to sleep in so late, learn to take care of yourself!"
The person in question abruptly opened his eyes and explored his surroundings. His desk was gone, the wardrobe and other furniture as well. He was lying on a futon instead of the bed he was used to. Everything had been replaced by a new landscape. A small traditional Japanese room, consisting of a low table with cushions on the sides for sitting, sliding doors typical of Japan instead of normal doors, and two windows overlooking a plaza. He also noticed a vaguely familiar symbol on the wall: a flame in a square.
"What the hell? Didn't I just finish my shift at the hospital after a whole month? Who is this idiot and why is he waking me up like this?"
"Well? Are you going to show up? You should be grateful that we invite a vassal to eat with the main branch." The one who spoke to him was the one who had kicked him while he slept, a tall teenager with very long hair, but what struck him the most were his eyes, completely white—pupil, iris, everything. His face showed complete disdain for his relative.
"Go where? Am I dreaming?" he thought. In the strange dream he thought he was in, he discovered that he could see everything too well. He usually needed glasses or contact lenses to see well, but even so, in this supposed dream, he saw better than ever without wearing anything. Realizing he was ignoring the person who woke him up, he did the most logical thing and answered as calmly as possible to avoid suspicion.
"I don't feel well, I'll have to decline the offer."
The newly awakened hoped he wouldn't ask more questions and leave, needing to know where he was and what he was doing in an unknown house.
The unknown teenager did just that, looking at him with the same disgusted face he had throughout the interaction and left in a hurry, not even closing the sliding door.
Seeing that he left, he hurried to get up and close the door. The most important thing was to clarify his situation. Why was he in an Asian room, and who the hell was that guy with blind eyes?
The answer that came to mind left him stunned. Suddenly, it was as if a switch flipped in his mind. The memories related to his question appeared: the situation, the cause, and the answer to his question, all almost simultaneously.
He was Daisuke, a member of the main branch of the Hyuga clan. His father was the cousin of the current clan head, Hiashi, making him a candidate for heir to the clan if he married the heiress, who was also his distant cousin. They had called him because, as the head's nephew, he was sometimes allowed to eat with the main branch instead of the secondary.
Scared by the information, he looked at his reflection in the window to see his face and found a child with the same white eyes, a face similar to the one who had just left his room, and a white band on his forehead. The child had aristocratic features and very long hair, besides looking too muscular for his age.
"Shit."
Trying to be optimistic, he removed the band fearing it could be what he was thinking, and upon removing it, his predictions were confirmed. He had a green swastika on his forehead. The caged bird seal, which meant he was trapped in the body of Neji Hyuga around the age of 11.
His memories reappeared, confirming his deductions. His father in this world had died six years ago. He was a member of the secondary branch trapped in a ninja village.
"Shit," he said again, while digging into the memory of his new body with a calmness uncharacteristic of him.
"I'm very calm, so I not only have the memories but also part of his personality," thought the MC.
His memory answered his questions one by one; it wasn't unnecessary to filter and read them. It was as if they had always been his own experiences. Momentarily confused, he realized there was no way a dream could have so many details. So, was it possible that this wasn't a dream? Had he reincarnated in the body of an anime character? Had he gone from being a doctor to being a child soldier?
He was in the Hyuga clan compound. Despite being part of the branch family and living there, he was also given a room in the main family sector of the clan, which earned him the displeasure of the branch family. He spent his days at the ninja academy, an institution created by the Second Hokage to train ninjas to a good standard with a range of standard jutsus. There, he received extreme physical training and indoctrination from his instructors along with the other child soldiers of his generation.
He never spoke to his cousins except for a few words with Hiashi's eldest daughter, Hinata. This was because it would be frowned upon for someone in his position to speak with them. With Hanabi, the clan's heiress due to her greater potential and better attitude despite being younger, he didn't even recall making eye contact.
What he remembered matched what he knew from the anime, albeit in more realistic tones. He spent an hour adjusting his thoughts until he heard the sound of shouting in the distance, which made him look back at the window. He looked at the glass with a puzzled expression.
A group of people, including his uncle and the elders, had entered the courtyard, observing a fight between a boy approximately his age and a very young girl. Around them were many members of the main family, kneeling, silent, and analyzing the fight. Several wore traditional Asian martial arts clothing, while others wore simpler clothes. He tried to remember the faces of everyone present, but there were some he couldn't place in his memories.
The fighters in the center were two of the youngest members of the clan. One of them was his heiress cousin, Hanabi, and the other, after some effort to recall, he remembered was Takeshi, an even more distant cousin than Daisuke. He was puzzled by how fast they moved for children and their strange fighting style.
"So, that's the Gentle Fist, huh."
The battle ended with the boy on the ground, humiliated by a girl half his age.
"Poor guy, I wouldn't want to go through that experience," he thought in Neji's body.
The patriarch, seeing the result of his daughter's performance, smiled with pride, much better than his talentless eldest daughter.
His smile disappeared and turned neutral upon noticing his nephew watching them from the window of his complex.
The new Neji also noticed his new uncle and could feel the rage stemming from the young Hyuga's feelings. He already knew the supposed story behind his father's murder, but just like his memories, Neji's tastes and perceptions also influenced him. If the old Neji was still alive in some way, he didn't know.
"Honestly, though, having your uncle give you a scroll with some writings doesn't seem like a reliable source for knowing the truth. Anyway, I don't care; it's better not to trust anyone."
Feeling exposed, he left the window to continue meditating, though aware that any adult with the same eyes could see him no matter where.
After thinking that, he decided to activate his dojutsu. He had to do it to avoid suspicion. He was in a ninja village where the norm was to be on alert all the time, and to top it off, he was in the clan with the best vision and control over its members!
He couldn't risk being imprudent, so he carefully searched his memories and analyzed the behavior of the Hyuga "slave." He had to continue with Neji's serious and solitary behavior and, most importantly, his prodigious skills. Neji, to put it mildly, didn't have a standout personality; he had a submissive character with the clan, which was normal considering he was only 11 years old and his position in life. He did his household chores as a branch family Hyuga as remotely as possible and always tried to stay away to avoid being the target of the main family for fear they would complain and the higher-ups in the hierarchy would activate the seal on him as had happened several times before. Deep down, he hated them all passionately.
At the ninja academy, he had practically the same attitude. He didn't ask for help from anyone or train with anyone since the difference in skills between his classmates was like night and day, and he only spoke when necessary. He didn't believe in the instructors' ideals that the Leaf ninjas' camaraderie made them stronger, as it reminded him of the sermons from the clan elders that instructed you that your duty was to sacrifice yourself for the main family under the excuse of protecting the clan and its secrets. However, he noted that the boy swallowed the rest of the indoctrination for child soldiers; the old Neji was loyal to the village, possessing a mentality that outsiders were enemies and needed to be protected against, which was due to the incident with Kumogakure, whom he also hated.
"His character is good news; that way, I won't raise suspicions. I just have to do my daily activities, be careful when the patriarch calls me, and I'll live," thought the protagonist, relieved.
As for his skills, that was another story. Neji possessed a lot of talent both in theory and practice. He himself had practiced boxing, MMA, and karate when he was young as a hobby, and even so, there was no chance he could beat the current 11-year-old Neji. It's no wonder it was debated in the work that he was the genius of the Hyuga clan. Not only was it easy for him to learn the Hyuga clan's fighting style katas: The Gentle Fist, but the child in his old world would seem like a grandmaster when it came to taijutsu. He could see the stance, viewpoints, breathing, center of gravity, breathing, and patterns in his opponents' movements when dodging, etc. He was truly a never-before-seen genius.
Determined, he clasped his hands, made the signs for the jutsu, and...
"Byakugan!"
Nothing happened...
He didn't understand what was going on until Neji's memories came to mind.
"I have to activate the chakra. But how?"
With a patience he never had in his previous life, possibly due to possessing the qualities of the Hyuga prodigy genius, and through trial and error, he managed to feel his chakra through the exercises done at the ninja academy.
"I feel more strength where I apply the chakra; my arm is lighter and stronger."
After a while, he tried to channel the chakra to his eyes and tried several times, but it didn't work.
"Think of your studies, what are the parts of the eye: retina, cornea, lens..."
"Byakugan!"
Nothing relevant happened again; everything was the same as before.
"The elders order you to come; they want you to fight. Hey! What's wrong with your eyes! No jutsus are allowed here!"
Neji opened his eyes, puzzled, not seeing the person who spoke to him.
A few seconds later, he heard the same voice again, belonging to a boy.
"The elders order you to come; they want you to fight."
Confused by the situation and scared at how close they were to catching him, he held on for a few seconds to process what they had said. The person who requested this time was, according to his memories, Nabuke, 13 years old, Daisuke's younger brother. Once he composed himself, aware that he still needed to adapt to his new powers, he gave the same response as to the older brother.
"I'm not feeling well; I'll have to decline the offer."
"Idiot, do you think you can escape me, a genin? If you don't fight today, I'll tell the elders you disrespected me, and you know what will happen to you," his voice was a mix of arrogance and mockery at the same time.
Neji searched his memory to know more about the guy in front of him. It turned out that Neji hated this guy because he was annoying. His brother was always making senseless demands of the branch family, and Nabuke started copying him, making Neji's life miserable whenever he could. He even falsely accused him of breaking a clan picture once, resulting in the innocent being treated as guilty, writhing in pain from the curse mark. Since then, Neji stopped standing up to him. Apparently, Nabuke and other members were jealous of him because despite not enjoying the Hyuga clan's taijutsu classes and having no parents to teach him, he had better talent just by observing and could even fight head-to-head with people several years older than him. This hurt the egos of pampered kids like Nabuke, whom Neji defeated back in the day when they were paired up when the former was not a genin yet.
"Well, how do I want to handle this? If I refuse, more people could come, and they might even use the seal on me," he thought, worried.
"Well?" Nabuke raised his voice slightly with the same expression he had when he entered, the typical Hyuga way of showing impatience.
"Fine, let's go," he said, feigning Neji's typical indifference.
"This won't be like last time. Now I'm an official ninja. I've been waiting for this moment. I'll show you the difference between you and me."
"Fine, let's go," he repeated in the same tone.
Irritated, Nabuke turned his back, expecting him to follow.
Neji had no choice but to follow him and use him as a guide.
"I hope I don't regret this," the reincarnated one thought tiredly.
Although he was aware that what he was experiencing was too precise to be a dream, he didn't want to think about that at the moment. Silently, he looked at the clan compound's decorations as he followed his relative's steps. They were all paintings of important Hyugas and statues that reminded him of Japanese culture, like everything he'd seen so far.
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Upon arriving at the designated room, the new Neji could notice a gathering of Hyugas. Among them were Hiashi and the elders who acted as advisors due to their wisdom. He vaguely remembered some of the elders who appeared in the anime, but couldn't recall anything else about them.
Tilting his head slightly, he also noticed that the princesses were there. Hinata was looking at the ground, seeming afraid of being scolded at any moment. Hanabi, on the other hand, had a more tranquil gaze, ready to fight despite being only five years old.
The room was large, with enough space for a hundred people. In it, many members of the Hyuga clan were kneeling, forming a rather large circle. They were all from the main branch, as this type of combat involved excluding the secondary branch. Neji was the exception due to being the nephew of who he was and his painfully visible potential, earning disdain from both sides.
"Hiashi-sama, I hope I haven't made you wait. I'm ready for the combat," Nabuke said with a tone of respect.
Hiashi didn't take long to respond with an impassive face.
"Very well, stand in the center. I will give the signal," commanded the patriarch.
They did as the patriarch instructed. Neji couldn't help but feel uneasy about the silence of these people; he was accustomed to livelier audiences. Ignoring his emotions, he performed the fighting salute he vaguely remembered learning from the ninja academy to show respect to his opponent before a fight, although neither felt respect for the other. With their stances ready, they stared at each other, waiting for the clan head's signal.
"Begin!" Hiashi shouted.
Nabuke wasted no time, activating his ocular powers and approaching his opponent at an abnormal speed. In a fraction of a second, he launched a series of strikes in the Hyuga style.
Neji was initially startled by the speed of the other Hyuga, but his body reacted almost instinctively to his attacks, dodging every punch and kick thrown at him. Gradually, he became accustomed to his speed and began to block his attacks with ease, making sure not to touch his fingers, which seemed to irritate the challenger.
The annoyed opponent stepped back to get into a defensive stance and attacked with all he had.
Prepared, Neji ran towards his opponent, seeing his chance as he leaned backward.
Suddenly, they were very close. Neji was within range, and his opponent, feeling cornered, threw all his weight into his palm and pushed it towards him.
Unfortunately for the opponent, the transmigrant predicted where the attack would come from.
Wanting to end this in a reliable way, the new Neji didn't use the new techniques he had learned from his host's memory. Instead, he decided to attack in a way he knew from his previous life.
Flooding his limbs with chakra before attacking, the first thing he did was to strike Nabuke's jaw with precision, causing his brain to bounce against his skull and potentially creating symptoms typical of trauma. Then, he delivered a hook connecting with the underside of his jaw, just in case. Finally, taking advantage of the fall, Neji delivered a spinning kick.
Leaving him completely incapacitated.
Many of the younger Hyugas were speechless and just watched the current situation.
"Wow, my reflexes are incredible. I could never pull off that combo with my old body. Combining what I know with Neji's spatial comprehension, my movements are extremely precise," he thought, amazed.
"You!! Worm!! How dare you attack my brother!"
"Stop!"
Before he realized it, the new Hyuga had a fist at full power a few centimeters from his face. He saw as if by magic another hand managed to stop the fist, belonging to an older, much larger and more muscular man than the average resident of this room, undoubtedly a Hyuga clan jounin.
The order to stop came from Hiashi.
"But Hiashi-sama, he brutally attacked my younger brother! He didn't even finish it like a Hyuga," shouted the teenage Hyuga as he went towards his brother to get him out of the combat zone.
A strange sound came from his body, which Neji could identify as the sound of activating the Byakugan.
"Isn't he aware that I'm a child? He's five years older than me..."
The elders thought it was a good idea and didn't hesitate to pressure Hiashi, and soon many of his relatives supported that proposal. However, the patriarch grew tired of the fights.
"The duel is over. Nabuke lost cleanly. You may leave now," sighed the clan head.
Neji mentally sighed in relief after the clan head's order. He saw as some Hyugas began to get up and leave the room, some who supported the combat with Daisuke and those who remained neutral didn't waste the opportunity to look at him with unfriendly faces.
"This is foolishness. He can't leave without punishment after harming my grandson, Hiashi," grumbled the old woman.
"That's right. Nabuke, although immature, belongs to the highest ranks of the Hyuga family. We can't consider this a slip-up," said the Hyuga elder, Hideki Hyuga, his grandfather.
Neji, hoping that his new grandfather's words wouldn't come true and they wouldn't treat him as a slip-up, tried to leave the room.
"Not you," said the clan head with a furrowed brow, forcing Neji to stay there as many of his relatives left the room, including Hinata and Hanabi.
"You abandoned the Hyuga clan's fighting style to fight with an incomplete and inferior style. You insulted the Hyuga clan and therefore disrespected me," his uncle said frigidly as he raised his hands in a familiar stance. "I will make sure you don't repeat that mistake," he sentenced.
Neji couldn't assess the situation any further due to a sudden pain in his forehead that made him fall and writhed on the floor before losing consciousness.
"Definitely not a dream," he thought in his last moments of wakefulness.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone