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Chapter 78 - 78. Neji vs. Naruto -1
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The final day of the Chunin Exams had arrived.
Unlike any before it, this exam held national weight. Lords from every corner of the Land of Fire and beyond had come to witness it firsthand.
And the Genin? Each carried their own emotions, some were calm, some excited, some anxious, and some... still asleep.
As the arena began to fill with roaring spectators, only a few key Genin had yet to appear.
Sasuke Uchiha and Dosu Kinuta... were missing.
On the podium, the Third Hokage stood beside the "Kazekage," the man Neji knew very well wasn't who he appeared to be.
Orochimaru...
Poor Sand Village. Their Kage's gone, and they don't even know it.
A proctor stepped forward with a revised match list.
Due to Dosu's death, Temari no longer received a bye. She'd face Shikamaru directly.
But the rest of the brackets remained unchanged.
The proctor gave his final instructions:
"This is the last stage. Though the terrain has changed, the rules are the same as the preliminaries no restrictions. The match ends when one side yields or is incapacitated. However, if I judge that the outcome is clear, I will intervene. Understood?"
The Genin nodded.
"First match, Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuga. Everyone else, please move to the waiting lounge."
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Observation Platform
The remaining Genin took their seats.
There was a clear sense of tension... mixed with pity.
"Think Naruto can last a minute?"
"No, no... the real question is, how long does Neji want to let him live?"
Laughter spread.
Because everyone had seen Neji fight. To them, he wasn't a Genin—he was the final boss.
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Arena Floor
Naruto cracked his knuckles and pointed at Neji.
"I'm gonna beat you today!"
Neji smiled calmly.
He's gotten stronger. That time with Jiraiya must've paid off.
"I'm looking forward to it."
The proctor raised his hand and called out:
"First Match... Begin!"
Neji slid into a flawless Gentle Fist stance. Naruto bent his knees slightly, falling into a basic taijutsu posture.
Far above, Hiashi and Hanabi sat quietly, watching.
"He is... the Hyuga Clan's strongest prodigy," Hiashi whispered. "Watch carefully, Hanabi."
"Yes, Father."
Though he'd forfeited his claim as heir, Neji's genius surpassed even Hinata's. Even without his eyes, his strength remained peerless.
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Fight Begins
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
With a puff of smoke, Naruto created five perfect duplicates.
Each one was charged with a kunai, surrounding Neji from all sides.
Even with high-level observation haki or chakra sensory, Naruto's clones were notoriously hard to distinguish. Each was physical, each shared his chakra evenly.
And Naruto, being a Jinchūriki with Uzumaki blood, had chakra reserves that were utterly insane.
"HEY!"
"DON'T!"
"UNDERESTIMATE!"
"ME!"
Each clone shouted a word of the sentence as they lunged.
No form. No rhythm. Just chaos.
Neji's smile widened. Trying to overwhelm me with brute randomness?
Let's see how that works out for you.
Two clones rushed from the front. Neji leapt gracefully, both hands landing squarely on their foreheads.
CRACK!
Both collapsed.
"Too slow."
Two more came from the sides, grinning.
"Gotcha!"
[Whirlwind Kick]
Neji twisted midair into a spinning kick, slamming both attackers into the ground in a perfect flying split.
To the crowd, it was a wild scene, one guy taking on four and winning.
Neji landed lightly and looked ahead.
Two more clones charged.
He surged forward, closing the gap in a blink, and struck both with pinpoint palm strikes.
One dissolved into smoke.
The other flew backward, coughing.
"Still no real progress, Naruto."
Neji stepped back, his arms folding calmly.
Naruto ground his teeth.
"I'm not done yet!"
"Sorry, Naruto. I may not have my eyes anymore, but my senses are still like the Byakugan. 360-degree awareness. Your tricks won't work on me."
"TRICKS?!"
Naruto roared.
"I'm gonna be Hokage one day! I don't need tricks, I've got guts!"
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
A massive cloud of smoke erupted. Dozens of hundreds of Naruto filled the arena.
The crowd gasped.
'Even Kakashi would be crying right now,' Neji thought.
The sea of Naruto surged.
Neji grinned.
So this is the power of a chakra monster...
He moved like a blur, scattering clones with palm strikes and kicks, flipping, countering, never stopping.
And then, he found him.
Naruto, the real one.
He dashed forward and struck—
Puff!
Smoke? A clone?
Naruto's voice rang out behind him.
"Guess even you can be fooled sometimes!"
Smart.
A second clone had played bait. The real Naruto came in fast, fist raised.
Neji's back was turned.
But—
"Not bad... but still not enough."
Neji spun, eyes calm.
He could feel it. See it.
Even blind, he saw through everything.
[Rotation!]
The Hyuga Clan's ultimate defensive technique exploded outward.
A swirling dome of chakra repelled every clone in the area and sent Naruto flying.
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