Chapter 101
Natsuki listened quietly. He already knew all of this, but hearing it personally from Neji still made him sigh with sympathy.
There was a sense of confusion and despair in Neji's voice, like a bird trapped in a cage, longing to soar freely but unable to do so—only able to cry blood.
In the original story, Hiashi gave Neji Hizashi's letter.
In it, Hizashi claimed to have willingly sacrificed himself. Hiashi even knelt down to beg Neji for forgiveness, and Neji let go of his resentment.
It seemed touching on the surface—but if you think about it deeply, it's absolutely ridiculous.
Kumogakure tried to kidnap the Hyuga clan heiress, failed, and had the audacity to turn around and demand Hiashi's life in compensation. The Third Hokage was spineless enough to entertain it. But the Hyuga clan—always boasting of being the strongest clan—didn't even try to resist. Instead, they gave in and acted cowardly. Hiashi himself kept proclaiming his willingness to die to prove his sincerity.
If you're not even afraid to die, why not have the guts to defy the Hokage? Why not stand up to Kumogakure?
You claim to sacrifice yourself for the sake of peace in the village, but would the Hyuga clan really let their clan head die just like that? That would be a complete disgrace. In the end, wasn't it Hizashi—who looked exactly like Hiashi—who took his place and died?
Hizashi must've realized this too. Rather than be forced into death, he might as well volunteer for it. At least that way, Neji could receive some preferential treatment in return.
But did the main family ever treat Neji better? No!
Such a genius as Neji was constantly suppressed. He wasn't even allowed to learn Kaiten (Rotation). If not for his own extraordinary comprehension that allowed him to master it on his own, he'd have remained just an average genius, someone not worth mentioning.
The Hyuga main family wanted the protection of the branch house, but feared the branch getting too powerful, so many secret techniques were never passed down to them.