BXBX NOVEL Chapter 444: A talk with Neji and the sudden Emergency?
Chapter 444: A talk with Neji and the sudden Emergency?
Kuroto was quite that from the wicked smile Orochimaru had given him while entering Konoha, he had something planned that might have caused some sort of chaos.
It must be known that when the Alliance Contract was being signed, Orochimaru was at the center of the village, and surrounded by high-ranking authorities of all the villages. Not to mention the crowd that had gathered only a little distance away. So, if Orochimaru had made any trouble at that time, it could have caused chaos within the village.
Just the use of Exploding Tags alone might have caused heavy casualties, reaching up to four digits, but since he didn’t do anything, so Kuroto was relieved.
After finishing everything, and assigning Anbu to keep watch over the representatives of the four villages, Kuroto returned home for a short while.
It wasn’t very long since he returned home, that a knock sounded.
Knock Knock
Kuroto quirked his eyebrows as to who could be visiting him. After opening the door, Kuroto found that it was none other than Neji standing at the door with a box “Oh, it’s Neji, what brings you here?”
Looking at Kuroto, Neji held up the box and said, “Good Evening Sensei, Fumei Obasan asked me to deliver this Bento box, since Yui san is extremely busy and won’t be relieved until midnight.”
Although Neji has yet to be taught by Kuroto, formally at least, Neji still prefers to refer to Kuroto with the term ‘Sensei’ because of Kuroto’s promise to accept Neji as a disciple in the future.
“Oh, Oka sama send it?” Kuroto asked to which Neji nodded, then Kuroto said, “Alright, come on in.”
[Translator’s Note: Hyuga Fumei is Hyuga Yui’s mother.]
After receiving the lunch, Kuroto led Neji inside his house.
When Kuroto opened the Bento Box, a rich fragrance was diffused out of the box and tickled Kuroto’s nostrils, Kuroto couldn’t help it anymore and immediately used the chopsticks on the side to have a taste.
On the other hand, Neji sat opposite Kuroto, and his immature face was full of seriousness, Kuroto could see that something was bugging Neji and he wanted to talk about it, but didn’t know how to bring it up.
So, while eating slowly, Kuroto took the initiative to start a conversation with Neji, “What’s wrong Neji, did you not have fun today?”
Neji did not expect that Kuroto would suddenly ask such a question so he was stunned, then immediately recovered and said, “I had a great time, it was my first time seeing so many people from so many different villages.”
Kuroto smiled and said, “That’s good then, don’t always stay cooped up at home, training is extremely important, but keep in touch with others too that would help you grow as a person.”
Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke are the reincarnations of Asura and Indra, as well as the Children of Prophecy, if Neji comes in contact with the two of them early, and develops a friendship with them, then the benefits are endless. At the very least, Neji will have someone as a rival and that will be very good stimulation for Neji’s growth and strength.
Neji nodded at Kuroto’s words, then asked, “Sensei, are you aware of the duel at the square today?”
Kuroto glanced at Neji, then said “So the reason why you feel troubled has to do with this.”
Neji nodded, “Sensei, the duel at the square today gave me a lot of insight and also made me realize how strong a shinobi can be. Whether it was the white-haired boy of Otogakure or Uchiha Sasuke of the Uchiha Clan, both of them showed talent and strength far beyond my imagination.”
Kuroto said, “To be honest Neji, if it’s about talent, then your talent is no worse than the two of them; as for the matter of strength, given the fact that you have been trained rigorously by Hizashi sama for the past four years so your strength should be quite higher than the current Uchiha Sasuke, as for the kid of Kaguya Clan; his situation is quite different.”
Neji asked eagerly, “Is it different, in what sense, Sensei?”
Kuroto thought a little as to how to make Neji understand while not revealing any detail about Orochimaru, “It’s because of growth environment Neji. The growth environment is quite a vague concept and generally doesn’t determine everything, but it has quite a bit of influence on the strength of a shinobi. The environment that Kimimaro grew up in is much much much more dangerous than you have faced up to now. Not to mention he is also being personally taught by one of the best shinobi in the world, so that’s a factor.
Another important point is that he is also older than you and has had more time training and experience.
But there is nothing to worry about, by the time you are an adult, your strength may as well be superior to Kimimaro if you keep working hard diligently.”
Kimimaro is a relatively simple-minded person, all he wants is to be useful to Orochimaru, and this desire of his extremely strong, and precisely because of this single-minded purpose of his Kimimaro has no other distractions, as such he is not an ordinary child, he does have any materialistic desire, nor does he have any greed in his heart. Not to mention, Kuroto doesn’t think that Orochimaru would have ever considered Orochimaru to be a child. As such, the training Kimimaro has gone through might just be the most hellish and grueling training someone can go through.
Coupled with Kimimaro’s own talent, after all, Kimimaro’s talent is also one of the best in the shinobi world. Among the peers his age, Kimimaro can be regarded as the second strongest, with the strongest being Otsutsuki Toneri on the moon.
Kuroto continued, “Then if we talk about Uchiha Sasuke, well currently he may not be shining the brightest of all, but in the near future, he too will become one of the strongest shinobi Konoha has ever seen. He has already awakened the Sharingan and it would only take a few years for that Sharingan to develop into the fully matured Sharingan. At that point, if you want to be able to overpower him, then you must have complete mastery over the Hyuga Gentle Fist Art.”
Neji was a thoughtful look upon hearing Kuroto’s words, and he whispered lightly, “I understand Sensei.”
Kuroto said with a bit of a smile, “Talent can only take one so far, after that it all comes down to hard work and luck, and I am telling you Neji, your luck is not too bad; so, don’t get discouraged and keep working hard.”
Neji nodded, “I will Sensei, I just don’t want Otou sama, and Hiashi sama to feel that the Hyuga Clan has lost.”
Kuroto sighed silently, he could imagine the feeling of Hiashi and Hizashi after observing Kimimaro and Sasuke’s duel today. The current Hinata seems to be timid, and not fit to be a Kunoichi, not fit to be the next Patriarch; far weaker and far less talented when compared to Kimimaro; and even Sasuke. So, they feel that the Hyuga Clan has lost even before the fight began.
In a way, they are not wrong, but they are not completely right either.
In Kuroto’s opinion, Hinata might as well be one of the most courageous girls out there; it’s just that her courage hasn’t been manifested yet.
Seeing Kuroto sigh, Neji asked with a bit of hesitation, “Sensei, I have heard many people say this, but I want to know what you think about the matter. Is the Hyuga Clan really inferior to the Uchiha Clan? Is Byakugan not as good as the Sharingan?”
Kuroto chuckled at Neji’s question, rather than even bothering to give out his opinion on the matter, Kuroto just said, “This is not an issue you need to be worried about now.”
Neji’s cheek inflated in a pout, “Then, when can I be worried about this issue?”
“After defeating me.” Said Kuroto with a smirk, “When you defeat me and become the strongest within the Hyuga Clan, at that time you are free to worry to your heart’s content whether Hyuga Clan is superior or Uchiha Clan is superior, whether Byakugan is better or the Sharingan is better. At this point in time, you haven’t even reached the peak of the Hyuga Clan, on what basis are you going to judge which Clan is superior?”
Neji keenly perceived something from Kuroto’s words and asked with a shocked tone, “Kuroto Sensei, does that mean currently you are the strongest in the Hyuga Clan?”
From what his father has told him, Neji knows that his Sensei is undoubtedly one of the strongest in the Hyuga Clan, but subconsciously, Neji similar to all other Hyuga Clansmen believes that the Patriarch, Hyuga Hiashi is the strongest within the Clan, which is why he was really shocked by Kuroto’s words.
Kuroto of course did not deny Neji’s question and nodded casually while continuing to eat.
Kuroto doesn’t claim to be the strongest in the entire Shinobi World, because who knows what sort of existences are hidden out there, at least there is Nagato whose strength is almost equivalent to Kuroto.
But when it comes to Konoha, and more specifically the Hyuga Clan, without a doubt, Kuroto is the strongest.
Neji hurriedly sat up straight and asked with an expectant look, “Sensei, can I start formal training with you now?”
Kuroto shook his head, “Don’t get impatient Neji, at this point when you are learning the Hyuga Gentle Fist Art, I may not be able to teach you as proficiently as Hizashi sama given the nature of my work and duties. But you don’t have to worry, by the time you graduate from the academy and formally become a Genin, at that time I will train you personally.”
“Oh.” Neji dropped his head; somewhat dejected.
Kuroto said from the side, “Besides, not just anyone can become my disciple. If you don’t graduate at the top of your year, then even if you graduate, I will not accept you as a true disciple.”
Listening to the heavy requirement for being accepted as a disciple, Neji was not panicked or shocked, but nodded, “Please rest assured Sensei, I will not let you down.”
Kuroto smiled, he, of course, knows that with Neji’s talent and hard work, he will graduate at the top of his school year; but giving the kid a temporary goal that he can work for is a good approach as it will keep Neji focused and not waste his time on tasteless rumors all the time.
Whoosh…
Before eighter of them could say anything more, someone suddenly appeared at his house and rushed inside without even bothering to knock on the door.
Kuroto frowned, more so when he noticed who the person was, ‘Why would Guy be so panicked?’
Guy looked at Kuroto but given the emergency of the situation, he didn’t notice the other kid, and hurriedly said, “Kuroto, something happened, Kakashi was attacked.”
Kuroto quirked his eyebrow, then looked at Neji.
Neji didn’t need to be reminded by Kuroto; as even before Kuroto had looked up, he had already stood up, and was about to say, “Sensei, I will take my leave, good night.” Then bowed and left Kuroto’s house.
Neji has been informed by his father that his Sensei’s work and duties are extremely important and secretive to the village. Even the Patriarch of the Hyuga Clan is not aware of the exact particulars, which is why Neji knew that he should not be present at this time and left.
After Neji was gone, Kuroto prompted Guy to sit down and patiently explain what exactly happened, “Take a deep breath and explain slowly, what exactly happened, and who attacked Kakashi?”
Guy said down in front of Kuroto with a gloomy face, and said, “About an hour ago, Anbu found Kakashi bloodied and unconscious in one of the training fields.”
Kuroto asked quickly, “Is he okay now?”
Guy shook his head, “Kakashi was almost dead because of the blood loss and chakra loss, I am not aware of the exact particulars about what happened, but his life was in grave danger and required Tsunade sama to direct all her effort into his treatment, else he would have died. What’s more worrisome is that the Sharingan in his left eye has been stolen by the attacker.”
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