NOVEL NEXT Chapter 13: Chapter 13
Hyūga Neji?
Now that's an incredible guy!
Despite the Hyūga clan being regarded as one of Konoha's noble families in the original story, Koshino had a different perspective. In his opinion, aside from the legendary "Heavenly Ninja" of the Warring States Period, the Hyūga clan didn't truly deserve to be considered on par with the Uchiha. Their so-called prestige was nothing more than a product of the Second Hokage's policies to suppress the Uchiha.
Just look at the Uchiha—
In the past, they had the demon-like Madara Uchiha. Then came Shisui, famed for his Body Flicker technique, and Itachi, the god-tier genius. Even after the clan was wiped out, there was still Sasuke, armed with plot armor, standing at the pinnacle with his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan and Rinnegan, wiping out anyone who dared to oppose him!
And the Hyūga clan?
Besides Hyūga Hizashi, only his son, Neji, was truly exceptional. In the original story, Neji was the first among the Konoha 12 to become a jōnin. If he had taken one more step forward, he would have broken through the "Kage-level" barrier and joined the ranks of the ninja world's top elites.
Unfortunately, Neji's fate was tragic.
Born into the Hyūga branch family, he lost his father at the tender age of four for the sake of the main family's interests. Branded with the Caged Bird Seal, he was no more than a glorified servant.
Living in hatred and resentment, Neji's immense talent was clearly restricted. Though he bore the title of a genius early on, he only truly soared once he let go of his hatred.
Yet, even during the Fourth Great Ninja War, fate was cruel to him. He became the only one among the Konoha 12 to die, turning into the tears of countless Naruto fans and a lingering regret in Koshino's heart.
Some say that knowing the plot in advance allows one to foresee and take control of their own life.
But in Koshino's eyes, if he couldn't change the things he wanted to change—if he was just going to be dragged along by the gears of history, filled with regret and sorrow—then what was the point of even reincarnating into this world?
So, as he followed Shikaku and Chōza to Hizashi's residence, Koshino was both excited and determined. On one hand, he was eager to meet Hizashi, Neji, and other key figures from the story. On the other, he silently vowed to rewrite the tragic fate of the father and son. He didn't need them to escape the Hyūga clan's main house; he just wanted them to live happily and shine with the brilliance that their talents deserved.
If Hizashi didn't die and personally trained Neji, wouldn't Neji grow even stronger than he did in the original story?
Wouldn't he become a jōnin even earlier, perhaps even breaking into the ranks of Kage-level powerhouses?
Just imagining these possible changes made Koshino clench his fists tightly.
He began analyzing the key to Hizashi's death: it seemed to be rooted in the Raikage's ambitions, right? If he remembered correctly, the original story only briefly mentioned it—the truce between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud Village, the Hidden Cloud envoy's secret plot to kidnap young Hinata, and Hiashi Hyūga killing the envoy in fury, which led to the Hidden Cloud forcing the Hyūga clan to hand over Hiashi as compensation. In the end, Hizashi took his twin brother's place and died in his stead, all because the Hidden Cloud wanted to get their hands on the Byakugan.
"And speaking of Hiashi, that guy really was a coward," Koshino thought bitterly. "He couldn't solve the problem himself, so he just handed over his brother under pressure from the elders, leaving Neji fatherless."
"So, the key to preventing Hizashi's death is closely tied to the Third Great Ninja War and the conflict between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud."
"I need to figure out how far the war has progressed!"
With that in mind, Koshino turned to Shikaku and asked curiously, "Uncle Shikaku, is the war still going on?"
"Oh?" Chōza raised an eyebrow at the unexpected question. "Koshino, why are you asking about that all of a sudden?"
Shikaku, however, had always intended to cultivate Koshino's potential. Instead of answering immediately, he stopped Chōza from interfering and first reprimanded Koshino, "Koshino, you shouldn't concern yourself with such matters. Your focus should be on training, understand?"
"Got it!"
Seeing Koshino nod obediently, Shikaku paused before explaining,
"The Third Great Ninja War has been going on for a long time. Ever since the Battle of Kikyo Pass, where the Sand Village surrendered, our main enemy has been the Hidden Stone Village. But under the brilliant leadership of the Fourth Hokage, we achieved a decisive victory at Kannabi Bridge. Recently, we've already signed a truce with the Hidden Stone. That means our only remaining enemy is the Hidden Mist. If the Third Hokage's plan succeeds, the war will be completely over soon."
As they spoke, Koshino and the others arrived at Hizashi's residence.
Before entering, Shikaku reminded Koshino, "Koshino, remember to speak as little as possible. Only speak when I give you permission to, understand?"
"Understood, Uncle Shikaku."
Following Shikaku and Chōza into Hizashi's residence, Koshino glanced around and couldn't help but chuckle.
It wasn't that he had a low threshold for laughter—it was just that the Hyūga clan's main and branch family system was simply too ridiculous.
This was supposed to be Neji's full-moon celebration, yet as Neji's own uncle, Hiashi and the rest of the main family were completely absent. Instead, only members of the branch family trickled in, exchanging a few polite words with Hizashi before hastily leaving, as if staying too long would invite punishment from the main family.
In contrast, the guests from other clans, like the Nara clan represented by Shikaku and the Akimichi clan represented by Chōza, offered their congratulations, handed over their gifts, and then sat down at the banquet table for the family feast.
As for Koshino, who could only sit in the far corner, there was no way for him to see Neji, who was at the center of attention. So, instead, he quietly observed Hizashi while analyzing the current state of the Third Great Ninja War.
Shikaku hadn't given many details about the war, but that didn't mean Koshino was clueless.
If anything, as a transmigrator, he probably understood the Third Great Ninja War better than Shikaku himself. After all, the original story had provided extensive details about it!
Looking at the war from the perspective of the original plot, it played out like a classic shōnen battle manga—one lone hero taking on a world full of formidable enemies.
The war had originally erupted because of Sasori assassinating the Third Kazekage, throwing the Sand Village into chaos. To compensate for their previous losses in the Second Great Ninja War and to cover up the Kazekage's disappearance, the Sand Village had no choice but to wage war against Konoha.
As Shikaku had mentioned earlier, this led to the Battle of Kikyo Pass, where the Sand Village suffered a crushing defeat and was forced to sign an "alliance" treaty with Konoha. But in reality, this treaty was nothing short of a humiliating surrender—on top of handing over half of their annual resources to Konoha, the Sand Village also had its number of active ninja restricted, forcing them to adopt an "elite ninja" strategy that prevented them from ever regaining their former glory.
But even after the Sand Village surrendered, Konoha soon found itself facing an even greater crisis.
With the departure of the Legendary Sannin, Konoha's military strength visibly declined, giving the Hidden Stone Village an opportunity to strike.
This led to a new wave of warfare, culminating in the famous Kannabi Bridge battle, where Konoha—under the leadership of the newly appointed Fourth Hokage—secured victory and signed a truce with the Hidden Stone. This marked the official end of the war… or so most people believed.
Koshino had arrived in this world exactly three months ago—right at that turning point.
The Fourth Hokage had just taken office. The battle at Kannabi Bridge had just ended. It was the moment Kakashi had received his Sharingan.
But while most people in Konoha—including the ever-strategic Shikaku—thought that the war was coming to a close, Koshino simply smirked in silence. He knew the so-called end of the war was nothing but the beginning of a greater catastrophe.
Because soon—under the machinations of the true mastermind, Madara Uchiha—Kakashi's teammate, Rin, would be forcibly turned into the Three-Tails' jinchūriki. Madara would manipulate events to make Obito witness her death, causing him to awaken as "Masked Man" and triggering a new wave of conflict between Konoha and the Hidden Mist.
And Madara's plot was just the beginning.
Once the Hidden Mist had sufficiently weakened Konoha, the Raikage's ambitions would come to light. So while people talked about the Third Ninja War winding down, it was actually a joke. Koshino didn't mean to mock Shikaku—he just shook his head silently, sighing at the troubles Konoha would soon face.
"The Sand Village and the Stone Village have barely stepped out of the fight, and now the Mist Village and the Cloud Village are about to take their turn."
"Man, Konoha really doesn't catch a break. If the Third Hokage had the same foresight as me—if he knew that in just a few years, 'Masked Man' Obito would return for revenge, unleashing the Nine-Tails and leading to the death of the Fourth Hokage—he'd probably be depressed enough to bash his head against a wall."
Lost in thought, Koshino assumed that no one had noticed his slight shake of the head.
But just as he did so, Chōza—who had been sitting ahead of him—happened to catch the movement. With a smile, he suddenly asked,
"Koshino, what's wrong? Have you also noticed that the Uchiha clan's presence here seems… unusual?"
"The Uchiha clan?!"