Neji's vow, made in front of the entire clan assembly, spread through the Hyuga compound like wildfire.
However, the name "Neji Hyuga" had long been synonymous with the word "failure" in the hearts of the clan members.
Up until now, aside from the occasional rumor that Neji trained alone against wooden posts, no one had paid any attention to the ninja career of this so-called "good-for-nothing."
"I see him training every day. Isn't that just because he has zero talent?" one clansman sneered. "I admit, hard work is respectable and all, but in his case? He's dreaming."
"Exactly. I bet he stole those secret techniques he used!"
"It's only because Lady Hinata is so gentle. Anyone else would have reported him ages ago! If you ask me, he probably tricked her..."
---
"Shh! Keep it down!"
Two women sweeping the area in front of the main gate abruptly stopped their gossip when they saw Neji approaching.
"Oh, hehe. It's Neji-kun. Where are you heading off to?"
The two forced polite, fake smiles. Neji, however, offered a genuine smile and bowed slightly to them.
He didn't say a word. He was used to this.
Talk is cheap. He intended to use the Chunin Exams to shut them up with cold, hard facts.
"Oh my goodness! Lady Hinata!"
Suddenly, the women's eyes lit up as if they had seen a pile of gold. Their attitude did a complete one-eighty.
"Lady Hinata! You're heading to the Chunin Exams, right? You will definitely be promoted! We know it!"
But to their surprise, Hinata gave them the cold shoulder.
"Mm."
Hinata gave a soft, barely audible response, ignored them completely, and jogged to catch up with Neji.
The two women were left standing there, looking incredibly awkward as she chased after him.
"Brother Neji!"
Neji turned around, saw it was Hinata, and smiled warmly.
"Good luck... good luck on the exams, okay?" Hinata said, her face flushing slightly red.
Neji smiled. "You too. You'd better hurry and meet up with Kurenai-sensei."
"Okay!"
After watching Hinata leave, Neji immediately sprinted toward the forest in the back hills.
It was still early morning; only the chirping of a few birds broke the silence.
"This one will do."
Finding a thick, sturdy tree, Neji began his daily grind.
---
"Hmph!"
"Hah!"
Neji gasped for breath as he threw the final palm strike. He was already soaked in sweat.
He took a deep breath and opened his System Interface.
> Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm — Proficiency: 9999/10000!
He smiled with satisfaction. All the hard work lately hadn't been in vain. A new skill was about to drop!
Even though his stamina was nearly depleted, Neji inhaled deeply, molded his Chakra, and assumed the stance with absolute focus.
"Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm!"
He struck the air toward the tree. The massive trunk shook violently for a moment, but only a single leaf drifted down.
However, on the ground, a carpet of leaves had already fallen from his previous strikes.
> [Ding!]
> Congratulations, Host! 'Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm' proficiency has reached 10,000.
> Rank Up: 'Novice' Level achieved!
> Reward: Soldier Pills x10!
Neji thought: It really does give me exactly what I need.
Let's pop one right now!
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a Soldier Pill the size of a thumb dropped into his hand.
He caught it and swallowed it in one gulp.
The taste... ugh. Bitter and astringent.
But a little bitterness was nothing. The Soldier Pill rapidly restored his Chakra and replenished some of his physical stamina.
"Neji! You're here early again?"
A figure approached.
"Whoa!"
Tenten walked up, startled when she saw the state of the tree in front of Neji—and the mountain of leaves on the ground.
"How much training did you do? You've completely bald-headed this poor tree..."
"Haha. Just a little warm-up."
"Why do you have to go so hard?" Tenten began her well-meaning lecture. "You know, right? Just working hard isn't enough. I really hope you find the right method instead of doing all this... useless labor."
Neji just nodded vaguely. "Mmh."
Shortly after, Guy and Rock Lee arrived. Guy began to brief them on the schedule for the Chunin Exams.
"Is there anyone you guys are particularly worried about? Sometimes, doing a little research on your rivals can be good for you!" Guy said with a grin.
Tenten and Neji looked calm, but Lee instantly perked up.
"I have one! There's a genius from the Uchiha clan among the rookies. I'm very interested in him!"
Tenten face-palmed. "Ugh. Instead of being interested in others, maybe look at our own team? Let's just focus on making it to the third round, okay? I heard the first and second rounds are team-based!"
"It'll be fine! Neji-kun definitely won't drag us down, right?" Lee looked at Neji with expectation.
Neji hesitated for a split second, then nodded slowly.
---
After lunch, Neji took the opportunity to sneak in a little more training.
By this time, Lee should have gone off to pick a fight with Sasuke Uchiha, but Neji had zero interest in that drama.
He had thought about it for a while, but decided that improving his own stats was the priority. Whether he hid his strength or not didn't really matter anymore.
When Neji finally arrived at the exam hall, it was already packed.
At a glance, he saw a crowd gathered around an older teenager who was giving a lecture.
Squinting, Neji spotted Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Ino Yamanaka all gathered there.
"Rock Lee. That guy can't use Ninjutsu, but he's a master of Taijutsu. He's a troublesome opponent."
Kabuto Yakushi, who was surrounded by the rookies, rubbed his chin. He pulled out a card and pointed his finger at the last profile.
"And this one... Neji Hyuga. Weak strength, poor talent. A small-fry not even worth mentioning."
Neji heard it, but he didn't care.
However, a figure next to him suddenly charged forward.
"Hey! You with the white hair! Watch your mouth! Our Neji has improved a ton, don't you dare underestimate him!"
Lee immediately started arguing with Kabuto, while Tenten resigned herself to trying to calm him down.
Neji was left alone to sigh: I don't know if this guy is trying to help me or sabotage me...
"Quiet down, all of you!"
A harsh shout cut through the noise of the room.
Everyone turned to the center of the hall, where a man with a fierce, scarred face had appeared out of nowhere.
It was Ibiki Morino.
"Stop yapping. Look at you all. A little Chunin Exam has you panicked like this? Is it really that scary?!"
He let out a scoffing laugh, his cold eyes sweeping across the room. Almost everyone flinched under his gaze.
"Time is up. Assembly complete! I declare... the Chunin Exams have officially begun!"