Neji was one of the "Konoha 12," the first among them to become a Jonin, and sadly, also the first to die.
Charles selected Neji's icon:
- B-Rank: Neji Hyuga (Shippuden), shards 40/40. Recruit?
Recruit!
Ding! Congratulations, Charles Doyle, you have successfully recruited a two-star B-Rank ninja, Neji Hyuga (Shippuden).
In an instant, a scene appeared where Neji Hyuga, wearing his Leaf Village headband, assumed his Gentle Fist stance, ready to attack. (The Genius Who Defied Fate!)
Looking at the description, Charles sighed, recalling Neji's story.
Despite being hailed as a genius, Neji never truly broke free from the "caged bird" seal and ultimately sacrificed himself to protect Hinata from the Ten-Tails' attack.
However, in this world, Neji's strength could surpass that of an Jonin. Perhaps he would even truly break free of his cage here.
After all, Charles knew that there were multiple Neji ninja cards, including Neji (Shippuden), New Year Neji, Mid-Autumn Festival Neji, Wing Chun Master Neji, and Ninja War Neji.
By merging these cards, Neji could easily reach Kage-level strength.
Charles opened Neji's details to check his skills.
Neji Hyuga (Shippuden): B-Rank Ninja
- Stars: Two
- Basic Attack: Gentle Fist Attack!
- Substitution Jutsu: Wood Substitution!
- Skills:
- Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation: Spins rapidly while releasing chakra from his body's pressure points, enveloping himself in chakra, attacking all nearby enemies. (Note: During this move, Neji is invincible and in absolute defense.)
- Eight Trigrams Air Palm: Fires three chakra shockwaves at the enemy.
- Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms: Neji places himself in the Eight Trigrams circle and rapidly attacks the enemy's pressure points with 64 strikes, finishing with a final blow.
After reviewing Neji's skills, Charles nodded with satisfaction.
Although Neji's jutsus, such as Palm Rotation and Sixty-Four Palms, hadn't changed much from his lower-rank version, the damage and defensive capabilities were significantly upgraded.
Moreover, Neji gained a mid-range attack like Air Palm.
In the game's rule, Palm Rotation being invincible during use was not just an in-game mechanic but a conceptual rule, making it an excellent defense that not even Odin could break.
Charles recruited Neji and saw his chakra reserves increase by another 5 units, bringing him to 467 units.
In addition, his Hyuga bloodline was further strengthened, and the Byakugan moved one step closer to evolving into the Tenseigan.
The advanced knowledge of the Gentle Fist techniques was also imparted to Charles.
Feeling the tremor in his Byakugan, Charles pondered whether he could unlock the Tenseigan after recruiting all the Hyuga members. He had no doubt he would eventually achieve this himself.
Charles imagined the power of the Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion, a technique capable of slicing through the moon, which was incredibly thrilling to consider.
With Neji recruited, the next two ninjas on his list were Hayate Gekko and Kosuke Maruboshi.
Charles opened Kosuke Maruboshi's profile:
- C-Rank: Kosuke Maruboshi, shards 22/10. Recruit?
Recruit!
Ding! Congratulations, Charles Doyle, you have successfully recruited a one-star C-Rank ninja, Kosuke Maruboshi.
In the next instant, a scene appeared where Kosuke Maruboshi stood on a lookout platform in the Hidden Leaf Village, carrying a large pot and cooking utensils on his back while wielding a long sword in a combat stance. (The Eternal Genin—Kosuke Maruboshi)
Seeing the elderly Kosuke Maruboshi reminded Charles of several Leaf Village Genin who were not to be underestimated.
Kosuke, despite being a mere Genin, had been trained by both the Second and Third Hokage and could hold his own against even Kage-level enemies.
Another such figure was Might Duy, who took down four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and scared the remaining three into retreat.
Charles checked Kosuke's skills:
- Kosuke Maruboshi: C-Rank Ninja, One Star
- Basic Attack: Uses a short sword, large pot, and kunai to attack!
- Substitution Jutsu: Wood Substitution!
- Skills:
- Iron Pot Smash: Swings his pot and spins to attack enemies. ("Though my strength is humble, for the sake of the Leaf, I'm willing to sacrifice my life!") (Note: The iron pot can also be used to defend himself.)
- Leaf Style Willow: Uses genjutsu to control the target, followed by a decisive strike. ("Lord Second, did I truly inherit the Will of Fire?")
- Will of Fire Inheritance: Uses Water Wall to knock back the target, followed by Water Dragon Jutsu and Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu for continuous attacks. ("Lord Third, did I really inherit the Will of Fire?")
Despite having only three skills, Charles realized that Kosuke Maruboshi possessed several hidden techniques, including genjutsu, kenjutsu, Water Wall, Water Dragon Jutsu, and Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu.
These were simplified versions of the original techniques, requiring fewer hand signs, though Charles could always increase the number of hand signs to enhance their power.
Overall, Charles was quite pleased with Kosuke Maruboshi's recruitment.
After recruiting Kosuke, Charles's chakra reserves increased by 1 unit, bringing him to 468 units. All of Kosuke's jutsu, kenjutsu, and other techniques were transferred to Charles as well.
With Kosuke recruited, Charles turned his attention to the final ninja on his list, Hayate Gekko.
Hayate was known as the Jonin who died early in the series but had a Transparent Escape Technique and the strength of a Special Jonin.
His weak health, however, severely hindered his potential, leading to his death at the hands of Baki.
Charles opened Hayate's profile:
- C-Rank: Hayate Gekko, shards 10/10. Recruit?
Recruit!
Ding! Congratulations, Charles Doyle, you have successfully recruited a one-star C-Rank ninja, Hayate Gekko.
The next moment, a scene appeared before Charles's eyes. Under the light of the moon, Hayate Gekko stood with a long sword in hand, launching an attack towards the front. (Hayate Gekko!! Possessor of the Transparent Escape Technique Kekkei Genkai)
Charles opened Hayate's details to check his abilities.
Hayate Gekko: C-Rank Ninja
- Star Level: One Star
- Basic Attack: Leaf Style Swordsmanship!
- Substitution Jutsu: Wood Substitution!
- Skills:
- Secret Sword: Moon Shadow: A mysterious sword technique that involves dashing, rotating, and upward slashes, which can be paired with Leaf Style Swordsmanship and explosive kunai for a variety of attacks.
- Secret Sword: Afterimage: A high-speed forward charge with rapid slashes and spinning attacks using a weapon.
- Dance of the Crescent Moon: Utilizing swift Body Flicker techniques, Hayate performs a series of rapid slashes in front of the enemy, finishing with two clones joining the real body for a final blow.
After reviewing Hayate's skills, Charles realized that his own swordsmanship would significantly improve.
ith Hayate's sword techniques, Charles could make better use of his vibranium sword, and if necessary, could easily present himself as a swordmaster. The fusion of various sword techniques within his memory would help him elevate his own abilities to master-level swordsmanship.
Hayate's Transparent Escape Technique was another impressive ability. It could render the user completely invisible, surpassing the effects of magical invisibility. Hayate's physical weakness and frequent coughing limited his use of the technique, but for Charles, this wasn't an issue. With his vast chakra reserves, he could theoretically fight with Transparent Escape activated throughout the entire battle.
After clicking to recruit Hayate, Charles's chakra increased by 1 unit, bringing him to 469 units.
His internal wind and earth chakra began to combine, creating a new Transparent Escape Kekkei Genkai. Hayate's swordsmanship knowledge was also transferred to Charles.
In just a short period, Charles's chakra had increased by 12 units through recruiting, plus the 15 units gained from battle earlier. This resulted in a total increase of 27 units in one day.
Charles now had a deeper understanding of wind, earth, and water chakra, and his proficiency in genjutsu had improved.
However, his biggest gain was in swordsmanship knowledge, which had increased significantly, boosting his overall strength by about 20%.