Crack. Crack.
The sound of bones breaking echoed in the air. With every snap, the Seventh Elder let out a piercing, agonized scream.
But soon…
The screams grew weaker. Now, even the Seventh Elder could no longer endure the excruciating pain tearing through his body.
"Neji… let me go!" His voice trembled as he begged for mercy, broken by the inhuman torment.
Even as an elder of the clan, he couldn't withstand such cruelty.
Impossible!
Neji had gone mad—how could he dare do this to him?
What's worse, his vision had already faded into darkness.
Something mysterious within his eyes had vanished completely, and deep inside, he knew his sight would never return.
But that thought lasted only a fleeting moment before the searing pain swallowed everything.
The agony of his bones shattering piece by piece left no room for reason—only desperate pleas. "Spare me… Neji, please…"
"Heh… finally feeling it, are you?" Neji's eyes were ice-cold, his body radiating killing intent. Chakra surged violently around him, carrying waves of murderous intent that spread through the room.
He ignored the elder's pleas.
With methodical cruelty, he continued to crush the elder's bones one after another.
"Ahh! AHHHH!"
The screams rose and fell, only to weaken again—fading into powerless cries.
"Do you have any idea," Neji's voice was slow, deliberate, each word laced with fury, "how much pain… how much despair my mother endured under the Caged Bird Seal?"
He had experienced it himself—the torment that struck at the soul. That pain was far beyond broken bones, dozens of times more unbearable.
They would never understand. They could never understand.
"No—I was only there to support! I never laid a hand on your mother! Please, spare me! Spare me!" The Seventh Elder stammered, his voice cracking.
The agony of broken bones was more than he could bear even for a moment longer.
Crack!
But the only response was the continued sound of bones snapping and the searing agony that followed.
A bloodcurdling scream echoed once again.
Again. And again. And again.
The sound of bones breaking, mixed with the wretched cries, tormented everyone present.
Yet when they saw Neji's terrifying expression, no one dared to step forward. No one dared to intervene.
Especially the branch family members of the Hyūga — the moment they witnessed such a bloody scene, they instinctively took several steps back.
They feared that if Neji completely lost control, the next unfortunate one would be them.
From afar, they watched his every move, thinking to themselves that once Neji vented his rage enough, he might finally calm down.
And so—
A strange and oppressive silence formed in that place.
Around Hyūga Neji, a grim circle had taken shape. Inside it were only Neji himself, Hyūga Aomatsu, his barely-breathing mother, and the half-dead Seventh Elder whose bones were being shattered inch by inch.
Behind them stood the branch family members, heads lowered in silence.
In front of them were the main family disciples, hatred burning in their eyes—yet not a single one dared to stop him.
In the middle of this circle, Neji continued to torment the outspoken elder of the Hyūga main family. He wanted them all to feel the pain his mother had endured.
These people… all of them deserved to die. Every single one of them.
"Neji… that's enough!"
The Great Elder could no longer hold back. With a flicker of movement, he appeared before Neji, his voice low and stern.
"The Seventh Elder is still a member of the main family! By doing this, you're making yourself an enemy of the entire main branch—an enemy of the Hyūga clan itself!"
Even as he spoke, he dared not strike rashly, for the killing intent radiating from Neji was suffocating. Words were the only weapon he could wield now.
Inwardly, however, the elder felt a pang of regret. If Neji's mother were still alive, things would never have spiraled to this point.
"Main family?"
Neji slowly raised his head and locked eyes with the Great Elder. The icy glare in his eyes made the elder's body shiver.
Then, Neji's furious voice rang out.
"You think you're worthy of being the main family? All you care about is your own interests, treating us like insects beneath your feet."
"Now tell me…"
"Why is the Hyūga clan considered the greatest in Konoha? That status was built on the lives of the branch family, traded in blood and sacrifice. And you—" Neji's cold eyes swept across the room, "you are nothing but parasites!"
"Parasites who dare treat the branch family as slaves, tools to command at will?"
"On what grounds?"
"What right do you worthless insects have to trample them? What right?"
"With people like you, the Hyūga clan will never grow strong. Never!"
Neji's voice cut through the silence like a blade, every word heavy with resentment. His tone carried no respect—only scorn—for the main house.
"Neji!" Eighth Elder finally snapped, unable to endure any longer. He stepped forward, glaring at Neji with fury.
"If you insist on speaking this way, then don't blame me for being merciless! From this moment on, you are no longer of the Hyūga. You are our enemy, to the death!"
"I hereby exile you out of the clan!" Eighth Elder's voice thundered as he invoked the authority of the main house, banishing Hyūga Neji once and for all.
With that, he could command the branch members to strike Neji down.
Neji chuckled darkly. "Exiled? From the Hyūga clan?"
He stomped down, shattering the last bone of Elder Seven beneath his heel. Amid the old man's faint, broken cries, Neji spoke again, his voice like steel.
"From this day forward, you are no longer the masters of the Hyūga. From this day, I will drag every last parasite from your high seats of power!"
"And you—old dog—" Neji's eyes locked onto the Eighth Elder, burning with hatred.
"For the way you targeted my mother, I'll save you for last. I'll make you watch the main house fall, piece by piece, before I end you."
His killing intent flared violently, chakra surging around him like a storm. Neji's fury was on the verge of overflowing, his rage barely contained.
"Neji, enough."
A voice broke through the tension. Hyūga Aomatsu stepped forward, his tone calm but urgent.
"Remember the promise you made to him. We must leave for now, and plan carefully. Don't lose yourself."
This wasn't about calming Neji down. It was about the fear that he wouldn't be able to handle the combined assault of so many from the Hyūga clan alone.
For now, the plan should have been to retreat, find reinforcements, and only then move against the Main House.
Right now, Neji fighting all of them by himself would put him at a disadvantage.
"No need. I can handle this," Neji said firmly, shaking his head. "Protect my mother. Leave the rest to me!"
His gaze never left the Eighth Elder.
That old dog… everything happening now was because of him. It was the Eighth Elder who had forced Neji to flee from Konoha, together with his grandson, Hyūga Sōsuke.
And today… they would finally taste the agony of a fate worse than death.
"Well said! Very well!" the Eighth Elder sneered, his anger twisting into laughter. "Neji, those are your own words. Then let today be your funeral day!"
As he spoke, the Eighth Elder lifted his chin arrogantly, staring at the branch family members standing behind Neji.
"What are you waiting for? Move! Capture this wretch and cut him down!"
"Eh…?"
The branch family members froze, stunned. They looked up in disbelief at the Eighth Elder.
They were branch family themselves… and now the Main House wanted to use branch family to kill one of their own?
****
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