Neji seemed a little hesitant, staring at Naruto intently, then asked, "Are you saying you can remove the Caged Bird?"
"Most likely. If you want, I can," Naruto said as he tapped the table, "Would you want that? What do you think about breaking free from the Caged Bird?"
"What?" Neji frowned.
"Neji, I won't hide it from you." Naruto said with a straight face, lying so naturally he didn't even need a draft, "I've been researching Sealing Techniques, and I happened to come across the Caged Bird…"
"I want to try and see if I can remove it. But I'm confident I can."
Neji suddenly felt uncomfortable, realizing Naruto was just trying to find an experimental subject. But strangely, this made him feel less conflicted.
"Do you really have a way?" He asked.
"I do. But Neji, once the Caged Bird is removed, there's no turning back. Once the arrow is shot, there is no turning back. You will be the only one in the entire clan who has broken free from the Caged Bird."
"What would you do then?"
"I..." Neji couldn't make up his mind, his thoughts in a jumble. "Let me think about it. You springing this on me so suddenly... I need time to process it."
"Alright."
Naruto got up and left, leaving Neji alone at the table, drinking silently. Cup after cup, his hands trembling and heart racing. Now, an opportunity lay before him… an opportunity to escape the Caged Bird.
There was only one clan head, but there were many main family's members.
Initially, the seal was created to prevent the Byakugan from falling into the wrong hands, but over time, it became a tool to enslave the branch family. This was why members of the main family didn't need to go to the battlefield.
The Caged Bird automatically destroyed a branch family's member's Byakugan upon their death, and the main family could also actively destroy the brain of any branch family's member who showed rebellion… making the branch family slaves of the main family.
The difference in treatment between the main and branch families was enormous. And without the main family's permission, the branch family's members couldn't access advanced technique or better resources.
Hiashi had told Neji to be patient and wait for the right opportunity.
At that moment, Naruto was already walking home, humming a tune. He was in a great mood, having caught a 'wild' Neji. He had long been unhappy with the Hyuga Clan.
The Hyuga Clan always handled everything internally, but could Naruto really let his future father-in-law get his way?
Anyway, there was no chance Hanabi or Hinata would end up in the branch family, and no one was more suited to inherit the Clan Head's position than Neji, the Hyuga Clan's genius.
Once the Caged Bird Seal was removed, Neji would have no choice but to keep moving forward. The main family would despise him, and the branch family would resent him… unless more branch family's members followed in Neji's footsteps.
'Then, become the Clan Head of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Neji.'
It was a vicious cycle. Once he stepped into it, there was no turning back. No one would truly benefit. Everyone would gain something, but also lose something in return.
Seizing power from his elders would certainly weigh on his mind, but at least Neji's fate would be different. The history of the Hyuga Clan's branch family would change, cutting through the old ties swiftly and decisively.
Hiashi will lose his position as the Clan Head, but in the future, there would be no main family. The Hyuga Clan would be reshuffled, which would undoubtedly impact such a large clan.
Nothing can be built without breaking the old. It was either rebirth or decline. The Uchiha Clan were almost entirely wiped out, so there was no reason the Hyuga Clan could remain untouched.
It was something bound to happen eventually. Now, it was up to Neji. If he was willing, things would be much easier.
By the time Naruto got home, he changed his shoes and habitually walked into the living room, only to find two girls who had just finished bathing, wrapped in towels, sitting on the couch watching TV.
He immediately felt a little out of place after seeing this.
It took him a second to remember that the two of them were still staying at his home. The two girls happened to turn their heads and look at him. Naruto felt a little embarrassed, so he simply pretended to yawn and retreated to his room to get some clothes for a shower.
Ajisai turned around on the couch and looked at the confused Yakumo with a sly smile on her face.
"Did you notice? He... I mean, Master seemed embarrassed just now."
"I didn't notice." Yakumo shook her head. She didn't quite understand that kind of thing, "Maybe he just didn't want to look at us? Or maybe he saw wrong."
"How is that possible?" Ajisai raised her legs and said unconvincedly, "I don't believe he didn't feel anything. But I'm just too scared to push it, as I might get thrown in again."
"So what are you saying?" Yakumo continued watching TV, enjoying this rare day off.
Naruto came out of his room with his clothes and didn't even glance at them. After quickly finishing his shower and drying his hair, he headed straight to bed.
In the middle of the night, he suddenly woke up, feeling something was off. He walked to the living room and, sure enough, saw the two girls fast asleep on the couch. After tossing a blanket over them, he went back to sleep.
…
The next day.
Naruto shamelessly went to find Tsunade again, with no real agenda… just being clingy and sticking around. In Konoha, only Tsunade could keep things under control.
Kakashi hadn't officially taken over yet, and his base wasn't solid. Compared to the big boss Tsunade, someone like Yugao was insignificant.
If something big had to be done, it had to be with Tsunade, after all, she's the Princess of the Senju Clan.
Tsunade, however, couldn't care less about him, going about her business, drinking when she wanted to, and occasionally chatting with Naruto when she was bored.
Everyone was waiting for the investigation results on Danzo, but no matter what, the era of the 'Konoha F4' has come to an end. Kakashi's era was approaching, and soon Konoha would enter the Rokudaime Hokage's era.
Over the next half-month, Naruto hung around Tsunade every day, as if it were his job. He stayed there every day until she finally relented.
"You've been coming here every day. Don't you have anything else to do?"
Of course, he did. Every few days, Naruto would check on the progress of the communication device project, visit Sakura, and sometimes even run into Hinata. If he was really bored, he'd drop by Anko's place. His time management was excellent.
He just wanted to know the approximate time when Tsunade would leave.
After all, before Tsunade left, he had to ignite the fire of within the Hyuga Clan.