Chapter 60 - The Wrath of the Byakugan!

“Man, they did a number on this place.”

Shikamaru sifted through the ruins of Ekyt’s house. Most everything was destroyed, so it was hard to tell just what had happened. Based on what Ekyt had said, the explosion had been set off in the main floor.

It explains why the basement survived so long. He mentioned he had the door sealed, along with traps and genjutsus all over the place around that basement. That’s about the only place to find any evidence, if there IS any. What a drag…and now he’ll be living near my mom…geez, his life DOES suck.

“Hey, Neji, can you find a heat source with that Byakugan? If we find out where this thing started, maybe can find some kind of evidence.” Shikamaru rolled his shoulder and sat crouch, letting Neji go to work.

“Byakugan!” Neji’s enhanced vision COULD see heat sources. In fact, that was a weakspot of the Byakugan: high heat. A day after the fire, the explosion had been so intense that some parts of the building were still hot. But the most intense heat would come from the source of the explosion.

“I’m not seeing anything…Ah! Shikamaru, ten meters South-west, the heat is particularly strong.” Neji ended his doujutsu and walked over with Shikamaru.

“Not surprising, this was a supporting beam,” Shikamaru pointed out. “Let’s see…remnants of exploding tags…do you see anything different?”

A moment later, Neji shook his head. “Nothing. If it was the Akatsuki, there would be traces of clay, and strong chakra. But there’s nothing here. The chakra also rules out Orochimaru. It could easily have been someone in the village, if not for the fact that this building is in close proximity to the Hokage Mansion. None of our villagers would risk setting that on fire. There must be someone else responsible.”

“Hmm…If they think they killed Ekyt in the explosion, then they might drop their guard. Or, if they’re sure he’s alive, which, given his track record, they’re likely to assume, they’ll strike again, something more direct this time. But, regardless, it has to be someone who has access to knowledge of Konoha…”

“What’s this?” Neji plucked at a small piece of fabric with some blood on it. “They must have tried to get into his basement, and got his with one of the traps, or the genjutsu, and gave up. That rules out anyone overly powerful, they could have broken his seal, releases hid genjutsus, and dodged his traps. That, and they wouldn’t have left such incriminating evidence.”

“Whatever, we’d better report this to the Hokage. I heard that she almost had a fight with Ekyt last night, just to keep in the village.”

“That sounds like him. A temperamental fool,” Neji muttered.

“Or the guy who wanted some revenge. You were there in his position, Neji,” Shikamaru reminded him bluntly.

“I’m bound by a curse, that fool is bound by nothing but”

“Loyalty? Love for the village? Listen Neji, he’s the exact opposite of me, with all this motivation. You’ve got some beef with him, it’s not my business. You should take it up with him. Two top genin grads fighting would probably draw a crowd.” Shikamaru slouched away, then used the body flicker jutsu to reach Tsunade’s office quickly.




“He’s gotta be dead! My daddy said NO ONE could survive that explosion!”

“No way, he’s not dead, class would have been canceled!”

The argument had been going that way all morning between the students. They had heard the explosion. No announcements had been given about it, and they were worried. THAT, and they were worried about their finals- today was the day! Ekyt-sempai had said something about a surprise first, THEN the exams. But the students were more curious as to their teacher’s status- dead or alive. That argument quelled when Ekyt walked in as though nothing was wrong.

“Good morning everyone! Today’s the day for your graduation test. And after that exam, I’ve got a surprise for all of you. First of all, please welcome back Iruka-sensei, and Master Sarutobi, who will be proctoring this test with me. The written portion begins now. Anyone caught cheating will fail immediately. Now, go ahead and begin.”

The students shrugged. They should have known. This was their teacher. He would walk through fire to get to work. They wondered why they were surprised.




“Lady Fifth, we’ve found evidence. But it won’t be of much use, aside from ruling out the Akatsuki and Orochimaru.”

“If it’s not them, then who would do this?” Tsunade wondered, looking at the cloth, examining the blood.

“I’m not sure, only that it’s someone who had access to knowledge of Konoha’s layout. It’s not likely to be a Leaf Villager, they wouldn’t have dared setting off an explosion that close to the Hokage mansion.”

It was a mystery. Tsunade dismissed Shikamaru and Neji.





“Alright, the exams are over. Looks like everyone who tested passed. Congratulations to all of you, you are now Shinobi. Your chunin and jonin instructors will be joining you soon. For now, my surprise is…” Ekyt’s voice trailed off. He had planned on the 3rd Hokage demonstrating a couple justsus, along with Iruka’s announcement about the new teams. But that had to wait.



“I see you chose not to take my advice.”

Ekyt looked to the doorway. Neji.

“I have a job to do here. I don’t believe in shirking my duties,” Ekyt explained, wondering what Neji sounded so aggressive. What pissed in HIS cereal this morning?

Neji’s was taller than Ekyt, and seemed to tower over him, despite that fact that Ekyt was clearly unimpressed.

“I am a jonin who gave you a direct order. You don’t disobey other jonin…do you have a problem with me?” Neji asked quietly. Look at him…hardly awake, chakra at less than full power. He’s only made himself a liability.

“With all due respect Neji, you didn’t give me an ORDER, you gave me a SUGGESTION. And I’ve disobeyed other jonin when I felt they were wrong. This is my job, and it’s my jurisdiction. Until I hear an order from Lady Fifth telling me that I HAVE to go on vacation, the last orders I received stand. And they were “Teach the class, see who graduates, and assist Iruka in the team formation”. I don’t take a day of just because I had a little bit of bad luck.”

Ekyt turned back to the class. “All of you who passed: congratulations! You’re now all genin, apprentice Shinobi. The road that lies ahead is difficult, but worthwhile. You’re an elite type of warrior now, and you should all be proud! Now, you’re free to go! But, don’t forget to report back here tomorrow to meet your instructors!”




“You did very well. I know you hated to feel Toru, but he DIDN’T do the jutsu correctly, and failed most of the written portion.” Iruka and Master Sarutobi were telling Ekyt what he had done right, and then telling him what he could have done better. The students that hadn’t graduated were still in the room. As was Neji. As soon as Ekyt turned around, Neji, smashed both hands into Ekyt’s stomach, knocking across the room. With his eyes now white with Byakugan, Neji, approached the fallen Ekyt.

“I gave you an order. Next time, follow it. And I outrank you, you should refer to me as “sensei”.”

The remaining students looked on in shock as Ekyt got up and to his feet. Then he uttered words NONE of them had dreamed of telling a jonin.

“I reserve the title ‘sensei’ for those who are a sensei in every aspect of the word. YOU do not fall in that category, not least of all because you sucker-punched me. I have students to attend to. You’ve made your point, now leave.” Ekyt’s voice hadn’t changed; there was no anger in his voice at all. Just his usual, crisp reply. Neji took offense and attacked again. Once more, Ekyt was shot backward into the wall. This time, he landed on his feet and tagged Neji in the face with a kick, knocking the jonin for a brief loop.

“We can settle this later, Neji. Right now, I have a class to teach.” Ekyt’s toneless voice only served to anger Neji further, who was ready to fight instantly.

“They praise you for being so talented! I fail to see how they could mistake your meager abilities for talent! Your clan is laughable, and your abilities even more so!” Neji shot back.

“THAT is your opinion. MY opinion is different, though that’s to be expected. Now, please leave. I have students to teach.” Ekyt’s frank dismal sent Neji over the edge. As Ekyt turned his back to Neji, Iruka and Sarutobi watched in shock and horror as Neji launched a full assault on Ekyt.

“EIGHT TRIAGRAMS: SIXTY-FOUR PALMS!” In a matter of seconds, Neji’s deadly palms left Ekyt lying on the ground, blood coming from his mouth, and barely conscious.

“THAT is what happens when you disobey a jonin. I am of the Hyuuga clan, and I have a genius you cannot hope to match, no matter how much studying you do, or how hard you try. Your miserable clan was destroyed by their own foolishness.”

“I don’t deny it…(Cough)I AM at a disadvantage with you…especially when (cough) you strike when my back is turned. Coward…(Cough).”


“Ekyt-Sempai!” the remaining students ran down to their teacher, clustering around him. Sarutobi and Iruka soon joined the bunch.

“Ekyt-sempai, please, don’t die!” Naoto begged, in tears at seeing the destruction of someone who had taught him, and humbled him.

“Move aside, you little rodent!” Neji batted Naoto away from Ekyt. The small boy flew into the seats, where a little blood trickled from his mouth. Ekyt’s blurred vision saw Naoto’s limp form, bloodied from the senseless attack.

Neji looked on dispassionately as the little boy coughed up more blood.
“You’ll live. Ninja’s don’t whine and complain, they accept their destiny, and do what they can to make it their own! Caring for your foolish instructor is an incorrect path.”

Neji didn’t see Ekyt stir, and get up to his knees. Ekyt had fought without chakra for years. Having his tenketsu closed didn’t mean the fight was over for her. Especially since Neji had deactivated his Byakugan.

“WHOOF!” Ekyt breathed out hard as he punched Neji with all the power he could muster. He heard the CRACK! of a nose being broken, then the THUNK! sound of a knee hitting a sturnum, followed by the BRACK! of a backfist hitting it’s mark. Neji landed ten feet away. With no chakra behind the attack, Ekyt had used pure strength to attack.

Ekyt was standing, guard up. BARELY standing, but still standing. He put Naoto with the others, while Sarutobi and Iruka tended to him.

“When I took this position, I swore to protect my students, even at the expense of my own life. You can insult me, spit in my face, even tell me my clan is crap, and I’ll let it go. But you DO NOT attack my students! That boy was innocent, and you decide to walk up and bat him aside? I don’t care WHAT you do to me, you won’t touch these kids again. And I’ll do what I have to…anything I have to…to make sure you don’t!”

Neji stood up, fury in his eyes. “You have just proved yourself a fool. How can you hope to compare with the genius of the Hyuuga clan?”

Ekyt glared at Neji, rage finally showing. “With the genius of the Kaguya Clan, and the curse that is my kekkaigenkai. Your mistake was attacking my students. You see them as children, nothing more. I see them as the future of the Leaf Village, and lives, precious in their own right. So if you’re daring me to stand up to you, then I accept. And, for attacking a jonin, I’ll likely be punished. But understand this: You’ve proven yourself to be the lowest of the low by attacking an innocent student. I’ve proven myself to have the integrity to keep my word. I’ve sealed dangerous eyes before, Neji. Yours may be next.”


Iruka and Sarutobi stepped in. Joining them suddenly was Naruto and Hinata. Just as Neji rushed forward to attack Ekyt again, Hinata blindsided him with a palm attack that closed some of his tenketsu.

“N-no! Neji, yo-you can’t do this! And none of us will let you!” Hinata began stammering, but hardened her voice and held her stance.

“That’s right! Now get out of here, and everyone last one of us will kick your @$$ in until it’s a lump in your throat!”


Ekyt pushed to the front once more. “You’ve won the day, Neji. I concede defeat. You’ve got no further reason to attack me or my students. I’ve admitted your better. Now, please go away, Neji…sensei…” Ekyt turned away once more, while his class looked at him.


For Ekyt to bow down like that, it took a lot of guts, and a reason. The reason was, Ekyt Kaguya made a vow, and he stuck by it. That was the only reason the genin swallowed what little pride he had left and allowed himself to be humbled. In less than 24 hours, Ekyt’s house had been destroyed, and he had been forced to humble himself to protect his students. It would go down as one of the worst days of his life. But it also made a mark where it counted…

“Iruka…have you ever seen him bow down like that and admit defeat?” Sarutobi asked.

“No, Lord 3rd…But I understand why. Should we tell Lady 5th?” Iruka replied.

“Yes…about what Ekyt did. NOT what Neji did. THAT is between him and Ekyt now. If Ekyt chooses to tell, that is his decision alone. It’s not our place to interfere further…”

Both cast a glance at Ekyt, who was still a bloody mess. But his concern was for Naoto, not himself.

Sarutobi closed his eyes, suddenly aging. He’s going to beat himself up over this…if only he knew how impressive it was that he made the right choice. ANYONE can fight. It takes a special person to know when NOT to fight. He chose to swallow his pride and protect those students…despite this, I have a feeling that things are not over between him and Neji…



Orochimaru and Itachi handed the two shadow figures their money.

“You did well, there’s no way the Kaguya boy could have survived. Here’s your money. With him out of the way, Konoha is weakened further…” Orochimaru chuckled with pleasure.

“And the Akatsuki’s path to the Jinchuuriki, Uzumaki, is a straighter one…” Itachi added.

The two nameless Rain Ninja bowed their thanks. Little did they know that someone had caught them. Silently, Kakashi left the shadows to tell Tsunade about this new evidence.



NEXT ISSUE: THE TWO ROBBERS REVEALED! EKYT AND NEJI HASH IT OUT. AND WHERE DOES LADY TSUNADE STAND ON ALL THIS? FIND OUT NEXT TIME!

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