The scene instantly became very awkward. Hinata and Neji Hyuga, cousins, both wore very unnatural expressions. They were relatives who had been close in childhood, but circumstances had changed them into strangers, barely speaking for years. Now, unexpectedly, they'd met here.
Because of his father's death, Neji still harbored resentment towards Hinata and the main branch of the clan. Hinata, feeling that she was somehow connected to Neji's father's demise, felt guilty. Due to this guilt, when she heard that Neji and Ren were going to fight, she had secretly cheered for Ren. Later, upon hearing that Neji had been defeated in less than a single move by Ren, she felt a pang of pity for Neji.
For a moment, the two stood in silence, trying to ignore each other's existence.
At this point, Naruto, the famously oblivious boy, suddenly piped up, "Hey, both of you have Byakugan, are you two siblings?"
Everyone present couldn't help but inwardly roll their eyes. Come on, both of them possessed the iconic Byakugan of the Hyuga clan. Was it really hard to tell they were related? It was truly dense to even ask such a thing! Moreover, the two Hyuga cousins were clearly unhappy with their strained relationship and didn't want others to bring it up at all. Naruto, your reaction is so slow! You have no perception whatsoever!
"Hmph!" Neji snorted coldly, dismissing the yellow-haired boy in the orange tracksuit as an idiot.
Hinata, on the other hand, had a milder personality. She and Naruto were in the same class, so they were acquainted. And because of Ren's presence, Hinata's feelings from the original story had changed; she didn't have a crush on Naruto and saw him only as an ordinary classmate. So, facing Naruto, she didn't show any shyness. Her voice, as soft and gentle as always, simply explained, "Yes, Naruto, Neji is my cousin. We are both from the Hyuga clan."
"Neji?" Hearing the name, Naruto suddenly felt it was very familiar. He rubbed his chin, sifting through his memories. Suddenly, a light flashed in his mind, and he remembered something. He slapped his thigh and shouted: "I remember! He's the genius boy who was defeated by Ren-nii in one move!"
As soon as these words left his mouth, the air instantly became quiet.
Neji's face went completely black, as if a deeply painful wound in his heart, just about to heal, had been violently ripped open again.
At this moment, the faces of the others showed a variety of strange expressions.
Hinata: Naruto, Naruto actually mentioned such a thing. Neji is going to be very sad... Ren: Naruto, you're practically dancing on Neji Hyuga's grave... TenTen: My brother, this new friend you met seems to be an idiot. Rock Lee: I didn't expect there's someone who can't read the room better than me! Ren, let him join us, so I'm not the dumbest!
It was Ren, a bead of sweat forming on his brow, who finally stepped forward to break the deadlock. He walked to Naruto's side and introduced him to the others, "His name is Naruto, and he's Hinata's classmate. From now on, we'll all be friends."
Everyone nodded and introduced themselves:
"My name is TenTen, Ren's sister. Nice to meet you, Naruto!"
"My name is Rock Lee, I'm Ren's classmate. We'll be friends from now on!"
"I'm Hinata, we're classmates, but we haven't spoken much before. I hope you'll guide me in the future, Naruto."
"Neji, hmph!"
"Alright, alright, since everyone has met, let's start the picnic! There's still a lot of work to do! Let's get to it!" Ren said to them with a smile.
Everyone nodded and immediately got to work. Some started the fire, others strung skewers, and some chopped vegetables. Just as Ren was about to begin, Neji Hyuga walked towards him and said coldly: "Ren, I want to challenge you! Let's fight again, this time I will definitely defeat you!"
"Now?" Ren frowned. If he refused him, he worried that this stubborn individual wouldn't give up easily, making things more troublesome. So Ren said, "It's fine to accept your challenge, but we have to make a bet."
Neji asked curiously, "What kind of bet?"
Ren smiled and said: "If you win, I'll give you the title of top student and genius. If you lose, you'll do all my chores for a while!"
Neji hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Okay, I promise you!" He couldn't let the sting of his previous defeat linger; otherwise, Ren would become an insurmountable mountain in his life. I won't fall so easily! I will definitely defeat him!
"Let's go then." Ren walked towards a more open area. The battle required a certain amount of space, and Ren didn't want to disrupt today's barbecue.
Boom-boom- In the distant forest, the sounds of fighting could be heard.
"Guess, will my brother win, or will Neji Hyuga win?" TenTen asked everyone with a mischievous expression, enjoying the unfolding drama.
Naruto was the first to shout loudly: "Ren-nii! Ren-nii must win!"
Hinata nodded slightly. "Although Neji's talent is very good, I still think Ren will win."
Rock Lee also wore a very confident expression. He crossed his index fingers over his chest and analyzed, "Ten minutes. I think Ren will definitely end the battle within ten minutes!"
That fast?! Naruto and Hinata both looked surprised.
But TenTen shook her head, then extended three fingers and smiled mysteriously at the group. "Three minutes. It'll only take three minutes; my brother can end the battle!"
This time, even Rock Lee was shocked. During this time, Neji Hyuga's strength in the Ninja Academy had also become quite extraordinary. Besides, he had gathered a lot of information about Ren and gained some understanding of his techniques. This time, he certainly wouldn't be as careless as last time. How could it possibly be over in three minutes? Could Ren's strength now be so immense that they couldn't even imagine it?
However, while they were still contemplating, Ren and Neji emerged from the distant woods. Ren was the same as before, his clothes not even stained with dust, while Neji Hyuga had a bruised face. The result of this duel was self-evident; everyone had guessed it.
It was just that they didn't expect, it was truly as TenTen had said: from beginning to end, the entire duel had lasted less than three minutes!
"How did you guess?" Everyone looked at TenTen.
A mysterious smile appeared on TenTen's face again, and she explained to everyone, "Because... my brother is hungry, so he wants to eat quickly!"
Thump—! Everyone's expressions were struck by lightning. It's because of this reason that the battle needed to be resolved within three minutes? If it wasn't a battle before dinner, maybe Ren would have chosen to play a few more rounds with him, perhaps that could have helped Neji build a little confidence.
But now, because Ren was in a hurry to eat, he had directly used overwhelming force to quickly end the battle, so the strength he displayed was clearly on a crushing level. Thinking about it that way, Neji Hyuga was too miserable, right? In their eyes, there was a touch of sympathy for Neji.