Chapter 179 Thank you, brother

With a few hours left until the final match of the Chunin Exams was to begin, the stadium was already filling up with people, ninja and civilian spectators quickly filling up, all wanting to catch a glimpse of the semi-finalists.

Neji stood outside the west entrance, his back to the crowd, protecting Hinata behind him as she sorted out her equipment.

He was reluctant to leave her side all morning, not only because of the elder's threat, but also because he sensed an uneasy atmosphere in the air, an invisible tension that made him unable to calm down.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, his eyes fixed on the bruise on her forearm that was beginning to turn yellow.

Hinata nodded and smiled softly at him, pulling her sleeves down.

"It's okay. I have to go find Sakura to bandage this for me."

Neji didn't want to let Hinata run around the stadium alone at all, especially since she was injured.

"I'll go find her," he said firmly, his tone unquestionable. "You sit with your teammates and try to get some rest. Do you know where she will be?"

Hinata was surprised and relieved at his suggestion, her pearly eyes filled with exhaustion.

"Maybe in the waiting area," she guessed, "there are fewer people there."

Neji nodded and looked around for the entrance to the waiting area. He found one about twenty meters away from them.

"Okay, where do you and Shino meet up with her?"

"The front row in the middle of the east side." Hinata answered without hesitation, "And...thank you, Neji-nii. I really don't need to trouble you."

Neji snorted, casually pushing a strand of Hinata's hair behind her ear as he spoke.

However, as she looked around, her smile faded and the blood vessels around her eyes tightened instinctively.

"Do you really think that the people in the tribe will do something bad to us?"

"I won't rule out the possibility," Neji whispered, scanning the crowd, "I won't rule out the possibility that the elders are behind this. Regardless, we can't take that risk."

Neji continued to scan the crowd, his eyes searching the surrounding chakra, searching for that warm, wild chakra, that fluffy brown hair. He was so focused that it took him a moment to notice that Hinata had turned to face him, and another moment to realize that she had been staring at him for at least a minute.

He blinked in confusion.

"what happened?"

"You just said 'we'."

The sudden accusation caught Neji off guard, and it took him a moment to realize what she was talking about.

He tried to recall what he had just said, yes, he did say it.

Neji turned away embarrassedly. He rarely made such a low-level mistake.

"Don't think too much." He whispered, but Hinata didn't care about his tone. She happily held his hand, her warm fingertips tightly clasping his palm.

"It's too late."

A warm feeling welled up in Neji's heart.

"Hinata! Hinata, over here!"

They heard Ya's voice and turned around to see Ya pushing through the crowd and walking towards them, accompanied by two large men. He struggled to squeeze through the crowd, but his foot slipped and he almost fell to the ground.

"Huh..." Ya panted heavily, finally standing firm, and said to Neji gratefully, "Thanks, brother."

"It's a small matter." Neji said lightly, helping him pick up the ninja tool bag that almost fell.

Kiba straightened up and straightened his clothes before pulling open his jacket to check on Akamaru.

Akamaru seemed to be unharmed, but was frightened.

"Damn," Ya said with a smile, his tone confident and friendly, "I don't even know the last time I fell on flat ground. How about you?"

Akamaru barked twice, as if to confirm his statement. Kiba made a face at his ninja dog like a little kid.

After a moment, he turned around and looked at Neji, his hands in his pockets.

He looked up and down the Hyuga clan member who was older than him, his eyes as sharp as a wolf.

Then he spoke:

"Seriously, man, thank you."

His tone was sincere and warm, and there was something in his eyes that made Neji uneasy.

It wasn't just gratitude for the help, it was more like seeing something in Neji that he had never seen before.

Neji found that he didn't like this feeling.

"Is there something on my face, Inuzuka Kiba?" he asked coldly, unable to bear the look in his eyes anymore.

Kiba's face flushed slightly and he blinked, seemingly realizing that he had been staring at Neji.

"Oh, sorry, I was just thinking, luckily you reacted quickly, otherwise I would have to report to the dentist right now."

Neji sighed helplessly. "I told you, it's a small matter," he repeated. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't be so patient, but... well, Kiba was very important to Hinata, so he could try to be... a little bit nicer.

Neji turned around and looked at Hinata with a determined look.

"Stay here and don't move. I'm going to find Sakura."

Hinata nodded. "Okay, brother."

Just as Hinata said, there were very few people in the waiting area. Compared with the crowded auditorium upstairs, it was like an empty city. Only staff and a few Chunins were patrolling.

Neji was not familiar with Haruno Sakura's chakra, having only been in the same room with her a few times, but in the thin energy of the waiting area, he quickly found her chakra. It was a rich forest scent, strong and strange, like a flood blocked by a dam, containing amazing power.

It was strange, now that he had the ability and willingness to observe, he found that Hinata's friends were completely different from his first impression.

His initial impression of Sakura now seemed to be wrong, he thought she was just a smart but insecure ninja who only hid behind her companions.

But now, just sensing her chakra was enough to prove how wrong his original judgment was.

Sakura's chakra is like a firmly controlled torrent, calm and powerful, like a waterfall in the mountains, which can turn into drizzle to nourish all things, or turn into a huge rock to destroy everything.

This seems to be a common point among Hinata's friends. He not only misjudged Naruto, but also misjudged others: Kiba, Sakura, Sasuke... and Shikamaru.

They all possess incredible powers.

There must be some secret between them, otherwise how could Ya become so strong in just one year? He could feel the solid muscles under his clothes with just a light touch.

But he used to be just a thin child.

And Hinata, how could she become someone he didn't recognize at all in such a short time?

When Neji reached the door of a room, he slowed down and stopped.

He could sense another chakra in the room, much fainter than the one he was seeking, but more familiar.

That was Shikamaru's chakra, which was too hidden, and even with Neji's keen perception and the ability of the Byakugan, it was difficult to detect.

It is like a shadow in a dark room, blending into the surrounding environment and becoming difficult to distinguish.

If Neji hadn't been aware of his chakra, he wouldn't have noticed him at all.

Neji carefully took a step back, leaned against the wall, and opened his Byakugan.

As chakra flowed, his vision turned silver-white, and the world lost its color before his eyes, turning into a panorama composed of lines and shadows.

The outlines of the walls and floor were clearly visible, but the door behind him became transparent, revealing the support structure and metal reinforcements within.

In his field of vision, there were only two colored spots of light: the first spot of light was cyan, located at the bottom of the corridor, which was Haruno Sakura's chakra.