WARNING: SPOILERS FOR NARUTO SHIPPUDEN

Summary

• Neji's tragic death in Naruto Shippuden was a poetic sacrifice that mirrored his father's.
• The character arc of Neji showcased a significant growth from hatred to understanding, changing his outlook on life.
• Neji's final act of sacrifice and respect for Naruto completed a perfect circle in his underappreciated character development.

Much of the Naruto series writing helps set a high standard for layered shōnen characters, but one tragic death was more poetic than some fans realize. Throughout the beloved story, several notable characters are killed, helping push the series plot and its cast to the next level. This includes Neji's sacrifice during the Fourth Shinobi War, which helped Naruto and Hinata save the world and paid off a narrative seed that'd been growing for years.

Although author Masashi Kishimoto was forced to write Naruto's Chunin Exam tournament-style arc, it allowed the series to introduce several great characters. One of the highest-rated and most intimidating was Hyuga Neji, with his incredible Byakugan eyes and highly advanced and accurate taijutsu skills.

In one of the arc's most surprising moments, Neji faced off against Naruto in an arena filled with Konoha's residents, with whom both characters had complex feelings. While Naruto was ostracized by the village for housing the Nine-Tails spirit inside him, Neji's outlook on Konoha was even more jaded. Their battle provided a preview into the village's complex and cruel infrastructure.

The Complicated Hyuga Hatred

Naruto manga written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto

During Neji's battles in the arc, Kishimoto reveals the harsh rules of his Hyuga clan and the sad story that ended with his father's death. The clan has a head family to which Hinata belongs. Neji's father was born only moments after Hinata's, which meant he and his offspring would be regarded as a "lower branch of the Hyuga clan" and subservient to the head family.

Just as a delicate peace treaty between the Leaf and Cloud villages was nearly established, a shinobi from the Cloud attempted to kidnap a toddler, Hinata, but was stopped and killed by her father. The enemy village refused to acknowledge that it had been responsible for any wrongdoing and instead demanded retribution for its killed shinobi. It nearly spelled war for the entire Hidden Leaf Village unless a prestigious Hyuga clan member's life was forfeited to appease the Cloud's unfair proposal.

Because Neji's father looked precisely like Hinata's, Neji had assumed that his father was forced to offer his life to protect the family's head, but that was not the case. The night that Neji's father was killed to prevent war, Hinata's father pleaded to find another alternative but was stopped by his identical brother. "I'm not doing this because you are a part of the head family. I want to die protecting you because you are my brother. It's the first time I've had the freedom to choose," were the last words the Hyuga head heard before passing out from a strike.

For years, the prestigious genin believed that his father was wrongfully killed to prevent the sacrifice of the clan's leader. That anger fueled Neji's ruthless assault against Hinata in a previous tournament match as an outlet for the growing animosity towards the head family he'd had growing for years. Naruto's determination taught Neji a lot in their battle, but his conversation with his uncle, the leader of the Hyuga clan, finally revealed the truth and set an emotional new path for Neji to walk, later leading him to make a similar choice to his father.

In The End, Neji Chose Understanding, Not Hate

Neji's character saw some significant changes after his epiphany and even played a big role in helping Naruto in several missions, which further revealed how highly he regarded Naruto after their battle. Still, it all culminated years later during the intense Fourth Great Shinobi War. After several cataclysmic battles that reshaped landscapes, the powerful villains gained control of the Ten-Tails beast, capable of obliterating mountains and wiping out armies with a single attack. One of those attacks nearly impaled Naruto and Hinata until Neji stepped in its way.

The Fourth Shinobi War created a dark legacy and a hellish battlefield that was made even more tragic after Neji's death. He'd been impaled by two huge wooden spikes from the Ten-Tails beast controlled by Uchiha Obito and Madara. After delivering showers of fatal wooden spikes, the monstrous foe was temporarily stunned by substantial Earth ninjutsu, preventing it from claiming more lives for the time being. Neji landed in Naruto's arms to deliver some of the series' most emotional lines that directly tied into their dramatic battle in the Chunin exams years ago.

Characters like Sasuke and Neji were often referred to as geniuses for their seemingly natural ability to excel in nearly anything they tried, a direct contrast to hard-working characters like Naruto and Rock Lee. However, Neji held such a high regard for Naruto that after he blocked the Ten-Tails attack, Neji was asked why he'd throw his life away; he responded, "Because you called me a genius," a line that spoke volumes with only a few words.

After his cold exterior melted away, Neji strived to improve himself and stopped being as overconfident in his abilities. So when Naruto called him a genius, Neji took it as a compliment to the highest degree because he understood the path that his former opponent endured. The talented Hyuga ninja's final thoughts were not of fear or regret but of understanding. By choosing to save Naruto and Hinata, Neji did everything he could to help future generations and those he cared for most, just as his father did years before.

Neji's Arc Was A Perfect Circle

Like his father, Neji sacrificed his life for what he believed to be right. He was not forced to throw his life away because of the Hyuga branch he was born into, a fate his past self thought he was destined to fulfill. Neji chose to save the life of a comrade that he knew and trusted could make a difference in the world.

Neji's final words to Naruto clarified the massive respect he'd grown towards an individual whom he once looked down upon. In his final thoughts, he understood and appreciated his father's choice, which also helped save many lives. Much like the effective Eight Trigrams: Palm Rotation attack, Neji's character arc came full circle in an excellent example of Masashi Kishimoto's incredible character writing in the Naruto storyline.

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