Neji Hyūga

is one of the main supporting characters of the series. He is a jōnin-level shinobi of Konohagakure, and a branch member of the Hyūga clan. He is also a member of Team Guy, along with Rock Lee and Tenten.

Background
Neji was born with an unmarked forehead, but when his cousin Hinata (the main branch's heiress) turned three years old, he was branded with the Hyūga Main Family's Juinjutsu by his uncle Hiashi. All branch members carry this curse mark.

Personality
Outside of his initial feelings towards his clan, Neji has been shown to be extremely serious and mature for his age, and to have great self-control. In battle, he is able to stay relatively calm in most situations and carefully look at the situation at hand. As stated by Tsunade, Neji has excellent instincts, both on the battlefield and as a leader. When forced to make difficult decisions on missions, he shows himself able to make a decision through keen observation and analysis.

While under the belief that his father had died because he was a member of the branch house, Neji concluded that fate is something decided at birth and that no matter what one does, people cannot escape their destiny. Neji often applied this to people he viewed as weaker than himself, such as his cousin, Hinata. During his match in the Chūnin Exams, he told Hinata that she was unfit to be a ninja, due to being too kind and not confident enough. When she was eventually able to turn his philosophy against him, telling him that she believed that he was suffering from trying to become worthy of the main house, despite him being born into the branch family, Neji became enraged, and attempted to kill Hinata. He was stopped by multiple Jōnin, but Hinata nevertheless was left in critical conditions from his earlier attacks. In this instance, Neji's only concern was that he could not complete his attack, and he accused the Jōnin of giving special treatment to the head family members. He disregarded Hinata's personal growth in the match, concluding that, because she was defeated, "a failure will always be a failure".

Neji displayed similar efforts to condescend others during his match with Naruto Uzumaki who, despite being repeatedly struck down, continued to try and fight him. While Neji tried to show Naruto that fate cannot be fought, and that someone who is weak will always remain weak, Naruto was unwilling to accept this mindset, arguing that Neji, for all his belief in fate, had not accepted his own destiny. Naruto went on to defeat Neji, suggesting that, if a "failure" like himself could change his destiny, a "genius" like Neji could, too.

With this example of overcoming "destiny", as well as finding out the truth about his father's death soon afterwards, Neji abandoned the concept of inescapable fate. No longer bound by the idea that he was stuck at his current status, Neji resolved to become strong enough to never again lose a battle. To do so, he began putting more emphasis on working well with his team, and started to value a mission's successful completion and his team-mates' safety over his own betterment, even encouraging Rock Lee to continue pursuing his own dream. In addition, Neji began trying to remedy the estranged relations between himself and the main house members, most particularly by being kinder to Hinata. His efforts seem to be effective, as he begins training with Hiashi, and, in Part II, even starts to wear traditional Hyūga robes. He similarly has great confidence in Naruto's capacity to change others, as he stated that the latter could redeem Sasuke and bring him back to Konoha. However, it seems that he given up hope for Sasuke, and given up his thoughts that even Naruto could bring him back.

When Team Guy was first formed, Neji dismissed Lee's dream of becoming a great ninja, due to his inability to mold chakra, as hopeless, and suggested that Lee could never defeat him. Because of this, Lee accepted Neji as his rival, though Neji never replied or agreed with it. After abandoning his fatalistic philosophy, he suggested that he would not have persevered in Lee's situation, and believed that, if Lee worked hard enough, he could surpass the gifted. They became good friends because of this, though Neji tends to spend most of his time with Tenten, as neither of them can compete with Lee or Guy's antics. He also is shown to be training with her most of the time.

Although he has expressed silence and controlled feelings toward his teammate's and sensei's eccentricities during Part I, in Part II, he calmly told Tenten to leave them on their own after she openly expressed exasperation on their part. This goes to show that he has gone on to understand his teammates better, and he himself has changed his views and beliefs to the point of opening up at times. In the anime, while catching up with Gai and Lee's race back to Konoha, he voices out against their childishness but becomes visibly flustered when Tenten teased that he was half in mind to join them, embarrassedly denying her statement.

Appearance
Neji has noticeably long dark brown hair, typical of males in the Hyūga clan. In Part I, his hair reached the middle of his back and was tied back a few inches above the end, while two straps (perhaps from his forehead protector) framed the sides of his face. In Part II, he got rid of these straps, and allowed his hair, which is now longer, to frame his face instead. Like the rest of his clan, he has very fair skin and possesses the renowned Byakugan, which when activated, stimulates the veins and arteries immediately around his eyes to protrude more prominently. His eyes have a gray tint to them.

In Part I, Neji was seen with a black headband that he wore snugly over his forehead. He wore a khaki shirt and dark brown shorts. He also had bandages wrapped around his right arm, chest, and right leg. In Part II, Neji abandoned the bandages and is clad in traditional white and black Hyūga robes. This may or may not have been to facilitate easier execution of his techniques, or to symbolize his warming relations with his clan. Neji is usually seen with a large tan and black drawstring bag, which he carries over his shoulder. Neji was also seen wearing a dull blue shirt with a mesh t-shirt under it.

Before his fight with Naruto during the Chūnin exams in Part I, Neji's facial expression was stern, hard, and cold. As the series progressed, however, his expression relaxes. He is seen smiling and chuckling at times. While still composed, Neji looks to be more calm, confident, and mature, rather than challenging and haughty.

Abilities
From a young age, Neji has been hailed a natural genius. In Part I, he was labeled the top-ranked rookie in his class. His father even stated that with his talent, he could potentially surpass all other members of their clan. Over the time-skip, when most of the former Konoha 11 Genin reached Chūnin rank, Neji was the only one to advance to Jōnin.

Byakugan
As a member of the Hyūga clan, Neji possesses the Byakugan, a dōjutsu Kekkei Genkai which grants him x-ray vision, nearly 360-degree vision, and the ability to see chakra networks. The Byakugan has a small blind spot at the upper thoracic vertebrae, a weakness of which Neji is actually aware of and takes extra precaution in concealing it from opponents. While the Byakugan naturally has only a 50 meter field of vision, Neji is able to increase its range several times by the start of Part II, to at least 800 meters. He is also noted to have a particularly strong Byakugan relative to other members of the Hyūga clan.

Taijutsu
As a member of the Hyūga Clan, Neji specializes in close-range, taijutsu combat. In battle, Neji has shown tremendous agility and dexterity, capable of simultaneously dodging and striking an opponent with no wasted movement. His attacks are fast and fluid, striking in rapid succession to leave very little time for his opponent to find an opening to counter, but also deliberate.

Neji's fighting style is the signature style of his clan, the Gentle Fist or Jūken, which takes advantage of the Byakugan's insight into people's Chakra Pathway System. Jūken allows for severe internal trauma with minimal external force as it relies on surgical injection of chakra into an opponent's chakra network nodes, or tenketsu. As the Byakugan can see the 361 tenketsu of the Chakra Pathway System, Neji can use Jūken to not only damage opponents, but control their chakra flow as well. Using the Gentle Fist, Neji can affect internal organs, and is capable of killing an opponent with a single strike should he aim to harm the heart. In Naruto Shippuuden the Movie, Neji was able to incapacitate a person with a mere tap to the forehead. Training in the Gentle Fist style implies superior chakra regulatory control and mastery of the human chakra network. As a result, Neji can eject chakra from any tenketsu in his body as a means to slow or impede incoming projectiles. He can also release himself from chakra-based substances using this technique. Continuously maintaining this expulsion of chakra allows Neji create a sensory barrier around himself to detect anything that enters his immediate area, although it rapidly depletes chakra reserves as seen when this tactic was employed against Kidōmaru.

Gentle Fist Techniques
As a member of the Hyūga clan's branch house, Neji is forbidden to learn the clan's secret techniques, but managed to deduce their workings simply through observation. He has learned many of these techniques, such as Eight Trigrams Palms Heavenly Spin and Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Since mastering these techniques, Neji has begun to refine and strengthen them for more specialized needs. In Part II, he learned the Eight Trigrams Empty Palm, a more focused version of the Kaiten, with which he can expel chakra from his palm to attack opponents out of his physical reach. In the anime, he was able to increase the number of strikes in Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms by doubling it. Neji has also demonstrated another technique in the anime called Eight Trigrams Mountain Crusher.

Chūnin Exam Arc
During the first phase of the Chūnin Exams, Neji used his Byakugan to read off of other examinees' tests. During the second phase, Team Guy split up to find weak rival teams. Neji ran into Team 10, but thought them too weak to bother with. When Team Guy later reunited, and Neji and Tenten realized that Lee was uncharacteristically late, they went looking for him. They found him after having been defeated by Team Dosu. Angered, Neji threatened to fight them, but decided not to, after noticing that Sasuke Uchiha had woken up. Once Sasuke drove off the Sound Genin, Neji and Tenten took Lee away to recover, still managing to pass the round.

In the preliminary matches, Neji was paired up against Hinata. After exchanging Gentle Fist-style blows, Hinata seemed to defeat Neji, only for Neji to reveal that he had plugged up Hinata's chakra points, rendering her Gentle Fist useless. He also hit a chakra point close to one of Hinata's vitals moments beforehand, putting Hinata in a critical condition. However, Hinata refused to back down, insisting that Neji, not she, was fighting against what could not be changed. Neji was about to administer a killing blow when most of the Jōnin in attendance stepped in to save Hinata. After the fight, Naruto, angered by Neji's philosophy and treatment of Hinata, swiped up some of Hinata's blood, and swore to defeat Neji during the finals. Neji dismissed his threats, and watched Lee's match with Gaara. He was surprised by Lee's strength, but, after the fight, thought Lee foolish to try to win by using a self-sacrificial method.

Neji was pitted against Naruto in the first rounds of the finals. Although Neji soon gained the advantage, and cut off Naruto's chakra flow, Naruto was determined to fight against Neji, and prove that fate was not predetermined. Naruto tapped into the power of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox sealed within him, and was able to keep up with Neji for a time. Neji's Heavenly Spin protected him from Naruto's attacks, but when he approached a supposedly defeated Naruto, Naruto sprang out of a tunnel he had dug in the ground, and delivered an uppercut to Neji in the jaw, defeating him. Neji was angry with himself for falling for Naruto's signature technique, but Naruto revealed that the technique used to be his worst one, and that he only became good at it through practice.

Neji then heard of his father's fate from his uncle (in the anime, it was changed to Neji reading a scroll written by his father, which explained everything), and broke down in tears. When Hiashi bowed before Neji, entreating his forgiveness, Neji asked him to rise and forgave him. Neji then silently told his father that he wished to finally have control over his destiny, and that he hoped to never lose again.

Sasuke Retrieval Arc
Neji was recruited as part of the five-man team to retrieve Sasuke from the Sound Four. Neji was chosen to be the rear lookout in the single file line Shikamaru organized. When, during the course of the mission, the team was captured by Kidōmaru's webbing, Neji was able to free them, and sent them after the remaining members of the Sound Four while he fought Kidōmaru. Kidōmaru was able to analyse Neji's defenses, and found the blind spot in the Byakugan. Neji realized that Kidōmaru was far more powerful than he was, but was determined to never give up, as he wanted to show those who considered him a genius that their faith in him was correct, and to prove that he no longer surrendered to fate. Neji was severely wounded when Kidōmaru managed to fire an arrow through his chest. However, he was able to keep it from hitting his heart by moving at the last moment.

After dodging yet another arrow, Neji realized that he couldn't stop the next one. He allowed the arrow to hit him - however, he prevented it from being fatal, and took advantage of the string attached to it that Kidōmaru used to guide its trajectory by channeling chakra through the web, severely injuring Kidōmaru. He then caught and struck Kidōmaru repeatedly with Gentle Fist.

Before he died, Kidōmaru said that Sasuke was beyond salvation, and couldn't be brought back to Konoha as he had made his own choice to leave. However, Neji proclaimed that Naruto would be able to save Sasuke from the darkness, as Naruto had saved him. Afterwards, Kidōmaru died, and Neji collapsed due to his injuries. He was near death after the battle, but was saved with the help of Shizune and other medical ninja with the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique.

Curry of Life Arc
Neji was commonly the team leader for Team Guy when Guy was absent, and was more cautious and pragmatic than Naruto was. Neji attempted to use his Byakugan against Raiga, but Ranmaru's kekkei genkai created illusions that he mistook for real people. During the second battle, he was easily defeated and knocked out. While he was unconscious, Tenten attempted to wake him up by feeding him the Curry of Life twice but, due to his low tolerance towards spicy food, he only freaked out after eating it, and fell unconscious again.

Ninja Academy Arc
The Academy Students were divided into teams of three and were assigned to a genin who would lead them on a mission against the other teams. Neji was assigned to lead a team of three academy students; Kōji, Jin and Futaba. His time with them was not covered much except that he was doing better than Naruto. Neji instructed his students on how to use a watch as a compass.

Hoshigakure Arc
Neji suggested that he and the others should concern themselves with finding the star, rather than with the potential dangers the star training had to the children. When the villagers confronted Akahoshi, Neji initially refused to get involved, and when Naruto attacked Akahoshi after Akahoshi disabled Naruto's team-mates with an attack, he told Naruto that he would deny knowing anything about what Naruto did, unwilling to betray the client and erode people's trust in Konoha ninja. Despite saying this, when Tsunade reprimanded the group for Naruto's destroying the star to defeat Akahoshi, Neji accepted responsibility as team leader, before Tsunade revealed that, as Akahoshi was the client, no one would complain about their failing the mission.

Menma Arc
He suspected that Menma was a Sound ninja, and openly admitted to Menma that he didn't trust him. While testing the theory, learned of Menma's incredible speed. His suspicions were confirmed in part when it was revealed that Menma was part of a bandit clan, but Menma remained on Naruto's side, and sacrificed himself to save a town from bandits.

Ultimate Weapon Arc
Neji, Hinata, and Shino try to help Shikamaru by clearing the areas. When the Konoha 11 gather to look at Gaara's fight, Neji explains about Semei's absorbtion ability that is affecting Gaara. After the mission, Neji suggests that Hinata should see Naruto leave Konohagakure in training with Jiraiya, being aware about the feelings Hinata has for Naruto. A similar scene happened after the Sasuke Retrieval Arc in the manga.

Kazekage Rescue Arc
During the timeskip, Neji is the only member of the Konoha 11 to advance to the rank of jōnin. At the start of Part II, Neji and the rest of Team Guy when they were sent to provide back-up for Team Kakashi. They were intercepted by Pakkun, who redirected them to Team Kakashi's destination: an Akatsuki hideout. Along the way, they were confronted by Kisame Hoshigaki, who quickly captured Neji, Tenten, and Lee in a Water Prison. Neji was able to free them with his Gentle Fist, allowing Guy to finish off Kisame. They discovered that it was not the real Kisame, only a lookalike.

When they convened with Team Kakashi, Team Guy was tasked with bringing down a barrier blocking the entrance to the Akatsuki lair. Neji used his Byakugan to find the seals keeping the barrier in place, but the team was ambushed by copies of themselves once the barrier was brought down. They defeated their clones, and reunited with Team Kakashi. Neji spotted Deidara with his Byakugan, and, when Deidara prepared to self-destruct, he warned the rest to run away. Later, when Chiyo began to use a strange technique, he mistook it as a medical ninjutsu, but later realized what it would do. Team Guy returned home when the mission was complete. On the way back, Guy resorted to carrying Kakashi in order to move faster. Lee, seeing this as a new way of training, requested Neji to go on his back, but Neji entirely refused.

Hidan and Kakuzu Arc
In the anime, he can be seen at Asuma's funeral.

Invasion of Pain Arc
When Pain began his attack on Konoha, Team Guy was away on a mission. During a pit-stop on their return home, they noticed a number of birds apparently escaping from the village. They rushed to the village, Neji using his Byakugan to see what he could find out before their actual arrival. With it, he noticed a defeated Gamabunta, who told them of the village's destruction. Upon their return, they found Hinata badly injured, and they quickly got her medical attention. When they later learned that Naruto had defeated Pain, Neji insisted on going to help him confront Nagato, even though Naruto did not want back-up, saying that it was too reckless for Naruto to go alone when he was exhausted. Despite this, he remained in the village, and greeted Naruto with the other ninja upon his return.

Five Kage Summit Arc
Neji is seen with the other Konoha ninja teams as they discuss that Sasuke should be dealt with to prevent a war with Konohagakure and Kumogakure. He suggests that Shikamaru should explain to Naruto and Sakura about the situation as how Shikamaru failed in his first mission as a Chūnin before. According to Sai's information, it seems that Neji, against his words what he said in the Sasuke Retrieval Arc, himself and the rest of the Konoha 11 have given up Sasuke to bring him back, and decided to kill Sasuke.

When Team 7 returns, Neji along with the rest of Konoha 11 questions why they did not kill Sasuke while he was weakened. Naruto retorts that killing Sasuke is his duty and he will have to be the one to defeat him.

Naruto: Shippūden the Movie
Neji, replacing Kakashi Hatake, led a group comprised of himself, Naruto, Rock Lee, and Sakura on a mission to protect Shion, a priestess destined to save the world from the demon, Mōryō. The group arrived at Shion's temple to discover it already under attack by The Gang of Four. Naruto, having recklessly charged into the fray, got himself trapped, prompting to Neji send Sakura and Lee to his aid. Noticing that Shion was being pursued by Kusuna, he caught up with her to narrowly prevent what would have been a fatal blow, forcing Kusuna to retreat.

Later during the mission, Neji led the group, now with Shion and Taruho, through a large torrent because he had seen the enemy group fighting with fire. However, he was proven wrong when Shizuku attacked them with Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique. This surprised Neji, as he detected no water-natured chakra in Shizuku during their first encounter. Once he and the others reached higher ground, Neji used his Byakugan to locate Shizuku. Lee and Naruto impulsively ran off to engage Shizuku and Gitai, leaving only Neji and Sakura behind to guard Shion. To quickly distance Shion from their pursuers, Neji knocked her out, and fled to the forest with Sakura, the priestess unconscious on her back.

Neji and Sakura were pursued by Kusuna and Setsuna. Telling Sakura to go ahead with Shion, Neji engaged the two enemies, hoping to stall them. Setsuna assailed Neji with Wind Release: Rotating Shuriken, which Neji deflected using Hakkesho Kaiten. However, Neji later realized that Kusana had been a puppet all along and Setsuna was merely playing decoy. Fearing for Sakura and Shion's safety, he rushed to save them. He was too late. While Neji managed to prevent Sakura from receiving a fatal, toxic bite, he failed to save Taruho, who had taken on Shion's appearance to also act as a decoy.

Later in the movie, Neji sent Naruto to aid Shion in sealing the demon while he, Lee, and Sakura battled their enemies. Neji learned from Lee's fight with Gitai that the enemy ninjas received chakra from an unusual source. The three of them provoked an attack from The Gang of Four and remained on the defensive until they depleted their chakra. Before Kusana could perform the chakra injections, Neji killed him with a slightly upgraded version of Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, effectively crippling the remaining Gang of Four.

He was seen at the end of the movie with everyone else, waiting for Naruto and Shion to reappear from the mountain.

Naruto Shippūden 2: Bonds
Neji made a few short appearances in this movie. He was first seen rescuing children when ninja from Soragakure when they attacked Konoha. Using his Byakugan, he scanned the Sora-nin's equipment to discover that chakra circulating though their Winged Mechanical Devices enabled the Land of Sky ninja to fly. He later relayed this information to Shikamaru, who pinpointed the location of the Soragakure carriers.

Neji reappeared at the end of the movie, where he, Chōji, Yamato, and Sakura ran into Shikamaru's group. There, Neji wondered what was happening in the Sora-nin's base as it was being destroyed by Shino's Kikaichū.

Naruto Shippūden 3: Inheritors of the Will of Fire
Neji made many appearances in the movie. He was first seen at Naruto and Sai's recovery party. He then was included in the mission to bring Kakashi back, and was instrumental in defeating the monster created by the Chimera Technique with Hinata using the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. At the end of the movie, he and Sai are on a rock as Sai explains that a random glare could mean he is in love with the person he does the glare on which freaks Naruto out.

Trivia

 * "Neji" means "whirl" or "screw," which may be referring to his Heavenly Spin. His name is one of the few known Hyūga names that does not feature a sun- or light-based theme, or begins with an "H".
 * "Nejia" is an internal Chinese martial art that focuses on developing internal chi. The technique uses a lot of whirling and spinning techniques, which may or may not have had an influence in Neji's name.
 * When Neji was first seen in the manga, his hair tie was higher, directly below his head. However, after the second part of the Chūnin Exams, it moved lower, to the hairstyle he has now. In the anime, he had the newer hairstyle nearly the whole time.
 * In the manga, Neji's curse mark is a Manji, a common symbol used in Buddhism, instead of an X in the anime. It was edited, as the manji looks similar to the symbol for the Nazi Party.
 * Neji is a common playable character in the Naruto video games series.
 * In the Naruto character popularity polls, Neji was placed 12th in the first, 13th in the second, 10th in the third, 6th in the fourth, and 7th in the fifth. He finished 8th in the sixth and most recent. While at first Neji was in between 10 and 19 in most of the character popularity polls, and Lee was in the Top 10, Lee has gradually become less popular, while Neji has become more popular, even though the two had equal exposure. However, in an overall tally of all of their scores, Lee and Neji made it to the Top 10.
 * Neji and Tenten have the same theme song in the anime, but Tenten's has a slower beat, and Neji's is more upbeat.
 * In an omake in episode 156, Naruto highlights how Neji doesn't appear much in Shippūden in contrast to his team-mates Lee and Tenten, who appeared in the anime-only Three-Tails Arc. Neji argues that, as a Jōnin, he is constantly away on missions and never has free time.
 * According to the Naruto databook:
 * Neji's hobby is meditation.
 * Neji wishes for a rematch with Naruto.
 * Neji's favorite food is herring soba, while his least favorites are pumpkins, and he also has a low tolerance for anything spicy.
 * Neji has completed 62 official missions in total: 26 D-rank, 19 C-rank, 4 B-rank, 11 A-rank, 2 S-rank.
 * Neji's favorite phrase is "Progress in leaps and bounds."
 * Neji's personality has been described as cool and realistic.

Quotes

 * "Once a failure, always a failure. You can't change that."
 * "Do you understand now? You have no way of beating me!"
 * (To Naruto) "These eyes of mine show me many things. One thing they've shown me... people's limitations are set, fixed, and unchangeable. Only a fool wastes his time trying to become something he can never be!"
 * (To Naruto) "The curse represents a mark of the bird in a cage... It is... the symbol of being tied down to an inescapable destiny."
 * (To Naruto) "There's no method but death to escape this horrible curse."
 * "Father, is a person's destiny a thing like a cloud flowing with an inescapable flow? Or can a person choose the flow he wishes... I still don't know the answer to this. Either way the destination may be the same in the end. However by choosing to live like the latter, a person can live and strive towards a goal. And in this match I have finally understood those who have that are truly strong. Father, I have but one goal, I want to become stronger... Enough not to lose to anyone... That's how I feel. Father, the birds are flying freely today... They look so happy."
 * (To Naruto) "Naruto... sometimes your eyes are even better than mine."
 * (To Kiba, Shikamaru, and Naruto) "Sasuke's out there right now, heading toward Orochimaru. We can't allow such evil to take someone from our village... that is not our way."
 * "All this time I've been called a genius, so I cannot lose."
 * (To Naruto) "Because Naruto... you saved me from the darkness."
 * (About Lee and Guy) "As usual, I can't keep up with their craziness."
 * (About Guy) "He's so childish. He acts like a seven-year-old!"
 * (To himself) "The heavens will not allow a pawn who can only seek victory at the cost of himself to advance..."
 * (To Naruto and Kidōmaru) "No one can determine another's destiny."
 * (To Kidōmaru) "You are the strongest enemy I have ever fought."