#also hi technically Neji was right when he said Naruto's dreams of being hokage were basically useless

[pale-fairytales]

Naruto rant leggo

Okay. Neji, right? Neji fucking Hyuga.

I always loved him. I don't even know why, I just always felt weirdly connected to him. 12 year old me just looked at him and said "he is my little meow meow." And I still love him.

But god I just realized the depth of how tragic his situation is.

Imagine this; your dad is an identical twin. Your dad/your side of the family isn't as valued as the main one. And your dad volunteers his life to protect your clan. And following the day you lost your dad, every single day, you see someone walking around who looks just like him, but you know it isn't him.

Imagine it. How many times must Neji have accidentally called him 'Father' when he was younger just because for a moment, just a moment, he wanted to pretend that his father was still around? How many times must Neji think he's seeing a ghost when he looks at Hiashi, wondering if his father would have looked any different from Hiashi now if he hadn't had to die? How many times must he have reached for hands that he knows will never reach back?

Just. Imagine how heartbreaking that must have been. It absolutely doesn't excuse how he treated Hinata during the Chunin exams, and it definitely doesn't justify his resentment towards her. But god. This poor kid had to grow up not even being given the opportunity to decide his own destiny—he's mired into a box imposed by his clan, his father is essentially the sacrificial lamb.

I feel like the tragedy of Naruto is how much everyone loses all the time. Everyone has lost someone in horrific ways in Naruto—but it seems like no one in the show/manga can see that. Maybe it's just so normalized that there isn't really any semblance of 'this should not happen!' Or 'this should not be normal!'

Obviously, it could be worse for Neji; he could be like Sasuke, or Naruto, or any of the other orphans who don't have anyone. But god it's so sad to think that every day he has to see someone who has always treated him differently because he's a side branch of the Hyuga, someone who his father died for, and he reminded that his father is not here anymore. I feel like it's even worse because Hiashi looks just like Neji's father! It's that uncanny valley effect—like seeing a ghost but knowing it isn't that person who died!

Alright, okay, rant over.