By You

Amid the chaos of the battlefield, Shikamaru cuts short Chōji's attempt to comfort him, insisting that grief has no place in the middle of a war and that his late father's plan must still be carried out. Naruto, sensing something is wrong, starts asking questions, but the Ten-Tails strikes before anyone can tell him that Inoichi and Shikaku have fallen. Neji and Hiashi turn the assault aside, drawing praise for the Hyūga, while Hiashi urges Naruto to stay focused, reminding him that losing the war would doom everyone. He frames the two fathers' deaths as an honour, and Neji, thinking of his own father's sacrifice, vows alongside Hiashi and Hinata to guard Naruto to the last.

High above on the beast's crown, Madara and Obito weigh their next move. Madara cannot host the Ten-Tails without a living vessel, and only Obito can supply one by giving up his own life, which leaves the old Uchiha dependent on his descendant. Choosing to drown the Allied forces in despair, Obito sends a barrage of wooden spears toward the shinobi. The Hyūga knock the projectiles clear of Naruto, and as Kitsuchi gathers chakra for his crushing earth technique, the creature drives a hand down at the group. Hiashi repels it with a vacuum-palm barrier, but a follow-up pinpoint strike moves too fast to block.

Hinata flings her arms out to shield Naruto, yet it is Neji who throws himself into the path of the blow. Naruto screams for medics as Neji admits the wound is already fatal. With Hiashi stricken and Hinata weeping, Naruto demands to know why a prodigy of the clan would trade his life away, and Neji answers that he finally grasps what his father felt: he acted because Naruto once called him a genius. As his life fades, the caged-bird seal on his brow vanishes, closing off his Byakugan. Obito seizes the moment to mock Naruto, throwing his old promise to protect his friends back in his face.

The Ten-Tails kills Neji when he shields Naruto and Hinata from an unstoppable strike, and his death lifts the Hyūga branch seal from his forehead. Obito reveals that Madara's revival as the beast's host hinges on Obito sacrificing himself, exposing a rift in their alliance. The Hyūga collectively pledge to defend Naruto, while the unspoken deaths of Inoichi and Shikaku hang over the battlefield.

Numbered chapter six hundred fourteen, this entry sits in volume sixty-four during the war's climax and first published in Japan on January 22, 2013. Viz released it under the title Because of You. A drawing quirk on page six shows Madara and Obito without the tendrils that normally link them to the Ten-Tails.