A Question About Neji's Death

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In Chapter 614, we have been acquainted with the death of Neji, sacrificing his life to save Hinata and Naruto.

But here's the problem. I could be missing something incredibly crucial, but don't you think Neji could have used Substitution Jutsu to stop the spire from reaching Hinata and Naruto?

Substitution Jutsu is much better in that it can allow a block of wood to stop the spire (rather than oneself) and it reduces the need for Neji to sacrifice himself. Moreover, wood is stronger. So the question is why didn't Neji use it?

It is one of the most basic Academy Jutsu, and yet it was not utilised.
 

fastrthnwind

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Now that has got me thinking... this could be a testament to his latest speed feat considering that he wasn't around Naruto when it happened....
 

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But I was thinking if Neji had enough time to launch himself in front of a fast-moving spire, even though he wasn't in the area, then he could have done the hand seals for Substitution Jutsu between the point he launched himself and the point in which the spire impaled him. The rationale behind this is that Neji is a quick taijutsu user in which his hands would move very quickly when performing attacks, hence he would be able to perform the necessary hand seals to do it.

It must be noted that Neji is arguably one of the best ninja in Konoha despite his age, so he would have been able to do it.

I think the best explanation is that he probably didn't think about the jutsu in the moment.
 

AaaaNinja

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Substitution Jutsu has no tangibility. They don't kick up dust when they run (this was how Sakura recognized that Naruto's clones weren't Substitutions), and they disappear as soon as they're touched. The spike would have just passed right through it.
 
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Discrepancy

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if he would have had enough time to perform the hand seals for substitution jutsu, he would have just air palmed that shit out of the sky.
That's actually a very good point. Neji could have actually have used his Gentle Fist taijutsu to do it rather than substitution. But it would have exhausted a considerable amount of charkra, so a substitution would have been sufficient.

Even though Neji did actually say that he couldn't spin fast enough, in reality he actually did. If he couldn't, he wouldn't have been able to survive a wave of spires aiming around his area.
 

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Substitution Jutsu has no tangibility. They don't kick up dust when they run (this was how Sakura recognized that Naruto's clones weren't Substitutions), and they disappear as soon as they're touched. The spike would have just passed right through it. Good thing Neji is smarter than you.

I disagree that is has "no tangibility". Here is the following picture:
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The picture shows a piece of wood revealed during the activation of substitution jutsu. The piece of wood has two shurikens and two kunai lodged into the wood. If the wood had no tangibility, the kunai would have been able to go through the wood. It didn't. "Temporary tangibility" would be the better term.

The spires themselves were part of a Mokuton jutsu, which means the spires were made of wood themselves . It is questionable whether a wooden spire would go straight through cleanly. If it could, then Neji could have used his taijutsu to block it.

There's also the argument that Substitution Jutsu wouldn't work with a piece of wood, because there is no wood in the area. Therefore a piece of rock could work, as this would be a stronger piece of material than Neji himself. It would have the temporary tangibility to stop the spire, and as the rock disappears, the wooden spire drops to the ground, killing no one, as the rock would have stopped the force of the spire to such an extent it would not force itself into the direction of Hinata and Naruto. It would fall like a plank.

I'm not a Naruto ninja, so I wouldn't know the exact techniques one would use in every situation, but it makes sense. If the substitution jutsu wouldn't work for some other reason, then Neji could have used taijutsu, even if it would use a bit of chakra.
 

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Substitution Jutsu has no tangibility. They don't kick up dust when they run (this was how Sakura recognized that Naruto's clones weren't Substitutions), and they disappear as soon as they're touched. The spike would have just passed right through it.

I made a response to this, but I don’t think it got through on the forum due to a technical error, but I will repeat what I intended to say.

I would not say that Substitution Jutsu has no tangibility.

On the Naruto wiki under Body Replacement Technique is a picture of a piece of wood. The piece of wood has some shurikens and some kunai lodged in it. If the piece of wood had no tangibility, then the shurikens and kunai would not have been lodged in it in the first place. I would say that temporary tangibility would be the better phrase, as the wood disappears later.

One argument against Substitution Jutsu is that there wouldn’t be any wood in the area to use substitution jutsu. But consider, Neji would have used a rock instead. Remember that the spires themselves are made of wood (as it is apart of a Mokuton jutsu). As the spire goes through the piece of rock, the force of the rock would stop it to an extent that it wouldn’t go through to Naruto and Hinata. The spire would then drop like a plank.

I’m not a Naruto ninja, so I wouldn’t know for sure every single plausible attack in the situation, but it makes sense. If Substistution Jutsu wouldn’t work for any other reason, then Neji could have used taijutsu.
 

AaaaNinja

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I made a response to this, but I don’t think it got through on the forum due to a technical error, but I will repeat what I intended to say.

I would not say that Substitution Jutsu has no tangibility.

On the Naruto wiki under Body Replacement Technique is a picture of a piece of wood. The piece of wood has some shurikens and some kunai lodged in it. If the piece of wood had no tangibility, then the shurikens and kunai would not have been lodged in it in the first place. I would say that temporary tangibility would be the better phrase, as the wood disappears later.

One argument against Substitution Jutsu is that there wouldn’t be any wood in the area to use substitution jutsu. But consider, Neji would have used a rock instead. Remember that the spires themselves are made of wood (as it is apart of a Mokuton jutsu). As the spire goes through the piece of rock, the force of the rock would stop it to an extent that it wouldn’t go through to Naruto and Hinata. The spire would then drop like a plank.

I’m not a Naruto ninja, so I wouldn’t know for sure every single plausible attack in the situation, but it makes sense. If Substistution Jutsu wouldn’t work for any other reason, then Neji could have used taijutsu.
Oops I thought Substitution was something else entirely.
 
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