"You... are definitely a big idiot, aren't you?!"
After the atmosphere solidified for about a second, Hanabi, not sure whether she was annoyed or amused, spoke angrily. As a girl who was always very independent and strong, the feeling of being mistaken for someone else right to her face was indeed terrible.
"Look closely! I am Hanabi! Hyūga Hanabi! I am the second daughter of the Hyūga Clan head, and Hyūga Hinata is a completely
different person, okay?!"
Rarely raising her voice to announce her name, Hanabi couldn't help but get fired up: "Speaking of which, you're at least one of the people working under my sister. Have you really not even memorized her appearance by now?"
"Huh? Is that so? But... come on, look, the same Byakugan (White Eyes), the same hairstyle, the same face shape... how are we supposed to tell the difference?!"
Also frustrated, Naruto puffed out his cheeks and argued, which immediately made several veins pop out on Hanabi's smooth forehead. Clenching her small fists, Hanabi gritted her teeth and said, "What are your eyes made of?! Did you selectively ignore 'body type' which is the most crucial factor?!"
"Hm? Bo... body type?"
At this moment, Naruto's mind finally caught up. He then reflexively moved his gaze downwards from Hanabi's face, to the area below her collarbone. After observing for two seconds, he suddenly realized: "Oh~~! I see, there's also this way to tell! This chest, like Konohagakure's cliff, is indeed not a small difference compared to Hinata's..."
"Shin!!"
Before Naruto could finish, Hanabi, her anger meter maxed out, delivered a direct side-kick to the blonde boy's face. Naruto, completely unaware of his misstep, screamed and flew sideways as expected.
"What are you doing?!"
Quickly adjusting his posture in mid-air, Naruto managed to protect the takoyaki hidden in his chest. The two Hyūga clan members guarding the gate angrily surrounded him: "You rude fellow!! We'll drive you out right now!"
"Stop!! I'll deal with him!!"
Waving her hand, her anger undiminished, Hanabi, though still young, undoubtedly possessed some of the head-of-family aura she was meticulously trained for. The two startled Hyūga guards quickly straightened up: "Yes~! Then, we'll leave it to you."
"Ugh~~ That way of speaking... indeed, she's Hinata's sister."
Naruto instinctively shivered, rubbing his face and muttering. Undoubtedly, he had now discovered another commonality in this 'mini Hinata' in front of him.
"Although you said you want to see my elder sister, the Hyūga Clan is not a fallen clan like the Uchiha. So, if you want to go in, you must first get the approval of me, the next head of the family."
Looking at Naruto with a hint of arrogance, Hanabi clearly had her own little plan, and now that this blonde had conveniently shown up, it was the best possible development.
"Huh? The next Hyūga head? But isn't Hinata the eldest daughter?"
Naruto looked at Hanabi in confusion, asking, and Hanabi proudly puffed out her chest: "That's because, in the Hyūga Clan, only the strongest heir is qualified to become the head, so~ I am the next head~"
"Pfft~~ Pffthahahaha~~"
Stunned for about a second, Naruto then burst into unrestrained laughter. This immediately flustered Hanabi's proud and self-assured demeanor. The Byakugan (White Eye) loli, a blush of shame on her face, spoke angrily: "How rude~! Is this the proper attitude for someone's self-introduction?"
"Pffthahaha~~ No~~ I'm sorry~~ But, your joke is just too funny~~ Although you're really similar to Hinata, there's no way your strength could be stronger than Hinata's, right? She's a person who can punch a five-meter-deep hole in the ground, how could your little hands and feet be more powerful than Hinata's?"
Wiping away tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes, Naruto indeed had a comical sense of familiarity. After all, he himself was someone who liked to blurt out grand declarations about becoming Hokage. Now, suddenly meeting a little loli with similar 'ambition' wanting to become a clan head, he genuinely felt a connection.
"You... sigh... you really think so too..."
Hanabi was surprisingly not angry. Instead, she looked around, then turned directly: "Come with me, I have something to tell you."
"Huh? What is it?"
Following Hanabi's footsteps, bewildered, Naruto casually observed the surroundings. The Hyūga Clan's main compound was similar to the Uchiha compound, but its layout was much more strictly organized, like a deliberately segmented wooden box, meticulously allocated according to the different statuses and positions of Hyūga clan members. This discovery, he had to admit, didn't particularly appeal to Naruto.
"I know about you. You're one of my sister's classmates, and... she values you highly, isn't that right?"
Leading Naruto into a training dojo, Hanabi turned around and looked at Naruto, who was casually holding his head: "So, let's have a match."
"Huh? Why? Fighting a little kid like you isn't fun at all, and... as for being valued..."
Subconsciously recalling his identity as the exclusive 'heroine' of the Fox's Tale production team, Naruto's face couldn't help but turn a little pale: "Honestly... that kind of valuing really leaves me speechless..."
"No need to say more. I'm not a fool. Although the clan elders say that my sister abandoned the Hyūga Clan's Jūken (Gentle Fist) and therefore is not qualified to continue competing for the head position, in my opinion, strong is strong and weak is weak. Regardless of what new path my sister found, it's an undeniable fact that she has become stronger than me. I've secretly watched her training; it's a level I can't reach..."
As Hanabi spoke, her hands involuntarily clenched slightly. Since being rejected by Hinata last time, this unyielding younger sister had naturally conducted her own private investigations. And the Byakugan bloodline was indeed excellent for secretly observing things. Then, she had the fortune to witness Hinata's Ennetsu Ken's (Flame KillingFist) ultimate move, which could instantly melt rock.
Although designated as the next head of the Hyūga Clan, Hanabi did have talent in Jūken, but this didn't mean she stubbornly adhered to Jūken. Especially as a child with talent in combat, she could even more rationally distinguish between strong and weak. So, her conclusion was that while Hinata had abandoned Jūken, her own strength had already reached a level that Hanabi could barely hope to achieve.
"Let's make a bet! We'll have a match. If I lose, I'll take you to see my sister. If you lose..."
Looking up, Hanabi finally revealed her true objective. The Byakugan loli's eyes glowed with a look of longing: "You will give me your pair of Seiken (Holy Fist) gauntlets. You know what that means, right?"
These words made Naruto instinctively narrow his eyes. Clearly, what Hanabi was asking for was far more than just a pair of gauntlets.
These gauntlets were gifts from Hinata to Naruto, weapons symbolizing the Nanto Fūjun Ken (Nanto Wind Sacrificing Fist). If they were taken by someone else, it would mean Naruto was completely disqualified from Fūjun Ken. In other words, what Hanabi wanted was...
"You and Hinata are indeed sisters. This ambition can't be underestimated at all."
Looking at Hanabi in front of him, Naruto was undoubtedly intrigued. While fighting a child wasn't particularly interesting, the ambition and fighting spirit conveyed by the opponent commanded respect.
"That's right! My sister's kenpo (fist art) should originally be inherited by me, her sister. So, I will defeat you and reclaim the Fūjun Ken kenpo for the Hyūga Clan. After that, I will also challenge Uchiha Sasuke and reclaim the Raisō Ken (Lightning Burial Fist) kenpo. You just happened to be the first to deliver yourself to my doorstep."
Adopting the starting stance of Jūken, Hanabi's Byakugan also activated. As the acknowledged Jūken genius of the entire Hyūga Clan, although she was still young, her strength was definitely far superior to that of shinobi (ninja) academy students of the same age.
"Hmph~~ If you can do it, come at me with all you've got~~ But, if I defeat you, you can't cry, okay? You must fulfill your promise and take me to see Hinata."
Naruto gripped his fist without any pressure, clearly very confident. This confidence didn't just come from himself, but also from the companions who had been helping him train during this time.
"Come on! Bring it! It'll be quick, otherwise the takoyaki will get cold~"
Naruto's confident words made Hanabi bite her lip, but her strong will made the Byakugan loli ignore the gap between them. She then let out a sharp cry and fiercely charged at Naruto. For a child, her speed and movements were precise and swift. To put it in perspective, she could probably take down ten Konohamaru easily.
But...
"Take this, Shinsarashi~!".
With a deep growl, Naruto pulled both arms to his waist. His fists, palms facing up, suddenly spun and struck out simultaneously. Powerful chakra burst out fiercely and violently with the inertia of the spinning fists and the flow through the tenketsu (chakra points), like two grinding miniature tornadoes, easily kicking up fragments from the solid training ground floor!.
Hanabi, who was charging straight ahead, had no idea she would encounter such a simple and brutal AOE (Area of Effect) attack. Before she could react, she was caught in the Shinsarashi's wind column with a scream, and flung out like a broken kite, then slammed against the wall on the opposite side of the training ground with a loud bang.
"Tsk~! I already held back, but this move is still hard to control~~ Hey, are you okay?"
Seeing Hanabi get knocked away, Naruto was also startled. He quickly rushed over. Recently, his training partner for Shinsarashi was Chōji's Nikudan Sensha (Human Boulder). If he didn't output enough power to send Chōji flying, he would be crushed by Chōji's Nikudan Sensha. So, after being repeatedly pushed into the ground dozens of times, he finally overcame the flaws in Shinsarashi's release and could control its power relatively freely.
Running to the fallen Hanabi, Naruto was about to reach out to help the little Byakugan loli off the ground when he suddenly saw her fiercely raise her hand, and a gleaming kunai (knife) was placed against his neck.
"Hmph~ You really make such a careless, rookie mistake when facing an enemy~~"
Although there was some dust on her face, Hanabi's eyes were clearly triumphant. After observing Hinata's Ennetsu Ken, she naturally knew that the other two kenpo wouldn't be too weak, hence this trap-like approach.
"So~~ I won~!"
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(PS1: Hmm~ o(￣▽￣)o... So painful... Darn Fourth Daughter, always sending me dog food chapters...)
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