"Oh dear... indeed, you and Hinata are slightly different after all..."
Naruto, with the kunai at his neck, helplessly raised his hands. But before Hanabi could celebrate, she saw Naruto disappear in a puff of smoke, and a hand landed on her shoulder from behind. It was Naruto, who had successfully countered Hanabi's final trick using Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu) + Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Jutsu).
"How about it? Still want to fight?"
Grinning, Naruto looked at the disbelieving Byakugan loli. He was indeed in a good mood. However... considering his current strength came from the arduous and frightening training he endured, this feeling seemed perfectly natural.
"...You're right, I lost..."
Sighing, Hanabi dropped the kunai in her hand. She had even resorted to using such a low trick, exploiting his concern, and still couldn't overcome him. There was no point in clinging on any longer.
"But, for a kid, your speed really startled me. I wasn't this good when I was your age."
Effortlessly pulling Hanabi up from the ground, Naruto had no particular agenda, but his words made Hanabi turn her head away unhappily: "I don't need your comfort. Winning is winning, losing is losing. You were indeed stronger this time. I'll honor our agreement; I'll take you to see my elder sister now."
"Oh~! Then I'll leave it to you."
As the elder daughter of the Hyūga Clan, especially after founding the Hinata-gumi (Hinata Group) and bringing consecutive high profits to Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf Village), Hinata's prestige and status in the entire village had naturally risen. Consequently, her private courtyard finally started to receive attention. However, due to Hinata's 'unorthodox' behavior, this attention was also very cautious, mostly just clearing weeds and dust from her courtyard when she wasn't there.
"Elder Sister has rarely returned recently, and when she does, she just stays in her room and doesn't go anywhere. Father and the elders don't bother her; they just complacently take money from my sister's shares. Although I don't know how to describe it, this feeling is truly distasteful."
Walking ahead, Hanabi clearly didn't intend to hide her opinions. Her desire to inherit the Hyūga Clan and her personal views clearly didn't conflict. Usually, there were no outsiders from the Hyūga Clan to talk to, so meeting Naruto today was a good opportunity for conversation.
"Huh? It looks like you care a lot about Hinata? And, how should I put it? I don't feel anything particular about it. Hinata is a Hyūga Clan member after all. I think it's perfectly right for her to earn money and support her parents and elders."
Looking quite surprised at Hanabi walking ahead, Naruto's words clearly matched his thoughts.
This made the Byakugan loli frown slightly: "You're really optimistic, aren't you? Do you really understand what I mean?"
"I didn't say anything wrong. Do you mean you want Hinata to ignore the Hyūga Clan, or cut ties with Hyūga-ojisan (Uncle Hyūga) like in a novel?"
Waving his hand, Naruto spoke with a hint of smugness: "Give up~ Such childish behavior is so lame, isn't it?"
"I'm telling you, you're only five years older than me at most. Who are you calling childish?"
Sighing helplessly, Hanabi shook her head, but the Byakugan loli had no reason to refute. Indeed, as she thought, her elder sister had suffered such cold treatment before, and even if the Hyūga Clan did nothing, it could at least be considered a form of repayment. Yet, she still unhesitatingly continued to provide funds to the Hyūga Clan. This feeling...
"Ah... although I feel a bit unfair for my elder sister, you're right... My thoughts are indeed too childish, which is why I'm drifting further and further away from Elder Sister..."
Dejectedly, Hanabi led Naruto to the door of Hinata's bedroom. Hanabi cleared her throat: "Alright, you wait for me here. I'm going to wake up my sister. I heard the servants say she wanted to rest well and not be disturbed by ordinary people."
"Oh~ I see, as expected, even Hinata gets very tired normally."
Naruto nodded and thoughtfully stepped back. Hanabi, standing in front of the sliding door, gently knocked: "Sister? Are you there? It's Hanabi."
"Hanabi? Is that you?"
A gentle maiden's voice came from inside the room. With soft footsteps, the sliding door of the Japanese-style room was pulled open from the inside, and the Byakugan girl's figure appeared before Hanabi and Naruto. But unlike usual, her attire wasn't the revealing fishnet outfit, but a very conservative indoor kimono. Her demeanor showed no hint of ferocity, only a faint sense of sorrow.
"Hanabi, it's really you... huh?"
The Byakugan girl who opened the sliding door clearly didn't realize there was anyone else behind Hanabi. Upon seeing the golden-haired boy's characteristic silly face, her entire being froze as if petrified.
"Yo~ Hinata~! I brought the takoyaki you wanted~~"
Casually lifting his shirt, Naruto took out the takoyaki box from inside his clothes. And undoubtedly, this bold action perfectly displayed the golden-haired boy's six-pack abs.
Hanabi on the side was quite blunt, just opening her mouth disdainfully: "What is it~ The sauce is all over you. Can this takoyaki still be eaten?"
"Huh? But I did this so the takoyaki wouldn't get cold... And, ow ow ow ow~ It hurts, it hurts~"
The boisterous Naruto was about to say a few more words when he gasped in pain from pulling his abdominal muscles. This made Hanabi say impatiently: "You got scalded, didn't you? You're really an idiot, absolutely~~"
At this point, both Naruto and Hanabi paused. Wait a minute~ Logically, shouldn't there be someone else speaking right now?
"Na... Naruto... Naruto-kun..."
Hinata, standing at the sliding door, had wide eyes, and her face rapidly turned a vivid red, like the red indicator on a thermometer. One could even see exaggerated white steam rising from her head. And the next moment, the Byakugan girl, as if to divert her immense inner embarrassment, suddenly raised her hand: "You can't take off your clothes here!!!"
"Pwah~!!"
Naruto, completely unprepared, was hit square on the chin by a Shoryuken. His entire body arced in a perfect parabola through the air, then fell into the pond in the garden.
Holding the takoyaki box with a blank expression, Hanabi shook her head slightly: "So stupid... He deserves it..."
"Huh? No... Naruto-kun, are you alright?"
Only then did she regain her composure, the Byakugan girl anxiously ran towards the garden pond. Naruto, floating on the water, sat up angrily: "What's going on! Hinata! I brought you takoyaki as you asked! Why did you hit me... huh?"
After letting out a roar, Naruto instinctively felt something was off. Wait a minute... If it were the usual Hinata, if Naruto dared to roar at her like that, he would probably have been roasted medium-rare by Orochi no Nagimaki by now. Why is today's Hinata completely silent?
"Hmm..."
Looking at Hinata in front of him with drooping eyelids, the Byakugan girl, being scrutinized by his gaze, subconsciously turned her head, then raised the wide sleeve of her right kimono to cover her flushed cheeks. This familiar gesture made Naruto clap his hands in sudden realization.
"Oh~! So that's it, Hinata, you want to learn from princesses like Princess Suikyomi, right? This gesture of covering your face with your sleeve is exactly like hers~!"
Climbing out of the pond, wet, Naruto was clearly no longer angry. Instead, he looked at the stunned Byakugan girl mischievously: "I knew it~~ No wonder Hinata seemed a bit off today. So you were planning to learn the etiquette of a true princess, right?"
"Huh?? Ah... Yes... That's how it is... So... So... Naruto-kun..."
The Byakugan girl, frozen in place, nodded with difficulty, then as if relieved: "I didn't expect... Naruto-kun... to see through it..."
"Ah ha ha ha~~ I was quite startled. I didn't expect you, Hinata, to be able to act so convincingly."
Rubbing the back of his head and laughing loudly, Naruto had no other thoughts. Hanabi, munching on a skewer of takoyaki, stood under the corridor and said unhappily: "Alright~~ How long do you two want to stay in the pond~~"
"Ah~! Right, Naruto-kun, your scalds~ Hanabi, quickly go to my drawer and find the burn medicine~!"
Her younger sister's words clearly reminded the Byakugan girl by the pond. Although her face still held a hint of embarrassment, her clear words made Hanabi under the corridor pause slightly, then obediently and naturally put down the takoyaki box in her hand and ran into Hinata's room.
Strange... My sister's speaking attitude doesn't sound like she's imitating anyone at all, it's more like... before?
Absentmindedly rummaging through Hinata's room drawer, Hanabi was clearly more familiar with what the old Hinata was like than Naruto. But... she couldn't be sure either, after all, as a 7-year-old loli who trained all day, there wasn't much she could remember clearly.
Soon, Naruto, sitting in the room, lifted his shirt like a dog exposing its belly, revealing his abdomen. It was clearly visible that a large area of the golden-haired boy's stomach had blisters, undoubtedly caused by that box of takoyaki.
"Naruto-kun... for this box of takoyaki... you suffered such hardship..."
Holding the cotton swab with burn medicine, the Byakugan girl's voice was slightly choked. This made Naruto, sitting there, immediately a bit overwhelmed: "Ah ah ah~~ Hinata, that's enough, your etiquette is already good enough~ So, no more crying and sniveling~"
Looking at Naruto, Hanabi, leaning against the cabinet, had a very exasperated feeling: Sure enough, this guy is indeed just a super big idiot. I don't know why sister values a guy like this.
Just then, Hanabi, leaning against the cabinet, accidentally moved her arm and touched the edge of the drawer. The drawer, which was pulled out very far and not closed, immediately fell down, making an empty sound that startled the Byakugan loli. A brand new scroll also fell out and landed at Hanabi's feet. Curiously picking up the scroll, Hanabi opened it, baffled, and what appeared before her eyes made her open them wide in surprise.
It seemed to be a complex contract, and on it were two names and blood handprints: one was her sister, Hyuga Hinata, and the other was...
"Suigintou?"
"Who?"
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Author Notes:
(PS1: Ugh... The excruciating dog food plot can finally end...)
(PS2: All in all, it's not yet time for White Hinata to be discovered by Black Hinata~~ Let's wait a bit longer~~)
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