After eating, Natsume left the Hyuga clan carrying various ninjutsu and secret arts.
He didn't interact much with Hinata.
…
Land of Snow, the Daimyo's residence.
"Lady Goddess."
Natsume pushed the door open and entered.
Kaguya looked up, set down the book in her hand, and fixed her snowy white eyes on him.
Her face showed no expression, yet she somehow looked extremely serious.
"I've already delivered the Skynet login devices to Sunagakure."
Natsume walked up to her and said.
"Three people connected."
A faint smile tugged at Kaguya's lips.
Those three were Chiyo, Rasa, and Maki.
After receiving the login devices, to verify their authenticity, the three poured in massive amounts of chakra.
Combined, their chakra equaled several months' worth of the former Land of Ancestors.
As a result, Kaguya was in a pretty good mood.
And according to Natsume, Sunagakure had over ten thousand shinobi.
Leaving her original timeline, Kaguya had felt a bit out of place and reluctant.
But now, it seemed worth it.
Besides Sunagakure, Konoha would be connecting very soon as well.
Thinking of this, Kaguya stood up and bit Natsume lightly on the lips.
"You did well."
As she leaned down, her white hair fell forward.
Natsume reached out, lifted her hair aside, revealing her fair, delicate skin.
You couldn't see pores at all—perhaps there simply weren't any—meticulous, like white jade.
He leaned in and said, "As long as you're satisfied, Lady Goddess."
Kaguya gazed into his eyes, so close.
She sensed a faint aggressiveness there.
This servant was getting bolder.
She didn't mind, and even touched her forehead to his.
Sitting back down, she asked, "Together?"
"What?"
Natsume was a little puzzled.
Without further explanation, Kaguya swept him into her arms at the waist.
"…"
Natsume was speechless.
Jeez, why is he always the passive one when it comes to Kaguya?
"What do you need?"
Kaguya reached out and stroked his face.
"Oh, this is for you."
Natsume remembered his business.
"Gentle Fist?"
Kaguya's eyes shifted slightly. "Where did it come from?"
Before, when Natsume produced the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, she assumed it was original.
But now there was so much—originality seemed unlikely.
"Hamura developed it for Byakugan users."
Natsume explained the origins of the Hyuga clan.
Kaguya paused for a beat.
Hamura, huh?
Compared to the steady Hagoromo, she actually preferred the lively Hamura.
But both were dead.
A distant look flickered in Kaguya's eyes.
It was, in a way, related to her.
Though she granted them a lot of chakra, it wasn't enough to make them immortal.
"They're both in the Pure Land."
Natsume kissed her cheek. "Won't be long before you can see them."
The original story never said whether Hamura went to the Pure Land after he died.
But with Natsume's hint now, both brothers were there.
Kaguya's mood eased a little.
She looked at Natsume and couldn't help but smile.
He really guessed everything, didn't he?
But it wasn't a bad feeling.
"Lady Goddess should smile more."
Natsume held her right hand, as if stroking a kitten. "Because you're very beautiful."
Kaguya only responded with a flat "Mm."
Natsume didn't push it.
Take it slow.
And he found it quite fun.
Teasing the aloof Kaguya and watching the gradual changes in her expression—it was a peculiar delight.
"The Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist is all close-range taijutsu."
Natsume stated his purpose. "Could you modify it into something like the remote attack of the Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack?"
Kaguya looked down at him from above. Her pale red lips moved, and she uttered a single word.
"Okay."
"Thanks."
Natsume looked up at her.
There was none of Tsunade's tender infatuation, none of Hinae's gentleness, nor Mikoto's intriguing contrast—but still a deadly allure.
He subconsciously licked his lips.
Kaguya tilted her head, bent slightly, and kissed him—clumsy and green as she expressed her feelings.
Natsume immediately caught a faint body fragrance.
A long moment later.
Her expression cooled again. She wiped the sheen from her lips and said, "You don't need to call me Goddess anymore."
"What should I call you then?"
Natsume clearly hadn't expected that.
"Just call me Kaguya."
Kaguya considered and added, "Books say you should call someone you like by their given name."
"Okay."
Natsume agreed without hesitation.
She didn't care about titles; he, on the other hand, wasn't used to honorifics.
"Anything else?"
Kaguya stood, set him down, casually picked up the Gentle Fist scroll, and asked.
"Nope."
Natsume smiled. "I'll come back later."
He performed the Flying Thunder God Technique.
And returned home.
…
"Sis—"
Natsume suddenly stopped.
Because there was a guest in the house.
To him, not really an outsider—Mikoto.
But Tsunade didn't know.
Natsume didn't dare let her know the truth.
Reality wasn't a novel.
Tsunade could accept Hinata, but there was no way she'd accept Mikoto.
"Aunt Mikoto."
Natsume changed shoes and greeted her.
Mikoto's body flinched instinctively, her legs drawing together slightly. Biting her dewy lower lip, she nodded.
"How come you're back so early today?"
Tsunade's attention was all on Natsume; she didn't notice Mikoto's reaction at all.
"I finished up in Sunagakure and had some free time."
Natsume sat across from them. "Had lunch yet? If not, I'll cook."
"We really haven't."
Tsunade pursed her lips with a smile. With Mikoto here, she didn't dare act too openly.
Shizune had grown up with her; even if she knew, it wasn't a big deal.
But not Mikoto.
"Mikoto originally wanted to show off her cooking, but since you're back, we'll leave it to you."
Tsunade turned to Mikoto. "What do you think?"
"No problem."
Mikoto nodded, naturally having no objection.
"Then you two chat. I'll cook."
Natsume got up and went to the kitchen.
Mikoto breathed a long sigh of relief.
In front of him, she always felt completely defenseless and got rather nervous.
"How's Sasuke doing?"
Tsunade started the conversation with a smile. "He's my grand-disciple now. Natsume's not giving him a hard time, right?"
"No."
Mikoto hurriedly said, "Natsume treats him very well."
"That's good."
Tsunade glanced toward the kitchen. "Sometimes Natsume lies to me, so you can't trust everything he says."
Mikoto gave an awkward smile.
She had experienced that firsthand.
"Speaking of Sasuke, he's turning ten in the blink of an eye."
A touch of sentiment crossed Tsunade's face. "Kids grow up so fast these days."
She then thought of her own child, and her eyes softened with maternal glow.
Mikoto subconsciously pressed her lips together.
As a fellow mother, she knew that look all too well.
So her pregnancy really was true.
And Mikoto had already checked earlier—there wasn't the slightest fluctuation of ocular power in Tsunade's body.
In other words, she wasn't under a genjutsu via eyes.
Mikoto had the Mangekyo Sharingan; she was confident nothing would slip by her.
She didn't know why, but after confirming it, a surge of irritation rose inside her.
Why did Tsunade get to be so happy?
Why couldn't she?
"Mikoto?"
Tsunade sounded puzzled.
"What is it?"
Mikoto snapped back. "Sorry?"
"Sorry, you don't look well. Did I bring up something I shouldn't have?"
Tsunade immediately thought of Uchiha Itachi.
If your son killed your husband and your clan, you'd be devastated.
"I'm fine. I'll just go to the restroom."
Mikoto sensed Tsunade's concern and felt guilty, instinctively avoiding her gaze.
"The restroom's by the kitchen."
Tsunade pointed the way.
"Mm."
Mikoto got up quickly, escaping the awkward scene.
Why am I thinking like this?
She drifted to the kitchen doorway in a daze.
The next second, her body froze.
Natsume silently came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her slim waist.
"Aunt Mikoto, did you miss me?"
"N-no… I… I was going to the restroom."
Mikoto struggled twice, but without any real strength, it did nothing.
"Oh."
Natsume rested his chin on her shoulder and murmured in her ear, "I'll help."
"No…"
Mikoto showed resistance, but her feet were already off the ground.
"We're so familiar; no need to be polite."
Natsume opened the door with a smile. "But you need to be quick—Sensei's waiting."
Mikoto's face flushed scarlet, fear in her expression, on the verge of tears.
Her eyes welled up, and several crystalline beads rolled down.
Natsume kissed the corner of her eye. "If you cry, that won't be good."
Her feet touched the floor again. She took a deep breath, forcing away the shame.
Natsume chuckled, stopped teasing, and went back to cooking.
Mikoto looked at him, and an odd feeling welled up inside her.
Not anger, not fear.
She covered her burning face with her hands and only calmed down after a long while.
"Food's ready!"
Natsume brought two dishes to the table. "You two should stop chatting—time to eat."
"What's for today?"
A smile appeared on Tsunade's face instinctively.
"Your favorite—tender chicken."
Natsume grinned.
In the original, Tsunade liked tender chicken and alcohol, and disliked sweets—especially dango.
Tsunade took the head seat.
Mikoto sat to her left; Natsume sat to her right.
He had already eaten, so he didn't use his chopsticks, just watched them eat.
After the meal, Mikoto didn't stay. She took her leave.
She really couldn't bear watching Natsume and Tsunade interact.