"Huh? You... know my name?"
"Mm… how should I put this… let me think… ah, right! How was the taste of the ramen that night, little one?"
'Ra…men… no way…'
Even though Hinata knew deep down that Naruto had only intervened to help her out, the negative Tailed Beast emotions that had momentarily leaked out of him instinctively made the already shy and timid Hinata feel uneasy. It wasn't until Naruto returned to normal and spoke in that faintly familiar tone buried in her memories that she began to calm down. She squinted, trying to make out his face, then gasped behind her hands.
"Ah! It really is you!"
"Hehe, so you remembered? Looks like I haven't been completely forgotten yet."
Receiving confirmation from Hinata and realizing that his guess was right, Naruto breathed a sigh of relief—and also more or less figured out why he almost lost control earlier.
The girl before him, Hyuga Hinata, was the only one in the original timeline who never looked down on Naruto. From beginning to end, she had quietly supported him from the shadows. And in the end, when all the dust had settled, her long years of devotion were finally repaid. She not only awakened Naruto—this emotionally oblivious blockhead—but also gained a second name in her life: Uzumaki Hinata.
Put simply, the little girl standing in front of him was Naruto's future wife.
And seeing people bully his wife-to-be? How could a husband possibly hold back his anger?
Not going straight home that night really turned out to be the right decision… But still, how did I not recognize her that night? Don't tell me I inherited Naruto's dense emotional intelligence when I crossed over too!
Naruto, secretly glad he had meddled that evening, rubbed his hands clean on his clothes as best he could. He then reached out to the teary-eyed little girl with a smile.
"Come on, get up. The ground's freezing cold—you'll catch a cold sitting there."
"O-Okay…"
As she looked carefully at the disheveled Naruto, her memory overlapped him with the gentle boy who had walked her home that night. Hinata's cheeks turned bright red. Her fear melted away, and she timidly nodded, reaching her hand out to let Naruto help her up. After rising slowly, she blinked a few times and curiously stared at his charred, ragged clothing that could barely be called clothes.
"Um… what happened to you? Why do you look like this?"
"Huh? Oh, this?"
Naruto casually replied, "I was sparring with a friend at the training grounds. Got a little... carried away. Was just on my way home to change."
Recalling the fiery encounter with the Fireball Jutsu, Naruto answered with a straight face. Then, like he was used to calming kids, he gently reached out with his other hand to wipe away the faint tear streaks on Hinata's cheeks.
"And you? What are you doing here today? If I remember correctly, the Hyuga Clan's estate is pretty far from here… don't tell me, you got lost again?"
"I did not… I came with Father to register at the ninja academy."
Faced with Naruto's friendly behavior, the shy and easily flustered Hinata turned even redder. But his warm presence made her feel safe, so she didn't resist. She squinted obediently as he wiped her face and replied in a whisper:
"But Father said he had something to discuss with the teacher and would come back later. He told me to wait here and not wander off…"
Given her sheltered upbringing, Naruto was likely the first peer Hinata had interacted with outside her clan. And he had rescued her twice during her most helpless moments. Whether by chance or fate, she had completely lowered her guard around Naruto. She was now the second person after Sasuke whom Naruto could call a totally honest and open friend.
"I see… but even so, those three weaklings—cough, I mean, those three ordinary kids—shouldn't have been able to bully you, right?"
Naruto, recalling the faces of those three brats lying on the ground earlier, felt his anger rising again. He swallowed the insult that almost slipped out and frowned, questioning her.
"I mean, they can't even use basic Taijutsu, let alone Ninjutsu… As the future heiress of the Hyuga Clan, you've been trained in Gentle Fist, haven't you? You shouldn't have been bullied like this."
"…Mmm…"
Naruto rambled on like he had known her for years, making Hinata freeze for a moment. Before she could even process his words, her body instinctively looked down. She pouted and muttered in a small voice:
"B-But… Father said… I should stay here and not move until he comes back…"
"No wonder… Wait—what?!"
Naruto's eyes widened. "So you were seriously planning to just stand here in the freezing cold? Even while getting bullied and insulted?!"
Hinata's innocent words made Naruto realize he had underestimated how obedient she was. Her tiny cold hand in his made his heart ache. He rolled his eyes and grumbled while greeting Kurama inside him, locking fingers with Hinata as he slowly channeled Tailed Beast Chakra into her body to warm her up.
"I really don't know if you're a good little girl for listening so well or a silly one for being so inflexible. You're the Hyuga Clan's heiress and you got bullied by random village kids… You might be the most pitiful rich girl ever."
He sighed. "Tell me—if I hadn't come this way today, would you have just let those three keep bullying you until your dad came back?"
"I…!"
Hearing Naruto's endless complaints, Hinata's heart swelled with grievance. She tried to lift her head and argue back—only to meet Naruto's helpless, gentle gaze. Her bravado melted away in an instant.
Feeling the warm sunlight-like warmth flow through his tightly clasped hand, Hinata turned bright red again and looked down. Even the words she blurted out came with less and less confidence, like a shy wife before her husband.
"I-I wouldn't have…"
"Aah, you really are hopeless…"
Naruto sighed. "Seriously, your father is way too irresponsible. He already left you alone once and you nearly couldn't find your way home. No matter how urgent things are, he should've brought you along! Leaving his precious daughter out here in the snow—what kind of parent does that?!"
As he gently placed his hand on Hinata's little head, Naruto vented his frustration at his future father-in-law.
"This is already the second time! You'd think he'd learn by now!"
"Hahahah! Oi, kid! You're about to seriously embarrass yourself~"
"Huh? What do you mean by that, Kurama?"
"Ah… um…"
"Hm? What is it, Hinata? Did I say something wrong? I mean, your dad, he… he…"
Naruto noticed that Hinata, who had been pouting the whole time, suddenly had her mouth wide open in disbelief. At first, he thought she was shocked by his bold complaints and felt even more smug. But then he remembered Kurama's teasing tone and sensed something was off.
He swallowed hard and focused on his surroundings—and sure enough, he picked up a kind but unfamiliar presence behind him.
Trying to force his face into a smile, he continued speaking with a stiff expression.
"Your father… is standing right behind me, isn't he?"
"…Mm."
Hinata's worried face, Kurama's uncontrollable laughter echoing in his mind… at that moment, Naruto had only one thought left.
Excuse me, where's the nearest crack in the ground next to the ninja academy in the Hidden Leaf Village? One big enough to fit a three-year-old? Asking online. Very urgent.