Two days passed.
Naruto had just finished his daily training, and then he sparred with Hinata, who had secretly slipped out again.
Her pale eyes were wide open, the blue veins around them standing out, giving her a sharp and striking beauty.
She exhaled softly, her palms slicing through the air like blades.
"Eight Trigrams: Thirty-Two Palms!"
Her feet drew a circle on the ground, and her hands blurred with speed. In an instant, Hinata darted around Naruto like a swallow in flight, her attacks raining down like a storm.
"Yeah! That's it, Hinata! You're the best!"
Naruto's stance mirrored the Gentle Fist as well.
His hands flowed like a soft breeze, redirecting Hinata's strikes without letting her power collapse into emptiness or rebound harshly—his movements were precise, measured, just right.
"Y-You're amazing, Naruto-kun!"
Hinata stopped, panting lightly, gazing at Naruto with admiration.
Through her Byakugan, Naruto's chakra looked endless, blazing like the sun itself. There was no weakness to be found.
Luckily, he wasn't striking back. He was simply receiving her blows.
Hinata knew: if Naruto had attacked seriously, she wouldn't have been able to withstand even a single move.
"Naruto-kun, you're incredible. You remember every technique and make them look so natural… you must be training nonstop at home."
"Actually…" Hinata blushed faintly. "Father even praised me today. But if I want to catch up with you, I'll need to work even harder."
Naruto smiled warmly. He knew Hinata's timid nature came from her upbringing. Her father, Hiashi, was strict to the extreme, rarely offering praise, which made Hinata more and more withdrawn.
But ever since meeting him, she'd been changing. His constant encouragement had been building her confidence little by little. She was becoming brighter, stronger.
"Um, Naruto-kun, I made a bento today. Will you try it?"
Hinata shyly pulled out a large, five-tiered lunch box. She opened it layer by layer—delicate dishes, fragrant rice, still steaming thanks to the small charcoal grid beneath.
"Whoa! Smells amazing! Hinata, you're gonna make a wonderful wife one day."
Naruto split the rice evenly, giving Hinata the larger half.
He gobbled down his portion, flashing a thumbs-up with a grin full of rice.
Hinata ducked her head, her ears turning red.
For her, this moment felt like the happiest of her life.
Naruto forced himself to slow down after finishing, only to notice Hinata had already cleared her share with surprising speed. Now, she quietly poured tea for him, every gesture graceful.
"Hinata sure can eat… I didn't see that coming."
Naruto chuckled, drinking the tea she offered, letting out a content burp.
As he watched her tidying up, a thought nagged at him.
Hinata ate a lot… he'd need to figure out how to make money. He couldn't just let the Hyuga family support her forever.
"Alright! I've decided. I won't just become Hokage—I'm gonna get rich. Super rich!"
Naruto raised his head, staring determinedly into the distance.
"Naruto-kun, what are you thinking about?"
"I'm thinking—"
Before he could finish, Hyuga Shinchū appeared suddenly, his expression grim.
"Lady Hinata, we need to return home at once. Something's happened to the Uchiha clan."
Naruto frowned. "What could've happened to them?"
"I just heard… Uchiha Shisui, the clan's genius, is dead. They're saying he committed suicide. Naruto, you should go home too. The village is in chaos—it's safer to stay inside."
Shinchū's tone was solemn, his warning serious.
Naruto froze. His expression darkened.
He had predicted this… and now it had come true.
The absurdity of Konoha was all here in front of him.
After parting ways with Hinata, Naruto walked toward his house.
At a street corner, his steps stayed steady, but a small stone rolled away into an alley.
The ANBU tailing him followed the decoy, moving out of sight.
The stone suddenly transformed into Naruto himself, cloaked in his pitch-black bedrock armor.
Before long, he arrived at the cliff where Shisui had once spoken with him.
"…So it really happened."
Naruto murmured, shaking his head.
A puff of white smoke erupted nearby. Shisui emerged, his face pale, one eye closed, blood streaked across it—the other still intact.
"You didn't use a clone to test them first?" Naruto asked, frowning.
"Too easy to see through… and besides…" Shisui trailed off, his voice heavy with despair. His broken faith and hollow eyes spoke louder than his words.
Naruto understood.
Shisui had gambled on the slimmest chance.
What if the Third Hokage was truly just?
What if Danzo wasn't as ruthless as Naruto had guessed?
"…You're too honest. Too naïve." Naruto muttered.
To some, Shisui's choice looked foolish. To others, it was proof of a heart too pure, too kind.
But in the end, it was his decision—his burden to bear.
And no one else's words could change that.
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