Half an hour later, Feng An arrived at the Hyūga compound's gate, still carrying Hinata on his back.
Crunch—
The gate swung open, startling Feng An, who quickly set Hinata down. Hyūga Hanabi stood there, pouting. "What are you two doing?!" she demanded. The moment she opened the door, she noticed their flustered movements. She now seriously suspected they'd been doing something shameful.
Feng An glared at her. "Little girl, you scared me."
"It's nothing, Hanabi. You go in first," Hinata said, trying to usher Hanabi back through the gate.
Hanabi, being small, didn't want to go in and was easily held back by Hinata. Her eyes suddenly lit up with a mischievous glint. "Sister, you don't want the red-haired menace to be discovered by Dad, do you?"
Hearing this, Hinata immediately covered Hanabi's mouth, signaling her not to tell their father, Hyūga Hiashi. If he found out they were still in contact, given his strict nature, Feng An would definitely be in trouble.
Hanabi pulled her hand away. "You don't have to tell Dad. Just answer me one question."
"Okay, ask," Hinata agreed without hesitation.
However, Hanabi asked a question that short-circuited her brain. Leaning close to Hinata's ear, she whispered, "Is Sister dating that red-haired menace?"
Hinata's face instantly turned crimson, and she shook her head rapidly. "No."
Hanabi's cheeks puffed out. "Sister, you're lying! I'm going to tell Dad about the red-haired menace!" As she turned to leave, Feng An stepped forward, grabbed her by the scruff of her collar, and lifted her up. "Who are you calling a red-haired menace?"
"Hmph! You're the only red-haired one here. Who else could it be?"
"It's rude. You should call me brother." Feng An gently pinched her chubby cheeks.
Hanabi bared her teeth. "Sister, save me!"
Feng An smiled. "Now you know to call your sister? Weren't you just going to tattle on her?"
Hinata stepped closer. "Feng An, she won't really tell on you." She and Hanabi usually had a good relationship, even though Hiashi made them spar; it hadn't affected their bond.
Feng An stopped teasing Hanabi and set her down. "It was your sister who saved you. If it were anyone else, I wouldn't let you off until you called me brother."
Hanabi, once down, kicked at his leg. Feng An easily dodged and lightly tapped her on the head.
"Ouch!" Hanabi covered her forehead, tears welling in her eyes as she hid behind Hinata. "Bad guy! Why don't you leave?"
Feng An smiled, raised his left hand, mimed a head flick in the air, and pretended to knock it. Hanabi, frightened, quickly ducked her head.
"Hanabi, who's outside?" Hyūga Hiashi's voice came from within.
The three of them froze. The next second, Hiashi stepped across the threshold.
Before he could speak, Feng An, with no time to slip away, addressed him first. "Hello, Uncle. It's so late—you haven't slept yet?"
How can I sleep with you around? How can I sleep? My precious daughter is about to be taken away, and you expect me to sleep, you big watermelon? Hiashi thought this but showed no change in expression.
"You are Feng An, right?" Hiashi said calmly. "I heard no jōnin-sensei was willing to take you?"
Asking such a sharp question right away. It seems I've left a very bad impression on my future father-in-law. I need to find a way to fix that. Feng An straightened up. "Yes, that was before. But now Kurenai-sensei is having me train with Team 8."
Hiashi nodded. "I see." No wonder Hinata is with this kid every day. They're on the same team. No, I'll find Kurenai tomorrow and pressure her to kick him out. As head of the Hyūga clan, my word carries weight. Then I'll have him assigned to another team, so Hinata won't have to worry about him.
Hinata watched their exchange silently, not interrupting. Last time, Hiashi had clearly forbidden her from contacting Feng An. Although she'd made her stance clear then, she was still panicked now that he'd found out so quickly.
Hanabi, noticing Hinata's distress, stood on tiptoe and whispered in her ear, "It's okay, sister. Dad definitely won't make things difficult for the red-haired menace."
Hinata bit her lip, hoping so.
Feng An scratched his head. "Uncle, I'll be going now."
Go away quickly. Every extra minute you stay puts my daughter in greater danger. Hiashi forced a kind smile. "Okay. Goodbye."
Feng An waved in Hinata's direction. "Hinata, I'm leaving now. See you tomorrow."
"Oh, okay. See you tomorrow, Feng An," Hinata replied, somewhat distracted, and raised her hand to wave. But seeing Hiashi's sidelong glance, she quickly lowered it.
The three Hyūgas then walked into the house and sat on the floor. The room was so quiet one could hear their soft breathing. The situation isn't good, and it has nothing to do with me. I'll just leave, Hanabi thought, shifting her body to sneak away.
Just as she moved half an inch, Hiashi spoke. "Hanabi, what was your sister doing outside just now?"
Hanabi pouted. It's clearly none of my business, yet I'm caught in the middle—loving sister on one side, strict father on the other. Even without looking, she could feel Hinata's pleading gaze. It's all the red-haired menace's fault! she cursed inwardly.
…
On the other side, Feng An returned home and eagerly continued his research from earlier in the day. As he channeled Yin-natured chakra to his Fengchi acupoint, he again entered a state of crystal clarity. Start absorbing natural energy to neutralize Yin and Yang.
This time, it didn't last long; he voluntarily exited the state after only an hour. "Why is natural energy so scarce in this world? Do I really need to find one of those legendary sanctuaries to absorb a substantial amount?" Feng An didn't particularly want to go to the three great summoning realms. It wasn't that he didn't want to learn senjutsu, but the toads were as big as humans and covered in sticky secretions. Just thinking about it made him uneasy.
The other two places, the Shikkotsu Forest and Ryūchi Cave, weren't well-documented in the Naruto world, and he had no idea where they were. "Go find Orochimaru?" The idea crossed his mind, but he dismissed it immediately. Orochimaru and Danzō were practically partners in crime in the early days. If I went alone, I'd probably end up locked in a petri dish. At the very least, he'd slap a cursed seal on me.
It was a rare breakthrough in his Kekkei Genkai research; he didn't want to give up, but for now, he had no choice. He spent another half-hour studying the genjutsu techniques on the scroll before finally choosing to sleep.
*****
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