No matter what you set out to do, there was always a price to pay. Hinata had known that for a very long time.
The corollary to that principle was equally simple: everything comes down to yourself. Relying on anyone else is a bad bet.
So naturally, someone who had built her success on those two convictions would find Naruto's so-called "bonds" grating to watch. That was only to be expected.
"Yeah... this really is starting to irritate me."
Standing atop a tree near the shore, Hinata stared out across the dark expanse of sea. The cold nighttime wind off the water tugged at strands of her hair, which only worsened her mood.
Spending her time surrounded by children who only ever recognized the value of bonds and friendship really was a test of her own temperament. Every word they spoke, every action they took, hammered home just how little she shared with them at the core.
Which was exactly why she needed to be around people who were like her.
Driven by that thought, the pale-eyed girl turned and leapt through the canopy. In short order, she found what she was looking for: an unassuming little cave tucked into the coastline. The traces around the entrance told her plainly enough that it had been carved out recently using Earth Release, which meant its current occupants needed no introduction.
"Hm? Suigintou—it's you. I knew it. Who else would have the guts to come barging into an Akatsuki meeting point."
Hidan and company had gathered around a campfire inside the cave. Judging by the several fish roasting over the flames, this cluster of S-rank missing-nin was currently engaged in the simple task of a late-night snack.
Both Kisame and Itachi were present. When they saw Hinata's true appearance, they both furrowed their brows briefly before their expressions cleared. This was, after all, a world where strange and exotic ninjutsu abounded, and spinning up a clone that could be controlled by the original was hardly worth getting excited about.
"None of your business. Give me one of those fish. I didn't eat much earlier."
She seated herself at the fire as though she belonged there. Kisame, beside her, shrugged and scooted slightly to one side with remarkable consideration, then lifted one of the better-grilled fish off the fire and offered it over.
"Here. Careful, it's a little hot. But really, someone like you not getting a proper meal?"
"Heh heh heh. Who made you angry? I'll chop them down for you! Guarantee you can see their head by tonight!"
Across the fire, Hidan grinned and volunteered with relish. Hinata shot him a sour look.
"Shut up. If they could've been killed, I'd have killed them already. It wouldn't have been left to you to offer."
"Wahahaha—someone who can make a girl angry and yet can't just be casually killed? Could it be~~ the one she's got her eye on?"
With unabashed mischief, Hidan stuck out his pinky finger and turned to Kakuzu, an eager gossip in every line of his body. "Say, Kakuzu, what kind of guy would someone like Suigintou have fallen for?"
"Not a wise path. Marriage and children both require large and ongoing expenditures. And there's no way to guarantee the other half of such an arrangement will actually stay loyal. Better to stick with money."
Arms folded, Kakuzu nodded with utter conviction. Across from him, Kisame gave a slightly amused shake of his head.
"Now now. You two, digging into a girl's private business like that—that's not really becoming behavior for adults."
"There's no harm in speculating~ We're just curious~ Look at her. Setting aside Suigintou's talent for making money, just going by her looks—well, those eyes are a bit intimidating, I'll admit, but the rest of her has the makings of a real beauty by anyone's measure. A woman this fine isn't going to fall for some nobody, right? Now, at that age, aren't girls usually into the cool, quiet, barely-speaks type of boy? Like..."
With absolute fearlessness, Hidan looked back at Itachi beside him and found his perfect reference example. "Look! Like Itachi, right?"
"Your ignorance is genuinely pitiful. Those eyes are not ordinary eyes. They belong to the largest clan in Konoha—the Hyūga. With eyes like those, an ordinary person couldn't come near her."
Itachi seldom spoke much, but when he did, the edge of arrogance and disdain in his tone was impossible to ignore. At Itachi's cue, both Kisame and Kakuzu took a more deliberate look at Hinata's eyes. The shinobi world was full of things they had heard of but rarely seen firsthand, and this qualified.
"I see. So this is the Byakugan, on par with Itachi-san's Sharingan as one of the two great dōjutsu. I've heard the name plenty of times, but I'm seeing it for the first time."
Kisame studied her pupils thoughtfully, his tone turning contemplative. "A clan heir just like Itachi-san, and with that kind of resolve too. There's a real similarity, actually."
"Not only that. I've heard the Byakugan combines X-ray vision with near-360-degree sight, making it even better at reconnaissance than the Sharingan. Which is why other nations have always been eager to acquire the Hyūga bloodline. A few years back I believe Kumogakure was plotting to steal a Byakugan—apparently the scheme kicked up quite a mess before it ultimately failed."
Kakuzu tilted his head slightly. As a bibliophile and a bounty hunter, he was thoroughly versed in the private backroom histories of the shinobi world.
"Heh, precisely. And as it happens, I was one of the central figures in that incident."
Swallowing a mouthful of fish, Hinata pointed at her own eye with a smile that didn't reach them. "The Hyūga heiress who nearly got carried off that night was me—Hyūga Hinata. Only the main house's Byakugan is free of the cursed seal. The branch family's Byakugan is bound so that death destroys the eye outright. That is how the Hyūga protect their Kekkei Genkai. Rather more elegant than the Uchiha method, wouldn't you say?"
"Mm... sacrificing the many for the few—that is, indeed, a very human way of handling things. Here. Have some tea. It's a bit hot."
Kisame nodded slightly and pulled a bamboo tube of tea from near the fire, passing it over with unforced courtesy. Hinata took it as a matter of course and began rinsing her mouth. Plain sea fish, once you got past a few bites, really was a little greasy.
"I see. It makes sense, then, that the Byakugan has almost never actually been stolen. Binding the vast majority of eyes with a cursed seal does indeed eliminate most of the risk of bloodline loss. But there's still a bit of a problem with that arrangement, isn't there?"
Kakuzu folded his arms and looked at Hinata. "If you're the Hyūga main-house heiress, then by clan rules the Hyūga succession falls to you. Do you plan to bring in an outside husband when the time comes?"
"...I think that's enough. Rather than gossiping about my private affairs, what I'd like to know is how the blockade of the Land of Waves is coming along."
Setting the bamboo tube down, Hinata's pointed look had Kakuzu sit up slightly. Clearly, he understood it was time to get to business.
"This is the current reef-chain layout. The full chain is projected to be complete by the night after tomorrow. Aside from the three hidden waterways, I guarantee any vessel attempting to enter or leave the Land of Waves will be shattered on impact."
Kakuzu walked her through the construction progress while pulling the map from his sleeve and passing it to her. Unrolling it, the pale-eyed girl studied the distribution chart carefully. Not bad at all. Kakuzu was living proof that surviving past ninety left its mark. His specialty wasn't architecture, but the placement of these reefs was considered and deliberate. The size and spread of each one varied, absolutely enough to defeat any experienced sailor. Only a man who'd lived that long could have accumulated this breadth of practical experience.
"Excellent. This should be more than enough to seal off the country's sea routes. But... controlling the land is one thing. Controlling people's hearts isn't so easy."
Handing the defense map back to Kakuzu, Hinata's gaze shifted to Hidan. "Which means the next step is where you come in."
"Oho? Killing people? Anything else is kind of boring~"
Hidan leaned forward eagerly. "So I've been saying all along, if you wanted Momochi Zabuza taken out, you should have just said so from the start."
"Mm, Momochi Zabuza, huh. One of my own batch, a rare occurrence."
Kisame spoke from the side with faint nostalgia. "So if you need it, I'd be happy to meet an old colleague. After all, sending my former colleagues off used to be my actual job."
"No. I already said I'll handle him myself. What I want from you is something else. You've been wanting to spread the word of your Lord Jashin, right? Now's your chance."
Hinata shook her head slightly, her tone composed. "We only need to keep the law-abiding civilians around to do the work. The troublesome warriors and rōnin types—I'd like to find them a better outlet for their surplus energy. So Hidan, this one's on you. I don't know the exact specifics of your ability, but if you truly have the power of a dark god, I'd imagine breaking in a crowd of brawlers and glory-chasers isn't beyond your means."
Thanks to Gatō's long recruitment spree combined with the geographic realities of the Land of Waves, the country was home to an unusually large population of rōnin and warriors. These people had lived off combat and chaos for years; there was no way they'd meekly file into a factory and work an honest job. Left alone, they'd prey on civilians and tear up public order. Killing them all or driving them out would cost extra effort. The tidiest solution was simply to put them to organized use.
"Huh? But those guys—will they actually be any use? Lord Jashin's divine power is absolutely real. Anyone who takes interest in killing naturally worships Lord Jashin."
Hidan lifted the pendant around his neck, kissed the Jashin symbol with fervor, his tone turning smug. As the only being in the entire shinobi world with a truly immortal body, he did, in fact, have something to be smug about.
"Of course. Believers don't come with social rank, do they? So use these ones as your trial run. Religion, applied correctly, is an excellent aid to rule."
A satisfied curve tugged at the edge of Hinata's mouth. For her, extracting the maximum utility from human labor was a skill wired into her bones.
"And human beings—no matter the era—never really run out of uses."