Inside Hinata's room, little Hinata carefully wiped the sweat from Izumi Uchiha's face.
The girl's expression remained filled with pain, as though trapped within a nightmare.
Hinata could even vaguely hear her mumbling a na repeatedly under her breath.
But the voice was too unclear to distinguish.
"She should be alright… right?"
Hinata worriedly glanced toward the pile of strange chains lying on the floor.
It had taken her considerable effort to remove them earlier.
And while undoing the restraints, rely touching those chains made her chakra feel disturbingly unstable.
It even affected her emotions, leaving behind a suffocating, uncomfortable sensation.
Almost like when her father struck her chakra points during training—
As though her chakra itself had been sealed.
She had no idea where such eerie chains ca from.
And earlier, there had also been unusual disturbances near the main gate and her father's side of the compound.
So many people moving around at this hour…
It all felt abnormal.
"Naruto-kun…"
Hinata murmured softly.
"What exactly did you get involved in…?"
"I just hope you're alright…"
Only after finally calming down slightly did Hinata suddenly realize sothing felt strange.
Naruto-kun called "little Hinata" earlier…
He's never called that before.
For so reason, that Naruto-kun felt both unfamiliar and strange…
Yet sohow…
He also felt very close.
Almost like being near Father…
"Uuu…"
Hinata imdiately shook her little head vigorously, embarrassed by her own thoughts.
"What am I even thinking…?"
"Naruto-kun and Father are obviously completely different…"
Just as Hinata sat there absentmindedly swaying her head in thought—
Izumi suddenly let out a soft groan and slowly opened her eyes.
An unfamiliar ceiling.
Where… am I?
"Ah! You're awake?"
Hinata imdiately stood up and hurried over.
"You're—"
Izumi abruptly rembered everything that happened.
Her face instantly filled with panic as she grabbed Hinata's tiny shoulders tightly.
"Hurry and notify the village!"
"The Military Police Headquarters was attacked!"
Though her entire body ached terribly, she still forced herself upright in desperation.
Even her three-tomoe Sharingan unconsciously activated from panic.
"T-The Military Police Headquarters was attacked?!"
Hinata was instantly startled as well.
Though naturally shy, she was never cowardly.
As the eldest daughter of the Hyūga clan, she understood the seriousness of such matters imdiately.
"I understand!"
"You stay here and rest!"
"I'll go notify soone right away—"
Yet just as the anxious Hinata rushed toward the door—
Two figures suddenly appeared soundlessly inside the room.
"... Little Hinata."
"There's no need anymore."
Before Hinata could step outside, a familiar yet weak voice suddenly sounded behind her once more.
Though the voice was soft—
It still startled Hinata badly.
"Who's there—?!"
"Naruto-kun?! What happened to you?!"
In an instant, Hinata activated her Byakugan and spun around.
Her hands already assud the Gentle Fist stance instinctively.
But the next mont—
She clearly saw the blond-haired boy collapsed weakly on the floor.
Hinata's expression changed drastically.
She imdiately rushed forward to support him.
Only after helping him up did she realize just how terrible his condition looked.
His face was deathly pale.
And those bright blue eyes that normally shone with endless energy—
Had beco completely dull and lifeless.
"How did this happen…?"
"Naruto-kun, are you alright?!"
"Are you hurt sowhere?!"
Seeing Naruto like this caused Hinata's heart to ache painfully.
Without hesitation, she crouched down and gently allowed Naruto to lean against her shoulder for support.
Under normal circumstances, Hinata would never dare perform sothing this intimate.
She'd be far too embarrassed.
But right now, she never even realized what she was doing.
She only wanted Naruto to feel even slightly more comfortable.
She didn't even think about how Naruto had mysteriously appeared inside her room twice already.
At this mont, her entire mind focused only on worrying about Naruto.
Could it be related to the attack on the Military Police Headquarters the older sister ntioned earlier?
Did Naruto-kun encounter dangerous people too?
"...Eh?"
Then suddenly—
That familiar voice rang out loudly beside her ear again, full of energy.
"H-Hinata?"
Naruto blinked in confusion.
Those bright blue eyes were once again lively and sparkling as they t Hinata's gaze directly.
"Where is this?"
"How'd I end up here?"
"Eh?"
Hinata blinked blankly.
Watching Naruto pull his head away from her shoulder before standing up energetically—
There wasn't even the slightest trace of weakness remaining.
More importantly—
Under her still-active Byakugan, Hinata could clearly see Naruto's chakra flowing steadily and powerfully through his body.
Perfectly healthy.
And his tone of voice had completely returned to the Naruto she knew.
"What a huge room…"
Naruto looked around curiously.
"I was just in that place earlier…"
Then suddenly—
His expression changed drastically.
"No, wait!"
"Hinata, hurry and tell soone!"
"Big Sister Izumi is in danger!"
Naruto imdiately grabbed Hinata's hand while shouting anxiously.
Hm?
Why does this scene feel familiar?
Like it literally just happened…
The strange sense of déjà vu left Hinata stunned montarily.
Only after Naruto energetically prepared to rush outside again did she finally snap back to reality.
"N-Naruto-kun!"
"What about that older sister— eh?"
Hinata turned toward the bed.
Then froze completely.
Because it was empty.
Her brain abruptly stopped functioning.
What exactly was happening?
Where did such a huge person disappear to?!
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> [email protected]/AiraTales7 (replace @ with a)
User Comments
0 comments from readers