NARUTO: Starting with Hinata

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Chouji was sweating as he ate.

After his tenth bowl, he finally couldn't eat anymore.

He looked at the calm and composed Hinata, utterly confused and a bit defeated.

As an Akimichi, he never thought he'd lose an eating competition.

"That's… impressive." Shikamaru said, clearly impressed.

Sakura, Kiba, and the others nodded in agreement.

They had seen Shiki's strength and Hinata's incredible appetite—today had been worth it.

Only Ino stood there, frozen.

"What's wrong, Ino?" Shiki turned to look at her.

Ino's face blushed. When she saw everyone else focused on Hinata, she leaned closer to him.

Since she was shorter than Shiki, she had to stand on her tiptoes.

"Shiki-kun." Ino whispered, a bit embarrassed, "Could you lend me some money?"

A faint scent filled the air.

They were standing very close.

Shiki noticed her youthful, glowing face and smiled, "Sure."

He casually handed her his wallet.

"Thanks."

Ino let out a sigh of relief, then looked down and froze.

The wallet was small and embroidered with little white flowers—not exactly a boy's style.

"I'm… full." Hinata said, setting her chopsticks down.

With everyone watching her, she felt a bit nervous, wondering if they'd judge her differently.

But her fears were unfounded.

"How much, uncle?" Ino hurried over to pay.

Hinata's eyes narrowed slightly.

Isn't that the wallet she gave to Shiki?

Is Ino out of cash?

Outside Ichiraku Ramen, everyone said their goodbyes.

Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru left together.

Their clans were close, so they were on the same path home.

Sasuke had been silent since class ended, even while eating ramen. He left alone.

Naruto, Kiba, and Shino walked together.

In the end, only Shiki and Hinata were left.

They made their way toward the Hyuga clan's residence.

"You did well today." Shiki said, noticing her distracted look, trying to comfort her.

"No… not really…" Hinata replied shyly.

"Are you worried about Neji?"

Hinata shook her head, then nodded quickly.

Seeing her cute reaction, Shiki chuckled.

Hinata blushed, looking down.

"Um…"

After a few moments, she mustered the courage to ask, "Shiki-kun, are you going to the cabin tomorrow?"

"The cabin?"

Shiki thought for a moment, "I'll go around noon."

He didn't usually go to the cabin on Sundays.

Hinata would normally know this—unless she had something planned.

Curious, he glanced at her.

Hinata breathed a sigh of relief.

"See you tomorrow."

Shiki stopped walking.

They'd reached the Hyuga clan's gate.

"Goodbye, Shiki-kun."

Hinata nodded and stepped into the courtyard.

After a few steps, she paused and turned back.

Because she saw Hiashi standing at the door.

Was he waiting for her?

"Tokuma has already told me about Neji." Hiashi spoke slowly.

"Father... Father, this is not Shiki-kun's fault."

Hinata was stunned and quickly spoke up.

Hiashi looked at her anxious appearance and couldn't help but twitch his mouth slightly.

He can't keep this daughter anymore. She's always leaning toward outsiders.

"That's not what I meant." Hiashi shook his head, smiling a little, "You've made great progress."

When Tokuma first told him, he didn't believe it at all.

Hinata actually dared to challenge Neji?

And it lasted quite a long time before she was defeated.

"It's... Shiki-kun's credit." Hinata lowered her head and shyly poked her index fingers together, though there was a hint of happiness in her expression.

"…"

Hiashi's smile froze.

Is this also related to that brat?

"Starting tomorrow, I'll teach you the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms." Hiashi let out a breath and said.

To be honest, compared to Hinata, Neji shocked him more.

Without anyone teaching him, he learned the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms on his own.

But what was going on with Shiki?

Hiashi couldn't help but think about how Shiki had knocked Neji away with just one punch.

And he was influencing his daughter, too. This was simply outrageous.

---

The Uchiha residence.

"Sasuke?" Mikoto saw Sasuke's schoolbag but didn't see him and felt puzzled.

If it were any other time, he would've happily run over and thrown himself into her arms.

Did something happen?

Mikoto went to Sasuke's room.

She opened the door and saw a figure under the covers, head buried in the blanket.

"Sasuke?" Mikoto sat on the bed and pulled back the covers.

Sasuke's eyes were bloodshot.

She couldn't help feeling flustered.

"Talk to Mom." Mikoto's tone softened with concern.

"I... I'm fine." Sasuke turned his head away.

"And you say you're fine." Mikoto reached out and gently rubbed his head, "Tell me, Mom can help with anything."

He looked like he was about to break. She had never seen him like this before.

Sasuke was silent for a moment before he finally told her about what happened during his practical class.

"I see." Mikoto immediately understood that he had been deeply affected.

But were kids nowadays really that amazing?

"Victory and defeat are common in life. You just have to start over again." Mikoto smiled and said, "You know, even though your brother is powerful now, he suffered setbacks when he was your age, too."

"Really?" Sasuke's eyes lit up slightly.

"Of course." Mikoto said with a wide smile.

---

Konoha Hospital.

Neji opened his eyes.

The unfamiliar ceiling made him feel disoriented.

Then, he remembered Shiki's punch.

Just one hit, and he was out.

Neji pressed his hand to his forehead, feeling frustrated.

"Only the weak talk about their fate all the time."

Those words seemed to echo in his ears.

"Can fate really be changed?" Neji muttered, reflecting.

He looked at his reflection in the glass window.

A white bandage was wrapped around his forehead.

Neji closed his eyes in pain.

It's pointless.

The Caged Bird seal had already put his fate in others' hands.

Shiki, he knows nothing, understands nothing.

'My suffering is beyond his.'

'But why is he so strong?'

Neji pondered, lost in thought.

In the world of ninja, strength usually comes from a special bloodline, like the Byakugan or Sharingan.

Neji recalled how he used his Byakugan to examine Shiki's physical condition.

There was a layer of chakra on his surface.

Was it some kind of ninjutsu?

And how did Hinata become stronger?

Neji lay back on the bed.

He planned to seek out Shiki once he was discharged from the hospital.

---

The Aburame Residence.

Shino returned home.

He stood in the courtyard, taking out his mutated parasite.

Although his brother's performance today amazed everyone, he couldn't emulate it himself.

The Aburame clan should stay true to itself.

Raising insects was serious work.

Shino gathered his chakra and concentrated it into his palm.

The parasite absorbed it all, its body growing larger with every bit of chakra.

Shino let out a breath. After days of care, it was finally growing to a normal size.

He had discovered the reason for its slow growth—the quantity and quality of chakra.

Shiki was undoubtedly stronger than him in both aspects.

But this also highlighted the potential strength of the mutated parasite.

Shino's chakra was sufficient for regular parasites, after all.

"Shino, when did you get back?" Shiwei asked curiously.

"Not long ago," Shino answered as usual.

"Your parasite looks different," Shiwei said, examining it closely.

"Brother gave it to me." Shino replied, feeling a bit surprised.

Didn't Dad have one like this?

It seemed his brother really was looking out for him.

"No wonder." Shiwei nodded, as though it all made sense.

He had seen mutated "parasitic insects" before, so he was calm now.

"Take good care of it." Shiwei said with a smile, "How did the practical class go today?"

"Brother took first place." Shino replied, pausing the chakra flow.

He was down to just 10% of his chakra.

Any more, and it would strain his body.

"That's no surprise."