The scene unfolding was… well, suggestive, to say the least. Thankfully, Hyuga Gakuya reacted quickly, shoving the gift box into Hinata's hands and immediately turning away to prove his innocence.
Just then, Hanabi, having wiped her tears, opened her eyes—only to find a strange man standing in the room, while she herself was completely naked.
"AHHH!!"
Gakuya barely had time to process the scream before the door slammed shut—Hanabi had rushed straight back into the bathroom.
"Big sis! Why the hell is there a man in the room?!"
Only then did it hit Hinata—she'd forgotten to warn Hanabi when she let Gakuya in. No wonder that awkward disaster had just played out.
"I'm so sorry, Hanabi, I…" Hinata was at a loss for words.
Gakuya heard the scream and wanted to explain, but anything he said now would probably just make things worse.
Hinata was visibly frustrated with herself. She blamed her own carelessness and felt deeply guilty toward Hanabi.
After a while, Hanabi stepped out of the bathroom, now wearing a bathrobe. Her cheeks were still slightly flushed. She glanced from Gakuya to Hinata, her eyes filled with suspicion and obvious disapproval.
Hinata took a deep breath, walked over to her sister, and said softly,
"Hanabi, I'm sorry. It's my fault. I forgot to tell you that Mokushū-kun came over."
Hanabi's expression softened a little at the explanation, though she still eyed Gakuya with obvious doubt. Gakuya quickly nodded to show that Hinata was telling the truth.
"I swear I didn't see anything—I just came to drop off a gift." He motioned to the red gift box Hinata was holding.
Of course, not seeing anything was a total lie. When Hanabi stepped out of the bath, both he and Hinata had seen her clearly, and he… hadn't exactly looked away fast enough.
Still, it wasn't anything worth getting excited about. Between Uchiha Izumi, Uchiha Hikari, and Uzumaki Yukari, Gakuya had seen it all—none of them were any less "endowed" than Hanabi.
Breaking the awkward silence, Gakuya said,
"Really, I'm sorry for causing such a scene. I just wanted to give Hinata a gift—I had no idea something like this would happen."
He looked at the two sisters with a sincere expression, a trace of guilt in his eyes.
Seeing how genuine the two of them were, Hanabi's anger slowly melted away. She realized it had all just been a misunderstanding—and it wasn't like Hinata had done it on purpose.
Hinata smiled, glancing down at the box in her hands before offering it to Hanabi.
"This is a gift from Mokushū-kun. Want to take a look?"
"Whoa, it's beautiful!" Hanabi opened the box to find a necklace inside.
Gakuya quickly added, "It's not worth much. I actually made it myself, condensing it with my chakra. If you like it, I can make you one just like it."
"Really? It looks super fancy," Hanabi said, her eyes lighting up with interest.
"Of course. I can bring one for you tomorrow," Gakuya said without hesitation.
"Yay! Thanks, Mokushū!" Hanabi beamed, the perfect picture of a sweet and innocent little sister.
Gakuya finally let out a breath of relief. Thank goodness Hanabi was still young and didn't have a strong sense of propriety yet—a shiny necklace was enough to smooth things over.
Otherwise, his whole plan might've collapsed on the spot.
The pendant itself was something he'd crafted using both his Tenseigan and Sharingan. When paired with the curse marks he'd planted in both Hinata and Hanabi during the Uchiha Massacre, it served as a conduit—able to influence their thoughts and monitor them as needed.
It was self-sustaining too, drawing on the chakra naturally emitted from the wearer's body.
This pendant was his insurance—an important part of moving his plan forward.
Now that Hanabi wanted one too, he could use that momentum to his advantage.
"Ahem." Gakuya cleared his throat. "Given how well you've both handled this situation, I've decided to offer you a chance to make up for the mix-up."
Hanabi's eyes sparkled with mischief. "Starting tomorrow, you have to take responsibility for training me."
Gakuya looked conflicted. He had more than enough on his plate already—negotiations with Konoha about the war with Iwagakure were still ongoing. Taking Hanabi around with him could be risky.
Sensing his hesitation, Hanabi added sweetly, "You don't have to train me all the time. Just let me follow you around, and when you have time, teach me a few things about chakra and ninjutsu."
After a long pause, Gakuya finally nodded. "Fine. But you have to do exactly as I say."
"(σ≧∀≦)σ Woo! You're the best, big bro!" Hanabi leapt into the air with a cheer.
Hinata's face turned crimson again. She muttered under her breath, "Why does she keep calling you big bro…"
Hanabi poked Hinata's flushed cheek and handed the box back to Gakuya.
"Here, you should put the necklace on her."
"I think big sis likes it when I call you that," she said with a teasing smile.
Gakuya chuckled softly and gently took the necklace, helping Hinata put it on. This time, she didn't resist. She smiled shyly and whispered,
"Thank you, Mokushū-kun."
He gently brushed a hand through her hair. "Hinata, you're beautiful. This necklace was made for you."
Hinata blushed, looking down shyly. "Mokushū-kun… you always know just what to say."
The two shared a tender smile, the air between them warm and peaceful—while Hanabi watched like she was bingeing a drama, practically squealing at her own ship.
...
What Gakuya didn't expect was what was happening elsewhere.
Sasuke, now disguised, had just crossed paths with Naruto—though not in the way one might think.
Usually, after training, Sasuke would spend his evenings reading about ninjutsu. But tonight, hearing that Naruto had arrived in Otogakure, he found himself wandering the streets, vaguely looking for somewhere to grab a late-night snack.
As he strolled through the night market, he looked up and spotted a ramen shop bustling with customers.
Apparently, this shop had been started by Gakuya, and the signature dishes were all his creations.
Sasuke walked in and picked a quiet corner. He casually flipped through the menu and ordered a simple bowl of zhajiang noodles.
Not long after, the steaming bowl was placed in front of him. Sasuke followed the lead of the locals, mixing the noodles with the savory sauce. One bite in, he was surprised—the smooth, chewy noodles paired with the sweet-savory sauce and fresh toppings made for a surprisingly rich flavor.
"Huh. Never thought that idiot Gakuya could cook. Not bad. Though Naruto would probably go for something with broth… yeah, he'd definitely get soup noodles," Sasuke thought.
Right on cue, a familiar voice rang out from the entrance.
"Hey! Boss, what kind of noodles do you have here?"
Sasuke froze for a moment, then smiled subtly and lowered his head, continuing to eat.
"Hi there! Mind if we sit here?" Sakura had approached his table.
Sasuke looked around—the only open seats were at his table. "…Sure, go ahead."
"Sakura, let's order this noodle board thing! You can add tons of toppings to it! Boss! One full-topping noodle board, please!" Naruto called excitedly, pointing at the hanging sign.
Sakura shut him down immediately. "Order whatever you want—I'm getting the beef ramen."
"No problem. Be ready in a bit," the shopkeeper replied as he returned to the kitchen.
"Didn't think we'd find such a great noodle place in Otogakure," Naruto said, practically drooling as he sat next to Sasuke.
Kakashi, having ordered a simple bowl of ramen himself, was already immersed in another volume of Icha Icha Paradise, hardly paying attention to anything else.
Sasuke kept his head down, quietly eating. For a brief moment, it felt like they were all back in Konoha again.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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