He wasn't scared of me…? Is this kid like Sasuke—someone who hasn't really heard that rumor?
As Naruto got closer, he noticed that the little one crouching on the ground didn't show even the slightest trace of fear or panic. Instead, the child let Naruto gently pull them up without resistance. What was once a frightened look in their eyes gradually softened into relief. Surprised, Naruto teased himself in thought.
'Maybe they're just desperate and grabbed onto whatever they could. Probably didn't even realize I'm the "monster" the villagers talk about.'
"Hey, don't cry all the time, okay? There, there… Hisss, your hands are freezing cold! You've probably been out here in this weather for a long time, haven't you?"
He covered the small hand with his own, and aside from the baby-soft chubbiness unique to toddlers, the touch was like holding an ice pop—completely devoid of warmth. The sensation made Naruto's heart ache for this quiet and well-behaved little one. Without thinking twice, he took off his own warm jacket and scarf and gently wrapped them around the child before she could react.
"...Huh? This is…?"
By the time Hinata's foggy mind, dulled by the winter chill, managed to catch up, Naruto had already draped his clothes on her. The lingering warmth nestled in the fabric gradually eased her shivering, and his instinctive, unthinking act of kindness warmed her heart as well.
"Hehe! That should warm you up a little, right?" Naruto said, smiling as he comforted the shy, stammering girl in front of him, eyes taking in her delicate little face.
"B-But if you give me all this to wear, you… you'll…" Hinata glanced at Naruto's now-thin figure after he'd removed his jacket and scarf. Though she loved the warmth wrapping her body, she still gathered her courage to speak up in a soft voice, trying to take the clothes off and return them. "I… I didn't… ask for…"
"Ah, don't worry about it, seriously. You need these more than I do right now, don't you?" Naruto reached out and gently rubbed her head with his free hand out of habit, stopping her movements without hesitation. He didn't notice the way Hinata's cheeks flushed even more and began to steam—assuming it was just a normal bodily reaction to the warmth.
"Those eyes… Byakugan? Are you from the Hyuga Clan?"
"…Mmm…"
The moment Naruto spoke, Hinata, who had just realized he was looking into her eyes, turned even redder and lowered her head, burying it deep into the red scarf to hide her face. She gave the faintest nod in reply. "…I'm Hinata Hyu—…"
"That's great! That means I probably know where your house is!" Naruto interrupted before she could finish her name. Seeing her nod in confirmation, he immediately stood up, glanced around to get his bearings toward the Hyuga compound, and gently grasped Hinata's tiny hand.
"Come on, take my hand. I'll walk you home."
"…Okay."
Just like that, completely unaware of how misleading his words could sound, Naruto jogged off with Hinata—whose face had turned redder than a ripe tomato—disappearing quickly into the dim alley.
…
While Naruto was casually escorting Hinata toward the Hyuga Clan's territory, chaos was erupting in the ancestral temple that had just concluded the memorial for Hyuga Hizashi.
"What?! You still haven't found Hinata?!"
Hiashi's usually calm face was now furrowed in deep worry. He paced restlessly like a cat on hot bricks, his voice low as he questioned the clan member reporting in.
"Y-Yes… I deeply apologize, Lord Hiashi. We've already used the Byakugan to carefully scan the entire clan grounds dozens of times, but we still haven't found any trace of Lady Hinata. Please forgive my incompetence…"
The veins bulging at the corners of the man's eyes revealed his activated Byakugan. Even with the 360-degree field of vision shared among the Hyuga, their extensive search had yielded nothing. The one who was supposed to be in charge of guarding Hinata from the shadows now felt a heavy burden of guilt pressing on his heart.
"Looks like Hinata's no longer within the Hyuga compound…" Hiashi had half expected this outcome, but hearing it confirmed still sent a wave of dread crashing through him.
'Is it those damned ninja from the Land of Lightning back to break their promise? Or… could there be other enemies lurking in the Hidden Leaf Village, eyeing the secrets of the Byakugan—more than just the Land of Lightning?'
Either way, neither possibility spelled good news for Hinata, who had already been missing for this long.
'Dammit… When exactly did she disappear? How could I have not noticed anything at all? Is Heaven trying to make Hizashi's sacrifice go to waste? After making me feel the pain of losing my own brother, does it now want to take away my daughter too?!'
'No, no—calm down. Calm down, Hiashi… Think. You need to think… There has to be a way to fix this!'
"…Lord Hiashi, should we… report this to the Third Hokage?"
"…The Third Hokage…?" Hiashi, teeth clenched, thoughts racing, turned to glance at the tightly shut coffin at the center of the ancestral temple. He remained silent for a long time.
As the heiress of the main family, Hinata's disappearance was serious enough to report to the upper levels of Konoha. But after just losing his twin brother, Hyuga Hizashi, Hiashi couldn't bring himself to consider asking the high command for help.
Though it was said that Hizashi had volunteered to die in his place… the truth was, that decision had been made by the Konoha leadership without even consulting him, the head of the Hyuga Clan. It was their so-called "optimal solution."
Hiashi knew in his heart that he couldn't escape blame for his brother's death.
But the higher-ups of Konoha, knowing full well that the incident began when ninja from the Land of Lightning tried to abduct Hinata and were killed in self-defense—still didn't dare stand up to the enemy's aggression. Instead, they chose to sacrifice a member of the Hyuga Clan to appease the invaders.
In a way, it was those self-serving "leaders," always speaking of the bigger picture, who pushed Hizashi onto a path of certain death.
With such bitterness festering in his heart, how could Hiashi bring himself to ask them for help again? Who knew who they'd throw under the bus next?
"Orders: Teams One, Two, and Three—continue searching for Hinata within clan grounds!" Hiashi took a deep breath to force himself to calm down, paused for a moment, then furrowed his brow and gave his orders firmly. "Teams Four, Five, and Six—expand the search to the entire village!"
"Yes! And… what about Lord Hokage?"
"I'll report to the Third Hokage myself." Having decided to avoid alerting the upper echelons too soon, Hiashi cut off his subordinate with a wave and then barked angrily, "Listen up! Search thoroughly—don't overlook a single corner!"
"Even if you have to flip the entire village upside down, bring Hinata back to me!"
"Yes, Lord Hiashi!"
Once the surrounding clansmen had dispersed to resume the search, Hiashi, who had remained tense the entire time, slowly turned toward Hizashi's coffin. Step by step, he approached and gently traced the ornate carvings on its surface. As though speaking to his brother… or perhaps just to himself, he murmured softly:
"Don't worry, Hizashi. I won't let your sacrifice be in vain…"
"I'll never let us be weak and helpless again."
"I'll make sure those who covet the Hyuga Clan come to understand… that the Hyuga are the strongest in the Hidden Leaf Village."