I barely resisted the urge to bang my head against the nearest tree. This version of Hinata had the same attitude toward training as Rock McFuckin' Lee.
Why, though? Why was she so different? On the surface, she appeared to be almost as timid and gentle as her alternate counterpart. However, this Hinata had the drive to actually improve herself, not for the sake of being noticed, but for herself.
Why did she feel like she had to destroy her body, though? So many times, I had told her to take it easy and to stop overdoing it, yet it seemed she had once again slipped back into her self-destructive habits while I was away. She still didn't notice me, her focus solely on the tree she was punching.
It looked reminiscent of the kind of training I did to awaken Armament Haki. She wasn't using chakra to reinforce herself, and even then, the bark was stripped bare, exposing the wood stained red with her blood. Had she figured out haki from observing me?
Was this just her attempt to naturally strengthen her arms? I vaguely remembered that some martial arts on Earth used similar methods to toughen bones and increase pain tolerance. Yet such exercises weren't strictly necessary for us ninja.
Chakra is, well, it's magic, basically. You can dull pain and even cut off your emotions for a short time by circulating it in a specific pattern. How or why that worked? I had no idea. The inner workings of the human brain remained a mystery to me in both lives. Add the fact that it involved magic on top of that, and you have a puzzle that I, unfortunately, cannot solve.
I was getting sidetracked again, wasn't I? I breathed out, trying to push my wandering thoughts away and returned my focus to Hinata.
She looked like she was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, as she often did when I found her here. It seemed she hadn't slept properly for some time, as evidenced by the dark bags under her eyes.
Speaking of her eyes, the usually off-white Byakugan appeared to be gaining color, shifting noticeably toward light purple. Were her eyes evolving? That shouldn't have been possible, at least for another decade or so.
Her Byakugan was supposed to be the purest of her clan. Maybe it was her frankly insane training that was forcing her dormant Otsutsuki bloodline to emerge, something that the Hinata from the original timeline had been unable to accomplish.
Or maybe it was wholly impossible. Even Toneri, an actual Otsutsuki, needed to collect additional pure Byakugan eyes to awaken Tenseigan. Was there another step involved, an equivalent to the Uchiha's Mangekyo, perhaps?
Even if that was the case, it still made no sense to me why she would start to awaken it now.
I was so lost in my internal monologue that I almost missed her slowly collapsing from exhaustion. I quickly caught her as she fell, exhausted but still very much awake.
"Didn't I tell you to take it easy?" I asked her, sitting her down against the tree she had mercilessly attacked. She blinked a few times, as if unsure whether I was really there, before her face flushed a little as she looked down.
"Y-You did…" she said quietly, her breathing ragged. I sighed and sat right in front of her.
"Then tell me... why can't you take it easy, Hinata? Just look at yourself; you clearly haven't had a proper sleep in days." She stayed silent, almost as if she didn't know what to say, possibly taken aback that someone was actually worried about her. After a moment, she seemed to compose herself a little.
"I-I... can't sleep. It's like, something just... keeps me awake," she muttered quietly, but I heard her clearly. "It's like everything spins, really everything, every person, every speck of dust... everything I see. It just... spins on and on and on." She continued to speak as she picked up a stick and started drawing spirals in the dirt at her feet.
I stared for a moment, taken aback. This didn't seem like anything I'd ever heard of, but I tried to feel for her chakra, hoping to find anything unusual that might be causing this. However, it wasn't her chakra that was strange; it was her spirit. It was running wild inside her body and growing rapidly. Was she awakening something? Or was there something else at play?
I squinted hard, scrunching my face in concentration as I extended my arm toward her.
"Hand," I said, completely focused on her spirit, trying to pinpoint the issue. Reluctantly, she put her hand in mine, blushing at the contact.
I focused again, the physical contact allowing me to connect our spiritual energies directly. It was a mess; her spiritual power was in chaos, and it even seemed to grow more powerful, it seemed to be growing faster than my own had grown after I gained access to chakra. Which is to say, insanely fast.
I tried to connect more closely with her spirit, just as I had done with the biju, in order to understand her better. However, something held me back. It felt as if her spirit wanted to be left alone, actively rejecting my attempts to connect.
I opened my eyes and shook my head. I might actually need to enter her mindscape to assist her… if she even has one.
Unfortunately, that would entail reverse-engineering a hidden jutsu that Uncle Inoichi used on me exactly once. It's safe to say that this is nearly impossible and rather insane to even consider.
For now, I would have to teach her how to access her spiritual energy and hopefully form a mindscape where she could at least contain the storm of spiritual power brewing within her.
It wasn't the best solution, but it should at least prevent her spirit from tearing apart her mind and body. I sighed and began to explain what I had learned.
"Change of plans, Hinata," I started slowly, trying to find a way to describe her bewildering condition gently.
"Your spiritual power is rising sharply." I began my diagnosis. "This will start to seriously hurt you soon. You'll need to learn how to control it, to separate it from your chakra and use it on its own." I simplified her issue, knowing that going into detail might scare her even more.
"So, you can... help me?" she asked quietly, her voice barely above a whisper, but there was hope in it. Good; she would need that hope to succeed.
"Yes, but more importantly, I can teach you to help yourself. But the hardest part you'll have to do by yourself. Learning to control your own spirit is difficult. But I believe you can do it," I said, trying to encourage her.
"So tomorrow morning, you'll be here, and I'll start teaching you properly. For now, meditate and try to find your chakra within yourself. From there, you need to feel the flow of your spiritual energy and follow it to its source," I explained slowly, watching as her eyes regained some life as she listened intently.
"That is the first step to controlling it and, hopefully, to stopping whatever is happening to you," I added, although I felt far less certain inside than I made myself sound.
This revelation threw me off so much that I didn't even train; instead, I racked my brain for any information that could help the situation as I walked home. Unfortunately, I only had theories, most of which were alarming at best or downright terrifying at worst.
I was so distracted that I almost missed the letter sitting on my windowsill. It must have been there for at least a few days, judging by the shed fur on it.
Speaking of which, the little troublemakers were nowhere to be found, but I'd worry about them later. First, I needed to focus on the letter, and hopefully, after that, I could find some solutions.
I opened the letter, and just as I expected, it was a short message from Itachi, along with a scroll attached. I decided to start with the letter, as any news from Itachi was likely more important than what I suspected was a jutsu scroll.
I began reading, finally able to focus on something other than Hinata's condition.
I won't ask how you got them, but I still want to thank you for sending me my father's eyes. I had hoped they wouldn't be needed, but if Sasuke ever awakens his own Mangekyō, I'll keep them safe.
I managed to learn the concealment jutsu you gave me, and it has already come in handy, although I had to rewrite the instructions into something coherent.
There is a group of people who seem to share our goal, but I'm unsure if I can trust them. They invited me to join their organization, so I'll keep you updated on what I find out.
On a brighter note, you should visit the old warehouse across the river from Naka Shrine in the Uchiha district. Your feline friends have a family member named Tsuki living there, and visiting should make your life with them easier.
I don't know when I'll be able to send another message, as there is a rather troublesome individual breathing down my neck. Good luck, Ryuu.
The note was brief, but those few short paragraphs conveyed a lot. He may not have been scouted by Obito, or perhaps he wasn't even noticed by the Akatsuki at all, but a whole different organization.
I pocketed the jutsu scroll he had attached to the note, planning to study it later. I still had a few hours of daylight to spare, and visiting a summoning clan felt like a good distraction. With some luck, I might even get to sign a contract and gain the ability to summon the two little fluffy voids.
I also needed to figure out how to explain to Itachi that his girlfriend had awakened her own Mangekyō. Hopefully, the Uchiha clan keeps the Sharingan of their powerful members locked up somewhere. With even more luck, some of those eyes could be useful for Izumi.
Following Itachi's advice, I quickly snuck into the Uchiha district, aiming for the abandoned warehouse across the river. It seemed that Itachi wasn't playing a prank on me; there were too many cats around for it to be a coincidence. Moreover, some of these cats were clearly sage creatures, as I had difficulty sensing their chakra clearly.
I decided to stop hiding. I was there to visit and ask about Yoru and Zangetsu, not to infiltrate the area. The cats didn't seem particularly pleased with a human wandering around their home, most of them, at least.
Within seconds of entering the warehouse, I was tackled by two small fluffy missiles, losing my balance momentarily. As I stumbled to regain my footing, the two little troublemakers settled themselves on my shoulders like I was their throne. At least I knew they missed me.
"Took you long enough, kid. I almost thought you forgot about them," a voice called from above. It felt like an old lady chastising me for not looking both ways before crossing the road.
"I'm sorry about that, but I had no idea there was an actual cat clan until today," I replied, trying to ignore the kittens on my shoulders demanding attention. "You must be Tsuki, right?" I asked as the older cat jumped down from a crate she was sitting on.
"That I am, young man. Now... what do you want?" she asked, her voice adopting a sharper tone. "Is it perhaps to steal my granddaughter and her friend?" She accused me, though it sounded more playful than threatening.
"I'm here to see them and figure out if there's a way to have them help me out from time to time," I said, clearly voicing my intentions.
The elderly cat narrowed her eyes at me, judging me intensely.
"If you can pass the test, you can. But I warn you... nobody since before the village's founding has been able to pass it," she said, her voice rumbling with a hint of threat.
I gave her a nod, determined to pass.
Turns out, the "test" was just head scratches and belly rubs... I really shouldn't have been surprised at this point.
"Really... How did nobody pass this for so long?" I asked the aged cat as I scratched her behind the ears.
"They didn't have the balls to try," she purred, making me pause for a moment.
"What? Was your last summoner that scary or something?" I joked, not really expecting an answer. "Don't get me wrong, I can feel you're strong, but nowhere near strong enough to scare people that much," I concluded.
"Wouldn't you like to know, boy..." she smirked, sounding rather relaxed. "Anyway... Here you go." She stretched and quickly summoned a scroll.
"Sign it, and you'll be able to summon those two little buggers. Since you already named them, it should be easy for you to pick them out from all the others," she explained as the scroll unfurled, revealing a space for a blood sample and signature.
As I finished signing, I glanced through the names of previous summoners. Unsurprisingly, there were only a few names, and all of them were Uchiha. One name, the very last one, caught my attention.
"Izuna, huh... so he was your last summoner," I remarked, looking at Tsuki, who had a strange expression on her face.
"Yes, kid... the best summoner I've had..." she added quietly.
"I'll try not to disappoint, then," I declared as I stood up, ready to head home.
"Summon those two from time to time, boy. They'll need to live amongst humans to learn how to speak as you do," she said as I was leaving, which I nodded at.
It was time to go home and get lost in my thoughts again. Maybe I could summon a cat tomorrow as an emotional support floof for Hinata... I'm inventing the concept of animal therapy in this world, aren't I?
The next day, I arrived at the training ground before Hinata, which was a relief. It meant she hadn't run here in the middle of the night, and hopefully, she was able to sleep a little.
Although lack of sleep might be the least of her problems if we don't manage to get her spirit under control soon. Her physical body cannot handle so much energy, and it's slowly killing her. Unfortunately, death is among the more pleasant outcomes that might await her if things don't change.
I summoned both Yoru and Zangetsu for assistance. The soft purring I heard in response reassured me that they were successfully recruited.
Just a moment later, I was interrupted by Hinata's arrival, only a few minutes after sunrise. She looked slightly better rested than the day before, which was an improvement.
I quickly focused myself. There was no time to waste.
"Nice to see you here, Hinata. Now, let's start with the meditation. Watch carefully," I said as I sat down, waiting for her to do the same.
She quickly got past the small distraction of the two cats and sat down, with Yoru instantly jumping into her lap.
"First things first, the little troublemaker in your lap is Yoru. She'll help make sure you're sitting down and at least trying to meditate," I smiled as Hinata began to pet Yoru; it was a good start.
"Now, observe my chakra. Look at how it moves and where it froms inside my body." I explained, trying to simplify the exercise by having her replicate my movements.
Of course, she could only see the chakra that was already formed inside my body, not my spirit directly, but it should help her somewhat.
"You need to, for lack of a better term, connect yourself with your spirit, and that can be done by finding the origin point of your chakra. The closer you are, the clearer the image you should see," I continued, moving on to the formation of the mindscape.
"That image will most likely be different from mine, but mine is a forest clearing with a meadow and a lake. That is the starting point for fully forming your mindscape," I said, receiving a nod in response.
"B-But what's your plan? How can... Will it fix the issue?" she asked, still absentmindedly scratching Yoru.
"It will help me help you fix the issue," I replied, summoning Senbonzakura into my lap. "I will assist you in forging that excess spiritual power into a weapon like mine." I laid out the plan. "It's essentially spiritual power given physical form, with a jutsu formula engraved in its very existence. Mine can split into thousands of cherry blossom-shaped, razor sharp crystals." I elaborated, getting a short nod from her.
Seeing that I had her full attention, I continued, "Without engraving this jutsu into a weapon, I would never be able to control so many of them. This sword made the jutsu I wanted to create possible." I kept speaking while Zangetsu decided to perch on my head, earning a giggle from Hinata.
"Yours will most likely manifest in a different way because your spirit is not the same as mine. Spirit is the closest thing to our actual soul; it knows our desires better than our physical minds do." I concluded the explanation for now, knowing there was still much more to it, but that could wait until she found her spirit inside her mindscape.
"S-So, can I start now, Ryuu-kun?" she stuttered in a quiet voice.
I nodded and attempted to guide her by employing my sensory abilities. Only time will tell if she can do it, but for now, we can only do our best and hope.