"...Nine hundred and ninety-seven! Nine hundred and ninety-eight! Nine hundred and ninety-nine! One thousand!"
With the final strike, Hinata stopped. Her breathing slowed as she unwrapped her bloodstained bandages, replaced them with fresh ones, and clenched her fists. Then she resumed her practice — striking the iron post again with rhythmic precision.
After another thousand blows, her hands were trembling and crimson. She changed the bandages once more and kept going until her arms finally went numb and refused to move. Only then did she stop.
If her hands could no longer function, there were still her legs.
Hinata moved immediately to lower-body training — squats first, then lunges. Frog jumps were out of the question. With the weight of her current equipment, even one misstep could crush the ship's deck.
So she trained smartly, alternating between squats, leg raises, and back extensions. The push and pull of muscle strain and chakra flow burned through her body.
She continued until her legs lost all sensation and she could no longer stand. Her entire body was drenched in sweat, her clothes clinging tightly to her skin.
But her training wasn't over.
As her legs recovered, her hands — now partially healed by the Ten-Tails' chakra — were functional again. Hinata summoned one of her puppets, which lifted her upside down by the ankles. Supporting herself on her palms, she began inverted push-ups — a far more brutal exercise than regular ones.
She continued until her arms once again refused to move.
…
When she finally collapsed to rest, she activated her Byakugan to scan her surroundings one last time. Satisfied that everything was safe, she entered her home space — her personal mental realm — to continue her studies in sealing arts.
Construction during the day was impractical due to lack of materials, so Hinata used this time for theoretical learning and chakra control exercises. With the ten-to-one time ratio of her space, her progress was swift and efficient.
By noon, she awoke right on schedule.
Using her chakra threads, Hinata commanded three puppets to fish while she prepared the herbal mixture for her medicinal bath. The puppets returned carrying fresh catches, quickly starting a fire on the deck and grilling the fish while Hinata finished brewing the bath.
Immersed in the warm, fragrant water infused with herbs, Hinata could feel the Ten-Tails' chakra circulating through her body, accelerating recovery and cleansing fatigue. It was this combination — Ten-Tails' chakra and medicinal baths — that allowed her to withstand such relentless, self-destructive training.
Simply put, she could endure what others could not.
…
"Fish again?" Kiba groaned, clutching his face in despair.
Was the fish delicious? Absolutely. In fact, it was so fresh that it melted in the mouth, each bite tender and bursting with flavor. But after eating nothing else for days, the thought alone made him sick.
He muttered bitterly, "I eat fish by day and dream I am one by night…"
One bite later, Kiba's expression twisted as though he'd just swallowed poison. He grabbed for rice and pickles just to get it down.
"Hinata, please," he begged, "let's go ashore for a bit. I need to eat something — anything — that isn't from the sea. I'm done with seafood!"
Beside him, Shino silently nodded in agreement. Even he longed for the simple taste of fresh vegetables again.
Hinata turned her pale eyes toward them, her tone calm but firm.
"What are you?" she asked.
"Ninjas," Kiba replied hesitantly.
"Exactly," Hinata said, setting down her chopsticks. "As ninjas, can't you endure even this small hardship? The fish here are rich in nutrients. With proper diet and hard training, you'll grow stronger faster."
Her tone carried such confidence that neither dared to argue.
Once she finished speaking, Hinata quickly ate the rest of her meal and left for her cabin, where she resumed her grueling training routine.
Kiba and Shino exchanged defeated looks.
"What should we do?" they said in unison.
After a shared sigh, they forced themselves to finish every last bite, fighting the nausea that came with it. Then, after a short rest, they tied the ropes once more and went back to work towing the ship.
…
Hinata was like a living example of success standing before them. Her words carried undeniable weight.
If she were weak, her orders would be dismissed. But because her strength was unquestionable, her will became law.
In the ninja world — as in life — strength was the truest voice of all.
…
The three of them drifted across the sea, with Kiba and Shino towing their small vessel wherever the current led. Whenever they came across a pirate ship, they would give chase without hesitation—raiding it, capturing the crew, and seizing the ship. Hinata would then make subtle modifications to the captured vessels, altering their appearance to look more ordinary.
To lure more pirates into their trap, Hinata devised a clever strategy. Using paint and cheap wood, she crafted fake gold bars and bricks, arranging them in crates on the deck and even hanging some along the sides of the ship. Under the sunlight, the shimmering "treasure" was impossible to ignore.
The bait worked perfectly. Such ostentatious wealth was enough to drive even the most cautious pirate mad with greed.
Rogue ninjas and pirates alike couldn't resist temptation. Even those who suspected a trap would feign ignorance and approach anyway, unable to overcome their avarice.
In just a month and a half, the number of pirates and criminals in that stretch of sea—and even the surrounding waters—had plummeted. Some ships, upon spotting Hinata's vessel in the distance, turned tail and fled in panic, unwilling to risk their luck.
Before long, Hinata and her companions had unknowingly entered the waters of the Land of the Sea—a treacherous region riddled with hidden reefs and labyrinthine channels. For anyone unfamiliar with its currents, sailing here was nothing short of suicide.
But to Hinata, it was nothing difficult. Her Byakugan could see straight through the sea's depths, revealing every hidden obstacle. With her eyes, navigating the reefs was effortless. And if she could perceive the reefs so clearly… other things beneath the surface were no exception.
"...What's that?"
Hinata paused her training, her expression tightening. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she changed into a clean outfit, stepped out onto the deck, and called out,
"There's something beneath the ship. Go take a look."
Without hesitation, Kiba and Shino dove into the sea one after the other.
Underwater visibility was poor—murky and dim. Without a dōjutsu like the Byakugan, one could barely see a few meters ahead.
Then—Thud!
Kiba's eyes widened as a sudden punch struck his stomach. Air burst from his lungs, but his reflexes kicked in immediately. Gritting his teeth, he reached out and grabbed the assailant who had attacked him.
Shino quickly swam closer. Working in tandem, the two captured the mysterious figure and dragged it back to the surface.
When they finally emerged, Kiba gasped, "What the hell—what is this thing?!"
Even Shino, who rarely showed emotion, was visibly taken aback.
"I've never seen such a species before," he murmured. "Is it… half-human?"
Hinata's eyes narrowed as she examined the captive. Having lived at sea for nearly two months, she had seen and eaten countless kinds of fish, yet this was the first time she had encountered a creature like this—half-human, half-fish. A faint, curious glint flashed across her gaze as she wondered what it might taste like.
The captured being—Isaribi—was visibly nervous. She was no stranger to being stared at with suspicion and disgust.
While Kiba and Shino looked on with mere surprise, Hinata's gaze carried a quiet, chilling sharpness. Despite her delicate and adorable appearance, her eyes alone were enough to make Isaribi shiver.
"I-I'm human! Not a monster!" the girl blurted out instinctively.
"It talked?!" Kiba exclaimed in shock.
Hinata tilted her head slightly, her expression unreadable. "You're human? Then why do you look like this?" she asked, her tone calm yet piercing.
Isaribi swallowed hard and glanced around, searching for an escape route—but Hinata and the others had already positioned themselves to block any attempt at fleeing.