Chapter 6: Freedom of Speech
The park at the center of Konoha can be said to be a paradise for children who have not yet entered the ninja school. At this age, they have a lot of free time, and coming to the park to play with people of the same age is probably the thing they look forward to most every day. Here, not only children from ordinary families, but also children from some families in the village, such as children from big families like Akimichi, Yamanaka, and Nara, would come here to play.
Perhaps the Uchiha clan is the only one in the village who is proud of themselves, and no child from the clan would come here to associate with them.
At this time, there were many small groups of three or four in the park. However, what is more noteworthy is a small group of four people in the most central area. The reason was that two girls in the gang sat on the sculpture of the Third Hokage, which was an extremely unscrupulous behavior.
"Shikamaru! Find something to do. I'm so bored..." Sitting on the left shoulder of the Third Hokage's sculpture dummy, Yamanaka Ino was very annoyed. "I finally don't have to help my mother in the flower shop. I don't want to sit there like this for the whole afternoon."
Next to him, lying on the grass, Nara Shikamaru yawned, "Let Sakura accompany you. I really don't know what you girls like to play."
"Lazy guy, it's obviously you who wants to lie down." Ino rolled her eyes and looked at the pink-haired girl sitting on the other shoulder of the sculpture, "Sakura, let's find something to do."
"But...I don't know what to play." Haruno Sakura lowered her head somewhat uneasily. Sitting on the statue of the Third Hokage, something only bad kids would do, she felt... very exciting. But she couldn't show her inner thoughts, because her mother told her that she had to be a well-behaved girl so that others would like her.
At this moment, Choji, who was sitting next to Shikamaru and silently crunching potato chips, suddenly said, "That guy is here again."
"Which guy?" Shikamaru sat up and followed his gaze. All of a sudden, his expression became strange. The eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan, the girl who was often bullied in this park, was slowly approaching the group of people who bullied her.
Ino, who was sitting on the sculpture, half-closed her eyes and asked Shikamaru: "Should I go over and help her?" Next to her, Haruno Sakura's eyes were also filled with inquiry and a hint of sympathy. Once upon a time, she was often bullied by that group of people, also because of her appearance and her wide forehead. If Ino hadn't rescued her and accepted her into this small group, she might have continued to be bullied and might not even have come to this park to play again.
"No." Shikamaru shook his head, "I've already said that she is the eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan. Too much contact with her will have an impact on us." This wasn't Hinata's first time in this park, nor was it the first time they saw her being bullied. But unlike Haruno Sakura, the three of them represent the future Ino-Shika-Cho. Hinata Hyuga is the future heir of the Hyuga clan. As one of the few big families in Konoha, their contact is likely to have an impact on certain things. Shikamaru is still young after all, and although he has been smart since he was a child, based on his knowledge, he can only think that there will be trouble, but he cannot guess what the specific consequences will be.
"It seems like she is much smarter this time and knows to bring two guards with her." He saw two people from the Hyuga clan walking into the entrance. They should be Hinata's guards. But… Shikamaru looked in the direction the two had walked in and saw another member of the Hyuga clan. This member of the Hyuga clan should not be a bodyguard. Judging from his height, his age is similar to Hinata's. Because the distance was a bit far, Shikamaru couldn't see the man's appearance clearly, but the other person seemed to be observing them and nodded at him in a friendly manner. After a moment of hesitation, Shikamaru nodded at him politely.
Seeing Shikamaru nod at him,Ryosuke's smile became even brighter. Although he did not activate his Byakugan, his eyesight allowed him to easily see the four people in the center area and recognize their appearances. The Nara clan, the Akimichi clan, the Yamanaka clan, and... Haruno Sakura. Unfortunately, I didn't see the blond boy. Ryosuke felt a little regretful, but only a little. Hinata's subsequent performance was more than enough to be witnessed by Ino, Shika, and Choji.
Thinking of this, Ryosuke turned his gaze to the small figure in the distance. "Hello." Steady, emotionless words came out of his lips. Bathed in the sunshine, Hinata looked at the three people in front of her calmly and spoke politely. She didn't know since when, she couldn't face other people so calmly. Perhaps it was from the first time she faced her father's disappointed eyes, or perhaps it was from her repeated tolerance and retreat. Ryosuke's voice echoed in her mind. From the beginning, his palm seemed to be pressed against her back, giving her warmth and courage, and making her feel again what kind of attitude a normal person should maintain when communicating with others. A normal person? At least he shouldn't be looking down and being submissive.
It was as if there was a voice in her heart constantly reminding her to raise her head and look directly at the three people in front of her. The three children who were playing football were interrupted. They turned around angrily and stared at Hinata. Among them was the child I met at the restaurant at noon. "Hey, White-eyed monster..." As soon as he opened his mouth, he heard a familiar name. But before the child could finish his insulting words, he noticed that Hinata was no longer alone behind him as before, but had two guards.
All of a sudden, he swallowed back the words he hadn't finished saying, took a step back unconsciously, and nervously looked at the two people behind her, "You...what do you want to do? Do you two adults want to bully the weak?" In the park, most of the children turned their eyes over here to watch the fun. They are very familiar with these three children who often bully others, and many of them have been bullied before. As for Hinata, they are more familiar with her because they were once one of them, but now they are sticking together and living a better life.
"Apologize." Hinata stood in front of the two guards and said seriously, "They won't do anything rash. They are just trying to keep me safe." "What I need... is for you to apologize to me, because what you said to me before had a great impact on me." "Apologize?" The three children looked at each other, but when they heard that the two adults would not take action, the tension in their hearts suddenly relaxed. Then, the kid who met at the restaurant couldn't help laughing, "We are just telling the truth. You are just ugly."
"Yes, yes, ugly thing, you don't think that by bringing two people to scare us, you can force us to change our words?" A child next to them also spoke up. "You are free to express your own opinions. You are not the Hokage. What qualifications do you have to ask us to apologize?" Relying on their height and age, they looked down at Hinata.
Standing behind Hinata, Hyuga Souji and Hyuga Hoshicai's faces darkened when they heard these words. But they did not take action. As I said before, as long as they did not take the initiative to bully Hinata, they could not do so casually. Bullying children is a shameful thing, and the Hyuga clan cannot afford to lose face like that.
"Interesting... The children in this world seem more mature and tougher than I thought." Outside the park, Ryosuke watched with interest as the three children began to speak recklessly again after realizing that Souji and Hoshicai would not take action. The two guards seemed unable to put much psychological pressure on them. The world is different, and the rules are different too. But things were still as expected. He wanted Hinata to change the way other people in the village viewed her starting today. That had to start from today, not a day later.
(End of this chapter)