The light inside the tent was too dim to see clearly. Naruto could only make out Hinata's general outline, and could feel that she seemed a little uneasy at the moment.
Hinata's mind was in a whirlwind of emotions, filled with scenarios like 'I can't secretly hold your hand behind our teammates' backs', making her so embarrassed that she felt like she might explode.
Just as she was lost in her confusion, she heard a faint rustling sound near her ear. Suddenly, she felt a hand rest on her forehead, gently patting it as if to comfort her.
"Mmm…"
Hinata, whose shoulders had been trembling slightly, immediately calmed down, her eyes misting over.
The next day, before dawn.
Hinata opened her eyes and found that Naruto's sleeping spot was empty. Her expression was blank for a moment before she quickly came back to her senses.
'It seemed that I had fainted last night.'
Curling up, she carefully cupped her gradually blushing face, as if trying to hide her small, flustered self.
The morning mist still lingered as the group set out again.
Due to their wariness of Naruto's fox dog, Shino and Kiba walked together, maintaining a considerable distance between themselves and Hinata and Naruto.
Seeing the gap between the two groups, Hinata and Naruto exchanged a small smile.
"We should be able to reach our destination today," Hinata said softly.
"Well, do you still need to train today?" Naruto asked, referring to Hinata's routine of spending extra time on training. Yesterday, she had trained until late before returning.
Hinata nodded and said, "If I can't keep up with Kiba and the others, I'll only be a burden to everyone."
She glanced at Naruto, who seemed to have completely forgotten about what happened the night before and showed no sign of bringing it up. She couldn't help but pursed her lips, her thoughts in turmoil.
Sure enough, when the group set up camp again, Hinata quietly went off on her own to train.
Since this place is deep in the heart of the Land of Fire's forest, surrounded by towering trees, sleeping in the trees would be safer than setting up a tent. Lighting a fire in the old forest is not a good option, so the four of them can only make do with dry rations.
"We should reach our destination by midday tomorrow, so there's no need to rush." Shino said, crawling into his sleeping bag first.
At this time, sky was still not fully dark, and Kiba also got into his sleeping bag. From a distance, Shino and Kiba's sleeping bags looked like two bugs firmly attached to the tree trunk, neatly lined up together.
Naruto was not sleepy, so grabbed Kyubi by the scruff of his neck and went to find Hinata. After all, staying there would only make Akamaru and the insects uneasy all night.
In the forest.
Hinata fiercely struck out with her palm, sending a blast of wind, her hand surrounded by a fine layer of blue Chakra.
The Hyuga Clan's Shinobi excelled in close-quarters combat and mid-range attacks, using Chakra to form needles to pierce their enemies. As she was doing now, Hinata was practicing her air palm, honing her fundamental skills.
"Hinata." Naruto, holding Kyubi, landed in the clearing and walked up to her in a few steps.
"Naruto-kun, what are you doing here?"
Hinata stopped her air palm practice, suddenly realizing that she was only wearing a quick-drying fishnet training outfit for convenience. She immediately felt unsure of where to put her hands.
Noticing Hinata crossing her arms in front of her, Naruto awkwardly averted his gaze and said, "I came to check on you."
"Okay." Hinata lowered her head and said nothing more.
"Since I have nothing to do, why don't I train with you?"
"Ah, is that okay?" Hinata did not refuse. She always remembered not to be shy, and tried to ask in what she thought was a calm tone.
"Of course it's okay. I actually enjoy spending time with you, Hinata."
"Eh?" Hinata became flustered again, waving her hands in a panic, blurting out, "N-No way, people like me only cause trouble for others."
"Honestly, I'd really like to be bothered by you, Hinata."
"T-That kind of... that kind of thing…" Hinata's face turned even redder, "I'd feel useless if I did that."
"It's not like that." Naruto denied, "It's good to work hard, but don't put too much pressure on yourself all at once. Hinata, you're actually really strong, you just haven't had the chance to show it."
"But…" Hinata pursed her lips and didn't dare to look up.
"In any case, becoming strong is a long process, not something that happens overnight." Naruto said earnestly, though he was perhaps the least qualified to say such words, doing so without a hint of embarrassment.
This certain lazy individual with a system casually reached out, patting Hinata's head, taking full advantage of his recent growth spurt in height.
A few months ago, he had been the shortest among his peers and had harbored an almost pathological jealousy of anyone taller. Now, his mindset was finally stable, and he reveled in a shameless sense of satisfaction.
Naruto narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Before you become stronger, Hinata, I'd really like to know what it feels like to be relied on by you."
At these words, Hinata's mind went completely blank.
When she was a child, her father had criticized her for being weak and timid, not fit for any significant role, telling her that it was enough just to be someone who didn't cause trouble for others. So, she had grown increasingly timid, more and more afraid of fighting with others.
With someone she liked, she was even more timid, always feeling as though she was on the edge of a cliff, too scared to make any move toward closeness. She feared troubling others and didn't know how to deal with the consequences.
Even though the people around her were kind and repeatedly told her not to worry about bothering them, it wasn't the same. The more they reassured her, the more she wanted to prove herself.
'But now... the person I liked had just said he wanted to know what it felt like to be relied on by me.'
'Although it was embarrassing, somehow…'
"Ah…"
To her surprise, Hinata didn't blush. Instead, she smiled with her lips pressed together, though tears started to fall uncontrollably, like autumn leaves that couldn't be stopped.
"Are you crying?" Naruto's words ruined the atmosphere.
Fortunately, Hinata had already calmed down by then. At this moment, she was stimulated by his comment and her face turned red again. She quickly covered her flushed cheeks with her hands.
"Ah! I-I'm not, I just..."
"Then I'll give you a gift as an apology." Naruto suddenly said. Hinata couldn't keep up with his thoughts and, before she could react, found a kunai placed in her hand.
It was an ordinary kunai, but the handle had a special rune, as if it had been hastily carved not too long ago.
"This is?"
"It's just an ordinary kunai." Naruto explained, "The thing at the end is just for decoration. Anyway, you should keep it with you."
Naruto felt somewhat helpless. The system only gave him one Flying Thunder God Kunai, so if he wanted a second one, he'd have to make it himself. However, he wasn't very good at that sort of thing, so he had to settle for a makeshift version whenever he had time.
It could be used, but how many times it would work was another matter.
"Alright, thank you, Naruto-kun." Hinata carefully stored the kunai, placing it in the innermost layer of her ninja tool pouch.
"Um…" Hinata seemed to remember something, looking like she wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Just remember what I said earlier," Naruto said, "And don't cry anymore."