Chapter 179: It's Not Over Yet
"I refuse," Kiba said
firmly, looking at Hirohiko. "Unless you bring me barbecue every
day."
This
guy...
Hirohiko stared at Kiba, and his
poker face seemed to twitch slightly.
"How is it?" Kiba asked,
eyes full of expectation.
"I refuse," Hirohiko
replied with a poker face.
Then he handed the unpacked
barbecued meat to Kiba. Hearing Hirohiko's words, Kiba was slightly
disappointed, but as soon as he saw the barbecue, he put his disappointment
aside and chewed a large piece of meat.
Meat!
A satisfied expression appeared on
Kiba's face.
As Hirohiko handed the second piece
of meat to Kiba, Kiba didn't eat it immediately. Instead, he looked at Hirohiko
and asked, "How is Yukina?"
"She's doing well,
recovering," Hirohiko said.
With Hirohiko's answer, Kiba resumed
eating hungrily. In just ten minutes, he devoured all the barbecue Hirohiko had
brought.
Kiba burped and sighed in relief. At
this time, Hirohiko was packing the wrapping paper. The barbecue had been
brought in under the guise of a fruit basket. After eating, the fruit in the
basket was obviously less.
Then, Hirohiko saw Namikaze Minato's
fruit basket and asked, "What's with this fruit basket?"
Kiba's eyes focused on the fruit
basket sent by Namikaze Minato, and he frowned slightly. "Hirohiko, we
haven't completely rescued Kushina sensei yet."
"Not fully rescued?"
Hirohiko was taken aback.
"Yes," Kiba nodded.
When Namikaze Minato visited, Kiba
felt something was wrong. At first glance, it seemed Minato came to visit him
instead of Kushina and asked him to keep Kushina's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki
identity a secret. In fact, this implied another layer of meaning.
There was no need for Minato to make
excuses like "visiting instead of Kushina." He could have told Kiba
directly to keep it a secret. After all, Kiba had seen Kushina's tailed beast
transformation, and hiding it was impossible.
So, this meant Kushina couldn't
visit him, even if she wanted to.
Seeing the slightly worried look in
Minato's eyes when he mentioned Kushina, Kiba concluded something must have
happened to her.
Originally, Kiba thought the key
protection was sending Anbu to protect her, but judging by the situation,
Kushina couldn't even come to the hospital to see him. Minato had to visit in
her stead. This indicated Kushina was under "house arrest" and
"movement restriction."
This time, Jinchuriki was almost
kidnapped, which must have alarmed Konoha's higher-ups.
Considering the Third Hokage's
position, Kiba thought of Konoha's notable high-level officials: Koharu Utatane
and Homura Mitokado, the former teammates of the Third Hokage and classmates of
the Second Hokage.
And then there was Konoha's hawk,
Shimura Danzo!
Danzo always had opinions and
dissatisfaction with the Third Hokage's policies, and the Jinchuriki issue was
too sensitive. He would definitely seize the opportunity to cause trouble. The
incident of Jinchuriki's abduction just happened, and Koharu and Homura's
attitude was likely to lean heavily towards Danzo.
After all, Danzo's philosophy
inclined towards "controlling Jinchuriki" and "managing
Jinchuriki" as weapons.
Kiba suspected Kushina's "house
arrest" protection measures were mostly influenced by these three people.
Their influence was significant,
likely forcing the Third Hokage to compromise. According to the Third Hokage's
character, Kushina's actions wouldn't be restricted. At most, she would be
confined to the village with Anbu sent to protect her.
Kiba believed that in the Third
Hokage's eyes, Kushina couldn't be a weapon!
"So, what do you think?"
Hirohiko asked.
Kiba glanced at Hirohiko and said,
"Kushina is likely under house arrest."
"Then, what do I need to
do?" Hirohiko looked at Kiba without doubt, not asking for any reason.
This is
absolute trust!
Moreover, from Hirohiko's eyes, Kiba
saw a trace of worry when he mentioned that Kushina hadn't been completely
rescued.
When Kushina was taken, Hirohiko and
Yukina chased after her—not because they believed the two of them could stop
the elite Jonin-level Kumo ninja, but because they were too worried, so they
chased desperately.
Even when he was seriously injured
and on the verge of a coma, Hirohiko persisted until he returned and handed
everything over to Kiba.
Thanks to Hirohiko, Kiba was able to
see the clues.
Yukina and Hirohiko's feelings for
Kushina were no less than his own.
"Don't you want to know
why?" Although Kiba understood, he couldn't help asking.
After all, this matter involved
Danzo and others who weren't friendly to the Uchiha clan. Hirohiko was also an
Uchiha member. Kiba needed to consider this.
"There's no need. Kushina is my
teacher and the best person to me. As long as she's in danger, as a disciple, I
can't sit idly by." Hirohiko still had a poker face, but his eyes were
firm. Even his words were unusually long.
"This time, Kushina sensei may not be in danger, but she will be
restricted..." Kiba said.
"Then, will Kushina sensei be happy?" Hirohiko responded.
After Hirohiko's words, Kiba was
stunned.
This
guy...
True,
under house arrest, Kushina's chances of encountering danger will be greatly
reduced, but being under house arrest won't make her happy.
Kiba shook his head. "Kushina
sensei will definitely not be happy.
Maybe she'll be so frustrated she'll want to beat someone up every day."
"Then, what other reason do you
need?" Hirohiko looked at Kiba, his eyes flashing scarlet as he activated
his Sharingan.
Hirohiko's Sharingan made Kiba feel
strong emotions.
Hirohiko...
truly belongs to the Uchiha clan. Once he gets 'love,' he will devote himself
wholeheartedly until his body is smashed to pieces, even turning to the deepest
'hate.'
"Hirohiko, it's best not to
tell Yukina about this," Kiba said.
"Yes, I know." Hirohiko
nodded.
"I have a plan now. Do two
things for me first." Kiba narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at
Hirohiko, but his gaze seemed to pass through Hirohiko, penetrate the wall, and
look into the distance beyond.