20 Red Like Blood

Lately, Hyuuga Hinata could be seen entering the Inuzuka compound from time to time.

Since Kiba usually hung out with Naruto and his pals, it was a common occurrence to find Hinata stalki- observing them from afar. Whenever she saw that, Hikari had always caught her in the act and brought her over to 'play' with her instead.

Apparently, she was really, really interested in the Hyuuga's Gentle Fist taijutsu.

"I-I can't really s-show it to outsiders, t-though..."

"Pleaaase~? I won't tell anyone, I swear~"

Hinata was already weak to pressure to begin with. Against this half-coaxing, half-coercion, her defense soon crumbled down.

Thus, she ended up showcasing Gentle Fist's techniques, although the more advanced techniques like the Eight Trigram Sixty-Four Palms was way out of her league.

"Baguazhang?"

That name rang a bell.

The Gentle Fist was analogous to Wudang sect's Eight Trigram Palm principle, with their heavy emphasis on palm strikes and the fluid, circular footwork. Could it be that the Hyuuga clan was an offshoot of Wudang Sect?

Nah, that was just her pipe dream. There was no Wudang sect, or actually any sect at all, in this world.

"I'm fine with you wanting to practice and all, but..."

"But?"

"Why should I become your guinea pig?!?!"

Hikari's goal was to scrutinize Gentle Fist. Naturally, she couldn't achieve it through direct sparring alone. Sometimes she would have to step aside and take the role of an observer in order to see the techniques in a broader view. Thus, Kiba was coerc- uh, invited, to serve as Hinata's partner.

"It's a good practice for you. Baguazhang is one of the three basis of Wudang Sect's techniques, so the more you fight against it, the better your grasp over them would be."

"First, I have no idea what that 'pakua' thingy is! Second, I don't need that kind of mastery- Gehoh!"

Because he was distracted, Hinata's palm slammed right on his chest. The sudden blockage of chakra caused him extreme pain and knocked him out in one hit.

"F-Fuee...! K-Kiba, are you alright...?"

"Don't worry, he's fine."

<< Emei Sect Unarmed-Style: Thirty-Six Dianxue: Upper Back Point >>

Hikari proceeded to unblock his chakra flow with a quick stab at his acupoint.

Kiba rose back up, heaving and panting like he hadn't breathed for days.

"Waaah! I-I thought I was going to die!"

"If she really wanted to kill you, she would've hit you on your vital points. Don't worry, things that don't kill you only makes you stronger, that's what my master used to tell me."

"Your master is deranged! Deranged, I say!"

"Ufufu..."

The two froze up when they noticed that Hinata was chuckling.

"Oh! U-um... I-I didn't mean to make fun o-of you guys... it's-it's just..."

"Cute," Hikari muttered.

"Eh...?"

"You should smile like that more often," she suddenly patted Hinata on the head.

"F-Fueee?!"

The result was another serving of freshly-boiled tomato.

"Let's practice again?"

"O-okay..."

Hinata just allowed Hikari to do whatever she wanted to her. Her gaze was left blank as if she had lost her soul somewhere along the line.

"Eh, we're still continuing? And I'm still the punching bag??"

"Less talking, more training."

The boy's attempt at escaping was quickly cut short. In the end, he could only accept his fate.

As the dazed Hinata and a dejected Kiba resumed their sparring, Hikari returned to the nearby bench with Akamaru by her side. After confirming that the two were already engaged in the fight, she patted her lap, inviting Akamaru to sat on it. She then leaned down while stroking on the puppy's head.

"What do you think?" She whispered.

"I can't feel any reaction."

A feminine voice came out when Akamaru opened his maw. His slit-like eyes slightly parted open, revealing a cunning gaze.

"Huang'er, I have to remind you that our case was an exceptional one. The only reason that I could feel an attachment to you is because of our souls' bond. Just because I couldn't feel it doesn't mean that we had to rule out the possibility."

"That's why I tried to use words from our era at times. She only ever showed confusion."

"Hmm... while it only has a really small chance, perhaps you should continue doing so in the future."

"Daji... are you telling me that I should just call out people randomly in the street using our native language?"

"Why not?" The puppy's lips curved to resemble a smile. "At worst, they'll just think that you're a little bit wrong in the head."

"..."

No thanks.

"Haah... haah... s-sorry..."

Hinata and Kiba's sparring had abruptly stopped when Hinata slipped up and fell on the ground. Judging from her breathing, it seemed that she was already at her limit.

Perhaps it would be good to train the kid's stamina as well.

While entertaining that prospect, Hikari threw her a bottle of water, which she tried to catch but ultimately failed. The bottle majestically slammed at her forehead.

"Fueee?!"

Kiba, who had caught his own share of the bottles with relative ease: "..."

Ah... she really had to train this child. If she left her alone, it would be super worrying...

---

"Happy twelfth birthday!"

The Inuzuka household was holding another celebration for their favorite idiot son. The setup was still the same: lure Kiba out of the house for an entire day, then shocked him with a surprise party in the evening.

"Whoa! I forgot about my birthday! Darn it! You guys got me!"

Somehow, he had failed to remember. Again. This absurdity left Hikari and Akamaru questioning whether Kiba's brain had developed at all...

There was something special about this year's birthday. Hikari had employed the help of Kiba's friends to keep him busy. Naturally, they were also invited to the party.

The Inuzuka household's small kitchen was filled to the brim.

Naruto's overexcited reactions were entertaining, and while Tsume kept on barking at him, Hikari could tell that she was enjoying his presence. Choji was content with devouring the cake and whatever bits of food placed on the table. Shikamaru preferred to stay a bit farther from the chaotic whirlwind, but judging from his amused smile, he didn't seem to hate the occasion either.

As for Hinata… being in the same room as Naruto, she had turned into a useless human being. With a face as bright as the light bulb on the ceiling, she curled up on her seat, unable to look at him in the face.

"Why don't you talk to him?" Hikari whispered.

Hinata pouted, showing her pitiful, glassy eyes. It felt like if she pushed her just a bit more, she would break apart.

"...My bad. Just… enjoy the party..."

She ended up giving her another slice of cake instead.

"It's good that it's lively," Hana commented. When she glanced at Hikari and Kiba, a slight smile surfaced on her face.

"What is it, big sister?"

"Nothing... I'm just happy that you guys liked my presents."

"Hmm?"

Kiba was wearing the coat that Hana had bought him two years ago. The size was finally just right for him. From the wear and tear, it was evident that he had worn it a lot during the past two years.

As for Hikari, her brown hair, which had grown up to her arm-pit, was affixed into a simple ponytail and slung over her shoulder with a black hair tie.

That was the present inside Hana's red box from way back then.

"Well, it's convenient."

"Fufu... that's good then. How about opening your present now?"

Hana had learned her lesson. The boxes since then didn't use wrapping paper anymore. Instead, she used wooden boxes with cute carvings.

The box that Hikari was holding had a dolphin drawing on the cover. When she opened it, there was a set of mesh armor inside.

"Eh, this..."

"You can wear it under your clothes, for safety purposes," Hana smiled. "I've heard from Mom that you have your own circumstances. I know that you're not a shinobi, but I hope that it could protect you when you need it."

Feeling gratitude welling up in her chest, she gave Hana a courteous bow.

"Oh, stop it! It's just a little thing, no need to be like that!"

It was Kiba's turn to open up his box, and inside was a set of ninja supplies. Smoke bombs, kunai, sealing scrolls, and other assortments. Naruto was the most excited when he saw it, perhaps even a bit envious.

"Whoa! Thanks, big sis!"

"No, this one was actually from Mom," Hana pointed at Tsume.

"Heh. You'll graduate next year, so consider this your advance graduation gift, you brat! You guys! You also have to graduate! Study properly! Don't just follow this idiot and play around all day! Do you understand?! If you fail, I'll tear you a new one!"

"Y-yes, ma'am!"

Tsume's remark sent a chill down the kids' spines, causing them to nod meekly over and over again.

"Hahaha! Good, good!"

She... she wouldn't really punish them if they failed, right? There was no way the other clans would allow her-

...Then again, who in this village had ever dared to face Inuzuka Tsume when she went on a rampage?

The boys silently made a vow in their hearts not to fail the exam this year lest they would be hunted down by Konoha's Wild Dog...

---

"Thanks for having us. I'll walk Choji home."

"Hoo... Shikamaru, dude... it's so weird… there's two of you..."

"...Just shut your mouth and keep walking..."

Shikamaru waved at his friends as he guided the half-drunk Choji down the street. Apparently, he had mistakenly downed Tsume's sake, resulting in his current delirious state.

"Oi, Naruto, you sure you're okay for next year's exam? Need me to help you?"

Kiba grinned smugly at the poor boy. He was the one most affected by Tsume's threat, considering he had already failed twice in a row. Not to mention his Clone Technique was still a mess. If Iruka decided to test it again for the exam, what should he do?

Even then, the pride of youth wouldn't allow him to look weak in front of his friends.

"Haha! No need for that! I'm the one who'll become the next Hokage, ya'know! This is too easy for me!"

"Hoo... you sure about that~?"

"Kuh... I'm going home, ya'know!"

The yellow-haired boy stuck his tongue out before running off.

"He wants to be a Hokage?" Hikari frowned.

"Yeah, that's what he always says. What about it?"

"Nothing..."

Her only experience with that position was with that persistent old man who had kept on sending his goons to stalk on her, so her image of the Hokage wasn't too great.

"It's normal. A lot of my classmates also said that they want to be Hokage when they grow up."

"Oh? What about you?"

Kiba took a glance at her before replying.

"Nah. Not interested."

"That's good."

The chaotic party was finally over. The only thing left was to walk Hinata back home.

"I-I can go home by myself..."

"A cute girl like you should never go home by yourself at night. Someone might kidnap you to do Twin Closed Cultivation. I won't allow that."

"C-cu- fueee?!"

Ah, there goes another tomato...

Meanwhile, Kiba was severely disturbed when he heard the word 'Twin Closed Cultivation'. He didn't understand what that means by that, he just instinctively knew that it was really, really bad.

Thus he ended up tagging along as well.

"Sorry, I guess it'll be better if Naruto is the one who brings you back home, huh?"

Hikari grinned at her.

"U-uuu... p-please don't tease me anymooore..."

Hinata pounded on Hikari's shoulder while puffing her cheeks like a squirrel. Her sorry attempt of getting angry just made the latter laugh harder.

"U-um... by the way, I want to ask something to the b-both of you..."

"Hmm?" "Yeah?"

The two responded at the same time, causing Hinata to blink in amazement.

"W-what is it?" Hikari coughed, trying to bring the conversation back on the rail.

"Um... I-I accidentally see it with my Byakugan, b-but... well... uh..."

""...""

They were tempted to just smack her from behind, wondering whether the words would all spill out from her mouth at once.

"Um... so... right... why- why are y-you guys always using your c-chakra?"

Byakugan, one of the Three Dojutsu, had the special power to see the flow of chakra in the world. When they activated their eyes, they could see through skin and observe the chakra pathway and the position of tenketsu in a human body.

That was the basis of Gentle Fist, the taijutsu that relied on the manipulation of their opponents' chakra pathway.

When she directed her Byakugan at Hikari and Kiba, she was shocked to see that their chakra organs were essentially working in full force the entire time, continuously pumping out chakra through their pathway.

Wasn't that... a bit dangerous?

"It's this crazy girl's fault," Kiba pointed at Hikari.

"What's with 'fault'... you should thank me for teaching you qi circulation."

"I almost died the first few times!"

That's because you keep leaking out your qi."

"..."

But... she did it in her first try...

At times, Kiba wondered whether she was really a year younger than him. What kind of training did she get before she ended up in their house? And she wasn't even a shinobi! He never saw her train any jutsu at all!

"That's right, do you want to try it too, Hinata?"

"F-fwee?"

"Don't teach her something dangerous!" Kiba intervened. "Besides, aren't you disturbing her training if you keep dragging her around?"

"Ah."

She almost forgot. With the influence held by Hyuuga clan, surely they would have their own training methods for their members. It was the same with any mortal sects in her past.

"Apologies. Indeed, one's sect's own style is always the best. I was too excited."

"U-um..."

Hinata shook her head.

"F-Father and the clan h-had given up on m-me, so... t-they never bothered giving me any g-guidance... b-but..."

She lifted her face to look at the two kids in front of her with a smile.

"Y-you guys always keep me c-company... and t-teaching me lots of stuff, so... I-I'm very happy... thank- thank you so much!"

Aah... what is this? Their hearts went 'doki doki' for a moment there.

This girl... she would be really lethal if she learned to utilize this cuteness to her advantage. Hikari vowed to never let Daji corrupt this little ball of innocence.

Definitely. Must. Protect!

Under Kiba's coat, Akamaru sneezed uncontrollably.

"A-anyway, let's go home, go home! I don't want your Dad to yell at me again!"

Kiba hollered while dragging Hinata toward her residence.

Just when Hikari was about to follow, she felt a presence coming from the other end of the street. Someone was approaching her, shrouded by shadow until the street lamp revealed his features.

She felt like she was seeing a split image of Naruto.

Same eyes, same facial features, the exact same height and build. He even had a similar set of whiskers on his face, albeit he only had two pairs instead of three.

Aside from his different attire, which consisted of a blue robe and pants, the part which distinguished him the most from Naruto was his hair. Unlike that rambunctious boy's spiky yellow hair, his straight, shoulder-length hair was colored in deep red.

Red like blood.

"Are you Hikari?" The boy asked. His voice also sounded very alike to Naruto, but his tone was serene and calm, unlike his more boisterous counterpart.

"Ah... yes," she nodded.

Somehow, she couldn't get herself to like this guy. Something about him rubbed her the wrong way.

"Oi, Negi!"

Kiba had ended up running back after unceremoniously dropping Hinata, wondering why the girl took so long to catch up.

It turned out that she had met an annoying person!

Akamaru also popped his head out, growling at the red-haired boy.

"Kiba, your puppy still doesn't like me," he laughed wryly.

"What do you think, Mr. Genius?" Kiba snorted. "Hmph, you're so important that you can't attend my party, eh?"

"Please forgive me. I was busy with something."

It wasn't a lie. Negi had always disappeared from the village for days on end, for who knows what reason. He had the approval of the Third, so nobody dared to pry any deeper.

Still, it was really annoying! This hateful guy! Just because he was slightly better than everyone else, he could get preferential treatment? Unfair!

"Fine, fine, whatever you say! So? What are you doing here this late at night?"

"Oh, nothing much. I heard that my brother came over to play at your house today. I want to express my gratitude. Please keep being his friends in the future as well."

He politely bowed at the two.

Kiba clicked his tongue, not convinced by this sorry excuse of a brother.

"Moron! Even if you don't tell me, I'll still be his friend! Let me tell ya, you should take care of your own sibling, damn it!"

"Naturally. You don't have to tell me."

The boys glared at each other for a moment, before Negi backed off.

"I've said what I wanted to say, so please excuse me."

He gave them another bow before disappearing back into the darkness.

"Tsk! Encountering him on my birthday... such bad luck!"

"You... don't seem to like him," Hikari muttered.

"Who can like that guy? Naruto might be an idiot, but he's miles better compared to him! Besides, Akamaru doesn't like him too!"

"..."

Ah, there it was again, the Inuzuka's logic... If their dogs didn't like you, tough luck trying to make friends with them...

"By the way, who was that? I've never seen him before. He... looks exactly like Naruto."

"Of course they look similar," Kiba shrugged. "After all, they're..."

---

In the secluded part of Konoha, where nature still stood unaffected by the encroaching urbanization, a boy approached a small clearing. The clouds parted at that moment, revealing his red hair.

On the other side stood an old man with an x-shaped scar on his chin. A layer of bandage covered his forehead and his right eye. He was wearing a black cloak with a white robe underneath, and his left hand was clutching a walking cane tightly.

"Lord Shimura," the boy bowed. "I've given your words some thoughts over the past months."

"Oh? Then, may I hear your answer?"

"Just one thing. Do you promise that you'll keep Naruto away from all this political business?"

"Of course," the old man's lips curved up. "As long as you provide your service to me, I'll provide you with whatever things that you need. Your twin brother will be safe from harm, I give you my words."

The boy nodded.

"I also can't serve directly under you at the moment."

"...And why is that?"

The smile on the old man's face faded slightly.

"Lord Shimura, think it through. Rather than having me go underground for a few years, it'll be more beneficial if you let me stay under the Hokage's nose as your agent."

"...Even with that arrangement, I still have to brand you with Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal."

"That's fine."

"..."

Shimura Danzo hesitated for a moment. It was an enticing offer, but it also posed a risk of its own. Should he accept it?

"I understand. Let's do it that way if you so wished."

No matter. You can't win if you can't take a risk. Even if the kid was a genius, he could just eliminate him when he was no longer useful.

Just like always.

"I have great faith in you. Don't disappoint me..."

Danzo narrowed his eyes, staring right at the red-haired boy as if wanting to fish out his real intention.

"...Uzumaki Negi."

The boy didn't seem to be affected by the pressure that the old schemer was emanating. Adding a bit of coy, he responded, as calm as he usually was,

"Naturally."