SIDE STORIES

*Swish*

The soft evening breeze gently blew her dark blue hair as her gaze fixated on the disappearing back of her daughter. She felt a slight pang in her heart as she could only watch.

"You look worried," she felt a presence behind her.

"What else can I do other than worry?" she replied simply.

Hiashi lightly put his hand on her shoulder. "You should trust your daughter."

Her eyes narrowed into slits as she turned her head slightly, casting a sidelong glare at her husband. "I do trust her. That's why I let her go without arguing with her."

'Trouble,' Hiashi thought as he looked down at his wife. 'Why do I say such things?'

"I know. I was just saying," he said lovingly, grabbing her hand and sitting beside her.

"Really?" she glared at him.

In response, he tenderly caressed her hand, his actions speaking more than words.

'The less I speak, the better for me,' he thought while nodding to her with a slight smile on his lips.

The smile that was only reserved for his wife and firstborn.

"What about Hanabi and Arya? Do you trust them as much as you trust Hinata?" she asked, causing his smile to fade.

Silence prevailed in the atmosphere. Hiashi's expression became complicated. With a sigh, he said, "No."

He could have lied, but he couldn't.

It was human nature; parents couldn't love their children equally. If they said such things, they were lying. There was always one favorite.

.

"Do you love them as much as you do Hinata?" she asked another question.

Hiashi just looked at the orange clouds. "Maybe I do, but I can't express it," his thoughts conveying buried sadness inside him.

"Why can't you? They have already exceeded your expectations. They are talented no less than Hinata. Then why?" she asked.

"No, they aren't," he yelled out in a moment of heat.

He just sighed. "That's not the point. I just can't," he whispered.

There was silence between them again.

Hiashi looked at her. "What about you?"

Her gaze was fixed on the pond. "They don't love me as much as Hinata," she twisted her words.

.

Hiashi didn't say anything when he heard her reasoning; he just nodded.

"First I was worried, now I am sad," she whispered.

"Don't worry, everything is okay. Hmm, how about I cook for you today?" he smiled, knowing that lingering on this topic much longer would only make things worse.

He didn't want her wife to be sad, so a thought suddenly came to his mind as he gently squeezed her hand.

"And then we can, you know…" he said while tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Make another child," he completed his sentence.

She looked away from him. "What if they burst into our room?" she asked shyly, talking about her two girls.

"We can lock our room," he answered.

"And they can't see through the reinforced seals, at least not yet," he said.

"Hinata isn't home, so there won't be any problem," she whispered. It would be embarrassing if they were caught by any of their children.

"Good, let me cook," Hiashi said as he stood up and walked towards the house, followed by his wife who had a slight curve on her lips.

*

In the night

In a grassy field where stars shone in the sky, two girls were looking at a wooden scroll that was rolled on the ground.

"Should we start?" Hanabi asked, an excited smile creeping onto her little face.

"Yup," Arya nodded rapidly like a child, her Byakugan activated, and her hands already moving in a special set of 49 hand signs.

Her hands moved in a rapid blur, and in 5 seconds the scroll was opened, revealing a thick book.

'Byakugan Encyclopedia' were the words written in bold, with 'Hinata Hyuga' as the author.

It was her 12 years of research and experience written in this book, covering its shape, awakening, workings, functions, and evolution. It was the ultimate book for Byakugan.

*Flip*

Arya quickly flipped through its pages and stopped at the chapter called "Sight," and the paragraph called "Frequency."

"Ok, let's reread," Hanabi said.

"Let me," Arya said as she continued, "When the eye is activated, it starts to emit light whose wavelengths are shorter than those of visible light and with high energies.

So unlike visible light, these waves don't return after colliding with objects but pass through solid objects and help us perceive what is beyond these solid objects," Arya read. It was written in very simple language.

"And we call this phenomenon X-rays. They are a form of light, specifically a type of electromagnetic radiation, and we control it with our eyes. That's why I call the Byakugan a source of light," Arya finished the paragraph.

Beneath the paragraph, there was a light spectrum diagram.

Moving to the next paragraph, Arya continued, "But there might be some objects capable of blocking the X-rays, such as the seals often used in the Hyuga compound to maintain privacy."

There was another picture of a talisman with seals on it.

"And then comes the concept of changing the default integrated frequencies of the Byakugan to a shorter wavelength, bypassing the limitation of X-ray vision."

"This can only be achieved by a highly talented individual and will be extremely taxing on the eyes."

"The first rule of the eyes is that the higher your skills are, the more power you can bring out."

"But once you master these frequencies, you will see the world in a whole new light."

"You can either achieve this through your own talent or follow these specific steps, and make no mistakes."

Then there were 513 hand signs, some new and some old, written in a specific order with guidance on how to mold your chakra in your vessels within a precise time frame.

For the next half hour, both of them started to memorize and understand the instructions.

*Clasp*

Arya stood up with determination flaring in her eyes.

"Attempt 73," she said as her hands began to perform the seals. Her chakra seemed to mold in a special way and headed towards her eyes. Both blood and chakra were absorbed by her eyes, but before the completion of the jutsu, the No. 423 hand sign was missed, causing everything to return to normal.

"Damn, I was so close," she kicked the ground in frustration.

"Let me try," Hanabi said, standing up beside her sister with the same excited grin on her face.

A few seconds later...

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

Her eyes were bloodshot with anger as she banged her fist on the ground.

"Let's try again," Arya said calmly, helping her sister to stand up again.

Hanabi stood up and glared at the daunting book with fury in her eyes.

.

"Attempt 74… failed."

"Damn it."

"Attempt 75… failed."

"Damn it!" A chunk of grass went flying.

"Attempt 83… failed."

"Attempt 86… failed."

"...failed."

"...failed."

"...failed."

"...failed."

"...failed."

"...failed."

Five hours later...

"Attempt 1003… failed."

*Sob* *Sob*

"Sister, I-I can't see anything," Hanabi sobbed as blood and tears mixed together and slipped from her eyes.

Sob

"D-Don't you dare stop, or be ready to receive beatings. Do you want Big Sister to be angry?" Arya comforted her sister as she wiped her face with the back of her hand.

Sob

Sob

Sob

Sob

Sob

Sob

Thud

After one hour, both their will and bodies gave up as their faces touched the ground.

"Oops," a terrified high-pitched squeal echoed through the grassy field.

.

Natsu Hyuga, the maid and caretaker of the twins, appeared beside them.

"Byakugan," she quickly activated her Byakugan to check if anyone was observing her.

"Hinata-sama will kill me if she finds out I didn't catch them before they hit the ground," she whispered, her hands starting to tremble and her eyes welling up with horror.

She quickly wiped her face. "I can't let anyone see this." In an instant, she began to wipe the dirt from their faces and hair.

"I thought Ren or Ritsu would be watching over them," she whispered, her hands moving lightning-fast to cover up the traces.

"Quickly, let me take them to the infirmary." Once she was confident that no traces were left, she picked up the lying book and disappeared with the twins.

*Knock* *Knock*

She knocked on the door, and soon a strict-looking old woman opened it.

"Oh, it's them again. Come inside," the old woman said, not surprised as if they were her daily patients.

The woman placed them on the beds, cleaning their faces and hands with a wet cloth before performing her medical ninjutsu.

Natsu looked at the unconscious twins, a hint of pity in her eyes. 'They're trying harder than any adult in this clan.'

"Why do they look like this? They are from the main house," the old woman said, gazing sharply at the maid.

"Sorry," Natsu apologized.

"Your assistance is no longer required. You can leave," the woman said.

Natsu could only look down under the harsh gaze of the woman. She gave one last glance at the twins before leaving.

After walking a short distance away...

Sniff, sob

"W-Why was that woman so harsh to me? I-I didn't say anything to her; I was just doing my job," she silently started to cry as she strolled. 

"Every adult is like this. If I do the right things, they scold me, if I do the wrong things, they scold me again. Everybody in this clan is the same," she mumbled.

.

"Ren and Ritsu are so lucky. They even go outside the village with Hinata-sama. I don't even know what the outside is like," she continued to mumble.

"I can't even go outside the clan without permission. Ren and Ritsu are so lucky," was she jealous of them? maybe a little. 

*Hahaha*

She jolted when she heard hearty laughter.

Quickly wiping her eyes, she peeked through the gate into the training ground.

Haku and Kimimaro were happily chatting with each other, despite one being an extrovert and the other an introvert.

Both their heads snapped towards the person who was watching them.

'Oh carp, why do I do things,' Natsu cried out. 

But this time, there was no oppressive gaze on her.

'The demon of a young master isn't here, nor is Hinata-sama,' she thought with a sigh of relief.

"Oh, it's her. You can come inside," Haku called, waving his hand.

Kimimaro also nodded.

'What should I do?' Her mind raced. 'He is here too,' she thought, glancing at Kimimaro before deciding to go in.

She slowly walked into the training field.

'Now what should I do?' she wondered, looking around uncertainly. She didn't know what to talk about.

But not everyone was as unsure as she was. Haku's eyebrows raised as he grinned at her. "You crying, Natsu?"

.

'How did he find out? He's such a meanie, saying it directly to my face,' she thought, feeling like crying even more.

"Don't bully her," Kimimaro said, looking at Haku.

'He's standing up for me,' her heart thumped. There were only a few people who would knowingly stand up for her.

"What if I do?" Haku asked, grinning, unaware of the emotional mess behind his words.

*Sob* *Sob*

Haku turned around and saw that Natsu's tears had turned into a full-blown river.

"Oi, oi, I didn't mean that. Stop crying," Haku said quickly, feeling guilty. "I was just joking, you know. I'm sorry, okay?" he apologized rapidly.

But she wasn't listening to him. Haku quickly looked at Kimimaro, who also had a troubled expression.

Both of them weren't very good at comforting someone.

'If only Neji were here; she wouldn't dare to cry,' Haku thought.

'What should I do now?' He glanced at Kimimaro and remembered some conversations with Hinata. 'You always save me.'

"I'm sorry, okay?" he said, starting to walk away from the training ground. "I'll leave her to you, bro," he added to Kimimaro.

'I won't bully her again. She's such a crybaby,' he thought and disappeared.

.

Now only Kimimaro and Natsu remained.

'Okay, what should I do? Can you stop crying?' Kimimaro thought.

A few moments later, Natsu stopped crying. She looked around, her head ducked in embarrassment. 'Why did I start crying? Now he'll think I'm a crybaby. Should I run away?'

She looked at him. "I'm sorry," she said, not really knowing why she was apologizing.

"Oh– it's no big deal," he said, starting to look around. 'Why do I feel like my eyes keep wavering when she's around? Otherwise, they wouldn't,' he thought.

"You can sit," he offered.

'Is he inviting me to sit with him?' she thought, a shy smile forming on her face.

Both of them sat beside each other, maintaining a slight distance.

'What should I ask him? Should I ask him what food he likes?' she wondered, tapping her fingers on the stone.

'This is so hard. I always thought about this moment when Hinata and Haku teased me, but now it's so strange. I feel like I've forgotten how to talk,' Kimimaro thought.

"Umm, why were you awake at this time?" she asked.

"We were training," he replied.

Natsu facepalmed internally. 'How could I forget this? I watch them train every day.'

Silence fell between them again, as neither knew how to continue the conversation.

'Should I hold his hand? No, it's too sudden. What if he thinks I'm a creep?' she thought, glancing at his hand.

She raced her mind for something to say. 'Okay, let's ask this,' she decided. "So, how's the outside world?" She knew he came from another village.

"Not safe," he said, shaking his head.

"How's your family?" she asked, facepalming internally again. 'If he had family, why would Hinata-sama have adopted him? Did I make him feel bad? Crap.'

"I don't remember them well, but they weren't as good as my new family," he told her truthfully.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to make you feel bad," she said, her face sad. 'Why can't I talk straight?' she wondered.

"It's nothing. This is my home now," he said with a slight laugh.

*Cough*

He put his hand over his mouth, coughing up blood. "Maybe I shouldn't laugh," he whispered.

"Blood," she muttered, her eyes wide with shock. "Are you okay? Why are you coughing blood?" she asked, her heart racing with worry.

"I don't have much time left. Maybe a month or two," he blurted out subconsciously. 

'why did I tell her,' he wondered.

"Huh?" She felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath her feet. Her heart sank, and she experienced a sharp pain in her chest.

"What are you saying? Tell me you're joking," she pleaded, not realizing she was shaking his shoulders with her wet eyes.

Kimimaro looked up into her eyes, only one thought crossing his mind: 'Beautiful.'

"Are you crying for me?" he asked.

"Huh?" She quickly looked away. "No, I'm not crying," she said, mentally cursing herself. 'Damn, I let my intrusive thoughts win.'

'Is he really going to die? What should I do? Should I tell him I love him? Wait, isn't Hinata-sama the best medic? She wouldn't let him die, right? Why isn't my brain working anymore?'

"It was nice talking to you," Kimimaro said. "Maybe I should sleep now." He stood up and started to walk away.

She watched his retreating back. 'I should stop him, right? I want to talk to him. Anything is fine.'

"We should talk more," she whispered.

"Maybe we should," he said before completely disappearing from view.

She sat there alone, staring at the stars. She started crying again, her thoughts swirling. 'He's not going to die. Maybe we could live happily, together.'

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End of the chapter, how do you like it? 

the fluffy part is over, some mysteries will be unraveling in the next chapter, and yes I will upload 3 chapters continuously for the next 3 days. 

okay now give your brother some powerstones.