As soon as Naruto reached the bottom of his apartment building, he was surrounded by the three little ones.
Konohamaru dived at him, while Moegi followed behind Konohamaru, looking up with sparkling eyes. Udon was sandwiched in the middle, trying his best to stand on tiptoe and wave at Naruto, with a long trail of snot hanging from his nose.
"Naruto-nii, where have you been this whole month? Moegi and I went to your place and knocked so many times, but we couldn't find you." Konohamaru clutched the hem of Naruto's trench coat.
"I went into the mountains to train for a month for the Chunin Exams. So I haven't been home this month, which is why you couldn't find me." Naruto explained.
"I see. As expected of Naruto-nii, you even go into the mountains for isolated training." Konohamaru's eyes lit up upon hearing this.
Then he turned to Moegi and Udon, lifting his chin. "See that? This is the boss I've chosen."
"But Ebisu said there's a super strong Genin in this Chunin Exams, someone with red hair who can control sand, named something like Gaara..."
Konohamaru stopped midway, suddenly remembering something. Then he turned back and clenched his fists tightly, punching the air:
"Naruto-nii is definitely stronger than him."
"Yes, Naruto-nii is the best. Last time in the alley, you zoomed over and saved me." Moegi nodded.
Naruto reached out and patted Konohamaru and Moegi on the head, then bent down to bring his eyes level with the three little ones.
"Alright, I'm covered in dirt, don't get too close or you'll get your clothes dirty. The third exam is tomorrow, make sure you cheer for me properly in the classroom."
"Then Naruto-nii must win!"
The three of them shouted in unison.
"Got it. Hurry home, it's already dark."
Naruto waved them off, watching the three little ones skip away, then stepped onto the apartment stairs.
Just as he turned the corner on the second floor and was about to reach for his keys to open the door, a shy voice came from behind him.
"Na... Naruto-kun."
Naruto stopped and turned around, discovering the source of the voice was Hinata, whom he hadn't seen in a month.
At this moment, Hinata was standing in the second-floor hallway near the stairs, her hands folded in front of her. She was wearing casual white clothes.
"Oh, it's the Crown Princess." Naruto smiled.
Hinata's cheeks turned red upon hearing this. "Crown... Crown Princess? Naruto-kun... Crown Princess... what... what does that mean..."
At the same time, another thought uncontrollably popped into her mind. 'Did Naruto-kun just call me his princess? Could it be that he...'
Naruto waved his hand. "Don't worry about those details. Did you come to see me, Hinata?"
Hinata hurriedly nodded. "Last time during the preliminaries, thank you for catching me. And later you accompanied me to the medical room. I wanted to say thank you in person."
Naruto shook his head slightly, his gaze falling on Hinata's face. "Hinata, there's no need for thanks. "After all, I couldn't bear to see Hinata-chan get hurt."
"Hinata-chan?"
Hearing this address, Hinata turned red as if she had been steamed, with wisps of white steam rising from her head.
She took a step back, her back hitting the corridor wall, which barely kept her from collapsing.
Hinata's brain was now stuck on a loop of "Naruto-kun called me Hinata-chan," and all other language functions went offline.
Naruto quickly took a step back, increasing the distance between himself and Hinata.
He was covered in sweat and dirt, and his hair was a mess. Besides, looking at Hinata's current state, if he got any closer, she would probably pass out for real.
After a while, Hinata's breathing finally stabilized. The blush on her face hadn't completely faded, but there was a touch of seriousness in her eyes.
"Naruto-kun... tomorrow's match... Neji-nii-san is really strong. He carries a kind of pain that only exists between the Hyuga Clan Main Family and the Branch House."
"I understand his pain, and I know he isn't as cold-hearted as he appears on the surface. So no matter what happens on the field tomorrow, please, Naruto-kun, don't hate him."
Naruto nodded. "Don't worry, I understand Neji's pain."
As for Neji, he knew more than Hinata thought. He knew the pain of the Caged Bird Cursed Seal on Neji's forehead, how the Branch House was treated as servants by the Main Family, and that his father, Hyuga Hizashi, had died because of it.
In the anime, Neji only finally let go of his resentment toward the Main Family during the Fourth Great Ninja War.
During the Chunin Exams, he was still a youth full of anger and unwillingness regarding his fate.
Naruto understood this pain, not because of sympathy, but because "he" himself had once been someone abandoned in a corner by the world.
Once he became the Hokage, he would solve the problem between the Main Family and the Branch House ahead of time. He would cut out the cancer that was the Caged Bird Cursed Seal from the roots of the Hyuga Clan and let Neji regain his freedom.
But this matter couldn't be rushed. Before the position of Hokage was in his hands, saying these things was just empty talk.
"Naruto-kun, thank you for being willing to listen to me say these things."
Hinata bowed slightly and turned to jog down the stairs.