Konoha.
When Tsunade knocked on the Shinju door just now, she hit it so hard that Naruto woke up from the noise.
He checked the time—past four in the morning…
Naruto originally wanted to crawl back into bed for a little more sleep, but once he closed his eyes, he couldn't fall asleep no matter what. So he threw on some clothes and went out for a walk.
As he walked, he ended up in front of the Hyuga compound…
Even though his relationship with Hinata had grown pretty good over the past half year, they still hadn't officially defined anything. Taking that last step…
First, Naruto was ridiculously dense about that sort of thing, and second, Hinata was way too shy.
Right now, Naruto stood staring at the large "Hyuga" characters over the gate, deep in thought.
Suddenly, a dark figure darted into his line of sight!
That shadowy figure moved sneaky as anything, and seemed to be holding something in his arms!
Naruto was smarter now—he didn't shout immediately. Instead, he crept along the wall in silence.
He planned to circle around the Hyuga compound wall, get behind the shadow, and catch him red-handed! ୧⍢⃝୨
But before he even took a couple steps, the shadow noticed him—and bolted!
"Hey! Don't run!! ꐦ≖ ≖"
Naruto sped up at once and gave chase.
One pursuing, one fleeing—they quickly ended up somewhere outside the village!
There, Naruto spotted a Hyuga clansman collapsed on the ground!
"Isn't that Hinata's dad? (꒪⌓꒪) "
Naruto's heart jumped—thinking of his future father-in-law—so he rushed over to Hyuga Hiashi, checking his injuries in a hurry.
Seeing that Hiashi's life wasn't in danger, Naruto finally exhaled in relief.
"Good… none of the wounds are fatal…"
Just then—
Rustle—rustle—
In the trees nearby, something was moving!
Naruto was no longer the clueless shinobi he once was. He reacted instantly—raising his hand and firing off a Rasengan!
Crashhh——!!
The Rasengan hit the ground and blasted apart dozens of meters of trees, carving out a circular crater!
Naruto took two steps closer and saw what was left of the person who had been hit.
"Shinju's improved Throwing Rasengan really is convenient—fast to cast and great range," Naruto muttered.
Then, suddenly, he realized something wasn't right!
The person he'd chased out of the Hyuga compound had definitely been holding something in his arms. But the one lying in the crater had nothing on him!
"There's more than one enemy! (ㅎ‸ㅎ)"
Naruto reacted instantly and jumped back to Hiashi's side!
At that exact moment—
Swish swish swish——!!
From all directions, more masked figures in black clothes rushed out!!
And behind them stood a white-haired young man!
The black-clad thief raised his hands reverently, as if presenting a treasure, offering the item he'd stolen from the Hyuga household to the white-haired man.
Naruto finally saw it clearly—the thing stolen from the Hyuga clan… was a girl!
"Hanabi!" Naruto shouted urgently!
That was his little sister-in-law—he absolutely had to protect her!
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!!"
Naruto formed the hand seals and roared—hundreds of Shadow Clones appeared, charging into battle with the masked men, while his real body sprinted straight toward the white-haired man!
The white-haired man seemed to sense Naruto's unusual chakra and fled while carrying Hanabi…
When he reached a dense area of forest and saw Naruto still chasing relentlessly, the white-haired man's expression shifted. His palm swept lightly across Hanabi's face…
Then he set her body down.
A few seconds later, Naruto found Hanabi lying on the ground.
Her eyes were tightly shut, and blood was trickling from the corners…
Naruto examined her quickly—and discovered that both of her eye sockets were completely empty!
His teeth clenched so hard they ground together, and he slammed his fist into the ground in fury.
"Damn it… her Byakugan… (｡•ˇ‸ˇ•｡)"
But by now he could no longer sense the white-haired man's chakra. Otherwise, he would have torn him apart on the spot! (′д｀σ)σ
...
Land of Iron.
After discussion, the Five Kage accepted the Raikage's proposal—to fire the chakra cannon at the moon if necessary!
When the meeting ended, Shinju used Flying Thunder God and returned to Konoha instantly!
The other four Kage stared at each other!! (꒪⌓꒪)
So he handles arrivals but not departures??
He just left—without caring whether the four of them lived or died?
Sure, Flying Thunder God makes things easy for him. But for them? Walking back from the Land of Iron takes three or four days!! (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)
The Tsuchikage stepped forward, proud of his own foresight.
"Good thing I ordered a 'plane' from Shinju earlier. Flying back to the Land of Earth will only take half a day. ´･ᴗ･`"
The Raikage grinned as well.
"Good thing my secretary knows Heavenly Transfer Technique—she can send me straight back to Kumogakure! ୧⍢⃝୨"
With that, the Tsuchikage and Raikage were gone, leaving only the Kazekage and Mizukage in the meeting hall…
Gaara wore a bitter look. "If only everyone in the shinobi world could use Flying Thunder God."
Mei shook her head. "Even then, it wouldn't be the same. Even if we learned Flying Thunder God, we couldn't use it like Shinju does."
"But if we could at least develop some sort of fast transport between nations, that would be enough. Like that Thunder Car rumor from the Land of Lightning recently… just build rails between two points and—"
Before Mei could finish, Shinju reappeared in the meeting room, looking apologetic.
"I left in a rush earlier—forgot to send you two home. (〃∇〃)"
"Huh? Where's the Raikage and Tsuchikage?"
...
When he returned to the village, Shinju immediately received Naruto's report.
"Hyuga Hanabi was taken?" Shinju sat in his office chair, frowning.
Naruto nodded. "They took her eyes and ran. I get mad just thinking about it! Ծ‸ Ծ"
Shinju continued, "You also found Hyuga Hiashi injured on the way? Was he wounded by the white-haired man?"
Naruto nodded. "Most likely. But Hiashi-san is still unconscious from severe injuries…"
Shinju waved a hand.
"It's fine—I'm a doctor! (๑╹ヮ╹๑)ﾉ"
...
Konoha Ninja Hospital.
Under Shinju's treatment, Hyuga Hiashi gradually awoke from his coma.
"Lord Hokage…"
Seeing him try to bow despite his injuries, Shinju raised a hand to stop him.
"No need to bow. I came because I need to ask you something."
"Your younger daughter, Hyuga Hanabi—her eyes were taken by a white-haired man… Do you know who he is?"
Hiashi's expression changed the moment he heard this.
"This matter… starts all the way back in the era of the Sage of Six Paths."
"I don't know if you've heard of Ōtsutsuki Hamura. Back then, he and the Sage of Six Paths sealed the Ten Tails together."
Shinju: "The Sage's younger brother, right?"
Hiashi nodded and continued, "He is the ancestor of the Hyuga clan."
"After sealing the Ten Tails, he went to the moon and became the forefather of the moon's shinobi."
"And that white-haired man—Ōtsutsuki Toneri—is a branch-family descendant of the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon."
"He came down to our world to take the Hyuga clan's eyes, so that combined with his own chakra, he could unlock some far greater power."
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