In the village of Konoha a few days later.
"Wicked," Naruto murmured, watching with cold calm as the other students entered the ninja academy, "It has been a week since I saw Devan," Naruto said after a moment, slightly moving his head, with his back straight and his eyes fixed on the teachers at the entrance of the academy.
The boy swallowed slightly, "Things at home have not been going well lately, money is tight, maybe," Naruto squinted his eyes with a strange thought passing through his mind.
"Should I steal money?" he asked himself, but then shook his head, someone would probably catch him, too, lately he had been having strange dreams.
However, before Naruto could leave his thoughts and walk toward the entrance of the Ninja Academy, an Anbu ninja with a strange mask appeared behind him.
The Anbu ninja moved his hand quickly to pat Naruto's head gently.
Clash
Although the contact was soft, the sudden hand on his head startled Naruto, causing him to let out a small "Aaahh!!" and jump in place, completely scared.
"..."
"Eh, calm down, kid, I am... I mean, Do you remember me?" the Anbu ninja smiled beneath his mask, although, of course, his smile could not be seen. After jumping quickly, Naruto turned halfway, gritted his teeth in anger, and pointed at the Anbu ninja with an accusatory finger.
"Damn son of a bitch!!" the boy exclaimed with genuine resentment, surprise, and fear. However, his harsh words took the Anbu ninja by surprise, who stood there rubbing his neck for a moment.
"... Why does an idiot come to bother me right now? Tsk, you dress in such a... unique way, but you are a bastard who scares others. Don't you have a girlfriend, and that's why you waste your time frightening people?" Naruto continued to unleash curses and insults continuously.
It was not until a moment later that the Anbu ninja bit his lower lip, observing the boy with genuine seriousness before bowing and apologizing, "I apologize, Naruto, I only wanted to get your attention because I want to give you something."
The blond boy let out a "Hmph..." before slowly calming down, clearing his throat a couple of times while stepping on the ground and spitting near the tree to his right, before seemingly telling himself, "Calm down!!" mentally.
All of this was observed by the Anbu ninja, who quickly made mental notes. "Finally, you, What have you come for?" Naruto asked after a moment, this time with more calm.
"In reality," the Anbu ninja paused, putting a hand in his pocket before pulling out a golden coin, "Lord Danzo discovered that upon dying, Altair had in his pockets a Fractured Mind Gold Coin, so since he tried to kill you, Lord Hokage decided that this Fractured Mind coin would be for you, Naruto."
The Anbu ninja showed a shiny gold coin engraved with "Fractured Mind," then lowered the coin and placed it in Naruto's right hand, bowing again before disappearing, turning into a puff of smoke.
Later, the Anbu ninja would write a report to Lord Hokage which said:
"Naruto is changing; the reason is unknown, but it could be because of Devan. According to Lord Danzo's speculations, Devan possesses the ability to influence people's minds, driving them insane. Naruto shows aggressive behavior, using vulgar language; I do not know where he learned such language, but I suspect Devan. The boy has even more pronounced dark circles than before meeting Devan and his appearance is gaunt; yet he overflows with vitality. Strange."
...
Naruto observed the puff of smoke with a slightly curious expression, then rubbed the Fractured Mind coin in his hand, "Did this coin belong to Altair?" he asked himself, but then shook his head.
"Impossible. If Altair had a gold coin, why wouldn't he just sell the gold and get food? The boy seemed on the verge of death when I saw him..." Strangely, Naruto came to a rather logical conclusion.
"I must find out why the old man wants to give me this coin, but first, some ramen after classes, hehehe," Naruto laughed in an amused way before putting the Fractured Mind coin in his pocket and quickly heading to the entrance of the Ninja Academy.
Naruto did not notice that two white eyes were always behind him, watching him intently from a distance.
The owner of those eyes, of course, was Hinata Hyuga dressed in a tight ninja outfit. She had let her hair grow to the middle of her back, each strand shining intensely, while her face was perfectly maintained, without a single imperfection, and she wore light red lipstick.
"This time is a step for every passing second. Is Naruto-kun sick? Normally, he takes a step every 0.9 seconds," Hinata spoke to herself with curiosity.
Then, she caressed the backpack she carried with a lascivious smile. "Will you be able to love me as much as I love you, Naruto-kun?" Hinata walked calmly, without the shy smile she usually had; on the contrary, there was a kind of hidden frantic madness in her white, bright eyes.
"When Naruto-Kun is in an unknown place, he always slightly raises his head," she said before watching how the blond turned his head left and right, observing the corridor of the Ninja Academy with admiration.
"When Naruto-Kun is confused, he scratches the middle of his head, not the side nor the lower part, but the middle," Again, as if Hinata were telling a story, Naruto scratched the center of his head, confused.
"When Naruto-Kun feels that his previous confusion is not important, he..." However, Hinata's voice as a narrator stopped, her white eyes, which looked like those of a blind person, flashed with sudden anger.
In the distance, a little more than ten meters from her, Naruto had stopped, his eyes focused on a particular girl. Following the blond's gaze, Hinata saw a girl with pink hair and a cheerful attitude; to the right of that pink-haired girl was a long-haired blonde girl.
"When N-naruto-kun pays attention to other girls, Hinata," Hyuga spoke to herself in the third person, her heart beating twice as fast, her skin slightly reddening while clenching her teeth so hard she could break them all.
The pink-haired girl, Sakura, continued on her way, passing near Naruto and heading to the classroom for the newcomers. The blond followed her like a puppy on a leash, keeping a distance of about four meters, but with his eyes completely focused on that girl.
Hinata lowered her head in her own spot, gently caressing the backpack in her hands, focusing her gaze on Naruto's back, which was getting smaller as he walked away following Sakura.
"When N-naruto-kun..." Hinata stopped, seeming unsure how to continue her words, "When N-naruto-kun looks at another girl, Hinata, Hinata, Hinata, what should Hinata do?" she asked herself, her left hand trembling completely as it moved softly to one of her cheeks.
No, she was not crying; her eyes remained only slightly human, yet her body might not be able to contain all the accumulated rage.
"Naruto-kun, eh? Is it possible that you like that pink-haired girl? Is she pretty?" Hinata murmured, slightly raising her head. Suddenly, a smile formed on her face, "G-give me a couple of days or weeks, Naruto-kun, she will stop being beautiful. That is a promise."
Chapters Ahead on: [email protected]/tgthegoodd
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