Chapter 58: Hyuga Hiashi's Wrath
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[VIP Highlight: Hyuga Hiashi (Living) - "GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!"]
Tobirama Senju (VIP5): Young man, ambition is commendable, but let's maintain some plausibility. Destroying the moon? Are you attempting to kill me with laughter from beyond the grave?
Uchiha Izuna (Regular Viewer): Exactly. There's a line between confidence and delusion. You've crossed it.
Minato Namikaze (VIP1): Having grand dreams is important! What if he achieves it? I support Ren's vision!
Uchiha Fugaku (VIP1): Dreams should be grounded. He'd be better off aiming for Hokage like that Inuzuka boy.
Ren Arakawa (subvocalizing): You people lack imagination! A person without cosmic-scale ambition is no better than a salted fish!
Uchiha Madara (VIP1): ...
Among all the watching legends, only Madara felt a genuine tremor of threat. If Ren actually destroyed the moon... his decades of planning for the Infinite Tsukuyomi would become meaningless.
"Starting tomorrow, you'll begin taking missions as proper genin. I wish you all success," Kurenai announced, concluding the introductory session. "We'll meet here again at 7 AM sharp. Don't be late."
With missions beginning the following day, the gathering concluded quickly after introductions. As Team 8 dispersed, Ren moved smoothly to Hinata's side.
"Hinata, let me walk you home."
He didn't ask. He simply took her small hand in his as they began walking.
Hinata's entire body trembled at the contact. The blush that had barely faded returned in full force, painting her cheeks and neck that delicate rose hue. But she didn't pull away. Her fingers, after a moment's hesitation, curled tentatively around his.
Ren, with his dual lifetimes of experience, understood her shyness perfectly. Instead of taking the main thoroughfares through the bustling Hyuga district, he guided them onto a quieter, tree-lined path where twilight shadows gathered between traditional compound walls.
The walk was peaceful, filled with comfortable silence and the occasional brushing of shoulders. Ren knew without doubt that Hinata's feelings mirrored his own—her stolen glances during introductions, the way she'd spoken of her "dream," the trust in her grasp.
All too soon, they reached the outer gates of the Hyuga main family compound. The traditional architecture loomed, all clean lines and implied discipline. Here, Ren stopped.
"Hinata," he said, turning to face her fully, his expression uncharacteristically serious. "Do you return my feelings?"
The question hung in the quiet air. Hinata froze, her eyes widening. She didn't speak immediately, just stood there with her head bowed, the blush deepening to crimson as she wrestled with generations of clan decorum and the wild, unfamiliar beating of her own heart.
Ren waited. He knew her. Knew the courage this required.
Finally, after a silence that stretched between heartbeats, Hinata gave the smallest, most decisive nod of her life. It was barely a movement, but it spoke volumes.
A slow, genuine smile spread across Ren's face. "Then from today, you're under my protection. As long as I draw breath, no one will harm you."
He cupped her chin gently, tilting her face up to meet his gaze. Then, before either of them could second-guess, he leaned in.
"R-Ren-kun... mmm~"
The kiss was soft, chaste by most standards, but for Hinata it was a cataclysm. Her world narrowed to the warmth of his lips, the scent of rain and ozone that clung to him, the solid reality of his hand on her cheek. After a frozen moment, her eyes fluttered closed, her body relaxing into the touch.
[Stream Alert: Privacy Protocol Activated - Age-Restricted Content]
[Visual Feed Temporarily Suspended]
[Audio Feed: Active]
Tobirama Senju: Wait! Why has the screen gone dark?!
Hyuga Hizashi (VIP1): THAT BEAST! SHE'S ONLY TEN! HOW DARE HE—!
Uchiha Izuna: What's the fuss? It's not their first kiss. The classroom incident was quite... educational.
Tobirama Senju: The context differs! Previously, the young lady was unconscious! This is conscious participation!
Hashirama Senju (Regular Viewer): Tobirama! Your wording is problematic!
Uchiha Madara (VIP1): Pathetic. Wasting potential on sentimental distractions.
Minato Namikaze: I think it's beautiful! Love fuels growth! It's a powerful motivator!
Uchiha Madara: And that's your excuse for early marriage? Weak.
Minato Namikaze: ...
Uchiha Fugaku: The boy has nerve, doing this at her family's doorstep.
Tobirama Senju: No visual feed. How dull.
Hashirama Senju: Indeed, we cannot properly appreciate the... architectural aesthetics of modern Konoha.
Tobirama Senju: Brother, you're being transparently disingenuous.
After what felt like both an eternity and a heartbeat, the visual feed restored.
Hinata was no longer in frame.
Instead, the stream showed a furious, long-haired man in traditional Hyuga robes chasing Ren down the street, his face a mask of paternal outrage.
"YOU LITTLE BRAT! WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE RUNNING?!"
The man—Hyuga Hiashi, clan head, Hinata's father—moved with the lethal grace of a master taijutsu specialist, his byakugan veins bulging around eyes that burned with pure fury.
"DON'T THINK I WON'T STRIKE YOU JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE A CHILD!"
"IF I SEE YOU NEAR MY DAUGHTER AGAIN, I'LL PERSONALLY ENSURE YOU NEVER WALK PROPERLY!"
Ren, for his part, wasn't so much running as tactically retreating at high speed, employing Body Flicker dashes between mocking grins tossed over his shoulder.
Hyuga Hizashi (in the stream): Big Brother?! He's alive! And... very angry!
Tobirama Senju: As expected. Caught by the patriarch. Classic.
Uchiha Madara: This boy is worthless. If it were me, I would have eliminated the obstacle. Why flee? Weren't you just boasting about protection?
Tobirama Senju: You barbarian! He's the father-in-law! One doesn't simply kill family!
Uchiha Madara: Snorts. I eliminated my own wife to achieve enlightenment. What's a father-in-law?
Tobirama Senju: ...Sometimes I forget how literally monstrous you are.
Uchiha Madara: Enough talk, Senju! The arena! Now! I'll remind you what true power looks like!
Tobirama Senju: With pleasure! Perhaps beating you again will improve my mood!
Two notifications flashed for Ren as he dodged a precisely aimed gentle fist strike that shattered the stone wall where his head had been.
[Soul Arena: Match Created]
[Participants: Tobirama Senju vs. Uchiha Madara]
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[New Achievement: "Fatherly Wrath Evaded"]
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[Unlocked: "Family Approval" Quest Line (Impossible Difficulty)]
Ren grinned, ducking under a sweeping palm strike. "Hiashi-sama! This is a misunderstanding! We were just discussing... astronomy!"
"ASTRO- I SAW YOU WITH MY OWN BYAKUGAN, YOU WORM!"
Hiashi's next strike carried enough chakra to vaporize the morning dew on the surrounding plants. Ren teleported five meters away using a pre-marked kunai he'd dropped earlier.
"Sir, I have nothing but honorable intentions toward your daughter!"
"YOUR INTENTIONS ARE IRRELEVANT! SHE IS TEN! AND A HYUGA HEIR!"
Another teleport. Another shattered wall.
From a nearby rooftop, a familiar silver-haired figure watched, his one visible eye crinkled in amusement. Kakashi munched on a rice ball, flipping a page in his book with his free hand.
Kids these days, he thought, not without a certain nostalgia. At least he's committed.
And inside the Hyuga compound, pressed against the gate with her hands over her burning face, Hinata listened to the commotion with equal parts horror and a strange, thrilling warmth.
Her father was angry. Ren was being chased. It was a disaster.
But he'd kissed her. And he'd meant it.
And for Hyuga Hinata, in that moment, it was enough.
The moon, now fully visible in the darkening sky, watched the scene below with the same impartial glow it had cast on countless generations of star-crossed lovers and furious fathers.
Somewhere in the Pure Land, two ghosts began beating each other senseless in a digital arena, while a red-haired spirit facepalmed and a yellow-haired one cheered them on.
Konoha's night, as always, was anything but quiet.