As funny as it is to see Hinata becoming bolder in her obvious crush, I'm still unsure about how to handle it. It's not that I dislike her; on the contrary, she's a good friend and my cute little student.
The main issue stems from the lingering memories of my past life. Having experienced two completely different lives has left me with conflicted feelings and thoughts. Do the memories from my last life count toward my total age, or are they just a collection of vague recollections?
I barely remember the names and faces from that time. I have knowledge of a story that was supposed to unfold here, but never will. Overall, I just feel too old to consider engaging in a romantic relationship with her, or with anyone my physical age, for that matter. It simply doesn't feel right.
Thinking in this manner didn't lead my mind to nice places, reminding me of what I've forgotten and lost when I arrived in this world.
Fortunately, Hinata is still too shy to actually confess her feelings; I really have no idea how I would respond if she did. I find myself inadvertently taking Naruto's place in this situation, except that unlike him, I'm pretending I haven't noticed her feelings instead of being clueless.
I guess the only way to come out of this without waging war in my own head is to wait.
Just as I was spiraling into these thoughts, I was distracted by the arrival of the messenger cat I had sent to the Mist rebels. It arrived just in time, I must say.
I took the small missive from the cat and decided to inform Hiruzen right away. It seems our olive branch was accepted. Now, we will have to wait and see if the rebels can be trusted.
Hiruzen read the return letter in silence, his eyes narrowing in suspicion, or perhaps disbelief. He took a deep puff from his pipe, displaying a mix of relief and skepticism.
"They accepted. And yet..." he muttered quietly. "Alas! I'll trust the word of a missing-nin this once." He looked me directly in the eyes. "But should they renege on their promise, it will be you who must deal them a retaliatory strike." His tone left no room for negotiation.
I sighed and nodded; there was no point in arguing with him.
Since Danzo's death, Hiruzen had become slightly more paranoid, not drastically, but enough that where he might have previously seen no problem with my deal, he now lacked Danzo as a safety net of a murderhobo in the shadows who dealt with enemies.
For all the horrendous things Danzo did, he was quite effective in managing Konoha's adversaries, particularly those who did not honor agreements with Hiruzen. Yet, for every task he executed well, there was a significant fuckup that overshadowed any good he may have accomplished.
I did not miss Danzo at all, even if his presence would be incredibly useful in this specific situation. Or it might completely fuck up any chances of an alliance, one of the two.
"Don't worry, Hokage-sama. If they go back on their word, I'll steal the sword back and find a worthy wielder here," I said, trying to ease his concerns. Honestly, he sounded like an old man worried that the youth would steal away his pension.
In this case, though, the youth were mercenaries, so there was a real chance that could happen.
I can only hope Mei will keep her forces in check. I would hate to damage their chances of getting rid of Yagura.
I quickly left the office; the air inside was thick with suspicion and paranoia. I've never had a problem with paranoia; while it has given me mixed results, it has saved my life more often than not, but too much of it only led to trouble.
As I walked through the village, I passed the Academy and was momentarily overwhelmed by the unholy racket coming from the small training ground.
"You need to fan your flames of youth! One more time!" The loud voice of Gai rang out from the training area.
The only response he received was a few grunts and the dull sounds of punches landing. It seemed Gai was making a real effort to find Lee. They were the only two chakra signatures in that little training ground.
Some things never change, and for once, that was a good thing.
Hearing Gai encourage Lee reminded me that I hadn't kept up with Noriaki's progress over the past few months.
Considering that Kurama was asleep, I would need to wake him up so we could watch together.
We only have a limited time before there's pressure on the poor kid to tap into the chakra sealed within him, and we both agreed it's best to let him grow on his own before the village holds any significant influence over him.
I decided to check if Noriaki was training, and I found that he was, or at least he was at one of the remote training grounds. The short trek there gave me enough time to telepathically poke Kurama to wake him up.
The loudest yawn I'd ever heard echoed in my head, almost causing me to fall off the roof I was jumping from.
"Whaddya want, kid? I was enjoying this nice nap..." Kurama complained, letting out another yawn.
"You sleep most of the time already. Being awake for a bit won't hurt you," I shot back, a slight grin on my face. "It's nice talking to you again, Kurama. I was just about to check on how well our Uzumaki friend is progressing," I explained as I resumed my journey toward the training ground.
"Eh, I guess it's high time we check on him," Kurama grumbled noncommittally. At least he didn't go back to sleep.
I perched myself on a tree at the edge of the treeline leading to the training area, observing the unusual training Noriaki was undertaking. He stood almost perfectly still, with thrashing green strands coiling around him. It looked like he had figured out how to shape his chakra into semi-physical objects.
These weren't the sealing chains, but it was something.
Before long, the strands moved at a much higher speed than I expected, wrapping around the training dummy and cracking the hardwood as they tightened. Noriaki brought his hands together, a greenish glow appearing around them as he focused an impressive amount of chakra.
A barrage of green, gem-like constructs shot from his hands, completely obliterating the target before the assault ended.
"Well, would you look at that. He made his own kind of chakra constructs," I said to Kurama through our link, feeling a wave of satisfaction wash over me. Noriaki was doing quite well—really well.
"It's definitely not those infernal chains..." Kurama nodded in agreement, appraising the jutsu. "Though it looks like those strands have the potential to be similarly annoying," he added, a hint of genuine praise in his tone.
"Is that actual praise I hear? What happened to grumpy approval?" I joked, earning a small bark of laughter from the massive fox.
"Hmm, maybe you just need to do something actually impressive to earn my praise," he growled, but his tone was more amused than threatening.
"I literally cut an island in half like a week ago..." I muttered under my breath, the unfair treatment not dampening my joking mood.
"Didn't see it, so it didn't happen," Kurama dismissed my point almost instantly.
"Well, I guess I'll have to wake you up for the next big fight, then," I shot back, threatening his most cherished hobby.
"Ehh, no need to go that far... I'm sure you're way more impressive than the Uzumaki kid," he backpedaled, which made me chuckle.
"Fine, then. I'll only wake you up if I'm about to die. Sounds better?" I asked, expecting him to brush me off again.
He hummed, seemingly testing something.
"That's fine by me, kid. If you somehow get way more chakra, you should even be able to summon me through that link you created for us," he said after a while, stunning me momentarily.
The ability to summon the strongest being in the world would certainly be useful, but the problem would be the amount of chakra required. I suspected that even an army wouldn't have enough chakra to summon him.
Maybe I could do it if I stole a truly insane amount of chakra from a jinchuriki or a reanimated body.
"I—Thanks, Kurama," I said, pulling myself out of my stupor.
I knew he was mostly joking, but he was also right. The possibility existed, locked away behind about fifty times my full chakra capacity.
"Just don't try to call me to solve a playground scuffle," the fox grinned as we continued watching the red-haired kid train.
For once, I didn't have a witty comeback; I just smiled. It seemed like Kurama was warming up to humans overall.
"So, what do you think? Still skeptical about his heart?" I brought the conversation back on track.
"He's not corrupt like many men are… not yet. Still, people show their true colors when their lives are threatened," he said cautiously, perhaps unsure how to phrase his statement.
"I'm not staging an attack on him," I denied immediately, my voice carrying a tone of finality. There were limits to how far I'd go to help Kurama figure out how noble Noriaki truly was.
"I never said you should. But once he goes out on missions… he will change. That is my worry," he reiterated, easing my mind a little.
"Hmmm, yes, even I changed, haven't I?" I muttered quietly to myself, unsure if that was even true.
"A little, yes. But you still seem to be... incomplete, for lack of a better word," Kurama said, taking me aback a bit. "Your chakra is powerful; more so than most humans. But there is more that I sense. I'm not sure what it is, but it is powerful and waiting to be released," he continued, trying to explain what he felt.
I, of course, knew what he was talking about. It was all that spiritual power my body couldn't process back then, locked behind a dam in my mindscape.
"That is rather complicated, Kurama," I sighed. I knew I could probably release a lot more of it.
I was older, and my body was much more powerful. But I also had no idea what kind of power it might unleash.
More potent haki and chakra? That would be a good enhancement. However, it was equally likely I might just unleash some kind of power I couldn't control. For now, and maybe forever, it was better to keep it locked away. No power was worth accidentally obliterating the place where I lived along with all the inhabitants.
"Then figure it out. It's your power, and if you still want to be the strongest, the monster of the ninja world, you will need it sooner or later," he shrugged, as if the solution seemed easy to him.
"Didn't you say that power corrupts human hearts?" I teased the fox a little.
"Oh, it does, but I have my eyes on you. I'll make sure you behave yourself," he shot back immediately.
Did he just gain a sense of humor in the last few years? I might be a bad influence on this ancient fox, but I would absolutely prefer a snarky old fox over the destroyer of humanity any day. To me, getting burned verbally is far better than being scorched by Kurama's corrosive chakra.
We observed Noriaki in silence for a while, ending with a pleasantly surprised Kurama and a rather proud me. I might not have helped him directly, but Noriaki was putting what I had given him to good use, which was more than I could say for some others I had tried to help.
This train of thought led me to remember Sakura and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. I knew they were much better prepared than in the original timeline, but I still worried about them. They only had a little over a year to grow in peace.
I decided to push those thoughts aside.
They trained and improved steadily, although they didn't dedicate as much time to it as I believed they should. Noriaki, who had little to no training when we found him, was already stronger than some of the genin I had met. From what I heard from Izumi, Sasuke was similar.
And Hinata... Hinata would likely defeat a good number of jōnin. Her arsenal was simply difficult to deal with as a whole, and she was getting closer and closer to finishing her spirit weapon. Once that project was complete, she would likely become one of the strongest people in the village.
Most likely not at Kakashi's level, but definitely above any normal jōnin.
"Thinking about your Hyuga friend?" Kurama's teasing voice echoed through my mindscape. I knew the joke he was going to make and decided to interrupt him.
"Don't," I said firmly. "Just… don't, Kurama," I repeated, unsure how to express my confusion about Hinata as a whole.
"You humans confuse me," he grumbled, though there was amusement in his voice.
"We confuse ourselves, too... I think," I replied, sharing my genuine thoughts on the matter.
"She reminds me of someone I've only met a few times," Kurama mentioned, becoming a bit more serious. "Her ability to see the golden spiral is quite rare among her clan members, usually manifesting in those who have inherited an excess of their ancestors' power."
This made me pause.
"The ancestors of the Hyuga? Did you know them?" I asked, hoping for more information beyond vague statements.
"I did. According to my father, most of them were not a pleasant bunch," he explained, sharing what little he knew. "However, I can only speak from personal experience with the two I knew."
I nodded along with his explanation.
"As far as I know, the old clan is no more, and the Hyuga are all that remains of my uncle's clan." He sighed, clearly saddened by the disappearance of the Otsutsuki clan, particularly his family.
"So this uncle of yours is an ancestor of the Hyuga clan?" I asked him for clarification.
"He was. His name was Hamura... But I probably shouldn't bore you with the ancient history." He shrugged, but at least I had confirmation that the origin of chakra was roughly the same as in the original story: Sage and his brother distributing knowledge and chakra among the people.
"But I will tell you this, kid. Hamura's Byakugan evolved as he came into his power. I do not know the name of the eyes he possessed in his later years, just that they rivaled my father's own." He said, a clear warning in his voice.
"And that girl you spend so much time with. Her eyes are powerful, perhaps the most powerful since Hamura's." He continued his assessment. "Maybe I was asleep for too long and missed others like her, but with enough power, she might awaken the same eyes Hamura did... maybe." He finished his little lecture, clearly uncertain himself.
"Do you think it's possible for someone to awaken those eyes just by becoming strong enough?" I asked, unsure how the Tenseigan even worked, or if Kurama was even referring to Tenseigan in the first place or some completely different dojutsu.
"I don't know. But for almost a century, I have seen her clansmen and their eyes, and none were as powerful or as pure as hers." He concluded, clearly seeing her potential to grow, possible awakening of another dojutsu notwithstanding.
I had really transformed Hinata into a force of nature.
Neither Kurama nor anyone else spoke about Hinata this way in the original story. The spark of potential she held at the beginning only needed to be ignited by proper training and some positive reinforcement.
For all intents and purposes, this Hinata was now completely different from the original Hinata, even thogh her personality was still quite similar.
"Heh, imagine her face if she knew that even the most powerful being in the world thinks she's impressive." I laughed, triggering a chuckle from the fox.
"And speaking of Hinata, we will be finishing the creation of her spiritual weapon soon." I said aloud, trying to organize my thoughts.
It had been less than half a year since she began her attempts at creating one, but with my guidance, she had progressed incredibly quickly. I was confident that by the end of winter at the latest, she should be able to complete the process.
About a year of work—that was incredibly fast. It took me over three years, and I wasn't sure if Itachi ever managed to create his weapon. Overall, I was more than happy with her progress.
I guess it's finally time to start training Kirin; my schedule should be much less hectic now that she doesn't need my guidance with the spirit weapon nearly as often.
As late autumn turned frosty with snowfall and winter officially began, I realized that by spring, I would need to bother Tsuki about Senjutsu. My ability to sense natural chakra has improved significantly over the last few months, and my body is finally maturing enough to at least absorb the energy inside me, even if only briefly.
Unfortunately, achieving full Sage Mode will have to wait a few more years. However, proper manipulation of natural energy is now within my reach. Shiden's power should skyrocket, as should the power of my Crystal Release, hopefully.
I wonder if Hinata would be interested in Senjutsu. She seemed curious about Kirin and its creation process, so I hoped she would be willing to learn at least a bit of the sage arts.
As December passed and Hinata celebrated her eleventh birthday, I had the perfect gift for her. However, I needed Tsuki's approval first.
It wasn't a big celebration, and honestly, it was just the two of us.
"Are you really sure you don't want to go home and celebrate there?" I asked her for what felt like the thousandth time.
She shook her head.
"I already was there. Uncle Hizashi gave me a book he copied from the library. It has some more information on the spin..." She smiled fondly at the memory. At least she still had a good relationship with some of her family.
It didn't make me want to murder her father any less, though.
"People from the academy already wished me happy birthday, and I visited Kurenai-sensei too. There's nobody else, really," she said quietly, seeming to shrink into herself.
"None of that!" I ruffled her hair playfully. "It's not every day that a young woman turns eleven, you know." I laughed as she blushed profusely, trying to fix her hair.
"Look... it might sound hypocritical coming from me, but you really need some friends." I chuckled, but my tone turned more serious.
I was pretty sure I heard Kurama howl with laughter through our link, clearly finding my comment the peak of comedy.
Hinata didn't respond but looked at me with her head tilted and a small smile.
Unsure of what to make of her expression, I quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I have a gift for you..." I said, performing a few hand seals. In a puff of smoke, a large scroll appeared, its disheveled appearance catching Hinata by surprise.
"As you may know, I have trouble making friends among humans too," I said, laughing at my own inability to function normally around people. "So, I present to you the Cat Summoning Contract. Even old Tsuki thought it was time you joined the kitty family." I said with a wide smile as I unfurled the scroll, revealing an empty space for her to sign.