At the large bathhouse, Ryun set Hinata down, which earned him a puzzled look from her.
Ryun said with a smile, "I'm here to place the True Spirit Seal on you, not to soak in the hot spring with you. That would turn into a completely different situation."
Hinata nodded, but her hands stubbornly reached for the front of Ryun's clothes as she said, "But I wouldn't mind. If Ryun-kun wanted to soak in the hot spring with me, I would only be very happy."
Looking at the budding girl before him, Ryun truly wanted to agree.
However, he wasn't the only one here today; there was also Yūhi Kurenai and Karin, who had just arrived.
To avoid scaring her, Ryun said, "But what if Sister Kurenai sees our embarrassing state? Wouldn't you mind that either?"
Hinata gave a small gasp, and the hands she had mustered the courage to stretch out timidly withdrew.
But at that moment, Ryun put his arm around her waist and whispered in her ear, "I understand your feelings. When we get a chance, the two of us can soak in the hot spring secretly."
Hearing the word "secretly," steam immediately rose from the top of Hinata's head.
She mustered her last bit of resolve to nod, then went limp in Ryun's arms.
Ryun picked her up again and walked towards the bathhouse.
Although Ryun hadn't planned on soaking in the hot spring, he did take off most of his clothes, leaving only his shorts; otherwise, this whole pool of hot water would have to be drained and reheated.
After Ryun sat down holding Hinata, Kurenai and Karin finally arrived, a little late.
"Oh? I thought you wouldn't change clothes."
Ryun looked with interest at Kurenai, who was wearing a bathrobe. Kurenai shot him an exasperated look and said, "If I'd come in wearing my regular clothes, you'd definitely find a way to splash and wet them, wouldn't you?"
Ryun shook his head, absolutely not admitting to such a thing.
Kurenai didn't dwell on the issue either, but looked at Ryun and said, "Are you sure you don't need me to make any preparations?"
"If it would put Sister Kurenai's mind at ease to do something, then set up a soundproofing barrier. I'm afraid Hinata might cry out quite loudly."
Hinata responded by bumping her head against Ryun's chest, then muttered in a muffled voice, "I will not!"
"Th-then... what about me?"
Karin looked at Ryun with hopeful eyes; what was happening before her exceeded her understanding.
Although the future Karin could master sealing techniques like Adamantine Sealing Chains, right now she was undoubtedly a beginner in sealing arts.
"You can sit next to me and be ready to supplement my chakra at any time."
Ryun gave Karin a role to increase her sense of participation.
Though Karin's heart began to flutter with shyness, her heart and eyes were completely focused on Ryun. Upon hearing that he might run low on chakra, she ignored everything else, stepped into the water, came to Ryun's side, and obediently sat down.
At the same time, she pulled aside her bathrobe, baring her shoulder, ready to offer the softest spot to Ryun at a moment's notice.
Kurenai, who was busy setting up the barrier nearby, saw Ryun sandwiched between Karin and Hinata, and a feeling of slight bitterness unexpectedly welled up in her heart.
She savored this feeling, internally experiencing her own changes slowly.
After she finished her tasks, she subconsciously sat on the edge of the bathhouse, dipping her feet into the hot water, seemingly casually splashing the surface.
But her gaze was fixed on Ryun.
"Hey, shouldn't you start?"
Kurenai spoke in a somewhat curt tone, but immediately noticed that the jealousy in her voice was practically overflowing. Even Hinata and Karin shot her strange looks.
Kurenai could only pretend to focus her attention on the hot water at her feet. Why was this clear, warm water so transparent?
Ryun, for his part, was indeed ready.
He lifted Hinata and sat her on his lap, then said, "Do I need to explain the specific procedure?"
Hinata shook her head, bit her lip lightly, and then undid her bathrobe.
Under Ryun's expectant gaze, a swimsuit rivaling an adult's in size was revealed.
Karin, watching from the side, was dumbfounded. Was this the kind of figure someone their age was supposed to have?
No wonder Hinata ate so much! No wonder Ryun let Hinata eat so much!
Considering what Ryun had told her before, Karin resolved to become a glutton!
All of it, for the day when she could capture Ryun's gaze.
Seeing that she had captured Ryun's attention, Hinata felt a secret joy, but still said, "Ryun-kun, please don't stare... I'll get embarrassed..."
Ryun looked at Hinata with a slightly plaintive expression. This was the downside of Hinata getting close to other girls and discussing all the details.
Ryun had initially thought Hinata wouldn't be this prepared, but it seemed he had underestimated her attentiveness. Wait... Ryun suddenly felt something was off.
"By the way, Hinata, did you decide to buy this yourself?"
Ryun asked casually, feigning nonchalance. Hinata, suspecting nothing, immediately replied, "Ino and Sakura gave me advice and suggested I buy it. They said it was a 'decisive battle outfit.' It seems Ryun-kun really likes it—I'll have to thank them later."
Ryun felt he should indeed thank them properly, maybe make them train until they were too exhausted to move.
Although he only got to see half of the desired scenery, Ryun wasn't too disappointed.
Given the current circumstances, he couldn't do anything strange anyway, and besides, his main purpose was to place the True Spirit Seal on Hinata.
Then, Ryun placed his hand on Hinata's lower abdomen and said, "Ready?"
"Mm!"
"What kind of pattern do you want? A certain flower?"
Hinata shook her head, bit her lip, and then said, "I want the Hyūga clan's crest. But I don't need the background color, just the flame part colored red."
Ryun nodded. Hinata's answer was within his expectations.
No matter what, Hinata couldn't forget the Hyūga clan in her heart; she just wanted to escape the destiny it imposed.
Then, under Karin's close watch and Kurenai's careful observation, dense, intricate markings appeared beneath Ryun's hand. Immediately after, the markings spiraled back inward, and the Hyūga clan's crest materialized on Hinata's stomach.
Karin looked on in bewilderment. Had Ryun applied some kind of sealing technique to Hinata?
Kurenai, however, watched with a furrowed brow. With her own expertise in sealing arts, she couldn't discern the profound mysteries contained within this sealing formula.
She could only tell that the formula was incredibly complex and abstruse, yet Ryun had mastered it to such a degree that he could wield it with ease.
"Sister Kurenai, did you see clearly? Want to come closer?"
"Besides, some things can only be seen clearly up close."
Faced with Ryun's temptation, Kurenai bit her lip lightly and nodded.
Then she entered the water, which rose past her waist, and walked step by step towards Ryun, her bathrobe creating ripples on the surface.
When she reached Ryun's side, he directly took her hand and also placed it on Hinata's stomach.
Being treated like this by both of them, Hinata let out a soft whimper, her face turning completely crimson.
But she didn't dare refuse, tightly hug Ryun, almost wrapping herself entirely around him.
Kurenai, however, looked at Ryun in confusion. The sealing formula had already retracted; touching it now wouldn't reveal anything.
Just as Kurenai was about to ask, Ryun began to infuse Hinata with Yang Release chakra.
A dense, profound, and turbulent flow of chakra poured into Hinata's body and then gathered on the True Spirit Seal. Immediately after, the flame crest on Hinata's body began to faintly glow, as if it were truly being ignited.
Hinata felt her body growing hot and instinctively bit down on Ryun's shoulder. Seeing this, Karin immediately offered her own shoulder.
Ryun was momentarily caught between laughter and tears, but he didn't refuse Karin's kindness and bit down.
Karin let out a low moan, and then Ryun's chakra began to recover rapidly. Soon, a flow of chakra started circulating between Ryun, Hinata, and Karin.
It was at this moment that Kurenai sensed the mental energy within the True Spirit Seal.
Driven by curiosity and intrigue, she also released her mental energy into it, trying to investigate what was happening.
The next second, it was as if all four people were electrocuted. Their chakra began to race wildly within their bodies, causing fragmented images to flash through their minds.
Ryun was the first to react. Had they unintentionally built a channel for something like chakra communication?
He knew this was probably harmless, but it didn't align with the current ninja understanding of chakra.
Therefore, he voluntarily let go of Karin's shoulder and also broke off Kurenai's probing.
Karin and Hinata let out a muffled groan and fainted.
Only Kurenai clutched her forehead, staring at Ryun with a strange expression.
And her next words instinctively made Ryun's hair stand on end.
"Husband, where is Shinku?"