2, Flower of Nohara

"Miss Rin."

Watching the maid who had brought the tea, Nohara Rin felt somewhat at a loss. She awkwardly rose to return the courtesy, but the other woman did not even look directly at her before bowing and leaving.

The vast reception hall was so empty that it made her extremely uncomfortable. Soft murmuring came from the inner room, where her teacher was speaking with the head of the Hyuga Clan.

Rin lifted her teacup and took small sips, her gaze wandering aimlessly around the room.

She had saved a fellow villager on the battlefield, yet somehow seemed to have become entangled in some trouble, to the point that her teacher had come forward on her behalf.

Fortunately, every time the Hyuga Clan invited her over, they treated her very politely. Aside from asking about the details of what had happened, they had never made things difficult for her.

As her thoughts churned, she suddenly caught sight of a figure standing at the doorway.

The courtyard was noisy in the daytime, and sunlight slanted into the reception hall. He happened to stand at the boundary between light and shadow, his finely defined features visible through the dim halo of backlight.

The Hyuga Clan members all seemed rather good-looking...

The thought surfaced in her mind for no apparent reason. After coming to the Hyuga Clan Compound several times, the pairs of Byakugan she had seen had already made it difficult for her to tell faces apart.

But she remembered very clearly who this person was.

"It's you."

Rin set down her teacup and quickly stood up.

While she and Kakashi had been carrying out a mission to search for a lost reconnaissance unit, they had found only Hyuga Shin, blind in both eyes and gravely wounded. All the other members had died in action.

They had been near the edge of a Stone Ninja encampment at the time, at risk of being discovered at any moment. Hyuga Shin had told her and Kakashi that if they did not want to bring a blind burden back with them, they should replace his eyes.

Her impression of him ended when he was brought back to the village. Though Rin had visited the Hyuga Clan Compound several times since then, she had never seen him again, even though every visit had been because of him.

"How are you recovering?" As Rin looked him over, her gaze lingered an extra second on his eyes.

Those black eyes were deep and still, seemingly unremarkable, yet utterly incongruous on a member of the Hyuga Clan.

"I'm almost fully recovered."

"And your eyes... are you getting used to them?"

"Yes. I can see everything."

"That's good."

Rin had only performed eye-transplant surgery twice, both times under urgent circumstances. With the limitations of her technique and equipment, she worried that Hyuga Shin might suffer some lasting complications.

"Thank you for everything you did," Hyuga Shin suddenly said.

"Did you come over just to thank me again?" Rin laughed, finding him rather straightforward.

"Didn't you already thank me before? Besides, we're fellow villagers. Saving you was simply my duty."

"This is very important to me," Hyuga Shin said.

Rin felt a little awkward. "You... don't need to take it so seriously."

Hyuga Shin did not say anything further about it and instead said, "I heard Lord Minato has arrived."

Rin nodded. "My teacher is speaking with Mr. Hiashi."

"Then it seems I'll be fortunate enough to meet Lord Minato."

Rin smiled. Her teacher had countless admirers in ordinary times, and she had long grown used to it.

The two chatted for a few moments when sounds suddenly came from the inner room. Hyuga Hiashi and Namikaze Minato emerged together.

Hiashi wore a warm, friendly smile, vastly different from the expression Hyuga Shin usually saw on him. Then Shin saw the future Fourth Hokage as well: a tall, handsome blond young man.

"Teacher." Rin immediately spoke up, then greeted Hyuga Hiashi as well. "Mr. Hiashi."

Hyuga Shin stood to one side and gave a slight bow without speaking.

"The fighting on the front lines is deadlocked. We'll still need to rely on you, Minato, to lead us."

"With the Hokage here, we will certainly win."

Hiashi's gaze swept over the two people in the reception hall, and he noticed that Hyuga Shin was wearing a forehead protector today.

He then looked at Rin and suddenly smiled. "We invited Miss Rin over so that we could learn more about what happened and proceed with the subsequent treatment. I didn't expect you to make a special trip for this, Minato. It seems we have not treated Miss Rin well enough."

Minato smiled as well. "You're too polite, Mr. Hiashi. I was also worried Rin might offend you."

Hiashi said, "Miss Rin is an outstanding medical ninja. Many members of our clan admire her greatly."

The words left Rin, standing nearby, feeling flattered and overwhelmed.

"Please stay here. We'll take our leave first," Minato said with a slight bow.

"Shin, see them out," Hiashi said with a smile.

After leaving the reception hall, the three walked along the covered corridor toward the main gate.

The Hyuga courtyard was enormous. There were artificial hills and flowing streams, ponds and lush plants; sunlight shone clear, shadows spread across the stones.

"You're Hyuga Shin, right?" As they walked, Minato considered things inwardly before taking the initiative to speak with the youth beside him.

"Yes, Lord Minato."

"No need to be so formal. Thanks to the intelligence you obtained, we secured a very important victory." Minato smiled lightly.

"I wasn't the only one who obtained that intelligence. It was the work of the entire reconnaissance unit."

Minato paused slightly, moved by his words, then nodded. "You're right."

Then he sighed. "The situation must have been extremely dangerous at the time."

Hyuga Shin said, "It was all for the village. One of Minato-senpai's students sacrificed himself for the same reason, didn't he?"

His words brought silence from the two beside him. Hyuga Shin glimpsed Rin lowering her head sadly.

Before long, Minato spoke again. "No one will die in vain."

His voice was steady and powerful, his expression resolute, as though he were making a promise.

Without changing expression, Hyuga Shin replied, "Minato-senpai is right. Every fallen comrade is a hero of the village. Their will shall guide us as we press forward through hardship."

Minato was slightly surprised by such grandiose words and could not help glancing at Hyuga Shin again.

"It's remarkable that you possess such resolve."

Hyuga Shin went on, "The comrades who sacrificed themselves gave me some warnings as well. I also want to become someone like Minato-senpai, someone who fights at the very front for the village. Unfortunately, the clan has ordered me to remain in the village and recover for now. It would have been wonderful if I could fight alongside Minato-senpai."

Minato smiled. "Since you have yet to recover, you should rest and recuperate peacefully. A young man like you remaining alive is also a contribution to the village. Besides, the power of the Hyuga Clan is very special and holds great significance for the village."

Hyuga Shin's eyes shifted slightly. "Minato-senpai is right."

At the entrance of the Hyuga Clan Compound, Hyuga Shin watched the two leave after they parted, his expression returning to calm.

Rejected... That was only to be expected. Why would he accept such a one-sided request from me? He isn't some hot-blooded idiot like Naruto.

After Minato and Rin had gone far from the Hyuga Clan Compound, Rin could not help speaking to her teacher. "Shin is quite a good person too, isn't he?"

Perhaps because both of their teammates had died, Rin felt a measure of empathy for him.

Minato neither confirmed nor denied it, merely smiling as he said, "Keep your distance from him."