The Right to Be Saved

The Land of Hot Water lay northeast of the Land of Fire. This small nation, with no hidden village of its own, was blanketed year-round in mist rising from its hot springs. Volcanic geothermal activity had created hot springs scattered like stars, their steam forever curling between the unevenly spaced inns. It was both an ideal place for spies from great nations to meet in secret and a favorite trading hub for black-market merchants.

The Dog Hot Spring Inn stood at the end of the town's busiest street. Legend had it that, long ago, when this place had still been a poor little village, a dog suddenly appeared one day. It kept barking at a patch of ground. Unable to bear the disturbance any longer, the villagers eventually dug up that spot under the leadership of the village's young people.

Splash!

Scalding spring water suddenly burst forth, and the rising steam instantly enveloped the entire village. From then on, the village prospered through the hot springs and gradually developed into the hot spring town it was today. The villagers firmly believed that dog had been a messenger sent by the Dog God, so they named the spring "Dog Hot Spring." The inn built later inherited the name as well.

Second Floor of the Inn · Japanese-Style Room

The paper door slid open softly. Hizashi Hyuga sat in seiza by the window. His black blindfold had long since been removed, but his pure white Byakugan remained slightly narrowed; after so long in darkness, he still had trouble adjusting to the light.

It had been two full days since his rescue. During that time, the man in black had given him no instructions beyond having him use the Transformation Jutsu to disguise himself as an ordinary traveler. There were no restraints, no interrogation, not even unnecessary conversation. With a simple "Follow me," the man had led him across the border to this place.

What exactly was this...?

Hizashi's fingertips unconsciously brushed the rim of his teacup as questions kept flooding his mind. If the other man truly wanted to seize his Byakugan, he could have tied him up like Hidden Cloud had. And if he were a ninja from another hidden village, he should not have attacked a Hidden Cloud convoy so openly.

What confused him most was this.

When the man in black had saved him, he had said, "I'll be taking those Byakugan." Yet until now, the man had not even touched his eyes.

Familiar footsteps sounded outside the paper door, and Hizashi immediately straightened his back. With a creak, the figure wearing a Fox Mask appeared in the doorway. He was still dressed in that black robe. Fortunately, the faint pressure surrounding him had vanished, perhaps because he was no longer fighting.

Hizashi Hyuga maintained a standard seiza posture. Across from him, the mysterious man sat directly on the floor as well, the hem of his black robe spread over the tatami woven from rush grass. The Fox Mask completely concealed his face in shadow.

For a moment, silence filled the room. Only the faint sound of hot spring water flowing outside the window could be heard. Just as Hizashi was considering how to begin—

"You must have a lot of questions right now."

The Masked Man suddenly spoke, his voice coming through the mask.

"As for my identity, I can't tell you the details." He raised a hand and lightly tapped the mask with his fingertips. "I can't take this mask off either. If you need something to call me... call me Menma."

"Menma... sir." Hizashi cautiously chose an honorific. After the other man had single-handedly wiped out the Hidden Cloud delegation, he instinctively maintained the utmost courtesy.

He took a deep breath, his white eyes staring directly at that eerie mask. "This question may be presumptuous... but what is your purpose?"

Unexpectedly, Menma did not seem offended by the blunt question. He remained seated casually on the tatami.

"It's fine. There's no need to beat around the bush with that question. Strictly speaking, I'm not a ninja belonging to any hidden village. As for saving you..."

"It wasn't for the Byakugan either."

Hizashi's body visibly stiffened for an instant. The words, "I'll be taking those Byakugan," still rang clearly in his ears from the battlefield, yet now they were being casually denied?

As if sensing his confusion, Menma explained on his own. "To be precise, I said that to make those Hidden Cloud bastards believe it was my objective. What I did was essentially a declaration of war. They'll definitely paint me as some vicious criminal, won't they?"

A soft laugh came from beneath the mask. "I don't want to be morally blackmailed. In front of them, I might as well play the part of something to be feared."

Hizashi froze. He realized that the man before him, who had effortlessly destroyed an elite force, possessed a level of careful calculation even more frightening than his strength.

"Then... what is your true purpose?"

Menma did not answer immediately. He reached for the teapot on the table and slowly poured tea into a cup.

"Other than the Byakugan, I can't think of what else I have..."

He paused, his Adam's apple shifting slightly.

"The right to be saved."

Menma's fingers lightly rubbed the rim of the teacup. "Do you believe it?" His voice suddenly carried an indescribable emotion, like anger, yet also like compassion.

"Sometimes... saving someone doesn't require any special reason."

The teacup hit the table heavily, splashing a few drops of tea.

"I simply couldn't stand it." Menma's voice abruptly turned cold. "I couldn't stand those sanctimonious bastards using the banner of national righteousness to push an innocent man toward death."

"That's all."

Hizashi's body suddenly went rigid.

...What?

His thoughts froze. Just because... he couldn't stand it? This powerful man, capable of easily annihilating Hidden Cloud's elite forces, had risked making an enemy of a great nation simply because...

He had acted out of a sense of justice?

The absurd thought nearly made him laugh aloud. As a pawn abandoned by his village, as a sacrifice who had willingly prepared to die, he had now been saved for such a fairy-tale reason?

Menma saw through his wavering, and the mask tilted slightly. "Of course, saving you isn't without benefit to me. But as for the specific reason... forgive me, but I cannot say."

Silence spread through the room.

Suddenly, Hizashi slowly rose to his feet. Under Menma's puzzled gaze, he took several steps back, then—

Thud.

His forehead struck the tatami in a perfect dogeza bow. Hizashi's voice was low and trembling. "This kindness..."

"I had already prepared myself to die. I had already been abandoned by my own people. Never did I imagine I could be granted a new life in this way."

When he raised his head, a complicated light flickered in his white eyes. "No matter what your purpose may be... this life of mine was indeed given by you."

"If you have any orders, Hizashi Hyuga... will not refuse even ten thousand deaths."

Menma—or rather, Naruto beneath the Fox Mask—scratched his head in some distress. He was not used to such solemn formalities. Though a life-saving debt truly deserved a bow, being so seriously sworn into service made him feel oddly embarrassed.

Fortunately, Hizashi soon straightened up and resumed his seated posture. His expression remained calm, but complicated emotions faintly stirred in the depths of those pure white eyes.

"I truly want to say that... truly, I am deeply grateful to you. But... I'm sorry. Even after all you've done, I fear this life of mine... will not last much longer."

Menma did not let him continue.

"I know."

A calm voice came from beneath the mask.

"It's the Caged Bird, isn't it? If Konoha's higher-ups want to quell the Raikage's anger, the Main Family will definitely place the Curse Mark on you—even if you've already been 'abducted,' they'll use the Curse Mark to ensure your 'death,' right?"

Hizashi paused slightly, then gave a bitter smile.

"...You truly know a great deal."

Menma watched him quietly before speaking after a moment. "But even so... no matter how much you convince yourself that you've 'accepted death'... in the end, you still don't want to die."

Those words struck deep into Hizashi's heart, stirring emotions that had been suppressed for far too long.

I don't want to die... He had clearly made his resolve. He had clearly decided to die for the Hyuga Clan, for Konoha's peace... Yet when he stepped into that prison carriage, the face that surfaced in his mind had been Neji's.

My child... he's still so young...

Menma slowly rose, the hem of his black robe falling soundlessly. "As long as someone still has attachments in this world, no one truly wants to die."

His voice carried an unquestionable certainty. "Since I decided to save you, I won't give up halfway—I'll see this good deed through to the end."

Hizashi looked up, Menma's figure reflected in his white eyes. Menma walked up to him, extended a hand, and gently placed it on his shoulder.

"Don't move."

The next second, a gentle yet profound Chakra flowed from his palm, seeping into Hizashi's body like a trickling stream.

The Chakra gradually formed a complex mark. Its patterns intertwined like chains, yet carried a distinctive style.

"This is...?"

Hizashi stared at the mark. He felt as though he had seen a similar technique somewhere before.

Menma withdrew his hand, and the mark's glow gradually faded. "If you sense the Caged Bird being activated, use your Chakra to trigger this mark."

"I'll sense it immediately. I can't guarantee a one-hundred-percent success rate, but I have at least a seventy-percent chance of preserving your life."

Hizashi's pupils contracted slightly. Prevent the Caged Bird?! Did such a technique... truly exist?

"Later, once matters with Hidden Cloud have settled down, I'll arrange for you to meet your son under the pretense that you're 'dead.'"

"My... son?"

Hizashi's voice suddenly caught.

Neji...

That small figure instantly appeared in his mind—those stubborn eyes, that unwilling expression, and the way he would grit his teeth and say, "Father, I can keep going," even when he was exhausted from training.

Can I... see him again?

That promise was like a key, instantly prying open emotions he had suppressed for so long. Something seemed lodged in his throat, making even his breathing tremble.

"Lord Menma..."

He opened his mouth, only to find that he could not say another word.

Menma waved a hand, cutting off the thanks he might have offered. "Until then, stay here. I've already paid for the lodging."

He paused, and a faintly amused note entered his voice. "Of course, afterward... I do have something I need your help with."

Before Hizashi could respond—

Poof!

With a soft sound, Menma suddenly transformed into a cloud of white smoke and vanished.

A Shadow Clone?!

Hizashi stood there in a daze. He was alone in the empty Japanese-style room, with only the faint sound of hot spring water flowing outside the window. Only the Chakra mark on his shoulder proved that the mysterious man had ever been there.