At six in the evening,
Hyuga Yu returned to his small home in Apartment 205 on Konoha Famous Tea Street, carrying the unease of knowing that the countdown to the [Byakugan Leak Incident] had begun, along with an indescribable anticipation.
Beside him, Hyuga Natsu had already dutifully prepared his slippers. She casually closed the apartment door and stood before it with a gentle smile, watching Hyuga Yu set down the wooden case containing his enormous bow and search for somewhere to put it in the cramped space.
Hyuga Yu: "I'm home."
Hyuga Natsu: "Welcome home!"
They seemed to have had this exchange countless times. Rather than a pair of twelve- or thirteen-year-old lovers or an engaged couple, they seemed more like an old married pair who had spent years together.
But in truth,
Hyuga Yu did not feel the kind of affection one would have for a lover or spouse toward Hyuga Natsu.
Likewise, he could tell that Hyuga Natsu probably felt much the same way about him.
They were not in love, nor was there any cliché of affection growing over time. They merely played their respective roles in this relationship, each taking what benefits it offered while gracefully dancing along the boundaries drawn by social conventions and moral rules.
At least, that was how they saw it.
Still, that did not affect the fixed impression outsiders had of them as a model engaged couple.
That was largely thanks to Hyuga Natsu.
Whether in public or in private, she carried herself with the gentle grace of a perfect Japanese lady,
Just like now—
"Lion-kun, did you argue with Hyuga Tetsu?"
"No."
"I saw it."
Hyuga Yu changed into his slippers and looked up in confusion. "So?"
Hyuga Natsu suddenly laughed.
"I'm happy."
"Why?"
"Because this is the second time I've learned where I stand in Lion-kun's heart."
"And the first time?"
"This morning."
Hyuga Yu choked on those words, then lowered his head and snickered. "What's there to be happy about?"
Hyuga Natsu grinned. "Because I also realized that, besides me, there are many people who care about you too, Lion-kun."
Hyuga Yu was startled again and hurriedly waved his hands. "You mean Hyuga Tetsu? Hey, hey... he's madly in love with you."
"Not at all."
Hyuga Natsu gave a smug little hum, then stood behind Hyuga Yu and pushed him toward the dining table after he had changed into his slippers. Then she dropped another shocking statement.
"As they say, the onlooker sees more clearly!"
"And from what I've observed, liking Hyuga Natsu is only an excuse for that boy Hyuga Tetsu to get close to the person he admires—you."
Hyuga Natsu struck her palm with her fist and declared, "Hmm... it's probably like how Sarutobi Asuma tried to get close to Kurenai's best friend first in order to get close to Kurenai back at the Ninja Academy."
"That is one utterly unrestrained take!" Hyuga Yu's mouth twitched as he decided to properly argue things out with his little fiancée.
There was absolutely no way he and that background extra Hyuga Tetsu had the kind of weird relationship Naruto and Sasuke did!
"Hyuga Tetsu may have been in the same year as me at the Ninja Academy, but you know that whether it was during our academy days or after graduation, when we went to the battlefield, we hardly had any close interactions at all. We haven't even exchanged more than ten sentences."
"And besides, how could someone as ordinary as me possibly inspire admiration?"
"Hehe."
Hyuga Natsu merely smiled without commenting.
"But Lion-kun, all those actions of yours at the Ninja Academy that invited misunderstandings—every time, it was Hyuga Tetsu, someone supposedly unrelated to you, who stood up for you behind the scenes and suppressed those rumors."
Hearing that, Hyuga Yu remembered that it had indeed happened. He immediately turned his head away and muttered in defense, "That was just him acting on his own to protect the Hyuga Clan's reputation."
"Yes, yes."
Hyuga Natsu nodded with a smile and pushed Hyuga Yu over to the small round table in the cramped apartment, where he sat down.
And at that moment,
There was no dinner on the table where dinner should have been.
Instead, there were only three scrolls bearing the words "Ninja," "Sword," and "Rations."
Hyuga Yu froze at the sight. Then he raised his head and looked at Hyuga Natsu, who had already knelt across from him at the round table with a smiling expression.
"These are...?"
"I picked them out for you at the Ninja Tool Shop today—ninja tools, protective gear, a ninja sword, and some specially made Military Rations Pills."
"You..." Hyuga Yu looked at the three scrolls on the table, at a loss for what to do. Just as he was about to question her, Hyuga Natsu raised her pale hand and interrupted him.
"I received the loan documents. Besides, whenever there is any change in Lion-kun's account, I am the first to receive the bank statement."
"Though I don't understand why Lion-kun spent one million ryo in a single afternoon;"
"I also don't really understand why you refused Elder Chōkō's letter of appointment;"
"And I understand even less why you asked me to contact Young Master Genko in an attempt to join the Main House's Guard Squad."
"But..."
Hyuga Natsu suddenly lost the smile on her face. After a long silence, she pointed at the three scrolls on the table and spoke hoarsely.
"To be safe, I prepared these for you."
She spoke like a wife about to send her husband off to war,
But in reality, she was the one about to step onto the battlefield.
Looking at his little fiancée's expression,
The final vague part of the entire matter in Hyuga Yu's mind finally became clear.
He suddenly pressed his lips together. A flare of incomprehensible anger rose in his eyes as he sat up straight and looked grimly at the girl across the round table.
"So..."
Hyuga Yu gritted his teeth and demanded, "You asked Hyuga Genko in advance to refuse my request to join the Guard Squad?"
It was strange that Hyuga Genko had refused to let him join the Guard Squad.
Hyuga Yu had learned from Elder Chōkō of the Main House that the father of this young master of the Main House, Hyuga Sousuke, was looking within the clan for members who knew Medical Ninjutsu in order to safeguard the team that would soon depart.
And Hyuga Yu was one of the few ninjas in the clan who had mastered Medical Ninjutsu.
Even if Hyuga Yu was weak, Hyuga Genko should not have refused him.
After all, Medical Ninjas only needed to keep up with the team and provide medical support. The second of the three great rules for Medical Ninjas established by Princess Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin had long made it clear:
[Medical Ninjas must never stand on the very front line of battle.]
Therefore,
The greatest obstacle preventing Hyuga Yu from protecting his fiancée was, in fact, his fiancée Hyuga Natsu herself.
"Oh dear... how terrible. You found out."
Hyuga Natsu stuck out her tongue and gave him a foolishly cute smile.
Hyuga Yu ignored his fiancée's attempt to lighten the mood with cuteness. His face darkened as he continued, "When?"
Hyuga Natsu let out a breath and admitted gloomily, "Before Lion-kun went to see Elder Chōkō, I already guessed that you would never sign that letter of appointment."
"But,"
She lowered her head, her voice gradually dropping until it became faint as a mosquito's hum.
"If it were Lion-kun, I thought that even if I arranged everything in advance, you would still overcome every obstacle in the end."
"So,"
Hyuga Natsu suddenly raised her head. A smile like a blooming magnolia appeared on her face, carrying a hint of embarrassment and pleading.
She extended her pale, slender hands and held her delicate wrists before Hyuga Yu. Her crescent-shaped eyes narrowed as she gave a silly little grin.
"Mr. Hyuga Yu, I'm here to surrender!"
"Please make sure to accept my apology!"
Before you continue