Hinata: So I'm Not the Only One Who Has a Diary

"What does he mean by 'as long as I want to marry him in the future, even if his wives object, he will still marry me'?"

Hinata's gaze lingered on that line in Takasaki's Diary for several seconds, and she felt deeply uncomfortable. "Why would I ever want to marry Takasaki-kun? I definitely won't marry him in the future; I really don't like him."

"Besides, Takasaki-kun is so unfaithful. He wants to marry many wives in the future. Konoha clearly practices monogamy; Takasaki-kun is being truly excessive. No woman would ever be willing to do that."

She let her thoughts drift toward the worst-case scenario.

If she really did marry Takasaki-kun in the future, would that mean she would have to spend every day fighting for favor and feeling jealous of his many other wives just to get his attention?

Ew.

How terrifying.

That is absolutely out of the question.

At the same time, the thought of her status as the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan brought her a small sense of relief.

Her family valued social standing, and if she were to marry in the future, her father, Hiashi Hyuga, would certainly never allow her to marry a man who already had a wife—let alone many, many wives.

Fortunately, the content in the diary regarding her wasn't entirely offensive.

The times she ate breakfast with Takasaki, helped him pay, agreed to help him cheat, and even the moment they made a pinky promise—all of it had been recorded by Takasaki.

Since the number of entries was high enough, she should be able to receive a reward, right?

A line of text appeared at the bottom of the page in the Diary.

[You have been mentioned in Takasaki's Diary more than 5 times. Reward obtained: Chakra capacity increased by 10%.]

In an instant.

Hinata felt a warm current surge into her body.

The chakra and stamina she had exhausted while sparring with Hanabi were replenished in that very moment.

Even though she had been so sleepy she wanted to doze off just a moment ago, she now felt exceptionally energetic.

Hinata could clearly feel that the amount of chakra within her had increased once again.

She swung her palms through the air.

The sound of the wind whistling against her palms ruffled her short, dark blue hair.

She could clearly feel that her strength had grown.

"By relying on Takasaki's Diary, I really have become stronger!"

"It seems that the things I did to intentionally get close to Takasaki were correct; they have paid off."

"Next month, perhaps I'll be able to last more than three minutes in my sparring match against Neji?"

Feeling her own strength, Hinata sat at her desk and looked back at the offensive words Takasaki had written earlier.

Suddenly, she felt that those words didn't seem quite so offensive after all.

To be precise, being offended by Takasaki-kun a time or two was actually quite fine, because the gains were truly immense.

After receiving the reward, Hinata didn't put the Diary away. Instead, she continued to sit at her desk, browsing through the entries by the light of her small desk lamp.

She was waiting.

"I received an extra reward from Takasaki-kun's previous diary entry; will there be an extra reward this time as well?"

Since she had obtained a reward from the Diary once, she naturally wanted a second.

The extra reward would have the same effect.

Hinata waited with anticipation, nervously twisting her fingers.

Ten minutes later.

Another line of text appeared in the Diary.

[Kurenai Yuhi was mentioned the most in this diary entry. Kurenai Yuhi has obtained an extra reward: Chakra capacity increased by 20%.]

"The person who received the extra reward this time is actually Kurenai Yuhi-sensei?"

Hinata was stunned at first, then realization dawned on her.

That meant Kurenai Yuhi-sensei also had a Diary!

Many things suddenly crossed her mind.

No wonder Takasaki was able to clear his name every time Sakura Haruno reported him for cheating; it turned out Kurenai Yuhi-sensei had been helping him from the shadows.

When combined with the content in this entry related to Kurenai Yuhi, everything suddenly made perfect sense.

"So, I'm not the only one who possesses a Diary."

Hinata sat in her chair, retracted the Diary into her consciousness space, and pondered for a few minutes before taking it out again to browse through what Takasaki had written today one more time.

After a long while, she turned off the desk lamp, returned the Diary to her consciousness space, and climbed into her bed.

She tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

A sense of crisis lingered in her heart.

A few minutes later, she turned on her bedside lamp and read Takasaki's entry once more, suddenly sighing with envy: "If only I had been the one to receive the extra reward today; my chakra capacity would have increased by an additional 20%."

It would be a lie for Hinata to say she wasn't envious of Kurenai Yuhi.

"From now on, I must seize every opportunity to interact with Takasaki more..."

Inside a flower shop on the streets of the Leaf Village.

After finishing the pest control for the roses on the store shelves, Ino went upstairs to her bedroom to continue practicing the secret technique hand seals her father had taught her today.

She was practicing the Mind Transfer Jutsu.

"Still can't get it right, sigh."

Having failed the technique, Ino let out a long sigh and sat dejectedly on the edge of her bed.

She didn't need to practice on a real person; practicing against thin air was enough, as she had yet to successfully perform the Mind Transfer Jutsu even once.

It wasn't that Ino didn't know the hand seals for the Mind Transfer Jutsu, nor was it that she lacked the knowledge of the chakra flow required for the technique.

The main issue was that this technique consumed a significant amount of chakra.

Three days ago, when she had obtained the Diary and received a 10% chakra volume reward from it, she had excitedly attempted the technique, only to fail once again.

Her current chakra levels were still insufficient to support a complete casting of the spell.

She was just a little bit short.

"As a member of the Yamanaka Clan, I'm almost graduating from the Ninja Academy, yet I still can't even perform the clan's secret technique. It's truly embarrassing to admit," Ino said, feeling incredibly frustrated.

Footsteps sounded outside the door, and Inoichi Yamanaka passed by, glancing into Ino's room as he did.

As a father watching his daughter grow up, he understood her perfectly and smiled. "Ino, practicing the Mind Transfer Jutsu again?"

"I failed again," Ino shook her head.

"Don't rush, take it slow, and don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Inoichi was usually calm and ruthless during military operations in the Leaf, but he was exceptionally gentle when he returned home to his daughter. "Talent is something predestined. If you can't learn it now, you'll surely be able to in a few years. Even if you remain an ordinary ninja forever, Dad will still think you're outstanding."

His words warmed Ino's heart.

The problem was Ino's competitive nature; the more she heard her father say such things, the more she wanted to make him proud of her.

However, if she relied solely on training, it would take years to increase her chakra levels.

Therefore, she could only pin her hopes on Takasaki's Diary.

Just as the sound of Inoichi Yamanaka's footsteps walking downstairs faded away, Ino suddenly felt something and snapped her head up.

"Takasaki has written in his diary!"