Zeyu suddenly realized something, let go of Hinata, and said,
"By the way, Hinata, your clothes are soaked. You need to get dry right away."
Then he crouched down, pulled out a scroll, and summoned a pile of things, mostly household supplies and the like.
Zeyu picked up a towel from the pile and placed it on Hinata's head. "Hinata, dry yourself off. Oh, right, you should change your clothes too. I have a clean set of tracksuit clothes here. I hope you don't mind."
He rummaged through the pile as he spoke.
"Thank you, Zeyu. I don't mind at all, so please don't think that," Hinata said.
She rested both hands on the towel, blushing as she thought,
"Zeyu is so thoughtful and gentle."
The others came over too, all looking surprised.
"Whoa, another pile of stuff. Do you not keep a single proper thing in your bag?" Megumi exclaimed.
Zeyu shot Megumi a look but didn't reply. He found the tracksuit and handed it to Hinata with a grin.
Hinata took the clothes and hugged them to her chest, quickly thanking him.
Then Zeyu told the others to take towels and dry themselves off.
"Big bro, what about them?" Shota asked, picking up a towel.
Zeyu glanced at Gaara, who was lying on his side outside and coughing, then looked at Temari and Kankuro, still stuck to the wall.
He gave them a dead-eyed look and said,
"Uh, I almost forgot about them."
Then he stood up and smiled at Hinata. "Hinata, go change first so you don't catch a cold. Go with Megumi, and be careful."
"Okay, Zeyu," Hinata replied.
Just as she was about to leave, she asked, "What about you, Zeyu? Do you have any clothes left? What about everyone else?"
Zeyu smiled. "It's fine. I have my own way of handling it, so don't worry, Hinata. There."
He looked around at the others and noticed that Hinata was the wettest of them all. Remembering where she had been standing, he added,
"Don't worry, Hinata. Your clothes are the wettest, so you need to change into dry ones right away."
Hinata looked around. The others all nodded at her.
Only then did Hinata finally relax. She bowed to them and thanked them.
Then she went over to Megumi and asked her to come to the restroom with her.
Megumi rolled her eyes at Zeyu. "Hmph, Hinata asked me to go with her. This has nothing to do with you." Then she led Hinata away at a brisk pace.
Zeyu stared after them, speechless, and thought,
"What's her problem? What did I do to her? Why is she mad at me?"
Then he turned and walked toward Temari and Kankuro, his expression cold.
They had seen Zeyu knock Shukaku flying, and the sight had terrified them. After all, Zeyu had said earlier that if they hurt anyone again, he would kill all three of them.
Shukaku had been subdued, so they weren't going to die at his hands—but Zeyu was even stronger than Shukaku. They might end up dying by his hand instead.
When Zeyu handed out towels, the two of them had breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he wouldn't give them any trouble and would let them down once Gaara returned.
Now Zeyu was walking toward them, and they were deeply worried.
As he walked, Zeyu slowly drew the short blade from behind his waist.
The gleaming blade glinted coldly as he drew closer and closer.
Temari and Kankuro sensed something was wrong. They shook their heads frantically, making muffled sounds.
Zeyu stopped in front of them, gripped the blade tightly, and slowly raised it.
Temari and Kankuro shut their eyes in terror, ready to face death.
Shota and the others stopped what they were doing and looked over, holding their breath.
Zeyu thought it over, then sighed helplessly. He swung the blade through the air a few times. White slashes appeared across the sand covering the two of them.
The sand was cut apart, and they fell to the ground.
They lay there in astonishment. Then they came to their senses and began vomiting, spitting the sand that had been packed into their mouths.
Zeyu looked down at them, sheathed his blade, and said,
"Go bring Gaara back. I have something to say to you."
Then he turned and walked away.
Temari and Kankuro exchanged a glance, each seeing the confusion in the other's eyes. After spitting all the sand out of their mouths, they got up and went to find Gaara.
Seeing that Zeyu hadn't killed them, Shota came over and asked,
"Big bro, you're just letting them off like that?"
As he walked back toward the others, Zeyu replied, "Why are you in such a hurry? We should at least find out what happened. And what would be the point of killing them outright?"
"What do you want to do, then?" Kiba asked.
Zeyu thought for a moment. "I'll ask Hinata and Megumi what happened when they get back. Besides, we're no longer taking the exam. It wouldn't be right to kill them here. If it causes conflict between the villages, we'll have a real problem."
"I see. Zeyu makes a good point," Shino said.
Kiba rubbed his chin, thought for a while, and nodded in agreement.
Seeing that Zeyu, Kiba, and Shino all felt that way, Shota had nothing more to say.
Then Zeyu and the others continued cleaning up.
A little while later, Temari and Kankuro helped Gaara over.
Gaara had regained consciousness. Zeyu's punch had left him with some internal injuries, and blood still stained the corner of his mouth.
He said weakly, "Zeyu, I, um..."
Zeyu glanced at him and casually pointed toward the wall, his voice cold. "We'll talk later. Wait until everyone's here. Go sit down for now."
Then he went back to what he was doing. The others didn't know what to say, so they carried on with their work.
Seeing that no one was paying them any attention, Gaara and the others went to the spot Zeyu had pointed out and sat down on the chairs by the wall.
Meanwhile, Megumi and Hinata were on their way to the restroom. Hinata trailed behind, face buried in her clothes as she walked slowly.
"Mmm~ The scent of sunshine and soap, and just a little of Zeyu's scent, too. It smells so nice," Hinata thought, taking another deep breath.
Megumi saw the whole thing but said nothing. She sighed to herself, looking utterly helpless.
"Wow, big bro, you're in great shape! I never noticed before," Shota said. After Zeyu and the others finished cleaning up, they gathered around the fire to chat.
As he spoke, Shota reached out and poked Zeyu's arm.
His biceps, chest, and six-pack looked toned and healthy.
Zeyu had trained for years, often eaten all kinds of rare delicacies, and had the Uzumaki Clan's physique. Even though he was still young, he was very fit and much stronger than others his age. But he usually took care not to bulk up too much, so his build didn't stand out. He still looked well-proportioned.
Zeyu was speechless at the remark and simply closed his eyes, not wanting to respond.
Kiba and Shino joined in, coming over to look at him and crowding around.
"That's impressive. How'd you do it?" Kiba asked.
"What a healthy, strong body," Shino said.
When Zeyu didn't respond, Shota got even bolder and started squeezing his muscles.
With everyone crowding around him, Zeyu felt uncomfortable. Shota kept touching him, and he was gradually reaching his limit.
The corner of his mouth twitched. "Hey, hey, that's enough, isn't it?"
But the others seemed not to hear him and continued admiring Zeyu's body.
Zeyu got a little annoyed when no one paid him any attention. But then he thought that they were all friends, so he'd put up with it. He just glared at Shota without saying anything, as if his eyes were telling him, "You're going too far."
Shota had thick skin. He just grinned at the glare and kept touching him as if he hadn't noticed.
Gaara and the others found the scene a little awkward too.
"What kind of monsters are these?" Kankuro thought.
"He's got a bit of a temper, but a nice build," Temari thought.
"How am I supposed to explain this later?" Gaara thought, staring at Zeyu.