Hinata, Stop Pretending

When Kakashi thought of Hinata, the scene he had once witnessed immediately flashed through his mind.

He only remembered that at the time, it had merely been a simple agreement between himself and Iruka, the academy teacher.

Yet unexpectedly, that agreement had suffered a tremendous setback at Hinata's hands right from the very beginning.

Even now, he remembered discovering Hinata carrying the severely wounded Iruka on her back as she rushed toward Konoha Hospital.

And with that thought, countless memories surged forth in an instant. In the end, for some reason, Kakashi suddenly let out a long sigh.

Sigh, if this seemingly frail yet incredibly troublesome girl ends up on Naruto and Sasuke's team, that'll really be a headache.

Kakashi thought this, but as they spoke, the group had already arrived at the entrance to Sunagakure.

After giving the guards a brief explanation, Sand Ninja soon came specifically to receive them, led naturally by Baki.

Behind Baki stood Gaara, Temari, Kankuro, and a whole crowd of extras.

In a sense, the two sides could be considered acquainted through fighting, and especially now, when they needed to cooperate.

Naturally, they displayed exceptional enthusiasm and importance.

But perhaps it really was because of Hinata's influence that Gaara had not, as in the original story, immediately turned over a new leaf after being lectured by Naruto's Talk no Jutsu.

And now, while Temari and Kankuro looked relatively friendly, Gaara still radiated that deep arrogance and contempt in the way he looked at Naruto and the others.

Naruto was immediately displeased. Without caring what kind of occasion this was, he stepped forward without the slightest hesitation and snapped, "Hey! You're still just as annoying as you were back then!"

As he spoke, his finger was practically pointing at Gaara's nose.

The scene fell silent