Gua looked toward the voice.
It was a pink-haired girl about Naruto's age, charging over with surprising ferocity.
Although he had never seen her before, Gua recognized her at a glance.
Sakura Haruno.
As Sakura Haruno ran over, all the bullies turned to look.
They seemed to want to see who had just shouted so loudly.
When they saw that it was only a little girl, they burst out laughing.
"Are you with those two?"
"You bastards!"
Sakura Haruno shouted angrily, charging forward to shield Naruto and Hinata behind her.
"What kind of tough guys gang up on just two people?"
"So what?"
The boy leading them sneered. "We're bullying them. Why would we fight one-on-one? What would be the point of having all these buddies, then?"
Sakura Haruno's expression soured. She hadn't expected them to be so brazen about doing something wrong.
Seeing Sakura Haruno at a loss,
the bullies immediately burst out laughing.
"Ha ha ha!"
"Ha ha ha!"
"Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha!"
"You want to stand up for them? What can you do all by yourself? You're just another punching bag!"
"Get her, guys!"
At their leader's call, the others all rushed forward, instantly surrounding Sakura Haruno.
This time, they focused on beating Sakura Haruno.
He had to admit,
bullying in Konoha really had its own distinctive style.
Naruto rushed in and took a beating alongside Sakura Haruno. Hinata tried to pull away one of the bullies at the edge, only to be kicked away.
She stumbled twice before a warm hand steadied her, keeping her from falling.
"Tha..."
Hinata was just about to thank him when she heard Gua speak.
"Stay here. Don't run around."
Hinata recognized Gua's voice immediately. She whipped her head around to look at him, a full head taller than