Konohagakure.
Naruto lay prone on the ground, his body skewered by black receivers that pinned him ruthlessly to the earth.
He had lost. He had lost to Kanon on both a tactical and ideological level, and then succumbed to Pain on a psychological one. At this moment, he was nothing more than a total failure. He could feel Pain's chakra surging into him, and he was utterly powerless to stop it.
"I avoided your vitals; the wounds are quite shallow," Pain said coldly. "This way, you won't be able to move as you please. However, I must still thank Kanon. It is thanks to her that a nuisance like you was brought down."
Suddenly, from a distance, Shima called out to Naruto through her tears.
"Snap out of it, boy! No matter what this guy says, you can't believe a word of it! You are the Child of Prophecy! The Savior of this world! The brat Jiraiya... and even Pa... they believed in that with everything they had. They staked their very lives on it! That's why I won't let you lose! If you die here, I'll never forgive you!"
As Shima's roar echoed, Pain raised his hand. A terrifying repulsive force erupted, blasting her hundreds of meters away in an instant.
"What a noisy frog."
"You bastard!" Naruto spat, his voice laced with bitterness.
"The 'Child of Prophecy'? The 'Savior of this world'?" Pain mused. "If Kanon hadn't been driven out of the village by you Konoha shinobi, I might have entertained the thought. But now? Don't make me laugh. It is time to take you."
The pupils of Pain's Rinnegan dilated slightly. Naruto gritted his teeth, staring up at him with grim intensity.
Suddenly, a silhouette blurred behind Pain, a single palm striking the ground. Naruto's pupils shrank; he was so shocked he couldn't find his voice.
Hinata stood there, her eyes trembling as she looked at Naruto.
How cruel... using those iron rods to seal Naruto-kun's movements? Hinata thought, her gaze turning sharp as she rounded on Pain.
"I won't let you lay another finger on Naruto-kun!"
"Reinforcements?" Pain remarked indifferently.
"Why did you come out here?! Run! You're no match for this guy!" Naruto shouted, but Hinata cut him off.
"This is my own selfishness. Originally, I wanted to stop the death match between you and Kanon..."
"What are you saying?! How could you come to such a dangerous place! And... Kanon is already gone... Just run, Hinata!"
"I came here of my own free will," Hinata declared. "Kanon and Naruto-kun... you both always gave me courage. You gave me my ninja way and taught me so much. That is why, this time, I am going to save Naruto-kun."
"I used to do nothing but cry. I gave up before I even started. I almost took the wrong path so many times..." Hinata's mind flashed back to the days after her team placement, how she had met Kanon and how she was constantly invited to the Uchiha estate for barbecue alongside Naruto.
She remembered the Chunin Exams, and how Kanon and Naruto had cheered for her with everything they had.
"The two of you were the ones who pulled me back onto the right track. Now that Kanon has strayed, it's my turn to help you both. I was always chasing after you... wanting to catch up to Naruto-kun... wanting to walk side-by-side with Kanon and Naruto-kun. It was you who changed me... it was Naruto-kun's smile that saved me..."
She looked at him and offered the sweetest, most sincere smile she had ever given.
"That is why, if it is to protect Naruto-kun... I am not afraid to die! Because... I love you, Naruto-kun..."
The smile faded into a look of calm resolve. Facing Pain, she dropped into a combat stance. Seizing a momentary lapse in Pain's attention, she lunged forward and shattered one of the black receivers with a swift kick.
But before she could strike again, a terrifying repulsive force slammed into her, sending her flying. Hinata tumbled across the dirt, blood trickling from her forehead. She stared at Pain in shock. What happened?
Wiping the blood from her face, she charged again, only to be repelled once more by Almighty Push. Seeing her battered body rolling across the ground, Naruto felt as if his heart were being shredded.
"Hinata! That's enough! Run, please!"
As Pain stood between them, Hinata realized she couldn't get close to Naruto through brute force alone. She had to try something else. She began to focus her chakra, and the blue, spectral forms of lions began to shroud her hands.
"Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!!"
Hinata lunged, aiming a strike at Pain. His speed was incredible; even as she swung, she felt a chill of realization.
I can't even land a single hit? But, if there is even a shred of a possibility...
Suddenly, another memory flooded her mind. It was a day shortly before the Chunin Exams when she had run into Kanon, who was out buying groceries.
"Oh, Hinata!" Kanon had tilted her head, smiling warmly as her long black hair danced in the wind.
Hinata remembered being struck by the sheer beauty of that long hair. She had stared, dazed, then felt a wave of bashfulness, looking at Kanon felt remarkably similar to how she felt looking at Naruto.
Sensing Hinata's shyness, Kanon finished her shopping and invited her to sit in a nearby park.
"Hinata, since we've met, we haven't really had a chance to just sit and talk like this, have we?"
"No... Kanon..." Hinata watched as Kanon gazed up at the sky, her eyes seemingly lost in thought. "Kanon... I wanted to ask you something..."
"Eh? Ask me?" Kanon looked curious.
"Yes," Hinata nodded. "It might be a bit forward... but I really want to know. How are you so strong? You don't have to answer if you don't want to..."
Seeing Hinata so flustered, Kanon let out a soft laugh. This girl, a year younger than her, was smiling like a mischievous sister.
"Because of you," Kanon said, her head tilted, a beautiful curve still gracing her lips.
A breeze swept through, tousling Kanon's hair. She tucked a stray lock behind her ear, a moment of such grace that Hinata found it indescribable. Sensing Hinata didn't quite catch her meaning, Kanon explained with a smile:
"Because in this cruel, dark shinobi world, you all are my only belief. Whether it's you, Naruto, my brother Sasuke, or Sakura... everyone who has been kind to me is my belief."
Kanon stood up and reached out, taking Hinata's small hands in hers.
"Now! I'm passing this belief on to you! Hehe! Flower Release: Tradition of Belief Jutsu!" Kanon gently rubbed Hinata's hands. "Now, you have the same belief I do. You'll become just as strong as me. I've always believed that. You can do it too."
Looking at Kanon's radiant smile, Hinata had, for the first time, found someone to truly admire, and she found the "belief" Kanon spoke of. It was why she had grown her hair long after the Chunin Exams; she wanted to be like Kanon, standing by Naruto's side as a strong girl with something to believe in.
Back in the reality of the battlefield, as she clashed with Pain, Hinata's resolve hardened. She would protect her belief.
During one of Pain's evasions, she managed to strike another black receiver away from Naruto.
"One more!" She gritted her teeth. But just as her fist was about to connect, a massive repulsive force launched her several meters into the air before she crashed heavily into the ground.
This time, Hinata stayed down. In her fading consciousness, she saw a flicker of the boy who had saved her so many years ago. Her ears rang, drowning out Naruto's screams. Her awareness was slipping away.
I can't fall... I have to be like Kanon... I have to get to Naruto-kun's side...
She began to crawl toward him. Every movement brought agonizing pain, but Kanon's voice echoed in her mind: "Now, you have the same belief I do. You'll become just as strong as me."
Hinata staggered to her feet. She was at her absolute limit. Pain made no move to stop her; she was no longer a threat, and he found himself curious to see where this emotion would lead.
She fell again, but forced herself back up, her eyes brimming with tears. To protect her belief, she finally reached Naruto's side.
"Stop... Hinata, don't come any closer..."
In the silhouette of the girl before him, Naruto saw the shadow of the Kanon who used to care for him so deeply before she left. It was as if the old Kanon was there, encouraging Hinata to move forward.
Hinata was gasping for air, but her steps didn't falter. Memories of her times with Naruto and Kanon played like a montage. She actually smiled, a smile identical to the one Kanon used to wear, the smile of someone who had found their purpose.
She collapsed right in front of him, but forced her fading consciousness to hold on. She reached out for the black receiver pinning his hand.
"With such meager strength, why do you continue to oppose me?" Pain asked flatly.
Because Hinata was touching the chakra receiver, Pain could sense what was in her heart. He saw a girl with hair like a black waterfall, smiling in a sun-drenched park.
"You know you will die."
Both Naruto and Pain saw it, the image of the old Kanon, preserved in Hinata's memory. In this moment, Hinata was exactly like that Kanon.
"I never go back on my word... because that is my ninja way..."
Naruto looked up. Seeing Hinata smiling at him, her image overlapping with the Kanon in his memories, something inside him finally shattered.
"Because in this cruel shinobi world... Naruto-kun... you are my last belief..."
A massive repulsive force hammered down. Hinata was thrown into the air and slammed into the crater floor. Pain drew a black receiver from his sleeve and, without hesitation, plunged it down into her fallen form.
"This is exactly how it is," Pain said tonelessly. "My parents were also killed before my eyes by Konoha shinobi. From love, sacrifice is born... and from sacrifice comes hatred. Only then can one truly know pain."
Naruto's pupils contracted, becoming bloodshot and wild. His inner world was collapsing into ruins. He stared at Pain, his teeth bared in a silent, agonizing snarl.