Chapter 49: The Fatal Threat Before the Match!
11 PM, in Naruto's room.
"Ha..."
Naruto lay spread-eagled on the bed, yawning lazily.
"I can't live like this anymore, they actually have me facing Hinata in the first round."
Naruto rolled over and stared at the ceiling covered in sticky notes. They were supposed to have various tactics written on them, but now they were filled with thoughts on how to forfeit tomorrow's match.
According to the original plot, this match should have been the famous scene where he taught that chuunibyou brat Hyuga Neji a lesson. But because of that goddess conquest system, his opponent had become his self-proclaimed wife, Hinata.
[What a joke, hitting my wife is impossible, it's impossible in this lifetime.]
Naruto's inner thoughts were clearly transmitted through the invisible ninja world sky screen.
[I'm a man who wants to hold Hinata in the palm of my hand. If I accidentally scrape her skin or bruise her fair little face on the field tomorrow, wouldn't I die of heartbreak?]
[Besides, what's the use of winning that Chunintitle? It's not like I can eat it.]
Naruto began to think about random things.
[In that case, as soon as the match starts tomorrow, I'll coolly raise my hand and surrender! I'll say, 'In the face of true love, victory or defeat is meaningless,' and then take Hinata straight to eat BBQ.]
[Hinata will definitely be moved to tears then. Maybe to comfort a 'loser' like me, she'll quietly give me some special consolation at night... Hehehe.]
*Knock knock.*
Just as Naruto was daydreaming happily, two soft taps came from the window.
This was the third floor.
Naruto sat up with a start and looked out the window in confusion. A petite figure was silhouetted against the frosted glass, its outline very familiar.
He hurriedly ran over and pulled the window open.
Under the moonlight, Hinata was wearing a dark training suit, standing on the narrow windowsill. Her cheeks were flushed and her breathing was a bit hurried; it seemed she had summoned a lot of courage to come here.
"Hi-Hinata?"
Naruto blinked and immediately looked worried, instinctively reaching out to help her. "Why are you climbing through the window in the middle of the night? Come in quickly, it's cold outside."
However, the girl who usually got shy the moment she saw him didn't move.
In her pure white eyes, there was none of her usual evasion or shyness; instead, they held a sense of stubbornness.
"Naruto-kun... I heard... no, I mean, I know what you're thinking."
Hinata's voice was still trembling, but every word was clear.
Naruto was stunned. "What am I thinking? Is it about taking you to Ichiraku Ramen?"
Hinata bit her lip and gripped the window frame tightly with both hands, as if shouting with all her might:
"Please don't... go easy on me! In tomorrow's match, please fight me with everything you've got!"
Naruto scratched his golden hair, not understanding. "Why? That's a fight! It hurts! What if you get hurt? Anyway, I don't care about winning or losing. Wouldn't it be better if I just forfeit and go back to cook for you?"
"I don't want you to forfeit!"
Hinata interrupted him sharply, her chest heaving. Although those inner thoughts in the heavenly curtain were full of pampering, they made her feel unwilling.
She had trained hard for so long and didn't want to always be the person protected behind him.
"If Naruto-kun is going easy on me because you think I'm weak, because you think I'm not worthy of being your opponent... then I, I will never forgive you!"
Seeing Hinata suddenly become firm, Naruto was stunned.
[Hiss—is this the legendary gap moe?]
Naruto's inner thoughts rang out again.
[She usually looks soft and sweet, but at critical moments, she's tougher than anyone. Even though her face is completely red, there's a light in her eyes... That look of wanting to prove she can stand by my side is just too... too much of a foul!]
[This is nothing like her usual shy self; she's like a scratching kitten. This kind of assertive speech actually makes me want to... ahem, I mean, have a fierce spar with her on the field.]
Hearing these evaluations, Hinata's ears turned so red they looked ready to bleed. But she knew that if she didn't take drastic measures, this big idiot who treated her like a fragile object would never fight seriously.
She took a deep breath, remembering a secret move Anko-sensei had taught her, specifically for dealing with a pervert like Naruto.
Hinata summoned her courage, stepped forward, and looked Naruto straight in the eyes:
"If you hold back tomorrow... then that... fishnet bodysuit you've been longing to see... I will never wear it for you in my entire life!"
*Boom!*
This sentence made Naruto's head buzz.
He froze completely, his mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg.
Fi-Fishnet bodysuit?!
How did she know I wanted to see that?!
No, the point is... is this really the Hinata who stutters when she speaks? She actually learned how to threaten? And she's using such a lethal 'benefit' to do it?
[Heavens... this move is too ruthless!]
[If I lose the chance to see that for the sake of protecting her... then what's the point of living? Besides, the Hinata who can say such things is just too cool! That aura of being shy while her eyes say 'watch me closely'—my desire to conquer surged instantly!]
[Since my wife has issued a challenge, as a man, it would be too pathetic to back down now!]
The laziness in Naruto's eyes vanished. He dropped his casual attitude and nodded seriously.
"Fine. Since this is your ninja way... then tomorrow, I absolutely will not hold back. I will treat you as a true opponent and defeat you with everything I have."
The tension in Hinata's eyes finally dissipated, revealing a smile bright enough to melt the moonlight.
"Thank you... Naruto-kun."
Just as Naruto thought she was about to leave, Hinata suddenly moved.
Instead of turning around, she quickly stepped forward.
Before Naruto could react, he caught a faint scent, followed by a soft, warm sensation that landed on his left cheek like a dragonfly skimming the water. It carried a young girl's shyness and a slight tremor.
"This is... a reward for the Naruto-kun who gives his all."
Before Naruto could reach out to grab her, Hinatawas already red-faced with embarrassment and jumped straight out the window.
To hide her embarrassment, she activated a Hyuga Clan secret technique while still in mid-air.
"Rotation—Accelerated Version!"
*Whoosh whoosh whoosh!*
A blue Chakra whirlwind appeared out of thin air, enveloping her body like a high-speed spinning top. With a "swish," she vanished onto a distant roof, so fast that not even an afterimage could be seen.
Leaving only Naruto alone, touching his cheek, standing dazed by the window.
"...Using Rotation just to run away? That's too extravagant..."
Naruto muttered to himself, his fingertips seemingly still holding the temperature of that moment. He felt his heart beating wildly in his chest, more exhilarating than eating ten bowls of deluxe ramen.
[Who could withstand this... It's over, I'm full of power now. Even if I face Kaguya tomorrow, I could take her out with one punch!]
Right then, the familiar system notification sound exploded in his mind.
[Ding!]
[Detected that the host has received a proactive kiss from the core heroine, "Hyuga Hinata."]
[Your "Wife-Protecting" oath has been broken, but the "Wife-Pampering" bond has been sublimated.]
[Detected intense emotional fluctuations and a hormone surge. Matching a legendary physique reward for you...]
[Congratulations to the host: Uzumaki Sage Body· Full Awakening (Stage One)!]
*Boom!*
A warm golden current surged from his heart, instantly flowing through his entire body. He felt his internal power was more abundant than ever before. His originally massive but crude Chakrawas rapidly becoming refined.
Every cell was greedily absorbing natural energy.
Naruto snapped his eyes open. Deep within his blue pupils, a strange ring of patterns faintly appeared.
The entire world looked different in his eyes.
He didn't need to form hand signs, nor did he need to sense intentionally. With his eyes closed, everything within a ten-kilometer radius was clearly presented in his mind.
He could hear the sound of Kakashi flipping pages on the next street; he could feel the electrical hum of Sasuke releasing Chidori in the distant woods; he could even... feel Hinata's heart still beating violently several kilometers away.
"Is this... the true power of the Uzumaki Clan?"
Naruto clenched his fist, feeling his Chakra volume more than double. If he was a mage with a long mana bar before, now, his physical strength alone was enough to tear apart tigers and leopards.
What he didn't know was that while he was being strengthened, the system's grand voice also rang in Hinata's mind as she stopped on a distant roof.
[Reward settlement complete: Bloodline Limit · Tenseigan (Pseudo · 1% Activation).]
[Because of this love, your eyes will begin to see the trajectories of the stars.]