"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean it."
Naruto and Chiharu looked over with anger in their eyes, following the trembling voice.
It was a girl who looked about the same age as Naruto, wearing a black training suit.
The girl had short lavender hair, with bangs that just touched her eyebrows. They were damp with sweat, making her look a bit disheveled.
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry!"
She stood up quickly and kept bowing her head, apologizing to Naruto.
With such a sincere attitude, Naruto couldn't stay angry. He stood up with Chiharu's help and said, "You don't have to apologize anymore. I'm fine."
Hearing this, the girl looked relieved.
Chiharu, standing nearby, tugged at Naruto's sleeve and said, "Brother, we were the ones who suddenly rushed out of the ramen shop. We should be the ones apologizing."
"You're right."
Naruto nodded immediately, then scratched his head in embarrassment and said to the girl, "I'm really sorry about what happened just now. It's our fault for being too reckless."
"Hey, what's wrong with you?"
Before he could finish speaking, the girl suddenly went limp and nearly fell to the ground.
Fortunately, after his long-term training, even though Naruto couldn't use chakra yet, his reaction speed was faster than that of ordinary people.
Before the girl fell, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her up.
The girl leaned against Naruto's shoulder.
"Thank you," she whispered gratefully.
"Let her go!"
Suddenly, a person wearing Konoha ninja attire appeared in front of Naruto and the others.
Before Naruto could react, the man positioned himself between him and the girl, forcibly pulling them apart.
The strength of this ninja, who seemed to be at least Chunin level, was of course something Naruto couldn't resist at his current ability.
"What are you doing?!"
After being forcibly separated, Naruto's face flushed with anger.
However, the man completely ignored him and immediately changed his harsh demeanor, addressing the girl respectfully: "Lady Hinata, are you alright?"
"Yes," the girl nodded, then turned to look at Naruto and his sister. "You shouldn't treat them like that. If it weren't for him just now, I would have fallen to the ground."
"Hey, I'm talking to you!"
Naruto grew even more impatient, frustrated that the man wasn't paying any attention to him.
It seemed the girl's words had some effect, as the man finally turned and glanced at Naruto.
"What strange eyes. There are no pupils at all."
Only then did Naruto notice that both the man in front of him and the short-haired girl had eyes that were entirely white, without visible pupils.
"Regardless, you are of noble status. It is inappropriate for you to be embraced by a random child of unknown origin on the street."
This ninja with the strange eyes spoke arrogantly, using harsh words to refer to Naruto.
"Who are you calling a random child?!"
Naruto could no longer contain himself and was about to rush forward to confront the man. Fortunately, he was held back by Chiharu.
At this time, Chiharu's delicate little face had also grown quite somber.
"Please speak more respectfully!"
She was more patient than Naruto. The person before them was not an opponent that either Naruto or she could defeat at present.
Rushing in rashly would only bring more humiliation.
"Chiharu, don't stop me. I want to teach him a lesson!"
But Naruto wasn't willing to swallow this insult so easily. He made threatening gestures as if he was ready to fight.
The man continued to ignore the anger of Naruto and his sister.
"Boy, you think you can do anything? If it weren't for Lady Hinata, I could kill you with just one finger."
He sneered and slowly began to raise his palm, pointing his finger toward Naruto and his sister.
Swish!
However, before he could complete the motion, a white flash appeared.
"Ah!"
A scream suddenly echoed in front of Ichiraku Ramen, drawing the attention of many nearby.
"What were you about to do just now?"
The Konoha ninja who had just insulted Naruto and his sister was now restrained by a white-haired boy who had suddenly appeared.
The boy was also wearing Konoha ninja attire, with a short sword strapped to his back.
The white-haired youth had grabbed the man's arm and fingers that were about to be extended, bending them upward at an uncomfortable angle.
"You dare to sneak attack me!"
The captured man's face contorted with fury, and he swung his free hand backward to strike.
The palm strike was so fast that none of the bystanders could see it clearly.
However, in the eyes of the white-haired boy, this action was hardly worth noticing.
His white eyebrows furrowed slightly, and with even greater speed, he caught the man's wrist and twisted his arms around him.
This time, the man was completely immobilized by the white-haired boy and couldn't move at all.
The man felt as though the hands restraining him were like iron clamps, making movement impossible.
His face trembled as he finally realized that he was no match for the white-haired boy.
Their speed and strength were simply not on the same level.
Then something seemed to dawn on him, and his eyes widened in shock.
In Konoha, there weren't many ninja who could subdue him so easily while being so young.
He glanced sideways and vaguely noticed the short sword on the white-haired boy's back.
"Brother Kakashi!"
Just as the man was pondering this, Chiharu recognized the person in front of them and a smile spread across her little face.
"Kakashi? Hatake Kakashi?!"
The man finally placed the name. He had heard the head of his clan mention this name before.
Hatake Kakashi was not only the son of the "White Fang of Konoha," but also an elite among the village's jonin, despite his young age.
He was also a former student of the current Hokage.
What the man couldn't understand was why such an important figure would intervene because of two children.
Kakashi could definitely tell that he was a ninja from the Hyuga clan.
"Naruto, Chiharu, are you both okay?"
Kakashi turned to them with concern in his eyes.
Minato-sensei had always been very kind to him, and Kakashi regarded his teacher's children as his own family.
He had happened to pass by and saw this Hyuga clan ninja who seemed about to attack them.
By now, a crowd had gathered around, and the owner of Ichiraku Ramen had also run out of his shop after hearing the commotion.
"Hey, aren't those the Hokage's son and daughter?"
Murmurs spread through the crowd, and suddenly someone recognized Naruto and Chiharu.
As it happened, the person who spoke these words was not far from the Hyuga ninja being restrained by Kakashi.
After a brief moment of shock, the man's face turned extremely pale, and his eyes filled with fear.
No wonder Kakashi had attacked him without concern for the Hyuga clan's reaction.
The brother and sister he had just insulted were actually the children of the Hokage!
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