In the morning, as the sun rose, five delicate bodies lay sprawled across the inn's room, partially covered by the blanket, with discarded clothing scattered around.
The battle from last night had been fierce, but Makoto woke up feeling refreshed.
He walked to the window, pulled open the curtains, and let the warm sunlight flood in, drawing a chorus of drowsy complaints from the women behind him.
A heavy snowfall overnight had blanketed the rooftops outside, creating a beautiful scene.
They had booked the entire inn and were staying in the loft, ensuring their privacy from any prying eyes.
Still half-asleep, Ayari lifted her head and saw Makoto about to leave the room.
She asked, "Where are you going?"
"To prepare breakfast."
"Oh."
Ayari let her head fall back onto the pillow.
But nearby, Natsu was already awake, her bright eyes fixed on Ayari.
Unlike the others, she didn't seem sleepy at all.
Noticing Ayari looking at her, Natsu blinked and then giggled.
"What are you laughing at, you dummy?" Ayari said with a chuckle, closing her eyes, intending to go back to sleep.
Natsu carefully got up, put on her clothes, draped a thick cloak over herself, and quietly left the room.
The inn's corridor was silent and empty.
Using her Byakugan, she scanned the surroundings and spotted Makoto outside on the street, standing in front of a breakfast stall.
"What are you doing here?" Makoto asked as Natsu appeared beside him.
"I couldn't sleep," Natsu said, hugging his arm affectionately.
The breakfast stall owner, watching the two of them, chuckled and remarked, "You two make such a loving couple."
Hearing this, Natsu's smile grew even brighter.
Makoto gently stroked her hair and said with a teasing smile, "You haven't even washed up yet, have you?"
"Nope," Natsu admitted cheerfully.
Like a girl in the throes of young love, Natsu had moments where she was far more clingy than Ayari or the others.
Even back home, she always found ways to steal moments alone with Makoto, just to be close to him.
"Are we heading back today?" Natsu asked.
"What else? Neji and the others are still at home with no one to look after them."
Natsu let out a sigh. "Kids are such a hassle. We spend so much of our time on them."
Makoto raised an eyebrow. "So now you think kids are troublesome? Don't want any more?"
Natsu wrinkled her nose and said, "We still have to have them. Otherwise, I'll be the only one without a child."
After buying breakfast, the two strolled leisurely back to the inn, where they found the others already up—some were tidying their appearances, while others were washing up.
Once everyone had finished getting ready and eaten breakfast, Makoto opened a portal in the inn's room that connected directly to their home.
As the others stepped through one by one, preparing to leave, Natsu suddenly grabbed Makoto's arm, holding him back.
Makoto looked at her in surprise. "What is it?"
Instead of answering right away, Natsu pressed her body against his and whispered softly, "There's nothing urgent waiting for us back home… so why don't we stay a little longer?"
Makoto's lips curled into an amused smirk. "Didn't get enough last night?"
"There were too many people last night… It's different when it's just the two of us. For a little while, I want you all to myself."
...
After Ayari and the others returned home, they noticed that Makoto and Natsu hadn't followed behind, which made them feel puzzled.
"Where are they?"
"They didn't come back with us?"
After a moment of thought, Ayano couldn't help but say, "Those two, seriously…"
Kushina nudged Mikoto's arm with a playful smile and said teasingly, "They're even thirstier than you."
Mikoto shot her a glare.
.............
Yesterday, Samui not only invited Neji and the others to her home for dinner but also thoughtfully considered their breakfast and lunch for the next day.
She woke up early with Mabui to prepare everything and then brought the meals to the palace to deliver breakfast and bento boxes to the children.
This made the kids feel incredibly grateful, thinking that Samui was an especially kind and gentle person.
Hinata had previously harbored some reservations about Samui, believing that this stunningly beautiful woman who stayed by her father's side every day surely had ulterior motives.
But after visiting her home last night, she found that Samui and her friends were warm and welcoming, treating them differently from those outsiders who simply flattered them.
Mabui, in particular, left a strong impression—her cooking was delicious, she was gentle, and she was also very beautiful, making it easy for people to like her.
And now, with Samui personally delivering breakfast and lunch, Hinata and the others were completely won over.
Sakura and Ino also noticed something unusual—Hinata's bento today seemed to have been made by a different person than the day before.
The style was completely different, though still equally delicious.
This odd dynamic made Sakura start to think that Hinata might actually be a decent person—just someone who didn't smile much.
Ino, however, still thought Hinata was arrogant and hard to get along with.
There was no way she would lower herself to talk to her first.
Due to its booming business, Konoha's milk tea shop had opened several branches, and the one near the ninja academy was always crowded with students after school.
But with each cup costing nearly 500 ryo, most kids didn't have enough pocket money to afford it regularly.
Those who came here often weren't from ordinary families.
Of course, there were also cases like Hinata's followers—who tagged along with their leader and never had to pay for themselves.
Inside the milk tea shop, two familiar figures entered.
Sitting by the window, Hinata glanced toward the street outside and spotted Neji standing under a telephone pole.
"Hinata."
A gentle voice sounded by her ear.
Very few people would address her so directly—among her peers, aside from a few older brothers, only Toneri and Jugo would do so.
Toneri held two cups of milk tea, having come in with Kensuke to buy them.
His handsome and soft features immediately caused the girls around Hinata to blush.
"Toneri-senpai…"
Hinata sipped her drink through the straw, resting her cheek on her hand as she looked at Toneri. "Call me 'big sister.'"
Toneri, however, smiled warmly and said, "You're younger than me. You should be calling me 'big brother' instead."
Hinata pouted, turned her gaze toward the window, and ignored him.
"I'm leaving, Hinata."
After leaving the milk tea shop, Toneri joined Neji and Jugo, who were waiting under the telephone pole, and they left together.
"Toneri-senpai is so handsome."
"Yeah, and he's really gentle too."
Hinata overheard the girls around her swooning.
They often said the same about Sasuke, Neji, and Naruto, yet she wondered if they even knew who they actually liked.
"Big sis, does Toneri-senpai have a girl he likes?"
"What kind of girl does he like?"
Her followers eagerly questioned her.
Annoyed, Hinata casually answered, "He likes guys."
The girls around her instantly froze, their faces stiff with disbelief.
They clearly couldn't handle that idea.
The next day, just before noon, Neji took the initiative to seek out Hinata.
"It was you, wasn't it!"
"What?" Hinata looked confused.
"...The rumor that Toneri likes men," Neji said, frowning.
"That story is spreading everywhere now."
Hinata was momentarily stunned.
She had only said it offhandedly—had it really spread so far?
Thinking back to the group of girls around her at the time, her expression darkened.
"I'm going to find them and settle this!"
"Find who?" Neji asked, his face completely unreadable.
"Didn't those words come from your own mouth?"
"..."
Hinata froze on the spot, falling silent.
Neji was right—those words had come from her own mouth.
If she went after the ones spreading the rumor, wouldn't that mean she was avoiding her own responsibility as the source?
Seeing his younger sister like this, Neji sighed and said, "Think carefully about how you're going to fix this."
He had only heard about it when he arrived at school that morning.
The way their classmates had been whispering and pointing at their group had been unsettling, so he had Kensuke investigate.
When he found out about the rumor, he was even more disturbed—some people were even saying that Toneri liked him.
The thought made Neji shudder.
He obviously didn't believe such nonsense, so he traced the source back to Hinata and came to confront her.
Hinata furrowed her brows, remained silent for a moment, then simply said, "I'll handle it."
With that, she turned and walked back to her classroom.
As soon as she stepped inside, her usual followers greeted her with their usual flattering smiles.
But this time, Hinata felt nothing but disgust and resentment.
One of the girls spoke up, trying to curry favor. "Big sis, Prince Neji came to see you again?"
Hinata cast her a cold glance, then swept her gaze over the others. "Did I say yesterday that Toneri liked men?"
The girls stiffened for a moment, then quickly realized what she was getting at.
They immediately started denying responsibility, insisting that they hadn't spread the rumor.
Their panicked yet sincere expressions only made Hinata even more irritated.
"Big sis, you have to believe me!"
Hinata took a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm.
"Enough. You don't need to say anything more."
She pulled all her books out of her desk and added, "From now on, don't call me 'Big sis.' Don't follow me around anymore."
As her so-called followers stood there, stunned, Hinata turned and walked toward Sakura and Ino.
Stopping beside Sakura's seat, she looked at the girl sitting next to her and said, "You. Switch seats with me."
The girl was caught off guard, but seeing Hinata's unhappy expression, she quickly stood up and said, "Okay!" before hastily gathering her things.
Under the watchful eyes of the entire class, Hinata took a seat right beside Sakura.
Sakura looked at Hinata, who had an unapproachable expression.
After some hesitation, she couldn't help but ask, "Princess Hinata… are you okay?"
Hinata glanced sideways at Sakura, thinking that the girl was too timid.
Fortunately, she had Ino by her side to protect her.
But even so, at least Sakura had a good friend like Ino.
Compared to that… what about herself?
Her tone remained calm as she said, "Just call me Hinata."
Then, after a pause, she added, "From now on, we're seatmates."
Sakura hesitated for a moment before softly replying, "Hinata…"
The entire class was staring at them, and when Hinata swept her gaze across the room, she coldly said, "What are you all looking at?"
Everyone instantly fell silent, realizing that the princess was not in a good mood today.
Meanwhile, Ino, who was sitting next to Sakura, muttered under her breath, "What's with her now?"
Hinata ignored her and sat quietly without saying another word.
When class started, Iruka noticed that Hinata had switched seats—specifically, that she had taken a seat beside Sakura.
Unable to hold back his curiosity, he asked, "What's going on?"
The girl whose seat had been taken quickly stood up and tactfully answered, "Iruka-sensei, I wanted to switch seats, so I specifically asked to trade with.... um, Princess Hinata."
Of course, Iruka didn't believe such an obviously flawed excuse.
He thought for a moment, then turned to Sakura and asked, "Haruno Sakura?"
Sakura slowly stood up, feeling all eyes on her.
Embarrassed, her face flushed slightly as she softly said, "I… I kind of wanted to sit with Hinata too."
Hinata's eyes flickered slightly upon hearing that.
Iruka had no choice but to let Sakura sit down and continue the lesson.
From his perspective, Sakura didn't seem to be bullied, so he could only conclude that children's friendships were simply strange sometimes.
At lunchtime, Hinata still sat with Sakura and Ino.
However, due to her sudden inclusion, the atmosphere among the three of them felt a little awkward.
At that moment, a few girls who had previously followed Hinata around approached her, wanting to apologize.
"Big sis, it was all Miyuki! She was the one who spread the rumor!"
"Yeah, Big sis, it wasn't our fault at all."
"Miyuki, hurry up and admit your mistake to the Boss!"
Just as Hinata had expected, these girls wouldn't give up their connection with her so easily.
In order to stay on her good side, they had already pinpointed a culprit without her even needing to investigate.
Whether Miyuki was truly the one who leaked the rumor or just a scapegoat didn't really matter.
As long as there was an explanation, that was enough.
The girl named Miyuki looked terrified as she timidly admitted her mistake to Hinata.
Sakura and Ino, watching from the side, were completely baffled by the situation.
Hinata was silent for a moment before saying, "Enough, stop talking about it."
The girls looked at her expectantly, their gazes filled with hope.
Hinata couldn't help but feel a bit of guilt.
After all, these were classmates she had spent every day with, people she had always bossed around and ordered about.
She sighed and said, "Let's just end this here."
She had no desire to continue holding anyone accountable.
In the end, the entire situation had been her fault to begin with.
"Big sis, aren't you coming back?"
"I'm fine sitting here," Hinata said calmly.
"Besides, you heard it in class earlier—Sakura really wants to sit with me."
At those words, Sakura's face instantly turned bright red.
The group of girls wanted to say more, but a single glance from Hinata made them back off, not daring to speak further.
Naruto and Sasuke also came over to ask what was going on.
Sasuke stood in front of Hinata's desk, hands in his pockets, looking as cool and aloof as ever.
Hinata, however, couldn't help but roll her eyes.
This guy was absolutely putting on an act just for Sakura.
Normally, he didn't try to look this cool.
She glanced at Sakura beside her and, sure enough, saw her blushing while sneaking glances at Sasuke.
Hinata didn't bother saying much and quickly sent Naruto and Sasuke away.
The three girls sat together eating lunch, with Sakura taking the initiative to share her food.
Hinata also placed her own lunch in the middle.
Although Ino had been giving Hinata the cold shoulder earlier, the moment she saw the shared food, she immediately turned into a foodie.
But Hinata's mind wasn't on eating.
The rumors spreading outside were definitely affecting Toneri.
How could she clear things up?
Since the words had come from her, it was up to her to clarify them.
However, the thought of publicly admitting that she had just made things up on a whim was a little embarrassing.
Watching the two girls in front of her eating so earnestly, an idea suddenly flashed through Hinata's mind.
"Ino."
Ino, mid-bite, paused in surprise at Hinata calling her name so directly.
"What?"
"How about I introduce you to a boyfriend?"
Both Sakura and Ino were momentarily stunned.
A boyfriend… Like the ones in TV dramas?
The kind who eat together, hold hands, and even… kiss?
Ino swallowed her food and asked, "Who?"
She mumbled, "If he's ugly, I'm not interested."
Hinata replied, "He looks decent. He's a year above us."
Ino thought for a moment before looking shocked. "Are you trying to make me your sister-in-law?"
Hinata rolled her eyes. "You wish… It's Toneri."
Toneri… Hyuga Toneri… The one who's always hanging around Neji?
Ino and Sakura exchanged glances. Ino couldn't help but whisper, "But I heard today that he… likes guys."
"…That's just a rumor. He likes girls."
After some consideration, Ino shook her head. "No way!"
She frowned. "Are you trying to use me as a shield?"
"…No. Just eat."
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