Hinata hesitated. Part of her wanted to run home before her father scolded her for staying out too late, but a stronger part of her wanted to stay wanted to sit beside Naruto and share a meal with him.
So, with a tiny nod, she followed one of Naruto's shadow clones back to where the real Naruto was waiting.
Sasuke raised an eyebrow when he saw the timid girl being led over. "And who's this?"
Naruto shot him a look. "Seriously? This is Hinata Hyuga, our classmate."
"Oh, the Hyuga clan's daughter." Sasuke gave her a short nod of acknowledgment. The Hyuga were one of Konoha's great families, just like the Uchiha. As the Uchiha clan head's son, Sasuke felt obliged to show at least a little courtesy.
In terms of family standing, the two of them weren't that far apart.
"There are too many classmates. How could I possibly remember them all?" Sasuke muttered, rolling his eyes at Naruto.
At the Academy, he hardly paid attention to anyone except Naruto. Well, maybe Shikamaru and Choji counted a little, since Choji had shown him kindness first and Sasuke wasn't the type to reject genuine goodwill. Deep down, little Sasuke wasn't very good at turning people away.
"Come on, Hinata, sit down with us." Naruto grinned and waved her over warmly. He wasn't sure why she had been secretly following him, but if a classmate was willing to approach him with sincerity, then he was more than happy to welcome her.
"Mm." Hinata shuffled forward with small, careful steps and settled shyly beside him.
By then, the roasted boar meat had been reheated and was ready to serve. The clone tending the fire dispelled, its job done.
Naruto infused wind chakra into his fingertips, shaping them into invisible blades, and neatly sliced the meat apart. With a light touch, he carved it into strips that could be easily picked off and shared.
The three of them began to eat together.
Ψ(￣﹃￣)Ψ
(～o￣▽￣)～[]~
o_o …
Before long, Naruto and Sasuke both stopped moving their chopsticks. Their bellies were full, stretched round with satisfaction. But Hinata… Hinata was still going.
Her manners were impeccable her bites small, her chewing delicate but her pace was steady. No matter how much she ate, her stomach never seemed to swell, and her expression never hinted at fullness. If anything, a quiet joy seemed to glow across her face.
Naruto and Sasuke exchanged glances. The simple pleasure of eating their fill was something they both understood well, but Hinata… she was on a whole different level.
Halfway through tearing another strip of meat, Hinata suddenly froze. She felt it their eyes on her.
Oh no! Her heart skipped. Am I eating too much?
Trying not to show her panic, she set the meat down, dabbed at her lips with her sleeve, and hugged her knees to her chest, curling up like a tiny mushroom. A mushroom with a mushroom-cut head of hair.
"Are you full, Hinata?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Yes! Yes, I'm full," she blurted out at once. No way was she going to let Naruto see her greedy side. Besides, she wasn't greedy at all she usually held herself back and lived with half-empty meals.
Tonight, though… tonight she was already more satisfied than usual. Maybe seventy percent full.
"You sure?" Naruto tilted his head. "If you're not, I can go catch another wild boar right now."
"No! Really, no need. I'm fine," Hinata said quickly, hands waving frantically.
Naruto scratched the back of his head, frowning a little. "My teacher always told me, if you want to become a strong ninja, you've got to eat well and keep your body fueled. Without energy, you'll never build much chakra. And besides, how can you train on an empty stomach?"
Sasuke's eyes flicked sideways at Naruto, thoughtful.
Hinata bit her lip.
Naruto's face suddenly lit up with understanding. "Wait… are you embarrassed to eat more?"
Hinata's cheeks turned bright red, all the way to the tips of her ears.
"That won't do," Naruto said firmly, shaking his head. "Not here. With me, everyone eats until they're full."
Without waiting for an answer, he stood, strode to the riverbank, and snatched up a few fat fish with practiced ease. He cleaned them quickly and set them to roast over the fire.
"Tomorrow I'll hunt more, but tonight, fish will do," he told her with a smile.
"I-I… it's really okay, I don't need that much," Hinata mumbled, desperate to save a shred of dignity.
"I could eat less, too," Naruto said lightly, flipping the skewers. "But being half-full feels wrong, doesn't it?"
Hinata ducked her head, her face glowing crimson. She didn't argue, though.
When the fish were done, Naruto and Sasuke passed their portions straight to her, both too full to take another bite.
Hinata hesitated only a second before accepting. Her small hands trembled as she held the skewers, but once the taste touched her tongue, she couldn't stop. Bite after bite, she devoured the fish, warmth flooding her chest. For the first time in ages, she truly ate her fill.
Meanwhile, Sasuke wandered to the riverside and peered into the water's reflection. His crimson eyes stared back, the single tomoe of the Sharingan gleaming. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, impossible to suppress.
He had awakened his clan's kekkei genkai.
To open the Sharingan at six years old he knew even among the Uchiha, this marked him as exceptional.
Eventually, the meal ended, and the three children parted ways.
Hinata returned home late, much later than usual. Her father, Hiashi Hyuga, was waiting with a stern face.
"Explain," he said coldly.
"I-I was with my classmates," Hinata whispered, bowing her head.
Hiashi studied her for a long moment before sighing softly. His daughter's timid nature had always worried him. If spending more time with classmates could help her grow bolder, then perhaps it was for the best.
That was why he had agreed to send her to the Ninja Academy instead of keeping her at home under the clan's rigid training. Left in the compound too long, she would wither.
"Socializing is fine," Hiashi said at last, "but you must be mindful of time. Do not come home this late again."
"Yes, Father," Hinata nodded quickly.
"There's food saved for you. Eat, then continue your training," Hiashi instructed before turning away, already burdened by clan matters that demanded his attention.
Hinata finished her dinner quietly and retreated to her room. She sat cross-legged on the floor and began refining her chakra.
But almost immediately, her eyes flew open in shock. Something was different. Each time she applied the chakra refinement method, her cells surged, releasing torrents of chakra like a waterfall bursting free.
Blue flames of chakra flickered to life around her hands, vivid and visible to the naked eye. The power was overwhelming far greater than anything she had ever produced before.
Hinata remembered Naruto's words. Eat well, and you'll have the strength to train.
Her lips curved into a small, awed smile. Her admiration for him deepened quietly in her heart.
Then she closed her eyes again, focusing, channeling the surging chakra into steady streams.
Elsewhere, Sasuke arrived home. Itachi wasn't back yet, so the joy of his new Sharingan would have to wait. Instead, he revealed it to his parents.
Fugaku and Mikoto both froze when they saw the red glow in their youngest son's eyes. Even though it was only a single tomoe, it still left them speechless.
"How did you awaken it?" Fugaku demanded. In their clan, the first awakening usually came only after great trauma. Had something happened?
Sasuke frowned, trying to recall. "I was watching Naruto train… and somehow, I just… awakened it."
"You mean… just watching him?" Fugaku blinked in disbelief.
Could it be? Was Naruto's training so intense it could push an Uchiha into awakening the Sharingan? If that were true… perhaps he should send more clan members to observe.
"I don't know," Sasuke admitted, shaking his head. "I just remember feeling frustrated, shocked and then Naruto told me my eyes had changed."
Fugaku exchanged a stunned glance with Mikoto. Whatever this meant, one thing was certain: Naruto Uzumaki was no ordinary boy.