"Judging by the date, Kushina-sensei's delivery should be within the next two days."
"I wonder if all the efforts I made before will have any real effect."
The morning light crossed the windowsill and illuminated the room. Feeling the light, Hyūga Shinichi slowly got up after lying still in bed for over ten minutes.
He glanced at the calendar tacked to the wall, then looked out the window. The Hyūga Clan compound was located in the center of Konoha with no tall buildings around it. The direction Hyūga Shinichi's window faced happened to offer a clear view of the Hokage Rock.
His gaze fell upon the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato's face on the rock, and he couldn't help but frown slightly.
Not long ago, Hyūga Hizashi and the other Hyūga elites responsible for guarding Kushina's delivery had returned to the compound. At that time, Shinichi had asked Hyūga Hiashi to invite Hizashi's family over for a family dinner. After the meal, Shinichi discreetly inquired about the arrangements for Kushina's protection mission from Hizashi.
Facing his incredibly talented nephew, Hizashi did not conceal anything, even though it was a secret mission. In the eyes of the Hyūga Clan members, the clan's rules were superior to the Village's rules.
When he heard that the Hyūga members were not stationed near Kushina's delivery room but were merely guarding outside the sealing barrier, Shinichi felt a sense of unease. Uchiha Obito had mastered a Space-Time Ninjutsu on the level of Kamui. While Shinichi didn't know how Obito would acquire the spatial coordinates for Kushina's delivery room to perform a space jump, he was certain of one thing: if the Hyūga members were not stationed near the delivery room, they wouldn't be able to arrive in time if something truly happened.
In response, Shinichi revealed the incident where he saw the tiger-striped masked man while training at Minato's home, and also explained Uchiha Obito's abilities to Hyūga Hizashi in as much detail as possible. Shinichi also instructed Hizashi to make sure to request a close-protection duty for the Hyūga Clan from the Fourth Hokage.
Hizashi was completely unaware of much of the information Hyūga Shinichi revealed. Upon hearing Shinichi, Hizashi clearly realized his nephew seemed to know something. He stared at Shinichi's young face for a long time, then nodded heavily in agreement.
His nephew had shown astonishing talent since childhood and had now even learned the Flying Thunder God Technique under the guidance of Lady Kushina. His future was limitless, and he was sure to become the Hyūga Clan's prodigy. Naturally, Hizashi took his young nephew's advice to heart. Furthermore... if his nephew was right, this protection mission might not be as easy as he had thought.
In the world of shinobi, unexpected events are often accompanied by death. His son Neji was still young, and Hizashi did not want his son to lose his father prematurely. Even as a member of the Hyūga Branch Family, Hizashi wished for his son to grow up healthy and strong!
After their conversation, Shinichi also gave Hyūga Hizashi eight kunai already marked with the Flying Thunder God seal. Hizashi would then deliver these kunai to the other Hyūga ninja assigned to Kushina's protection mission.
At this point, all of Hyūga Shinichi's arrangements were complete.
He had done everything humanly possible and would leave the rest to fate. Hyūga Shinichi felt he had done everything he could at this stage. Now, it was time to see how destiny would play out!
Getting up and walking to the doorway, Hyūga Shinichi slowly closed his eyes, carefully sensing his Flying Thunder God coordinates. His application of the Flying Thunder God Technique was still in its initial stages, requiring him to focus and carefully sense spatial coordinates over slightly longer distances. Although his ability in this area could not compare to the Flying Thunder God specialist, the Fourth Hokage, it was roughly on par with the future level of the Fourth Hokage's grandson, Boruto.
"Three Flying Thunder God spatial coordinates have converged."
"So two Hyūga ninja have managed to get close to Kushina-sensei for protection..."
Carefully sensing the locations of the Flying Thunder God coordinates, Shinichi slowly opened his eyes, and his furrowed brow finally relaxed. Ever since he gave Hizashi those Flying Thunder God kunai, he would sense the coordinates every morning.
A few days ago, the Hyūga Clan members were still responsible for the outer perimeter, but today, that had changed. This change brought some peace of mind to Shinichi. After all, the Hyūga elite were undoubtedly more reassuring to Shinichi compared to the Hokage's direct Anbu subordinates.
...
The dim rock cave was illuminated by the surrounding candlelight.
Starting this afternoon, Kushina had clearly felt a slight abnormality. Although her water hadn't broken and there were no signs of labor yet, the Nine-Tails in her belly had noticeably become agitated. Even the Four Symbols Seal, reinforced by Minato, was still unable to completely prevent the Nine-Tails' chakra from leaking out.
"Minato, quickly, you need to start reinforcing the Tailed Beast Seal!"
"We can't let the Nine-Tails' chakra leak out like this; a newborn cannot withstand chakra of this magnitude at such close range!"
Biwako was the medical ninja responsible for delivering Kushina's baby, assisted by a young female medical ninja named Tanro. The two medical ninja stood by Kushina's bed. Feeling the Tailed Beast chakra radiating from Kushina, their bodies tensed up. The elder Biwako was relatively fine, being the Third Hokage's wife and having seen many major events. But the young Tanro was clearly in a poorer state mentally. Seeing Kushina enveloped in red chakra, her legs trembled slightly.
Minato instantly arrived upon hearing the call. While calming the medical ninjas, he spoke cheerfully and casually to his wife. As he spoke, his hands gently rested on Kushina's lower abdomen. Instantly, the seal was reinforced, and the Nine-Tails' chakra gradually receded into Kushina's body.
Minato's calm and composed demeanor influenced everyone around him. The young Tanro saw Minato's appearance, and her anxious heart finally settled.
Inside the delivery room.
Hyūga Hizashi and Hyūga Daiki exchanged glances, both reading a hint of solemnity in the other's eyes. The Tailed Beast chakra was leaking out even before labor had begun; they wondered what would happen during the actual delivery.
The two Hyūga ninja had been permitted by the Fourth Hokage to enter the delivery room for protection.
They were partnered with four Anbu ninja, making a six-person inner guard squad. In fact, Minato had been hesitant when faced with Hizashi's request to enter the delivery room for protection. After all, the Hyūga Clan's Byakugan was a form of x-ray vision, and Minato was somewhat sensitive about Kushina's privacy.
However, when faced with Kushina's safety, such things became less important. Of course, he had also spent some time with Hizashi and Hyūga Daiki, and it was only after gaining trust in their character that he reassigned the guards.
The Nine-Tails' chakra leakage caused Hizashi, Daiki, and the other guards to be on high alert.
Time, too, passed without their notice.
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