A strange new life. [Naruto]

[okashihime]

"I… see." That was all the new Hokage said.

I scowled. Pushed Karin away or tried to. She had a death grip on my waist and hand.

Those were some ludicrous claims. I did bite her arm and kept biting even when she asked me to stop that one time when I first met her. Yes, that left marks on her arm, both arms. I also, yes, paraded naked in front of her. I had no clothes then; what was I supposed to do? Kill all the prisoners because they'd seen me naked? Execute them for the crime of having eyes? And we did sleep together. At first, because it was cold, then because the badgers only provided a single fur pile, and then while traveling to stave off the chill in the night.

My scowl deepened. Karin hadn't lied. But did she need to phrase it that way?

The weeks of peaceful cohabitation and talk had lulled me with a false sense of normalcy.

I had assumed that Karin's most prominent traits from the original story were learned behaviors resulting from her exposure to Orochimaru, but wasn't she saying some outrageous things here?

I didn't believe for a second she was interested in me in a romantic way. Like I said before, there was no spark, so why this? She'd done something similar in the original show, pretending to be mentally ill to keep something that let her escape later. Was this a setup for some other plan or something? No, that was silly. I don't think it was anything complicated. Maybe she was just afraid and didn't want to be alone. I could understand that.

Shisui cleared his throat. "Well, if that's the case."

I erased the words on my board. Scribbled others. "It wasn't like that." I defended myself, but even as I wrote it, I knew it would read bad.

Shisui shook his head. "It's fine, you don't need to explain yourself."

That only made things worse. I… wanted to punch him. Karin must have noticed. She snickered, still resting her head on my shoulder, looking every bit like a smug, satisfied fox. Was this payback for all those times I teased her? It wouldn't be, would it?

Any response on my part was cut short when the door to the Hokage's office opened without the visitors being announced. I had sensed the chakra bundle approaching, but I didn't think their destination was the Hokage's office. I looked back. Two old people walked inside. An old lady with squinting eyes and an old dude with a pointy goatee and glasses.

Under the newcomer's judgemental stare, Karin finally let go of me. She sat straight, with her hands resting on her lap. All prim and proper.

There was this moment of silence or a standoff between Shisui and the two old geezers. Shisui was the first to talk.

"Homura, Koharu." He didn't get up from his chair; he just dipped his head in greetings. "Our meeting isn't for a few hours yet."

The guy cast a glance at me before addressing Shisui again. "Circumstances changed," the old man said.

The old lady was the one who spoke next.

"We've explained why," her squinting gaze flickered to me before returning to Shisui. "Other shinobi agree with us."

Were they talking about me? Are these two old codgers part of the council? I never understood what the council had against me. Up until now, I always thought it was remnants of Danzo's influence that pushed people to mistrust me.

No one outright treated me badly, nor was I discriminated against like Naruto. It was more subtle than that. A few stares, some pitying, others suspicious. The lack of resources, training, and instruction.

It was never something I could point my finger at and blame one thing or another. For example, most other shinobi have their clans and families as a support network, and from them, they learn jutsu, techniques, and other clan-related knowledge. I hadn't, much like Naruto, I was on my own since I came here.

That shaped how I saw and did things. I knew I had a bad habit of trying to do everything alone. But that was how I learned. Aside from basic instructions at the academy, I had no one else to ask things from. Even the Third skimped on the knowledge about seals. I never got the chance to ask him why before I failed to save him and let him die. If Kakashi-sensei wasn't lying and the old man really was on my side, why hold back knowledge from me? Why not — selfish as it was to wish — give me a hand and some nice jutsu?

"I've read your reasoning," said Shisui. His eyes hadn't left the two old people.

If those two were part of the council, it would pay for me to learn more about them, wouldn't it? I focused my chakra perception on the two. More often than not, while inside Konoha, I pushed my perception to the background of my mind. Too many people with chakra walking about. It was easy to get distracted or even overwhelmed. Ever since entering Konoha again, I had done the same, even without noticing.

The two… weren't that different from other people. Their reserves were on the average size. Lower than an active jonin, bigger than a newly promoted chunin. I knew that wasn't an indication of their combat capabilities, but I had the impression that if push came to shove, I'd win. If it came down to pure brawling and reaction time, I was confident I could take them. I'd need to hit them hard before they could pull whatever bullshit jutsu they learned over their long life, but I was somewhat confident of my chances.

It was strange that, now that I was focusing more on their chakra, I did notice other things. Like a flavor or texture. The old woman's chakra was stale, like old, but not in a bad way, while the guy was acrid, like a bad smell. Was my perception being influenced by my dislike? Had my perception gotten more refined as well?

Their conversation hadn't ended. The two, somehow, never said it openly, but I had the impression they wanted me locked and isolated.

A new bundle of chakra popped into my perception. Then another.

I forgot about the two geezers and Shisui. I got up, the chair scrapped back with a loud screech, cutting off the conversation. For the second time that day, the door busted open again.

In rushed a ginormous blaze of chakra contained in a small-sized pack wrapped in orange jumpers.

"Hinata-chan!" Sunshine brat hollered, face already full of tears.

"Hi," I said back, eyes misting again.

Naruto grabbed me and hugged me like he was afraid I would disappear again. A few moments later, the second bundle of chakra entered the room, cool, calm, and placid. Kakashi-sensei leaned against the door and gave me one of his eye-crescent smiles.

I might have started to cry even harder. I wasn't sure. Maybe it was just Naruto crying, not me.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Wed.


Proofreader: CakeEight.

 

[okashihime]

Conversation was made impossible by much hollering and tears. Naruto wasn't even aware that there were other people inside the room. Shisui had a forlorn look on his face like he'd seen this scene many times.

Was he reminiscing about the number of times he saw the brat causing a ruckus while shadowing the third?

The nice welcome home moment ended with the old codger with glasses clearing his throat.

"Uzumaki Naruto," the man said. From his mouth, it sounded like the name was a bad thing.

Karin's head snapped toward the old man, then to Naruto.

Sunshine brat let go of me, cleared some snot with the back of his hand, turned.

"That's my name," he said. Then he turned to me, tilted his head. "Hinata-chan, who are these old people?"

I shrugged, croaked. "No idea who these old people are."

From the corner of my eye, I caught Kakashi-sensei stiffening, then turning around, shoulders shaking. Was he… laughing? Why? I mean, no one told me who these people are. I had suspicions, but nothing other than that.

"Naruto-kun, these are Councilman Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu." Shisui introduced.

I looked at the two again. Were they the ones responsible for making my life not the best ninja life it could have been? At least I knew their faces and names. Now I just need a black cover book and to write down their names on it.

Naruto scratched his head. "Council something, gotcha." Then he turned back to me. "Hinata-chan, you won't believe it! I learned this super powerful jutsu—the Fourth made it, and the Ero-sennin taught—"

Homura cleared his throat again.

Naruto stopped his recounting, looked at the old man with glasses. "Is your throat hurt? I think I have a few candies if you want."

Homura's face twitched. "We're busy with important things," he said.

"Ahh, okay." Naruto nodded like that made perfect sense. He grabbed my hand and started dragging me toward the door.

"Come Hinata-chan, let's leave these old folks to their business."

"Our business is with her," Koharu said, stopping Naruto again.

Naruto blinked, glancing around the room, at the new Hokage, at Kakashi-sensei, who was definitely laughing now, at the two grumpy council members, and at Karin, who still looked surprised and hadn't stopped looking at Naruto.

"Hinata-chan, do these old people also want your cupcakes?"

I shrugged. I don't think my cupcakes were their problem with me. Even so, I had to answer Naruto. I erased the words from my board, wrote others.

"I dunno, Naruto-kun."

Once he read the message, I erased it and wrote another. "Did you deliver the letters?"

"I did!" Naruto said, nodding. "The fat lady kept asking when you'd be back." Naruto stopped, face troubled. He pointed a finger at my nose.

"Hinata-chan, you shouldn't let people capture you, you made Ino cry."

…What? I think Naruto saw my confusion.

"Ino-chan's team went to help with your secret mission," he said. "She cried a lot when she got back." His expression darkened. I heard a bit of waver in his voice. "You shouldn't make her cry, Hinata-chan."

His eyes were misting again. Was he talking about Ino or himself?

"Listen—" Homura started, voice impatient.

Koharu stopped him by touching his shoulder. She shook her head. "Leave the young ones to their reunion."

Both councilmen exchanged looks, the kind that carried entire conversations without a single word, the way people who had worked together for decades often did.

Homura turned to Shisui. "We'll continue this discussion later."

Without waiting for a response, or even acknowledging anyone else in the room, they left.

As soon as the door closed and I felt their chakra moving down the stairs, I pulled Naruto into another hug.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun," I whispered.

"Ehh, for what?" Naruto scratched the side of his head. His ears were pink.

"You're an Uzumaki?" Karin's voice cut in the moment.

I let go of Naruto, and he turned toward the voice, answered like it was a reflex. "That's my name,"

His eyes widened as if he'd seen her for the first time. I caught a slight blush on the brat's cheeks. Teenagers, who would have thunk?

He turned to me, "Hinata-chan, who is she?"

I rolled my eyes, wrote. "Why don't you ask her?"

The brat read the message, then turned back to Karin, a little bashful now. "Uh… what's your name?"

"Uzumaki Karin," the redhead said.

Naruto tilted his head. His eyes widened. "You're my sister!?"

I face-palmed.

Kakashi-sensei was the one who answered this time. "No, Naruto-kun, it means she's from the Uzumaki clan."

Naruto looked from Karin to Kakashi and then to me. "What Uzumaki clan?"

"Kakashi," Shisui cut through any response to Naruto's question. "Why don't you take Naruto and Karin outside and explain the situation to him while I finish talking with Hinata?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Come, Naruto-kun, you'll have time to tell Hinata about your mission later." He turned to Karin and gave her one of his signature eye-crescent smiles. Cool Kakashi-sensei was such a chad material that I caught a dusting of pink on Karin's cheeks before she looked away and nodded shyly.

It was my time to have a forlorn look on my face now while I watched the trio leave the office. I wasn't sure if I should be happy or sad.

Wait. Why would I be sad?

"Please, sit Hinata-san," Shisui said, taking me out of my musings.

I gave the door one last troubled look. Turned and sat. Shisui didn't seem keen on wasting time.

"I think you noticed there are issues we must deal with."

I nodded. Was he going to demand I spill all my secrets now? Or maybe ask me to swear an oath or something?

"The council has gathered enough influence with the shinobi families that I cannot just dismiss them out of hand."

I blinked. What was he talking about?

"Nominally, I'm the village leader, but they have considerable pull with other shinobi that I more often than not have to maneuver around them."

That was strange. Should a Hokage admit to weakness in front of a chunin? A possible traitor chunin? Wasn't this how people saw me?

"Ever since Lord Hiruzen passed away, they have been pushing for drastic measures regarding you."

Shisui stopped, looked back at the picture of the old man hung on the back wall.

"Shikaku did what he could and sent you on a mission that kept you out of reach. It seemed the best choice at the time." The Hokage got up from his chair and bowed. "I apologize that this caused you such hardships."

I was dreaming, wasn't I? There was no way people would start being honest with me. Was this a trick? Numbly, I just nodded. I didn't know what else to say or do.

"I'll give you the full details later, but right now, we need to prepare for two things."

That sounded ominous as heck.

"The Hyuga clan and the Council."

Wait, what? The Hyuga, why?

---

Spoiler: AN

Next chapter Friday! (*Checks the calendar* Yep, that's the right day.)
Proofreader: CakeEight.

 

[okashihime]

"…information about the laboratory leaked…"

Night had fallen and I was back in my apartment helping Karin settle. My abode was tiny: A single bedroom, a living room, a kitchen. Karin didn't seem to mind that we'd have to sleep in the same bed. I didn't either, even if I was getting conflicted about this.

Some blessed soul kept my apartment clean. We didn't have to worry about dust bunnies or drowning in dust while trying to clear it.

On the other side of the bedroom, Karin looked pensive. She looked over my almost identical outfits and everyday clothes. She'd have to wear my stuff until we bought more for her later. That would be for tomorrow.

It had taken a while to appease Naruto once we left the tower. The brat didn't seem willing to leave, and he only did after I promised I wouldn't go on any other mission without telling him first.

I might have pinched his cheeks until he fessed up about that crying business. It left me feeling all warm and guilty and happy and sad. Best Girl Ino went to my rescue? And she even cried? I didn't know how I felt about that, but that decided what I had to do. Ino's been haunting my thoughts with increasing frequency.

He'd also told me about his new awesome jutsu— Rasengan— that the perv sannin taught him. He let slip a few more details. His mission hadn't been a peaceful one. It took forever to find the granny, and in the end, she didn't even want to come back, not to mention the two freaks that attacked them. The shark dude and bone guy.

Naruto promised to tell me the story in detail later. I even made him pink swear it. Shark guy could only be Kisame, but what about this bone dude? Was he talking about Kimimaro?

While Karin debated what to wear, I got into the showers and took a relaxing bath. It took a while to clean all the spots of dirt from the weeks of travel underground. No one had pointed it out, but I was sure the reason the councilman fled without pushing things further was the lovely smell coming from me and Karin.

"…probably due to council meddling…"

Cleaned, refreshed, and finally ready. I picked up a set of everyday clothes. Shorts, a pink shirt, and ordinary everyday shoes. I wasn't really in the mood for ninja stuff right now.

I really wanted to go out and meet Ino, but it was already late. Begrudgingly, I postponed the meeting to the next morning. That would give me the whole day to talk with her. It was better that way, right?

Karin was already aware of my plans. She didn't seem to mind staying alone while I dealt with essential matters outside. It was a shame I didn't have any of my prepared supplies. My stock was nil before the mission, and I don't think I can replenish it, at least not before dealing with the fallout.

After Karin finished bathing, we settled down, and I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow. Karin's grabiness not even registering.

I woke up the next day with sunlight streaking inside my bedroom. I got up, disentangled myself from Karin, took another bath. Hot water, how had I missed thee!

When I left the apartment about one hour later, Karin was in the bath again. I guess that like me, she was compensating for the whole month without cleaning. I wrote her a note to ensure she knew I was out. It was time. I had delayed enough. I wasn't going to delay anymore.

I took the shinobi highways and sped toward my destination. It had been just over a month, but the village looked different. I could still see marks of the invasion, the new patch of wall still in construction, and buildings that looked new compared to others nearby.

My path led me again near the GGC, but this time, I swerved away. I didn't want to meet them yet. There was only so much I could deal with, and while I liked the grannies, I had more important things to do. My already exhausted emotional battery wouldn't be enough if I had to appease them.

Without fanfare, I dropped from the highway in front of my target. I scanned my surroundings, read the familiar sign: Yamanaka Flower Shop.

I took a deep breath, steeled my nerves, stepped inside.

---

I stepped outside with a mix of relief and disappointment on my face. None of the Yamanaka were present. Ino's mom was busy somewhere else, Inoichi wasn't home, Ino was training. I had a new destination now. My old haunt, training field three.

Was there any reason why Ino chose that particular place to train?

The path there wasn't long. I knew my way around this part, and even with some of my preferred roofs missing or destroyed, finding a new path to the training field didn't take long.

I looked over my clothing, pushed a rebel strand of hair out of my face, and ensured my shirt wasn't dirty or worse. With yet another deep breath, I walked inside the field.

Ino had her back toward the entrance. She wore her usual shinobi gear, a purple ensemble with bandages covering parts of her legs and midriff. Her hair was tied in a haphazard ponytail. From her movements, she was punching the wooden dummy. Each punch sounded like she meant business.

What had the poor dummy done to her?

An idea crossed my mind. I wanted to hug Ino a lot. Only one of me didn't seem enough. My hands moved without my consent. Seals flashed, and out popped another me. We exchanged glances. Hug-chan gave me a nod, her grin almost feral.

We approached. Stopped a few meters away from the training blonde.

Hug-chan cleared her throat.

Ino ignored us.

My clone cleared her throat again, louder this time. I winced in perceived sympathy. That probably hurt a lot.

"Go away," Ino said without looking back.

I exchanged glances with my clone. She shrugged, shook her head. Okay, fine, it was my turn.

I cleared my throat.

"Leave me alone," Ino hissed without looking back.

That… wasn't like Ino at all.

My clone looked worried like I felt. I cleared my throat again.

"Are you deaf?" Ino growled. She swirled, took one step toward us, teeth bared. She had bags under her eyes, wore no makeup, her hands were wrapped in bloodied bandages. She looked disheveled, for lack of a better word.

Then the blonde stopped. Her eyes were wide. A hand flew to her mouth.

"Hinata-chan," Ino whispered, looking at me and my clone.

It seemed such a dumb idea now. Why hadn't I just called out her name? Why did I have to create a clone? Dumb idea or not, I think my clone and I felt the same. We moved at the same time. No, not moved, we flickered forward and appeared by the blonde's side. We sandwiched her in the tightest hug we could manage without breaking her ribs.

In the back of my mind, Shisui's words still echoed.

"…they're claiming you're not Hinata, but a clone…"

Ino flopped on my arms, her face a mess of tears, snot, and babbling words. She fought between hugging and touching and making sure I was real. She was the prettiest ugly crier I had ever seen.

"Hinata-chan," she said, mid-crying.

Was I a clone? Maybe. There was always the possibility. Did it bother me? Yes, it did. But right now, hugging best girl Ino and hearing her sobbing in our arms, it didn't seem that important anymore.

What council hearing? What Hyuga problem?

None of that seemed urgent. It was Best Girl Ino time now. I could deal with everything else later.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.
Proofreader: CakeEight.



Backlog update: I've finished yesterday 8.11.
Chapter 7 goes up to .21. It was getting too big and I had to cut it, for reasons.

Chapter 8 is named: Family Business, secrets and dates.

 

[okashihime]

I exchanged glances with my clone. Hug-chan scowled.

I signed a message. She scowled even more.

We were still in training field three. At this point, I don't think Hug-chan needed to be here. She could go out and do something else, like visiting the grocer to buy ingredients for a baking session.

Hug-chan shook her head. Her fingers flashed a very uncouth message.

I blinked, surprised. Was she… jealous? It wouldn't be, would it?

I don't know what I had expected when I came to look for Ino. Maybe we'd have a happy reunion, she'd tell me all the gossip I missed. Maybe she'd punch me for getting captured. That one felt like a real possibility. According to Naruto, Ino was hella pissed with me.

You know what I hadn't expected?

For Ino to cry until she fell asleep. What had she been doing?

So here we were. My clone and I were sitting side by side, holding a sleeping Ino.

I wanted my clone to bug off— I mean, go buy ingredients. Hug-chan didn't want to leave, and I couldn't just disperse her. Ino was leaning on her too. If I did, Ino would wake up.

Difficult scenario.

I glared at Hug-chan, jerking my head toward the exit. Go away already.

Hug-chan flipped me the finger.

Our silent argument didn't last for long. I felt it before I saw it. Chakra presences that made no sense at all. It was like a huge bonfire, filled with countless small ones. I was still trying to puzzle the situation when the newcomers entered the training field.

Two shinobi from Konoha. One, I knew; the other, I could guess who it was.

The first one wore dark round sunglasses and a sea-green jacket with a high, upturned collar, dark, bushy, brown hair. My friend, Shino, even though it had been a while since I last talked with him. We drifted apart after I was assigned to team seven, instead of team eight.

The other one was like an older version of Shino. The man had dark glasses with a single tassel hanging down from one side, even spikier black hair and a mustache, and he wore a collared outfit and carried a gourd on his back. Part of the chakra I felt from him also was inside that gourd. Was that Shino's dad?

The chakra I was sensing now made sense. Back in the academy, Shino's chakra felt like anyone else. After expanding my range, was I also getting better definition? It made me super icky, knowing that swarming chakra inside him was just that, a swarm of insects. I held in a shudder.

Both looked at the scene: me, my clone, and the sleeping Ino. They didn't approach but didn't leave either.

Hug-chan looked my way, leered.

I ground my teeth. Fine. Have it your way.

Carefully, I disentangled from Ino and got up. I wasn't about to let these two wake Best Girl Ino up.

With a temporary comms board and writing supplies in hand, I cast one last longing look at Ino, glared at Hug-chan, then went to meet the duo. We didn't speak. I waved both to follow me and guided them until we were far from the training field. If things somehow turned sour, I didn't want any of them near Ino.

Once we were far enough, I wrote words.

"Hello, Shino; how have you been?"

"Hello, Hinata-san," Shino said, looked at the other shinobi. "This is Aburame Shibi, my father and head of the Aburame clan."

I waved at the jonin.

He gave me a curt nod.

I had no idea what was going on. Wrote more words. "Is there something I can help you with?"

It might have come more brusque than I liked, but these two were intruding on my Ino time. It just wasn't fair.

"You stink," Shino said.

I scowled, sniffed beneath my arms, sniffed again when I felt no smell.

Shibi coughed, looked at Shino, and then at me. "Hello, Hinata-san. Please don't mind my son. What he meant to say is that you've been marked by pheromones."

"And it's stinking up the whole village," Shino added.

It was the damned bees, wasn't it? I fucking knew it would be trouble. Why, oh, why. Those damned badgers. Was this a new blood feud now? Danzo, council, Hyuga, and now the Aburame clan?

"Which one was it?" Shino asked.

I tilted my head. Wrote words. "Which one what?"

"Which insect marked you?"

"Fucking killer bees that would put grown-up Akamaru to shame," I said out loud instead of writing.

Shibi's hand reached into his jacket, pulled out a small spray bottle, tossed it my way.

"This will help eliminate the scent."

Shino looked like he wanted to say something, but a faint buzz from his father, one I felt inside my bones, held him back. The clan head turned to me.

"I'd like to invite you to the Aburame compound. There are things we'd like to discuss with you."

I looked at the spray bottle and the two insect shinobi. Under both gazes, I sprayed myself with the thing. It didn't smell like anything at all, but I caught Shino's small twitch and the agitated movements from the small swarm of chakra inside his body.

"I just returned to the village," I wrote to both of them. "I don't know how things are, but maybe next week?"

Shibi nodded, gave me a small smile.

"I'll send Shino to guide you to our compound. Would dinner be alright?"

A bit speechless at the turn this took, I nodded at the duo.

"Use the spray again in two hours," Shino said, before bowing and leaving. His dad gave me a curt bow and left as well.

That was weird as heck. What did they want? Maybe they wanted to meet the bees? I'm guessing that meeting a hive of killer bees is like Xmas arriving early for an insect-based clan?

I looked for a while longer in the duo's direction, then shrugged. I would deal with this later. It was just another thing to pile on. The council hearing in two weeks, the Hyuga problem looming in the horizon, and now dinner at the Aburame in a week.

It was good that they left. I pushed it all out of my mind. It was time to get back to my Ino time, and no one would get in my way again. I turned and moved back to the training field.

With each step closer, my mood sank.

I dashed forward, not caring about making noise anymore. I arrived at the training field like a clap of thunder. It was empty. Where once was a sleeping beauty and a traitorous clone, now there was only a scribbled message in the dirt.

Grocer. BGIWS, BTYFS.

I scowled. Torn between wanting to strangle Hug-chan or maybe hug her. I could decide that later. Now I had to go and bake sweets. Ino wanted them, after all.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter wed.

Proofreader: Bestests of cakes, CakeEight.



I've finished writing 8.15. Still debating on the ending of that one. It is something I had planned for a while, but now I keep having doubts about that particular situation.

Patreon is updated to 8.14. I've also started to look for artists for a new cover and image commissions. For now, I have requested to chibi images from Hinata and Ino. I got the wip and I think they look good. I'll post then once I receive the final version.

Discord: Link

 

[okashihime]

Hug-chan watched the Original leave the training field with the visitors. Ino stirred and mumbled, hands gripping the clone's clothing and pulling closer.

"Ah, I'm dreaming."

The clone looked at the blonde's face. Her eyes were half-lidded, and she didn't look at all there. Ino looked worse than Hinata had ever seen before. It wasn't just the bags under her eyes; her clothes were unkempt, the bandages on her hands flecked with blood, and most alarming of all, she wore no makeup.

In the years since Ino learned about it in the Kunoichi classes, this was the first time she'd seen the girl without.

Ino nuzzled her face against the clone's shoulder.

"I want to go home."

That was easy enough. The clone didn't mind taking the sleeping girl home. It was a good idea even. Put her in bed where she could rest properly. It was a shame the original wasn't here right now, but that was life.

"I want cupcakes."

Another line that sent her heart racing. Best girl Ino wanted sweets. That decided things even more.

Hug-chan got up, taking care not to jostle the drowsy girl too much. The clone adjusted Ino so the blonde's front rested against her back, and Ino's arms were draped over the shoulders. Ino's head nestled near Hug-chan's neck. Her hours of carrying Karin around gave her the know-how needed to keep Ino comfortable and stable. Before she left, she scribbled an abridged note for the original.

Grocer. BGIWS. BTYFS.

That should be more than enough. Once Original-chan had the sweets, dropping by the Yamanaka flower shop would be easy.

The clone took one last look at the training field, made sure she wasn't leaving anything behind, then left.

She didn't run, or take to the highways; no intense movement or jumping. Hug-chan Express would do her best to deliver a comfortable travel experience to her sleeping passenger. Bump and jolt free.

The walk gave Hug-chan time to think about things. Maybe it was the perspective of being a clone, but her thoughts weren't on the growing list of the original's problems. No, what concerned the clone was feelings.

Feelings or obsession?

It was difficult to tell them apart. She'd been so obsessed with the characters in the show, and so consumed with wishing to meet them that, now that she did, she wasn't sure if her feelings were real or some form of idol worship.

God knows she already did that a lot in the form of fangirling.

There was this happy feeling building in her gut, knowing that Ino cared enough to be in this state because Hinata went missing. Was it selfish to feel happy at her friends' suffering?

The original never considered a relationship at all. For all her bluster and obsession, romance had never seriously crossed her mind. Too young, she'd mostly dismiss. There are horrors in the future, can't worry about feeling right now. Every time a hint of that came up, justifications popped left and right.

When not caring about the many horrors of the future, the clone really wanted to cuddle and snog and go on dates. She even suspected Ino might not be totally against it. Maybe not in a romantic sense yet, but Hug-chan could dream.

The concept of same-sex relationships might not even exist here, with clans pushing for their children to find a good match and continue the clan's bloodline. It might even be frowned upon or outlawed. Hinata never even heard about gay couples in all her years around.

Hug-chan's steps led her to the flower shop. She pulled the door open, then stepped inside. One of the workers was on the counter. He looked startled when Hug-chan stepped inside carrying a sleeping Ino, but a quick gesture ensured he didn't cause a fuss.

It wasn't the first time she'd been here, so Hug-chan walked inside, past the storefront, and into the Yamanaka residence. The house was quiet and still.

The clone adjusted her steps and walked toward Ino's bedroom. Once there, she laid the blonde on the bed, removed her shoes, unwrapped the bandages from her hands. Hoping Ino would forgive the intrusion, she searched the blonde's room for cleaning supplies and a first aid kit.

Back at the bed, she cleaned and re-wrapped the hands. She noticed a shift in Ino's breathing. Maybe it was the stinging cleaning agent or the strong alcohol scent. Ino's eyes were open and looking at the clone's face.

"You're really back." Ino whispered.

Hug-chan smiled. Nodded. She finished tying up the bandages, put the first aid kit away. Under Ino's intense stare, she made sure the blonde was tucked in and comfortable, even bringing over the sheets.

Tucked in and comfortable, Ino spoke again.

"Are you leaving?"

Hug-chan shook her head. She was a clone; there was nowhere she needed to be. Taking care of Ino was more important than worrying about all the other problems.

Ino's hand sneaked from beneath the sheets and pulled Hug-chan into the bed, too. Ino hugged the clone, hiding her face against the clone's chest.

"Promise you won't disappear again."

"I promise." Hug-chan husked out. She wrapped her arms around Ino. It didn't take long until the blonde was asleep again.

Now, alone with her thoughts, the clone had even more time to think.

Could she promise it? At that moment, the clone knew even the original wouldn't hesitate to make that promise. That also highlighted another issue that bothered every created clone, which the original was keen on ignoring.

If the original ever wanted a real relationship, she had to be honest. About her past, about the knowledge, about her plans.

Hug-chan wasn't about to spill the beans, even if she thought that would be the best course of action, but she imprinted enough reaction on her mind just to make sure the Original knew that she had to address this sooner rather than later.

To truly be friends with Ino, and hopefully something more, Original-chan needed to be honest. It wasn't fair to the other girl to keep to herself all the secrets that could cause many problems in the future.

 

[okashihime]

I took one of the bags from the shelf and compared it with the one in my basket. The shop lady said good things about this flour, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to abandon my tried and true supplier. I put one small bag in with the other things. I guess experimenting wouldn't hurt.

What else did I need? I went over the list in my mind. Baking powder?

I rummaged through the items I had already collected, found it.

Sugar, then?

I looked inside the basket again: Granulated, brown, powdered, and honey. No, I had what I needed already.

What about flavorings? Vanilla, nutmeg, cardamom, dried fruits, nuts, and even chocolate. I found everything already. That was enough. I would need to order more, but that would be later.

Doing grocery shopping and worrying about ingredients wasn't how I imagined the rest of my day. Not that I had anything planned before meeting Ino. I didn't know how she would react. After meeting her, I got a new mission. S-Tier Mission: Cuddle with Best Girl Ino until she woke up.

That mission went into the drain when the Aburame clan decided to pay a visit—and died an even worse death when Hug-chan took Ino back to the Yamanaka residence. No, I wasn't jelly of my clone. No, I wasn't bitter either.

…

And yes, I knew I would experience everything when she unpopped. But I mean, I wanted to cuddle with Ino-chan, too. I wanted it so bad.

I couldn't even blame my clone. I'd have done the same had she gone to meet the Aburames instead. I planned to do the same if she had gone to meet the Aburames. I guess I have only myself to blame here.

But now that I no longer had the Ino excuse, thoughts kept coming.

The first problem: A lack of Tsunade.

The slug princess was my hope of getting the seal under control. In the past weeks, the amount I managed to suppress kept worsening. The more I used my chakra, the faster the suppression deteriorated.

I had been confident that if she couldn't help me, she'd be at least able to point me in the right direction. Now, I needed to decide whether I wanted to trust Shisui or not.

Along the same lines, my promise now reared its head. My meddling thwarted Rock Lee's chance of recovery. I wasn't going to leave him without help. Maybe I could convince Shisui to send me after Tsunade? I still needed to extract what happened from Naruto, but without Orochimaru to push Tsunade with the promise of bringing her loved ones back, she wanted nothing with Konoha.

But before I could leave the village, two problems needed to be addressed.

The council: Shisui's intervention was enough to push them back for now.

The two codgers of the council had somehow managed to entrench themselves in every pie available. Merchants, trading partners, noble families, and even a few allied minor villages. They controlled or influenced most of the village's non-military infrastructure by this point.

That was enough to put a lot of pressure on the Hokage position.

I suspected they had been preparing for years, waiting until the third was out of the picture. I also suspected they might be just figureheads for a third party, someone who loved to dwell in darkness and shady deals.

That man spent decades building spy networks, implanting sleeper agents, and pushing things from behind the scenes. Not even the other great villages escaped his meddling. Why would his "exile" from Konoha change anything? It just meant he didn't need to worry about appearances anymore.

Danzo had a hard-on hatred for the Uchiha. Would he leave the clan's political power intact? I doubt it.

Shisui had military power, and I'm sure he could just genjutsu his way into winning. And while the Uchiha clan was powerful, they might face years of entrenched schemes and bureaucratic manipulations.

On the other hand, Shisui had a penchant for diplomacy and vying for peace. Did this play a part in why he was selected as the Hokage? Someone who wouldn't jump to violence when presented with years of carefully curated obstructions?

I also needed to gather my allies to resist their influence. Shisui did hint that the Uchiha clan might be willing to help, but that would be best discussed with the clan's head, Itachi.

I wanted to get rid of those old codgers. Why couldn't they just leave me alone?

No, that was a bad turn of phrase. I don't think killing them would help my case. This would be a battle won with words. It was a damn shame I had no words.

The question was, what allies did I have? I was a social outcast.

Then there was the Hyuga. The clan head, my father, was also marshaling allies, the council included, to take me out of the picture. Hiashi was convinced I wasn't his daughter but an impostor taking her place.

…

That hurt, even if he wasn't entirely wrong. I wasn't just Hinata anymore, but I still was Hinata. I had her feelings and memories tempered by memories of another world and life.

Ah, yes, butter. I knew I was forgetting something.

I walked past an oba-san and her little boy; a few more steps further, I picked the butter. I think I was set. Now, to pay and return home.

Having my stuff stolen was also a big blow to my plans. All the research documents I gathered hadn't been found at the prison. My only hope now was that the new chakra-locking measures I added to my seals held. I didn't want to deal with an army of Hinata clones in a few years.

"Miss?"

The cashier's voice interrupted my musings. I looked at the man, nodded, and placed the basket in front of him.

He calculated the price. I paid, then left.

I coated my feet in chakra and walked up the walls until I was at the highway; it was time to go home and bake.

Maybe Jiraiya could help? The sannin didn't strike me as someone dependable, but Naruto seemed fond of the old man. From what I remembered, Jiraiya wasn't willing to get involved in political matters, but if not with the council, maybe with the seals?

Head full of thoughts and possibilities, I arrived at my apartment.

There were more people there besides Karin. Maybe I should have expected that. Today was a day to put my social tolerance to the test.

I opened the door and stepped inside.

"Hinata-chan!"

A mop of pink hair glomped on me as soon as I entered. I held my arms out so my grocer didn't hit Sakura-chan. From between her hugs, I cast a glance at the second visitor. The bags fell from my trembling fingers.

In my living room, sitting on my couch, no one other than Konoha's Beautiful Green Wild Beast, The Handsome Devil of the Hidden Leaf: Rock Lee in the flesh.

"Watch out!" Rock Lee cried out.

Sakura let go of me and tried to pick up my bags. It slipped through her fingers, fell, and caused a huge mess.

More details filtered in.

Rock Lee wore his iconic green leotard, orange leg warmers, and red forehead protector as a belt. His hands were covered in bandages, and crutches were propped against the couch.

Karin was also in the room. After almost a month of forced proximity with the redhead, it was easy to pick on her habits. She kept sneaking glances— when she thought no one was looking — at Rock Lee's stomach, no, not stomach, his navel. She was totally checking out his chakra, wasn't she?

I could see it. I could even make a good guess about what was happening. Karin wasn't someone to be attracted by appearance but by chakra. How would Rock Lee's chakra feel to her?

A smile crept into my face. I was totally in favor. Karin and Rock Lee's ship? Heck yeah! The Beautiful Green Beast Got game!

Then I caught a second glance—this time toward Sakura.

Oh my. Karin was on fire!

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.

Proofreader: Cakeeight.

 

[okashihime]

From the kitchen counter, where I worked preparing the baking dough, I heard Karin recounting the events from when we met to the two visitors.

To hear Karin tell it, I fought and overpowered an army of ninjas. I mean, her tale wasn't wrong. I did fight a fair number of enemies, but most of the fight was done by Assassination-chan to distract the opposition and let us flee. Even so, my clone mostly did hit-and-run tactics, which resulted in much chasing around and much less killing. Assassination-chan, despite her dramatic name, hadn't killed more than four, and those were mostly the weaker ones.

Once jonins joined the fray, she was relegated to more fleeing than fighting.

Still, the audience seemed captivated. Rock Lee's eyes shone with enthusiasm at the recounting, while Sakura looked parts scared, parts relieved, parts interested.

But while I kneaded the dough, there was one question that kept nagging me.

Why was Rock Lee here?

Not that I was against him being here. No, I was giddy in a way I hadn't been since academy graduation and my assignment with Kakashi-sensei. Rock Lee, in my living room. The barely suppressed snicker from Sakura was enough to tell me I wasn't able to suppress all the excitement, or dancing.

I mean. I might have fangirled– just a little – once the surprise had its time to settle in. It was Rock Lee, gawdamnit. He was cool. Can you blame me?

That even led to a whole conversation in which Sakura-chan gleefully spilled some of my less-than-savvy early-years incidents. Ugh, it was embarrassing yet nice.

Sakura, I could guess why she was here. Naruto, or maybe someone else, might have told her the news that I was back. I was pretty good friends with the tsuntsun, and it was normal she'd want to visit after I went missing. That still didn't explain Rock Lee. And from the way the two talked to each other, this didn't look like a new development.

Hadn't Ino, not so long ago, told me Sakura had left flowers for Rock Lee and visited him a few times? Was there more to this? Had Sakura finally let go of her Emosuke obsession? Again, at the risk of allowing Fangirl-sama to take over too much, Rock Lee was cool. I'd even go for him if I had any interest in boys.

Yeah, he might look silly and maybe could do with a better haircut and maybe trimming his eyebrows, but those were just details that— Gah, stop. Deep breaths, control the Fangirl, don't let her control you.

I divided the dough in small bits and placed them on the cupcake molds. Once I had distributed all the dough, I put the molds in the oven. It was a waiting game now. In the living room, Karin was now going over how I 'saved' her from the badgers. She conveniently left out I was the reason she was in danger with the badgers in the first place. I cleaned my hands in the apron, took a jar of juice, some cups, returned to the living room. I had visitors, and I was going to do my best to be a good host.

---

"These are so good." Karin moaned after taking yet another bite of her cupcake.

Pressed for time and opportunity, I went with simple flavors. I did have to hide a batch of the cupcakes, however. By the rate they just disappeared between the three teens, if I hadn't, Ino's sweets would have been devoured before I could leave the house.

At some point, I had taken an older version of my comms board from my room and strapped it to my arm. That got me an interested glance from Karin when the board popped out of the seal. It reminded me that even though we shared a lot of time together, fuinjutsu was never discussed.

The weeks walk underground had given me plenty of time to think and design changes to my seals. Something I'd have to start working on soonish.

I gave her a nod and a smile, she gave me another in return.

I wrote my question.

"How are you faring, Rock Lee?" I cast a glance at the crutches.

The mood soured a little. Sakura's smile dropped. Rock Lee's smile was slightly brittle, but he still sounded cheerful when answering.

"This is nothing!" He boasted. "This small injury won't get in my way of becoming a splendid ninja!"

Two things I noticed, or maybe three. Rock Lee didn't seem to be even a little bit doubtful about that declaration despite what should have been horrible news from the doctors. Sakura looked at Rock Lee with a gaze full of something I couldn't place. Karin did blush a bit, looking at both Sakura and Rock Lee.

I wished the redhead all the best of luck. She was in for a rough journey.

"But Hinata-san," Rock Lee said after a brief silence. "There's one thing I never understood. Why did you almost kill Neji? Isn't he also a Hyuga?"

Karin looked at Rock Lee and then at me, trying to understand what the boy had said. Then her eyes widened, and a hand covered her mouth. I gave her a slight shake of the head. Wrote words with my threads in a way I knew only Karin would be able to read. "I'll explain later, promise."

To Rock Lee, I did have to consider things before writing my answer.

Why did my clone almost kill Neji? Maybe I could blame it on my clones being a bit wild and somewhat out of control, but that wasn't the real reason. The question here was, do I want to tell them the truth? Whatever I said here might go back to the Hyuga.

I asked a question before answering.

"Ino-chan told me Hyuga Neji sought me out in the forest. Why?"

Lee read my words, tilted his head. Scrunched his bushy brows. "He never told us."

I erased my words, wrote others. Decided I wasn't going to lie. "He looked at me like he wanted to kill me. I had to disabuse him of that notion."

"He wouldn't!" Rock Lee said, agitated. "You're the daughter of the clan leader."

"Am I?" I wrote back. Rock Lee opened his mouth, maybe to argue, but I cut him off. "My name is Hinata, I don't have a surname." I rasped out. Left the implications of that for them to decide.

The room sunk into silence. Karin looked at me like she was seeing me for the first time. Sakura had tears in her eyes for some reason. Lee looked troubled. I got up from the couch, went back to the kitchen to check the second batch of pastries. Maybe to flee from the awkward mood as well.

Not that I managed to flee for long. A knock at my apartment's door forced me out of the kitchen into the awkwardness of the living room. On the other side was a bundle of chakra that had changed in the almost two months I was away, but it was still inherently recognizable.

I opened the door.

There on the other side was Sasuke, wearing the traditional Uchiha attire, looking at me.

There was this moment of silence, like he didn't know what to say or why he was even here. I blame the awkward mood from the talk earlier making me overly emotional. Or maybe it was just teenage hormones messing with my head.

I crossed the distance and hugged Sasuke, something I never thought I would do again. I was glad he hadn't fled or something silly like that.

Man, I was a horrible mess if seeing Emosuke made me this happy.

 

[okashihime]

I pulled away from the hug with Sakuke, looking at him like it was the first time I was seeing him: still dark and brooding, but I couldn't deny his boyish charm. Those good looks that belonged on a boy's band. I could even imagine it. Sasuke playing the guitar, giving that cold look to the horde of fan girls.


I felt a blush creep on my cheeks. Oh, that was bad.


Was this the new normal now? No more Best Girl Ino? It was time for Best Boy Sakuke?

---

Ok, ok, that's lame. I apologize. Didn't have time to write a proper april's fool chapter. Life has been hectic. But hey! The chibis I commissioned are done! Created by Kimi.


I hope you enjoy it!

Hinata

Ino

 

[okashihime]

"Is he your boyfriend?"

I scowled, looked at Karin like she'd grown a second head. How did all the awkwardness in the living room give her the impression I had anything going on with Sasuke? Was it the hug? It was the hug, wasn't it?

We were in the kitchen preparing more refreshments and pastries. No, I was here fleeing from the embarrassing. Karin had followed me to ask horror inducing questions.

The redhead walked to my side, bumped shoulders with me. "That Hyuga girl?" She whispered.

I looked at her, confused. What was she talking about? Then, memory hit me. That day in the forest, soon after we escaped. Hadn't she asked something similar? I nodded, then shrugged. Threads wrote my message. "It was a long time ago."

"What happened?"

My hands stopped, shoulders slumped. I didn't want to talk about it, at least not now. "Later?"

Karin looked at the words I wrote, nodded. She gave me a sort of one-arm hug that I leaned into. Couldn't this day just end? I needed time to breathe, to recharge, to untangle my thoughts before I drowned in all these interactions. I wasn't myself right now, and people kept pushing me into social situations I had no defense against.

I took a deep breath. I was a badass strong kunoichi. I could survive some emotional torture. I just needed to endure a while longer before I could flee, go meet Best Girl Ino. Maybe I'd have some peace and quiet there. Maybe snuggling a cute blondie.

Ugh, I hated feeling this vulnerable and needy. I felt like a stranger inside my own mind.

"Are you alright?" Karin whispered.

I nodded, wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. It was time to face the worst kind of battle.

The living room was a mix of moody silence and cringe tension.

On one side sat Dark and Brooding, casting signature brooding looks at Konoha's Green Beautiful Beast. On another, the Handsome Devil alternated between looking at Sasuke, Sakura, and the kitchen where I had fled.

Maybe worse was Sakura, who sat between the two. She didn't know what to do with herself and her hands, like she'd been caught snogging her best friend's boyfriend behind the shed. It made no sense at all.

With one glance, I knew that if I didn't do anything, everyone would suffer the cringe until a bomb exploded and put us all out of our misery. I placed the new round of pastries and juice on the table, then pulled chairs for me and Karin.

I popped my board, wrote words. "How have you been Sasuke-kun?" That was a safe enough question to start things.

Emosuke looked at my board and the room as if the other's presence was an issue. Ugh, what was his deal now? Why was he always so hard to deal with? Maybe something showed on my face, or maybe he finally noticed the unusually long silence since I asked my question.

"Training with Itachi," Sasuke said, then added. "Doing boring D-rank missions inside the village since Kakashi, you, and Naruto were busy."

Huh, well, that was a normal answer?

"What happened?" Sasuke asked before I could do anything else. "The only thing I've been told is that you went missing in action."

I was guessing this wouldn't be the first or last time I would repeat this story, so I wrote words.

"Well, it all started when I was promoted to chunin." I showed the board.

"You're a chunin?" "You were promoted?" "You never told me that!"

Sakura, Lee, and Karin all spoke at the same time. Yeah, this was going to take a while.

---

After the recounting started, things went much smoother than expected. Even Karin, who had participated in most of the journey, seemed interested in reading my side of events. I did skip a few things.

I told them about the chimera we fought but skipped the clones. I also told them about the research data being stolen, but I didn't elaborate on my plan to steal it myself before it was stolen.

"Flying Thunder God? The Yondaime jutsu?" Rock Lee gasped.

After much peer pressure and against my best judgment, I created the wood beacon. "Black Thunder!" I protested, but no one paid attention.

The kunai passed from hand to hand like it was a shiny new toy or something.

"Can you do it?" He asked, eyes shining in anticipation.

I hated that I couldn't do what he asked. I shook my head. A bit of red touching my ears.

"Why?" It was Sasuke this time.

"It's not complete," I wrote, then wrote more. "When I use it, it just takes me, not my earthly possessions."

There was a moment of silence before Karin gasped.

"That's why you were naked?"

I scowled. Really, Karin? She was doing this on purpose, wasn't she?

"What?" "What are you talking about?"

The redhead did look a bit sheepish, bombarded by questions.

"Well, when Hinata-chan escaped from her cell, she wasn't wearing anything at all. She killed a bunch of shinobi and then just walked back inside the cells like it was the most normal thing in the world. I just thought she liked to fight naked or something."

I facepalmed. Sakura looked horrified. Rock Lee's eyes shone. He looked inspired for some reason. Worst of all was Sasuke's barely there blush. Oh, please, spare me.

Things went on like that for a while longer, with Karin always trying to inject some levity into the situation, even though most of the time, it was at the cost of saying something I had done that, in hindsight, was embarrassing as hell.

I did notice that yes, it was on purpose. Was she trying to distract me? I mean, it was working. Being embarrassed was way better than emotionally traumatized. I guess I could let her off the hook just this once.

---

My pastries were almost depleted, and the living room was a mess. Sakura and Rock Lee had already left, and Karin somehow had made herself scarce inside my three-room apartment. How she managed that was a mystery. That left me with Emosuke, who had wanted to say something for a while but couldn't seem to find the words.

"What is it, Sasuke-kun?" I asked gently.

It was selfish of me, but I wanted him gone. I enjoyed seeing him, and the afternoon of talking was nice, good even, but I still had an Ino to appease and sweets to deliver. Between Sasuke and Ino, there was no need to even guess.

"Mom wanted me to invite you for dinner," he said, finally.

I tilted my head. As far as I know, this was the first time Sasuke invited someone to visit his house.

Was this why he'd been acting so strange? I could even guess why the Uchiha were inviting me for dinner.

Shisui had said Itachi wanted to talk regarding all that political fallout. I wasn't sure why a noble shinobi family like the Uchiha would wish to support an outcast like me. And I was curious about how things were going for the Uchiha with all the changes from how canon things were supposed to go.

I nodded, wrote words. "Should we invite Naruto and Kakashi-sensei as well? Make it a team seven thing?"

Sasuke looked at the words, then shrugged. "That's fine. I think Mom wants to talk with you after dinner."

Not Itachi? He was, what, fifteen? He might be acting as clan head, but maybe Mikoto was pulling the strings. That was a real possibility. I didn't know Mikoto's character. My sole interaction with her was that one meeting at the hospital.

"Three days from now?"

Sasuke nodded. There was this brief moment of silence when I thought he might say or do something else, but he got up.

"Meet here at sunset?" He asked.

I nodded, wrote more. "I'll invite Naruto-kun and Kakashi-sensei."

Sasuke nodded again. I walked him to the door, waved him goodbye. Somehow, Karin reappeared between me walking him to the door and waving him off. From where, I had no idea. I took one look at her, the gleam in her eyes, the barely contained smirk.

"Nope!" I said. Ran out of the apartment, closed the door behind me. I had sweets to deliver. Karin could hold in whatever that was for a little while longer.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Friday.

Proofreader: CakeEight

 

[okashihime]

I landed in front of the flower shop. Before going in, I made sure I was presentable. Rebellious strands of hair went behind the ear, shirt smoothed over, cupcake crumbles dusted off. Ready, I pushed the door open and walked in.

The Receptionist-san blinked, like he was surprised to see me here. I gave him a nod, then hurried inside before he could say anything.

Walking into someone's home uninvited wasn't exactly polite, but I was already here — kind of. Circumstances made fuzzy with clones and all.

The place was quiet.

I crossed the living room, looked at the picture frames on the wall and photos of a young Ino and her family. I walked up the stairs and, without knocking, pulled the door open.

Hug-chan was in bed, hugging a sleeping Ino. There was this tiny spark of jealousy that I quickly squashed. It was dumb and not the time. My clone tried to disentangle herself, but sleeping Ino wasn't keen on letting go. My clone signed a message.

I followed her suggestion, lay on the other side of Ino, and hugged her. It didn't take long until Ino turned around, releasing my clone and holding me instead. Hug-chan took the chance to make her escape, not before hugging Ino one last time.

Once she was up and about, she signed a few more messages and unpopped herself without fanfare.

I was inundated with a whole afternoon of thoughts, ruminations, memories, and sensations. It was… a lot.

I scowled at the ideas from her. Telling people secrets was how things stopped being secrets. But she wasn't wrong. Obsession or not, I liked Ino, and I did want to get closer to her. It wasn't fair to involve her further and keep her in the dark.

The real question now was: did I want to involve Ino?

Honestly, no. Not because I didn't trust her, but because I didn't want to endanger her. That was such a patronizing sentiment that I even wanted to slap myself. It was how I felt, however.

Could I push all this on Ino? Was it even fair? I've been doing my best to enjoy my life, but my time was running out. This most recent brush with death only highlighted that this wasn't a world where things always worked out in the end.

A chakra bundle entered the house. It made a beeline to Ino's room. I watched the door open.

The Yamanaka matriarch — whose name I still didn't know — stood in the doorway, watching us. She looked regal and collected.

Now, I know. How could I not know Ino's mom's name? Well, Ino never introduced her mother and never called her anything other than mom. I wasn't around for any family reunion, so there's no way I might have overheard Inoichi. I wasn't going to ask the mind ninja his wife's name or even Ino her mom's name. That was just weird. A label slotted into my mind. Yamanaka Mother. That was good enough until I learned the woman's moniker.

Our eyes met. She gave me a nod. Pulled the door close.

Was that approval? Or maybe she just didn't want to wake up Ino? At times like this, I did envy Karin's ability to know how others were feeling based on their chakra. That was such a nice thing to have, privacy be damned. It would make social encounters manageable for me, especially with all the social hardships to come.

Shisui said I should gather allies. Maybe the Yamanaka clan? I didn't have that much contact with Ino's parents, but I think they didn't dislike me. At least, I hoped they didn't.

Who else could I call upon?

"…"

Kakashi-sensei? He was famous, and I also think he might be somewhat fond of me. Or maybe I was projecting. Yamato, maybe?

I had the inkling that I should have done more to build connections instead of training to be a good shinobi because, unless I reached Madara levels of absurdness, I might lose the battle to politics.

Or I could flee. There was always that possibility. Just harder now that they also knew about my new jutsu.

Ino stirred, rubbed her face against mine. It was almost like a cat. I even imagined the purring.

"Hinata-chan?" she mumbled.

I threaded my fingers through her hair. It felt nice. "Hello, beautiful," I husked out. I blamed the clone for putting all those ideas in my head.

Ino stared at me from ten centimeters away. Her crystalline blue orbs were intense. "What happened?"

For the third time that day, I told the story. But this time, I didn't censor the details. I spoke in low, hoarse whispers, trying to lower the hurt in my throat, but also unwilling to get up from the bed to write down my explanation. It might have been a spur of the moment, but I didn't keep anything from Ino.

I told her about the labs, about the clones, about my breakdown.

Ino's face changed when I recounted the betrayal. She cried, then I cried when I told her about the prison and escaping. Like me, she didn't have a good impression of the badgers, even if Kumoko was still cute, in an 'I'll kill you' kinda way.

When the recounting was done, maybe an hour later, we were still in bed, still hugging.

"I'm sorry," she said after a moment of silence.

I shook my head. There wasn't anything she needed to apologize for. "None of that," I whispered back. Swallowed the blood. "It wasn't your fault."

"I know, but," she said.

I stopped her again. "I'm back, but I'm still in trouble," I admitted.

"What do you mean?"

More words spilled forth. I told Ino about all the discrimination over the years, and the council wanting me gone or worse. I told her about the Hyuga and the issues with the clan head and the matter of the eye. I told her about Shisui's suggestion, to gather allies, but I had none.

Aside from my past life secrets, I told her everything.

My worries about how Sasuke was behaving. About me not being myself, about other me's trapped in some dungeon being experimented on. I might have become a bit incoherent midway. I wasn't sure.

It all spilled out even when I wanted to keep it all in.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.


Proofreader: Bestests of cakes, CakeEight.