Naruto: I, who fooled the ninja world, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 305 Do you know what the emotion furthest from 'understanding' is?

Hinata Aoi found this feeling strange.

She has always considered herself a straightforward person who dares to love and hate.

They say what's on their mind, and they'll do what they believe is right, even if it means getting hurt.

What she detested most was hypocrisy and cowardice.

Just like before, she demanded that the branch family members assigned to spar with her give it their all.

She could see the suppressed hatred in the eyes of those who had separated from the family, and she could also sense the rebellious impulse in their bones.

She promised never to use the "Caged Bird" curse, but when those people faced her, they still only showed disgusting weakness, flattery, and servility.

That outwardly compliant attitude, yet inwardly filled with fear and resentment, made her feel incredibly stifled.

For example, regarding the death of her father, Hyuga Higo, she didn't feel much of the grief she should have felt.

My father had no children until he was forty, which almost caused his lineage to die out. It wasn't until he was forty that he finally had his daughter.

From then on, she was pampered and believed that her father loved her.

Even after she became a ninja, she was still confined to her clan and forbidden from leaving the village to carry out missions.

That day, the day before she lost to Hyuga Kumokawa, she had a huge fight with her father and saw the coldness in his eyes, finally realizing...

She finally understood that in her father's eyes, she was less a daughter by blood and more a "vessel" used to continue the bloodline of that clan.

The protection wasn't out of love, but because if she died, or something unexpected happened, that line of the main family bloodline would be cut off.

The "carrier" only needs to live, marry a suitable person, and continue her bloodline; that's enough.

In her father's eyes, apart from the pure bloodline of the "main family," she was no different from those clansmen who were marked with curses at birth.

Therefore, she disliked both the subservient branch families and the rigid, harsh main family like her father's.

Deep down, she admires strength and is extremely competitive, hoping to go to the battlefield and use the secret techniques she has learned in real combat.

That's why she admires Hinata Kumokawa; she feels that she and he are the same kind of people, neither of them willing to be bound by their predetermined identities.

She watched as Hyuga Kumokawa, as a member of the branch family, did what he most wanted to do on the battlefield, but was unable to do because of his status.

Watching Hyuga Kumokawa gradually demonstrate his talent, leading the branch family to break free from the cage set up by the main family, and becoming a hero of the branch family and even the entire Konoha.

She admired Hinata Kumokawa's courage, his strategy, and his undeniable strength.

However, I don't know when it started, this envy began to quietly change.

Just as fine sand piles up to form a tower, and trickles converge to form rivers.

Envy gradually turned into deep admiration, and unknowingly, admiration transformed into an unattainable aspiration.

This longing, after Hyuga Kumokawa rescued her from Hyuga Neji, fermented into a complex emotion that even she herself couldn't explain.

Trust? Admiration?
Or is it an even more unspeakable emotion?

She couldn't tell.

Hinata Aoi only knows that whenever she faces Hinata Kumokawa, her usual bold and outspoken self disappears.

Instead, I become someone who hesitates, shrinks back, is cautious, and even loses their composure because of a single word or glance from the other person.

She became the person she hated most, which made her feel extremely frustrated and conflicted.

At this moment, hearing Hinata Kumokawa's seemingly casual question, yet one that seemed to pierce through all her pretenses...

Are you waiting for me too?

Her throat bobbed uncontrollably, as if something was stuck there.

The struggle and hesitation can last only a moment.

She stopped trying to figure out what kind of emotion it was.

Hinata Aoi raised her head, forcing herself to meet those pale blue eyes that seemed to see through everything, and uttered that word:

"Yes." Saying this word felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Her gaze no longer wavered as she looked directly at him, adding, "I've been waiting for you too."

The moment she said those words, her tense nerves suddenly relaxed, and at the same time, an even stronger surge of emotion welled up in her chest.

That was nervousness...

She stared intently into Hinata Kumokawa's eyes, holding her breath, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

In the ward, sunlight flowed quietly, and the noise outside the window seemed to be shut out by an invisible barrier.

Time stretched out in silence, each second agonizing.

[Ding! Your lie has been judged as [sweet talk], [flirting], and [hypocritical]. Hinata Aoi experienced a severe emotional fluctuation, reaching the level of [complete belief], and gained 1500 truth points.]

Knew it……

He was just someone who was being deceived by a disguise.

Hinata Kumokawa averted his gaze from hers, turning instead to look at the clear yet distant sky outside the window, and asked in a calm tone:

Do you know what emotion is furthest from 'understanding'?

Hinata Aoi was stunned, completely unprepared for him to ask such a question.

“Is it ‘cowardice’?” she asked hesitantly.

In her view, cowardice is the biggest obstacle to mutual understanding. If you don't dare to speak up, how can you understand the other person? How can you make the other person understand you?
"wrong answer."

Hinata Kumokawa turned his head and looked at her again, a smile appearing on his lips: "I understand what you mean, but I don't have that intention right now."

"But I won't advise you to give up, because I know you're not the kind of person who would give up on your own initiative."

"So, I'm giving you this question, and I'll give you one chance to answer it every year."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "But you should understand that there may not be a single correct answer to this question."

Whether it is correct or not is entirely based on my subjective judgment.

"What will happen if I answer correctly?" Hinata Aoi asked instinctively.

Hinata Kumokawa didn't answer directly, but just looked at her quietly, then slowly raised his uninjured hand and gently placed it on her cheek.

The sudden contact made Hinata Aoi stiffen.

“If you answer correctly, I will grant you one request unconditionally,” Hinata Kumokawa said, looking into her eyes.

No notification sound was heard.

Because Hinata Kumokawa didn't lie, and there was no need for him to lie.

This is a question without a fixed answer; right or wrong depends entirely on Hinata Kumokawa's subjective will.

That means that she can only answer correctly when Xiang Yunchuan "wants" her to answer correctly, and only then will he be "willing" to unconditionally agree to her request.

Hinata Kumokawa certainly knew Hinata Aoi's thoughts, but unfortunately, the person Hinata Aoi saw was not the real him; Hinata Aoi had simply fallen for a false pretense.

However, at this moment, Hinata Aoi was completely unable to think.

The scalding heat from the hand pressed against her cheek instantly engulfed her entire body.

The heat spread rapidly from the point of contact, and her cheeks, neck, and even the skin all over her body began to burn, making her head feel dizzy.

At this delicate moment.

dong dong dong.

A knock sounded, but before there was a response from inside, the door was pushed open.

"Yun Chuan, how are you feeling? The Third Hokage, he..." Kakashi Hatake said casually as he walked inside.

But the next moment, his words came to an abrupt end.

(End of this chapter)