n

n

nRecalling the previous fight that he had with Hiruko, Kuroto can't help but speak,

"Without a doubt, Hiruko will not leave Konoha out of trouble for too long, now that he has completed his Kekkei Genkai Absorption Ritual.

"

nHiruko hopes to destroy the order of the entire shinobi world, so it's obvious that he will start with the strongest shinobi village.

nEven if Obito can manage to hold back Hiruko for a while, Hiruko won't be restrained for too long, and in that case, Obito will obviously make sure that Hiruko's first target is Konoha.

nThis is not very difficult to guess.

nWhen Shisui heard this, he was a bit worried, because if what Kuroto said is true, then anyone other than him won't be able to defeat Hiruko within current Konoha, and Kuroto can't afford to reveal his strength in front of the whole village, as that would give away his other identity of 'Yama!'

n…

nA few hours passed by shortly.

nThe snow-covered Konoha, bathed in the cold moonlight looked more and more dream-like. The white snow reflected the moonlight, giving the snow an unreal glow, making the night much brighter than usual.

nAt this time, Kuroto stood in one of the many streets, with his hands in the pocket of his short Kimono, he was leaning against the wall of the entrance of this particular alley.

nAfter a while of waiting, Uzumaki Naruto walked into the alley with a downcast look, the whole person was a little absent, he didn't even bother dusting of the snow that gathered over his head and clothes.

nWith the arrival of Naruto, Kuroto raised his hands and said,

"Yo!

"

nHearing the sudden sound, Naruto raised his head to look at the person who spoke, then lowered back his head with a saddened expression, and continued walking away.

nKuroto whose hand was still raised felt a little awkward.

nNo one had ever bothered to actively greet Naruto, so Naruto subconsciously thought that this person wasn't talking to him but speaking to someone else, as such Naruto ignored him.

nSeeing Naruto walking away while ignoring him, Kuroto sighed,

"This kid!

"

nShaking his head helplessly, Kuroto ran forward and shouted,

"Hey kid, stop I am talking to you!

"

nNaruto's ears perked up, he turned his head to look at the person, then glanced around himself, when he noticed that there was no one else on the street other than him and this person, Naruto pointed at himself and asked in a confused manner,

"Ano, Onii-san, were you talking to me just now?

"

nKuroto nodded,

"Who else do you see here besides the two of us?

"

nNaruto noticed Kuroto's eyes, and suddenly remembered that they were very similar to the ones that the girl had, realizing, Naruto said,

"Ne-ne Onii-san, your eyes are exactly, exactly the same as the eyes of that girl I met today!

"

nKuroto nodded and patiently explained,

"You are right, these eyes are called Byakugan, and Byakugan is a Kekkei Genkai of the Hyuga Clan, every one of the Hyuga Clan has similar eyes like mine.

"

nNaruto tilted his head and muttered,

"Byakugan? Kekkei Genkai? Ano, what's a Kekkei Genkai?

"

nKuroto shook his head,

"You will learn that in the future, anyway, I am here for another purpose.

"

nNaruto was confused and asked,

"Another purpose?

"

nKuroto nodded and spoke,

"Well that girl you helped today is sort of like a distant sister to me, and since you helped her out, I appreciate what you did for her, and am therefore here to say thank you. To repay the favor, I decided to treat you to some food, how about it? Would you like to eat some ramen?

"

nNaruto's eyes suddenly sparkled, his whole demeanor changed instantly and he became extremely excited,

"What? What? Onii-san, are you really going to treat me to ramen? Datebayo!

"

nKuroto nodded, then patted Naruto's head, and spoke with a smile,

"Mhm, come on, I'll treat you to some ramen.

" – After doing so he started walking towards the direction of Ichiraku Ramen Shop.

nWhen Kuroto's hand approached Naruto's head, Naruto instinctively clutched his eyes, but when he felt the sensation on his head, Naruto's eyes widened in surprise.

nAnd when that sensation went away, Naruto turned to look at the back of the Onii-san, touched his head for a moment, then excitedly followed the person.

nWhen the two arrived at the Ichiraku Ramen, they noticed that the shop was empty, with only the owner of the Ichiraku Ramen, Teuchi-san was leisurely sitting at the counter.

nSeeing the two customers walk in, Teuchi got up, but noticing the identity of the two people, Teuchi raised an eyebrow.

nKuroto spoke,

"How are you Teuchi-san? It's been a while since I have come to eat ramen.

"

nTeuchi nodded with an amiable smile,

"Indeed it has been, how have you been Kuroto? Well come on in, we can have the pleasantries later, first let's get you something to eat. And I also see that you have brought someone along with you.

"

nKuroto nodded,

"Well, Uzumaki Naruto-Kun did a good thing today, so I decided that he must be rewarded for helping out the girl who was being bullied, and I figured that Ramen would be the best way, so here we are.

"

nTeuchi was surprised and not so at the same time, after all, he knows whose son Naruto is, and he couldn't agree more with Kuroto's words.

"Certainly-certainly, a good deed must always be rewarded, so Naruto, tell me what would you like to eat?

"

nNaruto observed the Hyuga Onii-san's discussion with Teuchi, and when Teuchi asked Naruto what he would like to eat, Naruto glanced at the menu with a tangled expression, after hesitating a little, Naruto turned towards Kuroto and asked,

"Onii-san, can I… can I order anything?

"

nKuroto folded his arms over his chest in a deep-thinking posture.

nNaruto was a bit nervous.

nFinally, Kuroto nodded with a grin,

"Alright, you can order whatever you want, but there is a condition.

"

nNaruto hurriedly questioned,

"What… what condition?

"

nKuroto said,

"The condition is that you must finish all the things that you order!

"

nNaruto hurriedly nodded, and cheered,

"Yahoo… In that case, one pork cutlet, chicken cutlet, fish cutlet, and… and…

"

nImmediately Naruto ordered a series of bowls of ramen.

nAnd soon enough, Teuchi-san presented several bowls of ramen for Naruto.

nLooking at the five bowls of ramen, each one larger than Naruto's head, Kuroto can't help but shake his head slightly.

nAfter presenting Naruto's order, Teuchi-san turned towards Kuroto and asked,

"And what for you Kuroto?

"

nKuroto just shook his head,

"Nothing for me Teuchi-san, my fiance should have cooked a meal at home, so it's best that I don't eat outside.

"

nTeuchi nodded in understanding and got busy with some other things.

nWith that out of the way, Kuroto watched Naruto happily eat up the different bowls of ramen, and even he was dumbfounded at the speed he was eating at, 'He really is her child, through and through!

"

nAlthough Kuroto didn't have much of an interaction with Uzumaki Kushina, however, because he knew her identity, Kuroto still saw her many times, most of the time at Ichiraku Ramen.

nThe reason why Kuroto never tried to have any interaction with Uzumaki Kushina, because Kuroto didn't want to attach himself to her, if there is friendship then there would be an attachment, and then guilt.

nThe reason for such behavior was not something foolish like preserving the timeline or anything, but it was for his own safety, Kuroto had no confidence in being able to help out the Yondaime couple, as such, it was better to stay away from both of them so that he at least doesn't feel guilty about their death.

nBut now Kuroto has confidence.

nAnd because Naruto has been unfairly treated by the villagers, Kuroto obviously wants to use this opportunity to win over Naruto.

nFor Naruto, who is still a kid, rejected and shunned by the whole village, and not even understanding the reason why he is going through this, the whole village obviously hates him.

nAnd if someone were to appear at this time, and he doesn't hate Naruto, only gives a little bit of care and love he would be able to gain unparalleled importance in Naruto's heart.

nUmino Iruka is a clear example of this.

nUnlike Uchiha Sasuke, who didn't hesitate to turn his face on the whole village, he didn't even hesitate to turn against Hatake Kakashi, the person who taught him without any reservation.

nNaruto is the kind of person who will always remember you in his heart.

nAs such it wouldn't be wrong to say that if feelings are an investment, then Naruto at the moment is a potential stock with the cheapest investment requirement and the best future returns.

nAnd Kuroto who understands this would obviously not hesitate to invest in such prospective stock.

nWhile Kuroto was considering all these things, Naruto had already finished eating.

n

"Burrrppppp…!!!

" – a loud burp escaped Naruto's breaking Kuroto out of his thoughts.

nSeeing the empty bowls, Kuroto was surprised,

"Finished already?

"

nNaruto nodded happily,

"Thank you so much for the hospitality!

"

nThen Naruto suddenly laughed a bit embarrassed and spoke,

"Onii-san, onii-san… actually… you see, actually, the one who saved your sister today was not me, but someone named Uchiha Sasuke… so…

"

nKuroto thought, 'This kid didn't speak so before eating the ramen.' – And asked curiously,

"Oh? Then that Uchiha Sasuke should very strong, right?

"

nNaruto nodded quickly while dangling his legs,

"Yeah, yeah, he is very strong, I have never seen someone so strong, he was able to single-handily knock down all the three bullies, very-very strong, datebayo!

"

nKuroto's lips arched in a smirk, and he deliberately spoke,

"Oh, it turned out that the benefactor of my sister is this Uchiha Sasuke, then I must thank him.

"

nHearing Kuroto's words, Naruto lowered his head apologetically and said,

"I am sorry.

"

n

"It's okay.

" – Kuroto said with a smile and ruffled Naruto's hair.

"You at least tried to help her, sometimes our intentions are also very important, you have a pure heart and you tried your best, that's what's important, and that's why I treated you, so don't be sad, cheer up.

"

nNaruto didn't speak anything.

nThen Kuroto stood up and said,

"Alright Naruto-kun, I'll be going home now, you should also go to your home and rest.

" – Speaking so, Kuroto placed the money on the counter, walked out of the Ramen shop, and started walking towards his home.

nNaruto didn't speak anything for a while, he still sat at his position with his head down.

nTeuchi collected the money as well as the empty bowls, and spoke to Naruto,

"Naruto, go for it!

"

nNaruto raised his head and looking at Teuchi-san's encouraging smile, he also grinned and ran out of the shop.

nHurriedly chasing out of the shop, Naruto shouted,

"Ne, Onii-san, I forgot to ask, what's your name?

"

nKuroto did not stop in his tracks, but he still answered Naruto's question without turning back,

"My name is Hyuga Kuroto.

"

nNaruto nodded, and shouted again,

"Kuroto-nii-san, I am Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto. Don't forget it, datebayo!

"

nKuroto waved his hand and said,

"Sure thing.

"

nNaruto grinned and again shouted,

"Kuroto-nii-san, are we… are we friends?

"

nBeing asked this, Kuroto suddenly stopped, turned back to glance at Naruto, and asked with a curious expression,

"Do you want to be friends with me?

"

nNaruto immediately replied,

"OF COURSE! If… if you don't mind.

"

nKuroto took a long dramatic pause to think it over.

nNaruto was obviously very nervous seeing Kuroto's expression.

nJust when Naruto thought that he isn't going to agree, Kuroto said,

"Alright, then we are friends

"

nAfter leaving that sentence, Kuroto didn't wait for Naruto to react, turned back, and walked away.

nAlthough Kuroto wants to win over Naruto, he still can't show his eagerness, otherwise, it will attract Sandaime-sama and Shimura Danzo's attention.

nSo even if he wants to invest emotions into the most potential Uzumaki Naruto stock, Kuroto still has to maintain a moderate distance and be mindful of his approach.

nIf not for the fact that Naruto helped Hinata today, and Kuroto, as a Hyuga had a legitimate excuse to approach Naruto, Kuroto wouldn't have chosen to make contact with Naruto.

nAfter walking through the long street, Kuroto suddenly frowned and glanced at an alley at the left corner.

nAfter gazing in the direction of the dark alley for a while, Kuroto faintly said,

"Come out.

"

nPrompted by Kuroto's words, a person walked out of the shadows and said in a respectfully mocking tone,

"Senpai is really worthy of being the person most valued by Orochimaru-sama, even with the Byakugan deactivated, senpai easily perceived me, the perception is really outstanding.

"

nKuroto looked at the person, and his expression condensed.

nThe figure who walked out of the shadows had onyx-eyes, and ash-grey hair tied in a small ponytail, his most consistent feature are his black-rimmed circular glasses. He wore a black cloak that covered most of his body.

nAnd Kuroto was definitely surprised seeing him here.

nBecause this person was none other than Yakushi Kabuto, Orochimaru's right-hand-man. But the current Kabuto is much younger, probably about twelve or thirteen years old, so he looks much immature compared to how he looked during the chunin exams in the original series.

nAfter observing Kabuto for a while Kuroto spoke coldly,

"Orochimaru-sama sent you?

"

nKabuto nodded,

"Yes!

"

n.

n.

nRead up to Chapter - 532 on P.a.t.r.e.o.n.. Page: p-atreon.com

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