[Chapter Size: 2400 Words.]
Third Person POV
Konoha, 43.
...
...
That night, the village was more crowded than usual. It was to be expected, since the shops were awaiting the visit of the Uzumakis, while the clan ended up staying in their own village to organize matters related to their new residence. They had no interest in going to Konoha that night, but they would certainly come later, which would be a great opportunity for the local merchants.
Despite that, Minato believed that the Uzumaki still harbored a certain resentment toward Konoha, and that it would take time to undo it, with them knowing very well how the vote to withhold aid from their allies had gone, especially the votes among the civilians who did not want to enter another war, as if it were they who fought it to begin with...
Minato was walking with his wives at that moment, and soon they were noticed, becoming the target of gossip as they passed along the main street; undercover ninjas and civilians whispered about them, but no one had the courage to approach them directly.
In any case, Minato acted calmly. His wives observed the surroundings with curiosity; some showed indifference toward the people speaking in low tones.
"It's there," Kushina said cheerfully, pointing at the Ichiraku Ramen sign as they finally reached the restaurant's street.
"Let's go," Minato said, as they entered the place.
"More customers!" Teuchi did not fail to comment while wiping a plate, reacting by instinct whenever he saw someone entering the restaurant, even without looking at them. However, as soon as he lifted his gaze, he nearly dropped everything when he realized who was there.
"Hello, Mr. Minato, Miss Kushina, Miss Tsuna, Miss Hanabi, and Miss Mikoto!" he flashed a wide smile.
His wife stuck her head out of the kitchen where she was preparing the dishes, carrying a baby in her arms, and was equally stunned when she recognized the group.
"It's you!" She broke into the widest smile she could manage.
"That's right. But no need for formality. How have you been?" Minato asked, approaching the counter, while the customers inside the restaurant stopped eating to observe the scene.
"I'm doing great. I heard yesterday that you would be coming back, yesterday. I'm happy you found your way back home," he said, with satisfaction. He remembered very well this group coming here every week to eat together.
"We're back, and we couldn't forget the most delicious restaurant in the village, Dattebane!" Kushina replied, using her habitual catchphrase.
Teuchi began to laugh, pleased. "Then let's prepare a table for you," he said, pointing to the largest free table, as the family gathered.
"Wow, it's so strange to be here again," Tsuna commented, placing a hand on her chin.
Hanabi turned her eyes outward and took a deep breath, looking through the fabric of the entrance. "A crowd is gathering in front of the restaurant. Are these people following us now?" she murmured.
"It's because we're celebrities, something like that in the ninja world," Kushina said, shrugging.
"I think it's more complicated than that," Minato commented, sensing the emotions around them. There was quite a bit of caution outside; it seemed that Konoha still did not know how to deal with them. There was respect, shame, and fear mixed together in the people's feelings.
'Well, I guess this is normal. Over time, things will change,' Minato merely shrugged. After that thought, he did not think he needed to worry about it.
A pair of Anbu jōnin, wearing vests, entered the restaurant. They had eyes without irises... Obviously, they were not there just to eat. Their eyes turned toward the table where the five were seated, but focused directly on Hanabi, the Hyūga.
"They were spying on me," Hanabi did not fail to comment. Her eyes could easily detect anyone who was watching, even if the person used a byakugan.
"Or they might be coming out of their own curiosity, but I think it's by order of your clan. After all, the news about your eyes must have spread immediately among the Hyūga," Minato commented, believing that, most likely, they had been sent by the clan, to the point that they needed to see Hanabi's eye in person.
Even so, the two reached the counter to order something, while occasionally turning their gaze back to the youngest Hyūga.
Minato found the Hyūga's behavior curious. They had no idea what that dōjutsu was. Not even Minato himself knew very well how it worked at first; he helped Hanabi as best he could, since he had made some deductions based on what he knew about the Rinnegan and, in fact, he was right in some parts. After all, her eye possessed some gravitational powers, such as repulsion and attraction.
In any case, the ramen arrived with Teuchi bringing it to them. They ignored the stares, not only from those two, but from more people who entered as the place grew crowded.
Kushina could not help but break into a wide smile as she put the hot noodles with sauce and pieces of meat into her mouth, letting the flavor satisfy her palate. Minato did not stay out of it either and enjoyed the meal.
"Still, it's not better than Minato's cooking," Mikoto commented.
"That's true. As much as I love our husband's cooking, it's good to eat something different from time to time," Tsuna replied.
"Look, it's true. They're married."
"A man married to four women? That's a scandal."
"I don't think so. The Damayo and other nobles tend to marry more than one woman," another replied.
"But there's no one like that in the Leaf Village. No ninja marries more than one woman. This one has five. I just hope this doesn't become a habit in Konoha."
People gossiped as they overheard Mikoto's conversation. Minato found it somewhat comical, but he simply continued eating his ramen, ignoring the gossip. Anything he did now would be a reason for comments. In fact, people were trying to get closer to them.
As soon as they finished the meal, they went back to walking through the streets of Konoha.
"It looks like we're not going to have peace in this place," Hanabi murmured as she noticed several people staring at them in the streets, more than before.
Minato noticed it as well and sighed. It seemed he would not have peaceful days in Konoha, at least until the village got used to them. But on the other hand, it could get worse if people became confident enough to start talking to them. Even so, he looked at his four wives and held the hands of two of them. They understood the look, the silent signal, and did the same, holding the hands of the other two who were free.
As soon as the four were connected to Minato, he simply disappeared in front of the crowd, who looked in surprise at the place where they had been seconds before.
Somewhere far away, they reappeared in the middle of the forest.
"So, how about we enjoy this night in another city?" Minato suggested, while they looked around and saw, no more than a kilometer away, the capital of the Land of Fire.
They would be recognized, but it would take much longer than it did inside the village. No one other than very attentive people or ninjas would be able to recognize them, and even then, no one would bother them. Ordinary people were not that attentive, even though the appearance of Minato's wives drew attention. Thus, they headed into the city.
The rest of the night was calmer. They enjoyed the shops, some games, and ate a few more things in restaurants with delicacies.
When they returned to Konoha, they went straight back to their home, where clones were taking care of the children. That night had been peaceful, something rare for Minato.
It was a bit strange not being able to act like a normal person in public. Fame, indeed, was a problem.
That same night, while they enjoyed some rest at the Namikaze residence, the Hyūga clan gathered immediately.
All the elders were present, with the leader at the center. A man and a woman bowed in the middle of everyone, reporting everything they had seen at Ichiraku Ramen.
"So it's true, just as our scouts said this afternoon... Her eyes have changed," the leader commented, visibly frustrated.
He remembered it well. Once, he had tried to subject Hanabi to the seal using the clan's traditional technique, but he received blows so fast and strange that he could not even react; he ended up in the hospital injured. This happened to everyone who tried to activate the seal on the girl's forehead. Hanabi had always been someone who demanded caution, and from that moment on, it was evident.
Later, she freed herself from the seal along with her grandfather and built a reputation outside the village. A powerful reputation, something that left the clan embarrassed.
After all, the world came to know the girl's terrifying long-range technique, which ended up increasing the fame of the Hyūga clan. The problem was that none of them fought the way she did. Some people, in the last year inside and outside the Land of Fire, asked about that technique; others, upon seeing a Hyūga on a team, felt fear and fled, afraid of being struck by a bow capable of producing A-rank jutsu, fired like arrows at high speed, using the dōjutsu to calculate perfect trajectories.
It was a fatal and dangerous weapon, but no Hyūga besides Hanabi could reproduce it. Even so, the clan ended up gaining fame by association.
It was frustrating. Shameful.
Their pride was wounded as if they were receiving scraps of attention from the world thanks to a Hyūga they did not control, one who had challenged the clan itself.
Now, she had returned with a strange eye, different, yet shining.
"Is that a Byakugan?" the leader asked.
"I confirmed it," said the ninja who had investigated. "But it's different, her chakra is different as well..."
"Search the records. I want to know if there is any description of different eyes in the clan, in our history. I want to know about this different eye," the leader ordered immediately.
"We should ask her directly," suggested one of the elders, while others raised their eyebrows.
"After what happened, I doubt she will answer anything or even want contact with us," another retorted.
"She has a duty to tell us, she was born into the clan!" said a more arrogant elder.
"Good luck trying that," another mocked. "After all, the girl already defeated a large part of the clan that night."
That last comment made the atmosphere among everyone there extremely tense.
The Hyūga clan had declined greatly since that night. They had chosen a side regarding the Hokage and the elders, nurturing a certain resentment toward Minato and Hanabi for what had happened before. The problem was that not only had they made the wrong choice, but they had also lost influence within the village. Now, they were treated as the clan that allied with the former Hokage, just like the Kurama clan and the elders' clans, along with some other smaller clans.
The clan's political position within the village had dropped drastically because of that. Meanwhile, the Uchiha clan, the Hatake clan, the Nara clan, and the Senju clan were at their peak, controlling the village's decisions, and now the Namikaze clan had returned to the village, also securing a seat on the council among the great clans. The Uzumaki clan would also be among the elders; the village would have around six heads controlling it.
Not to mention the power that the latter possessed, capable of crushing any bureaucratic force, if they wished.
"We can't do anything regarding the girl. We can ask, but we cannot become their enemies," the leader said, seeming to have his pride wounded at having to retreat. "As frustrated as you are since that night, remember that we made a decision. Supporting Hiruzen at that time was a choice, and now we are paying for it. The Namikaze clan is dangerous. They are capable of destroying our entire clan and still making the whole village turn a blind eye to it the next day."
None of the elders liked that. But they were all empty-handed.
"If her grandfather appears in the village, don't try anything either. Just ask questions politely," he continued. "And Hiashi Hyūga, you're from the same generation as them... I want you to try to talk to them. Since they're here now, we must find out what those eyes of hers mean," the elder ordered the young man beside him, who nodded.
Meanwhile, in a specific direction from where that meeting was taking place, passing through countless houses, trees, and all kinds of barriers, someone observed everything without any of them knowing. Blue eyes shone in a silent room.
Minato rose from the bed and touched his wife's back.
"Don't worry about them. They won't try to do anything, neither to you nor to your grandfather. They know what we're capable of now," Minato said.
Hanabi looked at him and nodded. She was not surprised. She had also 'seen' the meeting from there. Hanabi kept her eyes fixed in the direction of the Hyūga clan, seeing through countless barriers until finding the exact location. Even with barriers and fūinjutsu protecting the clan's perimeter, her eyes could see.
She could not hear, but she had been well versed in lip reading ever since Minato encouraged her to train at Camp 12, focused on espionage during the Second Ninja War. Now, with that eye, her range reached the point where she could see even other nations around the Land of Fire, able to see anything within that radius.
Meanwhile, Minato possessed observation haki, which was even more powerful. He did not even need to look to see everything that was said at the meeting.
"Come, let's sleep," Minato said.
Hanabi nodded, no longer worried about her former clan. It did not matter anymore. They were nothing compared to what she was now.
Note: A chapter showing their first interaction in the village. I want to do more with Minato seeing his old companions the next day, before a small timeskip of a few weeks and starting to form a team.
Or do you want another chapter with a reaction from the elemental nations after the news of the return of the Namikaze clan and the Uzumaki clan to the village.
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