With Shindai's help, the three-year-old Naruto and Hinata became...close friends.
Naruto originally wanted to take Hinata to some fun places he knew, but two ninja from the Hyuga Clan showed up.
"Lady Hinata! How did you end up here? We've been looking everywhere for you."
The two Hyuga ninja approached with their Byakugan active, so they were obviously telling the truth.
When they saw Shindai, they greeted him respectfully.
Hinata also knew it was time to go home. She said goodbye to Naruto and Shindai, "Naruto, Brother Shindai, I'm going home now."
Waving goodbye, Naruto called out to Hinata, "Let's play together again soon!"
Hinata left accompanied by the two Hyuga ninja.
Shindai teased, "Stop staring. She's already gone. You'll have loads of time together when you grow up."
Naruto had long gotten used to Shindai's strange remarks.
"Brother Shindai, where should we go next?" Naruto asked.
Shindai sighed, "Play again? The sun's almost down. Pakura Sister and Hikaku Sister must already be home. Let's hurry back before we get scolded for being late."
"Okay fine, burp~"
Shindai, who had just started lifting his foot, stopped in disbelief and asked, "That bowl of ramen...you finished it all by yourself?"
Patting his little belly, Naruto proudly answered, "Yep. Since Brother Shindai suddenly left, I had no choice but to reluctantly eat it all."
"Reluctantly? You brat! I've been so nice to you, even helping you find a wife, yet you want me to get scolded instead!"
Shindai playfully ruffled Naruto's hair with both hands.
"But… wasting food is shameful!"
Shindai grumbled, "Anyway, when we get back, say it was Obito who let you eat it. Obviously they paid anyway! Got it?"
"I got it, I got it, Brother Shindai!"
Hinata returned to the Hyuga clan compound and was having dinner with Hiashi Hyuga and her mother, Hinako Hyuga.
Hinako noticed the ring on Hinata's finger and asked, "Hinata, what's that on your hand…"
Hinata replied, "It's from Brother Shindai. He gave one to me and one to Naruto each. It represents our bond of friendship."
While speaking, Hinata felt extremely uneasy.
To Naruto, it definitely meant only a symbol of friendship. However, Hinata couldn't help feeling that Shindai probably had more than pure intentions when giving those rings.
Hiashi paused his chopsticks mid-air and confirmed with Hinata, "You mean Naruto Uzumaki and Shindai?"
Hinata timidly answered, "Y-yes, Father."
Hinata always felt intimidated by her father because Hiashi trained her relentlessly to be his successor.
However, none of her efforts won Hiashi Hyuga's approval, making Hinata grow more insecure and prone to giving up.
This created a vicious cycle—being scolded made Hinata lose confidence, and losing confidence led to even harsher reprimands.
Hiashi Hyuga frowned slightly. Naruto Uzumaki, the son of Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, and Shindai, who was Minato's trusted aide.
Since Minato reached an alliance with the Uchiha clan, the Uchiha had been thriving more and more.
But the Hyuga clan remained unchanged.
Due to the rigid traditions within the Hyuga clan itself, further progress had become difficult.
As for Hinata, although she was still young, her personality greatly displeased Hiashi—timid and weak-willed, no matter how hard he tried to correct her, she stayed the same.
If she could build a good relationship with Naruto and Shindai, that would not be a bad outcome.
After all, Minato Namikaze would likely remain Hokage for quite some time.
Thus, Hiashi said, "You may go play with Naruto from now on—but don't fall behind in your training!"
Hinata was overjoyed. She had mentally prepared herself for another scolding, never expecting Hiashi to actually agree.
"Thank you, Father."
Hinata had never looked forward to tomorrow with such eagerness before.
Previously, she dreaded each new day—it always meant the same training and the same scoldings.
...
When Shindai wasn't on missions outside Konoha, he spent his time roaming the village with Naruto.
They'd tease Sasuke, spend time with Hinata, or hang out with other friends of Naruto like Shikamaru and Choji.
Today, Shindai had brought Naruto and Hinata to Sasuke's house, where they performed Brothers' Final Showdown right in front of Itachi, Fugaku Uchiha, and Mikoto Uchiha.
Now entering the final scene,
Naruto, playing the role of Itachi, staggered toward Sasuke, while Shindai, dressed as Susanoo, followed closely behind him.
Sasuke leaned against the wall, having just awakened Kakashi's Dojutsu—the Dead-Fish Stare—as he gazed at Naruto and Shindai approaching.
Once Naruto reached Sasuke, he spoke weakly, "Forgive me, Sasuke… this will be the last time I do this…"
Naruto's finger touched Sasuke's forehead, and slowly, he collapsed backward.
At this moment, Shindai—who had been playing Susanoo—stepped aside promptly, becoming both observer and narrator.
"It's Sasuke who wins in the end—an outcome that's really hard to accept. Itachi's abilities are clearly more than this. Normally, he can make seven hand seals in a second, yet during his fight with Sasuke, his speed matched Sasuke's exactly. His movements weren't as sharp as usual, nor did he dodge attacks he should've avoided. He spat blood multiple times mid-battle. Perhaps Itachi was already gravely injured, or maybe… he held back on purpose."
Shindai narrated while applying vermilion pigment to Sasuke's eyes, drawing a crimson tear mark at the corner of his eye.
"Witnessing the death of his older brother, Sasuke awakened the powerful ocular jutsu of the Uchiha clan—the Mangekyo Sharingan! However, he fell unconscious due to physical exhaustion."
Seeing no reaction from Sasuke, Shindai gave a heavy cough.
Sasuke rolled his eyes and lay down beside Naruto.
Shindai announced, "The Brothers' Final Showdown concludes here. Thank you for watching!"
An eerie silence descended upon the room.
Fugaku Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha, and Itachi stared at Shindai in disbelief, completely bewildered about what Shindai and Naruto were doing.
Itachi especially felt that strange sense of familiarity again—the same feeling he experienced when Shindai first tapped Sasuke's forehead.
Clearing his throat, Shindai said, "The performance ended. How about some applause?"
Hinata eagerly started clapping enthusiastically.
These days had been truly different for Hinata. Though at home everything remained the same, with constant scoldings from Hiashi...
Fugaku Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha, and Itachi also reluctantly began clapping.
They might not have understood anything... but hey, respect was due nonetheless.
Naruto, already standing up, proudly held his head high, while Sasuke wore the look of someone who had completely surrendered mentally, shaking his head in defeat.
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