Time flowed like water, and several months quietly passed as Hinata focused on her Cultivate, occasionally observing the outside world with cold detachment.
She had already mastered the Breath Concealment Technique to perfection; having the System space made her practice speed ten times faster.
As she walked through the Hyuga Clan Compound, she remained nothing more than the harmless Miss in the eyes of the branch family guards and clansmen.
Aside from a level of composure that seemed unusual for her age, there was nothing out of the ordinary about her.
This ordinariness was exactly what Hinata wanted... One afternoon, after a break in her training, Hinata rarely left her room. Using the excuse of taking a walk, she headed toward a training ground near the edge of Konoha where the foot traffic was relatively light.
She found a secluded large tree, lightly leaped onto a branch, and observed Konoha.
Her current physical fitness far exceeded that of her peers.
Hinata looked around listlessly, her white eyes lazily scanning the training ground below.
Before long, some movement came from the other side of the training ground.
A tall, middle-aged man with an overly passionate aura, wearing a green jumpsuit and a bizarre Kappa-style bowl cut, was undergoing some form of brutal physical training.
"This is youth! My blood is boiling! Five hundred more push-ups!"
The middle-aged man swung his fists, his eyes brimming with tears.
"Hahaha! My youth will never fade!"
Might Guy's voice was loud and full of passion.
Hinata's lips twitched slightly.
As expected, his style is quite unique... I already felt that way when watching the anime.
This amazing vitality is simply not like that of a carbon-based lifeform.
While Hinata was silently criticizing this hot-blooded middle-aged man, another figure sauntered into the training ground entrance.
Silver hair styled like a broom, a headband covering one eye, a black mask over his face, and holding a copy of icha icha paradise in his hand. He walked lazily as if he hadn't fully woken up.
The benchmark, Kakashi, had arrived.
Guy immediately rushed over like he had been injected with adrenaline.
"Kakashi! My eternal rival! Let's settle this! Let's see who can run a hundred laps around Konoha first!"
Kakashi's Dead fish eyes lifted from icha icha paradise, showing no emotion.
"No, it's a hassle, and I'm busy."
As he spoke, he waved the book in his hand.
"Kakashi! How can you be so neglectful of your youth!"
Hinata watched with great interest from the tree.
This is a classic scene.
However, Kakashi should still be officially in the Anbu right now and hasn't become a teacher yet. He's probably just sneaking out to slack off... Her gaze mostly fell on Kakashi.
Sharingan Kakashi, the man who copied over a thousand Ninjutsu, yet his Chakra reserves are pitifully small.
Well, you can't exactly say they're small, but compared to monsters like Naruto, he does seem quite lacking.
Speaking of which, what exactly is written in icha icha paradise... Kakashi reads it with such relish; I'll have to get a copy to read for myself another day.
Hinata continued to observe.
Kakashi seemed to have no choice but to give in to Guy's pestering. He closed his beloved icha icha paradise and sighed.
"Fine, then let's do something more challenging..."
"Take this, Guy!"
"Come on, Kakashi!!! Bring it on!"
The two faced off, their eyes burning with intensity, as they reached out their hands almost simultaneously.
"Hah!"
"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"
Watching these two goofballs, Hinata almost burst out laughing.
Just as Kakashi and Guy were engaged in their "intense" rock-paper-scissors duel, a slight rustling sound came from the woods at the edge of the training ground.
Hinata's gaze swept over.
She saw a small figure with yellow hair and dirty orange clothes crouching by the woods, busy with something. It was Naruto Uzumaki.
He was sitting on the ground with a circular wooden board he had found from somewhere, drawing a target on it. He was likely looking for something to do, either to train or just to pass the time.
Kakashi also noticed Naruto. A flicker of complex emotions passed through his eyes—concern, pity, and perhaps a hint of guilt toward his teacher's orphan.
His feet moved slightly, but in the end, he didn't walk over. His status and personality made him ill-suited for handling such a scene.
Hinata took out another candy, then used her fingernail to pinch a small piece of bark from the branch and gently wrapped the candy in it.
She estimated the distance and angle, then gave it a light flick with her finger.
The bark-wrapped candy traced a subtle arc and landed on the ground in front of Naruto with a soft "thud," right next to him.
Startled by the sound, Naruto stopped what he was doing and picked up the small package in confusion.
Opening it, he saw the familiar candy, the same as the one the little girl had given him last time.
He jerked his head up, his blue eyes searching around, but there were only the swaying leaves on the trees.
Confused, Naruto gripped the candy, and the loneliness in his heart seemed to be diluted by this sudden sweetness.
He carefully put the candy into his mouth, and a small smile finally appeared on his face.
Over here, Kakashi's gaze began to sweep seemingly unintentionally toward the large tree where Hinata was hiding. A flash of realization and deeper curiosity appeared in his exposed eye.
He had detected that extremely subtle movement. He lifted his headband, opened his Sharingan, and looked toward Hinata... "The Miss of the Hyuga Clan? She's certainly not simple."
Kakashi thought to himself.
Kakashi had naturally heard the rumors about Hinata. While others thought it was just hype, Kakashi didn't think so.
He was a Genius when he was young and knew the fundamental difference between a Genius and an ordinary person. Such things were possible; the Uchiha Clan had such a Genius who participated in the Ninja World War at age four, graduated at seven, and joined the Anbu at eleven.
Even he had to admit that guy was a Genius. If it were that guy, he wouldn't find it strange at all.
Furthermore, the Hyuga Clan was on equal footing with the Uchiha Clan, so it wasn't surprising for a Genius to appear... Seeing that her goal was achieved, Hinata didn't stay any longer.
Like a nimble cat, she noiselessly slid down the other side of the tree. After a few flashes of her figure, she disappeared into the dense forest, hiding her contribution and her name.
[Ding! Performed a second 'Feeding' of the plot character Naruto Uzumaki, slightly improving his mood. points gained: 50]
[System Evaluation: The host's behavioral pattern is becoming clear—low-cost investment in the protagonist, and observation of supporting characters and villains for amusement. The strategy is clear and the efficiency is quite high!]
It was just a small gesture since she happened to run into him.
Naruto was destined not to turn dark in the future, so it was good to let him suffer a little less pain.
As for being noticed by Kakashi? It didn't matter. Kakashi wouldn't meddle in others' business, and she guessed that Kakashi didn't want to bring trouble upon himself at all.
Moreover, letting these smart people speculate and fill in the blanks themselves sometimes worked better at muddying the waters than hiding completely. This trick never failed.