Hinata was just too gentle.
Even as Sasuke openly held Sakura's hand in the middle of the crowd, drawing endless whispers and gossip, Hinata's delicate, pale eyes were focused on only one person—
Naruto.
Naruto-kun must be hurting so much…
Everyone in class already knew that both Sakura and Ino liked Sasuke.
Likewise, Naruto's crush on Sakura had never been a secret either. He had chased after her countless times, only to be beaten back in embarrassment.
But now—
The once cold and distant Sasuke was standing there, hand in hand with Sakura, their intimacy obvious. It was as if something irreversible had already happened between them.
While Hinata quietly worried about Naruto—
Ino stepped forward.
She didn't dare confront Sasuke directly. Her feelings for him ran too deep.
So all her anger was aimed at Sakura.
"Ino, let me tell you clearly," Sakura said proudly, squeezing Sasuke's hand tighter. "Sasuke and I are together now."
"I'm his girlfriend. He's my boyfriend."
The way Sakura declared it so confidently pierced Ino's heart.
The pain of losing someone you loved was suffocating.
Her eyes immediately welled up.
In the original story, Ino had cried when Sasuke left the village. Her feelings had always been genuine.
But compared to Sakura's near-obsessive devotion back then, Ino had at least maintained some restraint.
…
"Now this is interesting," Kiba muttered, grinning.
He envied Sasuke too—but not for the girls. He envied Sasuke's strength.
Sasuke was the genius of their class—first in both ninjutsu and taijutsu.
And he was ridiculously handsome on top of that.
"Two girls fighting over one guy… how troublesome," Shino commented flatly.
Choji glanced at Shikamaru. "Should we stop Ino?"
The three clans had always been close. They'd grown up together.
From the outside, it looked like Ino was picking a fight with Sakura.
But in truth—
Sakura had already won.
Right now, Ino looked like she was humiliating herself.
Shikamaru sighed. "Ino's liked Sasuke for years."
"I don't know what Sakura did to make that ice-cold guy accept her."
Even with his intelligence, Shikamaru couldn't guess the truth.
Sasuke had been the one who made the move.
"But maybe this is good," Shikamaru muttered. "Better to be hurt now than later."
The old Sasuke had carried darkness in him. A thirst for revenge.
Even if he had accepted Ino back then, would she have been happy?
Sometimes, heartbreak was mercy.
…
Meanwhile—
Sasuke's mind was racing.
He saw three paths before him.
First—defend Sakura, crush Ino, and protect his current girlfriend's pride.
Second—soothe Ino, keep her future potential, and avoid losing a possible member of his harem.
Third—
He hadn't fully formed it yet.
If he sided with Sakura completely, he'd likely lose Ino forever.
If he leaned toward Ino, Sakura might explode.
Ayame worked because Sakura didn't know.
Ino was different.
She would never quietly accept being hidden in the shadows—especially not in front of Sakura.
…
If there's no perfect solution…
Then be bold.
Sasuke activated his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan for the first time on someone close to him—
Sakura.
He planted a subtle suggestion in her heart:
She was the favored consort.
And an emperor always had many consorts.
Entering the palace meant accepting the rules of the palace.
It wasn't about replacing her.
It was about expanding the world.
The genjutsu settled gently into her mind.
Then—
In front of the entire class—
Sasuke reached out and touched Ino's cheek.
Gasps erupted.
"He—"
"He just touched Ino!"
"In front of Sakura!"
"And Sakura isn't angry?!"
Naruto stood frozen.
He had no idea what Sasuke was planning.
Even Hinata, who usually noticed nothing but Naruto, found herself staring.
Is this really Sasuke?
He looked the same.
But something about him had completely changed.
…
Ino's heart pounded wildly.
If any other boy had dared to touch her like that, she would have broken his wrist.
But this was Sasuke.
Her Sasuke.
He placed both hands on her face now, gently brushing aside her long bangs.
"Ino," he said softly, "this hairstyle doesn't suit you. You should change it."
Ino's eyes widened.
It felt as though electricity surged through her entire body.
Shock.
Joy.
Disbelief.
Hurt.
Hope.
All at once.
And then—
Her tears fell.