Chapter 104: the Hot Spring as a Battlefield
"Onii-chan, waaaah..."
On this day, December 12th, Hanabi, the little sister-in-law, finally made a 'long-awaited' appearance.
Entering the traditional building and finding Izayoi sitting on the tatami with a large number of scrolls around him, Hanabi immediately threw herself into his arms, letting out a fake cry full of grievance.
"What's wrong?"
Izayoi casually tossed aside the ninjutsu scroll in his hand, hugged his little sister-in-law back, gently stroking her back with his palm, and asked, "Who bullied my Hanabi? Tell Onii-chan, and Onii-chan will use the Transformation Technique to help you get revenge."
"Pfft..."
Hanabi, who was originally just pretending to cry and act pitiful, couldn't help but giggle.
However, she still showed off her acting skills, wiping non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes with her fingers, looking up at Izayoi pitifully, and said, "It's Father and the clan elders."
A cold glint flashed in Izayoi's eyes, and he said in a deep voice, "Are they forcing you to get the Caged Bird Seal?"
If that was the case, then he needed to pay a visit to the Hyuga clan right now.
If the deterrent power of Wood Release wasn't enough, then he would let them experience the power of the Tenseigan.
Their relationship with Hinata was so obvious, yet they still dared to make Hanabi get the Caged Bird Seal...
What gave a powerful clan without even one Kage-level ninja such great courage?
"Caged Bird? What's that?"
Hanabi was slightly stunned, obviously still unaware of the clan's cruelty.
However, seeing the very terrifying expression on Izayoi's face, Hanabi knew she had gone too far with her acting, and quickly pouted her small lips, saying, "Father and the clan elders, I don't know what's wrong with them recently, they've been making Hanabi train extra hard every day, and they keep saying things like if I continue to be lazy, how will I bear the clan's honor in the future and so on. Not only do they send people to guard the gate every day after school, they don't even let Hanabi go out on rest days, and they don't let Nee-san take me out either, so Hanabi has no time to come and play with Onii-chan."
"..."
Izayoi was speechless for a moment, his expression a bit amused.
He had thought the Hyuga clan was bold enough to go head-to-head with him, this Wood Release ninja.
He hadn't expected that the Hyuga clan was still so pragmatic, having long prepared to marry off their eldest daughter and starting to cultivate the second daughter as the successor of the main family.
Even his future father-in-law had such thoughts.
No wonder Hanabi hadn't come to find him during this time.
He had thought it was because school started in September, Hanabi was busy with her studies, and since the Uchiha clan's territory was near the Naka River, Hinata hadn't waited for her after school to come over, and the Hyuga clan didn't allow her to go out alone.
It turned out Hanabi had been confined at home.
Izayoi pinched Hanabi's small cheek and asked with a smile, "Then how did you get out today?"
"The elders agreed today."
Hanabi took out a letter from her bosom and handed it to Izayoi, saying, "The elders asked me to deliver this, it must be given to Onii-chan's hands."
Hearing this, Izayoi curiously took the envelope and opened it.
Inside was only an invitation card.
When Izayoi saw the words on the invitation card, the corners of his lips couldn't help but curve upward slightly.
"Onii-chan, what does it say?"
Seeing Izayoi's expression, Hanabi immediately got up curiously, came behind Izayoi, leaned on his back, rested her chin on his shoulder, and looked at the invitation card together.
After a while, Hanabi pouted her small lips again, looking displeased, and said, "Father and the elders are so biased. They didn't send an invitation to Onii-chan for Hanabi's birthday party. But for Nee-san's birthday party, they asked Hanabi to deliver the invitation. It's so unfair."
After speaking, Hanabi grabbed Izayoi's hair, 'throwing a tantrum', saying, "I don't care, Onii-chan has to come to Hanabi's birthday party next year too."
"Yes, yes..."
Izayoi, whose hair had been turned into a bird's nest, quickly raised his hands in surrender, repeatedly assuring, "I will definitely attend Hanabi's birthday party next year. Even if you don't send me an invitation, I'll shamelessly come over anyway."
In fact, Izayoi had wanted to celebrate Hanabi's birthday alone this year, just like the Hyuga sisters accompanied him on his birthday every year.
However, Hanabi's birthday was unfortunately on March 27th.
During that time, it was exactly when Izayoi's Tenseigan was gestating.
By the time Izayoi's gestation ended, Hanabi's birthday had long passed.
Hanabi, of course, didn't know this.
After receiving Izayoi's promise, she finally stopped making a fuss, hugged Izayoi's neck from behind, kissed Izayoi's cheek, and said with a bright smile, "Hehe... it's settled then. If Onii-chan goes back on his word, Hanabi will secretly put laxatives and spit in your milk."
"Hmm?"
Izayoi's eyes instantly became sharp. He pulled Hanabi from behind to the front, rubbed her small face, and said with a fake smile, "Spit? How did you come up with such a prank method? Tell me, have you done this before?!"
"No... no."
Hanabi said vaguely, "I just secretly drank Onii-chan's milk before."
"Isn't that the same as spitting! No, isn't it easy to notice if you secretly drink it?"
"Hehe... I secretly added water to it."
"No wonder the taste was different a few times, you little rascal!"
Izayoi flicked Hanabi's forehead, and the two started playing around on the tatami.
It was like how their feelings were even stronger after a short separation, just like Izayoi hadn't seen Hinata for a month.
Having not seen his little sister-in-law for almost two months, Izayoi also missed this clingy little hug pillow very much.
Hanabi's longing was many times stronger than Izayoi's.
In the original story, the reason Hanabi was a sister-complex was because after gaining self-awareness, only her older sister treated her the best and was the gentlest.
People like her father and the clan elders were all so serious.
Originally admiring her older sister, after winning a duel, she was even more highly expected by her father and the elders, instilled with ideas of bearing the clan's honor and so on, forcing her to mature early into a small adult.
However, in front of Hinata, she was still a cute little sister.
Izayoi's appearance not only changed Hinata but also changed Hanabi.
The originally introverted Hinata didn't know how to take care of children at all.
On the other hand, Izayoi, who had lived two lives, not only had ample time and patience but also enough knowledge and strength to nurture Hanabi.
In front of Izayoi, Hanabi didn't need to pay attention to any etiquette and could release her nature to her heart's content; her Onii-chan would tolerate her.
Even if she did something wrong, Izayoi would educate her in a gentle tone, using storytelling methods, never losing his temper or scolding with a stern face.
The only serious training was to improve her strength, and afterward, he would let her bite back to vent her anger and also heal her injuries.
Even though Izayoi was only five years older than her, when she entered the ninja academy, both Onii-chan and Nee-san hadn't graduated yet, but they were so outstanding.
Whether it was her peers, senior students, or even the teachers at the ninja academy, none of them were comparable to Izayoi.
Therefore, Hanabi was full of admiration for Izayoi, even greater than her admiration for her father.
Over the years, Hanabi hadn't become a sister-complex like in the original story but had turned into a brother-complex.
Since gaining self-awareness, this was the first time Hanabi had been separated from Izayoi for so long.
While playing around, she suddenly rubbed against Izayoi's chest, her voice a bit choked as she said, "Onii-chan, Hanabi missed you so much during this time."
Izayoi was slightly stunned, then raised his hand to touch Hanabi's head and smiled, "Since you don't want to stay home and train, then come to Onii-chan's house to train from now on. Just like before, Onii-chan will guide you."
"Really?"
Hanabi's misty beautiful eyes instantly brightened slightly, then she shook her head with a lost expression, "No, Father and the elders wouldn't agree."
"Onii-chan will write a letter, you take it back and show it to them, and they will agree," Izayoi smiled confidently, his tone even more domineering.
Why did he directly solve the problem of Danzo Shimura and Root during the Konoha Crush?
Instead of, after discovering the new mechanism, just infiltrating the Hokage Building, capturing Tenzo, and then burst out Bloodline Limit · Wood Release (Purple), and then using a Wood Clone to disguise himself as Tendo Pain, occasionally attacking Konoha, not killing them, just brushing keywords?
Because compared to these gains, Izayoi wanted to turn Konoha into his own pure land even more.
If Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura were still around, even with his Wood Release, revealing it wouldn't have given him his current status or such freedom.
Without them, with Tsunade as Hokage, Izayoi was the future of Konoha, and his apparent strength made him one of Konoha's strongest. He could be polite and respect his elders, and he could also... not eat beef!
Izayoi believed that the pragmatic Hyuga clan would definitely agree.
If they didn't agree, he would just make them agree.
Hanabi, of course, didn't know that her Onii-chan was even more domineering than she imagined at this moment.
Hearing Izayoi's words, she immediately raised her hands and cheered, "That's great, Hanabi can be with Onii-chan again."
"Onii-chan, Hanabi loves you to death!"
Hanabi hugged Izayoi's neck again, kissed his left cheek forcefully, then climbed onto his shoulders and shouted loudly, "Onii-chan, Hanabi wants a piggyback ride, I want to go outside and see the scenery."
"Yes, yes..."
Izayoi still let his little sister-in-law order him around, stood up with their fingers interlocked, and took her to tour the garden outside.
"Onii-chan, did you catch all these fish in the pond?"
"Hahaha... as expected, Hanabi understands Onii-chan the best, you noticed the most important thing at a glance."
"Hehe... Onii-chan, did you make those trees with Wood Release too?"
"Some of them, but those cherry blossom trees, I made a special trip to Cherry Blossom Street to bring back."
"Onii-chan, I saw a swing, Hanabi wants to swing."
"No problem, that was prepared for you."
"Onii-chan, quickly take out the camera, let's take pictures together."
"Oh right, I almost forgot..."
For the rest of the day, Izayoi accompanied Hanabi to play in their new home.
After getting tired of touring the garden and the traditional building, the two went to the villa.
Although the weather had turned cold, there was a constant temperature swimming pool indoors. Hanabi, who came from a wealthy family, wasn't interested in the traditional building but really liked the modern-style villa.
Especially the swimming pool, Hanabi hadn't experienced it before.
So, after putting on the school swimsuit Izayoi had tailored for her, Hanabi jumped into the constant temperature swimming pool and had a good swim.
"The water isn't cold at all, Onii-chan, you come down and swim too."
"Okay."
Izayoi, also only wearing swimming trunks, jumped in and had a swimming race with his little sister-in-law.
After swimming, the two went to the indoor court to teach the little sister-in-law how to play billiards and basketball.
Izayoi didn't know if there were ball sports in the ninja world.
However, Izayoi had created them, and besides the court, there was also a card room.
When the small fries came to visit and Izayoi didn't have time to entertain them, he would throw them here to play ball or cards, or go outside to the arena to pass their time.
Tsunade also often brought Shizune over to play cards with Hinata and Karin, always acting as a charitable card queen.
He played with his little sister-in-law until the evening, when Karin returned from her training and cooked in the kitchen.
Hinata also came to find Hanabi and went to the kitchen to help.
So the two sisters directly had dinner at Izayoi's house.
After eating and drinking their fill, the four rested for a while and then changed into school swimsuits to soak in their private hot spring pool.
"Gluglu..."
Looking at the Squirtle floating on the water's surface, Karin still only showed her nose and eyes, blowing bubbles in the water.
"Onii-chan, why isn't this hot spring open-air?"
Hanabi sat next to Izayoi, looking up at the wooden shed's ceiling.
"It can be open-air, does Hanabi want to see the night view?" Izayoi said with a smile.
"Mmm-hmm..."
Hanabi nodded repeatedly, smiling, "It didn't snow today, the sky must be very beautiful."
"In that case, let's soak in the open-air hot spring."
Izayoi got up to activate the barrier and then pressed a button. The mechanized wooden shed immediately retracted.
"So beautiful!"
The three girls' cheers immediately came from the hot spring.
Izayoi didn't go over immediately but went to the kitchen to prepare some fruit platters and drinks.
Glancing at the sake specially prepared for Tsunade, Izayoi hesitated for a moment and then warmed it up and brought it along.
Izayoi had always heard about drinking sake while soaking in a hot spring but had never tried it.
The atmosphere today was good, and Izayoi was also preparing to break one of the three ninja taboos.
When Izayoi came to the hot spring again with these things, it immediately caused a burst of exclamation.
"Eh! Izayoi-kun, are you going to drink? But isn't that one of the three ninja taboos?" Karin said with a surprised look.
"Izayoi-kun, is... is that okay?" Hinata pointed her finger, her gaze flickering.
"Hehe... Onii-chan, Hanabi will pour you some sake."
Only Hanabi was carefree, not caring about the three ninja taboos at all, and picked up the sake pot to pour sake for Izayoi.
"Trying a little shouldn't be a problem, I'm just curious," Izayoi said with a smile, taking a light sip, his brows slightly furrowing.
"Onii-chan, what does it taste like?" Hanabi immediately asked curiously.
Hinata and Karin also turned their gazes over.
"It's a bit sweet, it's the sweet type," Izayoi smacked his lips, looking at Hinata and Karin with a smile, "Do you want to try some?"
"No, no..."
The well-behaved Hinata and Karin quickly shook their heads and waved their hands.
"Onii-chan, why didn't you ask me?" Hanabi pouted.
"If you dare to secretly drink it, I'll spank you," Izayoi warned with a clenched fist.
"Onii-chan is so mean!"
Hanabi scooped up a handful of hot water and splashed it on Izayoi's face.
"You dare to splash me, take this!" Izayoi also threw away his sake cup and splashed water back.
"Onii-chan, you're bullying me! Nee-san and Karin-neechan, quickly come and help me!"
"Hanabi, don't make trouble," Hinata said helplessly.
Karin responded with a smile, "Hanabi, I'll help you!"
The two girls began to besiege Izayoi, constantly splashing water at him.
Gradually, someone started to break the rules, actually using chakra. The water flow was like a pillar, suddenly accidentally hitting Hinata, who had moved to a corner and closed her eyes to rest.
The hair wrapped in a towel instantly scattered, turning her into a drowned rat.
Hinata opened her pale purple Byakugan, her gaze already becoming sharp.
"Gentle Fist Art... Eight Trigrams: Water Stream Palm!"
A pillar of water erupted, instantly turning the originally warm hot spring into a battlefield.
(End of this chapter)
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