Hinata woke up just as the sun began rising and climbed out of her tent. Unsurprisingly, Naruto hadn't come out and she could still hear him snoring away. She quickly packed her things up and sealed her tent back into a scroll before heading to wake him up.

She unzipped the tent and peered inside. "Naruto, it's time to get going," she called out. She giggled when she saw him sprawled out over his sleeping bag with drool soaking his mesh armor shirt and pillow. She climbed into the tent and shook him awake. "Naruto."

Sleepily, Naruto pried his eyes open and looked up at her. "You're pretty," he mumbled sleepily, his eyes closing again. Hinata didn't even have time to stammer anything out before his eyes shot open. "Is it morning already?" He asked. She cleared her throat, ignoring the heat in her face, and hummed an affirmative. He groaned, almost pouting.

From outside the tent, Jiraiya called out, "Tell him to remember that he's gonna be learning his new jutsu today!" At this, Naruto's eyes lit up and he jumped up, causing the tent to pop out of the ground and fall over. They both yelped, but Hinata couldn't help but laugh loudly as Naruto scrambled. He tripped over his jacket, rolled over her, and out of the tent. All the while, Hinata's eyes were watering from how hard she was laughing.

Jiraiya looked down at the Uzumaki with a water balloon in his hand and an amused smile on his face. "Smooth," he said.

Naruto, face red from embarrassment, huffed. "Shaddup." Then he looked at the item in his sensei's hand. "What's that?"

The Sannin nodded to the balloon. "This is the first step of your training. This is how you learn a move that your mother named the Rasengan."

Naruto ruffled his hair, messing it up more. "That's a weird name."

"Not as crazy as what your dad first named it. Trust me, kid, he's terrible at naming jutsus." Hinata finally crawled out of the tumbled tent after her laughter had subsided and stood next to Naruto. She caught the water balloon when Jiraiya tossed it to her. "I'll demonstrate the jutsu. Both of you watch closely."

The man held his hand out and suddenly there was chakra gathering in his palm similar to what Sasuke would do when using the Chidori. But it was different in that it wasn't lightning, but a glowing, spinning ball of chakra that Jiraiya held in his palm. Both genin stared at it in awe. Then Jiraiya rushed for a tree nearby and pushed the ball into it.

"Whoa," Naruto whispered as the ball disappeared into the tree, creating a small crater, and the back of it exploded. "Holy crap, that was awesome!"

Jiraiya pulled his hand back and grinned pridefully. "So, what do you think?"

"I think I wanna learn that right now!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Well, hold your horses. It took your dad three years to perfect this. You're going to have to be patient." Naruto visibly slumped. "But we're going to get started today, and I think you have it in you to at least cut that time down in half!"

Naruto perked up. "Yeah? You think I can be as strong as my dad?"

"Even stronger!"

"Thanks, Ero-Sennin! So what's the water balloon got to do with it?" He asked his sensei.

"This move involves spinning your chakra in both directions to create a sphere. Because of that, you'll need to really get a handle on your chakra control. What I want you to do, is use your chakra to spin the water that's inside the balloon and pop it," Jiraiya explained.

"So you're combining tree climbing and water walking," Hinata pointed out. "Except you push and create a vortex with it."

"You mean like what you do while fighting and when Gaara had you pinned to that tree?"

"Sort of. That time was erratic because I was trying to ensure I didn't get crushed. I used all my strength and I wasn't trying to be graceful about it. It seems for this, however, that if you put too much or too little, you will ruin the jutsu," she explained. "He has to pop this balloon using his chakra, yes? But if he is too messy, it could injure him and ruin the jutsu."

Jiraiya nodded along. "That's right, very good! But that's why I was happy when you wanted to come along. It would help Naruto with his chakra control and having a pretty girl around to motivate him would certainly help."

Hinata blushed at this, shaking her head. "You're too kind, Jiraiya-sama."

Naruto's eye twitched. "Leave Hinata alone!" He spouted, thinking back to his promise to Sasuke the day before.

"Naruto, it's really okay," she said, though she wasn't sure how Naruto felt about her now, whether his feelings for her remained or not, and she didn't like that Jiraiya was being careless. "Though, I don't like that you aren't considerate of Naruto's feelings. You shouldn't tease him like that, Jiraiya-sama."

Jiraiya grinned and Naruto groaned. "Well, isn't that sweet?" He laughed softly. "Don't worry. I mean no harm."

Naruto whined. "Hinata, why'd you have to bring that up now?!"

"I—I apologize. I just didn't like him teasing you about something like that," she said gently, voice apologetic. She saw the look in Naruto's eyes when he confessed his feelings to her and she never wanted to belittle that or just sweep it under the rug. He was one of her best friends and she was going to take his feelings seriously, even if she didn't return them.

"No, it's okay. Being rejected is just… kinda embarrassing," he sighed. But then he perked up. "But, hey, another lifetime, right?"

Hinata giggled. "Yes, perhaps."

Jiraiya watched the scene play out in front of him and couldn't help but think back to his own unrequited love, though Hinata was much kinder about it. On the flip side, he thought it was cruel to make such an empty promise such as that just to comfort him. Yet, he could understand why she did it, and he couldn't bring himself to hold it against her. In the end, he agreed with the decision she made. It was kinder to everyone involved.

"Okay, okay. Let's get back on track," he said, clapping his hands together. "Naruto, begin. Hinata, watch him carefully to see if he's doing anything wrong!"

Hinata handed the balloon to him and activated her doujutsu, and they got to work.

After about an hour and a half of Naruto trying to burst the balloon, Jiraiya decided to stop it.

"Let's continue to the next town," he said, picking up his pack.

"Yes, we should continue looking for Tsunade-sama," Hinata agreed. Though grumbling, Naruto didn't argue and followed after them with his own bag.

"Hinata, can you tell me what I'm doing wrong?" He sighed heavily as they continued walking. Jiraiya stayed a few steps ahead of them but listened in as he wanted to see what the girl had to say.

"From what I've seen, you're spinning the water very well, but I'm not sure why you haven't burst it," she stated. "Maybe… well, what direction do you spin it in?" She asked.

Jiraiya smiled proudly.

Naruto thought for a moment. "To the left," he said.

"I'm not sure if this will make a difference, but you're right-handed, correct?" Naruto nodded. "Maybe you have to spin it in that direction instead!"

Close. Not completely right, but definitely not wrong, Jiraiya thought to himself.

"You think so?" Naruto questioned.

"I think it's worth a try. If your chakra swirls to the right but you're trying to spin it in the opposite direction, then naturally you'd have difficulty trying to work against your own nature," she explained. "At our next stop, try it again."

"Wow, you're the best, Hinata! Thanks!" He exclaimed.

Hinata thanked him with a big smile and then thought back to what she wanted to accomplish on this mission. Sure, she wanted to learn from the legendary medic but she also wanted to add another kind of jutsu to her arsenal. Something that was her own. She just wasn't sure what that could be. She had already created a bigger variant of the Vacuum Palm, but she wanted to create more. She wanted to do more and get stronger. With Sasuke having the chidori and Naruto learning the rasengan, she didn't want to get left behind.

Seeing as they had their own personal teachers who were very strong, talented, and a perfect mix for them, she already felt as though she was looking at their backs and not walking side by side.

Kushina was a wonderful teacher, but her medical knowledge only went so far, and she was still an active shinobi who was going out on missions—though she knew how much Minato didn't want that as it was known to the nations that she was his wife and the current jinchuuriki, she didn't want to bother her. Her father couldn't train her as he had already taken Neji under his wing. Learning more fuinjutsu from Minato had been essential, but he was currently injured.

She wanted to learn. She wanted to train. She wanted guidance. And she wanted it all to come from Tsunade Senju. However, if what Jiraiya had warned her about was true, she didn't have high hopes of achieving that goal. She would do her best though.

When they arrived at the next town, Jiraiya left them to train just outside the town while he did his research, though both understood what he truly meant. He was researching for his next Icha Icha book series while gathering information on Tsunade, but quite likely just spending his money on women.

"I swear, he can be so useless," Naruto sighed as they watched Jiraiya walk away. "He could at least show me more."

"I think he showed you something useful," Hinata admitted, though she agreed that Jiraiya wasn't a very present teacher to Naruto, but she figured he must have his reasons. After all, he had a great teacher like Lord Third, and that had to count for something.

"Yeah?" Naruto asked, waiting for her to elaborate.

"He showed you what your chakra is supposed to look like in the water balloon," she answered. Naruto looked at the balloon in his hand and sighed deeply. "I guess you're right. Time to get started on training. What are you gonna do?"

"I think I'll go down to that lake over there and meditate. I'd like to learn a new jutsu."

This piqued Naruto's interest. "Which one?"

"I don't know yet," she replied.

"You haven't…picked one?"

"Ah, I haven't thought of it yet."

"Whoa, you're gonna make your own?!" He asked excitedly. "Kinda like that finishing move you used on Shino at the exams?"

Hinata nodded. "Yes. With you and Sasuke getting such new powerful jutsu, I really need to step up," she admitted. "I don't want to fall behind."

Naruto's eyes softened and he smiled. "I get that," he said. "Good luck!"

She thanked him with a smile and turned around to head to the lake. She felt tightly wound, and even though she felt like meditation wouldn't help, she needed to try. With Itachi taking both Sasuke and Kakashi down, finding Tsunade was more crucial than ever.

Part of her felt guilty because she was afraid to face Sasuke again, and she felt a stab of relief at knowing that she didn't have to do that yet. She couldn't tell him anything about her mission, about her, the Hokage, and Jiraiya working together against Danzo. Would he believe her? And if he did, would he just blindly rush in due to his anger? She couldn't risk that. If he became a target of Danzo, then it would only cause trouble for Itachi while he was undercover and possibly endanger him as well. Danzo could assume that Hinata herself would know if Sasuke did and possibly retaliate against the Hyuuga to keep her in check. But she knew, from Itachi's account, that the man would never directly attack such a noble clan, which meant he was going to do it in a roundabout way, just like he had Itachi exiled by forcing his hand against his own comrades.

"He could…plant evidence to make it seem like another clan attacked the Hyuuga, but doing so could cause a war within the walls of the village and that makes for an unsteady foundation. If any other villages caught wind of such a conflict, it would give them an opening to attack," she muttered to herself as she took a seat in the grass and focused on the swaying water.

"Then again, he does not like the Uchiha and he was very opposed to the idea of our clans merging," she continued. "If he pins it on the Uchiha, that would give him an opening to wipe them out. He wouldn't be able to do it alone, however, which is good. Even with any operatives he has under him, they wouldn't be enough…even if they are said to be the best. I doubt Father would attack without sitting down for a meeting with Uchiha-sama."

"Unless, rather than hoping it would cause physical conflict, he could just hope it would make our merging impossible by painting the Uchiha in a bad light, forcing Father's hand to void the contract. That would leave their clan with less power," she concluded.

Suddenly, she heard Naruto scream and she was reacting before she even realized it. She slowed when he came into view though as he seemed fine. "What's wrong?!" She called out.

Naruto turned to her with a huge grin. "Look!" He held a water balloon out with both hands and it popped. "I got it!"

"That was so quick!" Hinata admired.

"Yeah, all I had to do was push my chakra out in different directions, not just one and it popped!" He jumped up and down. "I gotta go find Jiraiya for the next step. Sorry for interrupting you!" And then he was running off and Hinata blinked. When Naruto was excited, he was hyperactive and all over the place. It was difficult for her to keep up sometimes.

She turned back to the lake and laughed to herself when she could still hear Naruto cheering. Then, her expression grew serious. She loved Sasuke, but his anger had always been a problem and she wasn't willing to risk that. Her talk with Jiraiya had opened her eyes. She couldn't afford any more mistakes. This one possibly cost her her best friend and love, but it could be her family next.

She couldn't tell him.

And she couldn't have a relationship with him.

He'd never trust her again.

But at least he'd have his brother. That was what kept Hinata going. Sasuke would have his brother back and Mikoto would have her son back. Though her heart felt as though it were physically cracking, she knew that she would make the same choices over and over again. The cause was much bigger than she and Sasuke; she had to remember that.

There was also the request Jiraiya had made to her a few nights ago, one that she had been pondering. Spying on Danzo officially.

Doing so meant getting close and putting herself and her loved ones in danger, but it also moved their plans forward. With no concrete evidence, they wouldn't be able to clear Itachi's name and get rid of Danzo and his followers. And Jiraiya had explained that he couldn't get close to the man without seeming suspicious as the paranoid man knew what his true profession was.

If Hinata were to try getting close to him in a natural setting—her mind went to when they happened to cross paths outside of the library—then it would be possible to strike up another conversation and say the right things and ask the right questions. As far as she knew, he didn't possess any byakugan or any byakugan user in his secret organization. Itachi would've told her otherwise. Power is something she knew the vile man couldn't resist. If she could make herself seem desirable to his group, perhaps he would let her in closer and she could gather evidence there.

Then again, someone like Danzo would have a fail-safe in case any of his subordinates decided to double-cross him. She couldn't expect to be let in and given all the secrets.

Sighing, she pushed it out of her mind once again and went back to her training.

She was a few hours into her meditation when Jiraiya appeared next to her with a swirl of leaves.

"Hinata-chan," he said. "Naruto is in the second phase of his training."

Hinata smiled up at him. "I see. I'm happy for him," she said, though unsure of the reason for his appearance.

"If he asks you to heal him, I'd like you to refuse. I don't want you to use any medical ninjutsu on him concerning his training," he said seriously. "The pain will help him grow."

"I understand," she replied. "I'll keep to myself here."

"What are you working on?" He asked curiously.

"I think I'd like to make my own variation of the Eight Trigram Sixty-Four Palms," she responded. "Rather than use it as an offensive technique, I'd like to make a defensive version of it."

"Have you made any progress?" She shook her head. "Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out. I did hear about that final move you made against your opponent in the final stage of the exam."

"Thank you, Jiraiya-sama. Do you maybe have any advice you could give me? I know you're training Naruto, but I would happily take anything you could give me," she asked. Jiraiya smiled at the young girl standing before him with pity. She was so desperate to learn but had no one to guide her the way she needed.

He couldn't give her much, but he still mulled the question over in his head. "Have you thought about using a weapon?"

"A weapon?" She asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, just think about it. I can't believe Kakashi or Minato never suggested it. You're a Hyuuga who can use the byakugan, Hinata-chan. You can see long-range, but you cannot fight long-distance. To close that gap, wouldn't it seem natural to take up using a long-range weapon?" He was genuinely surprised she hadn't thought of this earlier herself.

It took a moment, but she eventually smiled big. "I can't believe I never thought of that," she giggled. "I suppose I was used to fighting with my chakra that I never thought to use any weapon."

"Well, you could still use your chakra with certain weapons," he explained. "And with your excellent chakra control, I'd say you could fuse your chakra into them. You should look around a weapons store and start practicing."

Hinata bowed deeply. "Thank you, Jiraiya-sama!" She said enthusiastically. "I will head into town right away!"

Jiraiya let out a hearty laugh. "Aww, you're too kind! Be careful and don't stay out too late." He was all for letting Naruto and Hinata explore, but he was still responsible for two kids who held a lot of political power by just being alive.

"Of course," she replied kindly before running off with a wave. She'd brought plenty of funds she racked up from missions and also from what her father gave her before leaving. He hated the thought of his daughter sleeping in the dirt if an inn was an option, but he refrained from telling her so as she was still a shinobi.

Hinata went into town, surprised by how lively it was with children running around laughing and adults out on dates. It was clear it had never been a town of shinobi and she briefly wondered what life would've been like had she not been forced into this career, but she tossed the thought away immediately as she loved being a nin and helping those in need. She loved being able to protect her comrades and loved ones.

She looked around at the different shops for a weapons store. Though they weren't a shinobi village, they resided close enough to Konohagakure that setting up shops related to shinobi was a great investment.

"Here's one," she mumbled to herself as she stood in front of a shop that looked like it had been around for a few decades and then walked in. It was quiet and there were no customers. Dust hung around in the air and Hinata wasn't sure if it was truly open until she heard a cough from the front of the store.

"Can I help you with anything?" The little, old lady asked from behind the counter.

Hinata bowed her head. "Hello. I'm looking for bows and arrows," she said. "Do you sell those here?" It was the only long-distance weapon she felt she could do the most harm with.

The woman's eyes lit up and she moved from behind the counter and beckoned Hinata to follow. Curiously, she went and was led to a room lined up with well-made bows in different colors and styles. From the top of the wall to being placed on the floor with care, bows littered the room. All the colors ranged from solids to rainbow and even clear. Hinata looked around the room with awe.

"These are amazing! Did you make all of these?" She asked when she noticed a nearly completed bow on the desk across from the door surrounded by tools.

"Yes. I am a bowyer. One of the last in Hi no Kuni. I see you're a shinobi. Not too many shinobi utilize archery," she explained. "Which one are you interested in?"

Hinata looked down sheepishly. "Which one do you recommend for a beginner? I'm afraid I've never shot a bow before. I'd like something capable of shooting decently far distances."

"Oh, I see! I've never worked with a beginner before, how exciting. So the bows that can go the distance depends on how tight that specific bow was made. They require immense strength, however," she explained. She walked over to the far left corner of the room and gestured to the bows in that area. "These will be the ones you're looking for."

Hinata weaved her way through the room and looked at them. They all held the same shape and height, curved and nearly her height. Their only difference was the color and design. "These are gorgeous," she said.

Her eye was naturally drawn to the purple bow, but she didn't want to get one that was so conspicuous. She looked around for one she felt drawn to and finally picked out a black one with a crescent moon painted the center of it. She picked it up and turned back to the lady.

"Called out to you?" The woman asked. "Come out back and I'll show you how to shoot it. It can be tricky, and take a few tries and adjustments, but I'm sure you'll get it down in no time."

Hinata followed her outside, stopping briefly to grab arrows before they walked into an outdoor range. "I'm sorry, but I never asked your name."

"Keiko Sato, dear. I can tell from your eyes that you're a Hyuuga."

Hinata bowed. "Hinata Hyuuga. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sato-san. Thank you for showing me archery." When they got outside, Hinata gasped in awe at the long rage located behind the shop. It was narrow and only held three targets, but it made up for it by being long.

The small woman chuckled and asked her to stand back while she demonstrated. Hinata listened patiently as she explained her stance and the position of her arms before shooting the arrow. Hinata's eyes weren't fast enough to watch it in the air but cheered when it was a bullseye.

"That was amazing!" She clapped. Sato held the bow out to her and corrected Hinata's stance and hand placement before telling her to take aim and shoot it. When Hinata shot it, the force of the snapping bowstring caused her aim to be off.

"Tell me what you learned," the woman said not unkindly.

"There's a kickback on the string," she said. "Which tells me that I will have to account for that in the future as well as the wind."

"That's right!" She gestured to the target and handed Hinata another arrow. "Now apply that and try again. I'm not letting you leave until you get a bullseye, dear. You're a shinobi, and it would break my heart if you didn't leave this place with at least a clue on how to use your weapon."

"Thank you, Sato-san. I won't let you down." Hinata got into position again, pausing when Sato-san adjusted her feet and her back. She tried closing one of her eyes to aim, but it felt awkward so she pointed her index finger out to get a better visual. She released the bowstring, putting more chakra into her arms to keep them steady, and hit the target just barely off the center.

"That was much better! You're nearly there. Again!" She was handed another arrow.

After a few more tries, and getting closer centimeter by centimeter, she finally hit it dead in the center.

"That's perfect," Sato said, praising Hinata with a bright smile.

Hinata bowed deeply. "Thank you very much," she said sincerely. "Without you, I would've been stuck for quite a while."

"It was all my pleasure, Hinata-chan. Let's go back in and I'll ring you up. It's nearly been an hour and it's near closing time for this old lady," Sato-san laughed to herself. Hinata followed her back inside, putting her new bow on the counter across from the small woman.

"How much is it for a full set of arrows and a quiver added on?" Hinata asked, pulling out her wallet with a smile. Then she glanced next to the counter and saw a pair of gauntlets. She thought about that time Kakashi tested her before the Chuunin exams and she caused that log to burst by hitting it with her fist and her chakra at a certain point. She hasn't ever tried to do it again and wondered if she could pair that with the gauntlets.

Finally, she picked them out and set them next to her long-range weapon. "I'd like to add these as well, please."

Sato added everything to her abacus. "Twenty thousand yen," she finally said.

Hinata tilted her head. "I don't mean to question you, but that seems very low. I don't want your beautiful work to be taken for granted!" Hinata said.

"Oh, not at all! I'm throwing in the quiver for free because of your determination and love for archery. I've seen that look in someone's eye before while they were behind the bow. It was as if I was looking at myself as a young girl all over again," she explained.

"I can't do that, Sato-san. It wouldn't be right," Hinata said genuinely with a kind smile.

"I insist! Let this old woman feel young again."

Hinata laughed. "Well, I can't exactly say no to that." Then she bowed deeply again. "Thank you. I promise to master this weapon and make you proud." When she stood straight up, she handed over the amount requested.

"I know you're from Konoha, but come visit again if you're ever in the area! I'd love to see your progress."

"Definitely!" She hooked the full quiver of sharp arrows over her back and put her bow over her shoulder as though she were carrying a shoulder bag before putting the gauntlets in her belt bag. "Thank you again." They shared a wave before Hinata left the shop with a pep in her step.

It wasn't a new jutsu like Naruto's Rasengan or Sasuke's Chidori, but it was another thing to make herself dangerous to their enemies, and it would have to do for now.

When she returned to the spot by the lake, she peeked in on Naruto's training and felt her heart squeeze at the sight of him panting on the ground as he groaned in pain. She knew the effects of his constant practice would soon physically affect his body, and it hurt to know that she couldn't help soothe him. It wouldn't help Naruto to think that Hinata could heal any kind of injury he incurred, and he had the tailed beast inside of him if he was injured more than she could heal.

She set up aiming toward the forest surrounding the lake and activated her doujutsu to ensure that she wouldn't hit anyone if she missed. She aimed at the closest tree to get used to it again before aiming further and further back. As she shot, she tried to think of ways to possibly incorporate her chakra into the arrows.

It wasn't until she was retrieving her arrows for the third time that it hit her.

"Fuinjutsu!" She suddenly exclaimed. When she had been studying under Kushina before the exams, she discovered a seal that would hold her chakra without needing her to be in contact with it. She read about how dangerous it was if your chakra reserves weren't the highest and if you happened to miss your target, but she could master this weapon and that seal. She wouldn't miss.

When she returned to her spot by the lake, she began studying her fuinjutsu scrolls and practicing the seal on paper. For hours, she practiced until she was positive she was ready to start carving into pieces of wood. Once she got that down, she felt ready to carve into her arrows.

"Hinata!" She heard Naruto call out to her. He was running to her when She looked at him. "Is that… arrows?"

"Yes. I decided to learn archery. Jiraiya-sama recommended using a long-range weapon to put my byakugan to better use. I chose this one."

Naruto's eyes lit up. "That's so awesome! Can you show me how you do it?" He asked excitedly.

"I'm just about to try something new actually! I'd love for you to see it," she mentioned. She stood up with a freshly carved arrow and held it tightly to transfer a third of her chakra into it. She got into position, activated the seal which caused the arrow to glow with her chakra, and shot it at a tree in the near distance. Upon impact, it shot a huge hole into the tree and continued going until it landed halfway in the third tree behind it.

"Holy shit, that was awesome!" Naruto exclaimed. "How did you get your arrow to carry your chakra like that?"

Hinata, still in awe, was slow to answer. "I—I used fuinjutsu," she replied, still staring at the arrow.

"Whoa, I didn't know you've gotten so good at it! You've really been working hard with Mom, huh?" Naruto praised. Hinata couldn't reveal that she had learned this specific seal from Minato. Not only would that give away that she has been working with him in some regard, but it could hurt Naruto's feelings and that was the last thing she wanted—especially after what happened with Sasuke.

"Kushina-sensei is a great teacher," she replied instead. Then she remembered the other weapon she purchased and pulled it from her belt bag. "I also bought these."

When Naruto looked at it, it was clear he was confused. "Uh…" That was all he could say.

She giggled and set her bow down before putting them on. "There's something I wanted to try. Can you watch me for a moment and see if there's anything you think I can do?" She asked.

He nodded and stood back as Hinata took a deep breath and rushed for the tree nearby with her fist pulled back. Naruto watched closely as her fist made contact and lodged itself halfway through the tree with a grunt.

"How did you do that?!" He exclaimed.

Hinata pulled her fist out of the tree and looked down at it. "When Kakashi-sensei was testing us before the Chuunin Exam, I punched a substitution and it splintered into tiny pieces. I haven't tried doing it again, but I thought maybe having these would add to the damage I could do."

"You punched?" Naruto asked. "That's surprising."

She blushed. "Ah, yes. He managed to get under my skin just a bit. Is there anything you think I can do to improve?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "Your punch was a little slow. Try speeding it up a little," he suggested. "How are you putting your chakra into your fist?"

She saw he was genuinely curious. "Rather than putting my chakra into my entire fist, I thought about releasing it through my fist at the point of contact," she explained.

"Like how you normally do it? Instead, rather than hitting any of their chakra points, you just want to cause any damage you can."

"Yes, exactly. Though, if I can shut off any chakra points at the same time, then I'd love to do that as well," she said.

Naruto nodded understandingly. "Okay. Try it again, but with a faster punch."

Hinata followed his advice, and they worked together for a few hours until it was Hinata's turn to help him with his Rasengan.

This chapter marks the beginning of the Search for Tsunade Arc! I have also completed writing the entirety of part one :)) I've been taking a break from writing and even editing until I just edited this chapter. It's been a little strange having some free time now. I finished reading To Selena, With Love, and watched a few movies I'd been wanting to, and also got back into drawing! I made designs for Team 7 in part two and I think it came out okay. Please let us know what you think of the story so far, any predictions, and what you'd like to possibly see in the future!

-hina

NEXT UPDATE: 03/16/24