Chapter 8: Hinata's Second Personality

With a creak.

The door to the study was pulled open, and a somewhat petite figure slowly walked into the dim room.

Moonlight shone in from outside, casting a long shadow of the little one.

"What a pain. I didn't think you'd follow me." Menma stepped out from the shadows, scratching his head in confusion.

The 'Road to Ninja' world was supposed to be fake, so why did the Dark Kurama follow him, and why did his girlfriend follow him too?

Inside the Hyuga clan head's study, the two figures—one large, one small—stared at each other from less than two meters apart.

Uzumaki Menma took off his white three-eyed fox mask and lowered his head to gaze at the small figure standing in the doorway under the bright moonlight.

Hyuga Hinata.

Compared to the gentle and timid Hinata, the Hinata appearing before Menma now had her Byakugan activated, the veins around her temples bulging as she glared fixedly at Menma, who had just removed his mask.

Within those pure white eyes, resentment and indescribable, complex emotions surged.

Hinata raised a palm, condensed Gentle Fist chakra, and charged straight at Menma.

"You!" the leaping Hinata shouted, though tears fell before her fist could strike.

"You scumbag!" This Gentle Fist strike landed solidly on Menma's chest, causing his Transformation Jutsu to dissipate instantly.

*Poof!*

As the smoke cleared, Menma reverted to his original child form.

"I'm sorry, Hinata."

The soft whisper made Hinata lose all control over her emotions.

She threw herself at Menma and burst into loud sobs.

"You knew! You knew! No matter what you did, I would have forgiven you!" Hinata cried, her voice choked with tears. She opened her small mouth and bit down hard on Menma's shoulder, venting the grievances of these past years.

"Hiss—you're actually biting me!" Menma gasped, yet he indulged her willfulness.

If this were the gentle Hinata from the Naruto manga and anime, she would never do such a thing.

But if it were the impulsive, hot-tempered 'Big Sister Hinata' from the *Road to Ninja* movie, then everything made sense.

A moment later, a tear-streaked Hinata sat on Hiashi's desk, resting her round face in her hands as she watched Menma use his Transformation Jutsu to turn back into an adult, scavenging through the classics her father had collected.

Ever since she woke up earlier, Hinata had been escorted back to the main house, but she had learned from the guards about the night's attack and that a mysterious person in a white three-eyed fox mask had raided the Hyuga compound.

That was why Hinata had kept her Byakugan active since returning; she vaguely remembered Menma being very interested in the history of the Hyuga clan, so she knew he would definitely return tonight.

That was how she had caught Menma red-handed in the study.

"If our world is fake, then why do I exist?" Hinata asked.

"I find it strange too. It's not just you; the Dark Kurama has also been resurrected inside me." Menma flipped through the classics, sending those he deemed useful or historically valuable directly into his storage scroll.

After all, there were too many books to read through in such a short time.

"But I can truly feel the rejection from that world, along with a sense of unreality. There are no legends of the Sage of Six Paths there, yet the feelings you gave me were so real that sometimes I really can't tell the difference." As Menma pondered deeper, a headache began to throb, and his temples couldn't help but twitch.

"Hmm... how should I put it..." Little Hinata was wearing a white kimono, her two small bare feet swinging in the air.

"Actually, there is another personality, or soul, inside this body. Her personality is the complete opposite of mine." Little Hinata pointed to her own chest.

"Oh?" Hearing this, Menma turned his head to look at Hinata.

He had thought that when 'Big Sister Hinata' appeared, the other Hinata had vanished. Was it one body with two souls?

"Little Hinata, let me introduce you. This is the scumbag boyfriend I often mention to you, Menma." Hinata held her head high, talking to herself, before her head drooped again.

The next moment, Hinata's head snapped up, her face full of flustered shyness: "Si... sister... please don't..."

Looking at the blushing Little Hinata, who was practically steaming, it seemed this was the original Hinata from the manga and anime.

Uzumaki Menma watched Little Hinata with interest, reached out, and placed his palm on her head, ruffling her short hair: "Nice to meet you, I'm Menma."

"N-nice to meet you... I'm Hinata too..." Little Hinata's voice was as thin as a mosquito's.

Feeling the gentle hand on her head, Little Hinata blushed even more. She lowered her head, her small hands twisting in front of her chest, and her jade-like feet curled up in shyness.

"Then how should I address you two?" Menma leaned in close to Hinata.

"Well... usually... I'm the one outside... Sister spends most of her time sleeping..." Little Hinata said softly, shyly looking at the face right in front of her.

It seemed Big Sister Hinata's soul also required chakra to be maintained.

Menma fell into deep thought.

He remembered that in the setting of the ninja world, the relationship between chakra and the soul was very subtle.

"I see. Then I'll call you Little Hinata." Menma quite liked this Little Hinata.

"You can call me Menma, or just call me brother-in-law if you'd like." Menma gave a thumbs-up, pointing at himself.

Little Hinata's round face was full of shyness, and there seemed to be light in the white eyes she turned toward Menma.

Ever since she had memories, she knew there was a hot-tempered sister inside her.

As the heir to the Hyuga clan, Hinata had been subjected to strict training since childhood, but her gentle and somewhat timid personality had greatly disappointed her father and the clan elders.

At critical moments, Big Sister Hinata would always emerge, not only showing superior learning ability but also tearing her father and the elders to shreds with her words.

She would call Hiashi and the elders "old geezer," "old fossil," or "old man."

It could be said that there wasn't a single ninja in the Hyuga clan, from the elders of the main house to the guards of the branch family, who hadn't been verbally abused by Big Sister Hinata.

Hyuga Hiashi felt both fond of and helpless toward the second personality. He liked her learning ability and decisive style, believing it was perfect for a clan heir.

What he couldn't stand was her constant "old geezer" remarks, which showed absolutely no upbringing for a great family.

Little Hinata often heard her sister mention her scumbag boyfriend, and she was very curious about the man her sister couldn't stop thinking about.

*Slap—*

Hinata suddenly raised her small hand and swatted Menma's arm away.

"You scumbag! Don't you dare have any designs on my sister!" Big Sister Hinata had regained control, accusing Menma of how much of a scumbag he was.

"We were so in love back then! You said all those mushy things! You even said you wanted to have a son and a daughter with me!" Thinking of how she had been tricked by this man in that world, Big Sister Hinata gritted her teeth, her small fists clenched.

'Is... is this something I'm allowed to hear?' In Hinata's mental space, Little Hinata was already blushing like a steam engine, covering her face.

"Ah, well, you know that was back then." Menma withdrew his hand and gave a sheepish smile.

"Go to hell! You stinking scumbag!" Coming at him was Hinata's Gentle Fist!