Chapter 139 Big - Family

Sakura snorted and squeezed her arm.

Hinata moved a little closer, which was a big improvement for her because the Hyuga clan had strict family traditions and physical contact was not common, so it took her a while to get used to it.

"No, no." Naruto said suddenly, and Hinata looked at him in confusion.

"what?"

Sakura smiled and walked over to her, taking her duffel bag.

"Then live with us." Sasuke explained. "It's safer this way."

Hinata looked surprised and flustered by the suggestion, as if she had never thought of it before, but realized that she should have.

"Are you sure? I don't want to disturb..."

"Are you kidding? Our place is big enough for you to stay here." Naruto insisted. "We would rather you live with us than stay at an inn, as long as you don't mind the ninja dog hair everywhere."

"She's on the same team as Kiba, idiot," Sasuke pointed out.

Naruto stuck his tongue out at him.

"Thank you." Hinata said again, and she felt that this sentence could not be said enough as she walked into Kakashi's house. "Thank you so much."

"We both said it's okay, really," Sasuke reminded her, then walked straight to the couch in the living room and lay down with his eyes closed.

Hinata looked at him worriedly, but Naruto smiled brightly.

"He's fine, he just needs to rest."

She had expected to feel a little embarrassed.

But it still felt like home to her, something she had never felt in the cold, spotless halls of the Hyuga clan; there was a warmth in the air, and fur rugs and carvings added a touch of personality and softness to the corners of the room.

Large windows and open doors bring the surrounding natural beauty indoors, blending harmoniously with the natural browns, greys and whites of wood, stone and paper.

The energy and personality of Team 7 was evident throughout the house - she saw Naruto's presence on open scrolls covered with annotations and notes, empty ramen bowls on the counter and in the sink, and strange artifacts and books in every corner that belonged to him.

Among the various weapons placed against the wall or next to the metal oil and whetstones, she saw Sasuke.

Among the rolled up ointment gauze and medicine jar, she saw Sakura's figure.

Team 7 naturally pulled her into their evening activities. They sat in the living room for more than an hour, discussing exam strategies, favorite foods, training locations, and interesting ninjutsu.

The more they talked, the more grateful she was that she wouldn't have to face either of them in the first round of the exam.

There was a knock on the door and a ninja dog sounded the alarm.

"I'll go open the door," Naruto said, quickly standing up and walking towards the door, ready to disarm the trap.

"Iruka-sensei!"

This statement immediately caught the attention of everyone in the living room, and Hinata saw one of her favorite teachers (second only to Kurenai Yuhi) walk into the room with a warm welcome from Naruto.

Iruka's smile was bright and forgiving.

"I just came to see if everyone is okay." He said, adjusting the bag on his arm. "Sakura, can you do me a favor?"

"Of course!" Sakura responded immediately, placing Biscuit under Sasuke's arm and running over to Iruka-sensei.

Iruka handed everything to her without hesitation, and Sakura took it with one hand while she used the other to curiously look through the contents.

Whatever was inside made her scream with delight and she ran into the kitchen with the bag. Iruka smiled and looked up to see Hinata sitting at the coffee table.

"Oh, Hinata! Are you staying here tonight?"

She nodded, a blush appearing on her cheeks involuntarily.

Iruka tilted his head back.

"Wise choice."

He bent down, crouched beside Sasuke, and placed the back of his hand on Sasuke's forehead.

"Ryouta said you might have a fever," Naruto said, jumping onto the back of the couch while Sasuke sat up and leaned against the armrest.

"I'm fine," the Uchiha grumbled, clearly uncomfortable with all the attention.

"I'll get an ice pack," Hinata said, slowly standing up. She remembered seeing a few towels in the hallway closet when Sakura went to get her a spare blanket.

To her surprise, when she stood up, Naruto stood up as well.

"I'm going to help."

This surprised her because ever since the strange snake-ninja incident, Naruto had been guarding his teammates closely.

She nodded, trying to control her blush.

It's not so easy to completely let go of years of secret love, sometimes it still sneaks up; like now, looking at the pair of sapphire eyes under the swirling golden hair, still clear and bright, although there is a hint of heaviness hidden behind them.

His heart was as pure as ever, with concern and trust flowing through it, but underneath it all there was a hint of cold and real fear that Hinata had never seen in him before.

They silently fetched towels and ice packs, and as they tested the water temperature at the bathroom sink, Hinata mustered up the courage to be the first to break the silence.

"He's not just sick, is he?" she whispered.

Naruto blinked but didn't let her explain herself. He didn't answer right away, just bit his lip and fiddled with the faucet.

"I, I've seen him like this before," Naruto whispered, pausing to bite his lip again.

"What is it?" Hinata asked. "What happened to him?"

Naruto took a deep breath and replied:

"The seal on him is a... enhanced seal. The seal is trying to inject some strange chakra into his body, but his body is rejecting it."

"But isn't that a good thing?" Hinata asked in confusion. "His body is resisting?"

"Well, yes, sort of." Naruto complained, his brows still furrowed. "But it's not just his body that's resisting, it's also his chakra. The battle made him even weaker."

"You mean the chakra is disordered," Hinata whispered, covering her mouth with a hand.

Naruto nodded and pulled his fingers out from under the faucet.

"This isn't a big problem for an average ninja, who can recover after a rest, but the thing in his body injects chakra as fast as he can resist it, and..."

"The more he resists, the more disorder will grow, and the more his meridians will become blocked," Hinata interrupted gently.

Naruto visibly deflated, his shoulders slumping.

"Yes."