How Kurama Leads Naruto Astray

——Also known as: Cold and distant young master chasing after his wild wife, the spoiled wife wreaking havoc... Hinata would definitely have a problem with this——

"Ha~" Kazayahana Koyuki exhaled a warm breath into her hands, looking at the forest ahead, then glancing back at the endless whiteness behind her.

At this moment, she felt a bit regretful—not for running away, but for not bringing an extra piece of clothing. She had underestimated the cold of the icy landscape, and it was a bit too chilly.

She only brought a white cloak this time. At first, she had planned to cover her tracks, but now that was no longer possible. The snow was just too cold.

She didn't want to die, and she had no ambitions of ruling. That's why she didn't want to oppose Kazahana Doto. She knew resistance was useless. She had seen her father die before her eyes, her home reduced to flames, and all she could do was escape.

She hated her own cowardice, but she had come to terms with it.

That's why she didn't want to resist. It was unnecessary. If she didn't want to die, then running away was the best option, even if she was reluctant. What could she do? Could she take down Kazahana Doto with two kids who liked to lie and a drunk who only knew about Satoshi's sake?

It was impossible.

So, she decided to escape.

The next moment, something caused her to trip. The sharp pain hit her immediately, and with it came an uncontrollable fall to the ground.

The cold snow hit her face, and Kazayahana Koyuki instinctively hugged herself, but the cold and pain didn't go away. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. Her tears had long dried up.

Tears were unnecessary.

She gritted her teeth, pulled her left foot out of the snow. She didn't dare take off her shoes, so she could only guess if it was bleeding based on the pain.

It shouldn't be, probably just a misstep where she stepped on the edge of a stone, causing her to lose her balance.

She sighed in relief, then leaned on a nearby tree to try to stand. But as soon as she put weight on her foot, the pain became even worse, completely overwhelming her. She collapsed back to the ground.

"Damn!" she cursed, filled with frustration, though she wasn't sure who or what she was frustrated with.

"I thought you could get up," Naruto said, standing in a tree and looking down at Kazayahana Koyuki, his expression calm, without any intention of helping her.

Kazayahana Koyuki froze for a moment, but then suddenly relaxed and collapsed onto the ground, rolling over to face Naruto up in the tree.

Her eyes were hollow. "Ninjas are really something. A journey that would take an ordinary person half an hour, you can cover in just a few minutes."

"It's just chakra focused on the soles of your feet," 

Naruto said, jumping down from the tree and landing beside Kazayahana Koyuki. 

"Aren't you running away?"

Kazayahana Koyuki gave him a sidelong glance. "Have you been following me for a long time?"

Only if you've been following for a while would you say something like that.

"Not long." Naruto shook his head. "Only about two minutes."

"Heh." 

Kazayahana Koyuki suddenly laughed, but it was a cold laugh. "You really are a little brat with a strange sense of humor."

Naruto shrugged, not arguing. Not many people would call him that, but when they did, it was always sincere. As for himself, he was fine. Sasuke's bad habits were growing stronger these days, and lately, it seemed like he was starting to act like a jester.

But compared to a jester, Kurama was definitely the worst.

In the sealed space, Kurama suddenly lifted his head, frowned, and spoke with an uncertain tone. "Naruto, I sense malice towards me from you. Were you just secretly slandering me?"

"I didn't, that's just your imagination." Naruto denied with a serious look on his face.

Kurama stared at Naruto's face for a long time, then muttered something to himself. In the end, he didn't argue and lowered his head to curl up again.

Kazayahana Koyuki, unable to hear their conversation, chose to give up after realizing she couldn't move: "Carry me back, I can't move my legs."

"Why should I carry you?" Naruto pouted in annoyance, though it was just some complaining.

His backpack didn't have any emergency medical supplies, only soldier pills. But these didn't work on non-ninjas, and the only way to get her back was to carry this woman so the director's team could prepare some medicine.

"Or you can choose to hold me." Kazayahana Koyuki said with no expression, holding out both of her hands, making her meaning very clear.

Naruto mumbled something under his breath but, in the end, didn't choose to hold her. Instead, he squatted down, facing away from her: "Move yourself."

Kazayahana Koyuki instinctively furrowed her brow but didn't say anything. Using her last bit of strength, she lay on Naruto's back, and he stood up, carrying her.

Naruto rocked Kazayahana Koyuki on his back. She was a little heavier than Hinata, but it was still bearable.

Thinking about it, he stood up straight and didn't use a ninja method to move. Instead, he took slow but steady steps toward where he came from. Since he had found Kazayahana Koyuki, everything else didn't seem that important anymore.

As for the enemy, to be honest, Naruto didn't care. In fact, if the enemy was stronger, he'd be even happier.

After all, with Jiraiya backing him up, his mindset was completely different now. Of course, he wouldn't be as arrogant as the snow ninjas.

Walking along the road, Kazayahana Koyuki lay on Naruto's back, holding his neck with both hands. She leaned on his shoulder, watching him. Then, for some reason, she suddenly laughed: "A little guy like you who's not cute at all must be carrying his first pretty girl, right?"

"Hinata is prettier than you." Naruto replied without hesitation.

Kazayahana Koyuki's smile froze for a moment, but then returned to normal. "I've heard Sasuke mention 'Hinata' before. Who is she? Your girlfriend?"

"Not exactly." Naruto said seriously. 

"That's why I'll work hard to catch up to her, confess my feelings to her with all my heart, and become the person standing by her side."

Kazayahana Koyuki's face showed a hint of gossip: "So, you have a crush on her?"

"Quite the opposite." Naruto shook his head. "It's Hinata who likes me."

"What kind of girl is she?" Kazayahana Koyuki was very curious about the kind of person who would like Naruto, this not-so-cute little guy.

Naruto thought for a moment and then suddenly smiled: "She's shy, very cute, but strong. I used to think her personality was a bit strange, the way she always spoke in pauses. Later, I realized it wasn't her fault. It was because the person she was talking to was me."

"Are you bragging about yourself or praising the girl?" Kazayahana Koyuki found it a bit awkward.

"Whatever you think." Naruto replied with a grin, then, as if remembering something, spoke again: "By the way, Hinata used to be very shy. Her talent in the Hyuga clan wasn't great, and she seemed to even lose to her younger sister."

"But later, she changed. She became strong. Even when facing an opponent she knew she couldn't beat, she would still fight for victory."

"It was originally me who told her this, but in the end, I forgot about it because of my own confusion. Instead, it was Hinata who reminded me of it at the last moment," Naruto looked up at the sky. "Now that I think about it, I think I like her a little more."

Kazayahana Koyuki fell silent.

She leaned against Naruto's shoulder and looked at him for a while. It wasn't until they entered a cave, and the light dimmed, that her voice finally reached Naruto's ear: "Fighting when you know you can't win is foolish. If you can't win, just give up. Even if you fight hard, it will only lead to your death."

Naruto suddenly stopped walking, standing in the cave and staring down a dark passage. "I feel like you're hinting at something," he said.

Kazayahana Koyuki didn't respond; she just looked at him.

A moment later, Naruto continued walking. "Someone once told you something similar. That guy's name was Hyuga Neji. He was pretty stubborn, believing that fate couldn't be changed. I ended up scolding him, and now I can't be bothered to scold you again. So let me give you the most important thing he heard from me."

"Back then, I said it to him, and now I'm saying it to you."

Kazayahana Koyuki blinked, staring at Naruto and instinctively asking, "What did you say?"

"Retreating only leads to aging, and cowardice will bring about death."

Naruto turned to look at Kazayahana Koyuki. "I guess many people have forgotten this, but I'll always remember it, because my father, my mother, my third grandfather, Jiraiya, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura, and Sasuke, they all lived by these words."

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