Nindō: Dominion

The family of five finally reached the resort a few hours before midnight. They had to trek for almost an hour before they reached the actual spot since the train only dropped them at the nearest town.

"This place is the definition of tucked away inside the mountains, huh?" Hanabi spoke as they entered through the heavy wooden arch that signified the entrance to the resort. It was situated in a valley surrounded by tall mountains, which made both locating and reaching the place a difficult process.

"This might as well be a Hidden Village, considering how it's placed," Boruto said. "Dad, are you sure that this place isn't like a secret base for Yugakure's Anbu?"

"Nah, this is just a really peaceful, secluded resort in the middle of nowhere, but with all the facilities one might need. It's the perfect vacation spot for ninjas who can easily reach here," he said. "Granny Tsunade found me a gem of a place."

As they talked, a young woman wearing a traditional white haori and red hakama attire walked up to them with a serene smile that made her seem pure and untouched by the world.

"Greetings, Uzumaki-sama, and family," she bowed respectfully. "My name is Shuri, and I shall be available for any requests that you or your family have for your stay in our Seiryu no Yu resort. Please follow me to the reception to verify your arrival and collect the keys to your room."

"Thanks, Shuri," Naruto nodded as the girl in the Miko attire turned around and led them to the reception.

Hanabi walked forward and approached her, seemingly to talk about something.

"A personal attendant for our stay? That's pretty fancy," Boruto commented, looking at his father's back.

Soon, the five of them were led to their room, with their luggage already having arrived before them. The Anbu was very efficient regarding such matters. Unless Naruto deliberately moved too quickly and abandoned them, they would not only stay out of his family's sight but would also take care of many things preemptively.

"Damn, brother-in-law …" Hanabi unceremoniously fell on the huge couch in the living room of the suite. "How much did you spend on this trip? They have everything. Suddenly, I don't even want to explore the Land of Hot Water and am willing to spend the entire week just in the resort."

"The number would shock you too much, so forget it," Naruto said. "Just enjoy the amenities."

"True, as long as you're paying, I won't complain and just freeload off of my brother-in-law, as is my right."

"Naruto-kun, I'm going to check out the private hot spring," Hinata said.

"I'll come with you," he nodded. "I need to get rid of Hanabi's drool that soaked my entire shoulder."

His accusatory look at Hanabi was met with a smug, victorious expression from the woman.

"Big brother, come on, there are snacks in the room …" Himawari suddenly discovered the cabinet that was stocked up with overpriced snacks in the minibar.

Naruto shook his head at the kids' excitement.

"Don't eat too much, or else you'll have a stomach ache all night," Hinata warned. "If you are really hungry, we can order some room service. Their chefs are available overnight as well, right?"

"That's true," Naruto nodded. "Though I suggest that you go to sleep for now. I know you slept quite a bit on the way, but it's better to sleep now and actually enjoy the facilities of the resort during the day."

Hearing the noncommital responses of the kids, Hinata sighed and looked at Hanabi. The sisters shared some kind of silent communication as Hanabi nodded, and Hinata hooked her arm through Naruto's, leading him to the bath.

The pair soon entered the bath to take a shower before dipping in the pool. As Hinata got rid of her clothes to shower, she noticed that Naruto was just standing there, looking at her.

"What? Is there something on me?" She asked with a pleased tone.

"No … Just thinking how I got lucky enough to have you as my wife," he spoke without making any moves.

"You know," Hinata shook her head and started taking off his clothes. "Some people would consider that I was the one who hit it big. Son of the Fourth Hokage, strongest shinobi in the world, the Seventh Hokage himself … Not just anyone is worthy of such a legendary figure."

Her words made Naruto laugh lightly as he raised his arms to let her get rid of his jacket and shirt.

"Why don't you talk to me now?" Hinata spoke as her fingers ran along her husband's torso. "It's been bugging me that you have something bottled up like that."

"…" Naruto didn't say anything as Hinata patiently waited for his response while getting him out of his clothes. Once done, she held his hand and pulled him forward to stand under the shower, pressed together.

"Hm …" She prompted with a faint hum while resting her hands on his shoulders after turning the shower on. Under the hot water, she calmly ran her palms along his skin as if rubbing off all the sweat that had dried away during their journey.

"I don't want you to hate me, Hinata …" Naruto mumbled with a resigned tone, leaning his head forward, touching Hinata's head as his arms hung at his sides.

She looked up to meet his eyes and saw the swirling apprehension in them. Without a word, she continued her previous actions, giving Naruto the time to say what he wanted to say. She simply clung to him, enjoying his presence under the warm shower.

As the minutes passed, she spoke to him. "Do you love me, Naruto-kun?"

"With all my heart," he responded without hesitation.

"Then that's all that matters, no?" She smiled a gentle smile at him. "No matter what happened. As long as our love is real, nothing else matters, does it?"

Naruto sighed as he finally raised his arms and wrapped them around Hinata's waist, burying his face in her neck. He kissed her soft skin as she lightly squirmed under his touch before pulling back just enough that his lips hovered over her ear.

"I … haven't been completely faithful with you, Hinata …" He said to her, loosening his grip over her as she processed the words.

"What do you mean?" She asked with the same gentle tone as before, but her eyes told him a different story.

"Karin … I … have a thing going on with her … A deal. That's the only way I can trust her enough to involve her in my plans. But I didn't have sex with her … It's just some oral stuff … There's also the thing with me coming back … Remember that time I told you about how my sudden change was because of a premonition of danger? That wasn't exactly true either. I have memories of the future … a future where you and I are sealed … Where I was sealed in solitude for more than seven hundred million years. It's a long story, but I encountered something … Something that helped me come back to fix things. That's the reason that I had that sudden change. That's why I suddenly became so much more ruthless in politics …"

Now that he'd let it out, things just kept pouring out, if only somewhat incoherently. Naruto kept speaking as Hinata quietly listened with what could only be described as a numb expression on her face.

Once Naruto stopped, a heavy silence descended upon the two of them, the only sounds being that of the shower as the hot water hit their bodies and trailed down to the floor.

Hinata sighed helplessly, "I was thinking of doing something special for you in the hot spring since you've been holding back for the last week," she said. "I guess that's not necessary now …"

"Hinata …"

"I don't hate you for this, Naruto …" She looked up at him with a lot of emotions swirling in her eyes. "Why don't you go on into the spring? I'll go back into our room for a bit. To clear my head a little. Maybe I'll take a walk …"

"Sure," Naruto nodded, stiff and unsure of what to do.

"Hehe," she let out a forced giggle. "Don't worry, silly. I won't leave you because of this. Just give me some time to myself, okay?" Leaning forward, Hinata left a chaste kiss on his lips before stepping back.

She grabbed one of the towels to dry her hair and wrapped herself in a robe before stepping away.

"It's done …" Naruto sighed. "You broke her heart, dickhead. You couldn't just decide to keep things to yourself like we'd planned? If she never found out, things would've been perfect … Fucking #%$^%@ and the bullshit with merging me with my past self to give me a conscience …"

[You seem to be dissociating, Naruto.]

[No, I'm just … I guess I am kind of doing that. Whatever.]

He didn't respond to what Kurama said in response and instead turned off the shower before stepping toward the private spring that was separated by a thin screen. He stepped into the scorching hot water without any issues and sat on one of the steps, leaning against the wall as the water came up to just under his chest.

"I just hope … I don't know what I really hope," Naruto mumbled to himself as he shifted a little to make himself comfortable.

As a helpless sigh escaped his lips, he heard the sound of the door to the bathroom opening again.

'Did Hinata forget something?'

***

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