006 An Uncertain Future - Hinata’s POV

Back inside the abandoned building, Hinata worked quietly, stuffing their meager belongings into a worn-out bag. The night air seeped in through the broken windows, carrying the distant hum of the city. Their temporary shelter—an old office space long since forgotten—had served its purpose. But now, after that strange encounter, Hinata wasn’t sure what to do next.

Behind her, Naruto sat cross-legged on the dusty floor, turning a small, sleek business card between his fingers. He had been staring at it for a while now, flipping it back and forth as if expecting it to reveal some hidden message.

"Should we call it?" Naruto finally asked, breaking the silence. “How do you even call it? Do I… uuuh… whisper to it?”

Hinata paused, her hands tightening around the strap of the bag. She turned to look at him. "Call what?"

Naruto held up the card, its smooth surface catching the dim light. Embossed in bold letters were the words Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School.

"This," he said, waving it slightly. "The Gojo guy gave it to us. Maybe it's important, ya know."

"I don’t know," she murmured, unsure. “Maybe?”

Naruto hummed in thought, tilting his head. "That Gojo guy… he was weird, but I don't think he was lying about everything. He knew stuff. And he was strong."

Hinata sighed, resuming her packing. "I don’t know, Naruto-kun."

Naruto fell silent for a moment, watching her carefully. "So… what's the plan?" he asked, his voice quieter now.

Hinata’s fingers stilled. That was the real question, wasn’t it? What was the plan?

On one hand, this Gojo Satoru had approached them like a recruiter. He had seen something in them—whether it was their abilities, their energy, or just their circumstances—and wanted to get them involved in this so-called Jujutsu World.

Hinata didn’t like it. She didn’t trust people who moved too fast, who acted too easily, who were too impossible to read. As a kunoichi, it was embarrassing that she couldn’t get a proper read on him. His energy was too erratic, his presence too overwhelming. Even when he had taken off his blindfold, revealing those striking blue eyes, she hadn’t sensed deceit. But that didn’t mean she trusted him.

And yet… what other options did they have?

She glanced at Naruto, who was still waiting for an answer. His blue eyes, so bright and clear even in the dim room, reminded her of their past—of a time when things had been so much simpler, so much easier. Well, the easier times at least. After all, the shinobi world was never easy. Naruto didn’t remember, but she did. And she had to be the one to figure out where to go from here.

Hinata sighed. "I don’t know yet," she admitted, her voice softer than before.

Naruto nodded slowly, as if he had expected that answer. He didn’t push her. Instead, he lay back on the floor, holding the card above his face and squinting at it again.

"...I kinda wanna see what this school is like," he mused.

Hinata didn’t reply. She simply kept packing, her thoughts too tangled to sort through.

For now, she’d let the night pass. Maybe by morning, she’d have an answer.

Hinata tightened the straps on the duffel bag, giving it one last check before straightening up. Packing hadn’t taken long—there wasn’t much to pack in the first place. A few clothes, some food they had scavenged, and whatever essentials they had managed to gather since arriving in this strange world. As for Naruto, his belongings were practically nonexistent. What little he needed, they could procure along the way.

As she adjusted the weight of the bag over her shoulder, Naruto’s voice broke the silence.

“So… are we going to this Tokyo place?” he asked, his legs stretched out lazily in front of him. He twirled the business card between his fingers, watching it flip back and forth. “Or—” he hesitated, squinting at the text again, “—should we, uh… call this number? Whatever that means. I… I am sorry, Hinata-chan. I kinda feel restless, ya know.”

Hinata exhaled slowly, shifting her weight.

Naruto didn’t know what calling meant. He had no memories, and even if he did, it wouldn’t have helped. Phones didn’t exist in their world.

A slight frown tugged at her lips. The closest thing she could compare a phone call to was the long-distance telegraphs that had been introduced in some parts of the Land of Fire. Not many people used them, but she remembered hearing about them in passing. Some shinobi villages had experimented with similar systems for communication between outposts. Then there were carrier pigeons, which had been more widely used by the shinobi forces. Messages carried over great distances, sometimes encoded, sometimes urgent.

And then there was the ANBU.

She recalled a conversation she had once overheard between Kurenai-sensei and Asuma-sensei. There had been whispers—rumors, really—of an advanced communication method used exclusively by the ANBU. Something that allowed them to send messages without the use of pigeons or scrolls. The details had been vague, but now, standing here in this unfamiliar world, she wondered if that rumor had been referring to something like this—phones.

“Hinata-chan?” Naruto’s voice pulled her from her thoughts. He was looking at her expectantly, clearly waiting for an answer.

Hinata shifted her grip on the bag, adjusting its weight before responding. “Calling… is a way to talk to someone from far away,” she explained, choosing her words carefully. “Kind of like how messages are sent through telegraphs or pigeons.”

Naruto blinked. “So, like a long-distance jutsu?”

“Yeah,” Hinata hesitated, then nodded. “Something like that.”

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She had given Naruto a crash course about chakra and jutsu, so it wasn’t strange he think of something like a long-distance jutsu.

“Huh…” muttered Naruto, “Weird,”

Hinata couldn’t argue with that.

She turned toward the window, peering out into the city. The streets below were illuminated by the glow of neon signs and streetlights, a sight she still hadn’t quite gotten used to. This place was nothing like Konoha. No towering trees, no dirt roads, no Hokage Monument watching over them. Everything here was metal, glass, and electricity.

Would this Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School have any answers for them?

Hinata wasn’t sure.

“…So?” Naruto asked again, pulling her attention back. “Are we calling or what?”

Hinata sighed. “Not yet,” she decided. “I am still thinking about it.”

Naruto nodded, “Take your time, Hinata-chan.”

Hinata’s fingers moved swiftly as she counted the bills in her wallet. The thin paper felt fragile between her fingertips, so different from the currency she had grown up using. Yet, after weeks of working part-time jobs, she had grown accustomed to it—just as she had adapted to so much in this strange world.

Her ability to adjust had surprised even herself.

At first, the unfamiliarity had been overwhelming—the strange technology, the odd customs, the complete lack of chakra in people. But survival demanded adaptability, and if there was one thing she had learned from being a kunoichi, it was how to survive.

She let out a quiet sigh as she closed her wallet. The money she had left wasn’t much, but it would have to do.

“Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School…” Naruto murmured, rolling the name around in his mouth. “Was it… like the Academy?”

Hinata hesitated. “I can’t tell,” she answered plainly.

She had no idea what a Jujutsu Sorcerer truly was, but if they were anything like this country’s equivalent of shinobi, then their existence could only mean trouble.

A school for these so-called sorcerers… what did they teach? How many were there? And more importantly, were they part of the government? If they were truly a military force, much like how Konoha’s shinobi served the Land of Fire, then it would be in their best interest to not get involved with them.

Naruto’s presence alone would complicate things.

The Kyūbi.

Even without actively using its chakra, Naruto still had the beast sealed within him—didn’t he? Hinata had no idea what had become of their abilities since waking up here, but she wasn’t willing to take chances. If these sorcerers found out what was inside Naruto, what would they do?

She wasn’t going to wait around to find out.

“I’d rather leave,” she said at last. “Be as far away from people like Gojo Satoru as possible.”

Naruto looked up at her, blinking. “You really don’t trust that guy, huh?”

Hinata frowned, tightening her grip on her wallet. “I couldn’t read him,” she admitted. “As a kunoichi, that’s… embarrassing.”

She had spent years training to read people, to pick up the smallest shifts in body language, the slightest hesitation in words. And yet, when it came to that man with the blindfold and that wide, easy-going grin…

She had nothing.

And that scared her more than she wanted to admit.

Naruto stretched his arms behind his head, letting out a breath. “Well, if you say so,” he said, tone easy but accepting. “Hey, aren’t we packing too much?”

Hinata didn’t answer right away. Instead, she moved toward the bed where she had laid out their supplies. A large camper’s backpack sat there, already filled with the essentials. She hefted it onto her back, testing the weight.

Naruto frowned as he watched her. “You’re carrying that?”

Hinata barely had time to nod before Naruto stood and grabbed the straps. “I’ll carry it.”

She blinked at him. “I can handle it.”

Naruto gave her an exasperated look. “Yeah, and so can I. It’s fine, Hinata-chan. You don’t have to carry everything.”

Hinata hesitated before relenting, allowing him to take the backpack. Thinking about it, she grabbed another spare bag and began stuffing it with supplies—cooking utensils, canned food, medical kits—anything she thought they might need. If they were going to flee, she wanted to be prepared.

Naruto watched as she packed, his expression unreadable. After a moment, he sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

“You’re really serious about this, huh?”

Hinata paused, glancing at him.

“Yes,” she said simply.

Naruto looked at her for a moment longer before he grinned, shifting the weight of the backpack on his shoulders. “Alright then. Let’s get going.”

The night air was crisp and cool, wrapping around Hinata like a second skin as she moved. The city lights behind them faded into the distance, swallowed by the dense treetops. Shadows stretched long beneath the moonlight, but to her, they posed no obstacle—her vision worked perfectly in the dark.

Naruto, on the other hand, struggled.

She could hear him behind her, his breath uneven as he tried to keep up. The way he moved lacked his usual grace—he was hesitant, unsteady. When she leapt from one tree branch to another, he followed, but with far less confidence. His landings were rough, his footing unsure. Yet, despite that, he didn’t fall. Somehow, he managed.

Hinata glanced back at him as she adjusted her pace.

He’s learning.

Slowly but surely, Naruto was finding his rhythm, and once he did, she pushed forward. She wasn’t running full speed—she didn’t want to risk exhausting him—but they needed to keep moving.

By the time they reached their destination, nearly an hour and a half had passed.

An abandoned construction site loomed ahead, skeletal structures of unfinished buildings standing tall against the night sky. Rusted scaffolding lined the perimeter, and large concrete pipes lay scattered around, half-buried in dirt and weeds.

Hinata slowed, her senses sharp.

The air felt heavy.

She recognized this sensation all too well by now—the unnatural weight, the crawling unease at the back of her mind. Curses were here.

Naruto felt it too. He stiffened beside her, scanning their surroundings even though he couldn’t see what she could. “Hinata?” he asked cautiously.

She nodded, stepping forward. “Stay close.”

Without hesitation, she activated her Byakugan.

Her world shifted. Veins bulged at the corners of her eyes as her vision expanded, piercing through the darkness. Figures twisted in the shadows—grotesque shapes with too many limbs, hollow sockets where eyes should be, gaping mouths frozen in silent screams.

Curses.

It was the term Gojo Satoru used and it fitted.

Hinata moved.

The lesser ones fell easily. A single precise strike to their cores was enough to dissipate them into wisps of cursed energy. She weaved through them effortlessly, ducking under clawed limbs, striking vital points with the practiced ease of a kunoichi.

Naruto watched, fists clenched at his sides.

Then the strongest one emerged.

It was larger than the others, its body resembling something between a human and a beast. Its torso was long and stretched unnaturally, its limbs too thin yet too powerful. Jagged teeth protruded from its wide, lipless mouth, dripping with something black and foul-smelling.

Its eyes—four of them—rolled wildly in their sockets before locking onto Hinata.

It lunged.

Hinata barely had time to react as it swiped at her, its claws slicing through the air where she had been moments before. She twisted away, landing on the metal framework of a half-built structure.

The Curse let out a shriek.

It moved fast. Faster than the others.

Hinata’s mind worked quickly. The core. She had to find it—strike it before the Curse could overwhelm her.

She adjusted her stance, bringing her palms up.

Gentle Fist.

The Curse rushed at her again. This time, she met it head-on.

Her strikes landed true. One, two—straight to its limbs, disrupting the flow of energy within. It stumbled but didn’t fall. With a guttural snarl, it lashed out again, and Hinata barely ducked in time, feeling the air shift as its claws nearly grazed her cheek.

Faster.

She moved in a blur. Her hands found their mark—its chest, where the energy pulsed strongest. She thrust her palm forward, chakra-less but precise. The Curse let out a shriek, convulsing violently before crumbling into nothing.

Silence fell.

Hinata exhaled.

She had been lucky. There were no bigger Curses here. If there had been, she wasn’t sure she could have fought them and kept Naruto safe. Those she tried to avoid.

Naruto approached her cautiously. “You okay?”

Hinata nodded, wiping her sleeve across her forehead. “I’m fine.”

Naruto looked around at the now-empty site, then back at her. His expression was unreadable, but his hands were clenched into fists.

“…I need to get stronger,” he muttered.

Hinata looked at him, but before she could say anything, he turned away.

They still had a long way to go.